Pictures of Paradise. Sweet voices in harmony, songs of love.
'Ain't nothing but a heartache, ain't nothing but a mistake. I never want to hear you say 'I want it that way''
It's the 90's. The Age of Grunge is over. Gangster Rap has been dismissed. The Spice Girls have come along like a wrecking ball, backed up by Hanson, clearing away the trash of the early 90's. Hanson and 'Mmmbop' has given the movement a true mission, a new spiritual direction for America.
I am about 20. I have just been blown away. I am used to Gangster Rap and angry Grunge. For seven years I have hid from the contemporary music scene.
And yet there she is. Britney Spears. Singing not of hate or anger, but of love.
Yes, I came to the party late. I had no idea it was a major cultural movement until then. Soon I am in bliss, surrounded by great music.
N*SYNC. The Backstreet Boys. Britney Spears. Christina Aguilera. Destiny's Child. Will Smith. Ricky Martin. J-Lo.
I Want It That Way. Tearin' Up My Heart. Genie in a Bottle.
The songwriters: Max Martin. Rami. Andreas Carlsson. Kristian Lundin. Eric Foster White. Justin Timberlake. J C Chasez. Beyonce.
The adult version of Pop: Madonna's 'Ray of Light', 'Believe' by Cher.
And all those great albums, the N*SYNC and Britney and BSB and Christina and 98 Degrees albums, with album track after album track that could have been hit singles. More great songs on a typical great late-90's pop album than in entire careers.
(And if you're American and love Pop, don't overlook Westlife!)
And the best part: the attitude. Pop attitude.
This is what it sounds like to get angry at anger itself, to rebel against anger itself.
The roots of Pop: classic Motown. The Girl Groups of the 60's. ABBA and the 70's. Michael Jackson and the 80's.
Boys II Men and All-4-One in the early 90's. Yeah, Pop never went away when the Age of Grunge came.
The survival of Pop: Justin Timberlake and Taylor Swift. Pop is still with us- it just went underground.
(While at the same time Taylor Swift is the new Dylan!)
And that wonderful moment in the early 2000's when Pop grew up and gave us an era of mature, positive melodic singer-songwriterish music, starting with Alecia Keys and Faith Hill and including Christina Aguilera's 'Stripped' and songs 'Beautiful' and 'Fighter' and such artists as Norah Jones.
Aah! I could go on and on remembering that era as well!
(And of course Taylor Swift is a successor to that as well!)
And that moment in 2002 when, led by Avril Lavigne and 'Complicated', Pop joined forces with Grunge to get angry at the darkness brought on by the September 11th terrorist attacks, giving us the great pop rock of Avril Lavigne, Kelly Clarkson and Christina Aguilera's 'Fighter'. For a while we fought back against the darkness and had one last hurrah before the dark night closed in. Grunge did some great things; but it had always lacked spiritual direction and gone along with the rest of the darkness of the early 90's. Now Avril Lavigne and 'Complicated' had given Grunge a spiritual direction, and arm-in-arm with Pop it was gonna save the world. For a few years, at least.
Back in the 70's The Who promised us that if we ever needed it, Rock and Roll would save the World. After Grunge ruined Rock and Roll (by pushing it aside- Grunge is not Rock and Roll), and we really needed it, they put together all that is important about Rock and Roll, called it Pop, and saved the world (for a while) with it.
Justin Timberlake, Taylor Swift, the Backstreet Boys (their 2005 album anyone?), the Jonas Brothers, Dreamworks (the Trolls movies!) and Disney are still trying to save the world with it.
There have been some times that the emotions of the human community have been focused in such a beautiful, positive, radiant way.
Where as a community we were capable of such wonderful things.
That was such a time.
Boy, that was a great era. And this is my tribute to it.
David S. Annderson
P.S. I applaud Britney Spears. All they put her through, and she never stopped doing music, and she never stopped doing it her way. Way to go!
(I just wish she could still find someone to write real lyrics and a real lead melody for her, because she clearly wants to do something like Madonna's 'Ray of light' but she can't find anyone writing that kind of music who is Pop enough to want to write decent lyrics or a decent lead melody (Justin Timberlake writes the lyrics and lead melody himself), but hey, most (all) of the industry is against her, and hates Pop, what can you do? But she keeps going anyway... way to go, Britney!)
(I have to admit I'm thinking of the last time they promoted her music, which was years ago, back in the 'toxic' era... maybe she's got real lyrics and melody since then and they're just not promoting it enough!)