tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12596260.post8813529253423999249..comments2023-10-23T12:25:03.006-04:00Comments on Ramblin' with Roger: LINKORAMA: Kill More Of Your IdolsRoger Owen Greenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05298172138307632062noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12596260.post-69685014418596901892007-10-11T17:21:00.000-04:002007-10-11T17:21:00.000-04:00hey there -- I happened onto your blog item about ...hey there -- I happened onto your blog item about the book; and I<BR/>thought you might enjoy the bit below, an introductory spiel I worked<BR/>up to do at bookstore readings when "KYI" came out.<BR/><BR/>cheers,<BR/><BR/>David Menconi/Raleigh (NC) News & Observer<BR/>919/829-4759<BR/>http://blogs.newsobserver.com/beat/<BR/>http://www.OffTheRecordBook.com<BR/><BR/><BR/><BR/> Some of you may know a guy named Jon Wurster, drummer for the local band Superchunk. When he’s not playing drums, one of Jon’s hobbies is to concoct incredibly elaborate phone pranks involving bizarre alter egos. His most inspired prank was to assume the identity of Ronald Thomas Clontle, the world’s most clueless rock critic and the author of a fictitious book “Rock, Rot & Rule” — in which he categorized the<BR/>merits of different bands without offering any reasons as to why they<BR/>rocked, rotted or ruled.<BR/> In a radio interview that many listeners of a New Jersey radio station somehow took seriously, Jon called his non-existent book “the ultimate<BR/>argument settler” — a phrase he claimed he was going to copyright.<BR/>Well, you can think of “Kill Your Idols” as the exact opposite: “the<BR/>ultimate argument starter.” In fact, one of my co-contributors gave a copy of “Kill Your Idols to a friend in a band to take on the road.<BR/>After it got passed around the touring van, it reportedly caused heated arguments and even fist fights. And let me tell you, I just could not be more thrilled to be part of something like that.<BR/> Although I must confess that it’s odd to talk up a book I don’t especially agree with. Of the 34 essays here, I’d say one-third of them are pretty good or even excellent; one third are unconvincing; and one-third of them are just stupendously wrong-headed. But then again,<BR/>disagreeing — sometimes VIOLENTLY disagreeing — seems to be the point<BR/>here. Even the book’s editor is on-record saying he doesn’t agree with<BR/>most of what’s in here.<BR/> That would be Jim DeRogatis of the Chicago Sun-Times, who is something of a bomb-thrower in rock-critic circles. Jim had a brief, ill-fated tenure at Rolling Stone magazine in the mid-90s, and has been trying to get over it ever since. As part of that, Jim hatched “Kill Your Idols” as an answer to the institutional mindset at Rolling Stone, which is<BR/>always publishing boomer-centric lists of the greatest albums, singles, concerts and brain farts of all time. DeRogatis describes this book as the evil twin of “Stranded,” a 1979 essay collection in which critics wrote lovingly of the one record they would take to a desert island if<BR/>they were allowed to take only one. “Kill Your Idols” is more like a description of the record that would make you kill yourself if you were forced to listen to it one more time.<BR/> Now I’m not going to stand up here and try to pass this off as an act of subversion or bravery. But I will say that “Kill Your Idols” is defiantly contrarian, and parts of it are even refreshing. As with<BR/>“Lawrence of Arabia” or James Joyce’s “Ulysses,” a lot of the works dubbed “greatest evers” are seen, read and listened to a lot less than they’re simply revered, primarily due to received wisdom.<BR/> “Kill Your Idols” runs deliberately counter to the rock & roll canon, which means that it’s simply not possible for anyone to endorse all of it. For example, all 35 contributors submitted a personal “desert island top-10” of favorite records, presumably to give readers a reference point on each critic’s tastes. I’m fortunate in that nothing on my top-10 got trashed in the book. But two of my fellow contributors<BR/>had Radiohead’s “OK Computer” in their top-10s. So I guess you could say I rained on their parade with my contribution, an unflattering dissection of “OK Computer.”<BR/> But hey, fair’s fair. Twenty years ago, I began my music-critic career surrounded by aging hippies mooning about The Sixties. Now I find myself surrounded by young hipsters mooning about “OK Computer,” a record that has always mystified me. But that album’s place is already set in stone, presumably. After I turned in my essay for “Kill Your<BR/>Idols,” Rolling Stone magazine ran yet another list — “50 Moments That<BR/>Changed The History of Rock & Roll,” a countdown that included<BR/>Radiohead going into the studio to record “OK Computer” in the fall of<BR/>1996.<BR/> If that’s the official story, then I say let’s just keep it unofficial.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12596260.post-55097612627550346672007-10-10T19:29:00.000-04:002007-10-10T19:29:00.000-04:00I'm still reading your ost, but I want to make a f...I'm still reading your ost, but I want to make a few points before I forget:<BR/><BR/>--I don't disagree with you on <B>Rumours</B>. It's great stuff, that's why it's so popular, and that writer is beginning to sound like a crank. (On second reading of your post, I see that each essay is supposed to be by a different writer. Still: a crank.)<BR/><BR/>--That Dead Kennedys album is pretty damn good, I think.<BR/><BR/>--The writers are just talking crazy when they get to Springsteen. Two brilliant albums. And Bruce never misled anyone on "Born in the U.S.A."; in fact, when Ronald Reagan asked to use the song in his reelection campaign, Bruce refused, saying he didn't think Reagan had actually <I>listened</I> to his music (which was true). He also denied Lee Iacocca's request to use the song for Chrysler.<BR/><BR/>--The writer is spouting pure ignorance when it comes to Public Enemy.<BR/><BR/>--But I kind of agree on Nirvana. And the Smashing Pumpkins album, which could've been brilliant as one disc, but was bloated at two.<BR/><BR/>--And I've said many times before, I don't get the love for Radiohead AT ALL. Not one little bit. They're the cure for insomnia, in my eyes.<BR/><BR/>--I also want to get that Wilco album. I feel like they're a band I should like, but haven't really given enough of a chance.Tom the Doghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12784918700194480944noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12596260.post-3305271895204978132007-10-10T15:00:00.000-04:002007-10-10T15:00:00.000-04:00I think it's still way to early to tell with the J...I think it's still way to early to tell with the Joshua Tree. I mean, a scant 19 or 20 years to dtermine if it's a classic? Need more time.<BR/><BR/>(Okay...I still like it)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com