Module 8

Our only listening for our final week was Bodysnatchers, performed by Radiohead in 2007.    This song is one that I actually know and remember when it was released, compared to all the other listening examples in the course that were released when I was still very young.  Bodysnatchers was released when I was about 17 and finishing up high school.  Radiohead is an “alt rock” band that also draws upon other musical influences such as progressive rock, electronic dance music, orchestral music, flamenco, jazz, and the classic singer-songwriter tradition.  Bodysnatchers is about a person who is trapped within his own body, unable to connect with the world around him. The combination of the eerie lyrics with the exotic nature of the instrumental and vocal choices in the song, make for an interesting choice that definitely made an impact in the music scene.

Module 7

       Our listenings this week were all about music from the 1980’s and 1990’s.  The first five examples were classics from the 80’s, including Lady performed by Kenny Rogers in 1980, Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) performed by Eurhythmics in 1983, What’s Love Got to Do with It, performed by Tina Turner in 1984, Jump, performed by Van Halen in 1984, and Sledgehammer, written and performed by Peter Gabriel in 1986.  These five listenings represent the diverse musical styles of the listeners, and all five of these songs reached number one at some point in time.  Despite the diversity in styles, these songs, along with many others of their time, focused on the concept of love.

            Another very important song from the 80’s was When Doves Cry, written, performed, and produced by Prince in 1984.  As a last minute addition to his Purple Rain soundtrack, When Doves Cry is very different from other pop songs.  It is almost six minutes long, which was very atypical at the time.  Also atypical, was the fact that Prince was essentially a one-man show with this song, writing it by himself, as well as producing and playing each individual part.  Although I’m not a big fan of Prince, I appreciate the skill it took to create this song (especially after the song creation project!). 

            Throughout Chapter 14, we explored some popular rap songs of the 1990’s, including What’s My Name? performed by Snoop Doggy Dogg in 1993, and U.N.I.T.Y. by Queen Latifah in 1994.  Snoop Dogg and his “gangster persona” were a big hit, and at the time, and in What’s My Name?, he and Dr. Dre sample pieces from many other songs including the traditional African American ballad Staggolee.  Though Snoop Dogg was incredibly famous, Queen Latifah was possibly more influential in the rap/hip-hop world because of her feminism and commercial success.  In the example U.N.I.T.Y., Queen Latifah delivers a straightforward plea for civility and discusses the healing powers of love.

One final example we listened to this week was Smells Like Teen Spirit by Nirvana.  This song was the first alternative rock song written in the 1990’s that was able to reach a Top 10 ranking.  This was probably my favorite song from this week’s listening, as I have always been more of a fan of alternative music as opposed to the usual pop songs.  It also brings back quite a few memories of when I was a kid and would hang out with my older brothers, who were obsessed with Nirvana.