Sometimes heaven pierces through our everyday reality. We suddenly feel as if we no longer have to struggle, strive, or fight. we feel God. It happens when we fall in love, have a child, or are fascinated by mysterious music.
That was when I heard “Nothing Compares to You.” Not a Sinead O’Connor classic, but a recent single by New Orleans singer Britti.
This is a beautiful song from Hello, I’m Britti. This is my favorite album of the year so far. It’s also a reminder that while conservatives lament the collapse of our culture, there’s great music being made once you step outside. Much of it comes from the Easy Eye Sound label, owned and operated by Dan Auerbach of the Black Keys. Auerbach has a deep love for American roots music, especially blues and early soul.
As music writers such as Stanley Crouch and Ralph Ellison have pointed out, America’s black musical tradition is not one of pessimism and despair, but one of affirmation, love, and hope. As Crouch said, the blues is about “handling adversity with grace.” Of course, there can be great tragedy, anger, and melancholy in America’s indigenous musical forms. But there is always hope and deep faith in God.
In fact, America’s black musical tradition has always celebrated the power of love, both erotic and spiritual.in her book the hole in our soul, Scholar Martha Bays argues that this tradition was destroyed in the 1960s by a “perverse modernism” that included bands like the Rolling Stones, who began singing about drugs and violence. Gangster rap was a time of particularly gross perversion.
In 2024, rock music has been usurped by dance, pop, and even jazz. Beyoncé had a hugely successful country album. Ariana Grande and Taylor Swift deliver euphoric songs influenced by the optimism and love of her pop 1980s synths. Critics may argue that popular music is no longer about “social justice,” but nothing in this world is more serious and challenging than love, faith, daily life, and relationships. It’s also hard to imagine a protest song with lyrics as beautiful as Britti’s.
silent movie, foreign beauty
It doesn’t really matter what happens to me
old love letters lost forever
Sinful pleasures are even fading dreams
Because nothing can compare to you
One of the most famous pieces of music criticism is legendary Detroit critic Lester Bangs’ review of Van Morrison’s albums. Astral week. Morrison is a man from Northern Ireland, and his music is completely influenced by American black soul and jazz.when astral week When he published the film in 1968, he was so depressed that his “nerves were in shreds and ghosts and spiders were looming over me,” Bangs writes. Then his bangs said: [Astral Weeks] At the time, it was thought of as a beacon that illuminated the shores beyond the darkness. Furthermore, it was proof that there was something left to express artistically other than nihilism and destruction. ”
in astral week, He continues, “There was an element of redemption in the blackness, an ultimate compassion for the suffering of others, and a sense of pure beauty and mystical awe of the area that cut to the heart of the work.” He continued. This was a tonic, Bangs wrote. Because “the self-destructive undertow that always accompanied the great parties of the 60s had gripped his ankles tightly and pulled him straight down.”
The undertow of the disastrous 1960s party is certainly dragging many people down. But American popular music has largely escaped.
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Mark Judge is an award-winning journalist and author of the following books: The Devil’s Triangle: Mark Judge vs. the New American Stasi. He is also the author of Georgetown Preparatory Gods and Men, damn senator. and A tremor of bliss.
