Date: Tue, 15 May 2001 20:46:11 -0700 (PDT) From: Will Vogtman Subject: A positive and balanced view of Popper and Selling Out
I have resisted these threads for long enough.
It is easy to despise what one does not have.
John Popper is a good harmonica player. He's not the best player to ever walk the planet, but he is definitely respectable in terms of his playing ability. What he chooses to play is appropriate for mass appeal. This is good business.
I do not know how the "pure" country blues players reacted to LW's first recording with amp and mic, but I could imagine a similar backlash. LW's experimentation with effects (although maybe not an original idea) had mass appeal and could soar over the ambient noise of a bar. This is good business.
I do admit that there is more to both playing styles, but these points will do for now.
(I also propose that the two styles can't really be compared in an equal and fair manner--they are two completely different animals.)
I boldly propose that everyone ultimately wants to "sell out." Those people who accuse others of "selling out" are jealous--plain and simple. If I could make a living blowing harp in a clown suit behind N'Sync or the like, I would quit teaching math in a heartbeat.
To quote a member of Metallica," . . . Yeah, we sell out . . . every seat in the house . . . every time we play . . . ."
Cheers--and let's put this one to rest. More instructional and musical content, less dirty laundry
Will
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