note to keith

[Ken Gargett]

rather than have this lost at the arse-end of some long forgotten thread, i felt it necessary to defend/explain/absolve myself.

this comes about as keith recommended i look at a video by someone called taylor swift. i assume keith hates me. why else?

you may take sides.

Ken, Ken, Ken....

You had "...no idea whether taylor swift was a bloke or a chick..."? Really?!?! I wouldn't think that anyone could be that devolved from civilization, but you do seem to surprise us all from time to time. Especially considering some of your past pictures that have popped up on this forum, where the interpretation of "bloke or chick" is definitely up for debate. Lol.

And yes, that music video does entertain 10-year-old-schoolgirls. But it also entertains 35-year-old schmucks like me.

And no - of all people here, you don't need to be giving me music video suggestions or waxing nostalgic about what videos were like back in the days when you had to turn on the TV in the morning to let the vacuum tubes warm up so that you could actually watch in the evening. Lol.

Western civilization was/is already doomed. But it may just be averted long enough THANKS to stars like Taylor Swift, since 30-plus-something's like me divert our eyes to watch her. Lol.

And Shakira??? Mmmmmmm. Hell yes.


Sent from my iPhone via Tapatalk.

keith,

first, may i politely enquire if your fascination/obsession/unnatural interest in this person is because she is a fellow sealbasher (the term used in its most endearing form)? if so, ask your mates for an intervention. where is your pride? your great nation gave us neil young, leonard cohen, brian adams, joni mitchell, (granted that for every neil young, there is a justin beiber or celine dion - yes, there are some skeletons in every national closet). if not, i am even more befuddled.

back in the day, i used to devour every newspaper, news mag, tv news etc etc i could get. i suspect i would have known a great deal about said ms swift (and not been proud of myself for that) but the internet means so much is available. hence, i "self-censor". i just flick over vast amounts and stick to what i am interested in or have time to read (not always the same thing). every morning i get emails from a number of news outletss here and in america and the uk. i get regular fishing info emails, dozens of wine emails, many daily, and plenty of food emails as well. i get daily skins and gunners emails as well as numerous local sporting teams. i get book reviews and movie review emails. 99.9% remain unread.

hence the name 'swift' may/would have registered but at no stage was there ever any reason to inform myself about this person. ditto any of the kardashians (took me several years to realise that there were quite a few of them). in this category fall numerous other people. as examples, someone called west (i am assuming it is not adam, making a batman comeback), anything re angelina jolie is immediately dismissed. ditto bono. ditto jenner - again, it seems that there might be more than one? there are many names that keep appearing, but about whom i wish to know nothing further (and yes, i do know about bono and a little about mrs pitt but would rather know nothing more).

life is too short.

indeed, the first time i ever knowingly heard anything by one katie perry (formerly - and indeed restored, another on the list to be glossed over without wasting a further nano-second) was the superbowl. pre that, she could have been a crossing guard or a scientist or a pet bullfrog. i had seen nothing whatsoever that induced me to learn/read anything about her. i still have not.

i have been managing to get through life quite happily this way.

then along comes you with the recommendation to watch said ms swift.

over at czars last week, i asked lisa about this person.

lisa advised me of two things.

1. she was formerly a country and western singer (given her current age, i assume that was in her years 10 - 13). this was not information likely to make me more inclined to want to hear her sing or to learn more about her.

2. she writes her own songs. on one hand, good for her, though one doubts dylan sleeps uneasily as a result thereof. however, that is a bit unfortunate as it means she has no one else to blame.

i confess that both visually and aurally, i found ms swift was the equivalent of white noise.

she is this generation's female equivalent of the bay city rollers, but with less talent (and whoever thought they'd read those words!).

[madandana]

Sorry Keith, I have to agree with Ken on this.OMG, I'm agreeing with Ken... Maybe I need to see a Doctor.

I do have to take issue on one point. I liked the Bay City Rollers, but then again I was 9.

[...]

Don't worry Madandana, this is called 'getting old'. Billions of people have gone that way before you and Ken so it's quite normal

Do I like Taylor Swift? Not really; I couldn't care less. However, I don't mind her and wish her all the best. I'm even open minded about her and her music...

You don't like something, disagree with someone's opinion, can't fathom some of the reality we live in? Brush it off, laugh it off, move on and enjoy the life you've created for yourself

[LordAnubis]

I think Ken secretly likes taylor swift. I bet he's got a whole room dedicated to her! Classic playground behaviour, boys only pick on the girls they like.

EDIT: Here's what I was looking for......

You may not care about who she is, what she looks like and what she sounds like, but you best attune yourself to what she is. At the moment, some say she IS the music industry.

http://www.bloomberg.com/bw/articles/2014-11-12/taylor-swift-and-big-machine-are-the-music-industry

To completely blow out of the water all other artists by a very very long way, especially in times of economic struggles recently, she must have some serious talent mixed with good marketing and public likability.

Do I like her music? No. But that doesn't detract from her being the highest pedestal of the music industry right now.

[...]

I'll be honest with you Mus, just like Ken, I would let her clean my house in her undies whenever she fancies. I'm sure she could even take care of any empty postal boxes

[Colt45]

rather than have this lost at the arse-end of some long forgotten thread

Probably the perfect place for it - have a great weekend!

[polarbear]

My missus is quite a fan of the aforementioned Ms Swift.

Personally, I have no feelings for her one way or another.

I will defend Ken in saying that were it not for my familiarity with TS through my missus, I would have not heard of her either. I do not follow entertainment news nor frequent barely legal tween rock concert. I stopped actively looking for "the next big thing" in music a little over a decade ago and now only tend to be introduced to new artists through my friends who share a similar taste in music (and, funnily enough, they aren't TS fans either)

That being said, someone who plays most of the instruments required for her music and is capable of writing catchy lyrics that speak to a wide audience takes talent and her success is evidence of that.

Plus she's really pretty, even if her music videos are best watched on mute

[Duxnutz]

I quite often enjoy her 'pop' tunes in the car. It's just fast food music after-all.

[riazp]

i just enjoy Taylor swift when she "white girl dances" at award shows.

[Puros Y Vino]

Not a fan of the genres she's in but she does seem to have some talent. Though, I make no effort to listen to her music but if it's on the radio, I'll suffer through it. Modern pop music is so formulaic these days. They have it down to a science. I find myself going back in time to hear more appealing music. On a Led Zeppelin kick right now. I wish I could have seen them live.

[Ginseng]

I don't listen to Taylor Swift but I know who she is. It takes some active compartmentalization to not be aware of who she is these days. Such is the power of the PR/marketing forces at play. The main reason I don't listen to TS is because her music doesn't connect with me. It does connect with my two girls and, to a lesser extent, my wife. I'm not surprised that Jethro Tull has the exact reverse effect.

That said, I thought that her music was the same irredeemably vacuous pap as as Katy Perry's "work." On this point, an analysis of her song "Shake it Off" by

has given me a different perspective. At least she does create generationally-relevant and skillful product. That her work is seen as shallow and at times derivative is more a reflection of the times than of her per se. See this article about how modern music is less complex than music of preceding decades: SLate. And of course I'm sure you've seen this demonstration that:

.

Wilkey

[earthson]

Every time I see a picture of her, I feel like somebody should buy her a hamburger or something.

Her music makes me wish I was deaf.

Bless her heart.

[wabashcr]

I saw her open for George Strait when she was just 17 I believe. Her "Tim McGraw" song was just starting to get airplay, and she was still very much an unknown quantity. It was just her and a guitar on a stool. She played for about 30-40 minutes, and had unbelievable stage fright. To be fair, it was in an 18,000 seat basketball arena.

I've never really been a fan of her music, per se, but I respect that she has such a large role in the song writing process. That's a lot more than I'd say for most of these pop singers, who are at best mediocre performers, who release heavily edited tracks, lip sync their live shows, and can't even read music, let alone write songs. So while I don't care for her music (at all), I can certainly appreciate that she's a talented musician, and a real artist.

[Lotusguy]

My wife can't stand her - that's why I make it a point to play it in the car whenever I can

Her new music is catchy and I like her legs - call me shallow

[alloy]

I too, am shallow....I like girls tall and skinny.

[StumpyJoe]

Ken, what Keith doesn't recognize is that in 20 years he will be guilty of the same thing he's accusing you of. Keith, that's no mark against you...it's just human nature. After awhile a the "pop" stuff that happens around you just doesn't mean all that much to you anymore and you focus on the time period when it did and you were interested.

Oh, and Ken, Bryan Adams is Canadian.

LotusGuy...you're shallow. Funny and evil too.

[Edwhatever]

I think Ken secretly likes taylor swift. I bet he's got a whole room dedicated to her! Classic playground behaviour, boys only pick on the girls they like.

EDIT: Here's what I was looking for......

You may not care about who she is, what she looks like and what she sounds like, but you best attune yourself to what she is. At the moment, some say she IS the music industry.

http://www.bloomberg.com/bw/articles/2014-11-12/taylor-swift-and-big-machine-are-the-music-industry

To completely blow out of the water all other artists by a very very long way, especially in times of economic struggles recently, she must have some serious talent mixed with good marketing and public likability.

Do I like her music? No. But that doesn't detract from her being the highest pedestal of the music industry right now.

I bet Ken has his Robusto in his other hand while watching T Swift's videos.

[Knilas]

She once was Country, now she's Pop. Personally I can't stand either genre.

Gimme some of that old time rock n roll, baby!

Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band - Old Time Rock & Roll: http://youtu.be/SpSX_YxVCek

[Bernardini]

Not for me, I like big butts and I cannot lie....

[StumpyJoe]

Ken, ignore my Bryan Adams comment, I'm an idiot.

[ogus]

I think she opens for Springsteen this tour.

[cdfarrar]

I think she opens for Springsteen this tour.

Allthough it has not been confirmed yet but looking like it will happen.

[earthson]

I think she opens for Springsteen this tour.

Wow - that's a lot of crap under one roof.

[Skyfall]

This thread wins the internet today!

[JohnS]

Musically speaking, Taylor Swift has crafted some good tunes and reputation-wise she is a lot better than Miley Cyrus!

If you are Canadian and like Taylor Swift (although is she Canadian?) do you therefore like Justin Bieber too? Or do most Canadians disown him? Ok....what about Jim Carrey? Shall I go on?

By the way, If Keith loves Taylor Swift good on him....keep up that blog dude!