Ted Leo is my Bob Dylan, my Bruce Springsteen, my Joe Strummer and pretty much any other "great" singer songwriters who were frustrated, disillusioned by what they saw and who led their generation. The sad thing though is that I don't know many people who are Ted Leo fans. I know for a fact that Ted Leo rules all corners of this world, has more passion than most musicians now and well cares for this world-as much as he is worried and upset at it.Whatever happened to that one singer songwriter that everyone looked up to? I have to be honest I'm not a fan of Dylan or Springsteen, but I will not deny their importance. Are these people dead in a metaphorical sense? Or we just don't care for it anymore? I think someone like M.I.A. is more of the front runner now, but is no where near close to being a "great" singer songwriter. Yeah she has amazing songs, but I feel her depth is only skin deep. Which is a just another reflection of our society, our generation. Sad huh? Is it so bad to want change?
I'll keep listening to Mr. Leo, because no one can make me feel as empowered, safe and happy when I listen to the man.
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I'm devoted to Dylan. I don't think there's anything exceptional about him musically (he's an average guitarist at best, and he definitely isn't a gifted vocalist) but I do think the poetry of his lyrics are absolutely fucking devastating. I've been kicking around the idea of writing a blog entry of how beautifully written "Mr. Tambourine" man is, just admiring it and praising it. I'm gonna get around to writing it sometime soon.
I've never cared for Springsteen. I'm not from New Jersey, I don't live in the heartland, I don't wear Wrangler jeans, I don't get greasy working on my truck, I don't wave sparklers on the 4th of July, I don't work in a steel mill or a processing plant or some other kind of blue color grunt job. When I think of Springsteen, I think of that cheesy cover of 'Born in the U.S.A,' and that really isn't me. Not that I have anything against the nostalgia of Americana, it just doesn't speak to my specific demographic. And sometimes I think it may be an age thing, but I'm sure I still wouldn't be a fan even if I were born 10+ years earlier. Good for him for getting more and more political as his career went on, though.
I think Strummer's historical reputation transcends his musical one, and I feel that holds true for the entire genre of punk as a whole. I understand how people can appreciate the politics of punk rock -- rebellion, aggression, minimalism, youth -- but it's really not that AESTHETICALLY appealing, not that pleasing to the ear. And more or less I would think that should be music's ultimate objective.
On M.I.A., I think you're right on both counts: she's the current poster child for socially-aware music, and yeah, the extent of the sincerity may be a little in doubt. And if not on HER part, then certainly on the audience's. No one listens to "Paper Planes" for that important line about a third world democracy, they just care about the dope ass beat and riff (which she incidentally got from Strummer, but I digress...). And with that being the case, you wonder how effectively the MESSAGE is getting through. And I would say that's pretty important as that's what we often use to distinguish a singer-songwriter from any other ordinary pop star. With all of that said, I want to clarify that I love M.I.A. and think she's awesome.
This is mostly because I grew up and went to high school in in the early 2000s, but one of my favorite singer-songwriters is still Conor Oberst. Whether its in the form of Bright Eyes or Desaparecidos or a solo effort or whatever, I have a shitload of respect for his body of work.
And Ted Leo has that awesome medley cover of Kelly Clarkson and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs' "Since U Been Gone / Maps."
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