I've Never Heard That
When you write about music as a job, you sometimes lose the passion for just being a listener. Or at least I have. It’s something I’ve struggled with as I transitioned from full-time office worker to full-time(ish) writer. I made the thing I love— listening to, talking about, thinking about music— into a job. And while I’m grateful I’ve been able to make a meager living off of that love, I’d be lying if I said that it hasn’t changed the way I approach music now. I often listen with a ear for dollars. Trying to hear if there’s a story there. Wondering if I can connect what was once a purely emotional feeling to profit. I have found that freelance writing often means monetizing your experiences. I don’t just live, I look for stories. I don’t just read, I read to review to find a perfect quote. I don’t just listen, I tear it apart into bite-sized pieces and figure out how to share it with strangers.
Don’t get me wrong. I like what I do. I’ve had a lot— and I know a lot can mean anything from three to sixteen, but when I say a lot, I mean a lot— of jobs. Some for as long as a few years, some for as short as one day. And I’m here to tell you, this is by far the best one. My time is (mostly) mine, I (generally) choose what I write about, and I can do it while wearing an old DARE shirt and striped shorts. This is living, and it’s great.
But I miss just listening. I miss writing something that is ugly and un-publishable and full of errors and random thoughts. I miss playing a record just to see if it changes me. I miss thinking about art for its own sake. I don’t do it much because for the last few years, I’ve been committed to making this writing life work. I quit a stable job for this. I went out on a limb for this. I want to make it work. And to do that, I lost some parts of myself. But fuck that. I want them back.
Sometime in January, I had this idea to pick an album a day, random genre, random year that I’ve never heard before and just listen. But since it was already well into January, I waited until February 1 to start. I put together a list of genres, picked a range of dates (1954-2024), conscripted my music-loving partner into participating, and with the help of a randomizer, spun the metaphorical wheel. February 1 was Soul/R&B from 2016, and I chose blackSUMMERS'night by Maxwell, an album I never got around to listening to and figured I would love. It was good to start with an easy one because there is a lot of music out there, and much of it isn’t that great. This is not surprising. Just something to note.
We’re two months in, and I’m having fun again. I’m listening with open ears and an open heart. I’m writing this ugly, un-publishable thing because it’s fun. We made a playlist of nearly 100 songs that we’ve been sharing with each other. We stay up late to listen and talk and drink wine and share. We gently poke fun at each other’s choices, or marvel at a new favorite. It’s been a good two months.
I can’t promise that I’ll write about these choices often; likely just once a month. But I’ve actually had some stay thoughts here and there about some of these artists, and they might pop up here. While I wait for copy edits for my book (Oh, what’s that? You wrote a book? And it’s available for pre-order right now? What?!), I’ve got some free time, so there may even be something better and longer than stray thoughts. But for now, I’m happy just listening.
February’s Picks (note: I didn’t do it all 29 days. Life, etc.)
Soul/R&B 2016: blackSUMMERS'night Maxwell
Dance 1998: Ray of Light, Madonna (I was as surprised as anyone that I’d never heard this. I had a boyfriend who listened to this album on a loop for a while, and somehow, I was never made it through a complete loop. It is what it is. The boyfriend and the album)
Blues 1967: Chicken Fat, Mel Brown
Folk 2013: A Hero’s Life, Grey Reverend (Obsessed. Probably the find of the month)
Hard Rock, 1977 (we later amended this to hard rock/heavy metal, because otherwise I would never pick a metal album and there’s some debate about what hard rock even is): The Riff, Just Water
Gospel 1980: From the Root to the Source, Martha and Fontella Bass
Pop 1964: As Long As I Have You, Garnett Mimms (a debate ensued about the difference between pop and R&B. It won’t be settled anytime soon.)
Electronic 2003: Fiesta Songs, Señor Coconut
Country 1971: Self-titled, Otis Williams and the Midnight Cowboys (as anyone who follows the music world online knows, there is a big dust-up about Black country right now. I’ve stayed out of it because there is so much ahistorical nonsense being tossed around because people are or are not fans of a certain pop star. My contribution is that she wasn’t the first, she won’t be the last, she definitely won’t be the best, and this Otis Williams album was pretty good.)
Vocal Jazz 1990 (Jazz has been broken up into vocal, instrumental, big band, and free because given the choice, one of us is unlikely to pick vocal jazz and one of us is unlikely to pick free jazz if the broad category of “jazz” was listed): It's Supposed To Be Fun, Lou Rawls
Free Jazz 1962: The Newest Sound Around, Jeanne Lee And Ran Blake
Gospel 2010: Feed My Soul, The Holmes Brothers
Hard Rock/Heavy Metal 1979: Alchemy, Richard Lloyd (this album is the new love of my life)
Hip Hop 1981 (definitely tough since it was such a nascent genre): Rap the Night Away, The Bobby Deemo Band
Folk 1977: Intuition, Caroline Peyton
Big Band 1966: Duke Ellington's Concert of Sacred Music (I actually did write something on this album, but I was assigned it before this date/genre combo came up. It worked, so I added it. I’ll share the piece when I can)
Reggae 1999: Certified, Marcia Griffiths
Your Choice 1954 (at some point we decided to add in a free play, so to speak. This is a living art piece, so expect changes): Runnin' Wild, Joyce Bryant (If I were going to write about someone more in depth, it would be her)
Top 20 1963 (we added this one because there is a tendency among one of us to purposely avoid any popular album, and that won’t stand. Not on my watch. Though the earlier the year, the harder it is to figure out this sort of info): The Beatles whatever the fuck album I’m dying. (these were my actual notes on the shared doc where we keep our picks. I hate the Beatles. Or rather, I am generally not interested in picking up what they are putting down. But I did. it, and I even found a new song to like, “Don’t Bother Me,” a garage-y George Harrison number that is the best thing on this album.)
Rock 1991: The Real Ramona, Throwing Muses
Hard Rock/Heavy Metal 1987: Light of Day official soundtrack (Did you know that there was a movie where Joan Jett played Michael J. Fox’s mom and they were in a band together? I did not, and this is why this is fun)
Hip Hop 1997: Welcome to our World, Timbaland & Magoo (another one I couldn’t believe I’d never heard all the way through. But this was the age of singles)
Big Band 1955: One Night in Washington, Dizzy Gillespie
Electronic 1962: Music From Outer Space, Frank Comstock And His Orchestra
Folk 1989: Naked Movie Star, Cindy Lee Berryhill
Pop 1971: self-titled, The Rock Flowers
Vocal Jazz 1955: Angel in the Absinthe House, La Vergne Smith
Country 1974: The Unicorn, Peter Grudzien (the thing about “outsider” music is that I can’t really tell if people are appreciating it or laughing at a weirdo and it sometimes makes me uncomfortable)
Pick of the Month: a tie between A Hero’s Life, Grey Reverend and Alchemy, Richard Lloyd, both so good in such different ways, and both speak to a different side of me.
Biggest Surprise: “Don’t Bother Me” The Beatles