h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Well, all music is stolen from somewhere. I've yet to see any evidence of enjoyable, groundbreaking music which isn't largely based on music from another time or place. The originality usually comes from adding something else to a particular style.

""Bad artists copy. Great artists steal." Picasso.

I'm with FB; I lurve this thread.

Its the way the influences mix with the originality that I find the best fun myself.

Beatles to gospel from L'pool to the US to Africa...Anyone for spaghetti?

I love the thread, too. But the nation state is a red herring as far as music goes.

>>I don't get the nation thing in the discussion though.

In my defence...it all started as a reaction against 'Britain has trhe best popular music.'

btw, Frs....that quote wasn't Picasso. It was Andre Gide.

Well, it *was* Andre Gide until Picasso stole it.

That was to Ed

Picasso copied it then

" ... the nation state is a red herring as far as music goes."

I understand the point, since the US and UK pop/rock is pretty much intertwined. But at the time, the "British Invasion" was more than hype IMHO. The Beatles in particular brough a fresh feel, I think based mostly on their songwriting, and in particular the use of harmony (more than three chords!). Add that to their playing and singing, it was a step forward for us colonists.

Just to expand the discussion, I think of the effect of Ravi Shankar on "Sgt. Pepper's", Indonesian gamelans on Debussy, the Russians on "classical" music (especially Mussorgsky and Stravinsky) - lots of refreshing cross fertilization. I laughed when I read a book about Mussorgsky by a UK professor, who referred to "the usual infelicities" in Mussorgsky's use of harmony. And someone else referring to "Igor's little polyrhythm racket". More steps forward.

Yes Steve! In the back of my mind when writing that, I was thinking about Planxty (Irish folk group of the 70s) and their mandolins and bouzoukis. I think it was Donal Lunny and Andy Irvine who brought the mandolins and bouzoukis into Irish folk from further east in Europe (I may be wrong though). These days, they are thought of as unsurprising instruments for folk musicians in Ireland. Part of the furniture because it just gelled so well.

"The usual infelicities" - that's beautiful.

On TV not so long ago, I heard someone talking about being the first person to introduce the bazouki to Irish Music,
'I deeply reget it. Now every ****er's playing one.'

There's an eclectic genre of Tanzanian wedding muic (I forget its name) in which the orchestra's play all sorts. Ouds from Arabia. There was a vogue for Cuban music - so Spanish guitars. And...Japanese samisens. . Fair play to them.

But remember my real point: In music, there's no such thing as Best.