Quote:
Originally Posted by Trollheart
The general consensus seems to be that you're right re Rundgren, but again that's one artiste. What about all the others that do acoustic, uptempo jazz (perish the thought!) or soul versions of their music? Surely they're allowed to do what they want with their own compositions. I mean, look at Springsteen; his versions of many of his songs, including "Rosalita" can vary wildly from concert to concert. It's the old adage: you pays your money and you takes your chances.
Basically, like I said in my wall of text, it's not that they're doing the songs wrong but differently, and some people like that and some don't. There's no real way to get too much common ground here, so I'm not entirely sure what (Rundgren aside) point you're trying to make here? You go to a gig, you may not enjoy it, but it doesn't entitle you to (like yer rich wan in your story) leave what amounts to an insulting note for the performer. I think that was bang out of order. I mean, nobody forced her to go to the gig at gunpoint, did they? Did they? It wasn't Texas, was it?   |
You're making an assumption on the crowd due to a locale- I was at the show and I'm not rich, nor were the people I knew there that live locally. Just because it's held in a particular area doesn't define the audience- our arena is downtown, does that mean only the poor folk go to shows there? Nah.The old lady that left the note looked two steps from homelessness, IMO, which makes her concern over the music even more valid. Maybe that was the only show she could find the funds for for an extended period of time- she'll want her money's worth, I would expect.
It is indeed one artist but even you have to admit that a similar situation could occur with any band that dramatically changes a well know song. The general public just doesn't get into the details of an artist like we do- they just go for the songs and to have fun. With Rundgren, if they know him, they know his hits. With Zeppelin, some are only going to hear Stairway- and if they don't get it, or get an altered version of it, this can possibly hurt their opinion and enjoyment of the show, and even worse, change their appreciation of the band forever. With incomes now dependent upon touring revenue more than ever for many, many bands, this is risky, IMO. I think they have to balance the artistic side of their performances with the expectations of their audiences to ensure long-term viability.
I'm not making a point- I'm having a discussion about it. But if I was making a point, it would be that for ANY artist, for perhaps some members of the paid audience, there is an expectation of how the songs are going to sound, and any variation on that may please some but displease others. As to your Springsteen statement, you're not really correct. His base catalog is rarely played differently than originated- what has happened is that they have subtly shifted over time with the added instrumentation of the band. Rosalita, as you cite, has been played the same way for decades- the only part that really changes is the middle section, where he will ad lib sometimes with commentary, not the music. Having seen the guy play 72 times now, I feel I'm pretty qualified to comment on this, lol. Look at Born To Run- his Stairway To Heaven, his Hey Jude, his Satisfaction- he has exactly two versions of it- the show closer electric version which has never changed, and the acoustic-electric version that came about from the Unplugged era, and was in full changed form on the Tom Joad tour, and a couple of benefit shows- even that version hasn't changed much. and he rarely ever changes lyrics, he rarely changes the form of the song from one style to another, making it unrecognizable, unless it is for a special project. I saw the solo Joad tour in West Palm Beach and the crowd was restless, waiting for him to play something they knew-at one point he told them to shut the f up and listen to the songs- something he took great heat for from the fan base. Bruce ad libs sometimes but that isn't the same thing as changing a song, in my mind.