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Looper's Delight
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Hi, Rick Walker here. This, like a lot of my posts was written very late at night and is a tad long winded. If you are in a hurry, I suggest that you move on. If not, I'd love to know your thoughts. I've been associated with the "World Beat" movement for over twenty years. I hate that fucking term, personally, but there is no doubt that a lot of the self conscious fusing (sometimes in incredibly naive and misguided ways) of different world music musical styles (mostly pop and , ergo, already imbued with a western sensibility) with American popular musical styles has had a really large impact on popular music in the world. I remember in 1982 I started making a series of 90 minute compilation cassettes (remember that media?) called World Pop. The first one I made took me two years to complete and had mostly Reggae influenced pop music with a small smattering of West African pop influenced tunes as well. Mind you, I was really interested in pop music at the time and was fully devoted to a very creative New Wave band that had some modest success in Northern California (please forgive me, all those who hate New Wave :-). Any way by 1985 I had to make three 90 minute compilations, encompassing African music, Celtic music, Indian Music, Asian music, Middleeastern music and Caribbean musical influences. I quit making the compilations in 1986 because from that time on, almost every other modern pop release had some kind of ethnic influence in at least a song or two (let alone records like Paul Simon or Peter Gabriel which were entirely imbued with them)and it was taking too much of my time away from writing for California's first 'World Beat' band, Tao RHYTHMICAL. By this time, movie soundtracks, t.v. commercials and other commercial media had a huge influx of 'global' influences. Samplers were really starting to make themselves felt which only hastened the 'it's a small world after all mentality' of modern popular music. Anyway, long story, slightly longer............this movement, the so-called "world beat movement" failed as a commercially viable venture and the major recording labels did what they always do in their bulk and bloated profit orientation: they signed way to many bands far too soon...........they went bust because they weren't very strong artistically and the companies got gun shy of the whole thing. Did anybody really think that there were 25 great Grunge bands in Seattle? That's how many bands the majors signed hoping for another Nirvana. It is fascinating to me. This process repeats itself constantly. The record companies rushed into sign every trip hop and drum and bass group they could. There weren't very many good ones so they dropped everything like a hot potato. But have you checked out any television commercial or movie score lately? Trip Hop,Techno and Drum & Bass are having a HUGE influence on what the whole world is listening to, sonically. Anyway, there's no point to this story except, perhaps a quote I heard from somebody (please let me know if you know who because I've forgotten): They said, "Artists are like the antennae of a culture: they pick up changes in the culture long before they are felt by the majority of the population". I don't know about you all, but I'm starting to hear looping EVERYWHERE!!! Most of it is really cheesy, but the best of it, like all music is fantastic. Let's keep keeping on Loopers: We may be at the crest of an artistic wave. Then, again, we may just be a side track to the mainline of popular culture. Either way, it's cool to be with you all on the journey. yours, Rick Walker (loop.pool) P.S. Next installment: a few of my favorite unusual World music records