Oh, what a wonderful world we live in, where what happened yesterday is available today, which means the show is not over and done, but lives on. And maybe, just maybe, the world will need to listen to these tracks to relive the moment and cuts will fly up the chart, dominating, illustrating that the manipulated chart we see in the newspaper is hogwash and that streaming rules and is the only definition of popularity and it’s not about goosing the numbers, manipulating the marketing for one week of glory, but tapping into the true desires of the public, what they really want to hear, and extolling that.
Now at first when you start to listen you’ll miss the video, you’ll want to be there, and isn’t that the goal of a live album, to get you to go to the show next time? And as is the case with any true live production there are imperfections, but there’s an undeniable energy. Start with “Happy” from Pharrell and Miley, they turn it into a soul number closer to Motown than Disney, they turn it into something more than it ever was, which is hard to believe since it’s been played to death already.
“Get Lucky” isn’t quite nailed, but it’s great to see a track from four years ago resuscitated, in a world where what happened this morning is already forgotten. And it’s funny how Pharrell now owns it instead of Daft Punk, that’s the power of a vocalist, of the lead singer.
And when the assembled multitude cheers and joins in you feel the joy of music, the joy of being a believer, a member of the crowd. We haven’t had this spirit here since Woodstock, but in that case the album came first and the movie second. This is not the 9/11 tribute with the commercial product months later, this is positively instant, on demand, once again sacred cows are slaughtered, you no longer dribble out music, get it perfect, rather you release it instantly, warts and all, and people forgive imperfections, because in today’s world we know everybody’s compromised, no one gets it right every time, you get honors just for playing.
And maybe acts like Little Mix and Take That will get the boost in the U.S. which they’ve never gotten.
Maybe Ariana Grande’s rendition of “Somewhere Over The Rainbow” will dominate radio. Oh, don’t expect that, that outlet is moribund, waiting for consensus before it does anything, but maybe AC will go for it, stations should. Can’t someone in America champion the moment?
No, we have to rely on a Swedish streaming service.
Ah, those immigrants and millennials, ruining our business.
No, THEY’RE SAVING IT!
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