Too old to rock? (ROCK'N'ROLL IS DEAD)

Chicago Tribune ^ | May 10, 2009 | Mark Caro | Tribune reporter

[Chi-townChief]

Let's first acknowledge that we've moved well beyond the irony of "I hope I die before I get old" and the fact that the Who's Pete Townshend, who wrote the lyric, did get old, though his band's drummer didn't.

Let's also let Mick Jagger off the hook for famously declaring, "I'd rather be dead than singing 'Satisfaction' when I'm 45." With the Rolling Stones singer turning 66 in July, he has had more than 20 years and several world tours to eat those words.

We will, however, give consideration to Robert Plant's explanation earlier this year that he shot down a Led Zeppelin reunion in part for fear of fans' "disappointment" and "the comparisons to something that was basically fired by youth and a different kind of exuberance. ... It's very hard to go back and meet that head on and do it justice."

Or as he told a reporter backstage at the Grammys: "You try to do 'Communication Breakdown' in these pants."

mailto:mcaro@tribune.com

[tobyhill]

Real Rock & Roll will never die but I sure hope Rap and Hip-Hop kills over.

[Gay State Conservative]

I would pay=I wouldn’t pay

[Las Vegas Ron]

But, for me, the mid-90s was about it so give rock a 40-year run.

I read somewhere that Led Zeppelin still sells 3 million records a year.

I think their last album was Coda, back in '80 ish. Zep died with Bonham, but Page and Plant were great in Un Ledded about ten years ago

[HiTech RedNeck]

Towards the other end of the lifespan, Grandpa/Grandma rock is definitely a curio.

[Las Vegas Ron]

I understand, completely :)

[maggief]

<3 Daughtry!

[Psycho_Bunny]

Please...the idea that Rock and Roll is dead is the result of self-important baby boomers being too lazy to get on the internet, or iTunes or go down to the local bar and spend the time figuring out who's rockin' nowadays.

Then they proclaim Rock and Roll "dead" while waiting for the 50th Digitally Remastered "Foreigner" compilation.

It's all very humorous.

[HiTech RedNeck]

Like a cat, there appears to be much more than one life to it. The “and roll” part is often considered superfluous language today. It’s just called rock, or rawk if it is particularly rawkous.

[VA Red]

We went up to Hershey, PA a couple years ago to see the Stones. I was in high school and college in the 70’s attending as many concerts as I could possibly squeeze in - I saw many great shows. I have to say that the Stones show was the best show I have ever been to. I was seriously worried it was going to be a huge disappointment. Mick Jagger is in AWESOME shape and in great voice as is Keith Richards. They played for over 2 hours and Mick never stopped moving - he has to be in much better shape than most 20 year olds.

[HiTech RedNeck]

Oh, and the trend now seems to be to dress up like a biker on Halloween.

[Larry381]

I’m old enough to have been backstage at Carnegie Hall during the Rolling Stones first American tour. My opinion of them was that they were crap.

[Sixgun Symphony]

Some of it was great music, but looking at the “cultural revolution” of the 1960’s I got to say that it would have been better for Western Civilization had it never been.

[dfwgator]

It occurred to me that U2 is the very last band that will be able to do stadium tours, after that, it’s over.

[HiTech RedNeck]

So who does (or did) good rock/rawk? Stones were before my day (preteen kids don’t care much about that sort of stuff).

[RedStateGuyTrappedinCT]

Real Rock & Roll will never die but I sure hope Rap and Hip-Hop kills over.

Amen. Good music is timeless, Rap and Hip-Hop are just angry mind numbing noise

[Revolting cat!]

Freebird!

[Billthedrill]

Mebbe so, mebbe no. This is Tal Wilkenfeld. You play with Jeff Beck and Vinnie Colaiuta, you've got some chops. She's absolutely brilliant. And 21 years old.

THIS is her at Crossroads 2007. Her solo's at 2:15. Just damn.

[Ransomed]

“RocknRoll is Dead” is a great album by the Hellacopters. There’s great Rock being made today. Can’t help it if the popular media is too faggoty to play it.

Freegards

[Revolting cat!]

It’s been dead since the King (Paul McCartney) died in 1968!

[HiTech RedNeck]

I think that revolution gave it its peculiar form (from early days quite sex obsessed) and power. Hypothetically without that, and in fact today with virtually none of its original enemies around to rebel against, it is just so much peppy and boisterous music. Shoot, the “prude” Mike Huckabee plays rock (the group is called Capitol Offense).