Donny Hathaway most popular

According to Soultracks.com, in their latest popularity poll based on searches and reader visits to their web pages, the most popular artist for the month of December is Donny Hathaway, who's been dead for 28 years! Others on the list of 25 popular artists include the likes of The Stylistics, Angela Bofill, Phyllis Hyman and The Spinners. Now admittedly, these are all terrific artists and Soultracks is catering to a more mature crowd but what does it say about the state of Soul music when out of a list of 25 artists there are only only about 8 or 9 that are currently generating any kind of buzz in the industry?! Exclude the inevitable "One hit wonders" and you are down to maybe 3 to 4 that will stick around for any length of time. I guess my question is: Where's the music at?!!
In actuality, there are a number of new artists producing quality material, however the majority of "new release" material, seems to consist primarily of older artists releasing "lost" work, or rehashing a lot of old material. Labels have been in this mode for quite some time, Motown for example, has been repackaging and re-releasing its old hits for decades, while producing only a handful of new artists. The success of the "Now Thats What I Call Music" compilation series only goes to show that consumers are not really willing to spend their dollars on a complete album by a single artist, there just is not enough quality in the product being delivered to justify the expense. The latest releases by the likes of Alicia Keys, Mary J. Blige and Kanye West notwithstanding, these quality productions are too few and too far between to say that soul music is still the viable genre it once was. Again, where's the music at?!
What's the solution? Well, increased involvement in school music programs, reinstatement of many discontinued music curriculum particularly in urban centers would go a long way toward regenerating interest in the art of musicianship, rather than just playing the music as loud as possible. Kids today have a million distractions, so it's necessary to show them the relevance of yesterdays instruments and how it has affected todays technology. Show the drum machine for example, but also demonstrate how a skilled drummer can CREATE sounds that the programmer of the drum machine has not even imagined yet. Studying music has been proven to have beneficial results even beyond music appreciation. The Department of Education has reported that a comprehensive music education plays an important part in enhancing a child's intellectual development. The College Board has determined that Arts education is one of six essential subjects in preparing for a college education. The most important thing, however, is that studying music teaches an individual to think musically, artistically and creatively and to generate their own unique sound instead of relying on automation to do the thinking for us.

Bye Bye Big speakers!

Interesting article here in http://rollingstone.com/ about how the labels are mastering their new CD's to cater to an audience that is increasingly using earbuds instead of stereos to listen to their music. It seems the emphasis is on increasing the levels to the point where high spots and low all sound the same...LOUD!! Do I have your attention now?!!!
I guess my question is: Is this the inevitable result of a nation of people who are progressively going deaf because of over-amplified sound? Is sign language going to become the new international means of communication? Should I throw all of my disposable income into Beltone(R) hearing aids?!!

Another interesting point in this article is the use of mastering software to "alter" sound. There was a commercial not too long ago, where the engineers in the studio were so busy enjoying Product X, that they failed to realize they had not adjusted the levels on the board for the latest "teen sensation" who was busy making dogs howl in the other room. As soon as they realized their mistake, they reset the board and she went from sounding like Paris Hilton to Christina Aguilera in about two seconds! There is a lot more truth than fiction in that commercial unfortunately and it is a direct result of the publics' desire for artists that are not only aurally but visually stimulating as well. If the artist looks good, we can always make them sound good, is the attitude that the labels are taking. It's gotten to the point that most of the legends from the past wouldn't even get in the front door today because they don't have the "complete package".

What are your thoughts on today's music? Let me know.