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ch-scene - Re: "Is Stephin Merritt a racist because he doesn't like hip-hop?"

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  • From: Bryk <chscene AT bryk.com>
  • To: RTP-area local music and culture <ch-scene AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: "Is Stephin Merritt a racist because he doesn't like hip-hop?"
  • Date: Fri, 12 May 2006 21:33:12 -0400


On 12-May-06, at 4:13 PM, toenes wrote:

Monica Lynch, current/former? prez of Tommy Boy records, had Merritt on
her FMU show this afternoon and played a medley of several
drastically-varied versions of "Zippity Doo Dah." I only heard the
beginning music of the show, but it for some of you it may be worth
checking in archives.

Here' the FMU blog entry:
http://blog.wfmu.org/freeform/2006/05/stephin_merritt.html

Here's the playlist:

http://www.wfmu.org/playlists/shows/19014


the archive file is there already.

wow, talk about your hour of (white) power!

mmm, dionne's zip a dee is particularly awesome. i've never heard someone sing the world "shoulder" for like, what, SEVEN syllables. give me a singer of any colour who can _swing_ melisma and not belt it (of course, in her prime she could sing my dog farting* and swing that motherfucker.)

i know it's just tautological to play 20 versions of this, but none of them is diminishing the song, and none of them make me want to rent a Disney DVD or set a fiery cross. (during the J5 version, i was wishing that SOMEONE could go back in time and rescue michael jackson from his family and his childhood, which would kind of be like freeing a slave now wouldn't it?)

*sigh* some interviewer in tokyo (through a translator at that) asked me _why_ (not if) my music was racist and i flushed red and sputtered something like "well, no, there's plenty of influence, some of my favourite artists are black, it's just that i have _no soul_" but that question bugged the hell out of me for weeks after that. (actually, he seemed satisfied with my answer, unlike the cultural nationalist guy who was LIVID that the extent of my japanese music collection was Cornelius, E Yazawa, the Plastics, YMO, Kahimi Karie and Hideki Kaji)

it's a trick question, because no amount of explanation can negate the basic premise: you're racist. ("so _when_ did you stop beating your spouse?")

then again, maybe i'm just uncool, not spending ALL my spare time reading the solipistic circle jerk that is the meme-facista blogosphere, but thank god for progressive politics and obscure 45's, or else there'd be nuttin' worth reading on the interweb that didn't have banner advertising slathered all over it.

wow i've never heard stephen merritt talk before now. his voice is _so_ sedately erudite, i'm half expecting him to slip in "and all the little godfreys" when i'm not paying attention. maybe he's triggering some latent gaydar i didn't even know i had. whoa nelly!

dB


* Elvis may have recorded that on a b-side, assuming Aberbach and Parker had a piece of it.




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