Taylor Swift – Love Story
An evening pause: Performed live 1989.
Hat tip Diane Zimmerman, who felt it was time Behind the Black had a pause by Swift, a performer whose work I have been completely unfamiliar with.
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The print edition can be purchased at Amazon or from any other book seller. If you want an autographed copy the price is $60 for the hardback and $45 for the paperback, plus $8 shipping for each. Go here for purchasing details. The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
An evening pause: Performed live 1989.
Hat tip Diane Zimmerman, who felt it was time Behind the Black had a pause by Swift, a performer whose work I have been completely unfamiliar with.
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The print edition can be purchased at Amazon or from any other book seller. If you want an autographed copy the price is $60 for the hardback and $45 for the paperback, plus $8 shipping for each. Go here for purchasing details. The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
I still remain completely unfamiliar with this…
Glad to remain unfamiliar…
This is the first time I’ve seen Taylor Swift perform (thank you), only hearing her on the XM at work. I felt I must watch it to comment responsibly. My observation is validated. If TS has range in her voice she never uses it. Everything always within one octave. The song topics are always uninspiring and never profound. The melodies and instrumentations are not as clever as in other current ‘pop’ songs. OK, she is very pretty, can strum guitar and play keyboard but does she dance? Rocketing to the top in popularity I don’t understand. Why is she sooo popular and worth zillions?
Ahhhhh….. Bloody kids today! Thats not what I call music! Back in my day… Etc etc!
She is an extremely talented young lady… Writes and performs her own songs, an extremely smart business woman ( check out how she re-recorded her back catalog because she couldn’t get the publishing rights back from her original lable… An absolute stroke of genius, making the original rights essentially worthless… So very very smart!)
And to be fair, she is very easy on the eye.
@Allen…. Quote… “Rocketing to the top in popularity I don’t understand.”
Wasn’t it the other Bob Zimmerman that said “Don’t criticize what you don’t understand ” ?
We are not supposed to understand the popular music of the day at our age… But I have always believed if a tune brings joy to folk , even if doesn’t for me, it’s good music. Just not to my taste. ( God knows I hate Opera… But my mother loves it… Fine as long as it never becomes compulsory! )
In my eyes… She’s fine… I won’t be going to any gigs anytime soon, but more power to the elbows of those that do.
Here’s a test of the taste of the posters here.. I do take my kids (and their partners..not cheap) to gigs…. Last one was Green Day.. ( absolutely amazing), also did Foo Fighters last time they were in Sweden, Saw Aurora with my daughter a couple of months back… Both excellent…
Any favorite gigs the posters here want to share? It’s nice to get onto a more light hearted subject for a change!!
Oh…. Forgot to add…. Going to see Rick Astley in the UK at the end of April next year… An absolute legend …. And it’s the same weekend my football team has its last home match of the season… 2 birds with one stone :-)
I would have hated this concert, but I hate most concerts because of all the annoying people in the audience. It’s needs to be a spectacle to overcome that. This is not, although the rotating stage arm is neat.
I don’t understand the popularity, either. She’s not bad, but she’s not all that great, either. I’m pretty sure I hear auto-tune in this.
Popularity/celebrity is fickle.
@Mark Sizer,
Like I said, it’s not down to us to decide what is or isn’t good to the ears of the younger generation…. I have instilled a love of some “old” music in my kids, ( Nirvana, Floyd, Oasis etc.) but they listen to some autotuned rap nonsense that I just don’t get…. And Nr 1 daughter is into girly Emo stuff which I didn’t really like first time around in the 80s… All of which is fine… As long as they are enjoying, who are we to say it’s “bad” music… Our grandparents were saying the same about Johny Cash and Elvis…. All as it should be.
I do get your point on concerts being annoying sometimes… The Beatles stopped touring because they literally couldn’t hear themselves sing over the screaming kids…. And my bugbare these days is the sea of phones in the air… I go to a concert to watch an artist/band perform songs I hopefully like, not to wave my phone around making a recording I will probably watch twice.
I am all in favor of the growing trend Of banning telephone use from gigs…. The magic is in the performance witnessed live… Not what you recorded with pixelated 10xdigital zoom and a crappy phone microphone.
Lee S,
Writes her own songs??
I suggest you watch this video by Rick Beato: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l93JOUJZEoA
She was better when she was country.
But when she switched to pop music all the little girls loved her love songs. They spent the money on her. They identified with her.
Yes she auto tunes a lot. Yes to me her music is a little vapid. But she is nice to look at and she is a football fan. Not my team but at least its football.
She does seem to keep politics out of her concerts and songs. At least more so than most.
I like my music like my candy. I first get rid of the rappers.
@F…
From Wikipedia….. “The American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift has written or co-written every song in her eleven-album discography, with the exception of several cover versions and guest features. She has also written standalone singles, songs for film soundtracks, and songs recorded by other artists.”
“She was the sole writer of the majority of Fearless and Red, and she wrote her third studio album, Speak Now, solely herself.”
So she actually does have good songwriting chops. Whatever the guy in the video says, I would imagine that given her songwriting skills Taylor’s contribution to collaborations will be more than just changing an odd lyric.
Let’s be honest…. Since the passing of the late, great, Prince there are very few artists indeed that “do it all” themselves.
@pzatchok
Quote “Not my team but at least its football.”
Hmmmmm….. Definitely debatable… Elton John is a football fan…. He supports Watford FC.
;-)
Allen asked: “Why is she sooo popular and worth zillions?”
“Well, there’s no accounting for taste.” Kirk ‘Trouble With Tribbles’ 1966
I have great respect for anyone on stage. I took drama/acting lessons as a child, and it’s not nearly as easy as it looks. Not nearly. As with most things, if they make it look easy, they are professionals. What Taylor Swift does, she does well, and that is intrinsically valuable.
pzatchok noted: “I first get rid of the rappers.”
Why you shadin’ me, man?
I’m comin with the rhyme plan
Not shallow, or a teddy
When stuff gets real
I’ll tell you ’bout the deal
I actually like Elton John. His music yes, politics not so much.
Blame England for the two terms of football and soccer. And the rest of the world is wrong for using football instead of soccer.
I do not hate rap music I just do not like it.
Lee S,
I’ll put much greater faith in Rick Beato’s knowledgeable explanations than your Wikipedia claims and speculations.
Thank you.
BTW: For me, this is not any sort of attack on Taylor Swift for her politics. I give her credit for her success. However, I was surprised when I first saw Beato’s video some time ago, for Swift at least. I had heard years ago that she writes all her own songs, but that is very obviously not fully true.
@F.. The young ladies songwriting credits are easily researchable, of course she has collaborations… There are very few artists that don’t, but my “speculation” is based on hard facts. She is obviously capable of composing and performing her own material… I cannot conceive of a world where such an artist would give up ALL control to a co-writer…. (BTW.. I never said she writes all her own tunes… But there is definitely a body of work that is all her own)
Not manufactured, obviously talented, ( even if not to our tastes ) , best selling artist in the world ever…. She gets a few points for that.
And who mentioned politics? I thought we were arguing that you yanks have the terminology of football vs soccer wrong?
Gotta love BTB.. come for the space stuff…. End up arguing about Taylor Swift!
Lee–
“Songwriting credits,” those determine who get paid Royalties, not necessarily who “created” them. Not accusing her, but I could envision a world with work-for-hire Pop Tunes in play. One thought is if you can write one good song, you can write a dozen, on the other hand the Charts are full of one-hit-wonders.
I personally have no idea if she’s ‘talented’ or not, as I said way back at the top, “I remain unfamiliar with this….”
(Of course I was being snarky, and Tone is so very hard with text! )
((Mr. Pratt gets it, har…))
Of course, I know who she is, blah-blah-blah, just not my thing. That being said, I have met some very pleasant Swifties
@wayne….
I have to be honest also… I know nothing about Taylor either, apart from what my daughter has told me, ( and the fact she is easy on the eyeballs!)
Like you say, the one hit wonders are legion, but this young lady seems to have staying power, and the statistics speak for themselves… You don’t get those sort of numbers on hype alone.
Personally, give me Madonna C. 1985 for a hot pop friendly star… I guess the next generation was Brittney Spears, ( both never wrote a complete song as far as I know..) then I reverted back to good music…. Give me Floyd, Prince, Oasis, Duran Duran ( from my hometown ) and a bit of EDM to jump around to… Not that I’m capable of doing much jumping these days!
A related but tangential fact… I’m not sure if they ever troubled the US charts, but in the 80’s in the UK there was a production treo, Stock, Atkin and Waterman .. also known as “the hit factory”…. Responsible for many, many top 10 hits, indeed if I recall correctly they were responsible for 5 out of the top 40 at one point.
This was the days before algorithms, but they had the taste of the day weighed up to perfection.