The Poppermost Explained

"Where are we going, fellas?"

"To the top, Johnny!"

"And where's that?"

"To the toppermost of the poppermost, Johnny!"

In the early days of the Beatles, times could be surprisingly tough for the fabs. Constant rejection from labels, exhausting sets that lasted several hours in seedy venues, living in squalor in tiny shared rooms, brawls, pills, and alcohol all took their toll on the group. When the other three's spirits were running low, John Lennon would often rally the troops with this little call-and-answer routine, inspired by cheesy Hollywood musicals of the day. It served to remind them of why they did this, why it was so worth it to persevere. Had they succumbed to the pressures and struggles of those early days, we may not enjoy the wildly diverse range of the music we enjoy today, so deep was their influence (however direct or indirect). And I would still be thinking of a suitable title for this blog.

Arguably, adding another music blog to the online world is like adding one more grain of sand to a beach; an exercise in redundancy and futility. In my search through countless music blogs for inspiration, what I have noticed is a seemingly never-ending stream of sites that offer minimal explanation or reasoning, rather a string of disposable free downloads of albums and entire artist catalogues. Don't get me wrong, I think people should be able to enjoy music regardless of how much money they have at their disposal. However, in failing to give any reasons behind their posts, some bloggers undermine the artists' efforts. People have put some really hard work into creating the music you enjoy...isn't that worth taking it seriously?

What set the good blogs apart was an effort on the bloggers' behalf to explain what it is about the artist that they enjoy. This dialogue, whether you agree with them or not, represents a crucial aspect to our understanding and sharing of music. It is one thing to passively listen, it is another to become actively engaged in the experience.

What I hope to accomplish with this blog is an exercise in music-related writing, a personal contribution to this ongoing dialogue, sorting through the "poppermost" to find the "toppermost". Expect album, book, and concert reviews, news, photos, videos, and links to other informative sites. I also plan to contribute personal ruminations on various aspects of the music industry, things that affect how we experience both recorded and live music. I encourage and welcome comments and suggestions from anyone who happens upon this blog, as they can only help to make it better.

I hope you enjoy and I look forward to sharing what I can with any and all of you,

Kevin.