He and his bandmate Chrissie Hynde had been working on a song, “Back on the Chain Gang,” about the pressures of the world destroying a relationship. In 1982, the Pretenders guitarist James Honeyman-Scott died from drug abuse at age 25. Those are great versions, but when Lowe sang the song again in his 70s, with very little accompaniment, it became a different experience-a placid, almost mournful reflection on the question, rather than a dare to disagree with it. At the same age, Elvis Costello turned it into a thundering anthem in 1978.
Nick Lowe, for example, wrote “(What’s So Funny ’Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding” back in 1974 when he was 25. And in any case, you can’t keep singing “I hope I die before I get old” if you’re … old.Īccepting the passage of time can change a song. You might still be furious about, say, war and injustice, but you’re not surprised by it anymore. It’s hard to sound as angry and rebellious at 50 as you were at 20. Middle-age, however, is when you know most of the road is behind you. The worst day of your life, as Homer Simpson once said, is only the worst day of your life so far, and when you’re young, even the tragedies are part of a life you’re fairly certain will continue. Rock, by its nature, encourages the confidence of youth, even when singing about heartbreak or sadness. There’s a kind of beauty in these remakes. When I reached my 40s, however, I started to become fascinated by “unplugged,” or acoustic, remakes, in which a rock artist revisits an old hit, but without the spandex, blazing guitar solos, pyrotechnics. I am technically a “late Boomer,” but I have nothing in common with the Boomers: I have never been interested in hearing the Rolling Stones squeeze a few more bucks out of a stadium crowd, or The Who swearing they’re retiring yet again. I am not sure I can redeem myself here-I will always prefer Boston’s debut album to anything by Led Zeppelin-but maybe I can recommend something today that could bridge the musical tastes of a few generations. Ukraine has exposed Russia as a not-so-great power.Įven among my peers, my takes on popular music are widely considered terrible. You’re not allowed to have the best sunscreens in the world.
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