Entry #663446, added on 08-13-09 @ 10:43 am EDT
Entry Access Restriction: None.
| The Times In Music | Entry #663446 |
There’s something about waking up to Quarterflash’s “Harden My Heart” and then moving on to The Fray’s “You Found Me” that makes you stop and think.
Harden My Heart:
"All of my life I’ve been waitin’ in the rain. I’ve been waitin’ for a feeling that never, ever came. It came so close but always disappeared. Darlin’ in my wildest dreams I never thought I’d go, but it’s time to let you know … I’m gonna harden my heart. I’m gonna swallow my tears. I’m gonna turn and leave you here.”
You Found Me:
"And I’ve been calling for years and years and years and years, And you never left me no messages, You never sent me no letters, You got some kind of nerve taking all I want! .. Lost and insecure, you found me, you found me, Lying on the floor, where were you? Where were you? Just a little late, you found me, you found me!"
Think about this a minute…
For those who aren’t pop music buffs, Harden My Heart came out in the Eighties. It’s fairly typical of Eighties pop. The music is “simpler” in that you hear the different parts of the music clearly and it all blends together. There’s a sharpness about it and the lead singer stands out from the music while still working with it.
You Found Me came out in 2007 and was recorded in 2008. It’s also fairly typical of today’s music. There’s a “mush” feel where all the sounds seem to run together and it’s hard to differentiate one from the other, including the lead’s voice. We hear the words because they’re louder but it’s still part of the mush. The instruments are less sharp. There’s more “extra” stuff that jumbles it all together. Okay, I’m not a music critic and am not qualified to be, but Youtube these two songs and you’ll get what I mean.
The lyrics are my focus for this entry. I am a word critic. That’s part of my job. So yes, I analyze songs for their lyrics. The differences here are amazing. Harden My Heart: things are tough for her, she’s been hurt and betrayed and feels lost. So what will she do about it? Get together. Deal with it. Move on. It’s part of life and it’s her job to handle it as she needs. You Found Me: things are tough, he’s feeling lost and betrayed. So what will he do about it? Find God (smoking on a street corner, btw) and rant to him about why He’s letting bad things happen to him and those he cares about.
Yes, huge difference here in lyrics, and in attitude. But then, they reflect the times from when they were written. Song lyrics from the late Sixties to early Seventies tend to be pretty similar in attitude as You Found Me. In truth, there was a lot of whining about the lack of fairness of things. It’s all over the music, set in its history. The late Seventies and early Eighties pushed that aside and took command. Whining was suddenly for wimps, and the Eighties weren’t going to be wimps. They’d stand up and take care of things that went wrong and move on.
I’m also not a political science expert, but I can tell you I sure appreciate the Eighties attitude of “can do” that we had naturally. We didn’t have to be told we could, or persuaded to maybe think we could. We could. And we did. Sure, times change. Things are hard. But then, things are always hard. That will never change. It’s our attitude about it that makes the difference.
Me, I’m a harden my heart and move along kind of gal. That’s the kind of music I listen to by choice, also. Yes, I’m an Eighties girl. I graduated high school in 1984 listening to Quarterflash and Huey Lewis and the News (It’s Alright) and Sawyer Brown (Shakin’) and Joan Jett (I Love Rock and Roll) and Michael Jackson.
I keep wanting to ask the guy asking where God was when things were tough, “What were you doing about it?”
First posted on my site blog: http://lkhunsaker.blogspot.com 13 Aug 09 |
© Copyright 2009 Voxxylady (UN: voxxylady at Writing.Com). All rights reserved.
Voxxylady has granted Writing.Com, its affiliates and its syndicates non-exclusive rights to display this work.
|
Log In To Leave Feedback
Static Items
Books
Forums
Groups
Interactive Stories
Audio
Campfire Creatives
Community Notes
Crossword Puzzles
Documents
Folders
Images
In & Outs
Madlibs
Photo Albums
Polls
Product Reviews
Quizzes
Survey Forms
Web Pages
Word Searches
