Monday, June 02, 2008
|"Well, that's not REALLY country music, now is it?"|
I do not understand this obsession people have with claiming something as "really" this or that. I can't pretend to not be a fan of labels and I can certainly be accused of being overly persnicketty when it comes to categorization and classification, but sometimes it seems so unnecessary.
For example: I like white chocolate. I don't dislike dark, milk, or semi-sweet chocolates. It's just that I do not like them as much. I also fully acknowledge that "white chocolate" may perhaps be a misnomer, since there is not normally any chocolate in white chocolate. Nevertheless, more often than makes any sense, I will encounter someone who asks rhetorically, "How can you like white chocolate? It isn't even chocolate!"
It's almost as if they are upset with white chocolate itself for fronting as chocolate chocolate. Upset for the plight all of those pitiable rhubes who were duped into thinking they were about to savour the essence of the cacao, instead of just sugar and vegetable fat.
Listen here: white chocolate's confectionery wonderfulness is not impugned by someone ages ago having decided that for long-forgotten (though maybe easily guessed) reasons it was similar enough to chocolate to be so named.
And the same goes for so-called "country pop." The other day I was at lunch with some associates and some SA's at Pomze (a restaurant devoted to the glory that is the apple). I don't recall how or why it came up, but at some point I mentioned being a country fan. I specifically referred to Chris Cagle. To which one of the SA's (who I do like, despite her inspiring this rant), who hails from the Lonestar replied, "Well that's not really country music, now is it?"
Calling it "country" doesn't get my rocks off. I don't get paid a royalty by CMA or Sony each time I refer to Carrie Underwood or Josh Turner as "country." Other than conversational ease, I get nothing from referring to a certain class of the music that I listen to as country.
The point was that I like that artist -- the particular song strikes a particular chord (no pun intended) within me (albeit for reasons passing understanding).
It may not really be country music (though I dare you to define the category). And it may not really be chocolate (though I dare you to define that, too). But here's a better question: That does not really matter, now does it?
I do not understand this obsession people have with claiming something as "really" this or that. I can't pretend to not be a fan of labels and I can certainly be accused of being overly persnicketty when it comes to categorization and classification, but sometimes it seems so unnecessary.
For example: I like white chocolate. I don't dislike dark, milk, or semi-sweet chocolates. It's just that I do not like them as much. I also fully acknowledge that "white chocolate" may perhaps be a misnomer, since there is not normally any chocolate in white chocolate. Nevertheless, more often than makes any sense, I will encounter someone who asks rhetorically, "How can you like white chocolate? It isn't even chocolate!"
It's almost as if they are upset with white chocolate itself for fronting as chocolate chocolate. Upset for the plight all of those pitiable rhubes who were duped into thinking they were about to savour the essence of the cacao, instead of just sugar and vegetable fat.
Listen here: white chocolate's confectionery wonderfulness is not impugned by someone ages ago having decided that for long-forgotten (though maybe easily guessed) reasons it was similar enough to chocolate to be so named.
And the same goes for so-called "country pop." The other day I was at lunch with some associates and some SA's at Pomze (a restaurant devoted to the glory that is the apple). I don't recall how or why it came up, but at some point I mentioned being a country fan. I specifically referred to Chris Cagle. To which one of the SA's (who I do like, despite her inspiring this rant), who hails from the Lonestar replied, "Well that's not really country music, now is it?"
Calling it "country" doesn't get my rocks off. I don't get paid a royalty by CMA or Sony each time I refer to Carrie Underwood or Josh Turner as "country." Other than conversational ease, I get nothing from referring to a certain class of the music that I listen to as country.
The point was that I like that artist -- the particular song strikes a particular chord (no pun intended) within me (albeit for reasons passing understanding).
It may not really be country music (though I dare you to define the category). And it may not really be chocolate (though I dare you to define that, too). But here's a better question: That does not really matter, now does it?
promulgated by SWS2.1 at 10:14.
1 comments
1 Comments:
white chocolate isn't really chocolate, but I'll let you slide on the country/pop thing
By 
, at
1:11 PM
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