Editor’s note:Arachnophonia is a regular feature on our blog where members of the UR community can share their thoughts about resources from the Parsons Music Library‘s collection.
If you’re a fan of musical theatre, you probably know about A Chorus Line. It’s a classic musical from the 1970s that’s pretty much the mother of meta – the whole story is a dance-based musical about dancers trying to get cast in a musical. It couldn’t be more self-reflective. The music, composed by Marvin Hamlisch, is lively and bouncy and inspires people even as uncoordinated as I am to get up and dance. A lot of the singing is conversational, with the songs dominated by jazz piano and interesting syncopated drumbeats.
Listening to this musical will give you confidence about your biggest creative insecurities. “Nothing” is about a girl whose acting teacher hates her because she doesn’t understand the value of pretending to be a table or an ice cream cone during class. “Sing!” is sung by a girl who can’t carry a tune to save her life.
“At the Ballet” is my favorite musical theatre song of all time. Three women sing about their different experiences getting into ballet while simultaneously talking about their families’ issues. It’s powerful without being sentimental, and the dark lyrics are contrasted with such lively music which creates the same kind of contrast between love and longing that I’m sure existed in their lives.
Overall, A Chorus Line is already so famous but if you haven’t heard it and you’re in the mood for a raw, real musical about a musical, give the soundtrack a listen.
Editor’s note:Arachnophonia is a regular feature on our blog where members of the UR community can share their thoughts about resources from the Parsons Music Library‘s collection.
In the epoch of rock and roll, there are few artists that have achieved the stardom, veneration, and global recognition attributed to Rush. The band is well known among the rock and roll community for their enduring impact on the genre, as Rush’s decades-spanning career encapsulates a variety of musical styles, each a product of inspiration from greats like Led Zeppelin, Yes, Genesis, and Jethro Tull as well as the trio’s own innovations. From their blues and hard rock inspired early albums, like Fly by Night and the eponymous Rush, to the experimental and progressive albums like 2112, Moving Pictures, and Grace Under Pressure produced in their middle years, Rush continuously reinvented the genre. The band’s three members, Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson, and Neal Peart received their most honorable recognition in 2013, when Rush was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
If you’re new to Rush and looking for a diverse sampling of their music, the two-disc album Rush | gold contains the best of Rush from their first album in 1974 to Hold Your Fire, released in 1987. What the album lacks, however, are any selections from Rush’s later music, which is more stylistically traditional with more hard rock and metal influences. Nonetheless, Rush|gold offers a fantastic selection of what Rush has to offer, from the pulse-pounding energy of “Anthem” and the nostalgic adventure of “Red Barchetta” (my personal favorite) to the synth-heavy, dystopian sci-fi epic “2112 Overture”.
Whether you are new to Rush, or a lifelong fan, this album provides a curated assortment of their best work that is sure to be enjoyed. If you enjoy Rush | gold, I encourage you to listen to some of their music in chronological order and experience the evolution of the band’s sound over the last four decades.
Editor’s note:Arachnophonia is a regular feature on our blog where members of the UR community can share their thoughts about resources from the Parsons Music Library‘s collection.
“Why Karen Carpenter Matters” book cover (image: University of Texas Press)
2019 marks fifty years since the release of the Carpenters’ debut album Ticket to Ride (1969; originally released as Offering). Over a fourteen-year career, the Downey, California based brother-sister duo of Karen and Richard released ten albums and were best known for their runaway hits “(They Long to Be) Close to You” (1970), “We’ve Only Just Begun” (1970), and “Top of The World” (1973). Richard handled much of the writing and all of the arranging of their songs, blending easy listening, adult contemporary, and classical stylings together, despite the popularity of hard rock at the time. Richard crafted their songs to bolster the uniquely low and rich voice of his sister. The Carpenters’ signature sound was characterized by the use of multi-tracking to back Karen’s voice with itself to provide harmonies, a technique known as overdubbing. Indeed, it was Karen who was eventually forced out from behind her drum set to become the reluctant star of the group.
The story of the Carpenters is ultimately one of tragedy. As their fame grew, so did the demands of a near-constant touring schedule. This, coupled with increased scrutiny from the media, is speculated to be the cause of Karen’s development of anorexia nervosa. Around the same time, Richard developed an addiction to Quaaludes, a sleeping pill. Although Richard cured his addiction through rehab, little was known about eating disorders at the time that any treatment Karen underwent was dubious at best. She died from complications from anorexia in 1983 at the age of thirty-two.
The Carpenters, 1974 By A&M Records – Billboard Magazine, page 2, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=75866990
In the decades since Karen’s death, the Carpenters’ catalog has been critically re-evaluated several times over, amassing further acclaim alongside greater examination into the Carpenters’ personal lives and a paradigmatic shift in understanding of anorexia nervosa. One such re-evaluation comes in the form of Karen Tongson’s Why Karen Carpenter Matters, released earlier this year. Part-biography, part-autobiography, and part-musicography, it charts not only the life of Karen Carpenter, but Karen Tongson (the author — named for Carpenter) and her lifelong relationship to the music of the Carpenters. A Filipino-American immigrant, Tongson draws inspiration from her own life to examine why the music of the Carpenters endures for people of color, the LGBTQ+ community, and anyone else who has craved the “white normalcy” that middle class suburbanites Richard and Karen seemed to embody. Tongson emphasizes Karen’s well-documented tomboyishness as a form of queer identity, and highlights how Karen, like so many minorities, obsessed over achieving a “white picket fence lifestyle” as a form of validation. Tongson’s writing put to words an understanding I first suspected while watching Fresh Off The Boat with my Japanese-American mother: though their children may only want to escape it, for many immigrants, white suburbia is the dream.
If it wasn’t already obvious, I’m a fan of the Carpenters. Their arrangements were superb and Karen was a generational talent. But even for those who find their music ‘too soft and too white,’ I recommend this book. At 138 pages, Why Karen Carpenter Matters is a brief and pleasant read that challenges some of the predominant assumptions we hold about why we love the music we love.
The Carpenters’ fifth studio album, Now & Then (1973) is also available for check out from the Parsons Music Library.
Editor’s note:Arachnophonia is a regular feature on our blog where members of the UR community can share their thoughts about resources from the Parsons Music Library‘s collection.
Rent is a Tony award-winning musical production that originated on Broadway in 1994, and has since been remade into a movie and has been touring since its 20th anniversary in 2014. The story follows a group of New York City bohemians who are struggling to make their rent payments, while juggling the challenges of the AIDS epidemic that directly affects a few main characters. We see the ups and downs of their lives, all set to catchyrock music.
This musical is a personal favorite of mine. I remember stumbling across it about 8 years ago, when I was entirely too young to really understand what was going on. I can remember my attraction to the upbeat rock music, which I had never experienced in a musical theater setting before. However, as I got older and began to grasp the story line that the talented actors were portraying, it suddenly clicked: it is such a powerful work targeting tough social justice issues.
From homelessness and poverty, to the AIDS epidemic, drug abuse, and homosexuality, this musical puts faces, names, and stories behind people who grapple with the challenges associated with these and the experiences they have. Especially for those who were born in the 1990s and after, they don’t really have an idea of what the AIDS epidemic was like in the United States. This musical is a way for us to get a glimpse into what the lives of affected individuals were like. We see a heartbroken romantic partner and devastated friends lose a loved one, we see others struggle with past losses, and we see others just wondering when it will be their turn. At times, it can be hard to watch these characters go through this, especially because the writing and acting is so realistic and authentic. However, I think it is important to watch, as it gives us a chance to reflect on our own privilege, and how lucky we are today. We never know when our time is up in this world. We must treat every day like there is “no day but today”, and we must hold onto what is important. There’s only 525,600 minutes a year: how will you measure your year?
Editor’s note:Arachnophonia is a regular feature on our blog where members of the UR community can share their thoughts about resources from the Parsons Music Library‘s collection.
As a result, I am excited to explore this book and Cain’s insight about the revival of folk music in the 1960’s that addressed a political shift and new cultural ideologies in America. The book focuses on musicians like Joan Baez, Peter Paul & Mary, and Bob Dylan and is divided into three parts; first, The Background, focused on the emergence of the New Left, second, The Politics, examining the politics of the New Left, and third, The Music, or the soundtrack of the New Left movement. When paging through the book, I was interested in the connection between suburbanization and the emergence of the New Left, and was drawn to the idea of a “prefigurative model” that turns the status quo upside down, where the “last shall be first”. Michael Scott Cain integrates an analysis of American history, culture, icons, music and experiences in an accessible and interesting read. Check it out!
