Bill Cosby used to do a comedy routine about popular music. When he was a kid, his parents were always yelling at him to, ‘ Turn that crap down!’ Then when he became the parent of 5 children, he found himself always yelling, ‘Turn that crap down!’ It has occurred to me that I am now in the stage of life where a lot of popular music sounds like crap to me.

I was just listening to an old Grateful Dead album. The name of the band, Grateful Dead, implies something other-worldly and what we would now call edgy. My parents told us to, ‘Turn that crap down!’ but we were convinced that it was great music. And you know what? It is great music. It’s sooo tame that it’s a bit shocking to think that anyone ever thought of it as new or even close to in-your-face.

Grateful Dead 1966

So what’s the difference between the Grateful Dead and current pop music? Music, that’s the difference. The Grateful Dead in their prime didn’t have the electronic wizardry that Train uses in their ‘music.’ The technology didn’t exist in the 60′s, 70′s or even the early part of the 80′s. When you went to a rock concert, you heard the band playing and singing. The music was the focus – not the show.

Train has a great sound, but it’s manufactured in the recording studio. When you go to a Train concert, you are not hearing the singer sing, you’re hearing a voice that was ‘created’ in the recording studio. Unfortunately, a current pop star of doesn’t need to be a good musician or a good singer. A pop star now can simply be an entertainer who can put on a flashy show.

The result of the possibilities of electronic wizardry is that songs are written in a very narrow vocal range – mainly because most pop stars are not really singers. It’s too difficult to learn the art and craft of singing.

I don’t think my attitude comes from being ‘older.’ I love music. It is my life and my passion. My question is, where’s the music? Where are the great singers? And why does the listening public let their idols get away with mediocrity?

About the author

Sally Morgan is a professional vocal trainer with over 30 years of experience. Sally is also the creator and author of SingLikeYouSpeak(TM)!

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