Tradition is good, but don’t let it weigh you down

WHEN I’M trying to work, I usually listen to music, as it helps to calm my nerves.

I listen to a variety of genres, from rap to reggae, from EDM to hip-hop, from Dionne Warwick to Doja Cat. I love live performances, too, at least when they’re done ‘right’. By the way, if you ever have the time, check out a Billy Preston live performance of My Sweet Lord, complete with surviving Beatles members Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr, along with fellow rocker Eric Clapton and a full band, string section, the whole works. Magic! But I digress. Like all humans, I can become a creature of habit, and so if I find a version of a song I really like, I don’t usually venture to find others. But sometimes I do force myself to try out something ‘different’ And sometimes when I do, it pays dividends.

I happened upon two channels on YouTube recently, Scary Pockets and Postmodern Jukebox. Both involve a cadre of musicians and singers getting together to perform cover versions of popular songs from all generations, but with a twist. With Scary Pockets, they do the covers in the funk genre, while Postmodern Jukebox do them using the sock hop/rock-and-roll flavour of the 1950s. I was blown away by what they’ve done with the songs! I know that real artistes tell you that if you’re going to do a cover, then you should make it your own. But dang, these people are good! Imagine BTS’s Dynamite with a funky beat. Yep, that’s what I’m talking about.

The thing is, though, there are always going to be persons who don’t want to change things up. Some people are just so set in their ways that even when faced with undeniable proof that something isn’t as they thought it was for decades, they still cling to it. There are still people who are deadly afraid of moths, even though they have no evidence that moths are bad for your health. Some persons have an unhealthy disdain for anything electronic and refuse to attempt embracing technology. So they will drive a beat-up, old station wagon that they can no longer find certain parts for, instead of getting a modern vehicle.

Now, don’t get me wrong. There are elements of the ‘old ways’ that will always remain timeless. An example of this is listening to music on vinyl. There is just something about that sound that you can’t quite replicate if you’re listening to a digital version. And some photographers will tell you that despite the improvements in computers, etc, they still use film cameras. And as someone who has worked with photographers for his entire career, there is something about going through that process of developing the film and working with the chemicals that just make it feel like more of an art form than the quick ‘point and shoot’.

But there is always an opportunity to embrace new stuff and, believe it or not, merge the past, present and future. And there’s nothing wrong with that.