I'd like to eulogize Beck.

And I'd like to start by quoting Moonbeam's vote for Beck last round. I hope that my discussion is not taken to violate the rule of this thread not to criticize votes or voters. Moonbeam's comment, as all good comments on this forum do, sparked thoughts in my head.

Moonbeam wrote: "A classic example for me where all of the elements of the equation that results in Moonbeam liking an artist are present, but the results just aren't there. I understand that he's an inventive, peculiar character with a penchant for funk, much like my hero Prince. But for some reason, he doesn't wear it well for me as it all seems like posturing. For every Beck song I like ("E-Pro"), there are 2 others I detest ("Loser", "Where It's At")."

I don't disagree with anything Moonbeam says at all. On a majority of his work (and the vast majority of his most famous work), Beck's predominant position is posturing. We only disagree as to whether he wears it well, and that is a highly subjective determination.

What I really liked about Moonbeam's comment was it led me to think about the parallels and differences between Beck and Prince, and the role of authenticity versus pretense in pop music.

One of the things I like about Prince is that this scrawny, short guy can deliver the most outrageously over-the-top sexual come-ons and you wind up buying that he quite possibly IS the sexiest man in the world. The hyped-up synths, the frenetic guitar, the layers upon layers of vocals all add to a delerious, sometimes frenzied seduction. You start by asking yourself , "Can this guy be serious?"; and end by answering, "Who cares?" That is an incredible maneuver, and is only accomplished through his unique musical genius.

And yet, on the whole, I enjoy Beck more. (I'll leave aside the question of who is the greater artist. I vote on who I enjoy the most, with a smattering of consideration for influence and talent where those elements are underplayed in my initial "enjoyment" determination.) Beck clearly is playing with parody, but it is not just parodic. It is also joyous tribute. And is is also playful pastiche. And while the breadth of the music from which he appropriates (folk, hip-hop, country, tropicalia, early electronica, '60s psychedlic pop, and - yes - Prince himself) is impressive, it is not that breadth that makes him a great artist. It is the humor, love, skill, and theatricality with which he appropriates.

Lyrically, his kitchen sink approach lead to incredible flights of fancy, but often masks quite pointed themes (see, for example, "Tropicalia").

At core though, there is something unique that he brings to his songs quite apart from the influences that he draws from. Most nakedly, this can be seen on "Sea Change," where the artifice is shorn away in deep respect for the death of a relationship. Whether naked when it is just his voice and a guitar (no more "two turntables and a microphone") or massively forceful when his father's string arrangement swells on "Lonesome Tears," on this album Beck proves what should have been apparent upon closer listening to his earlier albums... the music and the emotion and the songs and the power are entirely his own, no matter from whom or what he might have originally borrowed, or how many layers of irony he filters them through.

Wow.

Well said, Schwah. Inspired by your comments, I'll likely take the next few hours to listen to Odelay and Sea Change. Both records have been out of my personal rotation for far too long.

Thanks Anthony. Given your own clear love for 60's baroque pop, you should listen to Mutations, if you have not done so yet.

And speaking of, I owe you a post on Odyssey and Oracle. I'm currently digesting it, and work obligations notwithstanding, will post on it in short order.

Nice post about Beck. I agree. My favorite thing about Beck is probably the fun he has with words. He really strings some interesting phrases together. One a literal level they may be kind of nonsense, but they always sounds cool when he sings them and often evoke the impression of meaning. Good trick.

Here are some examples from Odelay, where this trait is most common:

"Mouthwash jukebox gasoline"

"Love machines on the sympathy crutches
Discount orgies on the dropout buses
Hitching a ride with the bleeding noses
Coming to town with the brief case blues"

"Karaoke weekend at the suicide shack
Community service and I'm still the mack"

"Sawdust songs of the plaid bartenders
Western Unions of the country westerns
Silver foxes looking for romance
In the chain smoke Kansas flashdance ass pants"

"I got a stolen wife
And a rhinestone life
And some good ol' boys
I'm writing my will
On a three dollar bill
In the evening time"

Well, Paul, you hit upon my favorite non-Cole Porter lyric of all time, which I've quoted on these boards before. It's so nice, I'll quote it twice:

"Silver foxes looking for romance
In the chain smoke Kansas flashdance ass pants"

By the way, my favorite lyric of all time, from "Always True to You in My Fashion":

"Mr. Harris, plutocrat
Wants to give my cheeks a pat.
If a Harris pat means a Paris hat, okay.
But I'm always true to you, darling, in my fashion.
I'm always true to you, darling, in my way."

There are so many great lines in Hotwax yet somehow New Pollution and Where It's At are the universal favorites. Hotwax was Beck at his greatest (although most of his stuff is pretty great). It even leaves you with this nugget of an outro...

Girl: Who are you?
Man: I'm the enchanting wizard of rhythm.
Girl: Why did you come here?
Man: I came here to tell you about the rhythms of the universe....

I wonder if Beck will ever make another great album. Mutations was the last one I think even though Sea Change was pretty good. I don't know if he can pull off another Odelay or Mutations but it sure would be awesome if he did.

"If a Harris pat means a Paris hat, okay."

They don't write 'em like that anymore...

Schwah, that was a great eulogy for Beck. I haven't heard most of Sea Change[/i], so perhaps that could sway my opinion. I do have a hell of a lot of respect for Beck, and your eloquent appraisal of his work has certainly done him justice.