Earlier this week I wrote about the blurring of musical lines between rock, country, alternative, and it got me thinking about some of my favorite genre-defying examples. Coincidentally I also picked up "Love is a Mix Tape" by Rob Sheffield, a memoir of his tragically short marriage as told through the mix tapes that he and his wife Renee made and listened to while they were together. (Over the summer I read his newer book, "Talking to Girls about Duran Duran" and it was one of those books where, when you read it, the other person in the room finally has to say, "what are you READING?" because you're snorting laughter through your nose the whole time. If you ever turned on MTV in the '80s, you'll appreciate it.)
One of the first mix tapes - which are helpfully included as chapter headers - included an amalgam that I'd completely forgotten about, but it's a perfect musical melange. It appears that British acid house act KLF invited country queen Tammy Wynette to meet them for lunch on a discarded Dr. Who set from the mid-70s, a crowd of red-silk wearing narwhals showed up, and "Justified and Ancient" broke out. Stand by the JAMS, friends...
Someone starting screamin', "Turn up the stove!"
ReplyDeleteIt is really hard to winnow down to the best line; I also like Tammy miming how she picked up that phone down there in Tennessee, when they called to say "Tammy, stand by the jams!"
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