Sidetracked

There’s a Barenaked Ladies song called ”It’s All Been Done,” which, translated loosely, means: It’s all been done. 

While the song is basically about relationships, I like to cite it – okay, maybe even sing it — when making a case about art. Because, really, nothing is new – it’s all borrowed and tweaked.

Now some may equate borrowing and tweaking to stealing. I once read an interview where Van Morrison accused Bruce Springsteen of ripping him off. And comedian Bobcat Goldwaithe used to say Sam Kinison’s trademark screaming was, in fact, taken from his bit.

Don’t these guys know that line about imitation being the most sincere form of flattery?

Guess not.

Of course, I’m defending the “borrowing and tweaking” concept because I myself am about to do it. A while back, I interviewed Al Young, California’s Poet Laureate, who had written a series of memoirs connected with music. So, for instance, in a piece about the song “Respect,” he wrote about a conversation he once had with a cab driver while “Respect” played on the radio. In an essay about Rosemary Clooney’s “Come On-a My House,” he wrote about meeting one of the song’s composers, William Saroyan. And so on.

When I first learned of this, I thought it was a cool idea. In fact, so cool, I knew instantly that I wanted to steal it. (I don’t feel bad about ripping Al off, though – he said it wasn’t his original idea, either.)

So starting tomorrow, I will embark on my own musical memoirs, which will appear on this blog as an occasional series.

I don’t have a title yet, so if you have any suggestions, feel free to offer them up.

Posted on May 29th, 2008 by Pat
Filed under: Music, Songs in the Key of Life: My Musical Memoirs, The World According to Pat