Well, there's great and there's great. I can go to a diner and have a great cup of coffee, or I can go to a famous restaurant in Paris and have a great food experience.

When I speak of great music, I mean music that has been regarded over time by many people as being "great." Much of this is affected by the listeners themselves who have been influenced by political, social and cultural pressures. Much of it is nudged by ad hominem viepoints. So, no, Miley Cyrus or Justin Beiber do not have the perspective of time to be considered great, if indeed they ever are. However many folks thought of in their day as "pop fluff" have later been judged to be "great." Artists such as Gilbert and Sullivan, Tschaikovsky, and Liszt were all proclaimed lightweights by their contemporary critics. A good case in point is Norman Rockwell, the painter. In his lifetime he was thought of by the art community as an illustrator and not at all as a serious artist. Today art critics have changed their minds about him.

Also, most, nearly all of our current "greats" have been very popular. Elvis, Johnny Cash, Louis Armstrong, Dylan, Marilyn Monroe....so were Beethoven, Bach and Mozart, all superstars in their day.

I'm not saying Beiber et al will ever achieve that, but I do remember the Beatles singing "yeah yeah yeah" and "I wanna hold your hand" long before they were singing their intellectual stuff like "She Came Through the Bathroom Window." smile

But while I can't think of one "great" who was not liked by a lot of people I can think of a lot who were also derided by a lot as well.

You've got to know your limitations. I don't know what your limitations are. I found out what mine were when I was twelve. I found out that there weren't too many limitations, if I did it my way. -Johnny Cash

It's only music.
-niteshift

Mike Dunbar Music