The Passing of Pop Moments

Tomorrow is a significant day for me. It's going to mark a passing of the torch of sorts. One of my heroes is Paul Weller. While he was still essentially a kid, he started the Jam and went to the top of the English pop scene. The Jam never made it in the U.S., but they've come to be quite appreciated here in retrospect. Even twenty and twenty-five years later, their singles and their six albums still deliver a manic pop thrill that puts a chill up my spine. Weller's guitar has a life and power of its own that rarely fails to deliver. He told us to love with a passion called hate (because what we give is what we get). He introduced us to Liza Radley, who kissed our face and said, "Love means nothing at all." He warned us off from the Burning Sky, which consumes all and has no time for dreams when commerce calls. He showed us two lovers reading the graffiti about slashed seats affairs. But he also reminded us that we can find our own English Rose and no bonds can ever keep us from she. As far as I'm concerned, "Going Underground" presents words to live by more appropriate to today than to when it was written in 1980. Paul Weller is coming to Chicago tomorrow night. But I'm going to see Franz Ferdinand.

Franz is young, serious. They were very much last year's band of the moment, and I want to see if they can keep it up. Weller can still thrill me, but I'm not sure if he can surprise me anymore. Franz, I'm hoping, can. They could fall into the sophomore jinx, which would be quite disappointing, but if they can grow and move forward a bit, they may have quite a future in front of them. I believe I know the path Weller is taking, but Franz still has to chart theirs, and I'm curious to see where it might lead. I think there will be two good, strong shows in Chicago tomorrow (actually, there's the potential for more--Beck is playing around the corner from Franz, and Black Rebel Motorcycle Club will be a five-minute walk from Weller). I'm going to see Franz tomorrow night, but I'm taking my Jam CDs into work tomorrow to listen to all day.

I'd planned to end this post with that last paragraph, but as I was rooting around the Internet writing this post, I looked to see what I could find out about the Weller tour. He played long sets in California, more than twenty-five songs in LA and San Francisco, so depending on when Franz lets out, I might just see if I can get in to see the end of Weller's show.