WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.100 In 1960, a prominent music critic listened to 00:00:03.100 --> 00:00:07.740 a brand new record. And he practically begged 00:00:07.740 --> 00:00:12.160 teenagers across America to please turn the volume 00:00:12.160 --> 00:00:14.279 down. Right. He was just completely overwhelmed 00:00:14.279 --> 00:00:16.000 by it. Yeah, it was just too much. Too loud, 00:00:16.420 --> 00:00:18.539 too, you know, abrasive. Oh, absolutely. But 00:00:18.539 --> 00:00:21.059 then if you fast forward over half a century 00:00:21.059 --> 00:00:25.300 later to 2017, historical archivists took that 00:00:25.300 --> 00:00:29.079 exact same quote unquote noisy record and they 00:00:29.079 --> 00:00:31.480 proudly displayed it in a museum window. Which 00:00:31.480 --> 00:00:34.359 is such a massive shift in perspective. It really 00:00:34.359 --> 00:00:36.719 is. They displayed it to remind the public about 00:00:36.719 --> 00:00:40.140 quote the important things in life. So welcome 00:00:40.140 --> 00:00:42.780 to the deep dive. We know you are busy whether 00:00:42.780 --> 00:00:45.020 you're commuting tackling a project or just trying 00:00:45.020 --> 00:00:46.600 to like make sense of the world and you are looking 00:00:46.600 --> 00:00:49.679 for that shortcut to being truly well informed. 00:00:49.899 --> 00:00:52.299 Exactly. You want the fascinating insights without 00:00:52.299 --> 00:00:54.679 you know. drowning in the data. Right. And that 00:00:54.679 --> 00:00:56.840 is exactly what we do here. Precisely. We take 00:00:56.840 --> 00:00:59.039 the raw information, the history, the details, 00:00:59.259 --> 00:01:01.880 the context, and we extract the narrative that 00:01:01.880 --> 00:01:04.000 actually matters. It's about understanding how 00:01:04.000 --> 00:01:07.799 things work and why they happen, not just... 00:01:07.579 --> 00:01:10.140 memorizing trivia. And today we are unpacking 00:01:10.140 --> 00:01:13.560 a really specific, completely fascinating cultural 00:01:13.560 --> 00:01:16.299 artifact. Oh, this one is so good. It is. We 00:01:16.299 --> 00:01:19.239 are diving into guitarist Dwayne Eddy's 1960 00:01:19.239 --> 00:01:22.040 compilation album. One million dollars worth 00:01:22.040 --> 00:01:25.599 of twang. A legendary release. Seriously. Our 00:01:25.599 --> 00:01:28.379 mission today is to figure out how this one single 00:01:28.379 --> 00:01:31.420 compilation album managed to capture the absolute 00:01:31.420 --> 00:01:34.939 zeitgeist of instrumental rock. Like how it dominated 00:01:34.939 --> 00:01:36.719 the Billboard charts without even having a lead 00:01:36.719 --> 00:01:38.959 singer. and how it made that incredible journey 00:01:38.959 --> 00:01:42.379 from a literal noise complaint to an archived 00:01:42.379 --> 00:01:44.719 celebrated treasure. Okay, let's unpack this. 00:01:44.840 --> 00:01:46.780 It really is a phenomenal trajectory to study. 00:01:47.930 --> 00:01:50.370 To really grasp the mechanics of how this happened, 00:01:50.890 --> 00:01:52.870 we have to start with the foundational reality 00:01:52.870 --> 00:01:54.769 of this album's creation. Right, setting the 00:01:54.769 --> 00:01:57.670 scene. Exactly. It was released in 1960 by Jamie 00:01:57.670 --> 00:01:59.849 Records. Jamie Records, okay. And for the archive 00:01:59.849 --> 00:02:01.909 enthusiasts listening, the official catalog number 00:02:01.909 --> 00:02:06.430 was JLP 70 -3014. Wow, okay. I was going to kick 00:02:06.430 --> 00:02:09.030 out of those clinical catalog numbers. JLP 70 00:02:09.030 --> 00:02:11.870 -3014. It sounds very industrial, doesn't it? 00:02:11.990 --> 00:02:14.289 It sounds like a part for an airplane engine, 00:02:14.310 --> 00:02:16.789 which is such a, you know, a hilarious contrast 00:02:16.789 --> 00:02:21.250 to... title as wild and expressive as $1 million 00:02:21.250 --> 00:02:25.310 worth of twang. It really is. But the masterminds 00:02:25.310 --> 00:02:28.009 who packaged this compilation were two highly 00:02:28.009 --> 00:02:30.949 influential producers. OK, who were they? Lee 00:02:30.949 --> 00:02:34.009 Hazelwood and Lester Sill. Right, Hazelwood and 00:02:34.009 --> 00:02:36.770 Sill. I want to talk about them. and the very 00:02:36.770 --> 00:02:39.330 nature of this release. Because, I mean, this 00:02:39.330 --> 00:02:44.150 is a compilation album, right? Correct. Looking 00:02:44.150 --> 00:02:47.069 at this from a modern perspective, if a major 00:02:47.069 --> 00:02:49.550 artist today curates a playlist of their best 00:02:49.550 --> 00:02:53.150 tracks on a streaming platform, we recognize 00:02:53.150 --> 00:02:56.270 it as a strategic brand solidifying move. Sure, 00:02:56.289 --> 00:02:58.389 it trains the algorithm. Exactly, it trains the 00:02:58.389 --> 00:03:00.770 algorithmic curation. But let's look at the 1960 00:03:00.770 --> 00:03:03.629 record industry. A very different beast. Very 00:03:03.629 --> 00:03:06.280 different. It was notorious for for ringing every 00:03:06.280 --> 00:03:08.539 last cent out of a trend. Oh, absolutely. So 00:03:08.539 --> 00:03:10.699 I have to push back a little on the romance of 00:03:10.699 --> 00:03:13.400 this record. OK, let's hear it. Was $1 million 00:03:13.400 --> 00:03:17.360 worth of twang just a blatant cash grab? Were 00:03:17.360 --> 00:03:19.539 Jamie Records and these producers just saying, 00:03:19.659 --> 00:03:22.280 hey, we have these doynetti tracks sitting around. 00:03:22.740 --> 00:03:24.759 Let's slap them on a piece of vinyl, ship it 00:03:24.759 --> 00:03:26.699 out, and make a quick buck off the kids? Well, 00:03:26.819 --> 00:03:29.539 that is the natural cynical assumption. And frankly, 00:03:29.699 --> 00:03:32.400 the 1960s music industry certainly earned that 00:03:32.400 --> 00:03:34.400 reputation in many respects. Right. They weren't 00:03:34.400 --> 00:03:36.599 exactly known for their artistic integrity all 00:03:36.599 --> 00:03:38.919 the time. No, they weren't. But what's fascinating 00:03:38.919 --> 00:03:41.800 here is that compiling an artist's best work 00:03:41.800 --> 00:03:47.439 into one physical LP in 1960 served a much more 00:03:47.439 --> 00:03:50.060 vital, almost educational purpose for the listener 00:03:50.060 --> 00:03:53.719 than a modern playlist does today. Really? How 00:03:53.719 --> 00:03:56.229 so? Well, you have to remember the context of 00:03:56.229 --> 00:03:58.650 physical media back then. Singles, you know, 00:03:58.789 --> 00:04:01.270 45s, they were ephemeral. Right, you play them 00:04:01.270 --> 00:04:03.169 once and they're done. Exactly. They played for 00:04:03.169 --> 00:04:04.949 two minutes and then the party moved on. Yeah, 00:04:04.949 --> 00:04:06.689 they were scattered. Like you might have one 00:04:06.689 --> 00:04:08.449 Dwayne Eddie single, your friend might have another 00:04:08.449 --> 00:04:11.030 one. Exactly. So by gathering these specific 00:04:11.030 --> 00:04:14.930 signature tracks onto one 12 inch LP, Hazelwood 00:04:14.930 --> 00:04:17.610 and Sill weren't just repackaging old product. 00:04:17.709 --> 00:04:20.110 OK. They were essentially publishing a thesis 00:04:20.110 --> 00:04:23.250 statement. for a brand new genre. A thesis statement, 00:04:23.490 --> 00:04:25.750 that's a strong way to put it. It is. They were 00:04:25.750 --> 00:04:28.170 taking the defining sound of instrumental rock 00:04:28.170 --> 00:04:32.629 and roll and concentrating it into a single cohesive 00:04:32.629 --> 00:04:35.120 curriculum. OK, I hear you calling it a thesis 00:04:35.120 --> 00:04:37.560 stomp, and I get the idea of a curriculum, but 00:04:37.560 --> 00:04:40.560 I'm still a little skeptical. That's fair. At 00:04:40.560 --> 00:04:42.379 the end of the day, they didn't write new music 00:04:42.379 --> 00:04:44.680 for this. They took existing assets and just 00:04:44.680 --> 00:04:46.779 put them in a new sleeve. Yes, physically that's 00:04:46.779 --> 00:04:49.160 what happened. So how is that not just incredibly 00:04:49.160 --> 00:04:52.040 savvy product management disguised as art? Well, 00:04:52.120 --> 00:04:54.639 it is absolutely savvy product management, but 00:04:54.639 --> 00:04:57.839 the two aren't mutually exclusive. OK, explain 00:04:57.839 --> 00:04:59.899 that. Think about how a listener consumes an 00:04:59.899 --> 00:05:03.980 LP versus a single. an LP demands a sustained 00:05:03.980 --> 00:05:05.899 block of your attention. You actually have to 00:05:05.899 --> 00:05:08.939 sit down and listen to it. Right. By sequencing 00:05:08.939 --> 00:05:11.399 these tracks together, Hazelwood and Sill were 00:05:11.399 --> 00:05:14.019 telling the broader audience, if you want to 00:05:14.019 --> 00:05:15.759 understand what the instrumental rock and roll 00:05:15.759 --> 00:05:19.279 aesthetic is, here is the ultimate primer. Ah! 00:05:20.250 --> 00:05:23.730 It codified Dwayne Eddy's twang, not just as 00:05:23.730 --> 00:05:26.990 a passing novelty, but as a unified musical identity. 00:05:27.149 --> 00:05:29.670 It cemented it. Yes, it cemented the genre in 00:05:29.670 --> 00:05:31.949 a way that scattered radio plays simply could 00:05:31.949 --> 00:05:34.089 not. You know, that actually makes perfect sense. 00:05:34.269 --> 00:05:36.110 You aren't just selling a song, you're handing 00:05:36.110 --> 00:05:39.069 the listener the exact blueprint of a new sonic 00:05:39.069 --> 00:05:41.490 universe. A sonic universe, yes, I like that 00:05:41.490 --> 00:05:44.009 phrasing. And clearly, the public was absolutely 00:05:44.009 --> 00:05:46.449 ravenous for that blueprint. Because when we 00:05:46.449 --> 00:05:48.110 look at how this album performed commercially, 00:05:48.370 --> 00:05:51.810 the data... is staggering. It really is. The 00:05:51.810 --> 00:05:54.069 packaging totally worked. It worked remarkably 00:05:54.069 --> 00:05:56.949 well. The album entered Billboard magazine's 00:05:56.949 --> 00:05:59.889 pop album chart, and the specific entry date 00:05:59.889 --> 00:06:01.910 on that chart is a critical piece of the puzzle 00:06:01.910 --> 00:06:04.149 here. Okay, what was the date? It debuted on 00:06:04.149 --> 00:06:07.629 December 26th, 1960. Yes. Here's where it gets 00:06:07.629 --> 00:06:10.430 really interesting. Right. Because December 26th 00:06:10.430 --> 00:06:13.189 is not just a random Tuesday. It's the day after 00:06:13.189 --> 00:06:16.160 Christmas. Exactly. If an album is entering the 00:06:16.160 --> 00:06:18.800 Billboard charts on that specific date, that 00:06:18.800 --> 00:06:22.439 means the sales data driving that debut was accumulating 00:06:22.439 --> 00:06:25.040 heavily in the weeks immediately prior. During 00:06:25.040 --> 00:06:27.699 the peak holiday shopping rush. Yes. So I have 00:06:27.699 --> 00:06:29.899 a theory about this. Okay, lay it on me. Could 00:06:29.899 --> 00:06:32.759 this massive chart entry have been fueled almost 00:06:32.759 --> 00:06:35.459 entirely by the fact that one million dollars 00:06:35.459 --> 00:06:39.300 worth of twang was the ultimate late 1960 holiday 00:06:39.300 --> 00:06:41.560 gift? Well, without a doubt. Like, just imagine 00:06:41.560 --> 00:06:44.420 the sheer volume of teenagers tearing the wrapping 00:06:44.420 --> 00:06:47.399 paper off this specific record on Christmas morning. 00:06:47.740 --> 00:06:50.240 It's a great image, and I think your theory is 00:06:50.240 --> 00:06:53.279 highly probable. It speaks to how perfectly Hazelwood 00:06:53.279 --> 00:06:55.860 and Sill positioned the record. The timing was 00:06:55.860 --> 00:06:58.839 just impeccable. It was. But if we connect this 00:06:58.839 --> 00:07:01.860 to the bigger picture, hitting the charts right 00:07:01.860 --> 00:07:04.060 at the culmination of the holiday buying season 00:07:04.060 --> 00:07:06.899 is only the beginning of the story. Right. It 00:07:06.899 --> 00:07:08.660 didn't just drop off the chart a week later. 00:07:08.839 --> 00:07:11.480 No. What is truly historically significant is 00:07:11.480 --> 00:07:13.639 what happened next. It didn't just experience 00:07:13.639 --> 00:07:16.139 a holiday flash in the pan. It kept going. It 00:07:16.139 --> 00:07:18.839 climbed to number 10 on the pop album chart and 00:07:18.839 --> 00:07:21.100 maintained a presence on that chart for nine 00:07:21.100 --> 00:07:23.339 full weeks. Nine weeks in the top tier. That's 00:07:23.339 --> 00:07:26.680 huge. Very huge. And this was one of only two 00:07:26.680 --> 00:07:28.579 Dwayne Eddie albums to ever break into the top 00:07:28.579 --> 00:07:31.000 10. That's right. The other one being Have Twangy 00:07:31.000 --> 00:07:33.079 Guitar Will Travel, which, by the way, is just 00:07:33.079 --> 00:07:35.639 an undeniably great title. It's a brilliant title. 00:07:35.759 --> 00:07:39.959 Great play on words. But pause and consider the 00:07:39.959 --> 00:07:42.160 reality of what it means for this album to hit 00:07:42.160 --> 00:07:46.019 number 10. OK. We are talking about an instrumental 00:07:46.019 --> 00:07:48.899 rock album. There is no lead vocalist. Which 00:07:48.899 --> 00:07:52.199 is wild for pop radio. Right. There's no charismatic 00:07:52.199 --> 00:07:54.720 front man singing lyrics of teenage heartbreak 00:07:54.720 --> 00:07:57.519 or rebellion for the audience to project themselves 00:07:57.519 --> 00:08:00.019 onto. Right. Like Elvis Presley had his voice 00:08:00.019 --> 00:08:02.519 and his face. Exactly. Dwayne Eddie just had 00:08:02.519 --> 00:08:04.939 his guitar tone. Just the twang. Just the twang. 00:08:04.939 --> 00:08:07.899 The fact that a purely instrumental album could 00:08:07.899 --> 00:08:10.540 crack the top 10 of the mainstream Billboard 00:08:10.540 --> 00:08:14.269 pop chart. proves the immense magnetic commercial 00:08:14.269 --> 00:08:17.529 power of that specific audio aesthetic. Wow. 00:08:17.709 --> 00:08:19.689 So people weren't buying a personality to crush 00:08:19.689 --> 00:08:22.050 on, they were buying a vibration. A vibration, 00:08:22.189 --> 00:08:24.529 exactly. They were buying an attitude delivered 00:08:24.529 --> 00:08:27.209 entirely through guitar strings. Yes. And they 00:08:27.209 --> 00:08:29.649 loved that attitude so much that it spawned a 00:08:29.649 --> 00:08:32.250 direct sequel. It did. The records show that 00:08:32.250 --> 00:08:34.889 the overwhelming commercial demand for this album 00:08:34.889 --> 00:08:38.309 led Jamie Records to release $1 million worth 00:08:38.309 --> 00:08:43.120 of twang volume two, the very next year in 1961. 00:08:44.179 --> 00:08:46.860 No. They literally had to go back to the well 00:08:46.860 --> 00:08:49.039 to keep the public satisfied. Which is the ultimate 00:08:49.039 --> 00:08:51.639 vindication of Hazelwood and Sills compilation 00:08:51.639 --> 00:08:53.720 strategy. It was a resounding triumph of both 00:08:53.720 --> 00:08:56.220 culture and commerce. OK. So the commercial side 00:08:56.220 --> 00:08:59.019 is a landslide victory. The public is voting 00:08:59.019 --> 00:09:00.860 with their wallets. They're buying it in droves 00:09:00.860 --> 00:09:02.899 for Christmas and they're demanding a volume 00:09:02.899 --> 00:09:05.710 two. Right. But. You know, whenever something 00:09:05.710 --> 00:09:07.970 sells that well and captures the youth culture 00:09:07.970 --> 00:09:11.009 that aggressively, it inevitably crashes headfirst 00:09:11.009 --> 00:09:13.750 into the establishment. Always. It never fails. 00:09:13.970 --> 00:09:16.570 So we have to ask... How did the professional 00:09:16.570 --> 00:09:18.990 critics, you know, the gatekeepers of the era, 00:09:19.350 --> 00:09:22.429 actually feel about listening to a concentrated 00:09:22.429 --> 00:09:26.210 30 minute dose of unapologetic twang? This is 00:09:26.210 --> 00:09:28.590 where the historical shift of the album's legacy 00:09:28.590 --> 00:09:32.169 becomes incredibly vivid. Let's examine the immediate 00:09:32.169 --> 00:09:34.549 contemporary reaction first. OK, take us back 00:09:34.549 --> 00:09:38.470 to 1960. In November 1960, right as the album 00:09:38.470 --> 00:09:41.570 was hitting store shelves, a music reviewer named 00:09:41.570 --> 00:09:44.289 G. Mitchell published his take on it. Oh, I can't 00:09:44.289 --> 00:09:46.070 wait. Let's hear what G. Mitchell had to say 00:09:46.070 --> 00:09:48.830 while sitting in his office in 1960. Well, Mitchell's 00:09:48.830 --> 00:09:51.529 review is a perfect time capsule. He conceded 00:09:51.529 --> 00:09:55.049 that $1 million worth of twangs certainly, quote, 00:09:55.750 --> 00:09:58.269 stirs up action aplenty on things like rubble 00:09:58.269 --> 00:10:01.049 rouser, moving and grooving, and because they're 00:10:01.049 --> 00:10:04.690 young. Stirs up action aplenty. I mean, as a 00:10:04.690 --> 00:10:06.889 rock and roll musician, that is exactly the review 00:10:06.889 --> 00:10:09.649 you want. That sounds like high praise. Right. 00:10:09.690 --> 00:10:12.370 It begins as praise. He's acknowledging the undeniable 00:10:12.370 --> 00:10:15.090 energy. But then Mitchell felt compelled to add 00:10:15.090 --> 00:10:17.370 a warning label to the end of his review. A warning 00:10:17.370 --> 00:10:20.750 label? Basically, yeah. He wrote, quote, but 00:10:20.750 --> 00:10:23.269 better turn the volume down a notch or two. Oh, 00:10:23.370 --> 00:10:25.950 that is absolutely brilliant. Isn't it? It is 00:10:25.950 --> 00:10:28.779 the timeless universal reaction, isn't it? It 00:10:28.779 --> 00:10:32.379 is essentially the 1960 equivalent of a formerly 00:10:32.379 --> 00:10:35.039 published noise complaint. Yes, an official noise 00:10:35.039 --> 00:10:37.860 complaint in print. It's that classic inescapable 00:10:37.860 --> 00:10:41.299 dynamic. An older generation, or the established 00:10:41.299 --> 00:10:45.340 critical guard, encounters a new, visceral, highly 00:10:45.340 --> 00:10:49.220 energetic musical genre. Right. And their immediate 00:10:49.220 --> 00:10:52.279 reflexive instinct is, yes, I see the kids like 00:10:52.279 --> 00:10:54.460 it. It's very lively. But please, for the love 00:10:54.460 --> 00:10:57.120 of everything, turn it down. Exactly. And it's 00:10:57.120 --> 00:10:59.659 not just about the li - decibel level. It's about 00:10:59.659 --> 00:11:04.539 what the volume represents. It perfectly encapsulates 00:11:04.539 --> 00:11:07.250 the friction that rock and roll generated at 00:11:07.250 --> 00:11:10.049 its inception. The sheer unadulterated volume, 00:11:10.210 --> 00:11:12.590 the distortion, the aggressive twang, that was 00:11:12.590 --> 00:11:15.009 the feature, not a bug. The kids wanted it loud. 00:11:15.330 --> 00:11:17.909 Exactly. That abrasive quality was the very thing 00:11:17.909 --> 00:11:21.049 that made it thrilling to teenagers and simultaneously 00:11:21.049 --> 00:11:23.649 made it offensive to traditional sensibilities. 00:11:24.129 --> 00:11:26.830 To ask Dwayne Eddy to turn the volume down is 00:11:26.830 --> 00:11:29.190 to entirely miss the point of the music. Right. 00:11:29.190 --> 00:11:30.610 You don't ask a roller coaster to be a little 00:11:30.610 --> 00:11:33.389 less fast. The thrill is the aggression. But 00:11:33.389 --> 00:11:36.350 time changes everything. The records don't just 00:11:36.350 --> 00:11:38.129 leave us with G. Mitchell covering his years 00:11:38.129 --> 00:11:41.509 in 1960. No, they don't. If we look at how this 00:11:41.509 --> 00:11:44.669 exact same compilation is viewed today, it is 00:11:44.669 --> 00:11:48.529 a complete 180 degree turn. The critical consensus 00:11:48.529 --> 00:11:51.570 has entirely flipped. The contrast is truly stark. 00:11:52.289 --> 00:11:54.629 If you look at modern professional retrospectives, 00:11:54.970 --> 00:11:58.070 the album is universally lauded. Really? Universally? 00:11:58.149 --> 00:12:02.440 Yes. All music. through their reviewer, Cub Coda, 00:12:02.980 --> 00:12:05.440 awarded the album a highly impressive four and 00:12:05.440 --> 00:12:09.100 a half stars, explicitly praising it as a solid 00:12:09.100 --> 00:12:11.279 best of collection. Four and a half stars is 00:12:11.279 --> 00:12:14.440 serious elite level praise for compilation. Absolutely. 00:12:14.860 --> 00:12:17.379 And that assessment is backed up by the Encyclopedia 00:12:17.379 --> 00:12:20.779 of Popular Music by Colin Larkin, which also 00:12:20.779 --> 00:12:23.159 awarded the album a very solid four stars. Wow. 00:12:23.240 --> 00:12:25.080 So the modern critical establishment doesn't 00:12:25.080 --> 00:12:28.159 see it as noisy or abrasive at all. They recognize 00:12:28.159 --> 00:12:30.330 it as a foundational work of high quality. and 00:12:30.330 --> 00:12:32.250 immense historical importance. That's amazing. 00:12:32.470 --> 00:12:34.830 But my absolute favorite piece of historical 00:12:34.830 --> 00:12:37.889 validation comes from 2017. Oh, yes. We are talking 00:12:37.889 --> 00:12:40.529 57 years after G. Mitchell told people to turn 00:12:40.529 --> 00:12:43.230 the volume down. You're referring to the Archive 00:12:43.230 --> 00:12:46.570 of Contemporary Music in New York. Yes. In January 00:12:46.570 --> 00:12:49.850 and February of 2017, the Archive of Contemporary 00:12:49.850 --> 00:12:53.710 Music literally featured the physical LP of $1 00:12:53.710 --> 00:12:57.049 million worth of twang prominently in their window 00:12:57.049 --> 00:13:00.039 display. It's fantastic. And the commentary from 00:13:00.039 --> 00:13:02.899 their head archivist, Fred Patterson, is practically 00:13:02.899 --> 00:13:05.360 poetry. Patterson's quote is a wonderful piece 00:13:05.360 --> 00:13:08.299 of cultural reflection. He described the decision 00:13:08.299 --> 00:13:10.620 to hang the album in their window by saying it 00:13:10.620 --> 00:13:14.059 was, quote, Our own idea of what is worth a million 00:13:14.059 --> 00:13:16.539 dollars, a compilation of Dwayne Eddy's biggest 00:13:16.539 --> 00:13:19.820 hits up until 1960 hanging in our window to remind 00:13:19.820 --> 00:13:22.659 folks about the important things in life. Yes, 00:13:22.980 --> 00:13:24.830 twang. To remind folks about the important things 00:13:24.830 --> 00:13:27.289 in life, I cannot get over how much I love that 00:13:27.289 --> 00:13:29.769 quote. Because it highlights this profound, beautiful 00:13:29.769 --> 00:13:32.809 irony about the life cycle of pop culture. The 00:13:32.809 --> 00:13:35.830 exact same raucous, unapologetic sound that critics 00:13:35.830 --> 00:13:37.669 complained about as being too aggressive and 00:13:37.669 --> 00:13:40.629 annoying in 1960 is exactly what professional 00:13:40.629 --> 00:13:43.730 archivists in 2017 are celebrating as an essential, 00:13:44.149 --> 00:13:47.029 life -affirming cultural artifact. It demonstrates 00:13:47.029 --> 00:13:50.350 the life cycle of all revolutionary art. It almost 00:13:50.350 --> 00:13:53.429 always begins as a nuisance or a disruption to 00:13:53.429 --> 00:13:56.149 the status quo. Always. Then it transitions into 00:13:56.149 --> 00:13:59.250 a massive commercial engine. And finally, with 00:13:59.250 --> 00:14:01.750 enough distance, it settles into the archive 00:14:01.750 --> 00:14:04.990 as deeply respected heritage. The noisy kids 00:14:04.990 --> 00:14:08.570 become the museum exhibit. Precisely. The very 00:14:08.570 --> 00:14:11.090 elements that disrupt society initially, the 00:14:11.090 --> 00:14:13.789 volume, the twang, the attitude, are the precise 00:14:13.789 --> 00:14:16.029 elements that ensure its historical survival. 00:14:16.149 --> 00:14:18.950 It becomes the defining stamp of its era. Okay, 00:14:18.950 --> 00:14:21.429 so we've mapped out the critical legacy. It evolved 00:14:21.429 --> 00:14:24.169 from a noise complaint to a literal museum piece. 00:14:24.190 --> 00:14:26.850 Right. But I want to pivot and turn our focus 00:14:26.850 --> 00:14:29.690 to the actual music packed onto this vinyl. Let's 00:14:29.690 --> 00:14:32.470 do it. What exactly is the anatomy of this twang? 00:14:32.610 --> 00:14:34.690 Because to understand why it captured the world, 00:14:34.710 --> 00:14:36.940 we have to look at how it was built. To do that 00:14:36.940 --> 00:14:39.139 effectively, we really need to examine the track 00:14:39.139 --> 00:14:41.419 list itself, because the structural layout of 00:14:41.419 --> 00:14:44.340 the album reveals exactly how Hazelwood, Syl, 00:14:44.559 --> 00:14:47.419 and Eddie engineered this sound for maximum impact. 00:14:47.679 --> 00:14:49.700 OK, I am looking at the actual track list here 00:14:49.700 --> 00:14:51.940 from the records, and something completely wild 00:14:51.940 --> 00:14:54.340 jumps out at me almost immediately. Let's look 00:14:54.340 --> 00:14:57.039 at side A. Yeah, you drop the needle and track 00:14:57.039 --> 00:15:00.200 one is rebel rouser. It clocks in at two minutes 00:15:00.200 --> 00:15:03.139 and two seconds. Track two is cannonball, which 00:15:03.139 --> 00:15:05.899 is one minute and 52 seconds. Even quicker. Then 00:15:05.899 --> 00:15:08.620 you have the quiet three. Bonnie came back because 00:15:08.620 --> 00:15:11.879 they're young and theme for moon children. Not 00:15:11.879 --> 00:15:14.460 a single one of these tracks even sniffs the 00:15:14.460 --> 00:15:16.539 two and a half minute mark. No, they don't. They 00:15:16.539 --> 00:15:19.700 are incredibly brief. It is a remarkably consistent, 00:15:20.019 --> 00:15:22.639 highly disciplined runtime across the board. 00:15:22.679 --> 00:15:25.230 And it continues right. onto the second half. 00:15:25.370 --> 00:15:27.429 Right, you flip the record over to side B, you 00:15:27.429 --> 00:15:29.309 get move and groove in at two minutes and three 00:15:29.309 --> 00:15:31.929 seconds. Very standard. Then the lonely one, 00:15:32.269 --> 00:15:34.529 40 Miles of Bad Road, which is just a phenomenal 00:15:34.529 --> 00:15:37.970 title, and then I hit track four. Track four. 00:15:38.029 --> 00:15:40.289 Track four is called Some Kind of Earthquake, 00:15:40.649 --> 00:15:43.809 and its official runtime is an astonishing one 00:15:43.809 --> 00:15:47.190 minute and 17 seconds. One minute and 17 seconds. 00:15:47.470 --> 00:15:50.500 Barely over a minute. The rest of the side. first 00:15:50.500 --> 00:15:52.919 love, first tears and commotion, wrap up right 00:15:52.919 --> 00:15:54.919 around two minutes each. So what does this all 00:15:54.919 --> 00:15:57.840 mean? Well, look closer at that brevity. What 00:15:57.840 --> 00:16:01.120 does a one minute and 17 second track tell you 00:16:01.120 --> 00:16:03.620 about the creative process? Honestly, when I 00:16:03.620 --> 00:16:06.000 see an audio track running exactly one minute 00:16:06.000 --> 00:16:09.000 and 17 seconds, or precisely two minutes flat, 00:16:09.480 --> 00:16:11.919 my brain immediately goes to the modern era. 00:16:12.179 --> 00:16:16.029 OK, how so? I think of the ultra short. highly 00:16:16.029 --> 00:16:18.909 compressed, fast -paced audio formats we consume 00:16:18.909 --> 00:16:21.549 today. Right. It feels exactly like the hyper 00:16:21.549 --> 00:16:24.350 -optimized track links you see for trending audio 00:16:24.350 --> 00:16:27.830 on short -form video apps. Oh, like TikTok. Exactly. 00:16:28.330 --> 00:16:31.230 You get in, you deliver the dopamine hit, and 00:16:31.230 --> 00:16:33.649 you get out before the user can even think about 00:16:33.649 --> 00:16:36.529 swiping away. That is a very astute, highly relevant 00:16:36.529 --> 00:16:38.970 modern comparison. And this raises an important 00:16:38.970 --> 00:16:40.730 question regarding the fundamental mechanics 00:16:40.730 --> 00:16:43.730 of instrumental rock during its golden era. What's 00:16:43.730 --> 00:16:45.909 the question? How do you construct a hit song 00:16:45.909 --> 00:16:48.330 when you remove the most common tool in pop music? 00:16:48.490 --> 00:16:51.590 You mean the voice. Yes. Without a lead singer, 00:16:52.149 --> 00:16:54.169 what are you actually doing with those two minutes? 00:16:54.450 --> 00:16:56.110 You don't have a protagonist. Right, there's 00:16:56.110 --> 00:16:58.850 no main character to guide you. Exactly. When 00:16:58.850 --> 00:17:01.429 you strip away the vocalist, you completely lose 00:17:01.429 --> 00:17:03.950 the primary vehicle for traditional musical storytelling. 00:17:04.509 --> 00:17:06.750 You don't have lyrics to build a narrative arc. 00:17:06.930 --> 00:17:09.170 Right. You can't rely on a first verse to set 00:17:09.170 --> 00:17:12.259 the scene. a chorus to deliver the emotion, and 00:17:12.259 --> 00:17:14.579 a bridge to resolve the conflict over three or 00:17:14.579 --> 00:17:16.759 four minutes. There is no story to follow. There's 00:17:16.759 --> 00:17:19.880 just the vibe. Precisely. Therefore, these instrumental 00:17:19.880 --> 00:17:23.440 tracks had to rely entirely on immediate, infectious 00:17:23.440 --> 00:17:25.759 musical hooks. They had to grab you instantly. 00:17:26.099 --> 00:17:28.859 They required incredibly tight, fat -free arrangements. 00:17:29.299 --> 00:17:31.859 They had to deliver maximum sonic impact instantly, 00:17:32.380 --> 00:17:34.759 because without a lyrical story to hold the listener's 00:17:34.759 --> 00:17:37.799 hand, the ear will wander much faster. That explains 00:17:37.799 --> 00:17:40.619 the short form video analogy perfectly. It is 00:17:40.619 --> 00:17:43.299 exactly how modern algorithmic content works. 00:17:43.420 --> 00:17:45.180 Yes it is. If you don't catch them the first 00:17:45.180 --> 00:17:48.680 three seconds, they are gone. On a track like... 00:17:48.430 --> 00:17:51.670 Some kind of earthquake. At barely over a minute 00:17:51.670 --> 00:17:54.509 long, there is absolutely zero room to ramble. 00:17:54.849 --> 00:17:57.970 None whatsoever. Every single note, every drum 00:17:57.970 --> 00:18:00.170 fill, every bend of the guitar string has to 00:18:00.170 --> 00:18:03.269 serve a definitive, undeniable purpose. It is 00:18:03.269 --> 00:18:06.049 an exercise in extreme musical economy. It sounds 00:18:06.049 --> 00:18:09.009 wild and rebellious, but underneath that volume, 00:18:09.430 --> 00:18:12.779 it is precision engineering. Wow, precision engineering, 00:18:12.940 --> 00:18:15.779 I love that. Hazelwood, Sill, and Eddy understood 00:18:15.779 --> 00:18:19.140 exactly how long a purely instrumental groove 00:18:19.140 --> 00:18:22.440 could sustain peak excitement before it risked 00:18:22.440 --> 00:18:24.319 becoming repetitive. So they just cut it off 00:18:24.319 --> 00:18:26.460 right at the peak? They dropped the hook, delivered 00:18:26.460 --> 00:18:29.259 the signature twang, and ended the track, leaving 00:18:29.259 --> 00:18:31.559 the listener craving more. Which, of course, 00:18:31.720 --> 00:18:33.700 prompts them to buy the next single or flip the 00:18:33.700 --> 00:18:36.140 record over. It's brilliant. It's calculated 00:18:36.140 --> 00:18:38.930 rebellion. It really is. Which brings this entire 00:18:38.930 --> 00:18:41.670 deep dive right back to you, the listener. Because 00:18:41.670 --> 00:18:45.069 taking the time to explore a single 1960 compilation 00:18:45.069 --> 00:18:47.890 album like $1 million worth of twang, catalog 00:18:47.890 --> 00:18:52.109 number JLP 703014, is so much more than just 00:18:52.109 --> 00:18:54.049 a history lesson on guitar tones. Much more. 00:18:54.150 --> 00:18:56.630 It genuinely serves as a masterclass in how pop 00:18:56.630 --> 00:18:59.549 culture actually functions and evolves. It maps 00:18:59.549 --> 00:19:02.920 out the exact mechanics of cultural legacy. We 00:19:02.920 --> 00:19:06.759 get to see how a raw, visceral sound is strategically 00:19:06.759 --> 00:19:09.960 packaged by savvy producers. We see how it captures 00:19:09.960 --> 00:19:13.079 a specific moment commercially, how it inevitably 00:19:13.079 --> 00:19:15.099 clashes with the contemporary critics of its 00:19:15.099 --> 00:19:18.240 day, and finally, how the passage of time strips 00:19:18.240 --> 00:19:20.240 away the controversy and vindicates the art. 00:19:20.519 --> 00:19:23.400 It starts as a loud, volume -pushing trend that 00:19:23.400 --> 00:19:25.599 gets the establishment critics telling kids to 00:19:25.599 --> 00:19:28.319 turn it down, and it eventually transforms into 00:19:28.319 --> 00:19:31.319 a deeply respected, heavily analyzed pillar of 00:19:31.319 --> 00:19:33.960 musical history. Right into the archive. It ends 00:19:33.960 --> 00:19:36.079 up sitting in a museum window just to remind 00:19:36.079 --> 00:19:38.559 us of the important things in life. Which leaves 00:19:38.559 --> 00:19:41.279 me with one final thought. OK. A question for 00:19:41.279 --> 00:19:42.980 you to mull over as you go about the rest of 00:19:42.980 --> 00:19:44.960 your day. Tackle that meeting or finish your 00:19:44.960 --> 00:19:48.279 commute. If an archivist in 2017 looked back 00:19:48.279 --> 00:19:52.039 at a loud, brief, heavily criticized 1960 instrumental 00:19:52.039 --> 00:19:54.740 rock album and declared it a reminder of the 00:19:54.740 --> 00:19:57.500 important things in life, what highly distinct, 00:19:57.859 --> 00:20:00.079 perhaps widely misunderstood or quote unquote 00:20:00.079 --> 00:20:02.220 too loud sound from our current era is going 00:20:02.220 --> 00:20:04.559 to be hanging in an archive window 50 years from 00:20:04.559 --> 00:20:06.519 now. Oh, that's a great thought. What is the 00:20:06.519 --> 00:20:08.880 noise of today that will be the heritage of tomorrow? 00:20:09.180 --> 00:20:11.480 A brilliant question to leave them with. Something 00:20:11.480 --> 00:20:14.500 to seriously think about. Until next time.