When I tell some people how much I dislike "country" music, they're absolutely shocked "What!?, but it is sooo good!" they reply. I know that is their opinion, but they're wrong. It is not good music. Anyways, I ran into country music lover today. I love music, that is the main reason I signed up for this class, (and because the way my schedule worked out). I was excited to learn about our music roots, and then I realized country music was considered our roots. Now remember this is back when I was completely ignorant to what original country music is. I know this is dumb, but I actually thought that this was implying that "Hot Country" (what our book calls modern country) is considered a component of our music roots. However I was greatly relieved when this was not the case at all. As I read the prologue of our counrty book I became more and more appreciative of the book. I had no idea what country music really is. Country music isn't all that bad, I like how all country songs share sincerity and a sense of hardships. Also, listening to it is not all that bad either, some of it sounds a lot like blues, and some sounds closer to rock. (I have some Johnny Cash on iTunes!) I'm glad this class exposed me to good country music, as opposed to the crap that is produced today. It is sad how the modern country has the same name, because it is so different. Like the prologue points out, it is insincere and is made to make money. I couldn't state it better than on page fourteen of 'In the Country of Country'; The songs don't last because they are devoid of passion and authentic feeling." Anyways, I thought I'd make one final post (or maybe I'll keep blogging!) about one of the things I took away from this class. I'm really glad I discovered what country music really is, and to get some reinforcement against those "Hot Country" lovers! We'll Nic, if you read this, thank you for a fun semester! Cya'll around! Peace.

Remember when we listened to that Folkways collection? I thought of it today as I was groaning over war. I remembered the song at the very end of the first episode we listened to (the third episode). I was thinking about those in support of the Iraq war. I thought, 'If you were fighting over there, you might change your mind.' The song at the end of the third episode of the folkways collection would be a good one for them to listen to. It is called "John Brown," an antiwar ballad by Bob Dylan, (recorded in the early 60's under the pseudonym "Blind Boy Grunt"). It is a great song. I will probably end up purchasing it if I can find it anywhere. Anyways, it tells a story about a young man who goes off to war and his mother is extremely proud and she's bragging to everyone. However, she suddenly stops getting letters from her son, and instead one day a letter comes and tells her to greet her son at the train station. She practically runs into him because she doesn't even recognize him. Half of his body is blown off and he can barely speak. He drops his medals in his mom's hands and walks off. It is a tragic story but it is also a valuable one. This song was written in effect of the Vietnam war, so it, and others similar to it were praised by many at that time. The musicality of the song is real good too!

In class on Tuesday the 5th we focused on Jamboree. We watched some riveting footage of our junk band, some elegant line dancing and some chef mastery. (I personally think you guys added the perfect amount of syrup). We were asked what our video revealed about our FYS, and apparently it shows that our FYS is fun. I think every part of the video was there: the ideas to dance, make music and food, the music quality, and the video editing. The only missing ingredient was enthusiasm and emotional expression. Sorry to say, but our lack of gaiety-that's right, gaiety- was the number one thing people took away from our video. Nobody came up to me and said, "Hey you guys are jamming on that junk," or "nice moves."(Not that they should anyways). The first thing people commented on was our accurate portrayal of zombies. But hey! I had fun making the video so what the hell. I thought our booth was very successful. Whenever I came by to visit Jamboree/get some grub, our table had the most visitors. So hopefully some of us got a chance to share some of our American roots music knowledge. I had one person that listened to the music clippings which was cool.
During our discussion it was someone mentioned that jamboree sucks. Yes it may have been on the lame side, but is that the fault of jamboree or the people involved in it. I mean had there been a better overall attitude towards it, it could have been a better experience. Take for example: one booth I walked by was being manned by one person who was preoccupied with their cell, our video isn't exactly uplifting and other booths I visited I had to force the people into talking to me. I think it would have been cooler if people would have been more eager to share their ideas. Some booths were better, the geometry table was inviting, but I didn't come away with much, such as a connection between digitally cutting my face in half, geometry and human diversity. I think the point of having devices such as a camera and a computer, or a projector and speakers was to attract visitors. Then talk to them. However, in some cases it seemed to turn in to the main theme.
We also discussed the unity of FYS. It was interesting to hear about the history of this part of the class, and how it's kind of tapered off. We can see how it is now almost non-existent, we all agreed in class that "Human Diversity" is a poor excuse for unifying the classes. I think some more unity would be good, which is the purpose of jamboree right? All the classes come together and share what they've learned, I don't think too many of us found it (or us) successful in that aspect however. It may also have to do with the fact that, like someone in class said, all the topics are pretty random. In class we also talked about how FYS can be useful by ensuring we meet at least one professor in our first year. Well our discussion from Tuesday is to be continued on Thursday, so see ya all then.