by Courtney E. Smith
Barnes & Noble link
There are not too many women writing and publishing books on music criticism, or even about the life and times of being a record collector. Well, there are but not enough to balance out what has been a longtime man's game. Music has been mostly about guys and showing off their collections and their knowledge. Us ladies have been treated as ones only casually interested (and stereotypically as only interested in "girly" music) and never being knowledgeable. But, this couldn't be further from the truth. Us ladies can be just as knowledgeable (and maybe even more) and we're into more than "girly" music. We can listen to Sarah McLachlan and have our Creedence Clearwater Revival too. Just don't count Courtney E. Smith as our representative (we're torn between Ann Powers and the late Ellen Willis at the moment).
Smith's book Record Collecting for Girls has a promising summary of a young woman talking about music, her work in music (she was previously employed at MTV), and how her life has been affected by music. But here is the record-scratch-to-represent-awkwardness moment: "...Smith explores what music can tell women about themselves- and the men in their lives." Wait. Okay, I know that may be true for some women, but... not me. And I'm gonna bet a good chunk of music-obsessed ladies will agree with me on this. And therein lies the book's biggest problem: the assumption that record-spinning ladies give one iota of a damn about what men think about their collections. She talks about how men snatch her iPod and go through the artists list, only to nod in approval and hand it back to her. What the everloving hell happened to asking about your favorite bands? And yikes, someone taking my iPod without asking? Invasion of privacy and space, much?
Music snobbery is, frankly, one of the most ludicrous things ever created unto humanity. It alienates tenderhearted fans, causes unnecessary arguments with rage better channeled to things that actually matter (like political situations), and overall, guarantees to make even the nicest person into a jackass. Smith relates here:
We [her and a friend] are Music Nazis because we believe we have better taste in music than everyone else. Letting us control what you're listening to is entirely to your benefit, and it would be great if you could just trust us about this.
-from page 147 of the book.
First, I apologize for inadvertently invoking Godwin's Law. Secondly, man, she better be damn kidding. Maybe I don't want to trust you on your music tastes. You just alienated me with everything else you've said (see the rest of the review) and your comments about Fleetwood Mac's Mirage and "Little Lies". (Again, see the end of the review for the comment about the song.) Maybe comments like that are flat-out arrogant. That's great you think your musical taste is freaking awesome, but others may tend to disagree with you. Hey! That's the nature of loving all kinds of music.
It's not like the book fails all over the place. Essays like "The Death of the Record Collector", "The Smiths Syndrome", and "Where Have All the Girl Bands Gone?" are excellent. The first details a bit about the advent of free music and MP3s taking over CDs and vinyl. While Retromania details it more, it gives you a great overview of the overload of music. The second is a humorous, but on-point, piece about men and why their love for the Smiths may mean they are jerks in romantic love. The last one is a brief look about girl bands and why the existence of them should be deemed miracles in a mostly-male business. This could've been longer, heck even its own book.
Her essay "Rock 'N' Roll Consorts" has a huge air of "boys will be boys" while being borderline victim-blaming with the groupies. It details a relationship she has with an unnamed musician, all the while relating it to the stories of Patti Boyd, Marianne Faithfull, Pamela Des Barres, and others. The tone pretty much says "yeah, I'm in this mess, but I'm smarter than them. In retrospect.". Yeah, this essay burned my sugar cookies more than I can even describe. Sure, she says that she feels sorry for Des Barres, but that doesn't erase the tone. At all. She redeems herself a bit with the "Beatles vs. Stones" essay, especially when it comes to the sexism of ladies being asked the titular question, but it's a bandage on a broken leg.
The book has its shining moments, but not enough to rise itself from its many problematic elements. It is a good start, and I hope it triggers a wave of books by women about being record collectors. Smith, thanks for starting it all. But no thank you to the book. And take your sexist observations and "the 'Little Lies' era [of Fleetwood Mac] still sucks"* comment with you.
COPYRIGHT NOTE: all bold quotes are from the novel and were written by the author herself. Those words are not my own.
*Yes, she does say this. Page 18. This wasn't the comment that broke me, but damn... it hurt. (Her comment on Mirage is on page 16, if you're curious). Until she proves to me that she has listened to Time (or even Behind the Mask), she has no business to make such a comment. No era is worse than that. Trust me.
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