what is soul music, anyway?

Don't expect an answer to that question... I certainly can't answer it.

What I can do, however, is present some perspective on soul and R&B in the last fifty years. Perspective, sadly, that seems to be lacking in the Phoenix (Swarthmore College's newspaper)'s newest music writer.

Now, don't get me wrong. I'm a strong supporter of more music reviews in the Phoenix. To be honest, there's a limited amount of real news that concerns a school this small. And I'm always eager to hear about new music I otherwise wouldn't know about. That said, being a music writer requires a certain body of knowledge of long-term musical trends (one that I, by the way, don't have... '60s soul is about all I can speak with any authority about that, and even there my knowledge is far from comprehensive). Sadly, Brandy Monk-Payton, the music writer in question, seems to lack some of that knowledge. Either that or her writing's just unclear.

Some excerpts from her two latest articles:

Contemporary rhythm and blues music, beginning in the Motown era, has evolved through the decades into the slick genre of R&B. Some would say that rhythm and blues is no different from R&B. However, Al Green, Stevie Wonder and The Temptations are vastly separate entities from Ginuwine, Tyrese and B2K. Whatever your opinion of the genre, there is an artist that bridges the gap between the two styles. He is a man that can be as lyrically sensual as Al Green and as catchily beat-driven as B2K. He is "The 'R' in R&B" otherwise known as R. Kelly.

A few problems here: is Motown to be considered contemporary R&B? I certainly don't think of it that way. Just what is this putative difference between rhythm and blues and R&B? I mean, R&B means rhythm and blues.

But the real problem here is positing R. Kelly as the bridge between 1) Al Green, Stevie Wonder, and the Temptations and 2) Ginuwine, Tyrese and B2K. I don't know enough about contemporary R&B to evaluate the importance of R. Kelly. But I can tell you that Al Green, Stevie Wonder, and the Temptations are themselves vastly different entities. Unless you can point to some characteristics common to all three that were further developed by R. Kelly, I'm not sure exactly what R. Kelly did for R&B.

And from last week:

Since Elvis hit the scene in the late 1950s, blue-eyed soul has slowly emerged and established itself as another facet of R&B music. Elton John carried on the tradition most notably with 1973's "Benny [sic] and the Jets."

Again, several problems emerge. Elvis was many things, but he was definitely not a blue-eyed soul singer in the late 1950s (not the least because there wasn't even such a thing as soul music then). But the biggest inaccuracy is viewing the music of Elton John as a notable stop in the tradition of blue-eyed soul. Elton John. I'm not sure how to see John as anything but the quintessential pop artist of the 1970s. And "Bennie and the Jets"? Come on. If you want the epitome of blue-eyed soul, look no further than Dusty Springfield's absolutely essential Dusty in Memphis (sure, not everything on it is soul, but, good God, anything that has "Son of a Preacher Man" on it is essential listening).

Monk-Payton seems to know what she's talking about in terms of contemporary R&B artists. She'd be far better off sticking to that rather than reaching beyond her knowledge base and writing things that are just wrong.

A rather harsh condemnation, I know, but I'm a firm believer in only saying stuff that you have reason to believe is true. If you don't know something, that's fine. But if you're not sure about something, either find out about it, or don't talk about it.

I really don't mean to sound so snobby about this. I mean, come on, it's just music. But truth matters a bunch to me, and inaccuracies like this always bug me.