By Shiv Sidecar
Every writer loves the opportunity to show off their imagination – in storytelling, in retelling their own histories, in juxtaposing conflicting ideas, or just creating ideas seemingly from nowhere. Songwriting takes the process into meta territory – imagine how you use your imagination, and tell everybody all about it. Or (more modestly) celebrate the real geniuses whose visions have enhanced our lives…
Multinational band Superorganism warm us up gently with the woozy “Something For The M.I.N.D.” The singer pictures herself in a baffling, and slightly intimidating, set of roles. She somehow makes the roles of psychopath and sociopath sound oddly attractive.
Catch their potential young. Sweet Baboo wrote “Wild Imagination” to engage and celebrate his three-year-old son, who plays flying games with Dad, and becomes an auxiliary Beatle, drumming along to their records. The “oh, oh” chorus was written for the lad to sing along to.
Then we grow up. Imaginative fantasy is seen by some as childish, whereas aspiration (surely another side of the same coin) is celebrated. The Peruvian folk tune “El Condor Pasa (If I Could)” covers both aspects, contrasting natural freedoms with earthbound limitations. It also inspired the rather dubious Pan Pipe trend of the 80s New Age movement, to say nothing of being an adaptable sports chant. Julie Felix had the UK hit version, but Simon & Garfunkel’s take has become universal.
Over on the other side of the Andes the Brazilian singer Milton Nascimento highlights another imaginative aspect of human creativity – to invent. In his song “Cais” (“Pier”) he invents a pier – “for those who want to let go”, and plans a voyage, inventing the moon, the sea, his boat, to furnish his purpose. Wisely, he enhances his needs too: “…”.I invent in myself the dreamer, for those who want to follow me”. And daydreaming is a chance to put your imagination to satisfying use. Lupe Fiasco is stuck in an urban wasteland – if only he had a robot to make things better for him! And the lovely Jill Scott – she’ll take care of him… it doesn’t make a lot of sense, but neither do my dreams nor, I’m guessing, yours.
Of course popular music has always made great use of dreams, singers frequently bemoaning an unattainable partner. The Everly Brothers’ sincere naivety in “All I Have To Do Is Dream” (“Gee Whiz!”) defies disbelief, but it represented the everyday norm for many in 1957. Avoid over-imaginative dreaming, or you may be disappointed. Aldous Harding maybe jumped into her relationship too soon: “It's not what I thought, and it's not what I pictured when I was imagining my man…”
“In the old days we had to make our own entertainment” – no TV, no streaming, no video games, but communal activities or personal projects instead. Talking Heads’ “Found A Job” is one of David Byrne’s dry analyses of Middle America, in this case what happens when the TV stops working. His judgment? “People… might be better off making up their own shows – which might be better than TV” Making stuff up could be a good way to impress your peers: “I’m Five Years Ahead Of My Time” boasted one-disc wonders The Third Bardo, with utter conviction back in 1967. Who could’ve believed what they saw in 1972…? Or you can tell your schoolfriends about your future. The singer with Japanese teen popsters Wednesday Campanella (great name) knows she’ll be inventing, and dancing like Edison, for the rest of her life.
There weren’t too many songs nominated about actual creative talents this week. Lou Reed and John Cale pay tribute to the vision (and self-promotion skills) of their mentor Andy Warhol in “Style It Takes”: “I’ve got a Brillo box and I say it’s art – it’s the same as the one you can buy at any supermarket. ‘Cause I’ve got the style it takes…”. Arguably Reed and Cale both deserve their own tributes, too. And – luckily – we have the privilege of a Nobel Laureate here explaining the inspirations behind his own imaginative writings. Mr Poe! Anne Frank! Indiana Jones! Them British bad boys, the Rolling Stones! William Blake! Beethoven – and Chopin! And all the young dudes… I contain multitudes. Bob Dylan, we salute you!
Finally, here’s an imaginative story about an imaginative person by a multi-talented (writer, cartoonist, musician) artist, Peter Blegvad, with the support of Andy Partridge. “Imagination, like a muscle, will increase with exercise. King Strut developed his by having dreams and telling lies. He'd describe a situation or a piece of merchandise, he could summon it from nothing to appear before your eyes. Who was that masked man? Why was he in disguise? King Strut!” You can find the full, worrying, tale via your search engine of choice. ’Til the next time.
The A-List Playlist:
Superorganism – Something For The M.I.N.D.
Sweet Baboo – Wild Imagination
Simon & Garfunkel – El Condor Pasa (If I Could)
Milton Nascimento – Cais
Lupe Fiasco feat. Jill Scott – Daydreamin’
The Everly Brothers – All I Have To Do Is Dream
Aldous Harding – Imagining My Man
Talking Heads – Found A Job
The Third Bardo – I’m Five Years Ahead Of My Time
Wednesday Campanella – Edison
Lou Reed and John Cale – Style It Takes
Bob Dylan – I Contain Multitudes
Peter Blegvad – King Strut
The B-List Playlist:
Everclear – Unemployed Boyfriend
Johnny Cash – The Folk Singer
Kaleidoscope (US) – Keep Your Mind Open
Bread – Aubrey
Crosby, Stills & Nash – Guinnevere
Okkervil River – A King And A Queen
Lucinda Williams – What If
Ty Segall – Imaginary Person
Will Powers – Adventures In Success
David Bowie – Thru’ These Architect’s Eyes
David Werner – Imagination Quota
Prince – If I Was Your Girlfriend
Robert Glasper feat. H.E.R. and MeShell Ndegeocello – Better Than I Imagined
The Cranberries – Just My Imagination
Foster The People – Don’t Stop (Colour On The Wall)
Leon Rosselson – Barney’s Epic Homer
Guru’s Overly-Poppy Z-List:
The Salvation Army – Mind Gardens
The Green Pajamas – If I Lived In A Picture
The Long Ryders – If I Were A Bramble And You Were A Rose
Argosy – Imagine
The Teardrop Explodes – Rachel Built A Steamboat
Swell Maps – Let’s Build A Car
Ian Dury – Peter The Painter
These playlists were inspired by readers' song nominations in response to last week's topic: Think different: songs about using your imagination. The next topic will launch on Thursday at 1pm UK time.
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