Soul Music

Karen: Lately I've been listening to "Sixties on 6" on Sirius Radio on my commute, and one of the DJs mentioned that June is National Black Music month. That got me to thinking. Growing up, we listened to a little bit of everything, including quite a bit of what  in those days was called 'Soul' music. I don't hear that term used much now. And truthfully, I'm not even sure I can define it adequately. Some people might say that's what any type of music played by African Americans (other than jazz perhaps) was called. But I think there's more to it. When I think of soul, I think of songs sung with heart-felt emotion. Whether it was happy or sad, you could feel it in the singer's voice. You knew what they were going through. It was passionate and real and  it connected. It was real stories about the everyday concerns about real people. In that respect, I suppose it had a lot in common with country music.

Karen: But it's gone now, at least the type of music I recognize as soul music is gone. There are a ton of 'vocalists' out there today, many of whom wouldn't have a career without artful production work and auto-tune, and as far as I'm concerned none of them can come close to performers like Aretha Franklin or Otis Redding. Gone are people singing and dancing and having a good time; now it seems like every performer has to come across as tough and menacing. Everything is so much grimmer. It actually parallels the way comics have gone, now that I think of it. I mean, you'd never see five guys wearing lemon yellow suits singing and dancing nowadays. They'd be laughed off the stage. But the Temptations were amazing performers with great songs.

Karen: And as I get older, I come to appreciate certain songs more and more, like this one by the Queen of Soul:

Karen: Of course Soul's roots are in Gospel music, which is very evident when performed by certain singers, such as Aretha. I suppose over time it only makes sense that Black music would change, just as all music does. But I confess I miss the more upbeat, melodic sounds of the 60s and 70s. I guess that's just where my brain is stuck and what I prefer. Sure, my Itunes has some rap songs in it, but you'll find far more Smokey than Jay-Z. What about you? Do you enjoy a little soul in your day? Who really gets you smiling or singing along?