Rock and Roll music was, in its original form, intended for kids. By the 1960s it was intended specifically for Baby Boom kids, and by the 70s most of the performers and songwriters had been born after 1945. But once in a while, a composition would come through by somebody of a distinctly older generation.
I don’t mean Robert Johnson or Leadbelly or Gershwin; their songs were intended for their own generation, and they didn’t have a lot of say over who got to cover their stuff.
Shel Silverstein wrote “Cover of the Rolling Stone” for a band full of guys young enough to be his children, and an audience young enough to be his grandchildren. And while he was hip to the then-current lingo, you just know he didn’t have any affection for the kids he was writing about.
Are there any other Rock hits, written FOR rockers and a young audience by somebody born in 1930 or sooner (Retreads of Steven Foster and Kurt Weill don’t count), that have a patronizing “Old man shakes fist at cloud” quality to them? And is there a name for this?
Also, if Money for Nothing was more sarcastic it would burn holes in the floor. It only has any kind of “dude shakes fist at cloud” feeling if the sarcasm goes above your head.
Charles Strouse’s “One Last Kiss” from Bye Bye Birdie seems to fit.
There were probably quite a few early rock tunes that were written by older songwriters. A little research came up with “The Bristol Stomp” by the Dovells, written by Kal Mann and Dave Appell. Mann also co-wrote “Mashed Potato Time,” which was the 2nd best selling single of 1962.
Mann and Appell also wrote “Let’s Twist Again” for Chubby Checker.
How’s that? It’s not mean-spirited in the least, or even sarcastic really. ISTM to have pretty much the same flavor as Joe Walsh’s “Life’s Been Good.” I’ve known both songs for most of my life, and I couldn’t have told you that one of them was written by someone from a pre-rock n’ roll generation, let alone which one.
Shel Silverstein was all of 42 when he wrote “Cover.” Not too many grandchildren were listening at the time. He was only three years older than Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller and five years younger than Doc Pomus. Both Burt Bacharach and Hal David were older than him.
Doc Pomus, born 1925, who wrote or co-wrote songs ranging from Suspicion to Viva Las Vegas. He’s in the Rock and Roll Hall of fame, and perhaps even more importantly, was instrumental in helping Lou Reed get started.
Not born pre-1930, but pre-1940: Peter, Paul and Mary’s “I Dig Rock and Roll Music”. Paul would have been 30 when he wrote it.
Based on the lyrics, they most certainly did not “dig it”, and felt it was inferior to folk.
The difference, I think, is that Joe Walsh was drawing on things that actually happened to him, whereas Silverstein wrote about things that he was kind of shocked that 1970-era rock stars were getting away with: “All kinds of pills,” “ten thousand blue-eyed teenaged groupies who’ll do anything we say,” “sing about truth and we sing about beauty/for $10,000 a show,” etc. He was either unimpressed with their integrity, or jealous that he was to old to get in on the action; either way, he did not seem thrilled with what he saw.
Yeah, not really what I’m looking for. It’s not just songs written by old guys, it’s songs that take a condescending attitude towards their intended audience, from the viewpoint of “I’m older than you, I know what I’m talking about.” I gave a 1930 birth cutoff date for the songwriters, but probably shouldn’t have. There are late-era songs by Ray Davies (“Prince of the Punks”) that kind of fit otherwise.
John Phillips was 32 when he wrote Creeque Allen about the early San Francisco and New York City folk scenes that produced his group the Mamas and the Papasa, the Loving Spoonful, the Byrds and one hit wonder Barry McGuire.
I really think you’re reading more into the song than is there. It’s a tongue-in-cheek ditty about the excesses of the rock & roll lifestyle. I don’t get any of the bitterness or jealousy or disdain that you’re talking about.