![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
I was thinking back to the genres of Adult Contemporary and Quiet Storm in the late 80s and early 90s. I thought of it as the modern version of chanteuses and troubadours. Another trend that seems quaint but I think it’s necessary for grown ups to have their songs, too.
Some of the songs from this era I remember:
Great singers, great songwriting, and a creative way to work out complex emotions. Yeah, I know how corny it sounds, but if you’re an adult on your own, having a lousy day, and have to push yourself and the cart through the grocery store, well, songs like these were basically immediate therapy.
And do I ever remember when “I Will Always Love You” blasted out of every car radio and apartment window! I believe those soundwaves have now reached Proxima Centuri and the aliens are now blasting it out of their vehicles.
Anyway! By the mid-90s, the adult contemporary trend drifted on to a niche category. I’d argue that “You Oughta Know” by Alannis Morrisette stood the adult contemporary genre on its head and started the trend of confessional singer-songwriter music, of which T. Swizzle and Adele are the most recognizable inheritors.
There’s a need in our psyches for chanteuses and troubadours to translate emotion into song. And I will always love that.
Some of the songs from this era I remember:
- “Unbreak My Heart” Toni Braxton
- “Sweet Love” - Anita Baker
- “Save the Best for Last” - Vanessa Williams
- “Didn’t We Almost Have it All” - Whitney Houston
- And yes, of course, “I Will Always Love You” (which IMO is the peak of the genre but I will make room for “My Heart Will Go On” and “I Want It That Way.”)
Great singers, great songwriting, and a creative way to work out complex emotions. Yeah, I know how corny it sounds, but if you’re an adult on your own, having a lousy day, and have to push yourself and the cart through the grocery store, well, songs like these were basically immediate therapy.
And do I ever remember when “I Will Always Love You” blasted out of every car radio and apartment window! I believe those soundwaves have now reached Proxima Centuri and the aliens are now blasting it out of their vehicles.
Anyway! By the mid-90s, the adult contemporary trend drifted on to a niche category. I’d argue that “You Oughta Know” by Alannis Morrisette stood the adult contemporary genre on its head and started the trend of confessional singer-songwriter music, of which T. Swizzle and Adele are the most recognizable inheritors.
There’s a need in our psyches for chanteuses and troubadours to translate emotion into song. And I will always love that.
