Tammy Cochran – “He Really Thinks He’s Got It”

I like the song, but the title makes my mind think of what does he go-VD or Herpes?

I like Tammy Cochran awfully well. She’s a talented gal who learned how to do country music the right way, and I’m really glad to see that she’s hanging around and making good music instead of slinking away. With all the cruddy stuff that’s going on with the country music biz these days, the fact that she, and Kevin Denney, and Matt King, and Jessi Alexander and others who lost their major label deals are keeping at it instead of giving up is very nice to see.

I think the title of the song says it all…lol no need to listen to it. It’s been done a million times before in the last two years alone, in one way or another. But I did listen…unfortunately.

I guess my advice to women is to stop going to bars, and quit dating. Maybe then you can think up some original material, and quit blaming guys for all your problems and mishaps.

My opinion…Country Music is trying to get rid of the male audience…it’s working. Have fun appeasing and catering to your target demographic like you have been for the last few years. I’m still waiting for a female artist who actually understands men, and how we think, and can portray it in her songs. This isn’t one of them. I guess I don’t understand women. But I’m not going to write and sing a song and pretend like I do either. LOL

Anyway, as far as this song goes…the guy got what he deserved. But what was she doing there to begin with? Don’t tell me it was just to sit there and have a couple of Budweiser’s while watching the baseball game on TV because she doesn’t have cable TV at home. Perhaps she can write and sing a song about that and let everyone know.

Phil: how is getting our asses grabbed by some guy at a bar our problem and not directly a problem caused by him? Also, newsflash: women don’t necessarily go to bars to date or meet men. We go to hang out with friends, we go to have a beer. I’ll let Trisha and Emmylou spell it out for you:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0OxuaOSOAk

…pour all the country music ingredients in a bowl, stir a little, some salt ‘n pepper, there you go: a country song – and not a bad one.

Phil, you’re going to start a fire storm in here. I agree with you, but I think the situation is a lot bigger than just country music.

I think the overall attitude of women’s music is childish; its all about me and what I want to do, the good outcomes are a tribute to myself, and the bad aren’t my fault. I am really sick of it. When was the last “I’m Sorry” kind of song a woman released?

I know I don’t want to start something.

But Pink’s music, and her song “Please Don’t Leave Me” is just another example of what I don’t like about today’s music. It’s all about her as a person rather than her as an artist.

Too much of today’s music is just that…about who the artist is as a person, rather than who the person is as an artist. So what ends up happening is the listener must put him or herself in the artists shoes (or whatever characters the artist so chooses) on the artists terms, rather than the artist allowing the listener to put him or herself into the song (or whomever the listener chooses) on the listeners terms.

I love the music and artists of the past so much more because they used objective thoughts in their songs (somethng that anybody can relate to) to allow the listener to find his or her feelings. Today’s music is more about using subjective thoughts (things that are personal to the artist or person singing the song only)in order for the listener to find his or her feelings. So what ends up happening is the only way to relate to the music is for the listener to know who the artist is as a person, rather than who the person is as an artist. And it is relateable to only a very small audience who is actually capable of doing so (the audience the Industry is catering to at the moment exclusively…and I’ve been complaining about it for the last gosh who knows how long now).

And Pink’s music is a very good example of this. But I could list almost all of today’s artists and songs as doing the exact same thing in both the Pop and Country genres (whether the artist be male or female). It truly is all about who the artist is as a person today, rather than who the person is as an artist like it was in the past. And a huge audience of listeners is being disregarded because of it.

As far as the all these female songs about putting guys in a bad light goes…well, I guess guys only have themselves to blame for that. And that is reflected in much of the music being released by male artists…both today and in the past. Guys blame themselves, and women blame guys. It’s just the way it is. I mean, when a guy is cheating on his girlfriend, she blames him…when a girl is cheating on a guy, he blames the guy she is cheating with or himself. I’m overgeneralizing, but that’s just the mindset of the two sexes and how they think and feel differently about relationships in general. Maybe it’s just part of the human makeup and how we evolved as a species.

And I think the song that Stormy mentioned by Trisha Yearwood in an earlier post is actually a good example of this…she’s blaming the guy in that song for the predicament she is in. Whereas, listen to a song like “She Wouldn’t Be Gone” by Blake Shelton or “Today” by Gary Allen and notice the guy is blaming himself for the predicament he is in.

I also think that a lot of the music that the female artists sang in the past was written by men…so it really didn’t show how they truly felt about a situation…but it was relateable to guys because that’s how we think and feel. Take for example “Long Long Time” by Linda Ronstadt…that was written by a guy…and a lot more guys can probably relate to that song because of it. Just my opinions of course…but I try to at least have some evidence to back them up. And I know I overgeneralize, but I’m looking at it from an objective standpoint and the big picture, rather than an individual case by case basis.

I really like this song. The album it’s from is great too.

Phil you’re a lost cause.. You don’t get women at all do you?

I don’t think you understand guys either though Karen for what it’s worth.

Anyway, every song that I like only puts women in a positive light, because I do know that I am to blame if things don’t work out (and I have never cheated on a woman)…for what that’s worth.

My experience has been just the opposite of Phils. I’ve known males and females that have cheated or been cheated on. I’ve found that the females usually blame themselves or the other female and the males blame the female that has cheated on them. I knew a lady that was cheated on by her husband and instead of dumping him she went and bought a set of boobs, because the lady he cheated with had big ones. I just can’t relate to that, but then who am I to judge? And as for the songs today saying just the opposite of my experiences in life, I think they’re basically just giving us what they think we want to here. I’ve never cheated, but I’ve been cheated on for what that’s worth! This is just my experiences not that it pertains to each and every case. And not all females are singing about the jag off that cheated on her and how he needs to die. Listen to some Martina or Reba if that’s what you would rather hear. Brady, I liked that song a lot I’ve never heard of the guy, but I like him!

Interesting Michelle…although it sounds like the woman you said was cheated on blamed the guy because she didn’t have bigger boobs.

It’s like the song by Miranda Lambert “More Like Her”…she wants to seem like she is blaming herself or the woman the guy ran off with, but if you really listen to it, she is really blaming the guy for falling for somebody else (and she even says in the song that she can’t forgive him for it). At least that’s how I interpret it.

The way I perceived it was, she thought, had she had bigger breasts he wouldn’t have cheated. In reality, though, it had nothing to do with her or her breasts. Perceptions are a funny thing, aren’t they? The same goes with songs, perceptions can vary from person to person when it comes to songs. I’m sure if I analyzed a song to death I could find something or everything to hate about it, but I choose not to do that. For me music is is one of the joys in life and not to be taken that serious.

I know the song reviewers at the 9513 are doing their jobs, but as for me, I’m just a listener. So, what do I know?LOL

But really all one has to do is listen to the music and artists of the past and compare it with today’s music and artists to figure it out.

Well, no; I have been listening to music for more than 50 years, and I am firmly convinced that this “person as the artist/artist as the person” stuff is nothing but gibberish.

Phil: Songs are stories and all stories are about their protagionists. Your ability to put yourself in the story or not is a choice, though some are more instantly relatable than others. However, your ability to relate to a story has more to do with your life experiences than with the author. And your perception of what a song is about may have little or nothing to do with what the song is actually about.

Yes Stormy…but there is a difference between the artist forcing the listener to feel it on the artists terms to receive any emotion out of it, or the artists allowing the listener to feel it on his or her own terms to get to that feeling.

I guess it’s like any piece of art I suppose…the viewer can know nothing about who the artist is who painted it and still get a feeling out of it…or the only way to get a feeling out of it is to know who the artist who painted it is as a person. I’d rather an artist be able to paint a picture without having to know anything about them personally to find my own feelings…rather than have to know the person who painted it just to figure out what he or she is trying to make me feel. It all has to do with subjectivity vs. objectivity. And unfortunately today’s music is just too subjective for my liking…

One thing I need to state more clearly is that everybody needs their thoughts to get to their feelings. There are two very different kinds of thoughts…objective thoughts and subjective thoughts. And because of this, there are two very different ways to get to ones feelings about something.

I think I stated it in an earlier post…I’ve always thought of music as being the tangible and the personality and image was the intangible that came from that. Today those roles have been reversed. The personality and image is the tangible and the music is the intangible that comes from that. If the music industry wants to survive, they need to find a way to make music tangible again. Because it’s hard to sell something intangible. And afterall, their job is to sell music. Isn’t that why it’s called the “Music Industry?” Instead they seem more interested in selling a personality and an image. Which is why today’s music is not timeless. It will be rembered much like the Brady Bunch. People will remember what role the artists played as a person…but they won’t remember any of the music that came from that or what they sang. My opinions of course.

Well Dr. Phil, if songs being about the artist as a person is such a bad thing, than why are the top songs from kesha, and lady gaga.. ridiculous. If what you say is true than more substantial artists should sell like Nora Jones, etc.. but they don’t.. why?? hmmm, pure and simple.. the kids.. they want attitude, personality, and sound.. maybe in country it’s different but not by much.. the attributes that make the personality are different.. hmm, let’s see.. oh yeah, a cowboy hat, boots, down home lyrics about eating mustard sandwich’s and riding on big green tractors… need I explain it more.. or maybe a song about being jilted or crawling home after a wild night of partying. Believe me, I’m a fan of the artists of the past myself, but I see the relativeness of the current trends.. I’m not asleep, like you obviously are. There are plenty of artists out there that suit me than aren’t mainstream and I find them, or I listen to the current music or the past stuff I luv.

About Pink.. how is glitter in the air about her personally??? I don’t believe it is.. it’s a song that could apply to anyone.. Pink is a fantastic artist.. one of the best ones out there. BTW you sound a bit paranoid accusing that guy of knowing her. He seems like a fan to me.

yes, I think there’s a song now by train.. ‘soul sister’.. very sing along worthy. One of those songs that will be around for a long time to come. Maybe it’s one of those songs that’s not about the person as an artist.. or an artist as a person. whatever.. I’m confused.. I’m going to bed. I’m too old for this.. snoooze!

Phil: An artist cannot force you to listen to anything on their terms because a listener by their very nature brings their own experiences to the song.

Phil, I hereby christen you The 9513′s “Bloviator In Chief”! Holy crap! You definitely love to hear the tapping of your nimble fingers on your keyboard! Crikey, mate…

Yeah Rick…I think I’m done. I mean, I could sit here and type all night (which is what I guess I’m going to end up doing anyway with this comment) about what is wrong with today’s mainstream music and the artists the Industry is promoting…but it’s all subjective to me anyway. Even though I do try to be as objective as possible about it.

In the end, I guess I don’t enjoy feeling like I’m being manipulated to like or dislike something…especially something that I dearly love…music. And that seems to be the only way the Industry today can make people like their product (which isn’t even really the music they’re actually selling today if you ask me…they’re selling a personality and an image…the music is just something that comes from that)…by manipulating them to like it (or in some cases, not to like it).

I know how popular opinion works…it is always somebody else’s agenda to see to it that something is popular opinion to begin with. And basically today, what is popular is all being marketed to a very select demographic, and they are picking the winners and losers because of the way things are set up. All one has to do is watch American Idol to figure it out, and turn on the radio. And unfortunately the Industry has followed that model and is catering to that same audience that actually takes the time to text vote for their “favorite” each week for one or two hours, when there are actually millions of other people out ther who watch the show, and who are out there willing to buy music, but it is not being marketed to them because of the way the show picks it winners and losers based off of what contestant can get the most phone votes by a very select demographic that sits there and does so for their “favorite” heartthrob or whoever. Why do you think that 3 girls in a row have left since the Top 12 started (leaving 3 girls)? And the six guys that are still there, really don’t offer anything unique? And I already mentioned that American Idol will find the next male “Taylor Swift” long before he even made the Top 24.

Yes, Carrie and Kelly won the show…but it’s all still based on popular opinion, and decided by that same audience.

Anyway, American Idol is only one example of what is wrong with today’s music for me. But it’s kind of sad that following Country Music today is basically like watching American Idol all year long. It’s a Popularity Contest that caters to a very specific audience by the way they have setup shop with their voting system which favors that audience…and they have forgotten about the rest of the audience in the process that sits there and watches it all unfold. It’s basically a wasted marketing opportunity for them to bring in a much wider audience that would buy their final product…but it is not being marketed to them in the end because of the way things are set up in the beginning.

It’s kind of funny because I did bring up the “New Black Jack Taco” and compared it to today’s supposed “New Country”. There’s really nothing “new” about either one. It’s just a marketing gimmick being used to bring a new audience into the “restaurant” that otherwise would not eat there by changing the color of the taco shell. The only problem is they took the regular taco off the menu, leaving those who eat there all the time forced to eat the new colored taco…or find someplace else to eat. And that’s basically what Country Music has done…they have changed the color of the taco shell, and taken the old taco off the menu completely. I guess in the end, I’ll be forced to eat different colored tacos the rest of my life and somebody will try to convince me there’s something new and unique about it, and that it’s somehow better than the regular taco I’ve been eating my entire life. Not by a longshot, thank you very much. LOL

OK…I’m way off topic. But I did read your comments Michelle and Karen and Stormy and I am not disregarding them. You make some good points…some I partially agree with, others I do not. But it’s a good discussion anyway, and I do like reading all of your opinions whether I agree with them or not. And I hope you don’t think that I want people to necessarily have to agree with everything that I type, or feel the way that I do…but I’ll let the reader make up his or her own mind about how he or she feels about it.

I can relate to a lot of the things you just posted, but you lost me earlier today. That’s okay, though, we’re all entitled to our opinions. Today AND tonight would have been boring without you!LOL!

…phil it up, please.

I love Tammy Cochran’s new tune! I wish country radio would play it, but those bigwigs probably won’t touch it. It really gives me a good laugh.