December 22nd
Swift Ranks and Defining Moments
It does seem to happen to everyone who has had their go at fame, when they find themselves living in the middle of their own cultural moment. When all eyes are on them, watching what they’ll do, they take the moment and do small actions that change history forever. One moment they are practically unknown to the world, and then suddenly, a swift rank increase in their position on the charts, whatever those particular charts happen to be. It’s always a joy to be present at such moments, and there are stories that can last a lifetime.
That moment when Pete Townshend decided to smash his guitar was one action that sent waves throughout the world, and things would never be the same after that. Those Who fans who had been following the group long before could see certain patterns developing, of course, and the moment didn’t come out of the blue. There was a fierceness in their playing, as well as the songwriting, and it was obvious that Townshend knew some important things about showmanship. He knew how to work a crowd from a very young age. Even now, looking back at their early footage, we don’t see a young rock and roller caught up in the energy, we see someone who is carefully calculating the effects of his actions, and making decisions.
A similar moment happens in New York City, when David Byrne, the eternal adolescent, gangly and uncomfortable with his own body, decides to start mimicking the jerky dances he’s been observing. Some of the people at the CBGB’s that night would claim that he was only trying to prove that he really couldn’t dance. But to the rest of the world, it was a moment when the performer decided to embody all of the energy of the audience and give it back to them. What shifted here was a very important thing, because he wasn’t simply becoming the romantic hero, being brave or furious in front of a large group of people. Rather, he was showing us who we were at that moment, and we were nervous, edgy, upset, and frustrated. It was disturbing to see ourselves like that, but at the same time, it felt good. Because we were recognized, and our own inner turmoil was so profound to the moment that it was worthy of being represented. These gestures of frustration speak as loud as any spectacle, and often times, it is the attitude itself that is more important than the sparks and the smoke.