Music: There’s something about Jersey
Jon Bream from the Minneapolis-St. Paul Star-Tribune is a bit of an idiot. And I’m being generous. His article about music in New Jersey is full of backhanded compliments.
Mr. Bream notes that “Per capita, the fertile Garden State has probably turned out more big-name music stars than any other state.” (including Count Basie, Bruce Springsteen, Frank Sinatra, Lauryn Hill, Queen Latifah, and even, apparently, Eddie Rabbit) Why? he wonders, when the state is merely “Miles upon miles of industrial smokestacks, the filthy turnpike through the wastelands, two NFL teams that won’t even take the name of the state in which they play.”
Oh, here’s why, says Bream:
1. Being between NY and PA give us Jerseyites an “inferiority complex.”
2. In his words: “Those pollution-spewing factories do have a positive impact by helping to instill a strong work ethic in Jerseyites.” What is NJ part of a Dickens novel?
3. Gosh, this guy is an ass. Apparently, we have an “underdog mentality that comes from being the butt of jokes and living in a culture-deprived state that, unlike New York and Philly, had no pro sports until the 1970s.” What the heck do pro sports have to do with music?
Maybe this guy was dumped by a Jersey girl, I’m not sure. But I do know that he has never spent any real time in this beautiful state, which is full of diversity both cultural and natural. I’m 20 minutes from NYC by train, but in a 10 minute bike ride I can be in South Mountain Reservation surrounded by trees and wildlife. Beautiful beaches, mountains, farmland, rolling green hills, and the history of Washington’s Crossing — just the tip of the iceberg. On any given night in my neighborhood, you can smell Caribbean food cooking at the neighbor’s house (yum!), walk down the hill for Spanish or (authentic) Mexican food, head over to the pub for a pint, or go into Newark’s Ironbound District for Portuguese. Not to mention Cecil’s Jazz Club right down the street.
Have I mentioned that this guy is an idiot, or an ass, or maybe an idiotic ass? Not just the music, baby, NJ’s got it ALL!
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