Pop 2001: Good music, with a note of tragedy

The industry lost some of its stars, but it carries on brilliantly with legendary luminaries and new lights.

By GINA VIVINETTO, Times Pop Music Critic
© St. Petersburg Times
published December 23, 2001

[Times photo: Toni L. Sandys]

Britney Spears ruled the halftime show at this year’s Super Bowl in Tampa, sharing the stage but not the glory with ‘N Sync.

The music industry took hard hits in 2001, with CD sales down and the worst concert attendance figures in a decade. We lost luminaries such as former Beatle George Harrison, punk legend Joey Ramone, blues giant John Lee Hooker and brilliant 1960s songwriter John Phillips of the Mamas & the Papas. The death of up-and-coming 22-year-old R&B sensation Aaliyah also devastated the music community.

Yet with all that tragedy, 2001 gave us the most delicious, artistically gratifying music we've heard in years. Several of those albums came from legends such as Bob Dylan, Paul McCartney and Elton John. Of course, the year offered plenty of interesting new trends, too, including:

THE RETURN OF ROCK: Could it be? Yes, the behemoth teen pop monster began being squeezed out by harder fare, a brand of hard rock -- call it nu-metal -- that's brainy and provocative, made by bands such as Tool and System of a Down, bands unafraid to tackle prickly, political topics.

Rock, in general, is strong again, with U2 touring mightily, reminding everyone how nice a guitar sounds. What was the biggest comeback of the year? Not Mr. King of Pop Michael Jackson, not Garth Brooks, but guitar-based dork rockers Weezer, whose Hash Pipe single ate up radio and MTV, and whose tour generated critical raves and a huge fan turnout.

TEEN ACTS, GROWING UP? The teen idols themselves began sporting sophisticated new looks (read: The boys shaved the goofy facial hair; Britney is revealing even more navel). Teen pop stars this year crafted discs -- with varying results -- that venture from the formulaic, bubble gum tunes that made them famous. 'N Sync's Celebrity is loaded with intriguing, edgy spots. Britney's Britney -- well, give the girl props for actually writing some of the material herself. As for the Backstreet Boys, well, A.J. McLean did a very adult thing by checking himself into rehab for drug and alcohol abuse.

SHOWING OUR ROOTS: One of 2001's weirdest trends was the newfound passion for American roots music, thanks mostly to the success of the soundtrack to the film O Brother, Where Art Thou?, which features bluegrass darlings Alison Krauss & Union Station, the Cox Family, Emmylou Harris and Gillian Welch and has sold more than 2-million copies. Who would've thought we'd be trading in syncopated beats for a Dobro and a fiddle? Will we be seeing teens swinging their partners 'round and 'round on TRL before long?

GET THE MEMO: CONCERTS COST TOO MUCH! Why the crummy concert sales? In a word: money. Though Madonna's spectacular "Drowned World Tour" garnered mostly rave reviews, the Material Girl's ticket prices -- some way into the hundreds -- ticked off many fans. That didn't stop it from selling out in every city. Other acts were not so lucky: 'N Sync had to cancel second dates in some stadiums because of poor sales. ('N Sync and Dave Matthews Band, the two acts that played the most stadium shows this year, both vow to scale back to arenas next year.)

Why are we paying -- or not paying, it seems -- so much to see our favorite performers? Tell the greedy concert industry to knock it off.

Hey, teens, who among you can afford 80 bucks to see Janet Jackson at the Ice Palace? Then add on $15 to $25 more to park your ride? Heaven forbid you're paying for a date, or, in the case of older fans, footing the bill for a babysitter, too. One concert can cost hundreds of bucks. It ain't right.

More of 2001's highlights

ALICIA KEYS, I COULD KISS YOU: No new musician excited me more than 20-year-old singer-pianist Alicia Keys, whose debut, Songs in A Minor, is rich in 1970s-style soul and R&B. The album is organic, with real instruments and Keys' sultry voice and beyond-her-years wisdom. Anyone who tells Rolling Stone, "Chopin is my dawg," is stellar in my book. Can't wait to see what the future brings.

ELTON AND EMINEM: In a move that divided the gay community and First Amendment advocates, gay musician Elton John and homophobic rapper Eminem performed a much-publicized duet at this year's Grammy Awards ceremony. Did it bridge a gap? Is Elton a traitor? It sure sparked debate, and that's good.

THE SUPER BOWL, HECK, THE WORLD, ACCORDING TO BRITNEY SPEARS: The young pop tart in football tights stole the Tampa Super Bowl halftime show from Aerosmith, boyfriend Justin Timberlake's act, 'N Sync, and whoever else was on that stage doing a camped-out Walk This Way. Britney also stole the MTV Video Awards by dancing and lip-syncing with that snake. Why? What did it mean? Who cares, it's Britney! The kind of girl who endorses Diet Pepsi in television commercials but gets busted with Diet Coke on tour. It's Britney's world. Get used to it.

WHO NEEDS PEOPLE? One of 2001's most exciting albums came from Gorillaz, a cartoon supergroup whose Clint Eastwood single rocked MTV. The virtual hip-hop act's real life musicmakers include Blur's Damon Albarn, Cibo Matto's Miho Hatori and Tom Tom Club's Tina Weymouth and Chris Frantz.

HAIR TODAY: Elton John's Grammy Award appearance made me even more afraid of his "hair." R&B singer Erykah Badu shaved her head down to a Mr. Clean 'do, and she looks fabulous! Alicia Keys reminded us of the coolness of cornrows, something Justin Timberlake tried to pull off last year, failing miserably.

YO, WHAT'S UP WITH GWEN STEFANI? The peroxide blond, beach bunny-ish No Doubt singer did that one duet, Let Me Blow Ya Mind, with bad girl rapper Eve, and now she's all frontin' in every band pic, and all up in our grill with the rap poses and the bling bling around her neck and on her fingers. Gwen, yo, dawg, chill.

Okay, enough with highlights and trends. Let's get to the music. 2001 had plenty of wonderful discs. I offer you my picks for the year's best:

GINA VIVINETTO'S TOP 10 ALBUMS OF 2001:

1. Bob Dylan, Love and Theft (Columbia)

2. Macy Gray, The Id (Epic)

3. The Strokes, Is This It (RCA)

4. Alicia Keys, Songs in A Minor (J)

5. Radiohead, Amnesiac (Capitol)

6. Andrew Bird's Bowl of Fire, Swimming Hour (Ryko)

7. Solex, Low Kick and Hard Bop (Matador)

8. System of a Down, Toxicity (American/Columbia)

9. The Moldy Peaches, The Moldy Peaches (Rough Trade)

10. Missy Elliot, Miss E . . . So Addictive (WEA/Elektra)

AND THE SINGLES:

1. Missy Elliot, Get Ur Freak On

2. New Order, Crystal

3. Alicia Keys, Fallin'

4. A tie: Destiny's Child, Bootylicious, and 'N Sync's Pop.

5. For the rockers? Aerosmith's dee-lish Jaded and Train's Drops of Jupiter. (Yes, I'm embarrassed to admit, I loved it.)

BEST COVER:

Hands down, Alien Ant Farm's too awesome version of Michael Jackson's Smooth Criminal.

BEST LIVE SHOWS: Madonna's "Drowned World Tour" stop in Fort Lauderdale was a spectacular night of dreamy stage sets, vivacious choreography and honest music. What a vision.

Also great: Chuck Berry at Ruth Eckerd Hall for the exact opposite effect: Berry stripped it all down to the bare-bones rock 'n' roll he created decades ago. Could the U2 show at the Ice Palace have been more powerful? Blues and folk legend Odetta treated fans at the Palladium to her amazing voice and superb interpretations. Legendary jazz drummer Elvin Jones, 74, at the Tampa Theatre showed that sometimes it's the old dogs who teach the new dogs the tricks. Harry Connick Jr. at Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center? Swingy and sublime. Can Aerosmith still rock an arena or what? The band filled the Ice Palace with sweat, swagger and old-school rock.

© St. Petersburg Times. All rights reserved.