Guitarist known for his conservative stance praised the singer’s work ethic, but says she lacks “aggression, fire and sensuality”
There’s no denying it: Taylor Swift She is the most important artist today. The impressive numbers obtained from record and ticket sales, in addition to her influence among young audiences, serve to reinforce the magnitude of her work at the moment.
This, however, does not make it immune to criticism. One of them recently came from Ted Nugent, guitarist controversial for his ultra-conservative political comments. In an interview with Joe Pags Show (via Blabbermouth), the musician defined the artist’s work as “clueless pop” and with “zero sensuality”.
The subject actually came up when Nugent was asked if he likes any artist that emerged in the 1990s or 2000s. Foo Fighters was mentioned. The 75-year-old musician stated:
“The Foo Fighters aren’t really a new band, but when they came onto the scene, they were delivering the same dedication and work ethic. You can tell that Dave Grohl and his mates really put their heart and soul into delivering something monstrous every time.” nights. Now, as much as I love, adore and admire the Foo Fighters, and Dave Grohl is one of the masters of ‘crescendos’… you were mentioning John Coltrane and those great saxophonists, that sax solo, that guitar solo in all the best songs in the world, that’s the ‘crescendo’. With all due respect to the Foo Fighters, but they don’t do that ‘fire-breathing’ guitar solo that elevates the whole musical moment to a higher place. And it is That’s what I want.”
Amid this reflection, the comment was made about Taylor Swift. The guitarist praised the singer’s commitment to always offering a good show, but defined her work as “cartoon music”.
“I’m afraid to say that in this current world, this has gone down the drain in every aspect. I’m afraid of Taylor Swift’s success, and may God bless her work ethic and her artistic dreams, but this is cartoon music. […] I mean, there’s no aggression, fire or sensuality. To me, it’s all nonsense pop and it’s the most popular thing in the world, which says something about the music industry and music fans. They’re not looking for that fire of a ZZ Top, Mitch Ryder and the Detroit Wheels, Brownsville Station or Amboy Dukes. I miss that.”
Finally, Nugent highlighted that he is happy to still be able to perform — even if not for long, as he has announced a farewell tour.
“Thank God I’m still around. We still deliver the fire that the Beatles delivered to German nightclubs.”
Another Ted Nugent critique of Taylor Swift
Last June, Ted Nugent had already criticized Taylor Swift’s work on his program The Nightly Nuge (via Blabbermouth). On that occasion, the guitarist gave his opinion on the current state of music in the United States. Initially, he commented:
“Thank God I was born in 1948, because Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, Little Richard, James Brown, Wilson Pickett, the Funk Brothers of Motown and all those great musical authorities inspired all the greatest music we still love today. We love Aerosmith, AC/DC, ZZ Top, Heart, Journey, Cheap Trick, Foreigner and so many other bands I could name because of the incredible work ethic we have. Music makes us have that. We wanted to be as good as our idols. We wanted to have that black soul. We still have bands like that, like Greta Van Fleet, the Foo Fighters of the great Dave Grohl, but I fear it will never be like the Rolling Stones, Beatles, The Who, The Kinks, Led Zeppelin, Van Halen, Ronnie Montrose, Sammy Hagar…”
Again, Taylor Swift’s name was introduced — although without direct mention in the introductory moment — as the musician spoke.
“I don’t know this long-legged girl’s name, but she makes a thousand dollars a ticket or whatever.”
The program’s co-host, Keith Mark, mentioned Swift’s name. Nugent reacted:
“Yes, Taylor Swift. But this song, to me, sounds like cartoon music. It looks like I put it in a cartoon on a Saturday morning. I would probably listen to the No. 1 country song or the No. 1 pop song, because everything is formulated to give a certain vocal delivery and a certain chord change and a certain tempo that is not organic and instinctive and sexy and loose and genuine and believable. ”
Source: Rollingstone
Earl Johnson is a music writer at Gossipify, known for his in-depth analysis and unique perspective on the industry. A graduate of USC with a degree in Music, he brings years of experience and passion to his writing. He covers the latest releases and trends, always on the lookout for the next big thing in music.
