MrFunnyWobbl
GOAT
- Jan 3, 2012
- 27,085
- 983
Gabriel easily.
I'm not even a huge Gabriel fan, but if I had to list my favorite songs either of them did, I'd probably go through 10-15 Gabriel songs before any of Collins.
Collins stuff is alright but nothing special.Gabriel by a long, long way. Collins solo career is pretty disappointing in my opinion.
I would've thought Phil peaked higher than Peter
Or you know, you just like what you like.Appeal to popularity never makes any sense to me-- it's completely backwards reasoning. The masses are almost by definition bound to be more ignorant and have more undeveloped tastes than anyone with even a modicum of interest or passion in something (basically, you simply need to know or care slightly more than the average person in order to be a more qualified authority on any given subject). Aside from indicating something about its accessibility and meeting a baseline/floor of quality, it's completely meaningless when determining how good or bad something is compared to something else.
That's not really actually the case though, IMO. You can only truly know what you like by really diving in and digging around and slowly developing a better understanding of your own preferences, which the masses as a whole could never be expected to do (it would be kind of insane if they did). Even when factoring subjectivity, popularity among the masses is probably one of the least useful barometers of how good something is.Or you know, you just like what you like.
Nothing is a useful barometer of how good something is. Each individual is different. Most of the time people can instantly like/dislike a song as soon as they hear itThat's not really actually the case though, IMO. You can only truly know what you like by really diving in and digging around and slowly developing a better understanding of your own preferences, which the masses generally do not do (it would be kind of insane if they unanimously did). Subjectivity aside, popularity among the masses is probably one of the least useful barometers of how good something is.
Nothing is a perfect and authoritative barometer of how good something is, I agree-- subjectivity is always going to muddy those waters, but some are clearly more reasonable, credible, and useful than others, to some degree. It's not just a black and white "every opinion is completely equal no matter what" thing. The gut instincts of someone who barely cares or even pays attention is never going to be more meaningful than the considered and engaged impressions of someone who actually engages in it, and that's where any appeal to popularity becomes more questionable than any opinion otherwise already would be for the reasons that you've given.Nothing is a useful barometer of how good something is. Each individual is different. Most of the time people can instantly like/dislike a song as soon as they hear it
I think to truly care as much as you say, you already have to had some type of attraction in the first place. I'll give you an example. I will be more inclined to give a deep listen to a Metallica (my favorite band) track that I had barely listened to before than some random country singer (not really fond of country music). Why, because I care and one thing and not the other, hence, you just like what you like.Nothing is a perfect and authoritative barometer of how good something is, I agree-- subjectivity is always going to muddy those waters, but some are clearly more reasonable, credible, and useful than others, to some degree. It's not just black and white every opinion is equal no matter what. The gut instincts of someone who barely cares is never going to be more meaningful than the considered and engaged impressions of someone who actually engages in it.
While that initial "some type of attraction/repulsion" is bound to be somewhat of a continuing factor, it's never going to paint a perfect picture of what your sensibilities will ultimately be (or can be), which is initially skewed by superficial barriers and misunderstandings that get fixed/overcome and become more and more refined as you expose yourself to more stuff.I think to truly care as much as you say, you already have to had some type of attraction in the first place. I'll give you an example. I will be more inclined to give a deep listen to a Metallica (my favorite band) track that I had barely listened to before than some random country singer (not really fond of country music). Why, because I care and one thing and not the other, hence, you just like what you like.
I don't think I explained myself clearly. I don't mean "I like what I like" as in someone can predict what I like. What I mean is, say a song I never heard before came on. don't know the artist or anything. No preconceptions whatsoever. after the song is over, typically, I either like it or don't like it or somewhere in between. Doesn't matter the genre or popularity or whatever.While that initial "some type of attraction/repulsion" is bound to be somewhat of a continuing factor, it's never going to paint a perfect picture of what your sensibilities will ultimately be (or can be), which is initially skewed by superficial barriers and misunderstandings that get fixed/overcome and become more and more refined as you expose yourself to more stuff, unless you completely dismiss them. Unless everyone is universally into the same thing, the masses will usually fall into the latter category.
If all of your current opinions line up perfectly with that initial attraction/repulsion, I would argue that you probably don't know yourself or your own sensibilities half as well as you think you do. That **** changes over time as you challenge your initial preconceptions of it-- it becomes better and better.
The idea that you just like what you like exactly, forever and ever is a totally false misconception, IMO.
Yes, I understand that. That's what I mean too. By preconceptions, I'm referring to those initial impressions. You have a certain impression that's instinctive, but that impression isn't necessarily representative of what you would end up thinking is true/most satisfying if you dove head first into everything (which I realize isn't possible). In fact, it's usually muddied by things like conditioning, manipulation, knowledge, and comfort zones that are mostly just superficial barriers that can be overcome but that people usually don't.I don't think I explained myself clearly. I don't mean "I like what I like" as in someone can predict what I like. What I mean is, say a song I never heard before came on. don't know the artist or anything. No preconceptions whatsoever. after the song is over, typically, I either like it or don't like it or somewhere in between. Doesn't matter the genre or popularity or whatever.