A little over a week ago The White Stripes announced that they were disbanding.
I'll let that sit there, all by itself. At the top of the post. It was a crushing announcement for the Price household. Before I get too far into this I will say that I know that there are real tragedies happening around the globe and that ones favorite band no longer making music isn't the worst thing that can happen. But there hasn't been a day this week that I haven't thought about it, and it makes me sad. Justifying a post
We bought my car in January 2009. It has a six cd stereo. The compilation cd Bret made me of all White Stripes songs has never left slot number one. Never.
We had tickets to see them during the Icky Thump tour. The concert was days away, we were going to drive 8 hours both directions into another state to see them. They cancelled due to Megs acute anxiety and now we will never see them. In the years since then Bret and I have talked about it many times as a huge regret we hoped to rectify, but we won't get the chance.
I love music, but I wouldn't say I "know" a lot about it. I know what I like and new music is hard for me to break into. In high school I described myself as a "radio girl," only knowing what was currently playing that week. Things changed in college, I started listening to albums and forming opinions that didn't involve the top 40, but mostly on recommendation and there had to be an "in." Like already knowing one song by the artist before listening to the album. I also have to be able to understand and sing the lyrics, even though I'm a terrible singer. That's part of what I enjoy about music. I think these things drive Bret nuts. All that being said, I know the entire White Stripes catalog, something I can say about no other band.
We sing Hotel Yorba to Scarlett as a lullaby. Why? Because I could sing it with no music, all the words. I even changed some, "I said 39 times that I love you, to the baby I had found."
I recently heard a creative team talk about inspiration and they said to be a creative you must be passionate and passion often leads to obsession in the creative. I find that true about myself. When I like something, I like it all out, but it can die quickly (fifteen year old self, I'm looking at you and your Kevin Bacon obsession). I identify the White Stripes as part of my identity and really getting to own that I'm a true fan.
I am happy that Jack is still making music out side WS. I love the Raconteurs. We did get to see them in concert and they were AMAZING. I dig the Dead Weather and Jack has third man records that I'm sure will produce many a band I can enjoy. But I morn the simplicity and the original and the complexity that created. For the fact that they are done. That there will be nothing new, at least not like it was.
So to end my ridiculously frivolous and overly in depth post to a band that I love, to the song library that no matter what kind of day I had or mood I was in had lyrics that spoke to me, here is a picture us, as them for a friends rock-star party.
We sang Hotel Yorba that night.
