[Exotica] re: sunshine pop

Thu, 22 Aug 2002 09:26:42 EDT

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I would classify Bacharach's "South American Getaway" as being firmly rooted 
in the now sound genre.  To me, the song fits perfectly with the material 
that a lot of the European soundtrack composers (Dale, Nicolai, Otolani, 
Piccioni, Umiliani, et al. were composing at the time, for it truly has that 
groovy, mood evoking feel to it.  While it certainly has a "pop" sense to it 
in some parts, I feel that it leans far into the mood music end of the 
spectrum.

To a great degree that song really does epitomize soundtrack/mood music for 
me.  I saw Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid when I was 3, and because of the 
song I have always vividly remembered the scene that it was composed for.  In 
fact, I credit that song with sparking my current, intense interest in the 
now sound and soundtrack genres.  It's strange how hearing one memorable song 
as a kid can shape (to a certain degree) your musical interests and hobby 
(music collecting) as an adult.  

Finally, to me the term "pop" has always meant more of a bankable, "popular" 
song that was (is) targeted towards mass audiences.  For what it's worth, 
while I love sunshine pop music and other pop genres as a whole, pop music 
can at times be somewhat brainless...meaning that it isn't very 
thought-provoking.  I believe that "South American Getaway," on the other 
hand, continually keeps the listener active and forces one to really think 
about what he/she is listening to.

Thanks for the opportunity to overanalyze one of my favorite songs.

- John

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<HTML>I would classify Bacharach's "South American Getaway" as being firmly rooted in the now sound genre. &nbsp;To me, the song fits perfectly with the material that a lot of the European soundtrack composers (Dale, Nicolai, Otolani, Piccioni, Umiliani, et al. were composing at the time, for it truly has that groovy, mood evoking feel to it. &nbsp;While it certainly has a "pop" sense to it in some parts, I feel that it leans far into the mood music end of the spectrum.
 
 To a great degree that song really does epitomize soundtrack/mood music for me. &nbsp;I saw Butch Cassidy &amp; The Sundance Kid when I was 3, and because of the song I have always vividly remembered the scene that it was composed for. &nbsp;In fact, I credit that song with sparking my current, intense interest in the now sound and soundtrack genres. &nbsp;It's strange how hearing one memorable song as a kid can shape (to a certain degree) your musical interests and hobby (music collecting) as an adult. &nbsp;
 
 Finally, to me the term "pop" has always meant more of a bankable, "popular" song that was (is) targeted towards mass audiences. &nbsp;For what it's worth, while I love sunshine pop music and other pop genres as a whole, pop music can at times be somewhat brainless...meaning that it isn't very thought-provoking. &nbsp;I believe that "South American Getaway," on the other hand, continually keeps the listener active and forces one to really think about what he/she is listening to.
 
 Thanks for the opportunity to overanalyze one of my favorite songs.
 
 - John</HTML>

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