It's the sentiment of the song: the notion of moving on or hoping to move on to something new, something better, or maybe feeling the need to keep on moving on in order to keep yourself right, making travel plans for a completely uninspiring and uncertain future as a means of coping.
Concepts like that don't seem to be much of a thing in popular music anymore, certainly not the way they were for the likes of Bob Seger, Jackson Browne and Lynard Skynard back in the day. Nobody rambles and roams anymore, or even thinks they might want to, or need to. Maybe they never did; maybe it was always a bit of a smoke and mirrors illusion. But a lot of the music from the late 70s, when "Goodbye Stranger" was released, seemed to suggest the notion that personal peace-of-mind was directly linked to physical freedom, the ability to come and go at will, with no chains, no one to answer to, nothing holding you back, holding you down.
No longer. Music is all about staying put these days - or at least being perfectly content with how things are, how you are - and that's not really surprising, I guess, with the Internet being a virtual means of escape. Nobody's stuck staring at the same four walls, even if they're surrounded by the same four walls. They can essentially travel the world without ever leaving the house, see things, talk to people, choose to talk to no one if they so desire. This leaves - that I've noticed - young people, who don't know a world any different, with little or no inclination to go anywhere, ever. They're living with their parents well into their twenties, or thirties, barely bothering to get driver's licenses unless it becomes absolutely necessary. This is weird to me.
Yes, the whole "freedom" think is dangerously idealistic, and a bit of a tread-worn trope, and yes, it can certainly be argued that it was a uniquely Baby Boomer thing to put such a premium on unmitigated freedom. Millennials and Gen Y might be self-absorbed, but it's no secret the "Me" generation was selfish. The frosty farewell evident in "Goodbye Stranger"...literally the lyrics, "goodbye stranger" and "I have to have things my own way to keep me in my youth"... were doubtless spoken to wives, husbands and children all too often back in the aftermath of 1960s, when it might be argued that too many doors were left wide open.
But that it doesn't turn up in songs at all these days is something lost, as far as I'm concerned. Once in a great while, "freedom" - in terms of hitting the road not merely to get from point A to point B, but to disappear into the sunshine - pops up in the odd country song, but not often. Usually in country music these days, you get a lot of thick, pasty patriotism and/or a completely cartoonish portrayal of redneckism that reveals no inclination to leave whatsoever, would even appear to suggest rambling and roaming is the coward's way out. This is my land, the modern country artist is far more inclined to croon smugly, my country, my family, my roots are here, I'm not going anywhere! I got everything I need right here, and every right to be here! I'm staying put. I'm blessed. So fuck you.
In her lovely 1971 ballad "So Far Away", Carole King sang (negatively): "...one more song about moving along the highway / can't say much of anything that's new..."
I feel that way now, but for the opposite reason. Nobody seems to want to hit the highway anymore, they don't want a sprawling leap into an unknown creating soul-feeding distance and perspective. They really do just want to sit at home and play on their computer in whatever capacity they prefer, let the world come to them in RGB. And make no mistake, I fall victim to that impulse (or lack of impulse) all the time, and I am by no means a Millennial.
But am I right in the assertion that it's more than a little too bad?
"It was early morning yesterday, I was up before the dawn..."
#326) "Awoo" by Sofi Tukker - Since their debut in 2016, Sofi Tukker, a New York based duo consisting of Sophie Hawley-Weld, Tucker Halpern and an extensive list of collaborative and/or contributing guests, have proven themselves to be a force to be reckoned with, existing and thriving on the funky and just a little kooky fringe of pop music, where they can blend equal portions of ultra cool and ultra ridiculous, do both very well, and appeal to everyone. I hear a little Prince in their sound, a little Lady Gaga, a lot of the B-52s, even a little Steely Dan, yet they've created their own vibe that is unflinchingly unique to their time, their generation.
Pop music, rock and roll, whatever you want to call it, is first and foremost all about being interesting. Being boring - basic - is the only real offense, and Sofi Tukker are anything but that. "Awoo" is sexy and playful, never taking itself too seriously, yet coming across entirely legit.
"I was there and then I quit..."
