fight!
Over at ALOTT5MA, there's discussion of U2's place in the pop music pantheon, and whether, in fifty years, they will (or even should) be mentioned in the same breath as the Beatles.
To bolster their arguments, posters have been making baseball analogies: U2 is the Ted Williams of music verses U2 is the Stan Musial of rock. The Beatles are Babe Ruth, of course.
I wanted to take part in the dialogue, but I haven't followed baseball in a decade and I've since turne dthat portion of my brain over to collecting pop culture trivia. If I wanted to make my point, I was going to need a new sport. A sport I know. A sport I have passion for. A sport that's obscure in the United States.
I needed Formula One.
I said, basically, "The Beatles are to Juan Miguel Fangio as U2 are to Michael Schumacher."
Bob E. was kind enough to say "huh?" but I didn't have time to post a better argument. Until now.
U2 are on the same level as Michael Schumacher.
It's an apt comparison. The Beatles and Fangio come out of the same era, while U2 and Schumacher are contemporaries. There will never be a head-to-head competion because of constraints of time and mortality, so we must examine their track records.
A bit of F1
Fangio, an Argentinian, won a record five world championships between 1951 and 1958. Many later drivers, such as Ayrton Senna, challenged the record, but it stood for over four decades. With every passing championship season, Fangio's legend grew, and it was postulated as recently as the late 1990s that it would be impossible for a modern driver to tie the record, much less break it.
Michael Schumacher tied the record in 2002 as the first seat driver for Scuderia Ferarri Marlboro. At the time, the racing press argued over the merit of the record; did Schumacher — in his high-tech, pimped out Ferrari — have skills equal to the cigar car-driving Fangio? The discussion continued for another two seasons even as Schumacher amassed an additional two titles to his crown and raising the bar for future F1 drivers.
An answer was most likely given during the 2005 season, when Schumacher struggled with an under-performing car. His only win came during the United States Gran Prix, a debacle that saw only six cars take the track during a tire safety dispute, further damaging Formula One's reputation in the US. He finished out the season in third place, lagging 71 points behind Spanish upstart Fernando Alonso.
Still, the pundits kick around the Fangio/Schumacher comparisons. Could Schumacher remain at the top of the pack in a substandard car? Or were his victories owed to Ross Brawn's assembled techincal team and half-billion dollar budget? Still, it's a futile comparison, because the two men are different animals. Fangio shunned simple safety precautions such as a lap belt; Schumacher races in a full fire suit, six point harness and a HANS device. The cars have changed, the tracks have changed, the stakes have changed.
Apples and Oranges
The same can be said of comparisons between the Beatles and U2. The former built on the Sun Records legacy. The later grew out of the punk movement, a revolt of its own against a more studio-driven sound.
The Beatles will always have the upper hand when contrasted against U2 simply for being the Beatles. If you want to witness a verbal bloodbath, ask two music geeks to debate the merits of Rubber Soul against Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Heart's Club Band. Ask which is better, "Yesterday" or "Let it Be."
Meanwhile U2 will probably be remembered for the Edge's janglely guitars, The Joshua Tree, and "One" (their most Beatle-esque tune). Most likely, future writers will focus more upon Bono's activisim for Africa than the music that valuted him to international prominence.
Might Have Beens
Are they fair comparisons? No. Fangio might have floundered in a modern F1 car. Had he lived, John Lennon could have issued a techno record and bewildered everyone. Or he could have dueted with Frank Sinatra and Johnny Cash. Who is to say?
It comes down to loyalties. It becomes a matter of personal preference. Older anti-Schumites will argue, "Back in the day, Fangio..." while the Hornbian music men turned off by Bono's posturing will preface every statement with, "Well, John Lennon."
There is no comparison, no winning. There never was. It is the excersise in futility beloved by geeks and mystifying to outsiders.
Have at it in the comments.
To bolster their arguments, posters have been making baseball analogies: U2 is the Ted Williams of music verses U2 is the Stan Musial of rock. The Beatles are Babe Ruth, of course.
I wanted to take part in the dialogue, but I haven't followed baseball in a decade and I've since turne dthat portion of my brain over to collecting pop culture trivia. If I wanted to make my point, I was going to need a new sport. A sport I know. A sport I have passion for. A sport that's obscure in the United States.
I needed Formula One.
I said, basically, "The Beatles are to Juan Miguel Fangio as U2 are to Michael Schumacher."
Bob E. was kind enough to say "huh?" but I didn't have time to post a better argument. Until now.
U2 are on the same level as Michael Schumacher.
It's an apt comparison. The Beatles and Fangio come out of the same era, while U2 and Schumacher are contemporaries. There will never be a head-to-head competion because of constraints of time and mortality, so we must examine their track records.
A bit of F1
Fangio, an Argentinian, won a record five world championships between 1951 and 1958. Many later drivers, such as Ayrton Senna, challenged the record, but it stood for over four decades. With every passing championship season, Fangio's legend grew, and it was postulated as recently as the late 1990s that it would be impossible for a modern driver to tie the record, much less break it.
Michael Schumacher tied the record in 2002 as the first seat driver for Scuderia Ferarri Marlboro. At the time, the racing press argued over the merit of the record; did Schumacher — in his high-tech, pimped out Ferrari — have skills equal to the cigar car-driving Fangio? The discussion continued for another two seasons even as Schumacher amassed an additional two titles to his crown and raising the bar for future F1 drivers.
An answer was most likely given during the 2005 season, when Schumacher struggled with an under-performing car. His only win came during the United States Gran Prix, a debacle that saw only six cars take the track during a tire safety dispute, further damaging Formula One's reputation in the US. He finished out the season in third place, lagging 71 points behind Spanish upstart Fernando Alonso.
Still, the pundits kick around the Fangio/Schumacher comparisons. Could Schumacher remain at the top of the pack in a substandard car? Or were his victories owed to Ross Brawn's assembled techincal team and half-billion dollar budget? Still, it's a futile comparison, because the two men are different animals. Fangio shunned simple safety precautions such as a lap belt; Schumacher races in a full fire suit, six point harness and a HANS device. The cars have changed, the tracks have changed, the stakes have changed.
Apples and Oranges
The same can be said of comparisons between the Beatles and U2. The former built on the Sun Records legacy. The later grew out of the punk movement, a revolt of its own against a more studio-driven sound.
The Beatles will always have the upper hand when contrasted against U2 simply for being the Beatles. If you want to witness a verbal bloodbath, ask two music geeks to debate the merits of Rubber Soul against Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Heart's Club Band. Ask which is better, "Yesterday" or "Let it Be."
Meanwhile U2 will probably be remembered for the Edge's janglely guitars, The Joshua Tree, and "One" (their most Beatle-esque tune). Most likely, future writers will focus more upon Bono's activisim for Africa than the music that valuted him to international prominence.
Might Have Beens
Are they fair comparisons? No. Fangio might have floundered in a modern F1 car. Had he lived, John Lennon could have issued a techno record and bewildered everyone. Or he could have dueted with Frank Sinatra and Johnny Cash. Who is to say?
It comes down to loyalties. It becomes a matter of personal preference. Older anti-Schumites will argue, "Back in the day, Fangio..." while the Hornbian music men turned off by Bono's posturing will preface every statement with, "Well, John Lennon."
There is no comparison, no winning. There never was. It is the excersise in futility beloved by geeks and mystifying to outsiders.
Have at it in the comments.
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