This place kinda reminds me of a sausage festival.

[EC]

I would have to agree with the thought that girls aren't as into music.  I my personal experience girls just don't dig on it like guys.  

Okay, seriously.  I'm gonna get pissed.  Sweeping generalizations like this drive me crazy.  Some girls are musicheads.  Some girls are not.  Some guys are musicheads.  Some guys are not.  To say that it's a product of your genetic makeup is retarded.

Seriously guys, c'mon.

[ycartrob]

I think the problem is guys are granted permission from society to express themselves emotionally through the vehicle of music, therefore, they appear to be more passionate about it. Whereas women have permission from society to express themselves in any (and every) outlet. This can be seen as a weakness, however, I view it as a strength and how boys are short changed at birth and taught that emotions are not valid.

I had 500 cd's when I got married and my wife had 150. Do I get into the MMJ shows more than she does? Absolutely not, in fact, I would dare say she derives much deeper meaning from the familiarity of the conjured emotion that she feels at the show.

Reggie Jackson owns 100's of classic antique cars. Does that mean Reggie Jackson has a deeper appreciation for cars or a better understanding of cars than a single mom who depends on her 1987 Sentra to get her 3 kids to doctor's appointments? I'd say the single mother really has a true appreciation and understanding of cars, more than Reggie could fathom.

Guys usually boil it down to most (CD's), number of shows you went to, etc...where women (IMO) have it down on an emotional level that is not measured in quantity, it's measured in experience and feelings.

Interesting topic though, but I think Meg is right. I mean, there's some guy out there who owns 10,000 polka cd's. I guess he is THE GOD OF MUSIC, right? :-/

[EC]

That's a very good point, Tracy.  I actually think that guys are having a harder time than girls these days, because so many issues were delegated to females, and then when boys experience them, nothing exists for them.  Like anorexia and eating disorders.  (I know I'm going waaaay off topic, but hopefully I'll find a way to get back to music.)  I know a couple of fellas who have eating disorders, and they won't talk about it or seek help, because it's supposed to be a girl's problem, and people don't even recognize it in guys.  This makes me so damn mad.  I think what it all ultimately boils down to is that we're all seeing the stupidity of placing gender specifications on things, and we need to make sure that we take the time to recalculate our way of thinking.  I know that so many times, I'll catch myself with some stupid preconceived notion, and I'll be like "god damn.  i can't believe i think that."  And you're right.  Not all guys can be as open as Brian and rats about their manlove.  Didn't somebody say that they were going to start a manlove thread?  Maybe that would be a good idea.  Let everybody express themselves in a safe environment. ;)

Anyhow, I know my reaction was pretty strong, and I really hope I didn't make you think that I was letting loose on you, NJ2KY.  I got caught in the moment of a thing that frustrates me, and my post happened to follow yours.  Truly, the person I'm really pissed at is Tom Eisenbraun.  ;)

That is a JOKE, Tom.  It really is.

[wellfleet]

thanks for all the kind words guys. i wish it was the first time that's happened. usually they're content to just stare... i heard about the women-only subway cars in japan, dragonboy, it's sad that it's necessary, but certainly good to know someone cares enough about the problem to help.

i used to think that too many girls weren't as "into" music as deeply as i was and i think it all comes down to parenting. young boys are encouraged to perhaps seek pleasure in certain things (sports, cars, video games, power tools) whereas girls are steered toward other venues. not all parents do this obviously... my dad used to put me to sleep to pink floyd's the wall, and we had the beatles and stones and who playing all the time, and motown stuff, so i absorbed that stuff like a sponge. i think my dad didn't do that with my brother and my brother is musically clueless. he'll listen to whatever's on the hop-hop/reggae station and whatever's playing in the clubs, but i don't think he can name a single beatles' album...
oddly, my mom had her musical awakening in the past two years. all of a sudden, in her fifties, she GOT INTO music. so, working at a record store, i started feeding her habit. she got into neil young, she freakin' loves AC/DC... it's way cool to see her get it now...

[ycartrob]

When Paul Westerberg (The Replacements) was asked what tips did he have for an aspiring songwriter, he said, "Write songs that chicks will dig".

[NJ2KY]

Anyhow, I know my reaction was pretty strong, and I really hope I didn't make you think that I was letting loose on you, NJ2KY.  I got caught in the moment of a thing that frustrates me, and my post happened to follow yours.  

No worries, as far as I've learned in this forum it's all love here.  And I did like Tracy's point about the quantifying of it all.  But I was mainly talking about my personal experiences with music, more importantly the discussion of.  In my life I have only found 2 of my girl friends that I really get into music with and that mainly it is my male friends who I talk about it with.  Even though I do play music for, and invite my girl friends to shows, it always seems that my personal connections with the music seem to be experienced more with my guy friends.  

But hell maybe that some inter-gender communication shit that hidden in our psyches or something.  Or maybe its like how I always here guys go on and on about sports stats and which player did what, which is similar to how I find my friends and I talking about which member of a band did what and who their influences were and what band they used to be in and where their touring and who's opening.  

But anyway,  EC its all good, I like these forums and the discussions they raise.  

[EC]

me, too. :)

[tomEisenbraun]

i think one big difference might be in the way that the music is presented and received. coming from a guys perspective, and also someone fed up with the pop music scene...i can't stand "perfect" music. it needs that variation, that soul. something where it's been recorded ont he record without a click track and they just ran with it. and the music is beautiful because it's honest. it isn't a pose for anything, it isn't a front, it's just honest and beautiful. i mean, good lord, who could argue that "I Needed It Most" or "Phone Went West" aren't honest songs? there's something just in the way they're sung that shows that to you...that there's no doubt that Jim JAmes meant every word.

how this relates to women, i don't know. obviously Meg and Ali and Wellfleet (and other jacket ladies i've forgotten) get it, but the same could be said about guys. I've shown my morning jacket to a hell of a lot of my friends, and most of them just kind of dug Z. my best friend began to really understand them though, and got pretty excited about the tennessee fire. i think it's just a psyche thing. you have to understand some larger thing for the music to make sense, and i htink it's that appeal to the senses that my morning jacket makes. it's not really describable, but it is something that connects.

obviously you get all of us hardcore jacket fiends into one room and just mention "steam engine" and all of us melt where we stand and begin gushing about that song, there's somehting we've all got in common that has opened us up to hearing the beauty in that song, and that's something we all connect on. and the thing is, you'll probably find more men in that room, but i think there's a fair amount of females out there who get it, too. who truly understand the music and the beard, and who completely get Jim James rugged tenderness in his music. i think us men get that too. at least Brain does...

shit, i don't know how this is relevant.

[peanut butter puddin surprise]

the thing I always point out to anyone making a generalization about men or women is:

have you met all 1.5 billion men or women?  no?  then how can anyone make a generalization like that?  we're all different.

now, if you want to do this:

generally speaking, amongst American men ages 25-40, who have attended some college or finished college, who enjoy alcoholic beverages and generally like loud noises and fireworks, who vote straight independent and drive only American made cars, the following is true: (insert your truth)

[ali]

and the thing is, you'll probably find more men in that room, but i think there's a fair amount of females out there who get it, too. who truly understand the music and the beard, and who completely get Jim James rugged tenderness in his music. i think us men get that too. at least Brain does...

shit, i don't know how this is relevant.

us females are pretty perceptive sometimes too you know...

have you met all 1.5 billion men or women?  no?  then how can anyone make a generalization like that?  we're all different.

people make generalisations all the time... yes we're all different, and no, there's no way we can EVER meet every other single person on the planet & quiz them on their music/mmj/beard views, so... you can only ever form or express opinions based on your (forever limited) experiences. and form generalisations from that. so long as people are open to the fact that their generalisations are just that: an opinion based on a single viewpoint about something they could be completely misguided about!  

 ;)

[marktwain]

people make generalisations all the time

I don't know how yoiu can say that.  That's a gross generalization!

 ;)

[ali]

 ;D

[Monkeyfist]

There's a Tenacious D song in this thread, I just don't know if I should go there?

-The Fist  ;D