Didn't Alanis have a nice five-year wave? She had two biggish hits from the second record which carried her through to 1999. And although I'm not sure of which artists were inspired by her, but would have the record labels signed and promoted Meredith Brooks' "Bitch" without the huge sales of "Jagged Little Pill." I have no doubt Alanis, Avril and Lourde have made their influences, but are there any of those influenced who actually matter?
The Alanis wave is the general transfer of alt-rock by women to the Adult Contemporary charts -- this is more of the end of a process than the beginning of one (also similar to Chubby Checker, in a way), but the idea that the sort of music you'd hear at #1 on the alternative charts would eventually (by 1998 or so) be #1 on the Adult Contemporary charts is, I think, a big shift.
Alanis herself benefited a bit from the follow-up -- "Thank U" went to #1 on the Adult 40 and #17 on the Hot 100 (several "Jagged Little Pill" singles went top 10). But nothing Alanis did after "Jagged Little Pill" improved on her chart history, and I'd argue didn't really change things the way the first album did.
That album and its singles had oversaturated the market. I remember when I first heard (or saw, really) the video for "Hand In My Pocket." I think I coo'ed. Three weeks later I never wanted to hear that song ever again. I know she influenced the charts, but what about other music makers?
Alanis to Avril might make some sense, but Avril to Taylor doesn't make any sense at all. I think there's more happy accidents sometimes and that these things can't be so easily explained.
VERY hard disagree. There's absolutely no market for Taylor Swift's 2006-2008 youth audience consolidation without a full decade of development getting teen confessional music on Radio Disney and TRL.
I stood corrected in the wrong place. I see what you're saying. Just never thought Avril was much, until I saw her charts and sales and realized she did have some influence.
As for Avril, I think Avril is the single most important artist in the pre-Taylor pop landscape *given* what happened with Taylor Swift. I think without Taylor Swift, you can see teen confessional of the mid-aughts as a fad. What Avril was to the first act of Taylor's career Lorde was to the second (which I think she's still basically in).
I'll back step a bit. I just went to Wikipedia and looked up Avril Lavigne's chart successes and singles. I forgot she had a hits and sales in 2007. She was such laundry fluff to me, I just never cared for her. I knew she had that huge hit "Complicated" song and that gawdawful ballad ("I'm With You") and I ignored her after "Sk8ter Boi" (the spelling of boy always makes me laugh because it makes me think of chatrooms on Gay.com, circa 1998-2002). I can see what you're on to. My apologies.
No need to apologize! I do think the simpler observation that " 'Complicated' was huge" is a bigger deal than almost anything she did afterward. I think of her more as catalyst than center.
Didn't Alanis have a nice five-year wave? She had two biggish hits from the second record which carried her through to 1999. And although I'm not sure of which artists were inspired by her, but would have the record labels signed and promoted Meredith Brooks' "Bitch" without the huge sales of "Jagged Little Pill." I have no doubt Alanis, Avril and Lourde have made their influences, but are there any of those influenced who actually matter?
The Alanis wave is the general transfer of alt-rock by women to the Adult Contemporary charts -- this is more of the end of a process than the beginning of one (also similar to Chubby Checker, in a way), but the idea that the sort of music you'd hear at #1 on the alternative charts would eventually (by 1998 or so) be #1 on the Adult Contemporary charts is, I think, a big shift.
Alanis herself benefited a bit from the follow-up -- "Thank U" went to #1 on the Adult 40 and #17 on the Hot 100 (several "Jagged Little Pill" singles went top 10). But nothing Alanis did after "Jagged Little Pill" improved on her chart history, and I'd argue didn't really change things the way the first album did.
That album and its singles had oversaturated the market. I remember when I first heard (or saw, really) the video for "Hand In My Pocket." I think I coo'ed. Three weeks later I never wanted to hear that song ever again. I know she influenced the charts, but what about other music makers?
I mean, I'm a broken record on this, but I don't think you get Avril without Alanis and you don't get Taylor without Avril
Alanis to Avril might make some sense, but Avril to Taylor doesn't make any sense at all. I think there's more happy accidents sometimes and that these things can't be so easily explained.
VERY hard disagree. There's absolutely no market for Taylor Swift's 2006-2008 youth audience consolidation without a full decade of development getting teen confessional music on Radio Disney and TRL.
I stood corrected in the wrong place. I see what you're saying. Just never thought Avril was much, until I saw her charts and sales and realized she did have some influence.
As for Avril, I think Avril is the single most important artist in the pre-Taylor pop landscape *given* what happened with Taylor Swift. I think without Taylor Swift, you can see teen confessional of the mid-aughts as a fad. What Avril was to the first act of Taylor's career Lorde was to the second (which I think she's still basically in).
I'll back step a bit. I just went to Wikipedia and looked up Avril Lavigne's chart successes and singles. I forgot she had a hits and sales in 2007. She was such laundry fluff to me, I just never cared for her. I knew she had that huge hit "Complicated" song and that gawdawful ballad ("I'm With You") and I ignored her after "Sk8ter Boi" (the spelling of boy always makes me laugh because it makes me think of chatrooms on Gay.com, circa 1998-2002). I can see what you're on to. My apologies.
No need to apologize! I do think the simpler observation that " 'Complicated' was huge" is a bigger deal than almost anything she did afterward. I think of her more as catalyst than center.