As with when anyone else passes away, people all over the globe are celebrating his life and music. We’re sure to see tributes to follow where well-known living artists will cover songs from his rich catalog of music.
But then, as with any other great loss, the attention and focus will slowly fade. It will never disappear; an artist that has had as much of an impact with music as Cornell will always be remembered.
Unfortunately as the years pass – even just getting through this year – we’re going to see this happen more and more often. Our heroes will all eventually be gone. We’ll only be left with the art that they created. It will then be our job to make sure the music lives on.
Let’s be honest. The millennials don’t have any real young icons to look up to. There’s barely any artist that I can think of that writes and performs with the integrity and passion of past generations.
But that’s actually okay.
There is such a wealth of popular music to discover and rediscover that has been written in the last 60 years. What will keep this alive? Radio? Somewhat, although the tradition is that you only hear current and former hits. Perhaps we will pass it down to our children at home. That already seems to be the case.
But there’s nothing that compares to the live music experience. And for cover bands and musicians that want to fulfill their own musical desires while still pleasing the masses, it’s important that we carry the torch of the greats.
With the incredible library of music to choose from, and what is and will continue to be a demand to hear it played over and over again, my prediction and hope is that cover bands will become more lauded and respected, because music fans will still want to hear these songs for generations to come, and will still get to experience the feelings and inspiration that it has given us.
I said that it’s important for us to carry the torch, but I think it’s more than important. It’s our responsibility.
