Is there any glory in a rock and roll death?
Is there any glory in a rock and roll death? We tend to glorify rock stars that die young as if their deaths were the crowning achievement of their lives. Their deaths colour their music with romantic notions of living fast and dying young, of stars that burnt to brightly.
We don’t think about the details. Keith Moon, had before he died, grown fat, pale and sweaty as his body could not cope with the alcohol and drugs he was taking. John Bonhom choked on his own vomit in a motel room. Kurt Cobain shot himself in the face and was not found for days.
If any of these deaths happened to an accountant or a construction worker or anyone else they would only inspire sympathy or maybe even distaste. Yet we glorify them.
Is it time to put this myth to bed?
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7 Answers
What is a rock and roll death?
Why would there be any glory in any death?
Only if you believe that living fast and dying young is something to be admired. I don’t.
I assume you mean dying early from living the fast life? That is subjective. Some people think so, and some not.
Like Nirvana’s vocalist, Kurt Cobain? Yes and no. I always feel myself thinking about the pain he felt in his life and raison d’etre. I can’t go back and change it, I wish he was still around to make great music. But perhaps coming to terms with the past is what life is all about. And life is what Cobain stood for. Even in his death.
I never had to watch Marilyn Monroe on Dynasty, or watch Jim Morrison do a duet with Tony Bennett or make an appearance on “American Idol”.
Thank God for that!
I don’t really think it has anything to do with “rock and roll death”. Many other deaths are widely publicised. If the death wasn’t in the public wouldn’t you ever wonder what happened to Kurt as he just disappears out of the limelight? I would. It’s not really being glorified, it’s just that a regular person isn’t as widely known as a rock star who has thousands of fans that care for them.
Death in general has always drawn people in. It attracts and repels, disgusts as it lights flames of curiosity in one’s mind. The stardom and music only add more hype and stir the senses.
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