LegendaryMonkey: Friends, music fans, countrymen, lend me your ears; I come to give you the White Stripes, not to praise them.
Okay, I'm a dirty, dirty liar. Of course we're going to praise them — after all, Alberto here and I are trying to convince you, the electorate, to cast off the chains of repression that push you toward subpar music. Rejoice in the brilliance of the White Stripes!
Today's offering comes from the first album. Without further ado, we present:
"Jimmy the Exploder"
The White Stripes, 1999
Generalissimo Alberto: Jack White began laying out the blueprint for the dictatorship of the proletariat in the first song on the first White Stripes album.
Now Jimmy
Well, do you want an explosion now?Yeah Jimmy
Do you want to explode now?Yeah monkey
Now you seeing red now
Yeah monkey
Jumping on the bed now
You can see clearly how our visionary leader foretold our current revolutionary movement. Jimmy of course represents our Revolutionary Council blowing up objects of our oppression like Jack and Meg are going to blow up the charts. Wal-Mart only artist Garth Brooks- kaboom!
LM: Only if Garth Brooks is wearing blue, which seems likely. After all, as Jack told 5 year-old Lucas (I expect he's older now), Jimmy really hates the color blue, and he rocks his red overalls. I'm sorry, go on.
GA: Then, of course, there's the proletarian monkey, angered by the failed Bush dynasty, seeing red. This eerily foretells our Legendary Monkey flinging poo at the WS hatas, the betrayers of the revolution.
LM: Damn yeah. I mean... I would never do that. Logic and reason, Albert. Logic and reason.
GA: Stop interrupting me, monkeygirl. Yet Jack presents punk rock by way of an aggressively willful child like approach out of the Jonathan Richman playbook. He might as well have written a song about Curious George. This is certainly NOT any expression of grungeboy angst.
LM: This is an amazing track with which to kick off a recording career. With this first song, you can trace Jack and Meg's musical past; you know they've grown up listening to Led Zeppelin and their contemporaries, you can feel the Detroit soul and blues influence, and the result resonates with a simplicity reminiscent of punk.
This song is pure rock... in fact, I'd say it's representative of everything that is good about rock, all the things musicians seem to have forgotten in recent years. It's about emotion and power, even when singing about simple, childlike things. To me, this song is about what it's like to be a kid, lying on your bed surrounded by stuffed animals and listening to your parents records. It's about learning how amazing music can be. Jack and Meg are only a few years older than I am, so who knows? That could be the case.
Article comments
1 - Zach
I just want to let you know that somebody's reading and express my appreciation for this series. What a great idea!
2 - LegendaryMonkey
Thanks, Zach! It's tremendous fun to write, what with the back-and-forth and the arguing and the threats of violence on both sides. :)
3 - Generalissimo Alberto
I agree with our proletarian Monkey that it is fun. Moreover, it is both an honor and a privilege to be a humble servant of The People in this revolutionary endeavor.
4 - LegendaryMonkey
Why do I have to be the prole? That was NOT in my contract. I call shenanigans!