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HARMONY CENTRAL — Having experienced adolescence in the '90s and early 2000s, I'm under no illusion that my gold Discman CD player was filled with music that would be considered revolutionary.
On the contrary, I was a perfect target audience for the marketing masterminds of pop music, who knew if the Spice Girls sang it in front of a green screen, I would watch it/listen to it/beg my parents to take me to the movie. I argued about who was the better boy band between Backstreet Boys and 'Nsync (BSB 4 life), sang Savage Garden songs at the top of my lungs and learned the choreography to Britney Spears' hit single "Oops! I Did it Again."
But even what we consider to be classic music nowadays was popular once. The Beatles were always in the limelight; Patsy Cline was the first female country music star to headline her own show. Heck, even Mozart enjoyed immense recognition during his short life.
At this year's Barbershop Harmony Society's International competition (quartet division), four-man group Main Street musically ponders that quandary in its song, the performance of which took third place in the contest.
The whole premise of the arrangement is fantastic: Are songs only "classic" because they've been around for a while?
Hearing the stylings of Lady Gaga, Psy and 'Nsync reimagined in traditional four-piece harmonies will make your ears happy and your hearts sing. After building up to the medley with a pleasant sing-songy intro, the goods get even better when the pop songs manifest themselves in earnest around the 2:15 minute mark. Add in some spectacularly goofy choreography and you've got the recipe for a viral video you'll be sharing with grandma, grandpa and any person fortunate to sit next to you on public transit.
How well do you think today's pop songs will age?
