December 30, 2008
Meritocracy
I submit that there are two true meritocracies left: professional athletics and jazz musicianship. The WSJ Ed Page wishes Congress were held as accountable as NFL coaches: "Three of the league's 32 coaches got the sack yesterday, following three who were fired during this season, and there are undoubtedly more to follow."
NFL coaches are highly paid celebrities who know the perils of their trade, so it is hard to feel sorry for them. But in this age of government failure and corporate bailouts, there is something refreshing about a line of work that is so unforgiving about performance. In the phrase of Bill Parcells, the head of football operations for the (11-5) Miami Dolphins and former Super Bowl coach, "You are what your record says you are."
Pop music of all flavors can be pretty capricious, with the talented and not seeming to get equal distribution of spoils, but I suggest that in the realm of "serious" jazz, all those who make a living at it are pretty damn good. It's less obvious, but I suspect that guys who can play at the top level do not lack for gigs. I know plenty of really good players who struggle, but I doubt that there is a Joe Pass out there who can't find work.
I remain enchanted with Nicholas Nassim Taleb's "The Black Swan," and I plan to change my life to accommodate some of his theses. But he indirectly implies that there is no meritocracy (I may be misreading this, I encourage all ThreeSourcers to read this book and tell me if I am wrong). I suggest NNT grabs himself a brew, puts some Django on his iPod, and watches the NFL playoffs with the sound turned down.
(The non-appearance of my beloved Broncos could be cited as proof -- but I don't see the Chargers as being far more deserving. Colts by 20. And, hey, Go Iggles!)
Posted by John Kranz at December 30, 2008 6:20 PM
Now Shanahan can watch the playoffs and March Madness with his ipod unless of course he goes to Kansas City and spends the next 15 years doing to us what he's been doing to Oakland since leaving there.
Posted by: sugarchuck at December 30, 2008 6:44 PMI had no idea when I posted this that Coach Shanahan was among the examples. I had sent Sugarchuck an email last week complaining that he did not punt at the end of the first half. I hope that he did not show that ownership.
I can't imagine anybody is better. No, not KC, please no.
Posted by: jk at December 30, 2008 11:34 PMI'm guessing the meritocracy concept in pro sports doesn't apply to owners, 'cause I can't explain Al Davis. Hope I haven't just offended any Raiders fans... but then, the merit concept goes both ways, doesn't it? The teams (and their owners) have to compete for head coaches, which is why none of the unemployed coaches wanted a gig with Davis last time he needed a head coach, and none will next time, either.
And thanks for limiting the music meritocracy to jazz - it doesn't appear to extend to pop or hip-hop, where success is more dependent on reputation and cachet than real talent; too many are "famous for being famous." However, with some noteworthy exceptions, I'd propose that the music meritocracy also extends to classical and (forgive me for this, urbanites) country.
~ (never miss a chance to diss the Raiders)
Posted by: Keith at December 31, 2008 12:00 PMI don't think there are a lot of Raiders fans to upset around here, but I'll let you know if I get complaints.
Owners are not selected by merit because they're pretty difficult to fire (cf, Davis, Al). I thought of including classical musicians in the meritocracy pool but I don't know that sector well enough to make a call.
With Country, you do have a fight on your hands. I like good country music but the contemporary Nashville scene seems no less capricious than pop or hip-hop.
As soon as I heard about Mike Shanahan, I wanted to retract and expunge this post. Yet it proves the point: Shanahan won one playoff game in ten years. I wouldn't have let him go, but Pat Bowlen did. And yet our 535 incumbents-in-chief are giving themselves a big raise and settling into their offices.
Posted by: jk at December 31, 2008 1:44 PMjk: I *did* put that "with some noteworthy exceptions" to cover both some recent (and past) aberrations in country as well as classical (cf. Salonen, Esa-Pekka). You're not the first, either, to take note of the recent changes in country - which I blame on country's own success, which has made country a destination for some artists in other genres with some talent (cf. Rucker, Darius), and some without (cf. Simpson, Jessica); as well as the increased demand for the product leading to the lowering of the bar for the supply of talent.
I was going to avoid naming names, but hey, shouldn't New Year's Eve come with fireworks?
Should I not have the opportunity to join in again before the end of the day, here's wishing the entire Three Sources blogbrotherhood the very best of New Year's celebrations, and all the best in the coming New Year -
Posted by: Keith at December 31, 2008 3:08 PM@Kieth: Country? Meritocracy? Have you heard a single song by Taylor Swift?
I generally agree with JK's assesment. Country has devolved into a pop music with a fiddle.
Posted by: T. Greer at December 31, 2008 4:59 PM~T. Greer, blaming CMT Music Videos
Wow, a post on the Broncos and country music all in one convenient location! We watched Shanahan's press conference today and as my wife quietly wept I felt this coach was the embodiment of Hemingway's "grace under pressure." I hope that Mr. Bolen's exercise in creative destruction works out but if Shanahan winds up in Kansas City he will be doing a Shiva like two-step on the hearts of Bronco fans for years to come.
Speaking of the two step, it is important to remember, when discussing country music, that in Nashville, in the shadow of the CMT building, real country musicians play real country music on Lower Broadway. The same Cashville Gnats who turn out drivel for triple union scale during the day go down to broadway and play for peanuts at night, just to do something real. These two universes, living in parallel, have always been there. Keith points out that Nashville doesn't know how to handle it's success and this awkwardness has also always been there. The fact is that there is no greater place to see meritocracy at work than in Nashville. The greatest musicians and not just country musicians flock there and only the best of the best get to gig. They have the best pickers, song writers, singers and facilities and yet they seldom fail to disappoint. They have a glorious history and they seldom fail to piss all over it, driving the likes of Johnny Cash and Loretta Lynn out of the industry while simultaneoulsy trying to ride their coattails. Thankfully others like Rick Rubin and jack White allowed these giants the opportunity to record some of their most compelling work when Nashville turned it's back on them. The sorry fact about Nashville is that's it run by Al Davis.
Posted by: sugarchuck at December 31, 2008 5:59 PMI will stop the diatribe with a short reading list. "How Nashville Became Music City USA- 50 Years of Music Row" by Michael Kosser is a good place to start. "Dreaming Out Loud" by Bruce Feller is depressing but informative and for something uplifting, try Mark Zwonitzer and Charles Hirshberg's "Will You Miss Me When I'm Gone" a great biography of the Carter family. And buy any and every damn record you can find by Buddy Miller. That's country.
Wishing all the Three Sources folks and happy and healthy New Year, it's your old cousin Sugarchuck pickin' and a grinnin'.
We do aim to please, sc. Best of 2009 to you and yours.
I briefly considered trying to make this a universal post by asking if anybody saw President Bush seated next to George Jones last night at the "Kennedy Center Honors." Maybe get immigration and the FDA in there, we'd be on to something.
I haven't spent a ton of time in Nashville but I spent a lot of time in Austin, TX. Sixth Street is covered with awesome awesome awesome super fantastic guitar players who are not making money while the pretty boys (and girls) on CMT are raking it in. That ain't meritocracy.
I must admit Alan Jackson did a nice job on "He Stopped Loving Her Today" as Mister Jones looked on. I can be a little harsh.
Posted by: jk at December 31, 2008 6:23 PMHey JK, I wonder if we don't actually have a problem with free markets here. More people want Shania Twain records than want Redd Volkheart. More people want to watch fishing shows on t.v. or poker tournaments than hockey. Maybe those guys are getting ahead on merit and we can't see it, being the snobby elitists that we are. Well, actually you are the elitist with all that jazz music; I am a hillbilly.
Posted by: sugarchuck at December 31, 2008 7:11 PM | What do you think? [9]