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As with literature, the meaning of the lyrics of many songs usually have many perspectives: those of the artists who wrote them and then, most importantly, what they mean to the audience. There are people who got married using Led Zeppelin’s Stairway to Heaven as a musical background; Every Guns N’ Roses fan has their own Rocket Queen and a Sweet Child O’ Mine. This is the beauty of music, literature and art in its broad spectrum: the innate nature of being both empathetic and universal.
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But one of the songs that made many fans think about its meaning was R.E.M’s’ What’s the Frequency, Kenneth?’, the first first single from their album Monster (1994), and although the lyrics apparently were clear in their message: the gap between the ‘slacker’ generation of the early nineties and its predecessor (they even mention a certain Richard, who actually was the film director Richard Linklater), it also had a link, at least in the title, to a real-life incident that happened not to any of the members of R.E.M… but to one of the best-known news anchors in the world: CBS’s Dan Rather… and main lead of this piece.
The Dan Rather incident took place in 1986 in Manhattan, NYC. While the famous newsman was walking near his home, he was approached, practically assaulted by two strangers who only repeated the strange question: “Kenneth, what is the frequency?”
It was never known what the hell this pair of crazy people were talking about, but Michael Stype (R.E.M) thought it was a good phrase to title a song whose narrator is as disconnected from the reality of that generation, as Rather’s assailants were from life. same. Stype wrote the song, the album came out in 1994 and the rest is part of rock history.
But the big story, at least for me, is Dan Rather himself. The thing is, for many years, Rather seemed like the most boring guy in the world. I always preferred the boldness, brattiness and egomania of guys like Mike Wallace. That is, hard-line interviewers who could even make their interviewees feel bad… in the same way that I did in my early days as a journalist. The typical bad boy syndrome.
Rather Rockin’
Dan Rather is currently 93 years old and I must say something: over time I have come to not only respect him but admire him. It’s easy to be the bad boy all your life, letting yourself be carried away by your ego and the desire to get the audience’s attention; the need for applause, recognition, etc. But what is difficult, very difficult, is to be a Dan Rather: to remain objective, parsimonious, ethical and only seek to obtain the best information from his interviewees. And this man has achieved all this over a surprisingly long career. And one of the most pleasant surprises I have had in a long time has been discovering his interview series on YouTube: The Big Interview on the AXS TV platform. But forget about politicians and traditional news. Here we have Dan Rather enjoying – really enjoying – his last years of life and career, while interviewing – with all the seriousness and respect they deserve – mega legends of rock and pop. And this match is simply amazing, beautiful and full of nostalgia that overwhelms any good music-loving heart. Some of my favorite episodes are: Bret Michaels on the Darker Sides of the Music Business; Lindsey Buckingham on Stevie Nicks and Joining Fleetwood Mac; Alice Cooper Shares His Secret to a Lasting Marriage; Perry Farrell on His Biggest Mistake and How Addiction Affected Him; Steve Perry Opens Up About Why He Left Journey; Pink Floyd’s Roger Waters On ‘The Dark Side Of The Moon’ and ‘The Wall’; Paul Stanley Shares His Thoughts on Gene Simmons; Robert Plant on ‘Stairway to Heaven’; How Brian Johnson Joined AC/DC; Annie Lennox on ‘Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)’; How Ringo Starr Became A Drummer and The Story Behind Hotel California.
We are talking about the living story told by its protagonists to a man who, once again, is leaving a legacy worthy of applause. I don’t want to give away any spoilers about how Alice Cooper hasn’t cheated on his wife or how Poison’s Bret Michaels wrote the power ballad Every Rose Has Its Thorn… which is devastating. This is a necessary invitation to have a banquet in the company of a first-class host.
Whatever Kenneth Frequency means, it still brings the great Dan Rather to life.
