Loyal N.E.H. readers might assume that there are only three genres of music: hardcore, metal, and ambient. But! Did you know that there’s a mysterious fourth genre, a genre that until now has remained nameless and largely unclassified? That genre, of course, is vibey boomer music. In this entry, I will attempt to give shape to this new genre and place it within a greater historical context.
What does it mean for music/musicians to be “vibey?”
Great question. The vibey boomer of the ‘80s and ‘90s would often take the rock and folk traditions of the ‘60s, combine them with the digital, ethereal, post-U2 studio trickery of the ‘80s, and inject the ennui of knowing one’s insignificance in the universe to create a truly unique song. A vibey song, if you will.
The vibey boomer dressed in a particular way, too. More on that later. Let’s begin with the genre’s origin: Phil Collins’s “In the Air Tonight.”
The year is 1981. Phil Collins, hurting from the first of his three divorces, releases his debut solo single, an instant classic called “In the Air Tonight.” It’s the first vibey boomer hit, a masterclass in regretful singing, bloopy drums, and morose synths.
Phil Collins is the patron saint of vibey boomer music. He walked so guys like Steve Winwood, Don Henley, Bruce Springsteen, and Jackson Browne could run. His vibiest songs–“Against All Odds,” “One More Night,” and “Take Me Home”–are the Rosetta Stone with which we can decipher all of the strange, probing, and often divorced music that followed.
Phil’s last album to go platinum in the US was 1993’s Both Sides. Perhaps “In the Air Tonight” and Both Sides can serve as useful bookends to the vibey era? Something to think about…
Stop! Why not listen along at home, in the car, at your therapist’s office…
Phil Collins’s former bandmate, Peter Gabriel, knows a thing or two about vibes. His hit record from 1986, So, trades heavily in chilly post-Collins vibes. Take “Mercy Street.” Based on the life and work of the poet, Anne Sexton, this subtle track gurgles and pulses with poetic energy. Poetry: the vibiest artform?
Note: Gabriel got divorced in 1987. Vibey boomer music cannot fully be understood without having first experienced life’s greatest disappointments. Divorce, custody battles, dwindling commercial relevance, and death. Even I–the genre’s foremost expert–am ill-equipped to understand some of this stuff.
Let’s stay in 1986. It’s the year of my birth, The Age of Quarrel, and Steve Winwood’s vibey boomer anthem, “Back in the High Life Again.” Though Winwood exudes a certain optimism that the men of Genesis lack, I must note that Steve split from his first wife in 1986-7, thus rendering this song vibey. It’s mid-life crisis music, okay.
Paul Simon doesn’t immediately come to mind when I think of vibes, but Paul has made his fair share of vibey post-divorce music. Before traveling to Johannesburg and jump-starting the third phase of his career, Paul dropped a flop called Hearts and Bones. It’s actually a fantastic record, but nobody bought it, and it caused him to backpedal and embark on the whole “worldbeat” thing. (Worldbeat is what Wikipedia calls Paul’s sophisticated, appropriated, gateway-to-Africa/Brazil/Cuba music.)
Anyway, the title track from Hearts and Bones makes my playlist, and not just because it’s vibey. It’s also one of my favorite songs of all time, one in which the vibes actually underscore the yearning and disillusionment and hard-earned wisdom of the song’s characters.
Look at Don Henley. Look at him, goddamnit. Don has conquered the world as the leader of the Eagles, but is he happy? No. Is he content? Doesn’t seem like it. Against all odds, Don emerges as one of the vibiest boomers in a crowded field. In 1989, he releases his solo opus, The End of the Innocence, and it sells six million copies. That’s a lopsided, triumphant number, and it speaks to how hungry post-Reagan Americans were for that 100% pure vibey product.
Three songs in particular showcase Henley’s talents: “The End of the Innocence,” “The Heart of the Matter,” and “The Last Worthless Evening.” Consider this delicious lyric from the latter:
People inside their houses
With the shades pulled down
God knows we could use some romance
I’m not sure if Bob Dylan had a true vibey period or if he worked with vibey producers who put him in that box. Whatever the case, his albums from that era are deeply confused–some of his least inspired work–and they also scan as vibey, despite what Bob had intended.
I’ve added his 1988 song, “Death is not the End,” to the playlist. You be the judge.
Who saw this coming? Fresh off his global smash, 1984’s Born in the USA, Bruce Springsteen married, got divorced, ditched the E Street Band, and above all else, turned the vibes way up to 11. Tunnel of Love, Human Touch, and Lucky Town are all vibe monsters–not rocking in the slightest–but it’s his 1994 hit single, “Streets of Philadelphia” that best exemplifies a brief but very vibey period for The Boss.
Let’s pick up the pace. Elton John had a rough ‘80s and a triumphant ‘90s. You can read about that in his terrific memoir from 2019, ME. He chased a lot of trends, and so yes, he got vibey, too. See: “Sacrifice” from his 1989 album Sleeping With the Past.
Did Jackson Browne got vibey? Of course, he did. Dude released an album in ‘93 called I’m Alive. How could it not be vibey? Consider the atmospheric, “Sky Blue and Black.”
Before I depart, I’m going to tell you how to look like a vibey boomer in 2021. First of all, being a rich white man helps a lot. Not much I can do to help you with that–or with the second prerequisite for that matter, which is getting divorced. Yes, to properly harness that boomer energy, you should get married, maybe have a kid or two, and then get divorced. Drive across America, listen to regional radio, stay at dumpy motels, think about the first girl you kissed. Purchase a drum machine at a thrift store in Missoula, Montana. Write some vibey tunes.
Clothing-wise, I recommend wearing loose, faded jeans, oversized oxford shirts (tucked in, of course), and blazers (preferably brown or tan). A leather jacket might be nice. Sneakers must be white; loafers can be brown or black. Your shoes should be worn – not trashed but not sparkling clean, either. Vests are an advanced move, and I encourage you to give one a shot. Worst case scenario, you look like a caterer. Grooming-wise, you could rock a goatee, pierce your ear, grow your hair out. Wait, you’re balding? You can don a ball cap if you’d like. Do vibey boomers wear turquoise jewelry? Something tells me they do. Most importantly, every time your conscience tells you to stop, keep going. A vibey boomer leans in to those bad decisions. He has nothing to lose.
Can women be vibey boomers? The answer is yes, but there are fewer examples from which to draw inspiration. Take Joni Mitchell. By the early ‘90s, she was about a decade removed from her prime, but she also had some great albums left in her. All she needed to do was get vibey, and so she did just that. I close the playlist and today’s lesson with a track from 1994’s Turbulent Indigo, “The Magdalene Laundries.”
Good luck to you as you enter this exciting new phase of your life. You could also just skip it and do something–anything–else. Up to you!