Steve Forbert Game

"What kinda guy writes songs that can be funny
and poignant, lighthearted but powerful, topical
and specific yet don't seem to age? What kinda
guy releases one of his best albums nearly twenty
years into his career? What kinda guy remembers
to enjoy his family? It's a Steve Forbert kind of guy,

that's really what!" -from a Steve Forbert fansite

t started in a bar in Bethesda, Maryland. Jesse Fuchs was trying to explain this musical genre game he'd come up with that starred the singer-songwriter best known for the 1978 hit, "Romeo's Tune."
"I think the simplest way to put it is that the Steve Forbert of a genre is that genre's acid test - i.e., the signal that you value and enjoy the tropes and conventions of that particular genre. The trickier part is explaining why the Steve Forbert can't just be completely generic him or herself, and actually has to have some sort of distinctive personality, albeit a distinctive personality entirely circumscribed by the genre that they work in.

To me, it's much easier to explain by simply stating that Boz Scaggs is the Steve Forbert of white soul."

I didn't quite get it but I was certainly intrigued. Jesse explained further.

"The Steve Forbert of a genre usually meets with moderate mainstream success if the genre itself has some mainstream credence. Often the way to determine the Steve Forbert of a genre is to find someone who is completely immersed in a particular genre and see who they most overrate. I like Superchunk fine, but a friend from college, whom we shall call Mr. Inn D. Roque, had a truly fanatical obsession with them, far beyond his fealty to such obvious genre titans as Pavement and Sonic Youth.
"I should note that the original impetus for this game is that I was actually trying to figure out why I liked Alive on Arrival, Steve Forbert's first album, as much as I did. I came to the conclusion that it was because 70s singer-songwriters may very well be my favorite genre, and that, in fact, Steve Forbert, with his paradoxical combination of inimitability and genericness, was proof of this. I know people who like John Prine, Randy Newman, or even Loudon Wainwright III without being an overall fan of the genre. But if you like Steve Forbert, I think it says something broader about your aesthetic value system.
Mostly, though, the reason for the existence of this game is to give me an excuse to say "Steve Forbert."
kay, the guidelines were sinking in. The Steve Forbert of a genre was not the worst, nor the best. If you didn't like that genre, you thought its Steve Forbert sounded pretty awful; but if you liked the genre, you more than likely adored its Steve Forbert. They were the epitome but not the acme of a style.
With the explanation dispensed with, Jesse, Ryan D and I came up with the following:
    Kool Moe Dee is the Steve Forbert of 80's hip-hop.
    The Flying Lizards are the Steve Forbert of new wave.
    Phoebe Snow is the Steve Forbert of female
      70's singer-songwriters.
    The Shoes are the Steve Forbert of power-pop.
    Superchunk is the Steve Forbert of indie-rock.
    TransAm are the Steve Forbert of post-rock.
    Tiffany is the Steve Forbert of 80's girl pop.

     According to The VILLAGE VOICE,
       Interpol are the Steve Forbert
        of post-punk revival acts...

Later, Jesse added these:

    The Hollies are the Steve Forbert of 60s British Invasion bands
    Gentle Giant are the Steve Forbert of 70's prog-rock
    The U.K. Subs are the Steve Forbert of 70s British punk
    Nas is the Steve Forbert of 90s East Coast hip-hop
    Mudhoney are the Steve Forbert of grunge
    The Queers are the Steve Forbert of pop-punk
    Velocity Girl are the Steve Forbert of indie-pop

Flush with success, Ryan and I decided to extend our Steve Forbertisms to areas other than music. We came up with the following:

    "Can't Buy Me Love" is the Steve Forbert of 80's Teen Movies.
    Mendelssohn is the Steve Forbert of classical composers.
    Haagen Daaz Coffee is the Steve Forbert of ice cream.
    Renoir is the Steve Forbert of Impressionists.
    Agnes Varda is the Steve Forbert of new wave French directors.
    Terry McMillan is the Steve Forbert of contemporary
      female authors.
    Tom Robbins is the Steve Forbert of contemporary authors.
    Ti Couz is the SF of Steve Forbert restaurants.
    Rosalind Russell is the Steve Forbert of pin-up idols.
    Futura is the Steve Forbert of fonts.
    The Peaks is the Steve Forbert of SF bars.
    Gordon's Gin is the Steve Forbert of alcohols.

Other friends added these Steve Forbertisms:

    Killer Instinct is the Steve Forbert of two guys beatin' the shit
      out of each other video games.
    Gex is the Steve Forbert of Mario-style platform video games.
    Star Castle is the Steve Forbert of early 80s vector video games.
    Euchre is the Steve Forbert of card games.
    Michael Dougan is the Steve Forbert of autobiographical
      cartoonists. (Jesse)

    Pinbot is the Steve Forbert of pinball machines. (Tom)

    Columbia, MO is the Steve Forbert of Midwest college towns.
    Neck-biting is the Steve Forbert of foreplay.
    "William Bloke" is the Steve Forbert of Billy Bragg albums.
    Blue is the Steve Forbert of primary colors.
    Saturday at 4:30 p.m. is the Steve Forbert of the weekend.
    The paperclip is the Steve Forbert of office supplies.
    Braniff is the Steve Forbert of airlines for whom years of
      accumulated corporate debt coupled with deregulation
      of the aviation industry, economic recession, and market
      over-expansion spelled doom in the 80s. (Chris)

So, do you think you get it? Play the Steve Forbert Game: it sure beats the hell out of singing "Romeo's Tune."

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