Ever hear of Jeremy Bentham? He was an Englishman, a political philosopher who lived in the 18th and 19th centuries—and he was, by all measures of his time, a radical.
He was against slavery when it was still very much a thing for the British Empire. He promoted animal welfare. He believed that everyone over a certain age—men and women—should be able to vote. He was against the death penalty. He wanted homosexuality decriminalized, and he advocated for no-fault divorce. These are now the foundations of liberal democracy.
These concepts were not just years but centuries ahead of his time, and none of these changes came into effect until after he died. Jeremy Bentham was far, far ahead of his time.
Ada Lovelace was another one. She is widely recognized as the first-ever computer programmer. Computers didn’t exist when she lived in the early 19th century—heck, there wasn’t even electricity yet—but her notes laid the groundwork for the world of mechanical and electrical thinking machines.
And then, of course, there was Leonardo da Vinci. In the 15th and 16th centuries, he designed concepts for the first parachute, the helicopter, and the tank. He explored human anatomy, astronomy, art, cartography, botany, and even paleontology—centuries before anyone knew that dinosaurs existed.
These people—along with inventor Nikola Tesla, author Jules Verne, and Terry Pratchett (an author who predicted the rise of fake news and disinformation on the internet)—eventually got their due, but only after they died.
Their stories got me thinking: what musicians were so far ahead of their time that they never got credit for their accomplishments at the time? Or how about musicians who still aren’t getting the recognition they deserve for pushing the envelope in the world of rock?
That’s just wrong. It’s time to fix that. This program is about musicians who should have been famous for altering the course of music but got no respect at the time.
Songs heard on this show:
- Francois Hardy, Je N’attends Plus Personne
- Velvet Underground, Heroin
- Jonathan Richman, Roadrunner
- Fanny, Blind Alley
- Big Star, Thirteen
- Death, Politicians in My Eyes
- Bam Ban, Villains (Also Wear White)
- Mudhoney, Touch Me I’m Sick
- Tin Machine, Under the God
Eric Wilhite has our playlist.
The Ongoing History of New Music can be heard on these stations. Don’t forget that there’s a podcast version, too, in case you miss any episodes. Get them for free wherever you get your podcasts.
- 102.1 The Edge/Toronto – Sunday night at 7pm
- Q107/Toronto – Sunday night at 9pm
- Live 88-5/Ottawa – Saturdays at 9am and Sundays at 6pm.
- 107.5 Dave-FM/Kitchener – Sunday nights at 11pm
- FM96/London – Sunday nights at 8pm
- Power 97/Winnipeg – Sunday nights at 10am and 10pm
- 107-3 The Edge/Calgary – Sundays at 10am and 10pm
- Sonic 102.9/Edmonton – Sunday at 8am and 8pm
- The Zone/Victoria – Sunday at 8am and 9pm
- The Fox/Vancouver – Sundays at 10anm and 10pm
- The Goat Network/Interior BC
- Surge 105/Halifax – Sunday at 7pm
- WAPS/WKTL The Summit/Akron, Canton, Cleveland, Youngstown – Mon-Fri at 9pm
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‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source q107.com ’
