Nov 10, 2021–Years ago, when I interviewed the late composer and pianist Mark Hierholzer, one of his tenets was that we need to differentiate between art that is authentic, versus entertainment that is derivative.
The former brings joy; the latter delivers distraction.
His off-hand example was “Beatles=good; Monkees=not good.”
I recognize this as cartoonish, but distilling everything into “good vs bad” is an interesting exercise. It causes us to examine the quality of material we choose to insert into our lives.
So one night, as an alternative to counting sheep, I compiled my own, purely subjective list of what aspects of culture I judge to be “good” versus “not as good.” I expect no one to agree–that is not the point. I’m just sharing what I came up with while going through this exercise.
Let’s play:
| Authentic | Derivative |
| Oreos | Hydrox |
| The Andrews Sisters | The Maguire Sisters |
| Buddy Hackett | Morey Amsterdam |
| Bugs Bunny | Woody Woodpecker |
| The Simpsons | Sponge Bob |
| Marx Brothers | Three Stooges |
| Taco Cabana | Taco Bell |
| Apple | Microsoft |
| Toyota | Hyundai |
| Texas | Any other state |
| Marilyn Monroe | Madonna |
| Jackson 5 | DeBarge |
| Osmonds | Cowsills |
| Swanson’s | Banquet |
| Luby’s | Furr’s |
| Leatherman | OzarkTrail |
| Corn tortillas | Flour tortillas |
| Mad Magazine | Cracked |
| Beaver | Nutria |
| Dollar General | Dollar Tree |
| Classical music | New age music |
| H-E-B | Kroger |
| Converse | Traxx |
| Buc-ee’s | Stuckey’s |
| Don Knotts in The Andy Griffith Show | Don Knotts in Three’s Company |
| Classic Western music | Modern Country music |
| Original Saturday Night Live cast | Every subsequent Saturday Night Live cast |
| Butter | Blue Bonnet |
| Dollar Store | Dollar Tree |
| Levi’s | Lee |
| Cotton | Acrylic |
| Crayola | Rose Art |
Of course your list will look completely different. And it should. If I repeat this exercise a month from now, my list will look completely different.
The actual list does not matter. The value is the process. Before embarking on a project or personal effort, ask yourself, is what you are pursuing authentic, true, and designed to add joy to the world? Or is it a shallow distraction designed to take you away from the important work?
Only you can decide.