Better post this one before it’s next year here. From The Guardian in January, children under eight years of age review classic rock:
Jimi Hendrix: Crosstown Traffic (1968)
What the grown-ups say: “In a sense, Jimi’s Stratocaster is more articulate and speaks with more poetic beauty than he, or almost any other singer, possibly could… The music possesses a oneness which allows it to move as a whole, creating a more euphonious appeal.” (Teen Ink)
What the kids say:
Beth: My sister played this at her school concert. They played this and Bare Necessities. This is better than Bare Necessities.
Holly: It’s a bit boring.
Benjamin: I’d give this a trillion out of a billion.
Gabrielle: It’s making me feel all dizzy. Can I have some juice?
Benjamin: It’s about a crossed-out Christmas. Maybe Father Christmas has been crossed out.
Gabrielle: Maybe he’s been run over.
Attention span: One minute five seconds.
Better than Busted? “No.”
and, especially for Norm, here are their collected views on His Bobness:
Bob Dylan: Like A Rolling Stone (1965)
What the grown-ups say: “Dylan drives his inspiration and imagination to even greater heights… Anger, hatred, disgust, defiance, disbelief, apathy, ignorance, repugnance; it’s all here.” (Earthsound)
What the kids say:
Beth: This is not good.
Holly: He said bums.
Ben: Brilliant, this is just brilliant.
Sophie: He sounds like he’s just smelled something really bad, like cat poo.
Holly: Bums on sticks.
Ben: It’s great. I actually really like it.
Benjamin: Twenty trillion out a septillion.
Holly: This sounds really really old.
Benjamin: It’s like mouldy old bread.
Attention span: 15 seconds.
Better than Busted? “It’s stupid, Busted aren’t stupid.”
Far be it from me to defend Dylan, but I beg to differ.
Benjamin: Twenty trillion out a septillion.
All the sense you’d expect from someone called Benjamin.