2010′s Musical Thoughts #1- MemphisMemphis opened on Broadway on September 23rd, 2009 (it won

2010′s Musical Thoughts #1- Memphis

Memphis opened on Broadway on September 23rd, 2009 (it won Best Musical at the 2010 Tony Awards so whoops I’m counting it). With music by Bon Jovi keyboardist David Bryan, Memphis is loosely based on the life of Dewey Phillips, who was renamed as Huey Calhoun in the musical. Huey is a white DJ in 1950’s Memphis who uses his station (and risks various jobs) to try and promote black rock and roll and integrate the music industry. Memphis takes a bit to get going and struggles at first to have an original story (a lot of musicals and media have something to say about this era), but it gets its point across in time. It isn’t about changing society as a whole (the show itself acknowledges that one man can’t change much), but it’s about changing individual prejudices, and bridging the racial divide through music. I really like the show’s ending, where Huey gets fired for kissing his black love interest on live TV, and is dropped down to a low budget radio station (he jokes that they have only one listener), yet he still believes in the power of music to change the world. It’s an ending that makes it realistic (the evil white people don’t suddenly accept integration like in Hairspray), while still uplifting. The music of the show doesn’t sound like it was written by the keyboardist from Bon Jovi. It sounds like classic rock and roll, gospel, and blues songs were plucked directly from the 50s, but now with a full orchestral accompaniment. It’s a feat in itself, with earworms that’ll stay with you like the best of the era (the opening chords of Make Me Stronger and Radio are instantly recognizable to me now). As the first Best Musical winner of the 2010’s, it was a great indicator of the musicals of this decade to come, with unique and distinguishable voices.