Spinal Tap Art and Culture Quotes

We hear this line at the very beginning of the movie, and it's a perfect introduction to the concept that Spinal Tap's music is art. No matter what you think of the quality, if people connect with it—if it moves them, or if they feel it speaks to them in any way whatsoever—then it is, at least on some level, art. Their lyrics must seem especially poignant if one happens to live on a sex farm.

Any artist has to be prepared to take criticism. Virtually no work or individual is universally adored, which means there is always going to be somebody who hates everything you do and gets paid to say so. In the case of Spinal Tap, they probably get more than their fair share of such criticism (even if it is deserved). Instead of letting reviews like this one get to them, however, they tend to ignore them, or be confused by them, or flat-out change the subject. These folks have familiarized themselves with the tools of artistic survival.

Art and controversy tend to go hand-in-hand, and here Ian attempts to offer an alternative album cover image that might not have aroused such furor. He's probably dead wrong, but you have to applaud him for trying.