pepsi challenge for music

Was driving to work this morning, listening to Chris Whitley's Rocket House on cd.
I'm a big fan, and really didn't like this cd when it came out.

It was not easy. It was a marked change in direction for him. It didn't resonate.

But, 10+ years later, It's possibly my favorite Whitley disc.

Years ago, in my youth, Pepsi made a huge push to overtake Coke in market segment.
Toward this end, they created the Pepsi Challenge. They showed up everywhere, had people take a sip from two different cola's, and state their fave.
Pepsi won by a large margin.
Coke, in response, came out with New Coke, which tasted sweeter and more like Pepsi.
And.... it tanked.

See, what the pepsi challenge did was offer you a taste, and a taste of pepsi's not too bad.
But a whole bottle of it was simply too sweet for many people.
Coke Classic came out, the pepsi challenge disappeared, and life moved forward.

What does this have to do with Rocket House?

geezus, do I have to spell everything out for you?

It grew on me. first taste was not indicative of long term enjoyment. It wasn't yummy sweet, but became hugely satisfying over time.

I've had similar issues with a # of CD's from Carbon Leaf. I was insta-fan of the band when I heard them live, and of their CD, Echo Echo. So much so that when they released Indian Summer, I didn't enjoy the first taste very much. It, over time, has become my favorite of all their discs. Their new one, Nothing Rhyme's With Woman - same thing. And it's growing on me, rapidly.
Most of my favorite cd's are not ones that instantly resonated. They tend to be a bit different, a little more complex, a little harder to digest, initially.

The trick is to be patient with new flavors. Now if i can only get my 2 year old daughter to buy into this theory, she'll be eating eggs and vegetables in no time...