# MUSTY'S TOP 100 MUSICAL ARTISTS- EVER!



## Deleted member 56686 (Sep 22, 2019)

Preface:








Now I’m really going to get some flak on this thread because everybody has a different top 100. Well this is mine. Are these the greatest musical artists ever? Well, some of them are certainly. At least these are the greatest musical artists in my book, so I list them one by one, mainly because I need the post count :lol:  I’ll also list an index in the second post so you can keep up with the many pages I’m sure this thread will have between my hundred artist entries and the people who scream, “How dare you rank Guns n Roses at only number 84?”. So I cover quite a few genres here but mostly rock in all fairness, especially sixties and punk/new wave , so be gentle with me you metalheads out there :lol:



( Actually I didn’t rank Guns n Roses at all :icon_cheesygrin:  )


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## Deleted member 56686 (Sep 22, 2019)

INDEX:

100. LESLEY GORE
99. THE FALL
98. MARVIN GAYE
97. EURYTHMICS
96. OF MONTREAL
95. THE SEEDS
94. THE PRETENDERS
93. GEORGE HARRISON
92. EELS
91. CAMPER VAN BEETHOVEN
90. GRANDADDY
89. SAM PHILLIPS
88. SUFJAN STEVENS
87. SPARKLEHORSE
86. FLAMING LIPS
85. TALKING HEADS
84. BADFINGER
83. THE WHITE STRIPES
82. THE JAM
81. CURTIS MAYFIELD AND THE IMPRESSIONS
80. THE REPLACEMENTS
79. HOWLIN WOLF
78. X
77. BLONDIE
76. THE PRETTY THINGS
75. NICK CAVE AND THE BAD SEEDS
74. THE BRIAN JONESTOWN MASSACRE
73. THE SHADOWS
72. ELTON JOHN
71. THE THIRTEENTH FLOOR ELEVATORS
70. CONOR OBERST/BRIGHT EYES
69. THE SEX PISTOLS
68. VIOLENT FEMMES
67. THE RAMONES
66. THE NEW PORNOGRAPHERS
65. THE MOODY BLUES
64. THE B 52S
63. GUIDED BY VOICES
62. JETHRO TULL
61. TRAFFIC
60. JAMES BROWN
59. XTC
58. THE MAMAS AND THE PAPAS
57. ROXY MUSIC
56. PJ HARVEY
55. NEIL YOUNG
54. ALICE COOPER
53. U2
52. PAUL MCCARTNEY
51. ELVIS PRESLEY
50. THE TEMPTATIONS
49. MANIC STREET PREACHERS
48. ELLIOTT SMITH
47. YES
46. JOHN LEE HOOKER
45. OTIS REDDING
44. NIRVANA
43. THE PIXIES
42. THE SMITHS
41. THE TURTLES
40. CREEDENCE CLEARWATER REVIVAL
39. DONOVAN
38. CHUCK BERRY
37. THE ANIMALS
36. LED ZEPPELIN
35. WILCO
34. ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA
33. DEPECHE MODE
32. DEVO
31. MIDNIGHT OIL
30. JOHNNY CASH
29. RADIOHEAD
28. ROY ORBISON
27. JIMI HENDRIX
26. KING CRIMSON
25. FRANK ZAPPA/MOTHERS OF INVENTION
24. STEVIE WONDER
23. LOVE
22. THE HOLLIES
21. JEFFERSON AIRPLANE
20. QUEEN
19. THE ZOMBIES
18. PINK FLOYD
17. BUFFALO SPRINGFIELD
16. PHIL OCHS
15. PATTI SMITH
14. SIMON AND GARFUNKEL
13. THE BEACH BOYS
12. JOHN LENNON
11. BOB DYLAN
10. THE VELVET UNDERGROUND
9.   THE DOORS
8. THE ROLLING STONES
7. THE WHO
6. ELVIS COSTELLO
5. THE BYRDS
4. THE KINKS
3.DAVID BOWIE
2. REM
1.THE BEATLES


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## Trollheart (Sep 22, 2019)

Aw, I hate that band, "Numbered 100 to one in descending order". They're shit. Why do you have them in the list at all? :lol: 
I'm with you here: can you imagine what people would think of MY top 100, were I to attempt such a thing? Hmmm. No, no! Don't even _think_ about it, Trollheart! You got too many projects in hand already. But maybe ... I _said_ NO! 

Hey, at least this isn't Music Banter! :lol: :ChainGunSmiley:


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## PiP (Sep 22, 2019)

I am embarrassed to say that I would struggle to think of 100 different artists yet alone rank them. Fair play to you, Musty!


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## Deleted member 56686 (Sep 22, 2019)

*100. LESLEY GORE*








*Major era*: 1963-1967
*Main Labels*: Mercury

*Best Albums*: Girl Talk, I’ll Cry If I Want To

*Best Songs*: Maybe I Know, You Don’t Own Me, I Don’t Want To Be a Loser, California Nights

Lesley Gore was a hot teen attraction in the mid sixties. She recorded songs of anger and defiance while straddling the line between love and independence. It was an unusual stance for a pop artist in 1963 to be sure. She scored a huge hit in 1963 with It’s My Party and continued a string of quality singles through 1965 and again in 1967 with California Nights.  After her career waned, she spent the rest of her years acting and performing in nightclubs for the most part, never really disappearing from the public eye.

*Why do I like this artist?* : Well, as Lou Grant would say, she’s got spunk.  Also, she recorded some of the catchiest songs of the pop mid sixties. She didn’t seem to suffer fools and she seemed to keep her own independence in the face of dealing with the controlling music industry interests that a lot of artists of the day had to contend with.


*Links to songs*:

It’s My Party
You Don’t Own Me
Maybe I Know
I Don’t Want To Be a Loser
California Nights

Fan Page: https://lesleygorefanclub.com/index.html


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## Trollheart (Sep 22, 2019)

Wasn't that song "It's My Party" covered and made a big hit in the 1980s I think by Dave Stewart and, um, don't remember, some female singer? I remember my sister used to play it almost non-stop; drove me mad.


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## Deleted member 56686 (Sep 22, 2019)

Dave Stewart and Barbara Gaskin. I wasn't too impressed with it to be honest.


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## Trollheart (Sep 22, 2019)

mrmustard615 said:


> Dave Stewart and Barbara Gaskin. I wasn't too impressed with it to be honest.


That's the one. Man, I hated that song!


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## Ralph Rotten (Sep 22, 2019)

If I ever compiled a list it would be tough to do since it would cover a dozen genres.
I listen to a lotta types of music.
By my reckoning, music is like eating at a buffet.
You wouldn;t go to a Smorgasbord and just eat meatloaf.
Hell no! You'd try everything and go back for seconds and 3rds of the things you liked.
Music is no different.


On my music list you'd see Billie Holiday facing off against The Beatles, CDB, Bob Marley, Rogers & Hamerstein, Louie Armstrong, Etta, Ella, Haggard, Aretha, Sinatra, Mozart, Cole, Benny, Dinah Washington, Chuck Berry....
When I was a kid, folks in my neighborhood were always like "Do you like country or rock?"
But I was the kid saying "Can't I like 'em both?"


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## Ralph Rotten (Sep 22, 2019)

Oh geeez...I forgot Nina and Glen Miller and Doris and Ray, and both Joplins....
Yeah, it'd be a messy list.
Times have never been better for music lovers. We have so much media right at our fingertips these days.


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## Trollheart (Sep 22, 2019)

CDB?


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## Trollheart (Sep 22, 2019)

PiP said:


> I am embarrassed to say that I would struggle to think of 100 different artists yet alone rank them. Fair play to you, Musty!


I'm sure I could THINK of 100 artists, ranking them would be another matter. I'm not great at that stuff.
Near the top though would definitely be:
Genesis
Marillion
Waits
Dan Fogelberg
Iron Maiden
Bon Jovi
Supertramp
Mostly Autumn
Threshold
CCR
Dire Straits
Judie Tzuke
Chris Rea
Alan Parsons Project
Floyd
Ruthie Foster
Rory Gallagher
Gary Moore
Fleetwood Mac
a-ha
Asia
Eagles
Journey
Kamelot
Black Sabbath
Faith Hill
Steve Earle
Vangelis
Springsteen
Aslan
U2
The Dear Hunter
Harakiri For the Sky
British Sea Power
and probably a whole lot more...


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## Deleted member 56686 (Sep 23, 2019)

*99. THE FALL*







*Major Era*: 1979-2017

*Main Labels*: Beggars Banquet

*Best Albums*: This Nations Saving Grace, Grotesque, Hex Induction Hour

*Best Songs*: Cruiser’s Creek, How I Wrote Elastic Man, Bombast

One of the great noise bands out there, the Fall was initially formed by four friends in Manchester. Ultimately Mark E. Smith would emerge as the front man of this unique punk band. There was an intellectual bent with this band as they would often repeat verses backed by loud guitars and accentuated by Smith’s shouting vocals. They were very popular in their native England and have managed a loyal following in the United States as well. The Fall would end when Mark E. Smith died in 2017 but there is a backlog of Fall material that has yet to be released.


*Why do I like this band?*: Well, it boils down to the sound really. I really began to like the band when I first heard Cruiser’s Creek in 1985. I liked how they added just a little more percussion and instrumentation to each repetitive verse. That’s pretty much the MO on most of their best material.  They’re like the Velvet Underground  in their  approach to the less is more philosophy.

*Links to songs*:

How I Wrote Elastic Man
Hip Priest
The Man Whose Head Expanded
Cruiser’s Creek
Victoria


*Fan page*: https://thefall.org/


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## Trollheart (Sep 23, 2019)

Never got The Fall. Nor Swans, Throbbing Gristle or any of Frownland's other favourite bands. Just not my cup of Tetley at all.


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## Deleted member 56686 (Sep 24, 2019)

Guess Captain Beefheart is out then? :lol:


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## Deleted member 56686 (Sep 24, 2019)

*98. MARVIN GAYE*









*Major Era*: 1962-1983

*Main Labels*: Tamla, Columbia
*Best Albums*: What’s Going On, Here My Dear, I Want You

*Best Songs*: What’s Going On, I Heard It Through the Grapevine, One More Heartache, Stubborn Kind of Fellow, Got To Give It Up

One of Motown’s biggest acts, Marvin Gaye would go through various stages musically. He wanted to sing jazz initially, but Berry Gordy would have something to say about that. Instead, Gaye would have a string of hits in the Motown style while keeping his own unique style in the mix. From Stubborn Kind of Fellow in 1962 through his biggest smash hit, I Heard It Through the Grapevine in 1968, Gaye was always somewhere near the top of the charts. He also had a storied partnership with Tammi Terrell with whom he had some more hits until she died tragically in 1970. The seventies would prove to be one of many transitions for Gaye, who  was now writing his own songs.  His topical What’s Going On album in 1971 would probably be his most acclaimed effort. He then would score the soundtrack to the movie Trouble Man a year later. By 1973 he dropped the socially relevant persona and began writing sexually tinged songs like Let’s Get It On. He would even famously record an album which would pay royalties to his ex-wife. He aptly named this album Here My Dear and it’s surprisingly one of his best efforts.  Gaye would have a dark side, sadly, and it was likely a factor in his bizarre death in 1984 at the hands of his father with whom he had a strained relationship with.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  With Marvin Gaye, it boils down to his song selection. His best material (see his best songs) match up with the best of any artist out there. He is one of the great interpreters of music whether he would be socially relevant as in Inner City Blues  or whether he was baring his soul as on much of the Here My Dear album.  He wasn’t afraid to buck the line Berry Gordy wanted him to tow making him one of the great rebels in my book.

*Links to songs*:

Stubborn Kind of Fellow
One More Heartache
Ain’t No Mountain High Enough (with Tammi Terrell)
I Heard It Through the Grapevine
What’s Going On
Sexual Healing

 Marvin Gaye Bio: https://classic.motown.com/artist/marvin-gaye/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Sep 25, 2019)

*97. EURYTHMICS*




*





Major Era*: 1981-1989

*Main Labels*:  RCA


*Best Albums*: Sweet Dreams Are Made of This, Be Yourself Tonight, Revenge

*Best Songs*: Sweet Dreams Are Made of This, Love is a Stranger, Thorn In My Side, I Need a Man

Annie Lennox and Dave Stewart, both members of a band called the Tourists, formed this duo in 1980. Stewart used his electro synch abilities to combine with Lennox’s forceful vocals and the Eurythmics would be one of the more successful bands of the 1980s. Hits like Sweet Dreams Are Made of This, Love is a Stranger, and Would I Lie To You would make them regular staples of MTV back in the day. The quality would wane in the late eighties and the two would call it a day.  Both would embark on solo careers with mixed results. Occasionally they reunite but the magic they once had is no more.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*? : I like the avant garde approach to their music. They managed to be popular with their style of stripped down synth pop on Sweet Dreams Are Made of This. Later they would explore more soul based material on albums such as Be Yourself Tonight and Revenge. It all combines for some of the best music of the eighties. Pity they couldn’t maintain that in their solo careers in the nineties.

*Links to songs*:
Sweet Dreams Are Made of This
Love Is a Stranger
Would I Lie To You
Missionary Man
I Need a Man

*Eurythmics bio*:

http://thegreatrockbible.com/portfolio-item/eurythmics-biography/


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## Ralph Rotten (Sep 25, 2019)

CDB, aka Charlie Daniels Band.
Seen him in concert twice. Quite the showman.
He was better before he found religion tho.

[video=youtube;BjaqrL7Kzj8]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BjaqrL7Kzj8[/video]


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## Deleted member 56686 (Sep 26, 2019)

*96.OF MONTREAL*

*96. OF MONTREAL*







*Major Era*: 1997- present

*Main Labels*:  Kindercore, Polyvinyl

*Best Albums*: The Gay Parade, Hissing Fauna Are You the Destroyer, Satanic Panic in the Attic

*Best Songs*: A Collection of Poems About Water, When You’re Loved Like You Are, The Past is a Grotesque Animal, Disconnect the Dots

Out of Athens, Georgia, Of Montreal was part of the Elephant 6 stable of artists and probably one of the most successful.  Led by Kevin Barnes, this quirky outfit became indie rock darlings with staples such as the Gay Parade and Satanic Panic in the Attic. Like most indie bands and even more so in the case of the Elephant Six bands, commercial success for the most part has eluded them and they have had to settle for some critical acclaim. There has been a lot of turnover in the band and on occasion, Barnes has had to record Of Montreal albums by himself. Still, they never seem to lose their quirky demeanor, even if the quality of more recent albums is a bit mixed.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  They have a certain pop quirkiness that is reminiscent of Sgt. Pepper era sixties. The Gay Parade is an amazing piece of nineties pop psychedelia  while they experiment with bubble gum pop of all things in Satanic Panic in the Attic. An unusual band to be sure, but one I rate as one of the best bands of the 21[SUP]st[/SUP] century

*Links to songs*:
March of the Gay Parade
A Collection of Poems About Water
Disconnect the Dots
The Past is a Grotesque Animal
It’s Different For Girls

*From Wikipedia*:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Of_Montreal


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## Deleted member 56686 (Sep 27, 2019)

*95. THE SEEDS*




*



Major Era*: 1965-1968

*Main Labels*: GNP Cresendo

*Best Albums*: The Seeds, Web of Sound

*Best Songs*: Can’t Seem To Make You Mine, Mr. Farmer, Pushin Too Hard

Not one of the better known bands on my list to be sure but might I offer the thought that this was the band that may have been the biggest influence on the Doors? Like the Doors, this unusual garage rock band hailed from LA. They formed after Sky Saxon answered an ad in the paper. Daryl Hooper was the first to play a keyboard bass much Ray Manzarek would do with the Doors. The Seeds had an unusual sound and they were on the foreground of the psychedelic movement. They didn’t have great success commercially (their biggest hit, Pushin Too Hard, only reached as high as No.36), but they would develop a following among garage rock fans over the years. Sky Saxon, in particular, would become something of a legend among these fans and the Seeds rate as one of the major players in the history of garage rock.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?: Well, as I said, they have a unique punky sound. Can’t Seem To Make You Mine, originally released in 1965, is one of the best examples of early psychedelia. Indeed Daryl Hooper was as good a keyboardist than anyone in rock, including Ray Manzarek and even (shudder) Keith Emerson.  One of my favorite bands in the truly underappreciated psychedelic garage genre.

*Links to songs*:

Pushin Too Hard
Can’t Seem To Make You Mine
Mr. Farmer
Two Fingers Pointing at You

*Seeds fan page:*

http://www.theseedsband.com/


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## Trollheart (Sep 27, 2019)

Ralph Rotten said:


> CDB, aka Charlie Daniels Band.
> Seen him in concert twice. Quite the showman.
> He was better before he found religion tho.
> 
> [video=youtube;BjaqrL7Kzj8]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BjaqrL7Kzj8[/video]



Thank god for that! For a minute I thought you meant Chris de Burgh! :lol:


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## Deleted member 56686 (Sep 28, 2019)

*94. THE PRETENDERS*








*Major Era*: 1980-1994

*Main Labels*:  Sire, Warner Bros.


*Best Albums*: Pretenders, Learning To Crawl,

*Best Songs*: Back On the Chain Gang, Tattooed Love Boys, Talk of the Town, Message of Love

Essentially Chrissie Hynde and her backup band, they were known for their jangly folk-rock sound through much of the eighties. They enjoyed a nice string of hits starting with Stop Your Sobbing (the Kinks cover) and Brass in Pocket in 1980. They suffered some tragedy with the untimely death of band member James Honeyman-Scott but soldiered on with hits like Back on The Chain Gang and Don’t Get Me Wrong. They really became Hynde’s backup band after she fired Martin Chambers in 1985, so much for loyalty. That dismissal, I think, would lower the quality of the Pretenders recordings after that.  Interesting tidbit: Chrissy Hynde  and Ray Davies were an item for a while.


*Why Do I Like This Artist*? : I think my favorite form of music overall would have to be folk-rock and that is certainly the attraction to this band.  I especially like their debut album with tracks such as Brass in Pocket and Kid, and Learning To Crawl from 1984 which includes Back On the Chain Gang and Middle of the Road among others. The nineties material I could do without as I think Hynde was bordering on MOR by then but most of the eighties material stands up quite well I think.


*Links to songs*:
Brass in Pocket
Message of Love
Back On the Chain Gang
Don’t Get Me Wrong
I’ll Stand By You


*A Pretenders fan page*

http://www.pretendersarchives.com/


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## Coffee Sapien (Sep 28, 2019)

Impressive list  I don't know any of them except Marvin!


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## Deleted member 56686 (Sep 29, 2019)

*93.GEORGE HARRISON*







*Major Era*: 1970-2001

*Main Labels*:  Apple, Dark Horse


*Best Albums*: All Things Must Pass, Cloud Nine, Living In the Material World, Brainwashed
*Best songs*:  My Sweet Lord, This Is Love, Stuck Inside a Cloud, Beware of Darkness


The first of three ex-Beatles to make my list (sorry, Ringo), George Harrison made his mark with the release of his three album set All Things Must Pass. He never quite topped that masterpiece but he remained a major player in the rock arena with his  Concert for Bangla Desh in 1971 and a string of albums in the seventies. Later, he would form his own label, Dark Horse Records and, after some legal entanglements with distributor A&M and some time off, he would reemerge in 1987 with his excellent album Cloud Nine. He would then form the supergroup the Traveling Wilburys with Jeff Lynne, Tom Petty, Bob Dylan, and the late Roy Orbison. Harrison would be very sporadic in the 1990s but would release his epitaph, Brainwashed in 2002.


*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Well, for starters he is a Beatle? :lol: Seriously though, his All Things Must Pass album alone earns him consideration for my list but then you add the Jeff Lynne produced Cloud Nine and his Traveling Wilbury’s period and you can see why I think Harrison was such a great artist. He also was one of the most unique guitarists post-Beatles with his signature slide guitar.

*Links to songs*:

My Sweet Lord
Give Me Love
Dark Horse
When We Was Fab
Stuck Inside a Cloud

*Official George Harrison page*

http://www.georgeharrison.com/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Sep 30, 2019)

*92. EELS*







*Major Era*: 1992-present

*Main Labels*:  Polydor, Dreamworks

*Best Albums*: Electroshock Blues,  Beautiful Freak, Blinking Lights and Other Revelations

*Best Songs*: Novocaine For the Soul, Flyswatter, The Trouble With Dreams, Electroshock Blues


Otherwise known as Mark Oliver Everett, this odd character in so many ways has been able to mix electronic music with strong melodies and lyrics. He started out as simply E in the early nineties before becoming the Eels, and finally, simply,  Eels.  Suffering from depression and having lost a sister to suicide, Everett is not afraid to bare his soul on albums such as Electroshock Blues, probably his best album. He had changed musical directions a few times but he has never strayed from his basic sound, just as you knew you were listening to the Beatles or REM, the same thing goes for the Eels.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  As noted, Mark Everett has quite a unique sound even with the various changes over the years.  There is an raw honesty to his songs and lyrically, he can be a difficult listen but it’s also what makes him such a great artist. He also isn’t afraid to experiment once in a while without straying too far from his basic style. One of my favorite artists of the nineties and the millennium.


*Links to songs*:

Novocaine For the Soul
Electroshock Blues
Flyswatter
The Trouble With Dreams
The Look You Live That Guy


*Eels official website*

https://eelstheband.com/links/index.php


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 1, 2019)

*91.CAMPER VAN BEETHOVEN*






*Major Era*: 1985-1990, 1999- present

*Main Labels*:  IRS, Pitch a Tent, Rough Trade


*Best Albums*: Key Lime Pie, Camper Van Beethoven, Telephone Free Landslide Victory

*Best Songs*: I Was Born in a Laundromat, Come On Darkness, The Day That Lassie Went To the Moon, Take the Skinheads Bowling


Certainly one of the earthier rock bands out there, Camper Van Beethoven was one of the pioneers in the DIY movement. They were known for their offbeat humor that showed up in songs like Take the Skinheads Bowling and Where the Hell is Bill. They released the highly acclaimed Key Lime Pie  in 1989 after which they broke up for other projects. David Lowry would find much success with Cracker in the nineties. They reunited in 1999 and have recorded several albums since.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?: Well, for starters I love their quirkiness. I especially like Key Lime Pie which has a rather unique hard twangy sound at times. David Lowry certainly isn’t the greatest vocalist ever but that also may be his charm.  There is also something of a late sixties psychedelic feel with this band that makes Key Lime Pie in particular one of my favorite albums of the late eighties/early nineties.  I also tend to lump this band with the Pixies for some reason though both bands are a bit different from each other. The bottom line is that Camper Van Beethoven reeks of earthy Southern California rock.

*Links to songs*:

Where the Hell is Bill
Take the Skinheads Bowling
I Was Born in a Laundromat
The Long Plastic Hallway

*Camper Van Beethoven page*

https://campervanbeethoven.com/home


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 2, 2019)

*90. GRANDADDY*







*Major Era*: 1997-2006, 2017-present

*Main Labels*: Will, V2, 30[SUP]th[/SUP] Century Records


*Best Albums*: The Sophtware Slump, Sumday, Just Like the Fambly Cat

*Best Songs*: So You’ll Aim To the Sky, Miner at the Dial a View, Rear View Mirror, The Crystal Lake

One of the more successful bands to come out of Modesto, California, Jason Lytle formed Grandaddy after a knee injury ended his career as a skateboarder. Like Camper Van Beethoven before them, they recorded in DIY mode before recording with Will records, then V2. Grandaddy features something of an electronic based melodic sound. Their Sophomore effort, aptly named the Sophtware Slump, sold moderately well in the UK and received high praise in the US. They split in 2006 to explore solo careers but reunited  six years later. They released Last Place in 2017 but went on hiatus after the death of bassist  Kevin Garcia. It is unknown if any new recordings will be in the works

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  A few reasons. They have been considered alt-country by some but I really don’t see the connection. All I know is that are a damned good keyboard based group with some amazingly melodic songs such as So You’ll Aim For the Sky. I rate Sophtware Slump as the best album of 2000 and indeed, Grandaddy rates among my favorite bands of the millennium

*Links to songs*:
AM 180
The Crystal Lake
Now It’s On
Rear View Mirror
The Boat is in the Barn

*Grandaddy on Wiki*

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grandaddy


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## Trollheart (Oct 2, 2019)

I remember trying a Grandaddy album on recommendation from Janszoon. Turned out to be one of the most beautiful albums I'd heard in a long time. Must get listening to some more of their material. Nice.


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 2, 2019)

You have a thread on progressive rock going. You may want to listen to Sophtware Slump. It's not progressive in the classic sense but it does feature some progressive elements and it is one incredible listen. If you want to listen to Grandaddy, that's the album I would recommend to anybody really. It's one of the most brilliant albums of the past twenty years.


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## Trollheart (Oct 2, 2019)

I'll have to. _Last Place_ was the one I listened to, for my _Trollheart Listens to Every Album from 2017_ thread, and I really loved it.


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 3, 2019)

*89. SAM PHILLIPS*







(Not to be confused with the famous Sun Records mogul)
*Major Era*: 1989-present

*Main Labels*:  Virgin, Nonesuch


*Best Albums*: Martinis and Bikinis, The Indescribable Wow, Don’t Do Anything

*Best Songs*: I Need Love, Holding On To the Earth, Strawberry Road, Baby I Can’t Please You, Don’t Do Anything

Originally a Christian singer, Leslie Phillips became frustrated with her image as the ‘Christian Cyndi Lauper’ and went for a mainstream recording career. She became connected to T-Bone Burnette (with whom she’d be married to for a time) and recorded the Indescribable Wow in 1988. Despite help on her first two albums from artists such as Van Dyke Parks and Elvis Costello, it wasn’t until 1994 that she hit it big with Martinis and Bikinis. Since then, she’s maintained a career as a melodic songstress and some of her songs have been highlighted on the Gilmore Girls TV series.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  At her best and even at her worst really (she’s quite consistent), she can come up with some of the best melodies.  Her album Martinis and Bikinis in particular rates as one of the great folk-rock classics of the nineties in my book.  Overall, I think she is one of my favorite female artists of all time with her excellent melodies and acoustic based arrangements.

*Links to songs*:

Holding On To the Earth
Strawberry Road
Baby I Can’t Please You
How To Dream
Don’t Do Anything

*Sam Phillips on Wiki*

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sam_Phillips_(musician)


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## Trollheart (Oct 3, 2019)

You show the name as Sam Philips but then tell us she's called Leslie? I'm confusticated....
:?:


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 4, 2019)

Leslie is her birth name. I guess she changed it when she dumped Christian music. I don't know, maybe she liked Sun records. :icon_cheesygrin:


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 4, 2019)

*88. SUFJAN STEVENS*








*Major Era*: 2003-present

*Main Labels*: Asthmatic Kitty

*Best Albums*: Illinois, Carrie and Lowell, Michigan

*Best Songs*: John Wayne Gacy, The Man of Metropolis Steals Our Hearts, Should Have Known Better, The Transfiguration


One of the more eclectic artists of the millennium, Sufjan Stevens is essentially a folk artist who has experimented with orchestration and electronics over the years, but it is his straight lo-fi folk albums that tend to get the rave reviews.  From Holland, Michigan, Stevens embarked on what he called his ‘fifty states project’ with the release of the highly acclaimed Michigan. It was his second state project, Illinois, that would prove to be his most highly acclaimed album. More recently, Stevens scored with the excellent Carrie and Lowell. As of 2019, he remains one of the most critically acclaimed artists in the indie field.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  At his best such as in Illinois and Carrie and Lowell as well as Seven Swans, his folk instincts and his raw honesty makes Stevens an artist to listen to. Listen to the sadness in John Wayne Gacy (yes, the serial killer) for example. He recounts the bizarre history over a sad melody. I have to admit this is my favorite Sufjan Stevens song. Even his not so acclaimed albums like The Age of Adz has a lot to offer for me. In any event, a high recommendation for folk music lovers.

*Links to songs*:

Flint (For the Unemployed and Underpaid)
The Transfiguration
John Wayne Gacy Jr.
The Man of Metropolis Steals Our Hearts
I Should Have Known Better


*Sufjan Stevens on Wiki*

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sufjan_Stevens


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## Trollheart (Oct 4, 2019)

mrmustard615 said:


> Leslie is her birth name. I guess she changed it when she dumped Christian music. I don't know, maybe she liked Sun records. :icon_cheesygrin:



Oh yeah. Leslie. That name that sounds just like Sam. Reminds me of a guy who came to school, new kid, said his name was Philip Kearney, but he wanted everyone to call him Freddy the Frog.
We did.


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 5, 2019)

*87. SPARKLEHORSE*




*



Major Era*: 1995-2006

*Main Labels*: Capitol, Astralwerks


*Best Albums*: It’s a Wonderful Life, Good Morning Spider, Vivadixiesubmarinetransmissionplot

*Best Songs*:  Little Fat Baby, Someday I Will Treat You Good, Babies On the Sun, King of Nails

Led by Mark Linkous, Sparklehorse is perhaps the most depressing band on my list.  Linkous’ songs are filled with sadness. There are also songs full of distortion and, to an extent, confusion. His magnum opus, It’s a Wonderful Life, ranks as one of the most depressing albums ever, yet is also one of the most beautiful sounding albums. Sparklehorse had a modest  and loyal following which still continues years after Linkous’ inevitable suicide in 2010.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  There is a raw beauty to Linkous’ songs. Yes, many of them are depressing and they’re certainly sad but that also means there is much feeling put into these songs. They do use a lot of distortion on many of their tracks but they seem to add to the songs rather than take anything away from them.  It’s a Wonderful Life in particular is especially hauntingly brilliant and is among my favorite albums of 2001.

*Links to songs*:

Someday I Will Treat You Good
Pig
It’s a Wonderful Life
Babies On the Sun
Don’t Take My Sunshine Away

* Mark Linkous and Sparklehorse link*

http://www.marklinkous.com/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 6, 2019)

*86. FLAMING LIPS*








*Major Era*: 1993-present

*Main Labels*:  Enigma, Warner Bros.


*Best Albums*: Yoshimi vs. the Pink Robots, The Soft Bulletin, Clouds Taste Metallic

*Best Songs*: Do You Realize, When You Smile, Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots, Waiting For a Superman

Probably the quirkiest band to come out of Oklahoma, the Wayne Coyne led band was able to procure a contract with Warner Brothers. By 1993, they scored their first underground hit with She Don’t Use Jelly, a song clearly influenced by the Kinks. Albums with titles like Clouds Taste Metallic and the Soft Bulletin followed. In 2002, The Flaming Lips released their landmark album Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots which featured the anthem, Do You Realize.  They continue with their own brand of fun, and Do You Realize has since been proclaimed as the state song of Oklahoma.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Well, Do You Realize and Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots in particular are enough to consider these crazy guys for this list but you can point to At War With the Mystics and Embryonic as well as important albums of the 2000s. At their best, there is sort of a fun seventies feel about them. I mean, can you imagine Do You Realize had it been released in 1977? Maybe radio listeners wouldn’t have quite been so obsessed with You Light Up My Life that year. A great fun band to watch and to listen to.

*Links to songs*:

She Don’t Use Jelly
When You Smile
Waiting For  Superman
Do You Realize
The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song


Flaming Lips Link

http://www.flaminglips.com/?frontpage=true


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 7, 2019)

*85. TALKING HEADS*









*Major Era*: 1977-1988

*Main Labels*: Sire


*Best Albums*: Remain In Light, More Songs About Buildings and Food, Little Creatures

*Best Songs*: Psycho Killer, Take Me To the River, Burning Down the House, Road To Nowhere

Talking Heads was a group of art school students, led by David Byrne, who would be one of the more successful experimental bands of the late seventies and eighties. They took an avant-garde approach to their music incorporating styles like funk and third world music among other genres. They were part of the New York CBGB’s scene before breaking through with Psycho Killer late in 1977. They established mainstream status with their cover of Al Green’s Take Me To the River and would release a series of highly acclaimed albums for the next ten years. They broke up in 1988 but David Byrne continues with a successful solo career that continues to borrow from other genres while the married couple of Chris Frantz and Tina Weymouth  have had some success as the Tom Tom Club.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  I like their willingness to explore different genres without losing the essence of who they are. Byrne comes off as one of rock music’s more eccentric characters and it certainly shows in their videos.  They were one of the pioneers of the New Wave movement of the late seventies and they certainly were one of the strongest artists, having the ability to try new things. I especially like the earlier albums (Talking Heads 77, More Songs About Buildings and Food) but their later material is also quite interesting to listen to and their videos were always a bit off the beaten path.

*Links to songs*:

Psycho Killer
Take Me To the River
Once in a Lifetime
Burning Down the House
Road To Nowhere

*Talking Heads page*

https://www.talking-heads.nl/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 8, 2019)

*84.BADFINGER*

(* and you thought it was going to be Guns n Roses, didn’t you? :wink: )










*Major Era*: 1969-1975

*Main Labels*:  Apple, Warner Bros.


*Best Albums*: No Dice, Straight Up

*Best Songs*: No Matter What, Without You, Day After Day, Baby Blue



Originally known as the Iveys out of Swansea, Wales, they got the attention of Mal Evans, the Beatles’ road manager, and they were one of the first bands signed to Apple Records. After their debut record, Maybe Tomorrow, failed,  Paul McCartney would champion the band and would write their first major hit, Come and Get It as the Iveys were now known as Badfinger. They now had something of a power pop sound of sorts, Beatlesque in nature really. Pete Ham and Tony Evans emerged as the band’s top songwriters and they would bang out songs like No Matter What and Baby Blue, the latter of which was used for the finale of Breaking Bad.  Badfinger struggled after their Straight Up album and wouldn’t recover after a switch to Warner Brothers. Depression was also evident in the band as Pete Ham would hang himself in 1975. Tony Evans would also commit suicide a decade later. Still, it doesn’t take away the fact that Badfinger was Apple’s most successful act other than the Beatles, together and solo.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*? Their no frills approach. I said they were power pop earlier but that really isn’t accurate. They were power pop in the same way the Beatles were in the sense that you really couldn't categorize them that easily. What Badfinger was, ultimately, was a straight forward rock band that was able to come up with some great melodies. You can see why the Beatles not only liked them, but wanted to help them as well.  Incidentally, Ham and Evans wrote Without You, recorded on No Dice and later a smash hit for Nilsson in 1972.

*Links to songs*:

Come and Get It
No Matter What
Without You
Day After Day
Baby Blue

Badfinger web page

http://www.badfingersite.com/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 9, 2019)

*83. THE WHITE STRIPES*







*Major Era*: 1999-2007

*Main Labels*: Sympathy For the Record Industry, V2. Third Man


*Best Albums*: White Blood Cells, De Stjil, Elephant

*Best Songs*: Fell in Love With a Girl, You’re Pretty Good Looking For a Girl, Seven Nation Army, I Just Don’t Know What To Do With Myself, The Air Near My Fingers

A minimalist band from Detroit, Jack and Meg White were a formerly married two person band of sorts, Jack playing the guitar and Meg on the drums. They were unique as they didn’t use bass in their songs. The White Stripes were arguably the most successful of the Indie bands of the early 2000s. Jack White would, in fact, be a major player in the music scene with the White Stripes as well as his own solo material and various projects he would be involved with such as the Raconteurs and producing and playing on Loretta Lynn’s Van Lear Rose album.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  The whole DIY thing is the first thing that comes to mind. Jack White drew comparisons to bands like Led Zeppelin in his prime and you never really noticed the lack of bass in their songs.  The White Stripes were essentially Jack White’s baby and, outside of the drumming, Meg isn’t all that prominent. Still, you can’t go wrong with classics like Fell in Love With a Girl and Seven Nation Army

*Links to songs*:

You’re Pretty Good Looking For a Girl
Fell In Love With a Girl
Seven Nation Army
I Just Don’t Know What To Do With Myself
The Denial Twist

*White Stripes page*

http://www.whitestripes.net/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 10, 2019)

*82. THE JAM*








*Major Era*: 1977-1982

*Main Labels*: Polydor

[h=2][/h] 
*Best Albums*: Sound Affects, In the City, All Mod Cons

*Best Songs*: Monday, Sounds From the Street, I Need You For Someone, The Bitterest Pill

The Jam came up with the punk movement in England in 1977. They also spearheaded the mod revival that same year.  The power trio, led by Paul Weller, gained quite a bit of popularity in England while being all but ignored in the US. Like their heroes, the Who, The Jam would borrow from themes from Motown  and Northern Soul to develop their own distinctive style. As time wore on, they would take a more sophisticated approach with albums such as Sound Affects and The Gift which covered deeper nuances on soul.  They split up in 1982 and Weller has had a mixed solo career, but the magic of the Jam lives on.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Their raw energy that isn’t quite in your face like, say, the Sex Pistols might have been. Weller wrote many tuneful songs such as Monday and the Bitterest Pill and their Who covers aren’t bad either.  I also liked how their music grew as they went on. I’m a big mod rock fan and only the Who, in my opinion, did the form better.

*Links to songs*:

In the City
I Need You (For Someone)
Monday
A Town Called Malice
The Bitterest Pill

*Jam fan page*

https://www.thejamofficial.com/home/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 11, 2019)

*81.CURTIS MAYFIELD AND THE IMPRESSIONS*








*Major Era*: 1958-1996

*Main Labels*:  ABC, Curtom, Warner Bros.


*Best Albums*: The Young Mods Forgotten Story, Curtis, There’s No Place Like America Today

*Best Songs*: People Get Ready, Choice of Colors,  If There’s a Hell Below We’re All Going To Go, Pusherman, Move On Up

The Impressions started out as  a doo wop group who transplanted to Chicago in the 1950’s. Initially led by Jerry Butler, they scored a major hit with For You Precious Love in 1958, After Butler left for a solo career on amicable terms, Curtis Mayfield would take the band in a different direction from hits such as Gypsy Woman and It’s All Right in the early 1960s to more topical sixties material such as People Get Ready and This Is My Country. Mayfield too would leave the Impressions on amicable terms,  and like Butler, still working with them occasionally. Mayfield’s solo career took off in the seventies culminating in the Superfly soundtrack in 1972. He would be paralyzed in a stage accident in 1990 but he would continue making music until his death in 1999. Included would be his last great swan song, New World Order in 1997.



*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  I was contemplating whether to list only the Impressions or only Curtis Mayfield, but I ended up putting both in the same slot as Mayfield was such a major factor in the Impressions, even after he left. What I liked about the Impressions, who I rate as one of the most important soul acts of the sixties, is their determination to write and record socially relevant songs that affected the black community in particular. Curtis Mayfield continued that direction as a solo artist and his If There’s a Hell Below, We’re All Going To Go is one of my own personal anthems that I live by.

*Links to songs*:

For Your Precious Love
People Get Ready
This is My Country
If There’s a Hell Below We’re All Going To Go
Freddie’s Dead

Curtis Mayfield and Impressions links

https://www.curtismayfield.com/welcome.html

https://www.curtismayfield.com/impressions.html


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 12, 2019)

*80. THE REPLACEMENTS*







*Major Era*: 1982-1991

*Main Labels*:  Twin Tone, Sire


*Best Albums*: Tim, Let It Be, Don’t Tell a Soul

*Best Songs*: Kiss Me On the Bus, I Will Dare, I’ll Be You, Alex Chilton

The Replacements started out as a punk band out of Minneapolis. They refined their sound to be a little more listenable in the mid eighties and would release critically acclaimed albums like Let It Be and Tim. The Replacements weren’t wildly successful for most of their existence until they took a more commercial turn in the late eighties after which, they split up. Frontman Paul Westerberg continued on with a solo career but he couldn’t recapture the magic that was once the Replacements.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  In a sense, they were one of the first DIY bands even though they were on a major  label (Sire). At their best, they didn’t suffer fools  as they challenged trends such as in the Bastards of Young video which is simply an amp playing the song, possibly as a swipe at MTV, which was at its peak at the time. Westerberg could also write gentler tunes such as Kiss Me On the Bus and Can’t Hardly Wait. The Replacements are one of my favorite bands of the eighties and I think a lot of it is their simple approach to music.

*Links to songs*:

I Will Dare
Kiss Me On the Bus
Alex Chilton
I’ll Be You
When It Began

*Replacements on Wiki*

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Replacements_(band)


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 13, 2019)

*79. HOWLIN' WOLF*







*Major Era*: 1951-1975

*Main Labels*: RPM, Chess


*Best Albums*: Howlin Wolf, Moanin in the Moonlight

*Best Songs*: Back Door Man, I Asked For Water She Gave Me Gasoline, Moanin at Midnight, Evil, I Ain’t Superstitious

One of the great blues artists of his time, Howlin Wolf grew up on a plantation in Mississippi where he took up the guitar. He got his nickname from his family when he started howling as a child. Charlie Patton and Sonny Boy Williamson, who both lived nearby, taught Wolf much of his style.  He signed with Chess records in 1951 where he would record much of his classic material. Of all the blues artist, he was perhaps the grittiest of them all.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Howlin Wolf had a hard edge to his music and he wrote some of the greatest blues standards that would be covered by major artists in the sixties and seventies such as Back Door Man by the Doors and Spoonful by Cream. He went against the standard blues styles of contemporaries like Muddy Waters and John Lee Hooker, great as they were.  Howlin Wolf is one of those artists I can listen to for any reason really. The fact he was such an influence on  so many of my favorite bands doesn’t hurt either.

*Links to songs*:

Moanin at Midnight
Smokestack Lightning
I Asked For Water She Gave Me Gasoline
Back Door Man
I Ain’t Superstitious

Howlin Wolf page

http://www.howlinwolf.com/

https://www.mswritersandmusicians.com/mississippi-musicians/howlin-wolf


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 14, 2019)

*78. X*








*Major Era*: 1980-1987

*Main Labels*:  Slash, Elektra


*Best Albums*: Wild Gift, Los Angeles, More Fun in the New World

*Best Songs*: White Girl, The Have Nots, The New World, Soul Kitchen, Your Phone’s Off the Hook But You’re Not

Part of the LA scene in the late 70’s/early 80s, the band X incorporated various sounds starting with rockabilly. In fact I would argue that they were maybe the first rockabilly punk band other than the Cramps. They formed when rockabilly aficionado Billy Zoom met John Doe, straight from the New York CBGB’s scene.  Fledgling poet Exene Cervenka joined the pair and they added drummer DJ Bonebrake. They soon signed with Slash records and impressed fans with their unique style of punk and vocals by Doe and Cervenka that would predate the Pixies by close to a decade. They had some commercial success with their More Fun in the New World album . They began to sound a little more mainstream soon after (though never selling out) and would pursue separate careers after 1987, reuniting occasionally for an album or live appearance.  X remains one of the premier LA bands of the eighties.

Note: They were produced by Ray Manzarek of Doors fame.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*? There is definitely a California sixties vibe to them.  For a long time they seemed oblivious to the trends of the day as they belted out songs like When Our Love Passed Out on the Couch. They also weren’t afraid to get topical such as on White Girl and on The New World, two of my favorite songs from this band. I mentioned that John Doe and Exene Cervenka would play off each other, something that no doubt would be an influence on Frank Black and Kim Deal of the Pixies later. They were one of my favorite bands in the early eighties and I still love them a lot now.

*Links to songs*:

Your Phone’s Off the Hook But You’re Not
White Girl
The Hungry Wolf
The New World
Burning House of Love




*X page*
[h=2][/h]http://www.xtheband.com/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 15, 2019)

*77. BLONDIE*








*Major Era*: 1976-1982

*Main Labels*: Chrysalis


*Best Albums*: Blondie, Eat To the Beat, Parallel Lines

*Best Songs*: Atomic, In the Flesh, Look Good in Blue, Hanging On the Telephone

One of the pioneers in the New Wave movement, Blondie was a major player in the New Wave/Punk scene at CBGG,s in New York. They reached major commercial success with their Parallel Lines and was a major factor in making New Wave a legitimate music genre in pop music. Lead singer Debbie Harry was one of the more popular women in rock with, not only her sexy persona (she had once been a Playboy bunny before Blondie), but also her tough girl vocals. She and then husband Chris Stein were the band’s major players. They split up in 1982 but would make a comeback in 1999 and are still together today.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  I remember when I got into New Wave because I thought it had a sixties feel to it. Blondie certainly rates as one of those groups. I also liked their forays into different music sounds such as disco (Heart of Glass) and reggae (The Tide is High). One song not mentioned here is Call Me which was recorded for the movie American Gigolo. That, along with Atomic, was very indicative of the new wave sound circa 1980. Maybe they got a little too commercial at times but it didn’t take away from their best material.

*Links to songs*:

X Offender
Denis
Heart of Glass
Atomic
The Tide Is High

Blondie  at R&R HOF

https://www.rockhall.com/inductees/blondie


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 16, 2019)

*76. THE PRETTY THINGS*








*Major Era*: 1964-1976

*Main Labels*: Fontana, Columbia, Swan Song

[h=2][/h] 
*Best Albums*: SF Sorrow, Get The Picture, Emotions, Parachute

*Best Songs*: Can’t Stand the Pain, Midnight To Six Man, Rosalyn, The Good Mr. Square

One of the premier R&B bands to come out of England during the British Blues Boom,  the Pretty Things we’re possibly the closest thing to a garage punk band in Britain in the mid sixties. While popular in England, they had only small success in the US with a minor hit with Don’t Bring Me Down. They eventually would change course and release the highly acclaimed psychedelic album, SF Sorrow. By the seventies, the Pretty Things would develop a hard rock sound and soldier on into the eighties and nineties, only calling it a day in 2018 after fifty-five years.  Interesting note: Dick Taylor played with Keith Richards and Mick Jagger with the Rolling Stones briefly before leaving for art school where he met Phil May and formed the Pretty Things.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Their hard punkish sound. They weren’t your typical R&B outfit like the Yardbirds for example.  There was a hard edge to their music with Phil May’s punkish vocals complimented by angry guitars. It’s mostly the 1964-1967 period I especially like with songs like the moody Can’t Stand the Pain and the whimsical Tripping, but they also have a lot to offer with albums like SF Sorrow and Parachute in particular. In fact, I’d argue Parachute as something of a hidden gem.

*Links to songs*:

Don’t Bring Me Down
Rosalyn
 Midnight To Six Man
Deflecting Grey
The Good Mr. Square


The Pretty Things on Wiki

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pretty_Things


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 17, 2019)

*75. NICK CAVE AND THE BAD SEEDS*








*Major Era*: 1983-present

*Main Labels*:  Bad Seed Ltd


*Best Albums*: Tender Prey, Murder Ballads, the Boatman’s Call

*Best Songs*: The Mercy Seat, Oh Deanna,  Where the Wild Roses Grow, Dig Lazarus Dig

One of Australia’s best known bands, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds have a very loyal following that, in some aspects, could rival that of the Grateful Dead. The band derived from the ashes of the Birthday Party in 1983. Soon, they would become known for their rather depressing songs with a moody edge to their music. They scored in the UK with their Tender Prey album that features The Mercy Seat, later covered by Johnny Cash, about a man who was about to be executed. The trend towards unhappy songs continued on albums such as Murder Ballads and the Boatman’s Call. Nick Cave is certainly an acquired taste, but for his small but devoted army of fans, he is something of a genius.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  For a long time, I didn’t think much of them and it wasn’t until I heard Johnny Cash’s version of Mercy Seat that I checked the band out.  Mercy Seat is such a compelling song I had to listen to more and Tender Prey proved to be one of my favorite albums of 1988. Other albums I am especially impressed with include Murder Ballads and The Boatman’s Call, the former exploring the theme of, well, murder. Like I said before, Nick Cave is something of an acquired taste but if you can get past the depressing side of the music, you’ll find some great lyrical quality and consistently fantastic music.

*Links to songs*:

The Mercy Seat
The Weeping Song
I Had a Dream Joe
Where the Wild Roses Grow
Into My Arms

*Nick Cave on Wiki*

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nick_Cave


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 18, 2019)

*74. THE BRIAN JONESTOWN MASSACRE*








*Major Era*: 1995-present

*Main Labels*:  Bomp!, A Records


*Best Albums*: Take It From the Man, Thank God For Mental Illness, Give It Back!

*Best Songs*: Mansion in the Sky, The Devil May Care, Ballad of Jim Jones, Not If You Were the Last Dandy on Earth

One of San Francisco’s finest and some people say San Francisco can have them.  Anton Newcombe and company have been known for their physical fights onstage and beyond since forming in the early Nineties. Never exactly having what you would call a mainstream audience, the BJM found their following with crude but melodic recordings in a retro vein. Not the most diplomatic of groups, they would take shots at those they weren’t crazy about, sometimes a bit wildly. Targets ranged from Jim Jones to the Dandy Warhols, who they had something of a feud with. Amazingly they’re still together today as Anton Newcomb has taken the band in a more experimental direction. Happily, nobody has been hospitalized recently.  

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  They have a certain earthiness, kind of like a folk-punk vibe. They are certainly influenced by Dylan and, when they’re at the best, they can belt out bitter tasting songs like The Ballad of Jim Jones and Mansion in the Sky.  They may be the least known of all the bands on my list, but  in many ways had they been more successful, they could have been the Sex Pistols of the nineties.

*Links to songs*:

That Girl Suicide
David Bowie I Loved You (Since I Was Six)
Ballad of Jim Jones
Mansion in the Sky
The Devil May Care



*Brian Jonestown Massacre page*

https://thebrianjonestownmassacre.com/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 19, 2019)

*73. THE SHADOWS*







*Major Era*: 1960-1989

*Main Labels*: Columbia, Polydor


*Best Albums*: The Shadows, Out of the Shadows

*Best Songs*: Apache, Wonderful Land, Atlantis, FBI

Perhaps the most successful instrumental band to come out of England though they didn’t gain any real popularity in the US, The Shadows started out as Cliff Richard’s backup band in the fifties. The Shadows scored a smash hit on their own in the UK with Apache (oldies enthusiasts may be familiar with the Jorge Ingmann version in the US). They scored a string of UK hits in the early sixties and continued to have some regional success after the Beatles and company knocked them off the charts. Leader Hank Marvin is one of the most recognizable guitarists in England with his thick glasses and smooth playing style. The Shadows continued on  with occasional appearances until 2004 and even now a reunion is not out of the cards. 

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  The Shadows are probably my favorite instrumental band and Apache may be my favorite instrumental song period. As with many instrumental bands, there is a surf rock element to their music even though they were anything but. In some ways the Beatles were compared to them in their early days and were even told by Decca that guitars were on the way out, referring to the Shadows.  I can do without the dance routines with guitars; that looks kind of awkward to me, but they are an excellent listen in my opinion.

*Links to songs*:

Apache
Kon-Tiki
FBI
Wonderful Land
Atlantis



*The Shadows on Wiki*

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Shadows


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 20, 2019)

*72. ELTON JOHN*








*Major Era*: 1969-present

*Main Labels*:  Uni, MCA, Rocket


*Best Albums*: Honky Chateau, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, Elton John

*Best Songs*: Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, Mona Lisa and Mad Hatters, Funeral For a Friend, Take Me To the Pilot

Reginald Dwight, better known as Elton John, began his career working at the EMI offices in London.  After a stint in Bluesology, Elton embarked on a solo career as a singer songwriter with some modest success. He became something of a phenomenon after the release of Crocodile Rock in  late 1972 and was the most popular act in the world through much of the seventies. His flamboyant persona fit in well with the glam rock tendencies of the seventies. Later as his fame settled down a bit, he began making hits more in the MOR vein but remained very popular along the way. He sang the eulogy for Princess Diana’s funeral and was knighted by the Queen. Today, he is perhaps best known for his commitment to gay rights causes and he remains one of the most successful artists in rock history.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Well, for starters, he and Bernie Taupin could write some great songs. I especially like the singer songwriter Elton with his self titled album and Tumbleweed Connection in particular but also Honky Chateau. The superstar years are a little more mixed.  I really don’t like Don’t Shoot Me I’m Only the Piano Player and other albums of the period are a bit mixed, I do like Goodbye Yellow Brick Road which I have to rate as my favorite song of 1973. In some ways I compare Elton John to David Bowie which is a bit unfair to the latter. They were both glam musicians in their own ways though I suspect Elton was a bit more commercial. Nevertheless, the songs of Elton John stand up rather well, especially his seventies material.

*Links to songs*:

Your Song
Rocket Man
Crocodile Rock
Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
Someone Saved My Life Tonight



*Elton John page*

https://www.eltonjohn.com/elton-john


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 21, 2019)

*71. THE THIRTEENTH FLOOR ELEVATORS*







*Major Era*: 1966-1969

*Main Labels*:  International Artists


*Best Albums*: The Psychedelic Sounds of the Thirteenth Floor Elevators, Easter Everywhere

*Best Songs*: You’re Gonna Miss Me, She Lives (In a Time of Her Own), Slip Inside This House

From the demented depths of Dallas, Texas came the garage punk band, the Thirteenth Floor Elevators. Led by Roky Erickson, they were known for their wild psychedelic tendencies. Indeed, they may have been one of the first truly psychedelic bands, scoring a minor hit with You’re Gonna Miss Me in 1966.  They also introduced of all things, the electric jug, which is prominent on You’re Gonna Miss Me. Outside of the one song, fame and success eluded the group and they would split around 1969. A few years later, they were rediscovered when Lenny Kaye released the Nuggets compilation and they have had a small but loyal following since. Roky Erickson embarked on a solo career in the seventies  and, while not especially successful, had gained cult status with his frenzied songs. Sadly, we lost Roky recently but the music lives on.


*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  The Elevators are probably my favorite band of the garage rock genre. In fact, they are pretty indicative of the Texas underground sound at the time as you can hear hints of what would be known as cow punk later. Tommy Hall (electric jug) and Stacy Sutherland (lead guitar) were also prominent members of the band. They were one of the more heavier bands of the mid sixties and one of the most outrageous. One senses they were of the wrong decade as flamboyance was more frowned upon in the sixties. One thing for certain is that they deserved better than one minor hit.

*Links to songs*:

You’re Gonna Miss Me
Fire Engine
She Lives (In a Time of Her Own)
May the Circle Remain Unbroken
If You Have Ghosts (Roky Erickson)

*Thirteenth Floor Elevators Page*

https://ultimateclassicrock.com/13th-floor-elevators-history/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 22, 2019)

*70. CONOR OBERST/BRIGHT EYES*







*Major Era*: 1999-present

*Main Labels*: Saddle Creek, Merge


*Best Albums*: Conor Oberst, The Outer South, I’m Wide Awake It’s Morning

*Best Songs*: To All the Lights in the Windows, When the President Talks To God, , First Day of My Life, Lover I Don’t Have To Love, Tachycardia

One of the better known artists of the indie rock genre, Conor Oberst, first with Bright Eyes, then on his own and with other projects, emerged as one of the brighter lights of the modern folk movement. Oberst is especially popular on modern rock stations and in colleges with his pointed songs such as When the President Talks To God (from the Bush era).  There is a certain honesty in his songs. Bright Eyes has had some limited commercial success on the charts and Oberst has gotten quite a bit of airplay on college oriented radio. Bright Eyes last recorded in 2011 while Oberst has been involved in various projects including the Mystic Valley Band and the Monsters of Folk.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  More folk than rock, Conor Oberst has emerged as one of the best songwriters of his era. I have to agree with that as his songs often speak of social consciousness as well as his own personal experiences. I am a big fan of folk music and he is one of those that I consider part of that genre. Like other folk artists, he does occasionally use electric instruments but you always know you’re listening to folk music with him. He isn’t the best vocalist in the world and I think that actually adds to his straightforwardly honest style. In other words,  there doesn’t seem to be any airs about him. This makes him, and Bright Eyes, one of my favorite artists of the millennium.

*Links to songs*:

Bowl of Oranges
First Day of My Life
Four Winds
To All the Lights in the Windows
Tachycardia





*Conor Oberst page*


https://www.conoroberst.com/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 23, 2019)

*69. THE SEX PISTOLS*







*Major Era*: 1976-1978

*Main Labels*:  EMI, A&M


*Best Albums*: Never Mind the Bollocks, Here Are the Sex Pistols

*Best Songs*: Pretty Vacant, Anarchy in the UK, God Save the Queen

Punk’s own bad boys to put it lightly, Johnny Rotten and company burst onto the British punk scene in 1976. To say they were anti-establishment is something of an understatement. They signed a contract with EMI who soon sacked them for their lewd behavior, especially after an infamous appearance with Bill Grundy.  They signed on with A&M records and released their landmark album Never Mind the Bollocks in 1977. After a disastrous tour of the US in 1978, the Sex Pistols, who never really got along anyway, broke up. John Lydon (Rotten) would form Public Image Ltd and continue to thumb his nose even at nice people while Sid Viscous became something of an infamous celebrity himself. He was accused of murdering his girlfriend, Nancy Spungeon, in New York and would die of a heroin overdose soon after. Even though the Sex Pistols only released one bonafide album, their impact on the punk movement is immeasurable and that puts them on my list.


*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Well, let’s face it. These guys exhume punk more than anyone else in history, don’t they? Yes, they only have one album but their three most prominent songs (see best songs) are about as good as anything that came out in 1977. Yes, they can be a bit crude at times, okay, so they’re a bit crude all the time, but musically, they’re a hard driving band that portrays the spirit of punk better than any other band I know. Just don’t get too close to them or they’ll spit on you though.

*Links to songs*:

Anarchy in the UK
God Save the Queen
Pretty Vacant
Holidays in the Sun


*Sex Pistols page*

https://www.sexpistolsofficial.com/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 24, 2019)

*68. VIOLENT FEMMES*







*Major Era*: 1983-1994

*Main Labels*:  Slash, Warner Bros., Reprise


*Best Albums*: Violent Femmes, The Blind Leading the Naked, Why Do Birds Sing?

*Best Songs*: Gone Daddy Gone, American Music, Candlelight Song, American Music

From the deep jungles of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Violent Femmes  was a minimalist trio who had some success in the alternative music genre in the 1980s. Discovered by James Honeyman-Scott of the Pretenders, they signed with Slash Records and found success with their debut album with songs like Gone Daddy Gone and Blister in the Sun. Their signature sound featured a sardonic Gordon Gano on vocals and acoustic guitar, Brian Ritchie on a stand-up bass, and Victor Lorenzo on snare drum, plus the occasional violin for flavor. After their debut, they released a few albums with only moderate success but scored a big alternative hit with American Music in 1992. Since then, they’ve stayed busy recording and making television appearance such as a cameo on the Sabrina The Teenage Witch TV Series.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  It seems like every other band from the eighties on have been compared to the Velvet Underground. In the Femmes’ case, there is some validation to the claim. Their minimalist sound measures favorably against the Velvets’ best material.  Their whole first album has a DIY feeling about it. I especially love the xylophone on Gone Daddy Gone; you don’t hear that much in rock. Their first album is their best but there are moments on all their albums, particularly on Why Do Birds Sing.

*Links to songs*:

Gone Daddy Gone
Blister in the Sun
Children of the Revolution
Nightmares
American Music

*Violent Femmes on Wiki*

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Violent_Femmes


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 25, 2019)

*67. THE RAMONES*







*Major Era*: 1976-1996

*Main Labels*:  Sire, Warner Bros.


*Best Albums*: Rocket To Russia, Leave Home, Ramones

*Best Songs*: Blitzkrieg Bop, Sheena is a Punk Rocker, Teenage Lobotomy, Do You Remember Rock n Roll Radio

This was the band that put punk rock on the map in the US. Sort of an anti-Sex Pistols in a sense, the Ramones were known for their two minute anthems such as Sheena is a Punk Rocker and Teenage Lobotomy. They, no doubt, were the forerunners of what would become pop punk, though I suspect they would have gotten sick at that suggestion. Like Blondie and the Talking Heads, they were major players in the New York punk scene. After four highly regarded albums in the late seventies, they settled into  a pattern of power punk albums all through the eighties and into the nineties. The Ramones, sadly, would be hit with much sadness as all four original members have passed away, three from natural causes. Still, the Ramones were probably one of the most fun bands to come out of the punk movement.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  In a word, their energy. They proved that being three chord wonders can create some really good music.  In one way, they sound like early Beatles circa With the Beatles but they could also get topical such as in songs like the KKK Took My Baby Away. The political bent is interesting as front man Joey Ramone was an unabashed liberal while second in command Marky, well, wasn’t, being a big supporter of Reagan at the time.  Still, they all made some great music together, and as mentioned, are one of the most fun bands to listen to on this list.

*Links to songs*:

Blitzkrieg Bop
Sheena is a Punk Rocker
Teenage Lobotomy
Do You Remember Rock n Roll Radio
Psycho Therapy


*Ramones on the Great Rock Bible*

http://thegreatrockbible.com/portfolio-item/ramones/


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## Irwin (Oct 25, 2019)

Regarding Elton John, the song Daniel is one of my favorite Elton John songs. I had my own interpretation of what it was about, as have a lot of people. I felt that it was about some guy who was having a tough time with life and just wanted to get away, which was actually pretty close. 

Bernie Taupin wrote it about a Vietnam vet who wanted to get back to the life he had before he went off to war but wasn't able to because of all the attention he was receiving from having been injured in battle. But why's he going to Spain? That's kind of a weird destination considering Spain was still under the rule of a brutal dictator--Francisco Franco. And it doesn't even sing that well. Elton sings _Spayayeeeayeeaaayn_. Why not sing about Tripoli? That would sing better... _I can see the red tail lights heading for Tripoli_... As a poem, maybe it made sense, but not so much as a song.


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## Trollheart (Oct 25, 2019)

*Conor Oberst:* Fell in love with this guy's music as a result of my Trollheart Listens to Every Album from 2017 thread, and thence into Bright Eyes. Haven't heard anything bad from either yet.

*Nick Cave:* Huge fan of the man. Have all his albums, though personally - "The Mercy Seat" excluded" - I don't rate _Tender Prey, Kicking Against the Pricks, Your Funeral My Trial _and _The Firstborn is Dead_, preferring the more recent stuff, post-_The Good Son_ inclusive. I wasn't crazy about _Dig, Lazarus, Dig_ though I think I only listened to it the once, and while I loved _The Lyre of Orpheus_ I didn't really like _Abbatoir Blues_, which were released together. He's really knocked it out of the park though recently with _Push the Sky Away_ and _The Skeleton Tree_, though I have yet to listen to_ Ghosteen_. Yes his music is dark but there's often an undercurrent of black humour running through it, such as in "O'Malley's Bar" on_ Murder Ballads _or "John Finn's Wife" on _Henry's Dream_. Definitely an acquired taste, but one worth pursuing.

Elton John: I love the guy but to be honest it always rankled that he never writes his own lyrics. I know he writes the music, but I feel Bernie Taupin gets a bit of a raw deal. I mean, everyone knows it's him but a new Elton song comes out and it's "Listen to the new hit from Elton John" not from Bernie Taupin. Oh well, guess they're happy with it that way. However I believe that's what distinguishes Bowie from him; sure, Ronson and Visconti virtually wrote _The Man Who Sold the World_ between them, but since then  Bowie always controlled all creative aspects of his career, especially lyrics and music. Favourite for me from Elton is, oddly perhaps, "Song for Guy", which is virtually instrumental of course. I feel he can really stretch on that song and show what he can do, rather than what he and Bernie can do. I assume he was able to write the three-word lyric to that himself.

That thing about "Daniel" is interesting, Badhouses. I always assumed it was actually his brother (real or fictional) and he was just watching him leave. I guess as regards Spain being the destination, well it always was, and still is the main holiday spot for Brits: certainly would have been in the 70s and 80s. Franco may have been a dictator, but he surely knew his country needed the income from tourism and so he didn't discourage tourists, and most people just went there in the same way they went to Sun City, oblivious to or uncaring of the political climate. Also, wasn't Libya under Gadaffi at the time, and a lot further for Brits to travel, plus less familiar? I'd have been more scared going to Tripoli than I would to Madrid or Barcelona.

I always thought Daniel was blind. When Elton sings "Daniel, your eyes have died, but you see more than I." Maybe he meant the will to live, if this is a Vietnam vet, had gone out of his eyes? Other favourites would be of course "Candle in the Wind", then maybe "Sad Songs" and "Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word", and I always have a soft spot for "Sacrifice" and "I'm Still Standing."


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 25, 2019)

Trollheart said:


> That thing about "Daniel" is interesting, Badhouses. I always assumed it was actually his brother (real or fictional) and he was just watching him leave. I guess as regards Spain being the destination, well it always was, and still is the main holiday spot for Brits: certainly would have been in the 70s and 80s. Franco may have been a dictator, but he surely knew his country needed the income from tourism and so he didn't discourage tourists, and most people just went there in the same way they went to Sun City, oblivious to or uncaring of the political climate. Also, wasn't Libya under Gadaffi at the time, and a lot further for Brits to travel, plus less familiar? I'd have been more scared going to Tripoli than I would to Madrid or Barcelona.



Also might note that some of the spaghetti westerns of the 1960s as well as How I Won the War starring John Lennon were filmed in Spain, when Franco was certainly very much in charge.


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## Irwin (Oct 25, 2019)

Tripoli was just the first name that popped into my head that would sing better than "Spain."  

Tumbleweed Connection is a great album. It's essentially a country music album. Bernie and Elton were heavy into country music when they first started writing together, which was a big part of what bonded them. I used to listen to Tumbleweed Connection quite a bit back in the '70s. I have no idea what happened to the album, but I used to own it. My sister might have sold it to get a few bucks when she was living in Greenwich Village. She sold quite a few of my albums--some of which now are collector's items.  !@#$%

Madman Across the Water is also a great album. It's a bit more emotional and introspective than Tumbleweed and there's not a bad track on the entire album.

Those are my two favorite Elton John albums. After that, beginning with Honky Chateau, he kind of went a little too pop for my tastes, although each album had one or two gems.

As far as Bernie Taupin not getting the credit he deserves, it's always the performer who gets all the attention--never the songwriter.


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 25, 2019)

Honky Chateau, which is my favorite Elton John album, was really a transitional album between the singer/songwriter Elton and the superstar Elton. The following album, Don't Shoot Me I'm Only the Piano Player, I can't handle, but Goodbye Yellow Brick Road is excellent. As far as the singer/songwriter Elton goes, I might lean towards his self titled album. That's actually his second album. His debut album is actually Empty Sky from 1969 which is also pretty good.


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## Trollheart (Oct 25, 2019)

Irwin said:


> Tripoli was just the first name that popped into my head that would sing better than "Spain."


Sure, but Spain is and always has been the go-to spot. Maybe Lanzarotte a bit more in the 80s, but certainly the likes of Las Palmas, Canary Islands, Torremolinos etc were always high on holidaymakers' lists - Costa del Sol and all that. And then of course once Ibiza came along... forget about it.


> As far as Bernie Taupin not getting the credit he deserves, it's always the performer who gets all the attention--never the songwriter.


Except when the singer IS the songwriter. Although I wouldn't agree. Most people who listen to Meat Loaf know to credit Jim Steinman with the music and lyrics. I'm sure there are others, again I don't have the time to seek them out at the moment.


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 26, 2019)

*66. THE NEW PORONOGRAPHERS*








*Major Era*: 2000-present

*Main Labels*:  Matator


*Best Albums*: Challengers, Twin Cinema, Mass Romantic

*Best Songs*: Myriad Harbour, The Laws Have Changed, The Fake Headlines, The Jessica Numbers

This Canadian supergroup (why they were called that since no one had ever heard of the members I have no idea) was formed in Vancouver by Carl Newman. They quickly arrived on the indie scene with Letter From an Occupant on the album, Mass Romantic, and they haven’t looked back since. Along with guest vocalist Neko Case, they have maintained a sixties pop sensibility without getting stale. They have released a string of critically acclaimed albums and are going strong to this day.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Their pop and melodic sensibilities for the most part. I also like how Newman and either Neko Case or niece Kathryn Calder play off each other in terms of vocals. They have a keyboard based sound that I think would have worked well in the sixties or maybe in the late seventies new wave era.  They certainly rate as one of my favorite bands of the millennium.

*Links to songs*:

Letter From an Occupant
The Laws Have Changed
The Jessica Numbers
Myriad Harbour
Crash Years




*New Pornographers on Wiki*

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_New_Pornographers


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 27, 2019)

*65. THE MOODY BLUES*







*Major Era*: 1965-1991

*Main Labels*: Deram, Threshold


*Best Albums*: In Search of the Lost Chord, Days of Future Passed, A Question of Balance

*Best Songs*: Nights in White Satin, Legend of a Mind, Question, Go Now, For My Lady

The Moody Blues started out as a piano based R&B group near Birmingham, England. They scored with a smash cover version of the Bessie Banks cover, Go Now, in 1965, but couldn’t maintain that success and broke up soon afterwards. Lead singer, Denny Laine had left the band in 1966 and may be better known as Paul McCartney’s right hand man in Wings a decade later. The Moodies reformed late in 1966 and developed a new classical rock sound, becoming one of the innovators of that genre starting with their landmark album Days of Future Passed. They continued in that mode until they broke up for good in 1973. They reunited late that decade as more or less an MOR/AOR band and had some success in the eighties. They remain together today though age, death, and retirements seem to be taking its toll on the band.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  This is a group that has been often maligned by critics, and it’s true they have had their pompous share of crap over the years (and I can certainly do without anything past 1980- the reunion was not necessary, guys), but at their best as in Days of Future Passed and Lost Chord, they were one of the innovators of classical rock and are certainly one of the pioneers of the progressive rock movement. And I have to admit I have an affinity for the mid sixties Moodies as well even if the sound is miles away from the classic Moodies sound.

*Links to songs*:

Go Now
Nights in White Satin
Legend of a Mind
Question
I’m Just a Singer in a Rock n Roll Band

*Moody Blues page*

http://www.themoodyblues.com/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 28, 2019)

*64. THE B-52S*








*Major Era*: 1979-1993

*Main Labels*:  Warner Bros.


*Best Albums*: B-52s, Wild Planet, Cosmic Thing

*Best Songs*: Rock Lobster, Private Idaho, Planet Z, 52 Girls


From the deep darkest corners of Athens, Georgia, came the B-52s who emerged on the new wave scene with their party like dance tunes like Rock Lobster and Private Idaho. They were a flamboyant foursome led by Fred Schneider and complimented by girls with their bouffant hairdos Kate Pierson and Cindy Wilson as well as Cindy’s brother, Ricky Wilson, and Keith Strickland. Together, they formed one of the most eccentric and fun bands in the history of rock n roll. Tragedy would befall them as Ricky Wilson would succumb to AIDS in 1985, but they soldiered on releasing the well received Cosmic Thing in 1989. They stopped recording regularly after Good Stuff in 1992, releasing only one album in 2008, but they still perform together on occasion and remain good friends.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  : Like they say on American Bandstand, they have a nice beat and you can dance to it. I don’t think the B-52 will ever be confused with a seriously oriented rock band and yet you can tell they take their fun music very seriously. Their best tunes are very catchy and sometimes even off the wall.  And, like a lot of new wave bands, they tend to have that sixties feel that I always like. And, anyway, they’re just plain fun.

*Links to songs*:

Rock Lobster
Private Idaho
Song For a Future Generation
The Girl From Ipanema Goes To Greenland
Love Shack

The B-52  page

https://www.theb52s.com/


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## Yoffi (Oct 28, 2019)

The Jam! Oh yesss! :cat:


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## Yoffi (Oct 28, 2019)

Does anyone ever use song lyrics in technical writing? Is it a cliche to use quotes from songs? or cool?!


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 28, 2019)

We do have a section to post original lyrics if that's what you're talking about  https://www.writingforums.com/forums/35-Lyrics


As far as using someone's song lyrics in writing, you have to be careful. If you quote too much, there could be legal ramifications (In the US anyway). There are discussions about this subject in other areas of the forum though I can't remember where specifically (Writing discussion maybe?). Anyway, go explore and I'm sure you'll stumble onto a post ot thread that knows more about this than me.


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 29, 2019)

*63. GUIDED BY VOICES*







*Major Era*: 1994-2004

*Main Labels*: Scat, Matador


*Best Albums*: Bee Thousand, Alien Lanes, Isolation Drills

*Best Songs*: Hold On Hope, Buzzards and Dreadful Crows, Glad Girls, Everywhere With Helicopter


One of the major players in the indie rock genre,  Bob Pollard and company have been lo-fi masters utilizing forms from British Invasion style rock to early punk as well as with similar forms of those genres. Never truly commercially successful, they nonetheless have a loyal following among lo-fi fans. They released some well received albums starting with Bee Thousand in 1994. After various personnel changes, they broke up in 2004 only for the classic band to reunite six years later. They have released twenty-nine LPs as of this writing, sometimes recording as many as three per year.  Between recording and live gigs they don’t seem to have a lot of free time.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  During their classic period, which I consider to be from about 1992 to 2004, they had what I would call a nice melodic lo-fi mood to them. Most of their songs tended to be short and to the point. Later on they would veer more towards power pop coming up with songs like Chasing Heather Crazy and Glad Girls. Almost all of their songs are a pretty good listen and a must for those who want to stay away from the top forty formats.

*Links to songs*:

Buzzards and Dreadful Crows
As We Go Up We Go Down
I Am a Tree
Hold On Hope
Everywhere With Helicopter


*Guided By Voices page*

https://www.guidedbyvoices.com/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 30, 2019)

*62. JETHRO TULL*







*Major Era*: 1968-1990

*Main Labels*: Chrysalis

*Best Albums*: Aqualung, This Was Jethro Tull, Benefit

*Best Songs*: Aqualung, A Song For Jeffrey, With You Here To Help Me, Bouree

Jethro Tull came up in 1968 as a blues based hard rock band. Its signature style was accentuated by Ian Anderson’s flute which was played on most of their songs. They used jazz influences in their material for the most parT and also used elements such as folk and even classical in their repertoire. They were fairly successful throughout the seventies with albums like Benefit and Aqualung and through Songs From the Wood. They maintained a bit of a following throughout the eighties despite having been labeled retreads of sorts. That didn’t stop them from winning  the 1988 Grammy for Best Hard Rock/Metal performance which gives you an idea just how clueless the folks at the Grammys are. Still, one of the great bands of the seventies.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  I especially like Tull from 1968-1972. Unlike the Grammys’ thoughts, Jethro Tull was never a metal band. They are certainly an acquired taste which is why some people don’t like them. Ian Anderson was known to also have a bit of an ego. Still, they recorded at least two wonderful albums in Benefit and Aqualung, the latter’s title track being especially bitter in spirit (snot running down his nose). I don’t think about the flute that much even though that’s the band’s signature. I just see them as a solid hard rock band who recorded some of the best material of the early seventies.

*Links to songs*:

A Song For Jeffrey
Living in the Past
With You Here To Help Me
Aqualung
Bungle in the Jungle




*Jethro Tull page*

http://jethrotull.com/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Oct 31, 2019)

*61. TRAFFIC*







*Major Era*: 1967-1974

*Main Labels*:  Island, United Artists


*Best Albums*: Traffic, The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys, Mr. Fantasy, John Barleycorn Must Die

*Best Songs*: Crying To Be Heard, John Barleycorn Must Die, Dear Mr. Fantasy, The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys

One of the bands in the forefront of what would be known as jazz rock, Traffic began as a psychedelic band in Birmingham England in 1967 with members Dave Mason, Jim Capaldi, Chris Wood, and lead singer and keyboardist Steve Winwood, formerly of the Spencer Davis Group. After scoring big in England with their Mr. Fantasy album, they went back to basics with the jazz tinged self titled album that, like Jethro Tull later, would be accentuated with the flute. Dave Mason would leave the band before John Barleycorn Must Die and various line up changes would occur from 1970 on though the other three original members stayed on. They were still able to release the well received Low Spark of High Heeled Boys in 1971. Winwood would leave the band for good in 1974 and the band would subsequently split up. Still, they remain one of the most influential jazz-rock bands ever.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  It isn’t so much about the jazz influences that get me into this band. As usual, I tend to be attracted by melodies but I also like the gentleness that comes with some of their songs, even the not so pleasant ones like John Barleycorn which is very traditional folk actually. This was a band that suffered quite a bit of acrimony, especially where Dave Mason was concerned, but it didn’t take away from the quality of their music and of their second album in particular. Steve Winwood, while successful as a solo artist, would never come close to the quality he had with Traffic and Blind Faith doesn’t hold up against them either.

*Links to songs*:

Paper Sun
Feelin Alright
Forty Thousand Headmen
John Barleycorn Must Die
The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys


*Traffic on Wiki*

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traffic_(band)


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## Deleted member 56686 (Nov 1, 2019)

*60. JAMES BROWN*







*Major Era*: 1956-1986

*Main Labels*: King, Smash, Polydor


*Best Albums*: It’s a Man’s Man’s World, James Brown Live at the Apollo, Say It Loud- I’m Black and I’m Proud

*Best Songs*:  Get Up I’m a Sex Machine, Think, Lost Someone, It’s a Man’s Man’s World

The Hardest Working Man in Show Business, James Brown started out as an original member of the Flames. He quickly became the front man as they first had a minor hit with Please, Please, Please in 1956. It wasn’t long before it became James Brown and his Famous Flames, though, and he recorded a string of R&B hits in the early sixties. As the decade wore on, he began to reach mainstream audiences with his frantic stage show and hits like Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag and I Got You. By the end of the sixties, he became topical and it was a James Brown concert in 1968 that saved Boston from rioting in the wake of Martin Luther King’s death. Sadly, once staunchly anti-drug, Brown would get caught up in drug addiction by the late eighties and have a couple run-ins with the law, serving time in prison at one point. He remained very popular however and thousands of fans would attend his funeral after his death on Christmas day 2006.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?

Arguably the most energetic artist on this list, he put on an incredible stage show as I noted on the TAMI show from 1964.  Musically, I’m especially partial to his early sixties material as well as some material from the late sixties and 1970. All of my favorite songs from Brown are from the sixties or very early seventies. He emits so much emotion in his songs such as Lost Someone and The Bells. In the late sixties it’s his social relevance that gets me such as Say It Loud I’m Black and I’m Proud for example. He put a lot into the black community in his heyday and it’s a shame that he got lost somewhere in the mix, but his music will always stand out.

*Links to songs*:

Try Me
Lost Someone
Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag
Say It Loud- I’m Black and I’m Proud
Living in America



*James Brown page*

http://www.jamesbrown.com/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Nov 2, 2019)

*59. XTC*








*Major Era*: 1978-2006

*Main Labels*: Virgin, Cooking Vinyl


*Best Albums*: Skylarking, Oranges and Lemons, Black Sea

*Best Songs*: Dear God, Ballad of Peter Pumpkinhead, Earn Enough For Us, Senses Working Overtime

XTC started out as part of England’s punk movement in 1977.  They had a power pop sound that was reminiscent of bands like the Beatles, the Kinks, and to some extent, the Beach Boys. Led by Andy Partridge, XTC would venture into different realms of music and at times, could get quite topical and controversial such as in Dear God. XTC faded a bit in the early nineties but reemerged with their two Apple Venus albums in 1999 and 2000. They were one of the more popular alternative bands of the eighties and early nineties and certain among the most unique.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Their unusual sound is what attracts me. There is no band that sounds quite like them. Maybe it has to do with Andy Partridge’s vocals. Maybe it’s the bravery in trying new things such as in their alter ego psychedelic band, the Dukes of Stratosphear.  But it’s ultimately their fearlessness in recording provocative songs such as in Dear God and the Mayor of Simpleton. Their early music sounds sort of like being on a ship in olden times while later material is a bit more topical in nature, certainly more mature. All of this puts these guys among my favorite bands of the eighties.

*Links to songs*:

Making Plans For Nigel
Generals and Majors
Dear God
The Ballad of Peter Pumpkinhead
The Man Who Murdered Love

*XTC page*

http://chalkhills.org/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Nov 3, 2019)

*58. THE MAMAS AND THE PAPAS*









*Major Era*: 1965-1968, 1971

*Main Labels*: Dunhill


*Best Albums*: If You Can Believe Your Eyes and Ears, The Mamas and the Papas

*Best Songs*: California Dreamin, Look Through My Window, Twelve Thirty, Straight Shooter, Got a Feelin

John Phillips. Dennis Doherty, and Cass Elliott were all part of the Greenwich Village folk scene in the early sixties, Phillips starting out with the Journeymen while Doherty and Elliott were members of the Mugwumps. Phillips founded the Mamas and Papas with his young wife, Michelle, in Los Angeles in 1965. They were known for their harmonies and we’re very popular in 1966 with hits like California Dreamin and Monday Monday. Their light only shined for a brief time as personal squabbles wrecked the band and they broke up in 1968, releasing only the unwarranted People Like Us in 1971. Still, along perhaps with the Lovin Spoonful, they had one of the happiest sounds in the turbulent times that were 1966 and 1967.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Their song selection more than anything else. Even though only John Phillips played an instrument, the foursome could make harmonies better than just about anybody at the time. Plus, Phillips was a superior songwriter with classics such as California Dreamin and Creeque Alley. He also wrote the Scott McKenzie anthem San Francisco (Wear Some Flowers in Your Hair). In the end, they’re just really a pleasant band to listen to. Mama Cass Elliott being from my hometown of Baltimore doesn’t hurt either :wink:

*Links to songs*:

California Dreamin
Monday Monday
I Saw Her Again
Creeque Alley
Safe in My Garden


*Mamas and the Papas on Wiki*

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mamas_and_the_Papas


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## Deleted member 56686 (Nov 4, 2019)

*57. ROXY MUSIC*







*Major Era*: 1972-1982

*Main Labels*:  Island/Atco, Warner Bros.


*Best Albums*: Country Life, For Your Pleasure, Avalon

*Best Songs*: The Thrill of It All, Out of the Blue, More Than This, Do the Strand

Possibly the most successful art rock band ever, Roxy Music was formed by Bryan Ferry in 1970 with Phil Manzanera and Brian Eno as well as two others. They came up in the middle of the glam rock movement in 1972 and became very popular in England and Australia. Success eluded them in the US until they scored with the smash hit Love is the Drug in 1975. The band blended all kinds of sounds and we’re one of the influences of the new wave era late in the seventies. Brian Eno left the band in 1973 to start his own solo career which included producing David Bowie for a while.  By then Roxy Music was all but Bryan Ferry’s band. They released one more acclaimed album, Avalon, in 1982 and are now in the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  At their best, they blend in their unique brand of instrumentation such as sax for example and Bryan Ferry seems to portray a rather glamorous persona in their work. Manzanera is one of the premier keyboardists in his field and Eno, though only with Roxy Music a short time, was a major factor in the use of synthesizers, something he would highlight in his own solo work.  I sometimes compare them to Bowie circa Diamond Dogs and that certainly isn’t a bad thing (see later on in this list- much later).

*Links to songs*:

Do the Strand
The Thrill Of It All
Love is the Drug
Dance Away
Avalon




*Roxy Music on Wiki*

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roxy_Music


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## Deleted member 56686 (Nov 5, 2019)

*56. PJ HARVEY*








*Major Era*: 1992-present

*Main Labels*: Island


*Best Albums*: Let England Shake, Dry, Stories From the City, Stories From the Sea, White Chalk

*Best Songs*: Let England Shake, Sheela-Na-Gig, When Under Ether, Good Fortune

PJ Harvey burst onto the alternative scene with Dry in 1992. She basically features a punk rock style with some Velvet Underground like overtones. As the years went on she would take a more mature turn in her music without ever losing the punk edge.  She added more instrumentation and began writing more introspective songs such as A Perfect Day Elise. By the 2000’s her music became even more mature and better yet from the punkish Good Fortune in 2000 to When Under Ether in 2007 to Let England Shake in 2011. Her most recent album is the Hope Demolition Project in 2016 though she has a new album coming out late this year.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  What’s not to like? She’s one of the best songwriters out there. There is a Patti Smith like quality about her as well. She has the ability to go minimalist while using many instruments. Plus the way she has grown musically from the simple punk of Dress to the more piano based moodiness of When Under Ether. She may very well be the greatest female artist since Patti Smith, or at least she is in my book.

*Links to songs*:

Sheela-Na-Gig
Down By the Water
Good Fortune
When Under Ether
Let England Shake

*PJ Harvey page*

http://pjharvey.net/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Nov 6, 2019)

*55. NEIL YOUNG*







*Major Era*: 1968-present

*Main Labels*:  Reprise, Geffen


*Best Albums*: After the Gold Rush, Harvest, Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere, American Stars and Bars

*Best Songs*: Hey Hey My My (Out of the Black), Til the Morning Comes, The Needle and the Damage Done

Certainly no introduction is necessary for this legend.  You probably know the story of Neil Young, having first found success with Buffalo Springfield then with CSNY while maintaining a brilliant solo career.  While his most successful albums tend to be either of the country-rock variety or straight out cow punk, Neil Young has also experimented with other forms while angering the record moguls who wanted Neil Young to bring out predictable product. Young can be rather difficult at times, but he is truly one of the rebels of rock.


*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  There is a certain earthiness to Neil Young’s songs. He is certainly one of the premier songwriters in all of music history as in songs such as the Needle and the Damage Done. It goes without saying there is a brutal honesty to Neil Young’s music. Even when he missteps such as on Everybody’s Rockin where he tries doo wop, you have to respect his desire to try new things even at the expense of his relations with record executives (He especially had issues with Geffen in between his more successful Reprise stints). One of rock’s rebels and that is easily his charm. Only the Grateful Dead have a more rabid fan base.

*Links to songs*:

Cinnamon Girl
After the Gold Rush
Needle and the Damage Done
Hey Hey My My (Into the Black)
Rockin in the Free World



*Neil Young on Wiki*

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neil_Young


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## Deleted member 56686 (Nov 7, 2019)

*54. ALICE COOPER*








*Major Era*: 1969-present

*Main Labels*:  Straight, Warner Brothers, MCA


*Best Albums*: Killer, Love It To Death, Billion Dollar Babies

*Best Songs*: School’s Out, Dead Babies, No More Mr. Nice Guy, Eighteen


Before Marilyn Manson shocked the world, there was Alice Cooper. Born Vincent Furnier in Detroit, Michigan, he formed the band Alice Cooper in 1967. Two years later, the band was recording for Frank Zappa’s Straight label before being picked up by Warner Brothers in 1971. This is where the legend took off as Alice Cooper, the artist, began his stage show complete with a boa constrictor. He/They also recorded a series of successful records that included the rock anthem School’s Out, still a popular number on the last day of school.  The hysteria died down around 1976 and Cooper would occasionally release something that reflected the musical tendencies of the times such as the new wave Clones in 1980. Today, he still does his live act while spreading his own anti-drug messages.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  To be honest, it really has nothing to do with the shock value. The fact is, is that Alice Cooper made at least three really good hard rock albums like , well, the three I mention in my best albums. I didn’t include School’s Out because, outside of the awesome title track, it doesn’t do a lot for me.  One thing for sure, Alice Cooper was one of the hottest items in my childhood and he certainly knew how to shock parents. He really wasn’t a glam rock star but he certainly fit the mold of one.

*Links to songs*:

Eighteen
Be My Lover
School’s Out
Billion Dollar Babies
Clones





*Alice Cooper on Wiki*

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alice_Cooper


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## Deleted member 56686 (Nov 8, 2019)

*53. U2*







*Major Era*: 1980-present

*Main Labels*: Island


*Best Albums*: The Joshua Tree, Achtung Baby, War, Boy

*Best Songs*: One,  I Will Follow, New Years Day, Bullet the Blue Sky


The most successful band to come out of Ireland, U2 emerged as arguably the most important alternative rock act of the eighties. Always politically motivated, U2 broke into the scene with the aptly titled War album, their third album, but the first to reach true global success.  Four years later, they released The Joshua Tree, one of the most successful albums of the eighties.  Frontman Bono had been active in various social activities to the point of being accused of being pretentious. The quality of U2 seemed to fade some after Achtung Baby, another well received album. They remain a major force in rock though and can still be politically relevant.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Lyrically, I like their anti-war stances for the most part, being something of a pacifist myself, but ultimately, it’s the music that does it for me. In my mind I see U2 and REM as the Beatles and Stones of the eighties and nineties. U2 is probably closer to the Stones as they seem to refuse to be able to let it go. I am one of those who thinks Bono is pretty pretentious. But their music from Boy in 1980 to Achtung Baby in 1991 is as good as anything out there and they certainly match up with my favorite bands from that period. The guitar work from the Edge isn’t all too shabby either.

*Links to songs*:

I Will Follow
New Years Day
Pride (In the Name of Love)
With or Without You
One


*U2 page*

https://www.u2.com/index/home


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## Deleted member 56686 (Nov 9, 2019)

*52. PAUL MCCARTNEY (and Wings)*








*Major Era*: 1970-present

*Main Labels*:  Apple, Columbia, Capitol


*Best Albums*: Band on the Run, Ram, Flaming Pie

*Best Songs*: Band On the Run, Too Many People, Dear Friend, Waterfalls, Somedays


Paul McCartney started his solo career rather auspiciously as the person who broke up the Beatles. He suffered a lot of critical backlash in the early seventies and his feud with John Lennon didn’t help matters much either.  Nevertheless, he was able, with his wife, Linda, to record the now better received Ram in 1971. Soon he and Linda would form Wings with Denny Laine, once of the Moody Blues.  McCartney, though Wings, became one of the major players of what was known as the Superstars era. Wings was a large attraction, Band On the Run being their magnum opus, and McCartney would be far and away the most successful of the four ex-Beatles.  Wings would split in 1980 leaving McCartney as a solo artist again. He tilted more towards a Middle of the Road style through the eighties and nineties before releasing his best album in nearly twenty-five years in Flaming Pie. Since then, he’s been hit and miss but his Egypt Station, released in 2018, proved that at age sevety-six (seventy-seven now), Paul McCartney still has it.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Well, honestly, he’s like that girl with the proverbial curl. When he’s good, he’s really good and when he’s bad, well, he records Silly Love Songs.  At his best though he still has that melodic edge that made him such an important part of the Beatles. He’s also the one who seems to remember those days with fondness, or at least with more fondness than Lennon or Harrison.  And he does have such standout material as with Ram and Band on the Run, and with tracks like Waterfalls and the heart wrenching Here Today as he sings about his late friend, John Lennon.  So maybe I don’t listen to McCartney as much as I do Lennon, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t belong on my list. Obviously, he does, because he’s here, isn’t he?

*Links to songs*:

Maybe I’m Amazed
Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey
Band On the Run
Coming Up
The World Tonight


*Paul McCartney page*

https://www.paulmccartney.com/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Nov 10, 2019)

*51. ELVIS PRESLEY*









*Major Era*: 1954-1977

*Main Labels*:  Sun, RCA


*Best Albums*:  Elvis Presley, From Elvis in Memphis, 50,000,000 Elvis Fans Can’t Be Wrong

*Best Songs*: Little Sister, Heartbreak Hotel, Jailhouse Rock, In the Ghetto

The first rock n roll phenomenon and probably the artist most important in putting that genre on the map.  Most people know the basic story as Elvis got his beginnings recording for Sun Records in Memphis. Sam Phillips would sell his contract to RCA and the rest is history. Elvis was quite controversial in his day as TV cameramen were ordered to shoot from only the waist up so TV audiences wouldn’t see his swiveling hips. Elvis mellowed a bit after a stint in the army and starred in a large series of movies, mostly of mediocre quality. He would make a comeback in 1968 and enjoyed a second wind as well as some wildly successful concert tours and Las Vegas shows until his untimely death in 1977.  Elvis’ death was perhaps the first major rock death to get worldwide coverage as thousands would attend his funeral.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Well, is the King of Rock n Roll, isn’t he?  He isn’t quite my favorite early rock n roll artist but how can you not put him on the list with hits like Hound Dog and Jailhouse Rock? My favorite Elvis song has to be Little Sister from 1961, an absolute rocker in the middle of more contemporary Elvis hits.  He’s also one of the saddest figures on my list as he would only surround himself with yes men and was undeniably lonely at the end of it all. Still, you have to love the early songs.

*Links to songs*:

That’s All Right Mama
Heartbreak Hotel
Jailhouse Rock
Are You Lonesome Tonight
Suspicious Minds



*Elvis Presley biography*

https://biography.elvis.com.au/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Nov 11, 2019)

*50.THE TEMPTATIONS*







*Major Era*: 1962-1976

*Main Labels*: Gordy


*Best Albums*: Psychedelic Shack, Cloud Nine, All Directions

*Best Songs*: Ball of Confusion, Papa Was a Rolling Stone, I Wish It Would Rain, I Can’t Get Next To You, I Know I’m Losing You

One of the most important bands in 1960s Motown,  The Temptations were the merging of two local bands in Detroit. They signed with Motown and began recording on the Gordy subsidiary. After two years of limited success, they scored a hit with The Way You Do the Things You Do in 1964 and began a string a hits that lasted well into the seventies. The Classic lineup of the Temptations ended in 1968 when David Ruffin left the group, Eddie Kendricks left in 1971 and Paul Johnson died the same year.  1968-1972 was the politically charged period for the Temptations with hits like Ball of Confusion and Papa Was a Rolling Stone. By the eighties, original members Otis Williams and Melvin Franklin soldiered on with the Temptations as an oldies act. Williams still leads the Temptations to this day though they bore little resemblance to either the classic band (Williams is the only survivor) or the politically relevant band.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  The Temptations, like most Motown artists, didn’t have a lot of say in what they could record, but they were given some amazingly good material. There was always a certain spirit in their performances, whether in the classic period with songs like My Girl or a favorite of mine, I Know I’m Losing You. I’m more partial to the funkier, politically charged Temptations of the late sixties and early seventies with songs like Ball of Confusion or Papa Was a Rolling Stone. They could still be gentle with hits like Just My Imagination, probably their other signature song along with My Girl. For a long time they were my favorite soul act of all time and they’re still up there.  I love listening to these guys.

*Links to songs*:

The Way You Do the Things You Do
My Girl
I Know I’m Losing You
Ball of Confusion
Papa Was a Rolling Stone



*The Temptations page*

http://www.temptationsofficial.com/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Nov 12, 2019)

*49. MANIC STREET PREACHERS*







*Major Era*: 1992-present

*Main Labels*: Columbia, Epic


*Best Albums*: This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours, Know Your Enemy, Send Away the Tigers, Generation Terrorists

*Best Songs*: You Stole the Sun From My Heart, Send Away The Tigers, So Why So Sad, Motorcycle Emptiness, A Design For Life

Very well known in the Brit Pop circles of nineties Britain, The Manic Street Preachers have all but been ignored in America. Nevertheless, the Preachers have maintained a decent following in England. They started out as a hard rock/metal outfit not unlike Guns n Roses but, after the strange disappearance of Richey Edwards, the Preachers took more of an arena rock approach with songs like If You Tolerate This, Your Children Will Be Next and The Everlasting. The Preachers also were quite political with something of a left wing tilt. Their Know Your Enemy album, for example, voices support for the Cuban government for the most part, something very controversial in the Western World indeed. They had their ups and downs on the UK charts but scored high with the metal tinged Send Away the Tigers.  The Manic Street Preachers remain together to this day with some mixed critical success.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Well, first of all, I’m no arena rock fan. When I think of arena rock, I think of someone like Journey, not these guys. And I'm not really a metal head either and yet, it’s the Guns n Roses approach to their brand of Brit Pop that I like most about them. I am a Brit Pop fan for the most part liking a lot of Blur (not on my list but close) for example. If Blur and Oasis (not a favorite the arrogant…) are Brit Pop with a sixties influence, then the Manic Street Preachers definitely represent the seventies and eighties approach to the genre.  And how can you not go head banging with a track like Send Away the Tigers?

*Links to songs*:

Motorcycle Emptiness
A Design For Life
You Stole the Sun From My Heart
So Why So Sad
Send Away the Tigers


*Manic Street Preachers on the Great Rock Bible*

http://thegreatrockbible.com/portfolio-item/manic-street-preachers-biography/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Nov 13, 2019)

*48. ELLIOTT SMITH*







*Major Era*: 1994-2004

*Main Labels*:  Kill Rock Stars, Dreamworks


*Best Albums*: XO, Figure 8, From a Basement on a Hill

*Best Songs*: Waltz No 2, Pretty (Ugly Before), Miss Misery, Waltz No 1


Singer songwriter Elliott Smith stands as one of the saddest figures in rock history. Very popular in the indie scene in the late nineties and early aughts, Smith wrote haunting melodies filled with great sadness. Never a commercial success, he still managed to appear on Saturday Night Live. He also was the major artist in the Good Will Hunting soundtrack, Miss Misery becoming one of his most popular songs. His life ended tragically from an alleged self inflicted knife wound in 2003. The circumstances of his death is questionable but there was no doubt Smith was a very depressed person. But he has left us with a wonderfully melancholy collection of music.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Very much influenced by the Beatles, Elliott Smith wrote the most melodic songs that tended to be personal in nature. The way his life ended was tragic but one of the things about depression is the creative beauty that sometimes comes with it. Elliott Smith is undoubtedly one of my favorite singer songwriters and certainly one of my favorite artists of the late nineties. Songs like Waltz No. 2 and Pretty Ugly Before really reach out to me and I don’t think there’s anything he did that I didn’t like. An absolutely great artist whose life ended way too soon.

*Links to songs*:
Needle in the Hay
Miss Misery
Waltz #2
Can’t Make a Sound
Pretty Ugly Before


*Elliott Smith on Wiki*

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elliott_Smith


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## Deleted member 56686 (Nov 14, 2019)

*47. YES*







*Major Era*: 1969-1978, 1983-2004

*Main Labels*: Atlantic, Atco


*Best Albums*: The Yes Album, Fragile, Close To the Edge

*Best Songs*: Your Move (I’ve Seen All Good People), Roundabout, Owner of a Lonely Heart, Wondrous Stories

One of the great progressive bands of the seventies as well as being one of the most successful, Yes incorporated a unique bass driven sound  using classical music structures on many of the records. Their songs tended to be rather long, sometimes dominating an entire side. This led to accusations from critics of being pretentious and overindulgent. After various personnel changes, Yes regrouped  with a more contemporary sound in the eighties and scored with Owner of a Lonely Heart.  They are still performing today, albeit with even more personnel changes.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Well, their early seventies material, particularly on the Yes Album, makes Yes one of the most unique bands on this list. Before rot set in about the time of Tales of Topographic Oceans, Yes could weave a tapestry of classical sounding rock using mainly keyboards, bass, drums and guitars. Jon Anderson had one of the great voices in rock. It was smooth, not screechy like Robert Plant could be for example.  I can’t call myself a true progressive fan though there are some bands that I do like. Yes happens to be one of them because they can create melodies that a lot of progressive bands can’t.

*Links to songs*:

Your Move ( I Seen All Good People)
Roundabout
The Gates of Delirium
Wondrous Stories
Owner of a Lonely Heart





*Yes page*

http://yesworld.com/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Nov 15, 2019)

*46. JOHN LEE HOOKER*







*Major Era*: 1948-1998

*Main Labels*: Modern, Vee-Jay, Chess, Atlantic, Bluesway


*Best Albums*: It Serves You Right To Suffer, Travelin, Hooker n Heat

*Best Songs*: Dimples, Boom Boom, I’m in the Mood, Frisco Blues

One of the great blues artists, John Lee Hooker first arrived on the scene with Boogie Chillun in 1948. He later would record classic blues tunes such as I’m in the Mood and Dimples. In the early sixties he would score a minor hit with Boom Boom but it would the British Blues boom of the mid sixties that people began to notice blues artists like Muddy Waters and John Lee Hooker in particular. Hooker was unique as he used boogie type beats in his music. Not really soul as he sang straight blues himself but, musically, it could be soulful in a happy type of way. In his later years Hooker would make many live performances and would play with artists from Canned Heat to the Rolling Stones. A true legend, John Lee Hooker was inducted into the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame in 1991.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Okay, so let me make this clear. I really like the blues, especially the electric blues from the fifties.  I love Muddy Waters  (not on this list but close) and Howlin Wolf (at no. 79), but John Lee Hooker is the best of them all. At his best, Hooker can almost swing with tracks like Dimples and Boom Boom and even his slower paced songs like Frisco Blues has a certain oomph to it. Like other blues artists, John Lee Hooker puts a lot of feeling into his songs but for some reason, his songs seem just a little happier than, say, Howlin Wolf. I don’t think anybody would feed John Lee Hooker gasoline :lol:


*Links to songs*:

Boogie Chillun
I’m in the Mood
Dimples
Boom Boom
It Serves You Right To Suffer

*John Lee Hooker page*

http://www.johnleehooker.com/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Nov 16, 2019)

*45. OTIS REDDING*







*Major Era*: 1963-1969

*Main Labels*:  Volt


*Best Albums*: Otis Blue, The Dictionary of Soul, The Soul Album

*Best Songs*: Try a Little Tenderness, Respect, Fa Fa Fa Fa Fa (Sad Song), (Sittin on the) Dock of the Bay

One of the legendary soul performers of the sixties, Otis Redding arrived at Memphis in 1962 where he was picked up by Stax Records.  He scored a major R&B hit with These Arms of Mine in 1963 and would be very popular on those charts. He soon began to reach white audiences as well with songs like Respect and Try a Little Tenderness. Redding wrote many of his songs and he enjoyed backing from Booker T and the MGs and the Memphis Horns. He was arguably one of the two most popular attractions at the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967 and seemed well on his way to stardom. Unfortunately, that was cut short when he and members of the Barkays we’re killed in a plane crash in December 1967. His only number one, (Sittin On the) Dock of the Bay, was released right after his death and cemented his legend. He still is remembered as one of the greatest artists in the history of Soul.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  The fact that he wrote many of his own songs is certainly a selling point and, while Aretha Franklin may have made Respect her anthem of sorts, Otis Redding was the one who wrote it. He also does a raving version of Satisfaction and some people were thinking the Rolling Stones were covering him. For me, yes, his voice and his emotion has a lot to do with it, but the arrangements from the Memphis Horns pretty much seal the deal for me. I like a lot of the Stax artists (Redding recorded for Volt but they were a subsidiary of Stax) but Otis Redding and, to a lesser extent, Booker T and the MGs, stand out for me.

*Links to songs*:

Security
Respect
Try a Little Tenderness
Tramp (with Carla Thomas)
(Sittin on the) Dock of the Bay


*Otis Redding page*

https://otisredding.com/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Nov 17, 2019)

*44. NIRVANA*








*Major Era*: 1989-1995

*Main Labels*:  Sub Pop


*Best Albums*: Nevermind, In Utero, Unplugged Live in New York

*Best Songs*: Heart Shaped Box, About a Girl, Smells Like Teen Spirit, Jesus Wants Me For a Sunbeam, Come As You Are


One of the more successful bands of the nineties, Nirvana made a huge impact on the Seattle grunge scene. Kurt Cobain was yet another of those depressed geniuses that seem to be dotting my list. He also emerged as one of the best songwriters of his time. Nirvana took their influences from metal, folk, and what was then known as modern rock and turned it all into a sound of their own. In other words, they invented the grunge sound which basically consisted of hard rhythm guitars and heavy drumming. They were simple musicians, really. Nirvana made the big time with their Nevermind album in 1991 and became something of a phenomenon in modern rock circles. Sometimes controversial, Nirvana would release In Utero featuring songs like Heart Shaped Box (with abortion and religious references in the video) and Rape Me. Cobain suffered not only from depression but heroin abuse and, after a failed suicide attempt in Italy earlier that year, shot himself in April of 1994, leaving an incomplete legacy. Drummer Dave Grohl went on to great success after founding the Foo Fighters while Krist Novoselic went into obscurity. Girlfriend Courtney Love, well, the less said about her…

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  I don’t like the Seattle scene as much as some others might. I should really be into Pearl Jam given their San Francisco type vibe, but they honestly don’t do it for me. I do like Soundgarden and some of the Stone Temple Pilots, but it is really Nirvana that stands out for me. They had a knack of making hard grunge sounds sound rather palatable. About a Girl, off Bleach, for example, works great as a heavy pop song with its melodic undertones.  And Nirvana wasn’t afraid to push the envelope, obviously, especially on In Utero.  Sadly, Kurt Cobain couldn’t handle the pressures of sudden fame and it ended in tragedy as mentioned above. Still, their three albums basically is enough for me to rank Nirvana where they are. And their impact on the rock scene in the nineties is immeasurable.

*Links to songs*:

About a Girl
Smells Like Teen Spirit
Come As You Are
Heart Shaped Box
The Man Who Sold the World

*Nirvana on Wiki*

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nirvana_(band)


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## Deleted member 56686 (Nov 18, 2019)

*43. THE PIXIES*







*Major Era*: 1987-1992, 2004-present

*Main Labels*:  4AD,


*Best Albums*: Doolittle, Bossanova, Surfer Rosa

*Best Songs*: Velouria, Here Comes Your Man, Where Is My Mind, Monkey Gone To Heaven

Out of Boston, The Pixies arrived on the alternative scene in the late eighties. Led by Black Francis, or Frank Black if you will, The Pixies were known for their unusual chord changes and the bouncing off vocals of Francis and Kim Deal, who had her own influence in the band. Though never big in top forty radio, the Pixies recorded a string of albums that were successful in alternative land at least and, along with bands like Sonic Youth, became part of the alternative punk underground of the late eighties and early nineties. Albums Doolittle and Bossanova are considered classic by many critics. The Pixies split in 1992. Black Francis (as Frank Black then Black Francis and the Catholics) and Kim Deal (with the Breeders) would have fairly successful careers in the nineties.  They reunited in 2004 and have recorded intermittently since.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  I absolutely love their chord changes which is something that would carry on with Black Francis’ work in particular. There is a surf rock element to their music that can’t be denied. Kim Deal has one of the best voices in rock in my opinion. I mean, she can’t belt them like Janis Joplin or anything  but she has a certain moodiness in her voice. Joey Santiago plays a mean lead guitar. I guess in some ways, The Pixies come closest to surf metal though they truly aren’t metal in the grand scheme of things. Just a hard edged melodic group that would make Paul McCartney jealous.

*Links to songs*:

Caribou
Where is My Mind
Here Comes Your Man
Velouria
Wave of Mutilation

*Pixies on 4AD*

https://4ad.com/artists/pixies


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## Deleted member 56686 (Nov 19, 2019)

*42. THE SMITHS*








*Major Era*: 1984-1988

*Main Labels*:  Rough Trade/Sire


*Best Albums*: The Smiths, Meat is Murder, The Queen is Dead

*Best Songs*: How Soon Is Now, What Difference Does It Make, Heaven Knows I’m Miserable Now, Stop Me If You Heard This One Before

The Smiths  were a band out of Manchester, England that were formed by Morrissey and Johnny Marr, who would get along about as well as oil and water. Nevertheless, they banded together for some of the best music of the eighties. Essentially, the Smiths were a pop band that borrowed from British Invasion sensibilities. What made them unusual, besides Marr’s dreamy guitar work, was Morrissey’s rather downer type vocals. Morrissey sang of depression in his songs with charmers like Heaven Knows I’m Miserable Now and Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want.  They broke into the alternative rock scene with their self-titled album in 1984 and would garner some success in England as well as on college radio in the States. They couldn’t maintain it though as relations between Morrissey and Marr worsened and they split up in 1988. Morrissey embarked on a very successful solo career while Marr would get into session work. Relations still aren’t good as the other Smiths have filed lawsuits against Morrissey and Marr. Still, they made some of the best music of the eighties and that cannot be taken away.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  There is a dream like style in their mood, albeit a depressing dream like style.  I do think Morrissey sounds a little too monotonous,  but he gets away with it because the songs are so good as well as the melodies.  I remember being really into this band during their heyday and I later worked with someone who was an even bigger fan. In some ways I curse these guys for likely being an influence on Oasis, but no matter; it’s the music that matters and these guys were pretty good at that.

*Links to songs*:

What Difference Does It Make
How Soon is Now
Heaven Knows I’m Miserable Now
Stop Me If You Heard This One Before
Girlfriend in a Coma



*The Smiths on Wiki*

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Smiths


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## Deleted member 56686 (Nov 20, 2019)

*41. THE TURTLES*







*Major Era*: 1965-1970

*Main Labels*: White Whale


*Best Albums*: Happy Together, Turtle Soup, It Ain’t Me Babe

*Best Songs*: Happy Together, A Walk in the Sun, Grim Reaper of Love, Love in the City, You Showed Me

Probably one of the most unusual artists on my list, this band originally started out as a surf group known as the Crossfires.  In the mid sixties, they would develop a poppy folk-rock sound and change their name to the Turtles. They originally wanted to call themselves the Tyrtles after the Byrds, but saner heads prevailed. They hit big with the pop anthem Happy Together in 1967. By then they had abandoned pop folk-rock and was going with chamber pop. The late sixties proved most successful for White Whale’s most successful band as they also scored hits with She’d Rather Be With Me, Eleanor, and the Byrds cover, You Showed Me.  They would disband in 1971 and leaders Howard Kaylan and Mark Volman would go on as an eccentric duo known as Flo and Eddie and would play with artists such as Frank Zappa.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  What can I say? By all measures, the Turtles really shouldn’t be on this list and yet, they’re such a catchy band . They recorded some of the catchiest songs of the sixties such as Happy Together. I tend to really like the songs that weren’t such big hits though such as Grim Reaper of Love and Love In the City. Their albums, for the most part, aren’t all that great, but their singles were of very high quality and, anyway, White Whale has the neatest record art in history :lol:

*Links to songs*:

It Ain’t Me Babe
You Baby
Happy Together
Eleanor
You Showed Me



*The Turtles on Wiki*

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Turtles


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## Deleted member 56686 (Nov 21, 2019)

*40. CREEDENCE CLEARWATER REVIVAL*







*Major Era*: 1968-1972

*Main Labels*:  Fantasy


*Best Albums*: Cosmos Factory, Willie and the Poor Boys, Green River, Creedence Clearwater Revival

*Best Songs*: Fortunate Son, Run Through the Jungle, Green River, Suzi Q, Born On the Bayou

From the East Bay area, Creedence Clearwater Revival started out as a band known as the Golliwogs. As the mid sixties became the late sixties, the Golliwogs honed their sound as if it came out of the Louisiana Bayou, making them fairly unusual for a San Francisco area band. With a name change, CCR began recording for Fantasy records. They would release a decent string of major hits from 1968 to 1972 and were one of the most popular bands of the period. Quite prolific, they also released seven albums during that period. The band broke up after acrimony between band leader John Fogerty and the rest of the band, including his brother, Tom. Fogerty still doesn’t talk to them to this day and he never reached closure with Tom Fogerty, who died in 1990.  Musically, they remain one of the most important bands of the late sixties/early seventies.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Not truly a great album band, what CCR was, was an amazing singles band. Songs like Proud Mary and Fortunate Son are still staples of rock. Ike and Tina Turner, in fact, had a raucous hit with Proud Mary in 1971. Though a hard rock band, they resisted going the Led Zeppelin route, keeping a sixties feel to their music. John Fogerty has some incredible vocal ability and the band was certainly musically tight even if their personal relations weren’t.

*Links to songs*:

Suzi Q
Proud Mary
Green River
Run Thru the Jungle
Have You Ever Seen the Rain


*CCR page*

https://www.creedence-online.net/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Nov 22, 2019)

*39. DONOVAN*








*Major Era*: 1965-1976

*Main Labels*:  Pye/Hickory, Epic


*Best Albums*: Sunshine Superman, Hurdy Gurdy Man, Barabajagal

*Best Songs*: Sunshine Superman, Hurdy Gurdy Man, Season of the Witch, Atlantis, Bert’s Blues


Born in Scotland, Donovan Leitch started out as a folk singer in the mid sixties and was given the label of being “The British Bob Dylan.” Even as a folk artist, Donovan incorporated jazz and blues sounds to his music. He scored early hits like Catch the Wind and Colours. It was in 1966 when Donovan really broke through with the psychedelic smash, Sunshine Superman. He would become a spokesman of sorts for the flower children movement of the late sixties. He traveled to India with the Beatles and taught John Lennon his finger picking style of guitar, something Lennon would use on the Beatles’ White Album. Donovan faded into relative obscurity after 1970 though he kept recording some fairly decent albums like Essence To Essence and Slow Down World. Today, he only performs sporadically but is still remembered fondly by contemporaries like Paul McCartney, with whom he had been close friends with.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Well, it’s easier to start with what attracted me to Donovan in the first place. Sunshine Superman was a song I remember hearing when I was four and it has stuck with me ever since. I consider Sunshine Superman to be my second favorite song ever next to Strawberry Fields Forever. But Donovan is a lot more than that. There are his folk tracks that also include a cover of Universal Soldier. Then you have certain tracks off Sunshine Superman, Hurdy Gurdy Man, Barabajagal, etc.  Essentially, Donovan  was one of the pioneers of psychedelic folk and that’s what I like about him the best.

*Links to songs*:


Catch the Wind
Sunshine Superman
Mellow Yellow
Hurdy Gurdy Man
Atlantis

*Donovan page*

https://donovan.ie/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Nov 23, 2019)

*38. CHUCK BERRY*








*Major Era*: 1955-1972

*Main Labels*:  Chess


*Best Albums*: One Dozen Berry’s, Chuck Berry Is On Top, From St Louis to Liverpool

*Best Songs*: School Day, Johnny B Goode, Back in the USA, Memphis Tennessee, Rock n Roll Music

One of the pioneers of Rock n Roll, Chuck Berry hailed from St Louis, Missouri. He developed a love of the blues at an early age and, after learning how to play the guitar, traveled to Chicago where he met Muddy Waters. After signing with Chess records, Berry scored a top five national hit with Maybelline, one of the first rock n roll records to have such success. He continued on with a string of classic hits like School Day, Sweet Little Sixteen, and Johnny Be Goode. His career was interrupted after being found guilty of the Mann Act, but he would make a comeback in 1964 and again in 1972. His signature duck tail style made him a major attraction on the oldies circuit and he influenced just about everybody in rock n roll from the Beach Boys to the Beatles to the Rolling Stones. Keith Richards in fact would direct him in Hail, Hail, Rock n Roll in 1987.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Chuck Berry is most likely the most influential artist in rock history. I can’t name one band from the sixties that didn’t list him as an influence. Berry is my favorite artist to have peaked in the fifties (there is an early sixties icon I rank higher). He had a unique guitar style even by fifties standards and he wrote some of the greatest songs of his era including Memphis Tennessee, Carol, and Back in the USA among others. I probably rate School Day as my favorite Chuck Berry song with the guitar emulating the vocals. Later Chuck Berry tails off a bit for me, especially with My Ding a Ling from the 1972 comeback, but his material from 1955 to about 1961 is comparable with anyone from any era.

*Links to songs*:

Maybelinne
School Day
Johnny B Goode
Memphis Tennessee
Nadine


*Chuck Berry page*

http://www.chuckberry.com/home


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## Deleted member 56686 (Nov 28, 2019)

*37. THE ANIMALS*







*Major Era*: 1964-1969

*Main Labels*: Columbia/MGM


*Best Albums*: The Animals, The Twain Shall Meet, Animalisms

*Best Songs*: House of the Rising Sun, Sky Pilot, It’s My Life, I’m Crying, When I Was Young


The Animals hailed from Newcastle, England, and would become one of the top R&B bands of the British boom.  Eric Burdon, Alan Price, and drummer  John Steel started out with the Kansas City Five. They hooked up with Chas Chandler and Hilton Valentine and formed the Animals in 1963. After securing a contract with Columbia Records in England, The Animals scored a monster hit with their rendition of the traditional House of the Rising Sun. After the Animals turned that song into their own, they would have a string of hits over the next two years including We Gotta Get Out of This Place and Don’t Bring Me Down.  After members began leaving one by one, leaving only Eric Burdon as the lone original member, he formed a New Animals and Burdon would guide the band into a more psychedelic sound. Eric Burdon and the Animals would be best known for pieces like When I Was Young, San Franciscan Nights, and Sky Pilot. By 1969, the Animals were done completely and Burdon would found the band War, scoring a hit with Spill the Wine in 1970 before leaving that band. War would have several more hits in the seventies but Burdon, nor the other Animals would reach the heights of fame they once had.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  House of the Rising Sun is one of those rock anthems I can never get tired of. I’m not one to be that impressed with white soul and the Animals weren’t really of that genre, but Burdon could sing as well as any of the best blues musicians. If one didn’t know, he could have been mistaken for black. Alan Price was one of the more innovative keyboardists in the sixties and it was he, along with Burdon’s vocals, that gave the Animals their distinctive sound. Eric Burdon and the Animals later were a bit more uneven but they too could come up with some gems as noted in my best songs. We’ll never know what could have been if drugs and alcohol hadn’t caused rifts within the original band, but they remain one of my favorite British Invasion groups.

*Links to songs*:

House of the Rising Sun
We Gotta Get Out of This Place
Don’t Bring Me Down
San Franciscan Nights
Sky Pilot

*The Animals on R&R HOF page*

https://www.rockhall.com/inductees/animals


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## Deleted member 56686 (Nov 30, 2019)

*36. LED ZEPPELIN*








*Major Era*: 1969-1982

*Main Labels*:  Atlantic, Swan Song


*Best Albums*: Led Zeppelin III, Led Zeppelin II, Physical Graffiti, Houses of the Holy

*Best Songs*: Stairway To Heaven, Immigrant Song, Kashmir, The Ocean, Thank You


Out of the ashes of the New Yardbirds begat Led Zeppelin, so named because a critic predicted they would go down like a lead balloon.  After finishing out the New Yardbirds’ commitments,  they cut an album with Atlantic. Led Zeppelin was a heavy blues based band led by Jimmy Page and Robert Plant. After releasing Led Zeppelin II in late 1969, they became enormously popular among hard rock fans and would be a major influence on every heavy metal band to come after them. Mainly an album band, Led Zeppelin nevertheless would record major anthems like Stairway To Heaven and Kashmir.  The band would split up only after drummer John Bonham’s tragic death in 1980. Page and Plant still perform together occasionally and they are both amicable with John Paul Jones who has kept a low profile since the breakup. Led Zeppelin is perhaps the most influential band of their genre and, though some may argue (like Trollheart ), they are perhaps the greatest heavy metal band of all time.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  So, for the record, I’m not what you would call a metal head. So why do I like these guys? Well, you can argue that Led Zeppelin is one of the greatest plagiarizers in rock history as they have been accused of at times, but the fact is, Jimmy Page is one of the greatest guitarists ever. Maybe he’s a little pretentious when he plays the guitar as if it’s a violin, but he is such an innovative musician, does it really matter? And Bonham and Jones make up one of the great rhythm sections of rock.  And I don’t think Led Zeppelin ever really lost their bluesy edge.  They were also not afraid to incorporate sounds like folk (on most of their albums) and reggae (especially on Led Zeppelin III, my personal favorite Led Zep album). So I think it’s safe to say that Led Zeppelin is the heaviest band on my list. But that’s only because they’re that good.

*Links to songs*:

Good Times Bad Times
Whole Lotta Love
Stairway To Heaven
The Rover
All of My Love




*Led Zeppelin page*

https://www.ledzeppelin.com/?frontpage=true


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## Deleted member 56686 (Dec 1, 2019)

*35.WILCO*







*Major Era*: 1994-present

*Main Labels*:  Nonesuch, Reprise


*Best Albums*: Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, Summerteeth,  Wilco (the Album), A Ghost is Born

*Best Songs*: Ashes of American Flags, Deeper Down, Theologians, Nothingsevergonnastandinmyway (again), I’ll Fight

One of the heavy hitters in indie rock, Wilco rose from the ashes of alt-country band Uncle Tupelo. Led by Jeff Tweedy, Wilco released the alt-country AM in 1995. They would fine tune their sound into more of a folk rock vein with the next album. Wilco’s star really began to shine after a collaboration with Billy Bragg, recording Woody Guthrie songs on Mermaid Avenue, then scored with two wildly high acclaimed albums in Summerteeth and Yankee Hotel Foxtrot. On those albums, Wilco took a slightly more psychedelic approach to the music. They got back to basics on a Ghost is Born in 2004 and have maintained a consistency with the quality of their songs.  They recently released their thirteenth studio album, Ode To Joy, in October 2019.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Wilco is the reason I was able to get into alt-country and, along with Johnny Cash, a big reason why I no longer run away at the sound of a country-western song, especially from the first half of the twentieth century.  Jeff Tweedy knows how to weave a narrative in his songs and the band’s arrangements. The songs are down to earth, even the more experimental ones like on Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, easily one of the best albums of the Millennium by the way. I think it’s safe to say of all the artists that made their mark in this Millennium, Wilco is my favorite of them all.

*Links to songs*:

Outtasite (Outta Mind)
Pieholden Suite
Ashes of American Flags
Theologians
I Might




*Wilco on Wiki*

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilco


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## Deleted member 56686 (Dec 2, 2019)

*34. ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA*







*Major Era*: 1972-1986

*Main Labels*:  Harvest, United Artists, Jet


*Best Albums*: Eldorado, On the Third Day, Electric Light Orchestra, Face the Music

*Best Songs*: Can’t Get It Out of My Head, 10538 Overture, One Summer Dream, Mr. Kingdom, Sweet Talkin Woman, Mr. Radio

From the ashes of the Move and the Idle Race came Electric Light Orchestra. Jeff Lynne and Roy Wood were pioneers in the chamber rock that was becoming popular in England in the late sixties. Wood’s Move, in fact, enjoyed some popularity with hits like Flowers in the Rain and Fire Brigade. Lynne’s band, the Idle Race, were not quite as successful commercially, but released two albums, one, The Birthday Party, which received some critical acclaim. After the Idle Race broke up, Lynne joined the Move and became an equal partner with Wood. They, along with Bev Bevan, formed ELO and emphasized a Beatlesque sound circa I Am the Walrus.  They reached mainstream status after the departure of Wood in 1972 as ELO became Lynne’s band exclusively. Smash hits like Can’t Get It Out of My Head and Sweet Talking Woman followed and ELO was one of the most popular bands of the seventies. They stayed together well into the eighties when Lynne departed to produce records and to join in on vanity projects like the Traveling Wilbury’s. Electric Light Orchestra was finally inducted into the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame in 2017.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Their classical sound is the primary nom de plume of this band. Early ELO seemed to be repeating I Am the Walrus in their own way but they somehow made that sound all their own. Classics like 10538 Overture and Queen of the Hours are among my favorite songs of the seventies.  They branched out their sound a bit in the mid seventies, which was their heyday, and an album like Eldorado, I can listen to forever. Their late seventies material, while a little too contemporary at times, also had their moments with songs like Sweet Talking Woman and Livin’ Thing. Lynne wrote some great melodies and they never got stale with their violin based sound. And Lynne, as a producer/solo artist, shows his own unique style as well. Again, it never gets old.

*Links to songs*:

Roll Over Beethoven
10538 Overture
Can’t Get It Out of My Head
Strange Magic
Sweet Talkin Woman




*Electric Light Orchestra at the R&R HOF*

https://www.rockhall.com/inductees/elo


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## Deleted member 56686 (Dec 3, 2019)

*33. DEPECHE MODE*








*Major Era*: 1981-present

*Main Labels*:  Mute/Sire


*Best Albums*: Violator, Music For the Masses, Some Great Reward, Songs of Faith and Devotion

*Best Songs*: Never Let Me Down Again, Personal Jesus, Route 66, Policy of Truth, Master and Servant

Depeche Mode started out as a New Wave band out of Essex in the early eighties. They scored early on with the pop hit I Just Can’t Get Enough. Known for their heavy synthesizer sound and gothic like melodies, Depeche Mode ventured into darker sounding material without somehow losing the pop sensibilities. Dave Gahan was one of the more recognizable vocalists of the eighties and nineties. The Mode recorded classic albums like Music For the Masses and Violator as well as classic tracks like Master and Servant and Never Let Me Down Again. They settled into a predictable sound after Violator but still had their moments such as in songs like Dream On.  They remain together and have been a major influence on other synth-pop bands like Coldplay and the Crystal Method.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  There is a certain dark mood about them. Gahan often sings in the minor key. I sense that despite their synth-pop sound, there is a classical influence about them.  Violator, in particular, is one of those timeless albums that I would want on my desert island discs. My favorite song, and probably the one that really attracted me to this band, is Never Let Me Down Again off Music For the Masses.  Violator followed and that was enough to sell me. I don’t follow them the way I did in the early nineties but the period from about 1986 to 1991 is as classic as any era for any band.

*Links to songs*:

Just Can’t Get Enough
Master and Servant
Never Let Me Down Again
Personal Jesus
Dream On





*Depeche Mode on Wiki*

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Depeche_Mode


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## Ditchweed242 (Dec 3, 2019)

I have spent quite a bit of time listening to Depeche Mode.
Hey, everything counts in large amounts. :mrgreen:


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## Deleted member 56686 (Dec 4, 2019)

*32. DEVO*








*Major Era*: 1978-1987

*Main Labels*:  Warner Bros.


*Best Albums*: Are We Not Men, Duty Now For the Future, Freedom of Choice

*Best Songs*: Satisfaction, Secret Agent Man, Girl U Want, Uncontrollable Urge, The Day My Baby Gave Me a Surprise

From the nuclear plants of Akron, Ohio come the band, Devo. Devo was part of a burgeoning New Wave movement in Akron that included the Waitresses and Rachel Sweet. They were known for their unique robotic sound.  They started out as a joke band with the concept of d-evolution, but by the late seventies, developed a more serious approach to their guitar based, yet strangely electronic, sound.  The broke into the scene with an amazingly robotic version of Satisfaction in 1978. They followed a year later with an unusual version of Secret Agent Man. Both songs are now considered New Wave classics. Devo would score a major hit with Whip It in 1980 and became MTV mainstays for the next few years. Devo would later experiment with new sounds like Muzak of all things. Band leader Mark Mothersbaugh would go on to write music for television shows such as Rugrats. As for Devo, they reunite occasionally but they haven’t reached the heights they once had. They still leave us with one of the most unique sounds in rock history that has never really been imitated.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Their unusual getups is the first thing you notice with this band. They won me over when I saw them on Saturday Night Live playing Satisfaction. I think it’s safe to say I was a fan from the beginning. The fanboydom was reinforced a year later when they released their sophomore album, Duty Now For the Future, with a totally different get up.  In fact, with each album, Devo would perform as a different incarnation such as the costume complete with flower pot hats on Freedom Of Choice. They clearly were influenced by Frank Zappa in the sense that they wrote unusual and sometimes nonsensical songs, or they’d skewer classic hits like Satisfaction and Secret Agent Man in their own unique style. Devo was peaking in my formative years essentially, so they’re kind of special in that way. Among my New Wave favorites.

*Links to songs*:

Satisfaction
Secret Agent Man
Whip It
Through Being Cool
That’s Good


*Devo page*

http://www.clubdevo.com/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Dec 5, 2019)

*31. MIDNIGHT OIL*







*Major Era*: 1983-2002

*Main Labels*:  CBS, Columbia

*Best Albums*: 10,9,8,7,6,5,4…, Diesel and Dust, Blue Sky Mining

*Best Songs*: Power and the Passion, One Country, Blue Sky Mining, Beds are Burning, Truganani

One of the most successful bands to come out of Australia, Midnight Oil started out as a band known as the Farm in the mid seventies. After a name change, Midnight Oil found a following among punk rock enthusiasts in their native land with albums like Head Injuries and Bird Noises. They reached American audiences in 1983 with Power and the Passion off the album 10,9,8,7,6,5,… By then they had refined their sound into a hard rock base with a political conscience. The left wing political slant was obvious by the time of their true breakthough album, Diesel and Dust in 1987. Two more albums, Blue Sky Mining and Earth and Sun and Moon followed. Peter Garrett later was a member of the Australian parliament for a while but has since resumed his role as frontman for the Oils. Midnight Oil remain advocates with their music for environmental concerns and the plight of the Aborigines.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Their hard edged style is what first attracted me to this band and, being somewhat liberal myself politically speaking, I can relate to much of what they are saying. I was lucky to see them play live in 1993 and they were having literature passed about the environment mostly. It was like making personal profits were less important to them than trying to change the world in their own way. It’s a favorite moment of mine. Really, everything between Power and the Passion and Truganini is enough to make Midnight Oil my second favorite band of the eighties. And I would be remiss if I didn’t mention some of the different types of percussion the band has used, especially on my favorite Oils song, Power and the Passion. Yes, I really like these guys.

*Links to songs*:

Power and the Passion
When the Generals Talk
Beds Are Burning
Blue Sky Mine
Truganini


*Midnight Oil page*

https://www.midnightoil.com/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Dec 6, 2019)

*30.JOHNNY CASH*







*Major Era*: 1955-2003

*Main Labels*:  Sun, Columbia, American Recordings


*Best Albums*: American IV: The Man Comes Around, At Folsom Prison, Bitter Tears, Ride This Train

*Best Songs*: Folsom Prison Blues, I’ve Been Everywhere,  The Man in Black, Redemption Day, The Ballad of Ira Hayes



Perhaps the greatest artist in the history of country music, Johnny Cash, more than anyone, transcended into different genres. Born to a sharecropper’s family in Arkansas, Cash made his way to Memphis where he began recording records for Sam Phillips at Sun Records. He developed a  boom chicka boom type of sound and belted out classics like Folsom Prison Blues and I Walk the Line. He was one of the early crossover acts, becoming fairly popular with rock n roll audiences. In 1959, Cash signed with Columbia records and quickly established himself as the most popular artist in country music with hits like Ring of Fire and Orange Blossom Special. During the sixties, Cash became a born again Christian and surprised everybody by taking up the cause of the Vietnam War protesters. He became a hit with young people on his TV show around 1970 with songs like What is Truth and the Man in Black. His career faded a bit during the seventies and eighties though he kept recording and even took a stab at acting. In the nineties though, he signed with Rick Rubin’s American Recordings and enjoyed a late renaissance with his American Series. He was again popular with the youth of America with what was arguably the best music of his life. Suffering from bad health towards the end of his life and suddenly widowed with the death of his wife, June Carter Cash, Johnny Cash passed away in 2003 but not before releasing his rendition of the Nine Inch Nails cover, Hurt. Cash was now known for taking songs like Hurt and Personal Jesus and making them into his own.  Johnny Cash is truly one of those American icons.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  For a long time, I would say Johnny Cash was the only country artist I liked. That’s no longer true, but certainly no one in that genre comes close to Cash.  He never was your typical country star with the rhinestones and the twangy steel guitars I used to hear growing up in the seventies. He was simply the Man in Black. I can look at almost any era of Cash’s career from his Sun days to his early sixties material to the topical Bitter Tears to his live prison albums and, of course, his American Recordings. Each era sounds just a bit different and yet, they are all Johnny Cash, and the quality is always tops.  I think the thing I like most about Cash is his socially relevant stances. He is a born again Christian in the mode of Jimmy Carter, who cared about helping others more than anything else. And, especially with his American Recordings, he wasn’t afraid to take chances with material any other country artist wouldn’t have touched with a ten foot pole.  Johnny Cash really was a musical genius and it’s hard to argue otherwise.


And for those of you for Americana fans, Johnny Cash is not only one of the premier pioneers of that sub-genre, he practically invented it. 


*Links to songs*:

Folsom Prison Blues
Ring of Fire
Jackson (From At Folsom Prison)
The Man in Black
Hurt



*Johnny Cash page*

https://www.johnnycash.com/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Dec 7, 2019)

*29. RADIOHEAD*







*Major Era*: 1993-present

*Main Labels*:  EMI, XL


*Best Albums*: OK Computer, Amnesiac, The Bends, In Rainbows

*Best Songs*: Karma Police, Paranoid Android, Morning Sun (Amnesiac), Just, Lucky

Radiohead was, and is, one of the premier alternative bands of the nineties and beyond. They mix progressively electronic sounds with straight out rock and has the ability to weave masterpieces like OK Computer and In Rainbows. They started out as a straight forward modern rock band with the release of Pablo Honey in 1993. Two years later, they branched into a more progressive sounding mode with The Bends. It was in 1997, however, when Radiohead released their nineties masterpiece, OK Computer, an album which has been compared favorably to albums like Sgt. Pepper and the Dark Side of the Moon. They continued on with the well received Kid A and Amnesiac and were among the first bands to release an album, In Rainbows, over the internet.  They can be a bit snobbish and maybe a little pretentious at times such as when Thom Yorke and the Greenwood Brothers snubbed their Rock n Roll Hall of Fame Induction just this year, but it never has taken away from the music.  Their most recent album, A Moon Shaped Pool, was released in 2016.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  I first heard Creep when it first came out and I bought Pablo Honey, only to be somewhat disappointed, so imagine my surprise when I heard OK Computer a few years later. OK Computer, to me, is the best album I’ve heard since REM’s Murmur and is one of the few albums of the past thirty years that compares favorably to my favorite albums from the sixties and seventies. To me there is a certain psychedelic vibe with Radiohead, especially on OK Computer and Amnesiac. I admit not keeping up with them since Hail To the Thief, another great album by the way, but what I have heard tells me that Radiohead has yet to lose their edge. I rate Radiohead as my favorite band of the nineties which says two things. One, that the nineties don’t quite have the quality of other decades, especially the sixties and seventies and, two, Radiohead was nonetheless an extraordinary band. So they’ll always be a perennial favorite to me.

*Links to songs*:

Creep
Just
Karma Police
Morning Bell (Kid A)
Jigsaw Falling Into Place



*Radiohead on Wiki*

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radiohead


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## Deleted member 56686 (Dec 8, 2019)

*28. ROY ORBISON*







*Major Era*: 1956-1989

*Main Labels*:  Sun, Monument, MGM, Virgin


*Best Albums*: Mystery Girl,  Crying, Lonely and Blue, Roy Orbison at the Rock House

*Best Songs*: In Dreams, In the Real World, It’s Over, Workin For the Man, Running Scared


Roy Orbison was born to a working class family in Texas. His father bought him his first guitar at age six. He started out young, playing country and western music. Once he was grown, he signed with Sun Records in Memphis and pressed his first records, Ooby Dooby and Rock House in the typical rockabilly style of the day. After a short, unsuccessful stint at RCA, Orbison signed with Monument records and began writing ballads with a voice that may have reminded some of Slim Whitman. Orbison was wildly successful in the early sixties with melancholy ballads like Only the Lonely and Crying. He had one of those unique voices and no one has ever sounded quite like him (Though maybe Chris Isaak tried). Orbison scored his biggest hit in 1964 with Oh, Pretty Woman, one of his unusual rockers at that time. Though already one of the big stars in rock n roll, he toured with popular bands at the time, such as the Beatles in England before they became known in the US. After Pretty Woman, Orbison’s career tailed off some and he suffered a couple personal tragedies, but, in 1987, he started running in the same circles as George Harrison and Jeff Lynne and he would make something of a comeback, first with his HBO special Black and White Night, then with his solo album, Mystery Girl. He was also a founding member of the Traveling Wilburys. Sadly, the comeback was cut short when Orbison suddenly died from a heart attack in 1988. He died way too young at only fifty-two, but he has left us with a glorious library of music.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Roy Orbison is, to me, one of the great songwriters of rock. He did have a melancholy feel to his music, He certainly isn’t the hardest rocker on this list and, if it were anyone else, would probably come off as kind of middle of the road, but Orbison wrote such great melodies that it didn’t matter that most of his hit singles were accentuated with strings. Of all the artists pre-Beatles (I’m not counting the Beach Boys), Orbison is my favorite. While Presley, with one notable exception (Little Sister), seemed to be going the MOR route trying to be more adult like, Orbison sang with the same maturity without losing a certain edge. Even during his comeback towards the end, he could still write some magnificent material. One such song, In the Real Word, seems especially poignant in the wake of his death soon after its release.  Orbison was one of the few deaths in rock that really affected me (Elvis Presley and Kurt Cobain too make this short list as will one yet to be covered). It says a lot of what his music meant to me and how he will always be missed.

*Links to songs*:

Ooby Dooby
Only the Lonely
Crying
Pretty Woman
You Got It




*Roy Orbison biography*

https://royorbison.com/roy-orbison-official-biography/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Dec 9, 2019)

*27. JIMI HENDRIX*







*Major Era*: 1967-1971

*Main Labels*: Reprise


*Best Albums*: Are You Experience, Electric Ladyland, Axis: Bold as Love

*Best Songs*: The Wind Cries Mary, Little Wing, Angel, All Along the Watchtower, Hey Joe

One of the most innovative guitarists in rock history, Jimi Hendrix began as a session musician named Jimmy James after his discharge from the Army. He played with artists like Sam Cooke, Tina Turner, and the Isley Brothers. Even early on, he had an unusually searing guitar sound. In 1966, he began playing clubs around Greenwich Village where he met Chas Chandler of Animals fame. Chandler that year left the Animals to become a manager and brought Hendrix to London where he formed the Experience with Noel Redding and Mitch Mitchell. He quickly gained a reputation as a guitar virtuoso and famous musicians at the time would come and see him. One notable fan would be Paul McCartney.  Hendrix was also famous for his rendition of Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band just a day after it had been released. The Experience recorded their debut album, Are You Experienced, in early 1967, and the legend took off. He shocked fans at the Monterey Pop Festival when he burned his guitar on stage and he is also remembered for his rendition of The Star Spangled Banner at Woodstock in 1969. The Experience broke up that same year and Hendrix began recording with Billy Cox and Buddy Miles with Band of Gypsys. Unfortunately, Hendrix had a bit of a drug problem and he would die of an overdose in September 1970 at the age of twenty-seven. He remains arguably rock’s greatest guitarist and only Eric Clapton and Jimmy Page can rival him.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Well, his guitar playing certainly doesn’t hurt, but it ultimately comes down to the songs. Hendrix penned such gems as Purple Haze, The Wind Cries Mary, and Little Wing and even his covers like Hey Joe and All Along the Watchtower seem head and shoulders over the originals. Almost everyone was in awe of him during his time. The reason Hendrix burned his guitar at Monterey was because he had to follow the Who, who were known for their own theatrics. It was one great piece of chutzpah to be sure. He recorded three brilliant albums with the Experience before delving into new projects and he obviously left quite a bit of unreleased material that record companies would recycle for years after his death. Ultimately, Hendrix was a musician’s musician and I think that’s what I like about him the most.

*Links to songs*:  Because of copyright issues, the estate of Jimi Hendrix doesn’t allow for his songs on YouTube so this is the best I can do.

Purple Haze
Little Wing
All Along the Watchtower
Stone Free


*Jimi  Hendrix page*

https://www.jimihendrix.com/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Dec 10, 2019)

*26. KING CRIMSON*







*Major Era*: 1969-1974, 1981-1984

*Main Labels*:  Island, E’G


*Best Albums*: In the Court of the Crimson King, Lark’s Tongue in Aspic, Red

*Best Songs*: In the Court of the Crimson King, Epitaph, Ladies of the Road, Starless, Elephant Talk

Essentially Robert Fripp and assorted artists, King Crimson emerged as possibly the greatest Progressive Rock band of all time. With a slightly harder edge than their contemporaries and certainly not as commercial. King Crimson released a series of critically acclaimed albums in the seventies as well as at least two more in the eighties. King Crimson over the years have had a total of at least twenty-two members. The original lineup, rose from the ashes of Giles, Giles, and Fripp, included Fripp, Greg Lake, Michael Giles, Ian MacDonald, and Peter Sinfield. The original lineup recorded the brilliant In the Court of the Crimson King in late 1969 and they were received with instant success. Creative tensions led for Giles and MacDonald to leave and Fripp became the unequivocal leader. Albums In the Wake of Posideon and Lizard followed. Lake left during this period to form Emerson, Lake, and Palmer and two other members left leaving only Fripp and Sinfeld as original members. Sinfield too would leave during the period in which King Crimson recorded albums Lark in Tongue’s Aspic, Starless and Bible Black, and Red, all well received.  A hiatus followed until a new King Crimson was formed in 1981 with a new sound and three more highly received albums, Discipline, Beat, and Three of a Perfect Pair. Since 1984, King Crimson has more or less been a band surrounding Fripp and they continue to garner respect as one of the pillars of Progressive Rock.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  I fell in love with this band the first time I heard In the Court of the Crimson King on the radio. Back when I was a teenager, the radio station would feature a classic album (Crimson King was maybe six or seven years old by then) and King Crimson was the winner that week. I had never heard it before and I left wanting to hear more. I later bought a compilation album, The Young Person’s Guide To King Crimson, and I would hear more gems like Ladies of the Road and Starless. I’m really only a casual Progressive fan and much of what I like stems from one of my first loves, Psychedelic music. It’s why I can get into Pink Floyd for example and even Yes to a lesser extent. It’s also what attracts me to Crimson, especially with the first album. I said somewhere else that In the Court of the Crimson King is the greatest progressive rock album ever. So does this make Crimson my all time favorite progressive band? Well, that depends  if you consider Pink Floyd a progressive band. In some ways, I don’t think Floyd is a truly progressive band though they are certainly a psychedelic one so, in that context, yeah, King Crimson is the greatest progressive band of all time.

*Links to songs*: Like Jimi Hendrix, YouTube is unable to post studio versions of some of King Crimson’s songs so the later songs are live performances.

In the Court of the Crimson King
Cadence and Cascade
Ladies of the Road
Easy Money
Three of a Perfect Pair

*King Crimson on Wiki*

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_Crimson


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## Deleted member 56686 (Dec 11, 2019)

*25. FRANK ZAPPA AND THE MOTHERS OF INVENTION*








*Major Era*: 1966-1993

*Main Labels*:  Verve, Bizzare/Straight/Reprise, Discreet, Zappa, Barking Pumpkin, Rykodisc


*Best Albums*: Freak Out, Absolutely Free, Uncle Meat, Apostrophe

*Best Songs*: Hungry Freaks Daddy, Who Are the Brain Police, Cosmik Debris, What’s the Ugliest Part of Your Body, Joe’s Garage

Certainly the oddest artist on this list, Frank Zappa, born in my home town of Baltimore, by the way, made a career sometimes lampooning various forms of music from avant-garde to jazz to doo wop and blues. After his family moved to California in 1951, he developed an interest in music. By the early sixties, he was scoring low budget films such as The World’s Greatest Sinner and even made a bizarre appearance on Steve Allen.  In 1965, he formed the Mothers of Invention with  Jimmy Carl Black, Ray Collins, and Joe Estrada. A year later, the Mothers released the eccentric double album set, Freak Out!, certainly an early stab at psychedelia , but also a bizarre mishmash of comically tinged rock songs such as Hungry Freaks, Daddy and I Am a Rock. He invented a character named Suzy Creamcheese. After two more albums taking jabs at the counter culture and especially savaging the Beatles with their We’re Only In It For the Money album cover, The Mothers went in a new direction. Frank Zappa began recording as a solo artist on the side and took up new projects like the doo wop styled Reuben and the Jets and the classically influenced Lumpy Gravy (in the Zappa style of course). After Zappa signed with Reprise records in 1969, he expanded his band with horns and a xylophone among other instruments and they recorded a large number of albums starting with Uncle Meat and Hot Rats.  He formed Straight records about the same time, then Bizarre Records, then Discreet records by the mid seventies. Zappa was a major attraction throughout the seventies and though he rarely received airplay, remained one of the most popular acts in the arena. By the eighties, Zappa would be remembered for taking a stand against censorship when he testified before the PMRC Senate hearings in 1985. He continued to record constantly, sometimes recording as many as three albums a year. Cancer would cut his life short in 1993 but he left a very large body of work, often of great quality, if a bit quirky.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Quirky is definitely the word I’d use to describe Frank Zappa. In a way he was Weird Al Yankovic before Weird Al Yankovic. Of course, Zappa was quite serious about his work and he certainly liked to puncture holes in pomposity in general and especially in music. He was said to dislike hippies in the day even though he himself sported very long hair. He certainly despised excesses in music and was always taking shots as he did with a well known song named Dancin’ Fool at the height of disco, this, ironically being his one big US hit.  He also clearly despised censorship of any kind and was quite vocal at the PMRC hearings, something that got big press on MTV when it was actually music television. Being a fan of the sixties, I’m especially partial to the early Verve Mothers of Inventions albums and Freak Out would definitely make my own top 100 list. And, hey, he’s originally from Baltimore and Baltimoreans have a reputation for weirdness; just ask John Waters :lol: .

NOTE: Frank Zappa was my very first concert when I was fourteen. It still rates as my favorite concert ever.

*Links to songs*:

Who Are the Brain Police
What’s the Ugliest Part of Your Body
Peaches En Regalia
Cozmik Debris
Joe’s Garage


*Great Frank Zappa page*

https://www.zappa.com/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Dec 12, 2019)

*24. STEVIE WONDER*







*Major Era*: 1963-present

*Main Labels*: Tamla, Motown


*Best Albums*: Innervisions, Talking Book, Music of My Mind, Songs in the Key of Life

*Best Songs*: Living For the City, Higher Ground, Superstition, Castles in the Sand, A Place in the Sun

Stevie Wonder started out as something of a young prodigy at Motown. Blind from birth, he scored his first major hit at the age of twelve with a live rendition of Fingertips which was done ad lib at a concert. He was one of Motown’s most popular artists from the beginning with hits like Uptight (Everything’s Alright) and I Was Made To Love Her. Superbly talented and quite adept at playing the keyboards, Wonder was also a serious songwriter who longed to break away from the Motown factory style of doing things. As a young adult, he got his wish around 1971 and began to write and record topical material, resulting in classic albums like Talking Book and Innervisions. His Song in the Key of Life set is considered one of the greatest albums of the seventies. It was about this time when Wonder ventured more into adult oriented contemporary music, still scoring hits like I Just Called To Say I Love You in 1984. Even though Stevie Wonder has been away from the spotlight for a while now, he remains one of the most respected figures in pop music and is possibly the most legendary of all performers at Motown.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  There was a period, a long period, where Stevie Wonder could do no wrong.  His sixties period was certainly solid and I especially liked his gentler songs like Castles in the Sand. Even as early as 1966, he could be a bit socially relevant with a song like a Place in the Sun and a cover of Dylan’s Blowin in the Wind. Of course, it’s his socially aware seventies period that I especially like. His synthesizer based commentaries on songs like Living For the City really does it for me. Other favorite songs are Superstition and Higher Ground which, like Living For the City, is off Innervisions, my favorite album of 1973. Ultimately, Stevie Wonder goes down as my favorite soul artist for these reasons and, believe me, he had stiff competition from the likes of the Temptations, Otis Redding, James Brown, and Curtis Mayfield.

*Links to songs*:

Fingertips
A Place in the Sun
Superstition
Living For the City
I Wish
I Just Called To Say I Love You


*Stevie Wonder on Soulwalking*

http://www.soulwalking.co.uk/Stevie Wonder.html


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## Biro (Dec 12, 2019)

Forgotten Stevie but great songs.

[video=youtube;6XauJUkYrso]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6XauJUkYrso[/video]


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## Biro (Dec 12, 2019)

[video=youtube;94_snrtKGt0]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=94_snrtKGt0[/video]


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## Biro (Dec 12, 2019)

And with the then beautiful  Mrs.  Easy listening.


[video=youtube;OM3Vjxs6Xao]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OM3Vjxs6Xao[/video]


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## Biro (Dec 12, 2019)

[video=youtube;oE56g61mW44]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oE56g61mW44[/video]


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## Deleted member 56686 (Dec 13, 2019)

*23.LOVE*







*Major Era*: 1965-1969

*Main Labels*:  Elektra


*Best Albums*: Forever Changes, Da Capo

*Best Songs*: Seven and Seven Is, Andmoragain, A House is Not a Home, A Message To Pretty

Probably one of the lesser known artists on this list, Love, led by Arthur Lee, was one of the most overlooked bands of the sixties.  Initially a folk-rock band out of Los Angeles, Love signed with the fledgling Elektra Records in 1965 and recorded their self-titled album in 1966. While popular on the West Coast, Love had only modest success elsewhere. They took a more psychedelic turn with the second album, Da Capo, late that year and, at the end of 1967, released one of rock’s great masterpieces with the occasionally lush Forever Changes.  Drugs took its toll on the band and Lee broke the original band up in 1968, just as they were reaching new heights.  Lee’s new Love released Four Sail in 1969 and faded from the scene soon after. Lee would embark on a solo career afterwards with limited success. He continued to have his own personal problems which led to a stiff prison sentence under California’s three strikes law. He made something of a comeback after his release as interest in Love was being reignited. He died in 2006 with much of his reputation as a player in the evolution of rock once again intact.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Love wasn’t a band that came to the top of peoples’ tongues on the East Coast and I had no clue on who they were until I really got heavy on collecting records in the early eighties. I bought a used copy of Forever Changes in really poor condition. I could barely hear the album as it was scratched up so badly, but I could still hear genius through all the static. They could rock hard (by 1966 standards) on a track like Seven and Seven Is and yet be incredibly mellow as on Andmoragain. It’s tragic what Arthur Lee went through as he could have done so much as many frontmen and women have done. Still Da Capo and Forever Changes in particular are enough for me to place Love where they are.

*Links to songs*:

My Little Red Book
Seven and Seven Is
A Message To Pretty
Andmoreagain
Always See Your Face

*Arthur Lee and Love page*

http://love.torbenskott.dk/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Dec 14, 2019)

*22. THE HOLLIES*








*Major Era*: 1964-1977

*Main Labels*:  Parlophone/Imperial, Epic

*Best Albums*: For Certain Because, Romany

*Best Songs*: Bus Stop, I’m Alive, The Air That I Breathe, Long Cool Woman in a Black Dress, Honey and Wine

One of the great pop bands to come out of England in the sixties, the Hollies were formed in Manchester by Allan Clarke and Graham Nash. The four man outfit developed a three-part harmony style, no doubt having been influenced by the Everly Brothers. They recorded a string of hits in England from 1963 to 1965. At first they were covers like Just One Look and Stay, but then they would use writers like Graham Gouldman and Clint Ballard, Jr. and record hits like Here I Go Again and I’m Alive. The Hollies finally broke through to America in 1966 with the smash hit, Bus Stop. A string of pop rock single hits followed and the Hollies were regarded as one of the top British bands of the day. In 1968, Graham Nash left the group to form Crosby, Stills, and Nash and the Hollies had to adjust their harmonic signature. They succeeded with hits like He’s Not Heavy, He’s My Brother, Long Cool Woman in a Black Dress, and The Air That I Breathe.  Nash returned to the band for one brief reunion in 1983 and relations are amiable. Allan Clarke retired leaving Tony Hicks  and Bobby Elliott as the only remaining original members. They keep plodding on as essentially an oldies act today.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*? One of the Hollies’ charms is that they maintained their clean guitar based sound a lot longer than the other bands of their day. While the Beatles were getting psychedelic with Sgt. Pepper, the Hollies were recording pop gems like Carrie Anne. It was for that reason that Graham Nash left the band in 1968, but the Hollies had managed to stay fresh throughout. Never really much of an albums band, but they recorded some of the best singles of the sixties including I’m Alive, Look Through Any Window, and Bus Stop. This, along with some of their seventies material (the songs mentioned and a few others), make the Hollies one of my favorite bands of the British Invasion.

*Links to songs*:

Just One Look
I’m Alive
Bus Stop
He Ain’t Heavy He’s My Brother
The Air That I Breathe

*Hollies history*

http://www.hollies.co.uk/goldmine


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## Deleted member 56686 (Dec 15, 2019)

*21. JEFFERSON AIRPLANE*








*Major Era*: 1967-1973 (I refuse to count Jefferson Starship and {ugh} Starship)

*Main Labels*:  RCA, Grunt


*Best Albums*: Surrealistic Pillow, Crown of Creation, Volunteers

*Best Songs*: White Rabbit, Somebody To Love, Lather, Crown of Creation, We Can Be Together



One of the premier bands of the storied San Francisco sound of the late sixties, Jefferson Airplane was formed by Marty Balin in 1965. Paul Kantner and Jorma Kaukouin also joined and began playing their brand of folk rock around San Francisco. They added female vocalist Signe Toly and two more members to make it a six person band.  Skip Spence joined after the drummer was fired and Signe Toly married, becoming Signe Anderson.  The Jefferson Airplane were signed by RCA and they released Jefferson Airplane Takes Off in 1966. Anderson then left the band and was replaced by Grace Slick of the Great Society. The band would take a new direction, led by Slick, and would release the spacey Surrealistic Pillow. Slick co-wrote Somebody To Love with her then husband with the Great Society, and followed it up with the drug anthem White Rabbit. Now established as psychedelic superstars, the Airplane went into more political ground with Crown of Creation and Volunteers. They band faded a little from the scene in the seventies but would reemerge as the (ugh) Jefferson Starship. No longer psychedelic political activists, the Jefferson Starship took a more commercial AOR approach and no longer had the same luster despite being a very successful outfit.  Personnel changes became more common and  Jefferson Starship became the even more corporate rock Starship taking aim at, ironically, corporate rock, with one of the worst songs ever, I Built This City on Rock n Roll.  Despite the selling out and Slick's alcohol problems, Jefferson Airplane, for that brief period, are one of the most interesting bands of the late sixties.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  It’s baffling really. I really have to separate the Starship incarnations from the initial Jefferson Airplane group because, while the Airplane are among my favorite all time groups, the Starship are, well, one of my least favorites. So, why do I like the Airplane? Well, I especially like their anthems Somebody To Love and White Rabbit but I can also point to their Crown of Creation as being one of the best albums of 1968. The Jefferson Airplane were one of those bands that helped define acid rock (and god knows they were on it :lol: ). Even After Bathing at Baxters, their follow up to Surrealistic Pillow, has a lot to offer. So, maybe they are an odd pick for being high on this list but they’ve done enough to deserve this place in my opinion.

*Links to songs*:

It’s No Secret
Somebody To Love
White Rabbit
Crown of Creation
We Can Be Together


*Jefferson Airplane biography*

https://aaep1600.osu.edu/book/09_JeffAirplane.php


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## Deleted member 56686 (Dec 16, 2019)

*20. QUEEN*







*Major Era*: 1973-1991

*Main Labels*: EMI/Elektra, Parlophone


*Best Albums*: A Night at the Opera, News Of the World, Sheer Heart Attack

*Best Songs*: Bohemian Rhapsody, Spread Your Wings, Keep Yourself Alive, Tie Your Mother Down, The Show Must Go On

In some ways one of pioneers in what would become glam metal, or at least that’s how Queen started out.  Dominated at times by the flamboyant Freddie Mercury, Queen released their debut album in 1973 and Queen II a short time later. Tracks like Keep Yourself Alive and Seven Seas of Rhye established them as an up and coming band to keep an eye on. Queen broke through in the US with their third album, Sheer Heart Attack, late in 1974. Killer Queen became a major hit and Queen was garnering interest as an interesting hard rock band. A year later, Queen switched direction and released A Night at the Opera with their signature operetta, Bohemian Rhapsody. Critics were confused at the time as a song based on opera could get such popularity on AOR radio in 1976. Not that it mattered; Bohemian Rhapsody catapulted Queen into one of the most popular acts of the late seventies into the early eighties. Another rock anthem, We Will Rock You/We Are the Champions, off News of the World, placed Queen in potential legendary status. They continued with great success well into the eighties. They tailed off a bit later that decade but when Freddie Mercury, unbeknownst to anyone outside of his inner circle, was diagnosed with AIDS, they made a comeback of sorts. Their last album with Mercury, featuring the classic The Show Must Go On, was well received in 1991. Mercury finally announced in December of that year he was suffering from AIDS and died very soon after. The surviving members have gone on as a trio with an occasional guest singer and a tribute to Mercury in 1992, featuring the major artists at the time, and is remembered for an unusual duet between Elton John (who had by then come out) and Axl Rose.  Mercury’s light will never be dimmed and Queen goes on in tribute to their friend.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  First of all, Glam rock is one of my favorite genres of the seventies, not glam metal mind you; I can do without the Motley Crues of the world, personally.  But I really don’t see Queen as a metal band, even in the beginning. What I do see is a band who came up with some great melodies and lyrics. I said that Freddie Mercury was the dominant force but that’s not meant as a slight to the other members. All of the members wrote and Brian May is one of the premier guitarists out there. Roger Taylor  also was/is a major songwriter and a very good drummer and John Deacon did his contributions at bass.  And though Queen’s brightness faded for a time in the eighties, they still had a lot to offer for me. With albums like A Kind of Magic and The Miracle, plus they knew how to exit gracefully with an ailing Mercury with Innuendo. So all this makes Queen one of my favorite bands of the seventies and that’s why they make the top twenty overall.

*Links to songs*:

Keep Yourself Alive
Bohemian Rhapsody
We Are the Champions
Radio Ga Ga
The Show Must Go On

*Queen history page*

http://www.queenpedia.com/index.php?title=Band_History


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## Deleted member 56686 (Dec 16, 2019)

Glam metal was really a term they came up with in the States in the 1980's to describe the hair bands of the era. If you notice, a lot of those bands wore makeup as well, thus the glam label. True, Queen wasn't a glam band in the classic sense; they were probably considered a metal band in the US in the seventies. Still, Freddie Mercury was quite big on theatrics. In that sense I'd compare him to Kiss though Queen was way more talented. 

I don't know much about the tribute band, so I won't argue with your points on that. The Doors lived off Jim Morrison for quite a while too so I can see the similarities. 

Yeah, it's fun being a fan, isn't it? I was, still am, like that with the Beatles.


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## Deleted member 56686 (Dec 16, 2019)

Kenny Everett is famous in Beatles lore as well. I would have loved to have heard what was known as Pirate Radio in the sixties.

 You're right, so many great bands didn't make it, not just because of the BBC but the need for conformity in American Top Forty and AOR radio as well. That was especially true in the seventies.  We didn't get to hear bands like the Sex Pistols or even the Ramones because they couldn't get airplay in the states. If you were lucky, you might hear alternative bands on a college radio station like I was fortunate to, but if you lived in a rural area, you were pretty much stuck with Andy Gibb or whoever.


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## Deleted member 56686 (Dec 17, 2019)

*19. THE ZOMBIES*







*Major Era*: 1964-1969

*Main Labels*: Decca/Parrot, CBS/Date

*Best Albums*: Odessey and Oracle, Begin Here

*Best Songs*: She’s Not There, Just Out of Reach, A Rose For Emily, I Love You, I Must Move


Perhaps the most interesting of all the bands from the British Invasion, the Zombies were formed by a group of university students in the early sixties at St. Albans, near London. They derived their keyboard based sound from jazz and classical influences and would be one of the most melodic bands of the era. They exploded on the scene in 1964 with the cerebral She’s Not There. It might be noted that the Zombies were also one of the more intellectual bands of the era. Tell Her No followed, theN the Zombies faded from the American scene for a while. Nevertheless, they continued to record some magnificent singles like She’s Coming Home and the haunting I Remember When I Loved Her. They wrote songs for the movie Bunny Lake is Missing in 1965 and continued on into 1966. In 1967 they embarked on what would be their second and last album, Odessey and Oracle, now regarded as one of the classic albums of the late sixties. At the time though, it didn’t seem to get much fanfare and the Zombies decided to go their own ways. Ironically, Odessey and Oracle was picked up by Date Records in the US and the Zombies had a monster hit, posthumously, with Time of the Season. Despite the sudden success, the Zombies were already embarking on different projects. Rod Argent and Chris White had formed the Band Argent by then, and Colin Blunstone had embarked on a semi-successful solo career. Relations among the ex-members were quite amicable however and Argent and White would help Blunstone on his albums. Eventually Argent and Blunstone would reunite the band with the others’ blessings and now go on as an oldies act, They were inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2019.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*? I only wish they had recorded more material than they did but I guess the public didn’t appreciate such good music, even in the sixties. Rod Argent was one of the premier keyboardists of his day and the Zombies were one of the great purveyors of the electric piano. Colin Blunstone had quite an angelic voice, while Argent and Chris White wrote some of the best songs of the sixties, and later, in the seventies with Argent. She’s Not There rates as my favorite song of 1964; this is at the height of Beatlemania so that is really saying something.  I also know that for years they were being nominated for the Hall of Fame and this year, I contributed to the many that were trying to get them finally inducted. And then they were and were in great appreciation in contrast to another band on my list that was inducted, Radiohead, that snubbed the event (three of them anyway) with their noses up in the air. The Zombies, who had to wait until their seventies with one of the members, Paul Atkinson, having already passed on, were extremely happy just to have been nominated. And they gave a hell of a performance on top of it all. So, yeah, that’s why I like the Zombies. They were, when it gets right down to it, a thinking man’s band.


*Links to songs*:

She’s Not There
Tell Her No
She’s Coming Home
Time of the Season
A Rose For Emily



*Zombies page*

https://www.thezombiesmusic.com/home


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## Deleted member 56686 (Dec 18, 2019)

*18. PINK FLOYD*








*Major Era*: 1967-1994

*Main Labels*:  Columbia, Harvest, EMI


*Best Albums*: The Pipers at the Gates of Dawn, Wish You Were Here, Dark Side of the Moon, The Wall

*Best Songs*: Wish You Were Here, See Emily Play, Julia Dream, Brain Damage/Eclipse, Another Brick in the Wall

One of the greatest psychedelic bands ever and one of the most successful artists of the seventies, Pink Floyd was formed in 1965 by Syd Barrett and Roger Waters, they also had played with David Gilmour at the time. Nick Mason and Rick Wright completed the foursome (Gilmour would ultimately replace Barrett in 1968) and one of the great psychedelic bands was born.  They started out playing shows known as freak-outs and became known for their light shows. They signed on with EMI and scored a hit with the spacey See Emily Play. They recorded their debut album, The Pipers at the Gates of Dawn, at EMI studios right next store to where the Beatles were recording Sgt. Pepper. The Pink Floyd album would be remembered for its spaced out music and lyrics, buoyed by Mason’s psychedelic sounding keyboards. Acid would be a major factor in the direction of the band as it had a negative effect on Barrett. He would leave Pink Floyd in 1968 and attempt a solo effort in 1970 (unsuccessful and underappreciated at the time). David Gilmour was now the main frontman and as the sixties became the seventies, took a more progressive direction without losing the psychedelic elements. After a few albums with little fanfare, Pink Floyd released the widely acclaimed Dark Side of the Moon in 1973. It would also be far and away their most successful album, shattering the record for most weeks on the Billboard album charts (around fourteen years). Pink Floyd followed with the nearly as acclaimed Wish You Were Here and became one of the most successful concert acts of the seventies with their elaborate light shows.  Animals followed in 1977, then in 1979, Pink Floyd released their other remembered classic, the double album set known as The Wall. This would be turned into a rather dark movie in 1982. That same year, Pink Floyd released their final album with Roger Waters, The Final Cut. Waters and Gilmour would split over musical differences and they would be involved in legal entanglements over the years. Waters embarked on a reasonably successful solo career, sometimes maintaining the Pink Floyd sound, while Gilmour led the Pink Floyd into uncharted, and sometimes panned, territory. Nevertheless, Pink Floyd remains one of the true stalwarts of rock and remains one of the most influential bands of the seventies.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Well, for starters, there are two, well really three Pink Floyds. The third Pink Floyd without Waters I can personally do without. I’m not sure what David Gilmour was thinking. So that leaves the main two eras, the Barrett sixties and the Gilmour-Waters seventies. At the risk of having to use Trollheart’s couch I’m going to go with Barrett. The Pipers at The Gates Of Dawn is a perfect example of why I like psychedelic rock so much. Barrett was really out there (in more ways than one sadly), and it is certainly one of the best albums of 1967, one of the best years for albums anyway. That doesn’t mean I don’t like Dark Side or The Wall- of course I do. In fact I remember when The Wall was being touted as the greatest album in a decade, yeah, including Dark Side of the Moon, which has since regained its place, deservedly, in rock history. My favorite album from Pink Floyd is actually Wish You Were Here and I especially like the title track which,  is in of itself, a classic.  So I guess the big argument is, and I mentioned this a week ago, who is my favorite progressive band. And I said I didn’t consider Pink Floyd to be progressive despite evidence to the contrary, thus I went with King Crimson. I still hold by that but, as you can see, I still rate Pink Floyd higher overall because of their psychedelic tendencies and, in all honesty, they’re more listenable than a lot of Crimson. So Pink Floyd makes it to number eighteen and I think I’m happy with that.

*Links to songs*:

See Emily Play
Astronomy Domine
One of These Days
Brain Damage/Eclipse
Wish You Were Here
Another Brick in the Wall

*Pink Floyd page*

http://www.pinkfloyd.com/home.php


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## Deleted member 56686 (Dec 19, 2019)

*17.BUFFALO SPRINGFIELD*









*Major Era*: 1966-1968

*Main Labels*: Atco


*Best Albums*: Buffalo Springfield Again, Buffalo Springfield, The Last Time Around

*Best Songs*: Expecting To Fly, Broken Arrow, I Am a Child, Nowadays Clancy Can’t Even Sing, Mr. Soul

Though they were together as a unit for a short time, Buffalo Springfield would become a legend with its blend of folk-rock, country-rock, and psychedelia. They formed in Los Angeles in 1966 and recorded a single, Nowadays Clancy Can’t Even Sing, later that year. Stephen Stills and Neil Young emerged as the band’s two main songwriters and it was Stills’ song, For What It’s Worth, that put Buffalo Springfield into the national spotlight. It was a song protesting the riot on the Sunset Strip in the fall of 1966. Problems arose within the band after the hit single with Bruce Palmer being deported (most of the band was Canadian), for drugs, and tensions between Stills and Young led to Young leaving the band for a time. Somehow, all returned for their second effort, Buffalo Springfield Again, which featured highlights by both Stills (Rock n Roll Woman and Bluebird) and Young (Mr. Soul, Broken Arrow and Expecting To Fly). Expecting To Fly is especially prominent for its melancholy feel and slightly psychedelic overtones.  Tensions remained within the group but they managed to record the aptly named The Last Time Around in 1968. Bruce Palmer was again deported and Jim Messina was recruited as the band’s bassist. The Last Time Around was notable for Neil Young’s classic I Am a Child.  At this point, relations within the band had soured and Stills signed a separate contract with Atlantic while Young went with Warner/Reprise. Richie Furay would go on to found the country-rock band Poco while Stills and Young had enormously successful solo careers, even playing together such as in Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young at times.  Jim Messina would join Furay in Poco but would later leave to form a duo with Kenny Loggins. Dewey Martin tried a New Buffalo Springfield but it would fail. So, though Buffalo Springfield’s light shined for such a short time, they would spawn at least three rock legends, one of whom made my list.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Of all the musical styles, I would have to rate folk-rock as my favorite. Honestly, there is no business placing Buffalo Springfield so high given that they only released three albums, and the last one really isn’t all that great outside of I Am a Child.  But look at the different styles of Stills and Young. Stills knew how to get to the heart of things with songs like For What It’s Worth and love songs like Bluebird and Rock n Roll Woman. He was the folk rock element in the band while Young was honing the hard edged style he would be known for in Mr. Soul and writing one of the most beautiful songs ever with Expecting To Fly.  The latter is my favorite Springfield song, actually my favorite Neil Young song period, and he’s written some great ones like Ohio and Needle and the Damage Done. . So maybe they don’t belong in my top twenty and yet, because the best of their material is so great, here they are.

*Links to songs*:

For What It’s Worth
Sit Down I Think I Love You
Rock n Roll Woman
Expecting to Fly
I Am a Child

*Buffalo Springfield R&R HOF page*

https://www.rockhall.com/inductees/buffalo-springfield


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## Deleted member 56686 (Dec 20, 2019)

*16. PHIL OCHS*








*Major Era*: 1964-1976

*Main Labels*: Elektra, A&M


*Best Albums*: I Ain’t Marchin Anymore, All the News That’s Fit To Sing, Pleasures of the Harbor

*Best Songs*: I Ain’t Marchin Anymore, The War is Over, There But For Fortune, The Crucifixion, Here’s To the State of Mississippi

One of the most legendary protest folk artists of the sixties, Phil Ochs started out being raised by a fairly average family in El Paso, Texas. He studied Journalism at Ohio State in the early sixties and developed his left-leaning political stances there. He was especially concerned with the civil rights movement. After three years at Ohio State, Ochs dropped out and moved to Greenwich Village and became part of the folk scene there. His melodic style of folk attracted Elektra Records and he released his first album, All the News That’s Fit To Sing, in 1964. He also wrote There But For Fortune that year which would later become a minor hit for Joan Baez. In 1965, Ochs released the anti-war anthem, I Ain’t Marchin’ Anymore. The album of the same name took shots at the death penalty, the Vietnam War, and bigotry in general, especially in the scathing Here’s To the State of Mississippi. By the late sixties, Ochs had expanded his sound with the use of more instrumentation, like piano and some orchestration. During the late sixties, he would release  three more albums and record folk classics like The Crucifixion and The War is Over.  His career faded some in the seventies but was still a popular attraction within the folk circuit. He even had one more classic when he changed the words of Here’s To the State of Mississippi to Here’s To the State of Richard Nixon, which was equally as scathing (This was during Watergate). Sadly, this would prove to be his last gasp. Ochs suffered from depression and, in 1976, would take his own life.  Still, he was such a big influence in folk music that tribute concerts are held for him frequently.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Okay, so I’m the same dilemma as I was with King Crimson/Pink Floyd as to who my favorite folk artist actually is. Well, this one is a little easier because if I separate Bob Dylan into just his pure folk period, I can honestly say Phil Ochs is the better folk artist. Why do I say that? Well, for one thing he writes melodies that could have easily been converted into the rock songs of the day. Yeah, I know, Dylan was covered more, a lot more actually, but couldn’t you imagine the Byrds covering something like One More Parade or Draft Dodger Rag? But what I like best about Phil Ochs is his songs of social conscience. Sometimes he would go for the jugular like in his two State of songs. But he could also be more pensive as in the Crucifixion or sarcastic as in The War is Over. And we mustn’t forget his magnum opus, I Ain’t Marchin’ Anymore. Even today, that song rings true as one of the great anti-war songs. Thinking of that song, that might have been a good one for the Byrds to cover too.

*Links to songs*:

One More Parade
I Ain’t Marchin Anymore
Here’s to the State of Mississippi
The Crucifixion
The War is Over



*Phil Ochs biography*

http://sonnyochs.com/philbio.html


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## Deleted member 56686 (Dec 21, 2019)

*15. PATTI SMITH*







*Major Era*: 1975-present

*Main Labels*: Arista,


*Best Albums*: Horses, Easter, Radio Ethiopia

*Best Songs*: Dancing Barefoot, Gloria, Ghost Dance, Pumping My Heart, Birdland

Originally a poet, Patti Smith was caught up in New York’s art scene in the mid-seventies with her friend, photographer Robert Mapplethorpe.  She delved into music and became one of the early punk rock artists, releasing the landmark album, Horses, in late 1975. Smith was a major player in the CBGB’s scene by 1976. In late 1976, she released her truest punk album, Radio Ethiopia, and by 1978, had the commercially successful Easter with the Bruce Springsteen penned Because the Night. By now, she had become something of a punk goddess with her ability to weave her poetry in her rock songs.  After the uneven Wave in 1979 and having married Fred Smith of MC5 fame, Smith’s career waned a bit as she retreated to domestic life near Detroit. In 1988, she made a comeback with Dream of Life which featured the powerful People Got the Power. Her recording career since then has been rather inconspicuous but she has emerged as a writer with the autobiographical Just Kids about her time with Robert Mapplethorpe. Her latest book is The Year of the Monkey.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Patti Smith rates as my all time favorite female artist. To me, she just epitomizes cool. She’s a brilliant songwriter and Dancing Barefoot rates as a favorite song of 1979 even if Wave isn’t exactly her best album. Horses is of course and you can hear how she weaves the classic Gloria into her own song with her poetry. When she sang, “Jesus died for somebody’s sins, but not mine,” that, to me, was the first notes of punk rock, at least on the American side. She doesn’t have the greatest voice and that actually helps her. Her songs tend to be rather earthy at their best and she has certainly been an inspiration for female artists that have followed her whether it be Aimee Mann or PJ Harvey, who certainly has borrowed some of her style from Patti.  So when I think of the punk movement of the late seventies, Patti Smith is always one of the first names that come to mind.

*Links to songs*:

Gloria
Pumping  My Heart
Because the Night
Dancing Barefoot
People Have the Power


*Patti Smith sites*

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patti_Smith
https://www.pattismith.net/intro.html


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## Deleted member 56686 (Dec 22, 2019)

*14.SIMON AND GARFUNKEL*








*Major Era*: 1965-1970

*Main Labels*:  Columbia


*Best Albums*: Bookends, Sounds of Silence, Parsley Sage Rosemary and Thyme, Bridge Over Troubled Water

*Best Songs*: The Dangling Conversation, Homeward Bound, America, The Last Living Boy in New York, The Sounds of Silence

Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel were childhood friends from Queens who originally broke through with a minor hit as fifteen years old in 1957 as the duo, Tom and Jerry. Assumedly something of a one hit wonder, Simon and Garfunkel went their own ways only to reunite in 1964. In the interim, Paul Simon became a songwriter recording, at one point, as Tico and the Triumphs.  Garfunkel went to college to study art and mathematics. After failing, supposedly, as a recording artist, Simon and Garfunkel reunited to record a folk album, Wednesday Morning, 3 AM, in 1964. Predictably that too failed and they again went their separate ways. Meanwhile, in 1965 came the folk-rock boom and Tom Wilson, a producer at Columbia Records, had the idea of adding electric guitars to Sounds of Silence, which became a monster hit in late 1965/early 1966. Buoyed by the sudden success, Simon and Garfunkel reunited to record four highly regarded albums from 1966 to 1970 with classics like I Am a Rock, Homeward Bound, Mrs. Robinson, The Boxer and, ultimately, their best known masterpiece, Bridge Over Troubled Water.  By 1970 tensions has arose between the two and they would split. Simon went on to have a  very successful singer-songwriting career and would release the critically acclaimed Graceland in 1986 while Garfunkel got into acting in films such as Catch 22 and Carnal Knowledge. He also continued with a moderately successful recording career and would occasionally reunite with Simon on recordings like My Little Town and for live appearances such as the Concert in Central Park in 1981, but tensions still mount between the two longtime friends. They’re like bickering brothers really, but their music, for such a short time, is a testament to how well regarded they were in the late sixties.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  It boils down to the songs and harmonies basically. Paul Simon, especially in the sixties, was a brilliant songwriter. I mean he still is of course, but I think his songs sound much better with Garfunkel as his anchor.  Garfunkel gets a bad rap because all he could do was sing apparently, and that may be true to an extent. But think about it, how would Sounds of Silence or Mrs. Robinson sound without Garfunkel to compliment Simon’s frankly mediocre range?  And what about Bridge Over Troubled Water? Does anyone really think Simon could have sung that better?  What I’m saying is that one doesn’t cut it without the other. I mean Simon’s solo material is okay,but I can’t say he wows me and Garfunkel alone? Well, forget it. But together, they made some of the best music of the late sixties and certainly are stalwarts in folk-rock.

*Links to songs*:

Sounds of Silence
Homeward Bound
The Dangling Conversation
Mrs. Robinson
Bridge Over Troubled Water

*Simon and Garfunkel page*

https://www.simonandgarfunkel.com/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Dec 23, 2019)

*13. THE BEACH BOYS*







*Major Era*: 1961-1988

*Main Labels*:  Capitol, Brother,


*Best Albums*: Pet Sounds, Sunflower, Surfs Up, Summer Days and Summer Nights

*Best Songs*: In My Room, Don’t Worry Baby, Tears in the Morning, I Just Wasn’t Made For These Times, Catch a Wave, The Warmth of the Sun

The three Wilson brothers and their cousin, Mike Love, all from Hawthorne, California, started out singing four part harmonies in the mode of the Four Freshmen. Brian Wilson began composing early on as the Pendeltons began performing as a rock group around 1961. They were managed by the Wilsons’ father, Murray, and they initially recorded for Colpix records in 1962 with a song called Surfin. By then, the band had added their friend Al Jardine to the mix. Capitol picked up the group who, by now, had developed a sound known as surf rock, and they landed their first big hit with Surfin’ Safari.  More hits followed in 1963 with Surfin’ USA, Surfer Girl, and In My Room, a very poignant song by Brian Wilson given the events of the Kennedy assassination.  Brian Wilson had already wanted to branch the Beach Boys into a more mature direction, but after the Beatles became popular in America in 1964, topping them became something of an obsession. Brian Wilson suffered a nervous breakdown in the fall of 1964 and Bruce Johnston was brought in to replace Wilson on concert tours.  Meanwhile, Wilson’s obsession with the Beatles and especially Rubber Soul, led to the Beach Boys’ 1966 masterpiece, Pet Sounds. It was a piece of soft psychedelia that would influence many, including Paul McCartney, who would be inspired by Pet Sounds to create Sgt. Pepper. After the Theremin dominated Good Vibrations, the Beach Boys settled into a comfort zone musically though there were a few misadventures like Dennis Wilson’s strange dalliance with Charles Manson of all people and Mike Love latching on to the Beatles in India. Despite all this, The Beach Boys could still record such classic tracks as Be Here in the Morning and the Ronettes' cover of I Can Hear Music. In 1970, The Beach Boys released their classic Sunflower album followed by the equally acclaimed Surf’s Up in 1971. They would be sporadic after that occasionally topping the charts with songs like Rock n Roll Music and Kokomo, but basically, they would be more or less a MOR band that liked to play concerts in DC on the Fourth of July. Personal acrimony as well as some tragedies would scar the band. The troubled Dennis Wilson died in a surfing accident in 1983 and Carl Wilson would succumb to cancer. Brian Wilson struggled with psychiatric problems and he feuded with Love and Jardine along the way. Brian Wilson would re-emerge with his album, Brian Wilson Presents Smile, a new mixing of the Beach Boys’ original album in 1967, in 2004.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  It boils down to their songs essentially. Yes, they had something of a clean cut image compared to their contemporaries and, with another band, their songs might have been considered pop candy, but there was a certain intellectualism in Brian Wilson’s songs (Not so much Mike Love who seemed content with songs about surfing, girls, and cars) such as with In My Room and Don’t Worry Baby. The Warmth of the Sun, I think, is one of their most overlooked songs with its gentle lyrics and harmonic melodies. And, of course, there is Pet Sounds. Really, the period between Pet Sounds and Surf’s Up, stands up well with any era as you have to include Smiley Smile and Sunflower in that period. After that, the Beach Boys are kind of a joke to me, but up until 1971, they were capable of writing some great rock masterpieces. Not bad for a bunch of clean cut kids from Hawthorne, California.

*Links to songs*:

Surfin USA
In My Room
God Only Knows
Be Here in the Morning
Sail On Sailor


*Beach Boys page*

https://mentalitch.com/history-of-the-beach-boys/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Dec 24, 2019)

*12. JOHN LENNON*







*Major Era*: 1969-1983

*Main Labels*: Apple, Geffen


*Best Albums*: Plastic Ono Band, Imagine, Walls and Bridges, Double Fantasy

*Best Songs*: Imagine, Love, #9 Dream, Gimme Some Truth, Mind Games, Watching the Wheels

For those of you that just came out of a cave, John Lennon is most likely remembered for being the leader of some obscure band known as the Beatles. Of course, he was so much more than that, obviously. He began his solo career with experimental albums with his wife, Yoko Ono, but it wasn’t until Give Peace a Chance in 1969 where Lennon began to write conventional songs as a solo artist. After the Beatles split up, Lennon recorded Instant Karma and then his classic Plastic Ono Band album that he claimed was from the result of primal therapy with one Dr. Janov. Lennon, in the early seventies, was something of a political activist with songs like Power To the People and Gimme Some Truth. He recorded his anthem, Imagine, in 1971 and it is identified with Lennon to this day. After recording two highly acclaimed albums, John and Yoko moved to New York where they associated with left wing radicals like Jerry Rubin and Abby Hoffman. This got him in trouble with the Nixon Administration who would try to have Lennon deported.  After several years of legal wrangling and with the good fortune of Nixon being forced to resign, Lennon finally got his green card in 1976. At this point, and after four more albums, including Walls and Bridges in 1974, Lennon took a hiatus to bake bread and raise the baby as he would put it. He enjoyed domesticated life with Yoko and his young son, Sean, for a while, but the recording bug spurred him on to record Double Fantasy with Yoko in 1980. Lennon was making a solid comeback and one can only imagine what he may have come up with in the eighties but, tragically, he would be the victim of rock’s first successful assassination in December 1980. This not only prevented any chance of a Beatles’ reunion but it silenced one of the greatest, if not the greatest, songwriters of the rock n roll era.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  This one’s a little emotional for me because I can tell you exactly where I was when I heard of his death. Nothing, not even 9/11, affected me the way that night did.  I can still resonate with his songs from Love and Imagine to No. 9 Dream to even Beautiful Boy and Watching the Wheels. For my money, John Lennon is the greatest songwriter of all time whether with the Beatles or with his own solo material.  Yes, I imagine he could have been a trip to live with as even Sean Lennon said he could be an asshole, but Lennon also had a brutal honesty about himself that I don’t think can be discounted. He wasn’t afraid to admit he wasn’t perfect and that takes a lot considering Lennon’s elevated status, even in life. Musically speaking, Plastic Ono Band and Imagine are two albums I’d listen to anytime. He could play hard blues such as in It’s So Hard or be scathingly emotional as with Mother.  He could be political on songs like I Don’t Want To Be a Soldier or the entire Some Time in New York City Album. And he could be introspective as he was on Mind Games and many of his Double Fantasy tracks. Basically, of all the individuals on this list and even the eleven artists that I'm ranking higher, John Lennon is the most important figure on this list- period.

*Links to songs*:

Give Peace a Chance
Love
Imagine
No. 9 Dream
Watching the Wheels


*John Lennon page*

http://www.johnlennon.com/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Dec 25, 2019)

*11. BOB DYLAN*








*Major Era*: 1962-present

*Main Labels*: Columbia


*Best Albums*: Highway 61 Revisited, Bringing It All Back Home, Blood on the Tracks, The Freewheelin Bob Dylan, Desire

*Best Songs*: Subterranean Homesick Blues, Maggie’s Farm, Idiot Wind, A Hard Rain’s Gonna Fall, Like a Rolling Stone, Ballad of a Thin Man

Robert Zimmerman hailed from Duluth, Minnesota.  He would grow up in Hibbing where he developed an interest in blues and rock n roll. He formed various High School bands before venturing out to New York to make his mark as a folk artist in the Greenwich Village scene.  There, he met his musical idol, Woody Guthrie, and would start emulating him in his act. Dylan quickly became one of the top attractions in the Greenwich Village scene and Columbia would sign him to a contract. Dylan’s first albums are considered folk classics. Songs like Don’t Think Twice and Blowin’ in the Wind were successfully covered by Peter Paul and Mary and songs like A Hard Rain’s Gonna Come and The Times They Are a Changing established Dylan as not only the best known folk artist in America, but already as one of the greatest songwriters of his time. After meeting the Beatles in 1964, the two entities would have a lasting influence on each other. While the Beatles began writing songs in the style of Dylan on albums like Rubber Soul, Dylan would go electric on Bringing It All Back Home and Highway 61 Revisited. He was booed at the Newport Folk Festival in 1965 for having the audacity to go electric. Yet, this was the period where he recorded the classics Like a Rolling Stone and Rainy Day Woman #12 and 45.  A motorcycle accident sidelined Dylan in late 1966 but he re-emerged with the acoustic John Wesley Harding in 1968. He then worked with artists like Johnny Cash for his Nashville Skyline album in 1969. In the seventies, Dylan would continue to be an enigmatic rock star with acclaimed albums like Blood On The Tracks and Desire. He became a born again Christian around 1978 and his albums over the next decade reflected that. By 1989, he again regained his political edge on songs like Political World. He kept recording critically acclaimed albums into the nineties and the Millennium and is still active to this day. 

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Well he is something of an enigma and I’m not sure if I’d want to have a beer with this guy to be honest, and yet, his impact on rock is immeasurable. I don’t actually consider him the greatest songwriter ever like some people (my Beatle fanboydom prevents that), but he certainly is up there. I especially like his electric period from 1965 and 1966 and I consider his Highway 61 Revisited my favorite album that isn’t by the Beatles. I also love his early folk material though I do think Phil Ochs was better as a folk artist. Why Dylan ranks higher overall though is his ability to change his sound without losing the essence of who he was whether he was going electric or his dalliances with country music or even with his Christian rock persona. Bob Dylan, I sense, may be impossible to be around at times, but you have to admit he is one hell of a musical genius.

*Links to songs*:

A Hard Rain’s Gonna Fall
Like a Rolling Stone
Rainy Day Women #12 and 35
Tangled Up in Blue
Thunder on the Mountain


*Bob Dylan page*

https://fiftiesweb.com/music/bob-dylan/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Dec 26, 2019)

*10. THE VELVET UNDERGROUND*







*Major Era*: 1967-1973

*Main Labels*:  Verve, Cotillion


*Best Albums*: Velvet Underground and Nico, The Velvet Underground, Loaded

*Best Songs*: Beginning To See The Light, Femme Fatale, I’m Waiting For the Man, Who Loves the Sun, Candy Says

One of the most influential groups in rock history, The Velvet Underground were known for their minimalist and avant-garde style. Not popular at the time during the psychedelic late sixties,  The Velvet’s, led by Lou Reed and John Cale with members Sterling Morrison and Maureen Tucker, would gain recognition in the seventies and would be a major influence on bands from the Feelies to Violent Femmes to Interpol.  They became involved with Andy Warhol , who would use them as his musical muse. He produced their debut album in the Spring of 1966, the dark Velvet Underground and  Nico, who Warhol had brought in to compliment the band. She would be fired in 1967 after release of the album. While much of the music in 1967 centered around flowers and positive thoughts as well as some political activism, The Velvet’s music would be dark and gritty with songs like I’m Waiting For the Man and Heroin.  Tensions emerged between Lou Reed and John Cale and Cale was asked to leave the band in 1968. He was replaced by Doug Yule and they would go in a more conventional direction with the self titled Velvet Underground and Loaded. After Loaded, in 1970, the band began to splinter and after one disastrous album in 1973 after Reed had already left, the band went their separate ways. That same year, John Cale released his classic Paris 1919 album while Lou Reed was in the beginnings of a long influential career, already riding high with his Transformer album which featured the controversial Walk On the Wild Side.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  They’re simplicity at its finest. They certainly contrasted with the happy psychedelia that was around in 1967. Their first two albums are especially dark and yet melodic. Lou Reed was always a great songwriter and he could get into the reality with songs like I’m Waiting For the Man and Sunday Morning. Nico, on the first album, could supply some very haunting vocals while John Cale added to the mix with the violin, especially on the creepy Venus in Furs.  After Cale was forced out, I can say I like the more conventional approach as well, especially on the third album. Songs like Candy Says and I’m Beginning To See the Light are as good as anything I heard from 1969.They’re also a good example of a band being better than the sum of their parts.  I honestly can’t get into Lou Reed as much after Transformer. I do love John Cale’s Paris 1919 but I couldn’t even tell you what he did after that. So, for me, yeah, it’s the Velvet Underground, especially their first and third albums.

*Links to songs*:

Femme Fatale
Waiting For the Man
White Light White Heat
Beginning To See the Light
Rock n Roll

*Velvet Underground R&R HOF page*

https://www.rockhall.com/inductees/velvet-underground


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## Deleted member 56686 (Dec 27, 2019)

*9. THE DOORS*







*Major Era*: 1967-1971

*Main Labels*: Elektra


*Best Albums*: The Doors, Strange Days, Waiting For the Sun, LA Woman

*Best Songs*: The End, Alabama Song, Strange Days, Riders On the Storm, The Unknown Soldier


The Doors are one of those bands made of legend. Frontman Jim Morrison was one of the most controversial figures of rock while also being one of its great poets. The Doors were formed by Jim Morrison and keyboardist Ray Manzarek in 1965. Along with guitarist Robbie Krieger and drummer John Densmore, they quickly became a sensation along LA’s Sunset Strip. Morrison would often create controversy and once was thrown out of a club when he recited the words to The End saying, “Father, I want to f*** you.” They were signed to Elektra records and released their debut album in the spring of 1967. The single from the album, Light My Fire, was a smash hit and instantly propelled the Doors into stardom. A controversial appearance on the Ed Sullivan show followed when Morrison refused to change the words to Light My Fire. Strange Days followed late in 1967 and Waiting For the Sun was released in 1968. That same year, Morrison was arrested for inciting a riot in New Haven. In 1969, he would be arrested for indecent exposure after a concert in Miami and he would be sentenced to prison a year later. Out on appeal, the Doors recorded LA Woman, their last album with Morrison. Morrison took off for Paris where years of drug and alcohol use took their toll. On July 3, 1971, Jim Morrison died of an apparent heart attack at the age of twenty-seven.


*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  I think there is a macabre sensibility to the Doors.  Morrison was indeed a controversial figure and somehow I don’t think I’d want to hang out with him, but he was also an amazing songwriter and poet. The Doors also had Krieger as a songwriter (he wrote Light My Fire). Manzarek had the ability to play bass with his keyboard since the Doors didn’t have a bass player (Morrison only sang). He is arguably my favorite keyboard player in fact. Strangely enough, Light My Fire isn’t even close to being my favorite song on the debut album. I can point to The End, Alabama Song, and The Crystal Ship as songs I like better. Even some songs on Strange Days, such as the title track and Love Me Two Times I would regard as Doors classics. They tail off some after that though even then there are some moments like in The Unknown Soldier and Roadhouse Blues. They finish off great with LA Woman though, especially with the seemingly prophetic Riders On the Storm, another favorite track. So, all in all, the five years of the Doors rate as some of the best work by any artist in my opinion and, while a few may find them overrated, I have to strongly disagree. The Doors deserve all the accolades.

*Links to songs*:

Light My Fire
Strange Days
The Unknown Soldier
Touch Me
Riders On the Storm


*The Doors official website*

https://www.thedoors.com/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Dec 28, 2019)

*8.THE ROLLING STONES*








*Major Era*: 1963- Present

*Main Labels*:  Decca/London, Rolling Stones, Virgin


*Best Albums*: Let It Bleed, Beggars Banquet, Aftermath, Sticky Fingers, Rolling Stones No 2

*Best Songs*: Gimme Shelter, Mother’s Little Helper, The Last Time, Under My Thumb, Ruby Tuesday

I don’t think these guys need any introduction. Starting out as an R&B outfit outside of London, the Rolling Stones would emerge as, “The World’s Greatest Rock Band.” Brian Jones, Mick Jagger, and Keith Richards formed the core of the band and Charlie Watts and Bill Wyman joined in early 1963. They quickly secured a recording contract with Decca and began having hits with standards like Come On and Not Fade Away.  They scored with the cover of the Beatles’ I Wanna Be Your Man and would soon be part of the British Invasion of America in 1964. They quickly established themselves as the anti-Beatles with their long hair and unkempt appearance. They also established themselves as the Beatles’ biggest competitors after they released the rock anthem Satisfaction in 1965. The Beatles would influence the Stones from Aftermath in 1966 to Their Satanic Majesties’ Request in 1967, but they would return with a hard rock style with Jumpin’ Jack Flash in 1968. 1968 to 1972 is remembered as the Rolling Stones’ classic period with classic albums like Beggars’ Banquest, Let It Bleed, Sticky Fingers, and Exile On Main Street.  Tragically, Brian Jones died of misadventure in 1969 and he would be replaced by Mick Taylor. Taylor left in 1975 and was replaced with Ron Wood of the Faces. Otherwise, the original band stayed intact until Bill Wyman left in 1993. The Rolling Stones remain together to this day and just recently completed a world tour well into their seventies.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  The World’s Greatest Rock n Roll Band and you’re asking me this? The real question is why I only have them listed at number eight.  Well, basically it’s because I like seven artists better-that’s the simple answer. Anyway, they are nonetheless a great band and their early material is especially a great listen. I love how they did their R&B covers in the early days with their songs like Off the Hook and the Last Time. Like many fans though, my favorite period is the classic period, especially with Beggars Banquet and Let It Bleed in my case. Let It Bleed, in fact makes it as one of my ten favorite albums.  They have a lot to offer after the classic period too with albums like It’s Only Rock n Roll and Some Girls. Not so much from the eighties on as I think their time had passed after Tattoo You (which was mostly Exile On Main Street outtakes anyway), but their output from 1963 to 1981 put the Rolling Stones in my elite eight.

*Links to songs*:

Time Is On My Side
Satisfaction
Paint It Black
Honky Tonk Women
Brown Sugar
Beast of Burden

*Great Rolling Stones page*

http://www.timeisonourside.com/

And don’t forget to see my reviews on the Rolling Stones here…

https://www.writingforums.com/threads/184758-Reviewing-the-Rolling-Stones


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## Deleted member 56686 (Dec 29, 2019)

*7. THE WHO*







*Major Era*: 1965-1978

*Main Labels*:  Decca, Track, MCA


*Best Albums*: Tommy, My Generation, A Quick One While He’s Away, Who’s Next, Quadrophenia

*Best Songs*: I’m Free, Boris the Spider, The Kids Are Alright, Behind Blue Eyes, My Generation

Part of the Holy Trinity of Rock (Beatles, Rolling Stones, and The Who), The Who were an integral part of the British Mod Movement in the sixties. They would influence bands from The Small Faces and the Creation to The Jam and the Libertines.  Originally known as the High Numbers,  Pete Townsend and John Entwistle met and formed a band in London in 1962. Entwistle also played with the Detours and encouraged singer Roger Daltrey to join. Keith Moon became the drummer when young Keith Moon crashed a show and sat in on drums. The Who shared a love for R&B and developed their own unique power trio sound (Daltrey mainly sang). Townsend, who was also the band’s primary songwriter (though Entwistle would write occasionally) was a guitar virtuoso while Entwistle played a noticable bass with his own unique style. Moon also drummed in an unusual, very energetic way. The Who in the sixties were known for destroying their instruments at the end of each show. It’s safe to say anarchy ruled with this band. They recorded rock anthems like My Generation and I Can See For Miles in their mod days. In late 1967, Townsend took the Who into the direction of themed albums starting with The Who Sell Out, but it was 1969’s Tommy where the Who went all out with the rock opera concept. Tommy was a themed double set about a deaf, blind, and dumb boy who discovers a wonderful world around him. The Who became known as the world’s loudest band by the seventies with albums like Who’s Next and Quadrophenia, another rock opera, this time chronicling the experience of a local mod.  They would settle into a more conventional mode on The Who By Numbers in 1975 but the heyday of the Who ended when Keith Moon died of misadventure in 1978. The band went on, now with Kenny Jones at drums, but they would only sound like a shell of what they once were. Entwistle died after a Who’s show in 2002 and Townsend and Daltrey continue as a duo playing the oldies circuit. Townsend never got his wish to die before he got old.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Well, in my mind, The Who invented Mod Rock. They certainly invented the concept of the power trio and it didn’t necessarily go for just the mod bands. Metal bands like Led Zeppelin also would use the concept of a power trio. Townsend and even Entwistle occasionally could write mod anthems like My Generation, The Kids Are Alright, and Boris the Spider. Their seventies material also had some classics like Behind Blue Eyes and Love Reign O’er Me. Tommy is certainly one of my favorite albums of 1969. My only real regret is that I didn’t get to see them live during their heyday, well, in the seventies before Keith Moon died anyway. I imagine that would have been one hell of a show. So, the Who come in at seven, just ahead of the Rolling Stones and they rate as my third favorite band of the British Invasion (I really like British Invasion- don’t you know?).

*Links to songs*:

My Generation (on the Smothers Brothers)
I Can See For Miles
I’m Free
Won’t Get Fooled Again
Love Reign O’er Me


*The Who fan page*

http://www.the-who.net/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Dec 30, 2019)

*6. ELVIS COSTELLO*







*Major Era*: 1977- Present

*Main Labels*:  Columbia, Warner Bros.


*Best Albums*: Armed Forces, This Year’s Model, Get Happy, My Aim Is True, King of America

*Best Songs*: Accidents Will Happen, This Year’s Girl, Brilliant Mistake, Chemistry Class, Man Out of Time

Declan McManus started out playing at folk clubs around London in the seventies.  He took influences from country and jazz and developed a sound all his own. He signed with independent Stiff Records in 1977 and became one of the leading figures of the punk movement with his debut album, My Aim Is True. He gained some recognition in the US after releasing This Year’s Model in 1978 with his backup band, the Attractions.  He sometimes could be controversial such as his appearance on Saturday Night Live when he abruptly changed songs as a protest to American radio. He branched out with Armed Forces in 1979 and released a twenty plus song set of Motown influenced songs called Get Happy. In the eighties he would settle into more a more introspective and occasionally experimental style as in 1981’s country album, Almost Blue. In the late eighties, he would collaborate with Paul McCartney on Veronica and McCartney’s My Brave Face. In the nineties, Costello would delve into classical and jazz music with albums like The Juliet Letters and a collaboration with Burt Bacharach. In the meantime he continued to release mature rock albums like Brutal Youth. He continues to make music well into the millennium and he is considered one of the best songwriters since Bob Dylan.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Elvis Costello was someone I was fortunate to get into as soon as he came out. He was getting airplay on my local AOR station and I rushed out to buy his My Aim Is True album right off the bat. This Year’s Model and Armed Forces are even better as they have that sixtyish sound that I like with the farfisa organ in particular.  He also wasn’t afraid to change speeds as time went on, sometimes with success, sometimes not, but always with creativity in mind.  Of all the artists in the initial wave of New Wave/Punk, I consider him my favorite and only one artist post seventies rates higher.

*Links to songs*:

Less Than Zero
Radio Radio (SNL)
Accidents Will Happen
Tokyo Storm Warning
45


*Elvis Costello Wiki Page*

http://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php/Main_Page


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## Deleted member 56686 (Dec 31, 2019)

*5. THE BYRDS*







*Major Era*: 1965-1973

*Main Labels*: Columbia


*Best Albums*: Fifth Dimension, The Notorious Byrd Brothers, Younger Than Yesterday, Mr. Tambourine Man

*Best Songs*: Goin Back, Here Without You, Renaissance Fair, What’s Happening, Chestnut Mare

The ultimate folk-rock band, the Byrds were perhaps the first band to be influenced by both Bob Dylan and the Beatles to make it big. Along the way they invented what is now known as folk-rock.  Originally formed by Jim McGuinn, David Crosby, and Gene Clark as the Beefeaters. They changed their named to the Byrds, now a five piece band, and signed with Columbia Records. They scored major hits with Dylan’s Mr. Tambourine Man and Pete Seeger’s Turn, Turn, Turn and was, for a time, considered America’s answer to the Beatles. In 1966, they released the psychedelic Fifth Dimension featuring the sitar anthem Eight Miles High. In 1967 personnel changes transformed the Byrds into a country rock band as David Crosby was fired and Gram Parsons joined the band. Indeed, by the end of the Byrds’ run in 1973, only McGuinn (now named Roger McGuinn) would be the only original member. In 1968 the Parsons influenced Byrds released the country-rock classic, Sweetheart of the Rodeo.  In 1969, they wrote much of the soundtrack for Easy Rider and, by the seventies, had penned classics such as Jesus is Just Alright, later made famous by the Doobie Brothers, and Chestnut Mare. McGuinn would break up the band in 1973 though there would be infrequent reunions over the years. David Crosby went on to have a reasonably successful career as a solo artist and with Crosby Stills, and Nash. Gram Parsons would die under mysterious circumstances and would be the subject of a bizarre attempted burial at Joshua Tree National Park in 1973. As for Roger McGuinn, he’s had a semi-successful solo career as well, his best effort being the folk-rock Back From Rio in 1991.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  I think I’ve mentioned before just how big of a folk-rock fan I am. Well, who could be more folk-rock than the Byrds themselves? Really, their first five albums stand up to any other band’s first five and that includes my number one (bet you’ll never guess who that is :cheesy_grin .  They really weren’t an album band in the classic sense, my favorite being Fifth Dimension, but individually, their best tracks like Here Without You and What’s Happening help put the Byrds where they are on my list. Even later tracks like Goin Back,  Drugstore Truck Driving Man and Chestnut Mare help reinforce my opinion that this is the greatest American band of the sixties. And as such, that’s how I personally rate them- so take that, Beach Boys! :lol:

*Links to songs*:

Mr. Tambourine Man
Turn, Turn, Turn
Eight Miles High
Goin Back
Chestnut Mare

*Byrds fan site*

http://www.thebyrds.com/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Jan 1, 2020)

*4. THE KINKS*







*Major Era*: 1964-1996

*Main Labels*: Pye/ Reprise, RCA, Arista


*Best Albums*: Something Else, Village Green Preservation Society, Face To Face, Arthur, Lola vs. Powerman and the Moneyground

*Best Songs*: Sunny Afternoon, Waterloo Sunset, Tired of Waiting For You, Dedicated Follower of Fashion, Rosy Won’t You Please Come Home, Lola

After the famous Holy Trinity of the Beatles, Rolling Stones, and the Who, you have the Kinks. Ray Davies and his brother, Dave, formed the Ravens in 1963. With bassist Pete Quaife and drummer Mick Avory, they would sign with Pye records and change their name to The Kinks. In 1964, and with Shel Talmy as their producer, The Ray Davies led Kinks scored big with the hard driving You Really Got Me. They followed with smash hits like All Day and All of the Night and Tired Of Waiting For You. By 1966, the Kinks got caught up in the mod scene and delved into the fashionable aspects of music with songs like A Well Respected Man and Dedicated Follower of Fashion.  Ray Davies liked to take shots at the upper class with songs like A Well Respected Man and Mr. Pleasant. In late 1966, the Kinks released the well received Face To Face which followed in that tradition, Sunny Afternoon being another swipe at the upper crust. In the late sixties, the Kinks released arguably their best work with albums Something Else, Village Green Preservation Society, and Arthur. They scored a major international hit with Lola, about a crossdresser. The Kinks faded a bit in the seventies, especially after Muswell Hillbillies, but they made a bit of a comeback with Sleepwalker in 1977. They stayed together well into the eighties other than Quaife leaving in 1968. The Davies brothers never really got along though and they eventually would call it a day around 1995. Still, they were a huge influence on many bands, especially on those in the Brit-Pop movement of the nineties.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Just like they barely missed being in the so called Holy Trinity of rock, the barely missed my own Holy Trinity as well. I think that should tell you in what high regard I hold this band.  In some ways, the Kinks were an early precursor to heavy metal with their early heavy guitar sound, but it’s the later material from 1966 to 1971 that especially puts the Kinks in the four slot for me. They scored with four classic albums in a row from Face To Face to Arthur,  and Lola versus Powerman and the Moneyground and Muswell Hillbillies aren’t too shabby either. The Kinks didn’t get much recognition in America after their first impact, being all but ignored in the late sixties, probably their most creative period. In some ways they’re the reverse of the Byrds as, while it’s easier to name my favorite songs as opposed to albums with them, it’s easier to list the albums as opposed to the songs with the Kinks with the one exception of Sunny Afternoon which is one of those perfect songs I can listen to anytime.  So, if maybe by the late seventies into the eighties the Kinks may have sounded more like a good but still ordinary rock band, their brilliant sixties and early seventies output makes them one of my more legendary artists.

*Links to songs*:

You Really Got Me
Tired Of Waiting For You
Sunny Afternoon
Waterloo Sunset
Lola

*Unofficial Kinks page*

https://www.kindakinks.net/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Jan 2, 2020)

*3.DAVID BOWIE*








*Major Era*: 1969-2016

*Main Labels*:   RCA, EMI America, Columbia


*Best Albums*: Hunky Dory, Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars, Lodger, Blackstar, Alladin Sane

*Best Songs*: Life On Mars, Heroes, Space Oddity, Jean Genie, Ashes To Ashes

Rock’s greatest chameleon, David Bowie would become one of the most influential artists in the history of rock n roll with his theatrical approach to music. He is also one of the few artists to maintain a certain quality that lasted all the way to his death in 2016. Born in Brixton as David Jones,  his father encouraged David to listen to the early rock n roll artists. Young David became especially enamored with Elvis Presley and his own stage show. By 1962, Jones began to play in bands and joined the King Bees in 1964. A year later, he joined the Manish Boys and changed his name to David Bowie so he wouldn’t be confused with pop singer Davy Jones, soon to become one of the Monkees. After languishing in various mod rock bands in 1965 and 1966, Bowie set out to record a solo album in 1967. The Anthony Newley influenced  theatrical album failed, but Bowie would reach some success with  his second album, also titled David Bowie, and released in 1973 in the US as Space Oddity. Space Oddity was the springboard for what would be a constantly changing set of personas for Bowie. From the metallic Man Who Sold the World and art rock Hunky Dory came his masterpiece, Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars in 1972. By this time, Bowie had gained international stardom and he could have stretched out the glam rock Ziggy persona for years, but he would kill the character after Alladin Sane in 1973 and start a dalliance with soul in the mid seventies. In the late seventies, he tied up with producer/musician Brian Eno  and developed his Thin White Duke persona. He recorded  the experimental Low , Heroes, and Lodger albums in Berlin with strong critical acclaim. After Scary Monsters in 1980, Bowie took a short sabbatical, then went the pop route with Let’s Dance, commercially successful, but not as highly received critically. The nineties saw more of a resurgence and even more so in the Millennium as he returned to the more experimental style with albums like Heathen and The Next Day. Diagnosed with terminal cancer, David Bowie released his last masterpiece, Blackstar (simply noted by a black star) in January 2016. Days later he would be dead at age sixty-nine, but he left with one of the most acclaimed albums of the Millennium. He also left us with one of the most interesting and greatest catalogs in music history.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  You mean you don’t know? :lol: . Suffice it to say, he is my favorite solo artist and not just for his Ziggy Stardust period. Anything he did up until 1980 and just about anything he did after about 1995 can be listed as some of the best music ever. Bowie wrote some of the most unusual melodies and you kind of knew when you heard that theatrical flair, it was a Bowie song.  A friend got me into Bowie in the seventies when I was growing up. That was around the time Station To Station was out but I was listening to albums like Space Oddity and The Man Who Sold the World at that time.  Low came out a year later though and that’s when I really got into Bowie. Like I had with the Beatles before, I would buy his albums all in chronological order, not familiar with his pre 1969 output. That changed when I saw what was being touted as Images (his 1967 album-in double set form) and then with his early mod incarnations, which I really got into. He kind of lost me for a while with his dance pop albums in the eighties but he interested me in the nineties again with Outside. But it is his albums from Space Oddity to Diamond Dogs that I especially like best. And he is such a chameleon like no other. I mean, if you don’t  like one style, just wait five minutes and he’ll be somebody else. The amazing thing though is that he never lost the essence of who his was. Maybe it was in his vocals or maybe it was his unique songwriting abilities, but you always knew it was David Bowie, the third of my Holy Trinity.

*Links to songs*:

Space Oddity
Life On Mars
Ziggy Stardust
Heroes
Ashes To Ashes
Lazarus

*David Bowie page*

http://spaceoddity50.davidbowie.com/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Jan 3, 2020)

*2,REM*









*Major Era*: 1982-2011

*Main Labels*: IRS, Warner Bros.


*Best Albums*: Murmur, Automatic For the People, Reckoning, Fables of the Reconstruction, Document

*Best Songs*: So Central Rain, Everybody Hurts, Fall On Me, Losing My religion, Shaking Through

Part of the Athens, Georgia college scene, REM was formed when Michael Stipe and Peter Buck befriended each other at a record store. They joined up with friends Michael Mills and Bill Berry, and REM was born. They took their influences from early punk artists like Patti Smith and Television. Recording initially as indie artists, they signed with IRS records in 1982 and released the mini LP, Chronic Town. A year later, they broke through with the highly regarded Murmur, and helped to start what was known as the College Rock movement. REM’s sound early on was a blend of folk rock and post punk influences accentuated by Stipe’s nonsensical lyrics. Each album seemed to have REM taking more steps in their evolution. It culminated in 1987’s Document which had a harder edge than their previous albums and featured MTV staples The One I Love and The End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine). By the nineties, REM was known worldwide as one of the most influential bands around, and Losing My Religion would go on as a modern rock classic. Automatic For the People continued REM’s reign as one of modern rock’s stalwarts and was their most highly regarded effort since Murmur.  Tours and two more albums followed before drummer Bill Berry had to leave after an aneurysm during a European tour. REM continued on as a trio for well over a decade with albums such as Up and Reveal.  They finally called it a day under amicable terms in 2011 after thirty-one years but not before being inducted into the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame along with their idol, Patti Smith.

*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  Well, if not for my number one artist (you’ll never guess who  ) these guys would be number one, obviously. As it is, they are my favorite post sixties band because, frankly, they’re about the only artist other than my number one, and David Bowie, that could keep my interest for such a prolonged period of time. I mean there were others like Elvis Costello and even the Who that would keep my interest as a truly great artist, but not like my top three, which includes REM. My favorite era is certainly from the early college rock days that begat albums like Murmur and Reckoning, but add on other classic albums like Automatic For the People and it’s hard to imagine another band I’d like better. I was fortunate to see REM live in 1995 when they were supporting Monster, and they put on one great show. One of my highlights besides playing So Central Rain (my favorite eighties song by far) was an impromptu rendition of Day Tripper by Peter Buck. I could name so many great songs and albums from this band, I’d have to start another thread- and maybe one day, I will. But for now, this is the greatest band in the history of rock n roll… except for one.

*Links to songs*:

Radio Free Europe
So Central Rain
Fall On Me
The One I Love
Losing My Religion
Everybody Hurts


*REM page*

https://www.remhq.com/


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## Deleted member 56686 (Jan 4, 2020)

*1. THE BEATLES*

NUMBER ONE: THE BEATLES










*Major Era*: 1962-1970

*Main Labels*:  Parlophone/Capitol, Apple


*Best Albums*: Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, Rubber Soul, Revolver, The Beatles (White Album), Abbey Road, With the Beatles

*Best Songs*: Strawberry Fields Forever, A Day in the Life, Girl, A Hard Day’s Night, Nowhere Man, Here There and Everywhere, While My Guitar Gently Weeps

I don’t think this band needs much of an introduction so I’ll just gloss over the highlights. Also note that I have a Reviewing the Beatles thread for more on my thoughts. But for now…

Paul McCartney met John Lennon at a Liverpool fete in 1957 where Lennon was playing with the Quarrymen. Both, as well as many British teenagers of the day, were into a form of music known as skiffle, as DIY as you could get in those days. Paul McCartney brought in his friend, George Harrison, and the three of them went through a series of drummers before finally settling on Pete Best. Lennon’s friend Stu Sutcliffe played bass for a time but McCartney would take it up after he left to stay in Hamburg, where the Beatles played off and on between 1960 and 1962. In late 1961, the Beatles were signed by Brian Epstein after seeing them play at Liverpool’s local Cavern Club and, after a failed audition with Decca, secured a contract with EMI where they met producer George Martin. He convinced the Beatles to dump Pete Best and they brought in Ringo Starr, a mate they knew from the Hamburg scene. They released their first single, Love Me Do, in late 1962 with some modest success, but it was Please Please Me in 1963 when things started to take off. From Me To You followed and, when She Loves You hit the charts in mid 1963, the Beatles became the hottest commodity in England. After I Want To Hold Your Hand and With the Beatles were released in late 1963, the Beatles came to America and Beatlemania was born. No one had seen a phenomenon like this since Elvis and, with a backlog of uncharted songs from England, the Beatles would literally dominate the Billboard charts, at one point having the five top singles in the US. The phenomenon continued throughout 1964 as the Beatles made a movie (A Hard Day’s Night) and would do a proper tour of the US later in the year. More albums and another movie followed, then the Beatles began to record more serious records starting with Rubber Soul. Rubber Soul, influenced by Dylan and folk-rock in general, was part of the first wave of an expansion of rock music that would culminate in the Beatles’ own magnum opus, Sgt, Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band in 1967. After manager Brian Epstein died in 1967, the Beatles lost some direction, though their music, now more in a back to basics mode, never lost their quality with two more classic albums in The White Album and Abbey Road.  Tensions would flare over musical and personal differences as well as conflicting business interests and McCartney would announce the band’s breakup in 1970. They would never reunite as a foursome even as personal feelings became softer, particularly with Lennon and McCartney. John Lennon would be assassinated in 1980 ending any hope for a full Beatles’ reunion but the three survivors would reunite to tell their story and release the three part Anthology series in 1995. George Harrison died in 2001 after a long battle with cancer, leaving McCartney and Starr to keep the Beatle dream alive with projects like the album Love in 2006, the Cirque Du Soleil mash up.  Needless to say, the Beatles are remembered by many as the greatest rock group of all time and they will go down in history much the same way as Classical artists like Beethoven did.


*Why Do I Like This Artist*?  What a surprise, huh? Yes, this is my number one band for so many reasons.  For one thing, it was the Beatles that sparked my interest in music to begin with, probably from the time I saw A Hard Day’s Night on TV as a kid.  It was the Beatles that started my album collection though I have to admit the first album I bought was actually from the Mamas and Papas. Hey, I was eleven.  I would skip lunch and save my lunch money and, every couple of weeks, I’d buy another Beatles’ album until I had their basic collection. So what is it about the Beatles that make them head and shoulders above anybody else? Let’s start with the fact that you can categorize them in a genre all their own and call it Beatle music. Others have tried to sound like the Beatles but the only band that even came close was a parody band known as the Rutles. Who remembers when Capitol spread the rumor that Klaatu was secretly the reunited Beatles? Nope, not even close. So whether it was something early like All My Loving, a pensive song like Norwegian Wood, the psychedelic A Day in the Life, or the late era Get Back, you knew you were listening to unmatched greatness. And, let’s face it, if the Beatles hadn’t existed, would music in general sound the way it does today? I think not.


*Links to songs*:

I Want To Hold Your Hand
A Hard Day’s Night
Norwegian Wood
Strawberry Fields Forever
A Day in the Life
Come Together

*My favorite Beatles page*

https://www.beatlesbible.com/

And don't forget my reviewing the Beatles page here.


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## Deleted member 56686 (Jan 4, 2020)

And that’s about it for my Top 100. The list, now in proper order




THE BEATLES
REM
David BOWIE
THE KINKS
THE BYRDS
ELVIS COSTELLO
THE WHO
THE ROLLING STONES
THE DOORS
THE VELVET UNDERGROUND
BOB DYLAN
JOHN LENNON
THE BEACH BOYS
SIMON AND GARFUNKEL
PATTI SMITH
PHIL OCHS
BUFFALO SPRINGFIELD
PINK FLOYD
THE ZOMBIES
QUEEN
JEFFERSON AIRPLANE
THE HOLLIES
LOVE
STEVIE WONDER
FRANK ZAPPA
KING CRIMSON
JIMI HENDRIX
ROY ORBISON
RADIOHEAD
JOHNNY CASH
MIDNIGHT OIL
DEVO
DEPECHE MODE
ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA
WILCO
LED ZEPPELIN
THE ANIMALS
CHUCK BERRY
DONOVAN
CREEDENCE CLEARWATER REVIVAL
THE TURTLES
THE SMITHS
THE PIXIES
NIRVANA
OTIS REDDING
JOHN LEE HOOKER
YES
ELLIOTT SMITH
MANIC STREET PREACHERS
THE TEMPTATIONS
ELVIS PRESLEY
PAUL MCCARTNEY
U2
ALICE COOPER
NEIL YOUNG
PJ HARVEY
ROXY MUSIC
THE MAMAS AND THE PAPAS
XTC
JAMES BROWN
TRAFFIC
JETHRO TULL
GUIDED BY VOICES
THE B-52S
THE MOODY BLUES
THE NEW PORNOGRAPHERS
THE RAMONES
VIOLENT FEMMES
SEX PISTOLS
CONOR OBERST/BRIGHT EYES
THE THIRTEENTH FLOOR ELEVATORS
ELTON JOHN
THE SHADOWS
THE BRIAN JONESTOWN MASSACRE
NICK CAVE AND THE BAD SEEDS
THE PRETTY THINGS
BLONDIE
X
HOWLIN WOLF
THE REPLACEMENTS
CURTIS MAYFIELD/THE IMPRESSIONS
THE JAM
THE WHITE STRIPES
BADFINGER
TALKING HEADS
THE FLAMING LIPS
SPARKLEHORSE
SUFJAN STEVENS
SAM PHILLIPS
GRANDADDY
CAMPER VAN BEETHIVEN
EELS
GEORGE HARRISON
THE PRETENDERS
THE SEEDS
OF MONTREAL
EURYTHMICS
MARVIN GAYE
THE FALL
LESLEY GORE
 


And that’s about it, Hope you enjoyed my Top 100 artists of all time. Now what are yours?


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