Your top 10 favorite artist/bands...with a slight twist

[anthony]

This is how being a Radiohead fan goes

First listen: What the fuck is this crap

Second listen: This is okay

Third listen: This is the best fucking song human beings have ever made

Fourth listen: I want to have sex with this song

Ha....So true!

 

BTW, I totally forgot one (and a very important one): Robert Johnson - 100%

[tinnitus photography]

BTW, I totally forgot one (and a very important one): Robert Johnson - 100%

 

didn't he record only 16 songs?

[Sweet Papa Crimbo]

Not in any particular or notable order.

 

Wilco (95% +/-) --- After having discovered this band shortly after AM was released, Ihave been increasingly obsessed with all things Wilco. I had never listened to Uncle Tupleo, so I didn't come to the table with any baggage. Even with all the stylistic and personnel changes, Tweedy has consistently made music that speaks to me. There are some things that don't work as well as others, but I have completely bought into Jeff Tweedy's musical vision.

 

Radiohead (90%) --- IRDB nailed the Radiohead fan experience (This is how being a Radiohead fan goes: First listen: What the fuck is this crap; Second listen: This is okay; Third listen: This is the best fucking song human beings have ever made; Fourth listen: I want to have sex with this song). While I really love the guitar rocking band of the Bends and OK Computer, Radiohead's muscial trip has, for the most part, been really exciting and enjoyable

 

The Beatles (95%+ ) --- I mean, come on, this is THE BEATLES. They are beyond the judgement of a mere mortal like me. But seriously, I cannot imagine how my life would be different without their music. The invented our concept of what a BAND is. Two Guitars, Bass and Drums. Then discovering overdubbing. Singing their own songs. Our concept of a Band as being best friends. Squabbling over money and women. Beyond the image that the band has in our collective consciouness, the music is almost uniformly excellent. Some of the early material hasn't aged well, but we are coming up on the 50th anniversary of the release of PLEASE PLEASE ME...it is a bit dated.

The original boy band who grew up and became cultural instigators.

 

Ryan Adams (80%) --- the artist as sufferer of ADHD. He surely could have used an internal editing mode, but a tremendous amount of his work is sublime. I hope that his marriage and getting clean allows him to leave the bratty behavior behind.

 

Bruce Springsteen (90%) --- If you are of a certain age, you can really remember life before and after you heard Born to Run. When Rock was descending into the doldrums in the mid-70's, Springsteen brought his mix of 50' rocker, 60's soul shouter, tent revival preacher and messianic rock star to the world. He even managed to survive the severe backlash against the hype and converted everybody who was willing to listen. There have been hyperbolists who insist Springsteen saved Rock in 1975 and 1978; might be a bit overstated, but it is understandable. Certainly has proven to still be willing to take chances, and has seemed self important at times. However, his music, short of a few notable missteps (Real Man? Queen of the Supermarket?) has been an extraordinary mix of synthesis and originality.

 

Bob Dylan (100% to 1970 - 85%, 1970 to 1973 - a black hole, 1974 to 1983 - 60% 1984 to 1989 - 40% with Oh Mercy being the only good one in that period, from 1989 to present - 85%+) --- I named my son for the guy, so that tells you how I feel. There are some really trying moments in the 80's (KNOCKED OUT LOADED? DOWN IN THE GROOVE? DYLAN AND THE DEAD?) and what may well be the most embarrassing recording ever released by a musical icon (SELF PORTRAIT), and he lost his way for extended periods. But he managed to have two separate rebirths and is more vital musically than a 70-year old should be expected to be.

 

Gaslight Anthem/Horrible Crowes (95%) --- Brian Fallon is the latest in a long line of passionate songwriters who find the sweet spot where loud guitars and moving lyrics meet. I am looking forward to see how his career progresses. I hope that he hasn't identified himself so closely with Springsteen that he can't make his own place.

 

Neil Young (80%) --- Sometimes, it seems like NY is simply slapping whatever crap comes into his head. He has an odd self-editing sense where he kills CHROME DREAMS and HOME GROWN, but releases EVERYBODY'S ROCKING, TRANS and LANDING ON WATER , most of LIVING WITH WAR and FORK IN THE ROAD. He is the most unlikely Guitar Hero of all time, sloppy and ofter repititive, but unarguably one of the giants of the six string.

 

Pearl Jam (75%) --- I find myself still taken to that place where passion lives when I listen to this band. They sometimes get a little repititive and a little strident, but these guys still preach the gospel of electric guitars and a Marshall stacks, and that is what's important, after all is said and done.

 

Drive by Truckers/Patterson Hood (80%) --- Hood and Cooley do tap into the modern dichtomy that is the 'southern thing'. While the band certainly hit a high point when Jason Isbell joined the band, they still vibrantly revive the modern spirit of 'Southern Rock'. Maybe not a direct descendant of The Allman Brothers or Lynyrd Skynyrd, but they do share the spirit of a conquered land 150 years down the road.

[Sweet Papa Crimbo]

The problem with these type of lists is that I always have things pop into my mind after I've spent 30 minutes putting the initial list together.

Like...

 

REM (1983-1992 - 100%, 1994-1996 - 80%, 1996-the present - doesn't register for me as I have never listened to any of the newer records) --- If REM had packed in in after AUTOMATIC FOR THE PEOPLE, they would have been the best band of all time, in my opinion. MONSTER always seem forced and NEW ADVENTURES IN HI-FI always made me melancholy because it was the end of the band as they always proclaimed it (the old "if one of us quits, the band is done" lie). I'm not going to make any grand proclaimations about how the band declined after Bill Berry left, because I simply didn't listen to them afterwards.

I don't know whether I outgrew them or they left me behind. I do miss them, though.

 

U2 (varies from 100% to 0% and all points in between) --- I have an internal battle with my feelings about U2. I alternately worship them and despise them. While I am one of the few people who really liked NO LINE ON THE HORIZON, I felt really cheated with the resultant tour experience. Now, it wasn't the band's fault that the Cowboys Stadium is a horrible venue for a concert, but it did color my experience.

Bono' messianic complex makes Bruce seem humble at times. But his charity work does seem genuine. That has nothing to do with the music, but it impacts the impression the band makes. The early stuff (BOY and OCTOBER) hasn't held up well, but the run from WAR to NOLTH has been earth shattering and challenging with some missteps.

[IRememberDBoon]

If the Grateful Dead and phish are 11th on all of these lists I just wish I could prove you all wrong with some youtube

[tinnitus photography]

If the Grateful Dead and phish are 11th on all of these lists I just wish I could prove you all wrong with some youtube

 

[Sweet Papa Crimbo]

If the Grateful Dead and phish are 11th on all of these lists I just wish I could prove you all wrong with some youtube

 

Not everybody will like everything.

 

It's not a competition.

Personally, I care nothing for Phish or the Dead.

They just don't do anything for me. I don't begrudge your appreciation of them and I expect you to extend the same courtesy.

[gryffe]

REM - 1983-1986 = 100% The joint best best band of all time

 

The Fall - 1979-1988 =100% The joint best best band of all time (in the 90's = 50%, and from 2000- till present = 85%)

 

Radiohead - From Kid A till present = 90% (before that = 25%)

 

The Clash - 1977 - 1979 = 100%, from Sandanista onwards = 40%

 

The Go-Betweens - 1984-1987 = 98%

 

The Smiths all output = 99% (just slightly behind REM and The Fall)

 

Drive By Truckers - from Decoration Day till Brighter Than Creations Dark = 98%, all other output = 75%

 

David Bowie - From Hunky Dory to Scary Monsters = 99%

 

Bob Dylan - From Bringing It All Back Home to Blood On The Tracks - 98%, the rest is the biggest hit or miss catalogue ever.

 

Joy Division - All output = 98%

[junkiesmile]

Wilco 95%

Spoon 95%

The Beatles 90%

Big Star 100%

Tom Waits 85%

The Black Crowes 90%

Louis Armstrong 90%

Neil Young 75%

The Black keys 90%

Elliott Smith 100%

So hard to make a top ten. It changes all the time.

[anthony]

didn't he record only 16 songs?

Yep. And they are all good. Easiest 100% in history!

[IRememberDBoon]

first off Phish and GD are two totally different bands and may of their fans hate each others bands.

tinnitus with all that music you experience I would think you would be open to the idea at least. your opinion is certainly one to be respected. i know for sure you would be seeing phish multiple times a season if you could just get that one moment. they are totally misunderstood and they fucking shred faces.

 

 

maybe you like Ween and can sit through just this bit. please give me to the two minute mark.

 

[IRememberDBoon]

[Sweet Papa Crimbo]

Nope! I'm able to enjoy ALL of their albums, though not to the same degree, obviously. If anything, I'm beginning to be fed up of hearing 'A shot in the arm' but this is my fault, probably due to over-esxposure (á la Clockwork Orange-style)

 

I used to really, really not like Dreamer in my dreams and Kingpin. After being exposed to them live, I finally got it.

 

There are some bands that click for folks...Wilco is one that has clicked for me. Maybe I discovered them at a point in my life where I knew what I liked.

[tinnitus photography]

IRDB, i've actually seen Phish twice, once a couple years ago @ Fenway, and their very first Boston show in '89, when they rented the Paradise themselves because no one would book them. two friends of mine at UMass were HUGE fans and dragged me to both shows.

[Vacant Horizon]

I kind of felt that way with King Of Limbs...love it now!

 

i wish i could get into Radiohead. The only tunes that I've ever really liked by them is airbag.

[Vacant Horizon]

Bob Dylan (97%) - In the words of George Harrison, "One hundred years from now, Bob Dylan will still be the man."

 

The Beatles (96%) - Pretty much flawless, with the exception of a few of the rather mindless early tracks. Agree that they still don't get enough credit for how revolutionary they were.

 

Frank Zappa (95%) - With the exception of a few late albums, and some annoyingly self-indulgent avant garde orchestral works, FZ's catalog firmly establishes him as one of the towering musical figures of the 20th century. While The Beatles don't receive quite enough credit for how revolutionary they were, FZ only receives credit from about a thousand people. He deserves his place in the top three.

 

Bruce Cockburn (93%) - This number would be higher if not for parts of a few late career albums. What do you get when you cross a beautiful singing voice with a phenomenal songwriting skill and the guitar playing virtuosity of a Segovia? You get Bruce Fucking Cockburn.

 

Phil Ochs (92%) - If you like left wing politics and folk music, and you wonder what Dylan would have written if he had not gotten extremely popular, you just might like Phil. He was the soundtrack of my 20s.

 

Joni Mitchell (90%) - One of the most underrated guitarists ever - her early battles with polio forced her to create her own (brilliant) guitar tunings - she also taught herself to play the piano and the dulcimer, and went through a period where she switched among all three instruments in concert. Also, her best lyrics are as good as the best of Dylan.

 

Muddy Waters (90%) - Do I really need to explain this? Nah.

 

Howlin' Wolf (90%) - See Muddy Waters.

 

The Rolling Stones (85%) - Sure, they learned everything they know from Muddy, the Wolf, and Chuck Berry, but that's pretty good, right?

 

The Grateful Dead (80%) - If pressed, I'd admit I like the Dead better than the Stones, but the % gets sort of artificially lowered due to the huge catalog of shitty bootlegs that got officially released after Jerry's death, along with things like "Picasso Moon." Sorry, Bobby.

 

Much as I love Wilco, their post-2002 output drops their % to only about 75 for me. Also, I did not include instrumental jazz in this, or Coltrane and Miles would have been in here.

 

I love Picasso Moon. I'm probably 99% Dead. not a huge fan of 65-70 or 91-95.

used to love phish. after the first break up, didn't care anymore.

[dagwave]

ok, i love this thread, but i gotta wonder as a nerd 82 minutes before midnight on xmas eve:

 

shouldn't more prolific artists be recognized as a weighted avg?

 

for example: stones % vs. saaaay,...pavement/ theads/ replacements

 

maybe a stones 80 is better than a 'mats 88?

 

of course, thers no easy way to level the playing field, and i'm lazy by nature.

 

but i'm in for 94% on malkmus post pave

[Autumnteeth]

1) Lambchop: 75% - My favourite band but, strangely, I struggle with their first two albums. They have just got better and better in my opinion. 'Nixon' and 'Damaged' are timeless. Really looking forward to the new record in early 2012.

 

2) Wilco: 90% - 'The Whole Love' boosts the percentage, which was dropping following SBS and WTA. I still enjoy both those albums but they can't touch the first five and the most recent.

 

3) Sparklehorse: 92% - Four albums from late, great, Mark Linkous. All great. 'Vivadixie' and 'Good Morning Spider' still sounds amazing. A great artist whose death still affects me to this day.

 

4) Tom Waits: 98% - The main man. Has never put out a bad album in over forty years. When he was starting to sound a bit tired he re-invented himself with 'Swordfishtrombone'. His new record maintains his ridiculously high standard. 'Rain Dogs' is pure genius.

 

5) Micah P Hinson: 90% - Young Micah has put out five records now I have have thoroughly enjoyed them all. The covers album was a bit patchy.

 

6) Neil Young: 70% - 'On the Beach', 'Tonights the Night', 'Rust Never Sleeps', 'Ragged Glory', 'Time Fades Away'. Neil is a god. He has no quality control switch though. Unlike Tom Waits his output seems less thought out. I respect Neil for the way he follows his muse but I feel some of his albums in the eighties and the last decade shouldn't have seen the light of day. So many albums that his percentage is going to suffer.

 

7) Genesis: 80% - My first music love. When I was a kid it was the eighties pop Genesis that fascinated me. I then worked back to find some staggering progressive rock such as 'Foxtrot', 'Selling England' and' The Lamb'. As per my avatar, 'Duke' is one of my favourite records; a perfect mix of prog and tight eighties pop-rock. I sometimes wish people would give them the respect they deserve. In the UK at least they still are derided in the music press when they should be hailed and wonderful British group.

 

8) Mercury Rev: 70% - Going against the grain I feel Mercury Rev have improved with age. I don't fawn over the earlier records like some and really enjoyed their most recent release, the criminally overlooked 'Snowflake Midnight'. 'Deserter's Songs' is a total classic.

 

9) Van Morrison: 65% - I love Van Morrison. Astral Week and Veedon Fleece are both in my top ten, the later could be my all time favourite record. He hasn't put out any real stinkers but some of his later albums are like van-by-numbers.

 

10) Grandaddy: 60% - Last on the list a great band that are sadly no more. Jason Lytle's solo work is also great and 'The Sophtware Slump' is one of the key records of the last decade. Not too won over by their earlier material, or their last proper record.

 

 

Exactly what I was worried about. I knew Ieft out a band. Good call on Mercury Rev

[theonlyrodable]

Beck - 99.99% - everything from the unreleased, early to recent, I have pretty much all of it.

Wilco - 98% - not counting Loose Fur which would drop the percentage a little

Elliott Smith - 99% - nuff said

Josh Rouse - 95% - excluding his new collaboration with The Long Vacations

Charlotte Gainsbourg - ??% - not sure

Beth Orton - 97% - have it all, waiting for more

Barth - 95%

Air - 85% - instrumental songs lower percentage

Meat Puppets - 75% didn't care for the vocals on earliest albums.

Arcade Fire - 90% - kind of a wildcard band, I could have chose some others

[Albert Tatlock]

Beatles 90%

Wilco / Maria McKee / Emmylou / Elbow / The Jam around 70%

The rest: no one gets more than around 40%

 

I don't get easily blinded into accepting everything from anyone.

[PopTodd]

Beatles 90%

Wilco / Maria McKee / Emmylou / Elbow / The Jam around 70%

The rest: no one gets more than around 40%

 

I don't get easily blinded into accepting everything from anyone.

 

Wow. My first-ever concert in 1987 was U2 with opening act Lone Justice.

Haven't thought of Maria McKee since around that time.

[Albert Tatlock]

Poptodd, I would recommend these

 

 

self titled solo debut

 

 

One of the best voices (as Bono has testified too if that means anything to you) and an ear for a great melody - or at least 7 out of 10 times :-)

 

[worldrecordplayer]

IRDB, i've actually seen Phish twice, once a couple years ago @ Fenway, and their very first Boston show in '89, when they rented the Paradise themselves because no one would book them. two friends of mine at UMass were HUGE fans and dragged me to both shows.

 

That Fenway show was not a very good one IMHO. First show back, crappy venue for music, etc. They crushed it the next week at Great Woods.

[Henry Snow]

1 REM - 95%

2 Radiohead - 85%

3 Wilco - 85%

4 Sigur Ros - 95%

5 The Flaming Lips - 75%

6 The National - 90%

7 The Beatles - 85%

8 The White Stripes - 85%

9 Hunters & Collectors - 90%

10 Yo La Tengo - 75%

[zebra]

Wilco : 93

Hans Zimmer : 90

Explosions In The Sky : 95

Down : 85

Death Cab For Cutie : 75

Chevelle : 70

Metallica : 80

Pink Floyd : 80

Pantera : 90

Tool : 90