#39 - Donovan

Donovan's inner light led him to several innovations that we take for granted in hindsight.  

  * delving into world music, including his own celtic heritage

  * developing heavily thematic songs, like Atlantis ("Way down below the ocean...")

  * having friends and connections in just about every important band of his era

  * leading the way in adopting a 'flower power' persona

  * name checking in his songs

The Donovan songs that I'm still eager to hear include the brilliant "Hurdy Gurdy Man", the beautifully titled "Wear Your Love Like Heaven"--excellent cover by Sarah McLachlan, by the way--and the weird "Season of the Witch"--several good covers).

Donovan was one of the few musicians invited to attend the final recordings for the Beatles "Day In The Life".  He was friends with the Rolling Stones' Brain Jones (later marrying the latter's ex-girlfriend).  He is in D. A. Pennebaker's film of Bob Dylan's 1965 tour, meeting with Dylan.  His "Hurdy Gurdy Man" may have been the first time that three of four Led Zepplin members played together.  He had wanted Jimi Hendrix to play in that song, but was unable to arrange it.  

A possible reason his career faded in the '70s is that in '67 he was one of the first British musicians to be busted for marijuana.  This meant that he couldn't make it to the Monterey Pop Festival that year, due to being denied entry into the US.  Another reason, is that in '69 he split up with his longtime producer Mickie Most (over a California 'session' that included Stephen Stills and Mama Cass getting a bit too lubricated...to the point of near uselessness).

...................................

Each band or performer is graded on four things:
  1.  Innovation
  2.  Influence in my life--as a typical American
  3.  Integrity: the band's approach to music (just making a buck or honing a craft?)  
  4.  Immortality--am I, a typical American--still eager to hear their music

10/6/5/2 = 23 out of a perfect 40

....................................

Additonal collaborations: John Paul Jones (Led Zep) arranged "Mellow Yellow".  Paul McCartney is on the tamborine and singing back-up on "Atlantis".

#40 -- Sleater-Kinney

Your office has been notified.
This is a hack-a-tude.
Bellow it to the pebbles.
We here; we can tell.

......................................

Note:

The above hack appeared here on the 6th of April.  The group Sleater-Kinney was inserted in the header, instead of the original Kate Bush.  Since I've recently been listening to S.-K., and feel their music represents a hat-tip to the high-intensity, youthful sound of today, I'll okay the change.  Besides, I think I know who hacked this post, and they might just do it again if I protested.

S.-K.'s 2015 release, No Cities To Love, is something I've grown to enjoy, after many listenings.  Getting used to Corin Tucker's vocal wallop reminds me of the first impression Bono made on me, back in the '80s--too intense.  But, I don't feel that way anymore.  Quite the contrary.

Take "Price Tag", the album's opening number.  If you don't smile when the lyrics get to hungry kids at the grocery store reaching for "the good stuff"....  you might need a hack-a-tude adjustment.

......................................

Each band or performer is graded on four things:
  1.  Innovation
  2.  Influence in my life--as a typical American
  3.  Integrity: the band's approach to music (just making a buck or honing a craft?)  
  4.  Immortality--am I, a typical American--still eager to hear their music

8/2/10/5 = 23 out of a perfect 40

......................................

Half-hearted warning: If you're an old fogey like me, this is not only high-intensity music, as I mention above, but, it's also cutting edge: melody fused with 'difficult' chord progressions.  If you like bubble gum pop, S.-K. will present a challenge.

#41 -- Radiohead

Ineluctable Tea
Bot-force Zero
Concatenation Domini
Daring Feat

..................................

Each band or performer is graded on four things:
  1.  Innovation
  2.  Influence in my life--as a typical American
  3.  Integrity: the band's approach to music (just making a buck or honing a craft?)  
  4.  Immortality--am I, a typical American--still eager to hear their music

9/4/7/3 = 23 out of a perfect 40

..................................

A WIP.

#42 -- Marvin Gaye

You don't often come across a voice that's so immediately appealing; nor one whose unfolding career is so wonderfully liberating and fulfilling.  Marvin Gaye was that man.

From his first hint at success in 1962, "Beechwood 4-5789" (co-written for the Marvelettes) through his exciting concept albums like "What's Going On" (which I sometimes pronounce "what's going own"--with a long, drawn-out 'own'), I like just about everything he composed and sang.

A few years ago I watched a '70s-era concert on MTV while flipping channels.  Hit after hit with informed timing and delivery.  Simply brilliant.

The crowning glory to his music was probably that he not only broke away from the micromanaging dictation that was the Motown model (producers telling you what to wear and how to 'dance' on stage), but he did as much for R&B by mixing in social commentary and bending genres to fit his musical inclinations.

..............................

Each band or performer is graded on four things:
  1.  Innovation
  2.  Influence in my life--as a typical American
  3.  Integrity: the band's approach to music (just making a buck or honing a craft?)  4.  Immortality--am I, a typical American--still eager to hear their music

8/4/7/4 = 23 out of a perfect 40

..............................

Note: this entry originally appeared as #48, but thanks to my friend Alex Voltaire's comment (which I will attempt to recreate, presently), was transferred here after my grades were adjusted from a total of 17 to 23.

#43 - Traffic

What do you call a band that had numerous breakups, with multiple members quitting, but always rejoining?  Traffic, wouldn't be a bad choice for this sort of coming and going.

Also, where might a band of Brits--world music lovers, with their first few hits in the UK, eventually find their greatest success?  In the US, of course.

And that paradox can be explained in one word, which was Traffic's secret sauce: improvisation; after all, jazz is an American invention.

Their sound began as psychedelic pop, following in the footsteps of The Beatles and Donovan with a side dish of jazz.  A pivot occurred in the '70s, with a turn towards that improvisation.

Their 1970 album "John Barleycorn Must Die", was one of my first purchases; this, after borrowing my friend Jim Paul's copy.  I can recall playing the title track loud enough for my mother to hear as she ironed in the next room.  I was sure she would approve of that renaissance-sounding number.

.......................................

Each band or performer is graded on four things:
  1.  Innovation
  2.  Influence in my life--as a typical American
  3.  Integrity: the band's approach to music (just making a buck or honing a craft?)
  4.  Immortality--am I, a typical American--still eager to hear their music

7/6/4/3 = 20 out of a perfect 40

.......................................

Notes: Traffic's use of world music percussion (Rebop Kwaku Baah) and wind instruments was thrilling at the time.....  I will be mentioning Steve Winwood (Spencer Davis Group, Blind Faith, solo) in my summary piece that explains how I chose to deal with, for example, Paul McCartney and John Lennon's solo careers in light of an overshadowing Beatles oeuvre.

#44 - Al Green

What is it about Al Green's "Let's Stay Together" that sounds so good?  If you could figure out the formula, there'd be many an interested party knocking at your door.  

Though I'd heard R&B and soul on the radio, it was early-70s Al Green who opened up these genres for me, and likely others, too.  A great example of his music seeping into popular music: Talking Heads' covering Green's "Take Me To The River".

As an historical achievement, there's perhaps no greater honor than having a sitting president sing a few bars from a song of yours, in public, and President Obama's rendition ("Let's Stay Together" at the Apollo Theater in New York in Jan. 2012) was actually quite good.

...............................


Each band or performer is graded on four things:
  1.  Innovation
  2.  Influence in my life--as a typical American
  3.  Integrity: the band's approach to music (just making a buck or honing a craft?)
  4.  Immortality--am I, a typical American--still eager to hear their music

6/5/4/4 = 19 out of a perfect 40


...............................

From the man himself:  Green cites Jackie Wilson, Wilson Pickett and Elvis Presley as the music he listened to when growing up.

#45 - Carole King

Today at work I found myself humming "Pleasant Valley Sunday", which to me in junior high in the '60s seemed to stand out as something different than the usual Monkees sugar high.  And low and behold, looking it up I find it was written by Carole King!

Getting right down to the best, I have to say I just love "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman (which was written for Aretha Franklin, then later recorded by King herself).

That vote has many a competitor.  "Up On The Roof", written for the Drifters, is a lovable family dog.  And let's not forget "Chains", that was of course covered by The Beatles. 

In my late teens, there was no bigger phenomenon in the musical universe than Carole King.  With the breakup of the Beatles in '70 and listeners logically turning to a female voice, her music was simply dominant.

..............................

Each band or performer is graded on four things:
  1.  Innovation
  2.  Influence in my life--as a typical American
  3.  Integrity: the band's approach to music (just making a buck or honing a craft?)
  4.  Immortality--am I, a typical American--still eager to hear their music

4/5/6/4 = 19 out of a perfect 40

...............................

Hilarious: In high school she formed a band named the Co-Sines.  Also, it was about this time that she made demo tapes with schoolmate Paul Simon.

#46 -- The Kinks

If The Kinks had kept their band's original name, The Ravens, would their trajectory have been any smoother?  As it was, their trove of hits from '64 through '66 (example: "Sunny Afternoon") qualified them as innovative geniuses.  Unfortunately, their early rowdiness (compared to the suit-and-tie, formulaic probity of their peers) meant they were banned from performing in the US, and thus limited in their reach and success.

And there were subsequent constrictions and breakthroughs in the decades to come.

Do we penalize their standing on the Mighty 55, then, for the herky-jerky manner with which their band's career unfolded?  Not a chance.  The Kinks, after all, have the sound and feel of the very first punk/grunge garage band.  "You Really Got Me" is shockingly raw, and to think it dates to 1964!  So, since we'll be giving short shrift to both punk and grunge, we'll tip our cap to both genres right here (or indicate it's all in your head, depending on how you look at the gesture).

Can we have just one glimpse into the astounding brilliance that is Ye Kinks?  When you are a pioneer in any field, you have the opportunity to discover the biggest bang in the universe you explore.  We all know the lyrics to "Lola", since the jovial expansiveness that states "...in a subtle, background voice..." is hard to miss.  The big bang, though, is of course the clever grammatical twist they discovered, something that when heard for the first time is a revelation.  It occurs just after the following: "Well I'm not the world's most passionate man, but I know who I am and I'm glad I'm a man..."  [I don't quote it in its entirety in case a reader has not heard the full line.]

.........................

Each band or performer is graded on four things:
  1.  Innovation
  2.  Influence in my life--as a typical American
  3.  Integrity: the band's approach to music (just making a buck or honing a craft?)
  4.  Immortality--am I, a typical American--still eager to hear their music

8/4/5/2 = 19 out of a perfect 40

.....................................

Hard to believe, but when The Ravens (later, The Kinks) were in their formative phase, they went through several lead singers, including a school classmate of theirs, Rod Stewart.

B. B. King -- #47

B. B. King, besides being a pick that's a tip o' the hat to all the Blues greats, is a selection that will be with us for decades.

The frenetic finger wizardry that passes for 'expertise' among the boys with glitter in their voluminous hair will likely fade, but the self-assured, patient style that B.B. King perfected has and will influence generations of those playing guitar.

.................................
Each band or performer is graded on four things:
  1.  Innovation
  2.  Influence in my life--as a typical American
  3.  Integrity: the band's approach to music (just making a buck or honing a craft?)
  4.  Immortality--am I, a typical American--still eager to hear their music

8/2/5/3 = 18 out of a perfect 40
...................................

Amazing: King has lived most of his life on the road; 250-300 concerts a year, for about as many years as I've been alive; and his appeal cuts across musical genres: for example, he opened for the Rolling Stones on their 1969 tour of the US.

A favorite: his collaboration in 1988 with U2 on "When Love Comes To Town".

#48 - Elton John

If judged by success alone, Elton John would be among a handful of contenders for the top ten spots among Rock's all-time greatest; after all, his remake of "Candle In The Wind", for Princess Di, has sold more copies than any other single.

And when I was in high school I bought and listened to every Elton John record.  With "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road", however, I left and never did come back.  I was listening to different music in college and had always found lyrics like "...saturday night's alright for fighting..." to be troubling when combined with the song's driving pace.  John's music--though consistently good (from '70 through '00 he had at least one top-100 hit every year)--lacks the focused messaging that would make it great, although there are of course exceptions.  For example, Tumbleweed Connection's 'western' theme, with songs like "Country Comfort" work well for me.

....................................
Each band or performer is graded on four things:
  1.  Innovation
  2.  Influence in my life--as a typical American
  3.  Integrity: the band's approach to music (just making a buck or honing a craft?)
  4.  Immortality--am I, a typical American--still eager to hear their music

4/4/5/4 = 17 out of a perfect 40
.....................................

Interesting factoid: The Hollies' hit "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother", which came out in 1969, has Elton John on piano.  This was his sideman period.

(Note: #48 was originally Marvin Gaye.  In comments, the case was made that my grade for "influence in my life", a zero, was questionable, since music like "What's Going On" had a profound impact in some quarters.  This is an excellent critique of the Mighty 55's mission (either leave off the part about being a 'typical American' or broaden the 'my life' concept), and I will take the offered pointer, rejiggering Marvin Gaye's score accordingly.)

#49 -- Janis Joplin

Growing up in the San Francisco bay area in the 1960s, you'd think I'd be a big Janis Joplin fan, since she was a big player in the 'flowers in your hair' scene.  Wrong.  I only really knew who she was once she'd died.  

The reasons for this are twofold.  First, my father was assigned overseas (summer '67 to summer '69) and so I was out of the country and therefore cut off from most popular music during Big Brother and The Holding Company's "Cheap Thrills" era.  But more importantly, I was into classical music (in early-70's San Francisco I attended the opera and a Pablo Casals concert ** with my parents), preferred melodic, quieter rock & roll (from Simon & Garfunkel on one end of the spectrum to the Rolling Stones on the other) with one exception (Jimi Hendrix, but we'll get to him later).  

To this day I'm surprised at how popular Janis Joplin's material was; I just wasn't around to hear much of it and only later did I learn to love R&B. 

The reason Janis Joplin is on this list is that I just love the exuberance of songs like "Cry Baby" and "Piece of My Heart".  And "Me and Bobby McGee" speaks to 'the sad' in my life better than just about anything, pushing through it with that cathartic, exulting cheer that can be heard towards the end.

On the other hand, for those who like their music loudly emotive, with much throwing oneself about the stage, she opened the floodgates--which is a part of Rock that's never appealed to me.  And we won't get into the sickening drug dependence that killed her, except to wonder what might have been.

..................................

Each band or performer is graded on four things:
  1.  Innovation
  2.  Influence in my life--as a typical American
  3.  Integrity: the band's approach to music (just making a buck or honing a craft?)
  4.  Immortality--am I, a typical American--still eager to hear their music

...............

5/0/5/5 = 15 out of a perfect 40

** Watching "The Roosevelts" on TV recently, I was amazed to hear that Casals had been invited by President Theodore Roosevelt to play at the White House, nearly 70 years before I heard him.

#50 -- Alanis Morissette

Is all the music we hear in our lives meant for us?  Or--at least in the age of radio and early MTV--do we accidentally hear things that are not 'us'?  I'd affirm the former, especially if music makes a lasting, welcome impression. 

Alanis Morissette, for me, was the best thing on the FM dial in the late 1990s.  And there was a window in those days, when I used my own vehicle to deliver mail,  during which music would play while I worked--alas, no more.  

Morissette is arguably too raw for me.  The title of her smash album, Jagged Little Pill (among a handful with the tag "all-time, most albums sold") speaks to this; and her lyrics are explicit.  So why do I like her music?  All I can say: attractions aren't always rational.

............................

Each band or performer is graded on four things:
  1.  Innovation
  2.  Influence in my life--as a typical American
  3.  Integrity: the band's approach to music (just making a buck or honing a craft?)
  4.  Immortality--am I, a typical American--still eager to hear their music

.............................

4/1/4/6 = 15 out of a perfect 50

In the early '00s I watched an entire concert of hers on MTV, I believe, and enjoyed every song, thinking her immensely talented.

Aretha Franklin - #51

From the opening notes that crank up "Respect" (uh, uh, um; uh, uh, um, followed by that jarring slide down into the basement) what we all feel is awe in the presence of a trailblazing queen.

The first female artist inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.  Rolling Stone magazine's greatest singer of all time.  Someone who grew up, thanks to her prominent Baptist preacher father, in the company of Mahalia Jackson, Sam Cooke (an early crush), Jackie Wilson, and Martin Luther King, jr.  One can't overstate just how wonderful an iron-willed, centered, female voice was in the '60s.  

.......................

Each band or performer is graded on four things:
  1.  Innovation
  2.  Influence in my life--as a typical American
  3.  Integrity: the band's approach to music (just making a buck or honing a craft?)
  4.  Immortality--am I, a typical American--still eager to hear their music


...................

6/2/3/4  -- 15 out of a perfect 40

A vignette: I was walking through Paia, Maui, late at night in 1979, when I noticed, up ahead, several native Hawaiian young men hanging out along the sidewalk outside a restaurant.  I was a bit apprehensive, until I heard the opening bars to the familiar "Respect" coming from the jukebox inside.   

#52 -- The Weavers

We just tipped our hat to the Motown hit machine.  Here's another admiring heads up, this time to the Folk music of the '40s and '50s.  With The Weavers, traditional ballads, blues, social commentary and the sing-along pointed popular music towards inclusiveness, protest against injustice, and the first hints of world music.

I was raised on such standards as "On Top of Old Smoky", "Good Night Irene" (I can hear my mother's mother singing it).  And, at a summer camp run by an ex-New Yorker who was steeped in organized labor, sang "Where Have All the Flowers Gone", "If I Had a Hammer" and "Tzena, Tzena, Tzena"--the second of these I sang well over 100 times.  

Naturally, "Kisses Sweeter Than Wine", another summer camp hit, was considered a bit risque when, as a teen, I got to sing about both kissing and drinking.  

Weavers material covered by other artists includes "Sloop John B" and "Wimoweh (the Lion Sleeps Tonight)".

.......................

Each band will be graded on four things:

  1.  Innovation

  2.  Influence in my life--as a typical American

  3.  Integrity: the band's approach to music (just making a buck or honing a craft?)

  4.  Immortality--am I, a typical American--still eager to hear their music

.......................

4/3/6/1 = 14 out of a perfect 40

'Good For Him' Fact:  the late Pete Seeger left the Weavers in 1958 when he objected to the group 'selling out' for a tobacco company radio jingle.

#53 -- The Supremes

There will be several additional Motown acts to come, but for now, let's tip our hat to the first all-women group with a #1 album (which knocked out The Beatles' Revolver, BTW).

The Supremes, surprisingly, were high school students when their group came together as the female version of the Temptations (the Primettes and the Primes, respectively).  Which begs the question, is this sweet, sweet music, in fact, a supreme temptation?  Even though we think we should be listening to more 'mature' fare, you have to admit, Motown sure knew how to crank 'em, one radio wave delight after another.  

Hearing Diana Ross speak to me brings back an early innocence that predates Grace Slick, Janis Joplin and Joni Mitchell--even Aretha Franklin.  I was my mother's son back then.
...............

Each band is graded on four things:
  1.  Innovation
  2.  Influence in my life--as a typical American
  3.  Integrity: the band's approach to music (just making a buck or honing a craft?)
  4.  Immortality--am I, a typical American--still eager to hear their music


...............

5/3/2/4 = 14 out of a perfect 40.

#54 -- Indigo Girls

Today, September 17th, we continue counting down the 55 greatest bands.

55 is an awfully small number when considering the myriad acts in each of a dozen or more genres commonly referred to as Rock and Roll.  

So, I will use #54 to stand for all the no doubt wonderful performers who have, for one reason or another, made a good first impression in my life, but have not been investigated further..., yet.

And because #54, Indigo Girls, has yet to be investigated, I won't be grading them.

....................................

Each band is graded on four things:
  1.  Innovation
  2.  Influence in my life--as a typical American
  3.  Integrity: the band's approach to music (just making a buck or honing a craft?)
  4.  Immortality--am I, a typical American--still eager to hear their music



....................................

I will say, however, that I will eventually address the 'also rans' that just barely missed out in making the cut.  These would be the bands that either have affected me, but I'm no longer eager to hear, or those that I do enjoy, but that are reminiscent of many similar acts.  Or some such combination of scoring beyond #55.

To do this, I will consider all bands that appear on Alex Voltaire's 192-band Rock and Roll Hall of Fame list, as well as the linked lists at the Future Rock Legends website.

Countdown To #1 -- Rock N Roll's Greatest 55 Bands -- #55

Today we begin a 55-post specialty blog that will lay out my own loves, musically speaking.

Because these posts may appear at irregular intervals, I will occasionally link to them from Twitter.

And when we've reached #1, I'll link up with The Northumbrian Countdown, where I was initially challenged to consider my musical favorites--thanks Alex Voltaire!

Each band will be graded on four things:
  1.  Innovation
  2.  Influence in my life--as a typical American
  3.  Integrity: the band's approach to music (just making a buck or honing a craft?)
  4.  Immortality--am I, a typical American--still eager to hear their music

Now, before we begin, let me say that some of today's musical acts may sound better than many of the bands on this list.  We've come a long way, musically.  But, while that may well be the case, the key is that there's a lot of very good music being made in our time, and because there's so much, it simply doesn't have the impact that it would 50 years ago.   Similarly, the number of interesting TV shows is much greater now.  But only blockbuster hits like The Simpsons and The Colbert Report can be referenced, these days, with the expectation that most readers will have watched and have a feel for the show.

#55 - The Jefferson Airplane 6/4/3/1 = 14 points out of a perfect 40

Just barely making an appearance, in the 55th slot, is an early innovator, introducing America to what at the time were somewhat revolutionary ideas:
 * that finding love is the imperative focus for life (the song "Somebody to Love")
 * that a female voice could be as dominating as that of any male, while also being self-assured when channeling as much thunderous news (Grace Slick, fronting for both songs referenced here)
 * that, using the allegorical imagery of Alice In Wonderland, it could be said that you should "feed your head" (the song "White Rabbit")

Fun Fact: the incredibly talented 'Sly' of Sly and the Family Stone was the producer of the B-side recording, Free Advice, that accompanied the first release of "Somebody To Love", then titled "Someone To Love" and recorded by Slick's band The Great Society prior to her joining Jefferson Airplane.

My Memories: I first heard "White Rabbit" in the summer of '67, recently out of the 6th grade.  I was visiting the local junior high for some reason.  The allegorical language was perfect for my age at the time.  I first remember "Somebody To Love" when arriving at a dance in 7th grade; I may have intentionally sabotaged the affair (though not consciously) by injuring the area above my left knee in an attempt to get inside.  This led to my going home to get bandaged up and meaning a round of tetanus shots.  Who didn't I meet there thanks to my trip up?