tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3918310454820522189.post3949874844605152882..comments2023-05-26T06:42:45.658-07:00Comments on Mormon Iconoclast: Rock's top tenEric Samhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17847948709234757330noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3918310454820522189.post-24625501803117320312012-08-26T10:08:47.545-07:002012-08-26T10:08:47.545-07:00Eric, I absolutely love your blog. I think you ma...Eric, I absolutely love your blog. I think you make some good and bold choices for your top 10. But can I compel you to consider Chicago? They have sold more records than any other American rock band beside the Beach Boys, and skillfully synthesized jazz and avant-garde styles with conventional rock. It's okay to penalize them for the terrible ballads they did in the 1980s, and for floundering in the 1990s and beyond, but I'll stand behind their body of work from the decade stretching 1968 to 1977. That includes a lot of great album tracks like "Questions 67 & 68", "Now That You've Gone", "Introduction", and other pieces that never really got popular awareness. 29-year-old-mcgovernitehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03046974092968951758noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3918310454820522189.post-87727734783842396032012-08-24T09:24:27.793-07:002012-08-24T09:24:27.793-07:00Seriously? I read your comment, went straight to ...Seriously? I read your comment, went straight to Youtube, and listened to four or five Big Country songs. I'm afraid we'll have to agree to disagree! But that's why we do this, isn't it? To make a case for who we love. Eric Samhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17847948709234757330noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3918310454820522189.post-41155747621694143652012-08-23T20:15:13.929-07:002012-08-23T20:15:13.929-07:00The Tree of Life was NOT like watching paint dry. ...The Tree of Life was NOT like watching paint dry. It wasn't nearly that interesting.<br /><br />And Queen, YES. Freddie Mercury had more charisma and stage presence than the majority of past and present rock stars. LauraHnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3918310454820522189.post-16449413648396185272012-08-23T10:35:49.841-07:002012-08-23T10:35:49.841-07:00Oh man. OH man. Two words: Big Country.
They wer...Oh man. OH man. Two words: Big Country. <br /><br />They were better songwriters, better musicians, and not better performers. They heavily influenced U2. <br /><br />Big Country is top five of all time, easy. <br /><br />I recognize the Beatles as a top 5 band, but I dislike their music; same for Rolling Stones. Zeppelin, beauty. Pink Floyd, occasionally boring, intermittently okay, mostly too self-indulgent, moments of absolutely incredible work. <br /><br />But Big Country. Great, great band. JaredNGarretthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09811123893472925841noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3918310454820522189.post-89710857332831810182012-08-21T06:58:41.442-07:002012-08-21T06:58:41.442-07:00No TRex? No TRex? EW Humphreyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05259110750029184523noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3918310454820522189.post-59116119057963169712012-08-19T20:16:37.717-07:002012-08-19T20:16:37.717-07:00I think the reason the top five are the top five i...I think the reason the top five are the top five is because they created the mold for rock, not only the music but what it means to be a rock band. One seminal sixth band is missing, though: Black Sabbath. Oh, how I love me some Sabbath. Kurt Cobain said it best: the main thing he was trying to do was combine Beatles and Black Sabbath. Pretty much all rock music goes back to these top six, especially to the Beatles.<br /><br />I know that rock started before the Beatles. I know much of it draws on the blues. I have heard mention of early "rock" performers called "Elvis Presley" and "Chuck Berry." I'm afraid they don't hold any interest for me. More recent bands like Radiohead and U2 and the Cars are great, but they didn't create the mold like the big 6. It's not generational; it's plain and simple history, and the originating bands get the higher rankings. They will always be the big six.<br /><br />Personally, I don't get the Rolling Stones. They have a few OK songs and some personality, but there's no mystique there for me, and I've never owned a Stones album and don't care if I ever do. The Beatles are practically a religion to me, though, and Led Zeppelin comes close to similar status. The Who doesn't do much for me. I had a big Pink Floyd stage but don't listen much anymore. So for me its Beatles, Zep, and Sabbath, in that order, if we're talking personal big 3.<br /><br />I've been listening mostly to 70s rock in recent months, for some reason. Lots of AC/DC and ZZ Top in the mix, among many others (both of those have tons a great stuff that never made it onto the radio). I personally think the 70s were overall the best decade for rock, as the earlier years of when the influence of the big 6 snowballed.Christopher Bigelowhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01417741940958662788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3918310454820522189.post-14028671820214673982012-08-19T20:04:47.446-07:002012-08-19T20:04:47.446-07:00Perhaps it is because I am in my mid 30's but ...Perhaps it is because I am in my mid 30's but Radiohead had just as much an influence on my seminal years as say The Who (and I listened to them just as much). But Radiohead speaks to me and seemed to speak to a lot of my contemporaries. And I agree about Queen (and The Monkeys for that matter). But one should keep The Ramones and Velvet Underground on the list. They are tremendous. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02335110822436486189noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3918310454820522189.post-37282301720260987192012-08-17T16:17:02.764-07:002012-08-17T16:17:02.764-07:00Yes, you do suck at math!
I am glad you included ...Yes, you do suck at math!<br /><br />I am glad you included U2. Maybe it is because I am in my 30s, but your Top 4 belong in my Top 20, but not really at the top. Maybe it is because I include soloists as part of my "tops?" <br /><br />I can't separate out bands from individual artist, but that too is part of being human. If I don't like the framework of a question, I want to change the question. ;-)Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13655197693521484077noreply@blogger.com