25 Best Musicians of the Rock & Roll Era?

[dapmdave]

We all know that the media love to assemble these lists to provoke discussion.

So, what do we think?

http://www.csmonitor.com/The-Cultur...-Domino?nav=663149-csm_article-leftColRelated

Dave

 

[fronobulax]

Any list that claims to have "Best Musicians" and doesn't include Frank Zappa is using a different definition of musician than I would use.

 

[silverfox103]

The Velvet Underground and Bob Marley? I don't think so.

Tom C.

 

[Sal]

I like to be provoked but I don't like having to click through a page of ads to reveal each next artist so I gave up after just a few. Did anybody notice Dylan or Knopfler?

cheers
sal

 

[fronobulax]

I like to be provoked but I don't like having to click through a page of ads to reveal each next artist so I gave up after just a few. Did anybody notice Dylan or Knopfler?

cheers
sal

I had the patience and I think Dylan was in the top five. Do not recall seeing Knopfler. Beatles were #1 which is a hard choice to argue against if "musician" is defined as a combination of innovation, influence, composition (songwriting) and vocal and/or instrumental chops.

 

[Brad Little]

I like to be provoked but I don't like having to click through a page of ads to reveal each next artist so I gave up after just a few. Did anybody notice Dylan or Knopfler?

cheers
sal

Dylan was number two.

 

[charliea]

I thought musicians played music, while vocalists sang it. I see a bunch of vocalists who wouldn't qualify as even mediocre musicians.

 

[adorshki]

We all know that the media love to assemble these lists to provoke discussion.
Dave

Even then it's only to show advertisers how many people they can provoke. Which is obviously backfiring here, judging by the posts about not waiting to page through ads.
Way to go men!!
I won't do it anymore either, especially since they're usually the same old predictable regurgitated popularity polls.
GRrrrrr.

 

[walrus]

charliea is correct - there are singers on the list, which makes no sense. I don't want to have to look at all the bios - I got through the first 9, then I got bored. Just show me the list!

walrus

 

[twocorgis]

charliea is correct - there are singers on the list, which makes no sense. I don't want to have to look at all the bios - I got through the first 9, then I got bored. Just show me the list!

walrus

Since when is a singer not a musician?

 

[The Guilds of Grot]

Just for the sake of discussion:

Free Online Dicoinary;

Mu·si·cian (my-zshn)
n.
One who composes, conducts, or performs music, especially instrumental music.

sing·er 1 (sngr)
n.
One who sings, especially a trained or professional vocalist.


I would have to agree that there is a difference between a musician and a singer. Now I haven't read the list so I don't know who the posters above me are calling singers. But if you just sing and don't play an instrument or write music, then to me you are a singer and not a musician!


Counterpoint?

 

[walrus]

I'm with you, Grot. I think most people would say a musician plays an instrument. I guess you could argue a singer is using their voice as an instrument, but when I see a list of the "Best Musicians", I'm assuming they are playing an instrument.

A few definitions from various sources:

1. A person who plays or composes music, esp as a profession.

2. A person who plays a musical instrument, esp. professionally.

3. A person who is talented or skilled in music.


I guess #3 could cover a singer. It's all semantics - it's fine if they want to include singers, but it's not what I think of when I think of a "musician".

To each his own!


walrus

 

[twocorgis]

I'm with you, Grot. I think most people would say a musician plays an instrument. I guess you could argue a singer is using their voice as an instrument, but when I see a list of the "Best Musicians", I'm assuming they are playing an instrument.

A few definitions from various sources:

1. A person who plays or composes music, esp as a profession.

2. A person who plays a musical instrument, esp. professionally.

3. A person who is talented or skilled in music.


I guess #3 could cover a singer. It's all semantics - it's fine if they want to include singers, but it's not what I think of when I think of a "musician".

To each his own!


walrus

I guess it is just semantics, but I consider a singer a musician whose instrument is their voice. I've also had the pleasure of playing with a few singers (like the one we have now) who may well be the best musician in the band.

 

[davismanLV]

Since when is a singer not a musician?

I'm with you on this one, Sandy. The voice is an instrument in my book.

 

[dapmdave]

Cool discussion, in spite of the crass commercialism in the listing article.

How do we feel about listing a whole band as a musician? I think that a band, especially if evaluating them based on studio recordings, is the product of their musicianship and the talents of their producers and engineers. What would the Beatles have been like without George Martin, for example.

Dave

 

[The Guilds of Grot]

Sorry, I don't buy the human voice is an musical instrument. If I fart in tune, is my butt-hole an musical instrument?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Musical_instrument

 

[fronobulax]

I'm with you on this one, Sandy. The voice is an instrument in my book.

I'm with you. I think the folks who are not agreeing are limiting music to a couple of genres. For example, there are good opera singers and bad opera singers. The good ones are good because they are good musicians. The bad ones have a voice but no clue what to do with it. Ravel and others wrote for voices as if they were another instrument in the orchestra and you have to be able to do more than just sing to perform it well.

If the only genre under-consideration is Rock & Roll then being a rock & roll singer does not mean one is a musician. But that is true for a lot of rock & roll instrumentalists as well. Indeed if I were truly cynical I could pare that list of 25 down just by explaining why the nominee was not a good musician in any meaningful sense of the word.

I also don't feel that being a musician depends upon instrumental prowess either. I'm a good musician but a mediocre bassist, a statement that carries no sense of contradiction or irony in my opinion.

 

[twocorgis]

Well...I totally agreed with you until we got to here.

If the only genre under-consideration is Rock & Roll then being a rock & roll singer does not mean one is a musician.

I think that there are quite a few great rock & roll singers, and Paul Rodgers is the first one that springs to mind. Admittedly, most rock singers aren't singers in the classical sense, but that doesn't mean that some of them aren't good singers. To me, a good singer is a good singer, regardless of genre.

 

[fronobulax]

Well...I totally agreed with you until we got to here.



I think that there are quite a few great rock & roll singers, and Paul Rodgers is the first one that springs to mind. Admittedly, most rock singers aren't singers in the classical sense, but that doesn't mean that some of them aren't good singers. To me, a good singer is a good singer, regardless of genre.

Well you know, if I was able to proofread and self-edit I would have realized I had intended to say "being a rock & roll singer does not necessarily mean one is a musician". And I mean that in the same sense that I would say "being a rock & roll bassist does not necessarily mean one is a musician" or, for that matter, being an orchestral viola player doesn't necessarily mean one is a musician either.

Whether one is a musician, or not, transcends genre and instrument which makes the quibbling that voice is not an instrument somewhat irrelevant to me.

 

[twocorgis]

Well you know, if I was able to proofread and self-edit I would have realized I had intended to say "being a rock & roll singer does not necessarily mean one is a musician". And I mean that in the same sense that I would say "being a rock & roll bassist does not necessarily mean one is a musician" or, for that matter, being an orchestral viola player doesn't necessarily mean one is a musician either.

Whether one is a musician, or not, transcends genre and instrument which makes the quibbling that voice is not an instrument somewhat irrelevant to me.

Now, that I can get behind!

My definition of a musician was always someone who plays or sings that always strives to get better. I've played with plenty of people that are just that; players. Most of them just played, and didn't concern themselves much with improving. It's OK to not be good (we were all that way once), as long as you're trying to make progress.