Tom in Vegas, you raise a really interesting point, about which I happen to have an opinion. To my mind, the 60s began in late 1963 with a well-known and harrowing event. Until then, the vibe and sensibilities of the 50s were uninterrupted. The 60s ended in August 1974, when Nixon resigned (or maybe 6 months later when Saigon fell). Until then, peace/love/sex/drugs/rock 'n roll were uninterrupted. While I'm at it, the 80s began when lame duck Jimmy Carter was replaced by Reagan in Jan. '81. My two cents!
While I agree with your "start" date, there was also a significant
musical event here in the US that makes an appropriate demarcation point, I think:
Released December 26 1963.
But I respectfully disagree with the era of "peace/love/sex/drugs/rock 'n roll" ending in '74.
I would put it much earlier, at least musically, maybe with the deaths of Jimi, Janis, and Jim all occurring within a year, and the last "real" Jefferson Airplane album, and the take-over of the AM airwaves by the acoustic based "singer-songwriters" I couldn't stand at the time because they were so wimpy and didn't have any feedback...even my hero John Lennon wimped out and released "Imagine" in '71, so that's where I'd peg the "end of the '60's", musically.
Or maybe '72:
March 31 – Official Beatles fan club closes down.
September 21 – ABC premieres the new TV series In Concert. The first episode features Alice Cooper.
And take a look at Wiki's "1972 in Music: Albums released".
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1972_in_music
Not a whole lotta peace'n'love there, very little rock'n'roll, and a whole lotta fluff:
(Bread, the Osmonds, and the Doors'
Weird Scenes Inside the Goldmine somehow seems like a fitting nail in the coffin)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1972_in_music.
Now that I'm thinking about it, Watergate
started in June of '72.
I think Agnew's "Silent Majority" started thinking maybe all the anti-government protesters of the '60's might have been
right.
So the revolution wasn't radical anymore, it was being acted out in Congress in our living rooms on TV.
But still it was pretty scary stuff to deal with, and I think they wanted their pop music to be completely non-threatening.
In fact, take a look at Billboards' top 100 of '72.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billboard_Year-End_Hot_100_singles_of_1972
It was the year of "American Pie" and "Heart of Gold".
The 2 closest things to hard rock on the chart are "Layla" and Argent's "Hold Your Head Up".
Yeesh I'm feeling the starvation for sex/drugs/rock 'n roll music all over again just reading that list.
By '74 sex'n'drugs'rock'n'roll was making a comeback but it was all about glam and mindless partying, there wasn't any political context anymore.
Maybe because the young men of the nation weren't worried about draft notices anymore.
Anyway, that's just my "case" for my opinion.
Favorite singers?
I will unabashedly admit to Mickey Dolenz (the Monkees) being my first vocal hero, then John Lennon for "Tomorrow Never Knows", then John Kay of Steppenwolf for his hoarse growl.
I didn't really discover Jack Bruce later until later, around '69.
And Jim Morrison, yes, but not until '68.
As a garage band singer wannabe those were probably my main influences.
The Temptations for "Can't Get Next to You" and "Ball of Confusion". They were
all great.
I didn't
really appreciate Elvis until much much later but I liked "Suspicious Minds", that was in '69.
Females?
In fact I can remember singing Petula Clark's "Downtown" and "Don't Sleep in the Subway" while riding around on my bike in grade school (thanks for the reminder!)
Bobby Gentry for "Ode to Billy Joe".
Didn't discover Joni Mitchell until well into the '70's except for the single "Big Yellow Taxi", but she has to top the list in retrospect for
Ladies of the Canyon (ok, released in '70 but
recorded in '69) and for her sheer magnificent career output.
And Janis for
Cheap Thrills.
Grace Slick? I actually liked her politics more than her
solo voice, except for a couple of cuts on
Baxter's.
I liked her best when harmonizing with Balin and Kantner.
I didn't appreciate Dionne Warwick until years later for "I Say A Little Prayer".
Same for Diana Ross and the Supremes in all the various iterations.
Maa, looking back at those top 100's really makes it clear how far male singers outnumbered female.
Coupla my favorites only appeared in group contexts, I think:
The Seekers "Georgy Girl" and We Five "You Were on my Mind" ; and the Mamas and the Papas.
Heck they had
both sides of the fence covered, possibly one of the greatest harmony acts of all time in the original group?
Think of "Monday Monday", "I Saw Her Again" and "Creeque Alley" and not just "California Dreamin' "...