bboy87 said:

robinhood said:

MJ still gets all the attention - even though this thread is not about any of that.

That's the thing I'm trying to understand

JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE AND BEYONCE are on this list and people have pretty much ignored that

of course. justin and beyonce dont inspire the same levels of jealousy.

To the person that wrote the Top 5 is all white...Michael Jackson is NOT White, he was never considered White....he's Black and that is that!

Had to get that off my chest...anyway....3 out of the Top 5 are bands...that should NOT count!!! That's several people making what otherwise is just one, which is to be respected. And I really don't get the obsession with the Beatles. i think they suck! Now people who cover them usually do a great job, always better than the original. Like Michael's cover of "Come Together", hell I've heard a Sailor Moon cover of "I Wanna Hold Your Hand" that was better!!!

DaphneLovesPR1NCE said:

thedance said:

Prince ahead of Elvis Presley, really????

20. Marvin Gaye
19. U2
18. Pink Floyd
17. Queen
16. Madonna
15. The Beach Boys
14. Nirvana
13. The Who
12. David Bowie
11. Bob Marley
10. Stevie Wonder
9. James Brown
8. Elvis Presley
7. Prince
6. Jimi Hendrix

The top five (in alphabetical order):

The Beatles
Bob Dylan
Michael Jackson
Led Zeppelin
Rolling Stones

Prince IS an better artist than Elvis! I don't agree Bob Dylan should be so high up, nor do I think The Beatles deserve the top spot, top 5 yes, # 1? Not in a million years. MJ should be #2, cause Prince is #1, Elvis should be #3, The Beatles #4, and Madonna or James Brown as #5-#6. The Beach Boys, Nirvana, and David Bowie should NOT even be in the top 20...like em, but no where near as good as some of the other artist. It seems this list is quite biased and doesn't really represent raw talent!

Jimi-Not sure how Jimi falls to number 6. He should be an automatic top 5. Noit a great vocalist, but who needs to sing when you can shred the way he does?

Beatles- will almost always take the number 1 spot in these. I used to never get the appeal of their music, but once you really LISTEN to it, they were very, very good and in a generation of great bands, they were the best. From Revolver moving forward, they were untouchable. Their impact on songwriting, studio production, and pop culture was amazing

MJ-When you look at his body of work in its entirety, he is a top 5 for sure. 40 years of work spanning Motown, Disco, Pop and other genres. His last 15 years were ok, but from 1969 to 1991, he was easily the biggest star in the world of music. The greatest star of the video generation. Altough I dig P's music much more, can't deny MJs influence (for better or worst).

Nirvana-way too high on this list.

Lets not confuse artistic importance with celebrity.

MJ prompted up by sensationalist celebrity machine that came of age in the 80's, it was a symbiotic relationship that benefited both parties. The funny part was that as MJ's career took a turn for the worse, the sensationist celebrity media found it could generate just as much hype by trashing him. Which they did. And he was taken down in the same exact same way they created him. And they milked it all the way to the grave and beyond. Literally.

It was only fitting. Like a bad twilight zone episode of making a deal with the devil.

Prince on the other hand has always been demonized by the same sensationalist media and cannot be taken down the same way as he was never a product of their making. On the contrary, there is very little of his artistic achievements that has reached the general public, that I think his image will only continue to rise as The National Enquirer, People Magazine and Entertainment Tonight are not the only ones to feed the fodder anymore, nor the mutual reacharounds that made MJ famous even relavant anymore in the internet age.

[Edited 9/4/10 20:09pm]

vi0letblues said:

Lets not confuse artistic importance with celebrity.

MJ prompted up by sensationalist celebrity machine that came of age in the 80's, it was a symbiotic relationship that benefited both parties. The funny part was that as MJ's career took a turn for the worse, the sensationist celebrity media found it could generate just as much hype by trashing him. Which they did. And he was taken down in the same exact same way they created him. And they milked it all the way to the grave and beyond. Literally.

It was only fitting. Like a bad twilight zone episode of making a deal with the devil.

Prince on the other hand has always been demonized by the same sensationalist media and cannot be taken down the same way as he was never a product of their making. On the contrary, there is very little of his artistic achievements that has reached the general public, that I think his image will only continue to rise as The National Enquirer, People Magazine and Entertainment Tonight are not the only ones to feed the fodder anymore, nor the mutual reacharounds that made MJ famous even relavant anymore in the internet age.

[Edited 9/4/10 20:09pm]

Please don't insinuate Michael Jackson isn't an artist. It's a really tired argument.

vi0letblues said:

Lets not confuse artistic importance with celebrity.

MJ prompted up by sensationalist celebrity machine that came of age in the 80's, it was a symbiotic relationship that benefited both parties. The funny part was that as MJ's career took a turn for the worse, the sensationist celebrity media found it could generate just as much hype by trashing him. Which they did. And he was taken down in the same exact same way they created him. And they milked it all the way to the grave and beyond. Literally.

It was only fitting. Like a bad twilight zone episode of making a deal with the devil.

Prince on the other hand has always been demonized by the same sensationalist media and cannot be taken down the same way as he was never a product of their making. On the contrary, there is very little of his artistic achievements that has reached the general public, that I think his image will only continue to rise as The National Enquirer, People Magazine and Entertainment Tonight are not the only ones to feed the fodder anymore, nor the mutual reacharounds that made MJ famous even relavant anymore in the internet age.

[Edited 9/4/10 20:09pm]

I'm going put this out that as it's clear you don't knwo your JACKSONS history. Way before he went solo he was writing and producing the music alongside his brothers, but doing a great deal of the work himself. he had a lot fo talent that didn't get paid attention to once he left the group. Then it became about his looks so it ruined the view of the ARTIST he truely was. All people know about him is the tabiloid crap that covers the great work he did do.

Ok I'm done there...start me on not who don't know their history I go off. I'm a moving Jacksons biography of info...for ALL the Brothers!

Prince just didn't allow the media crap to effect him, he had a thick skin, unlike Michael. Michael was rather weak.

midiscover said:

thedance said:

Prince ahead of Elvis Presley, really????

as he should be.

[Edited 8/27/10 13:51pm]

My mother thinks Prince is better than Elvis. I took my 65 year old parents to see Prince at 3121 in Las Vegas back in 2007. I got them the VIP passes so they would be able to sit down, they ended up getting the second table from the stage. I did not get to talk to them immediately after the show because I attended the afterparty and they went back to their room. I will never forget the expression on my mothers face when I met them for brunch the following morning. With a huge smile the first thing she said was, " He was better than Elvis." She had seen Elvis three times in concert. The next month when I was going back to Vegas for a couple of more shows, she said she wanted to go. She ended up not being able to make it but she definately wants to see him again.

I have mentioned this story before, I apologize if I made you read it a second time.

Elvis Presley being ranked higher than James Brown and Stevie Wonder is preposterous.

And my bet is that MJ will be #2. No question. Darn Beatles.

Sam Cooke

Paul Weller

Jaco Pastorius

Kate Bush

Patti Labelle

Carole King

Carly Simon

Chaka Khan

Miles Davis

are all omitted from the list

yet

Beyonce

Justin Timberlake

Alicia Keys

Green Day

Mariah Carey

Jay Z

Mary J Blige

are all there

bboy87 said:

Sam Cooke

Paul Weller

Jaco Pastorius

Kate Bush

Patti Labelle

Carole King

Carly Simon

Chaka Khan

Miles Davis

are all omitted from the list

yet

Beyonce

Justin Timberlake

Alicia Keys

Green Day

Mariah Carey

Jay Z

Mary J Blige

are all there

Jay Z is one of the most talented rappers to ever exist.

Mariah Carey is one of the most successful female solo artists in history.

Of your list, I only would give props to Sam Cooke, Carole King, Miles Davis, and Paul Weller. The rest are just pop artists. Simply because someone is a pop artist 30 years ago doesn't mean they're worth a shit now.

Spinlight said:

bboy87 said:

Sam Cooke

Paul Weller

Jaco Pastorius

Kate Bush

Patti Labelle

Carole King

Carly Simon

Chaka Khan

Miles Davis

are all omitted from the list

yet

Beyonce

Justin Timberlake

Alicia Keys

Green Day

Mariah Carey

Jay Z

Mary J Blige

are all there

Jay Z is one of the most talented rappers to ever exist.

Mariah Carey is one of the most successful female solo artists in history.

Of your list, I only would give props to Sam Cooke, Carole King, Miles Davis, and Paul Weller. The rest are just pop artists. Simply because someone is a pop artist 30 years ago doesn't mean they're worth a shit now.

what about Kate Bush?

bboy87 said:

Spinlight said:

Jay Z is one of the most talented rappers to ever exist.

Mariah Carey is one of the most successful female solo artists in history.

Of your list, I only would give props to Sam Cooke, Carole King, Miles Davis, and Paul Weller. The rest are just pop artists. Simply because someone is a pop artist 30 years ago doesn't mean they're worth a shit now.

what about Kate Bush?

Kate Bush is okay. I guess, in the end, it boils down to how you define "greatest" in this scenario. If I were to compile a list of the 100 most essential artists who represented a genre to its finest points, I don't know that I would include someone like Kate Bush. Sade, yes. Kate Bush, not so much.

Please let's not mention Elvis and Prince in the same sentence... PLEASE

the beatles HAVE to be number one.....come on ..i could give you a thousand reasons why they are the best and most important band in history.....the only artirts/group that gets close to prince for overall brilliance of their music....they WILL be number one and always will be ....

Spinlight said:

bboy87 said:

what about Kate Bush?

Kate Bush is okay. I guess, in the end, it boils down to how you define "greatest" in this scenario. If I were to compile a list of the 100 most essential artists who represented a genre to its finest points, I don't know that I would include someone like Kate Bush. Sade, yes. Kate Bush, not so much.

I like them both but I really love Kate's work

Kate Bush is up there, for sure. Genius.

Spin, I guess you made the comparison with Sade because they're both somewhat reclusive and only release albums every once in a blue moon.

But as much as I love Sade (hell I was waiting at the record store the day Soldier of Love came out lol), Kate's body of work is FAR more artistically progressive, interesting, and innovative. I mean it's not even close. Go back and listen to "The Kick Inside" and "Hounds of Love" and pay attention.

Even if we compare recent releases, "Aeriel" wipes the floor with "Soldier of Love", which again as awesome as Sade is, wore very thin, very quickly.

Oh and Jaco Pastorius is NOT a pop artist.

If Hendrix deserves to be up in the list then so does Jaco. They both had the same impact on their respective instruments. The only difference is that Jimi was part of pop culture by being a rock artist, and Jaco, as a jazz artist, was mostly ignored by pop culture.

Kraftwerk and Joni need to be MUCH higher in the list too.

[Edited 9/5/10 17:08pm]

Militant said:

Kate Bush is up there, for sure. Genius.

Spin, I guess you made the comparison with Sade because they're both somewhat reclusive and only release albums every once in a blue moon.

But as much as I love Sade (hell I was waiting at the record store the day Soldier of Love came out lol), Kate's body of work is FAR more artistically progressive, interesting, and innovative. I mean it's not even close. Go back and listen to "The Kick Inside" and "Hounds of Love" and pay attention.

Even if we compare recent releases, "Aeriel" wipes the floor with "Soldier of Love", which again as awesome as Sade is, wore very thin, very quickly.

Oh and Jaco Pastorius is NOT a pop artist.

If Hendrix deserves to be up in the list then so does Jaco. They both had the same impact on their respective instruments. The only difference is that Jimi was part of pop culture by being a rock artist, and Jaco, as a jazz artist, was mostly ignored by pop culture.

Kraftwerk and Joni need to be MUCH higher in the list too.

[Edited 9/5/10 17:08pm]

but I still want him on the list!

bboy87 said:

robinhood said:

MJ still gets all the attention - even though this thread is not about any of that.

That's the thing I'm trying to understand

JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE AND BEYONCE are on this list and people have pretty much ignored that

Maybe they posted before they saw the full list. If I had seen the entire list before I posted I would have mentioned Beyonce and Justin Timberlake too. The link here only shows the top 20.

bboy87 said:

Militant said:

Kate Bush is up there, for sure. Genius.

Spin, I guess you made the comparison with Sade because they're both somewhat reclusive and only release albums every once in a blue moon.

But as much as I love Sade (hell I was waiting at the record store the day Soldier of Love came out lol), Kate's body of work is FAR more artistically progressive, interesting, and innovative. I mean it's not even close. Go back and listen to "The Kick Inside" and "Hounds of Love" and pay attention.

Even if we compare recent releases, "Aeriel" wipes the floor with "Soldier of Love", which again as awesome as Sade is, wore very thin, very quickly.

Oh and Jaco Pastorius is NOT a pop artist.

If Hendrix deserves to be up in the list then so does Jaco. They both had the same impact on their respective instruments. The only difference is that Jimi was part of pop culture by being a rock artist, and Jaco, as a jazz artist, was mostly ignored by pop culture.

Kraftwerk and Joni need to be MUCH higher in the list too.

[Edited 9/5/10 17:08pm]

but I still want him on the list!

Yeah I wasn't talking to you lol. I was replying to Spinlight saying "the rest are just pop artists"

Militant said:

Kate Bush is up there, for sure. Genius.

Spin, I guess you made the comparison with Sade because they're both somewhat reclusive and only release albums every once in a blue moon.

But as much as I love Sade (hell I was waiting at the record store the day Soldier of Love came out lol), Kate's body of work is FAR more artistically progressive, interesting, and innovative. I mean it's not even close. Go back and listen to "The Kick Inside" and "Hounds of Love" and pay attention.

Even if we compare recent releases, "Aeriel" wipes the floor with "Soldier of Love", which again as awesome as Sade is, wore very thin, very quickly.

Oh and Jaco Pastorius is NOT a pop artist.

If Hendrix deserves to be up in the list then so does Jaco. They both had the same impact on their respective instruments. The only difference is that Jimi was part of pop culture by being a rock artist, and Jaco, as a jazz artist, was mostly ignored by pop culture.

Kraftwerk and Joni need to be MUCH higher in the list too.

[Edited 9/5/10 17:08pm]

I was primarily mentioning Carly Simon and such as pop artists that don't necessarily earn a spot on the greatest artist list.

And re; Pastorius - I'll take Mingus instead, no offense.

LMAO @ the amount of attention Michael is getting. Please, that should be the LEAST of your worries. Did it occur to anyone that Beyonce and Justin Timberlake were on the list?! Talk about lack of artistry! You want to talk about a bunch of no-nothing singer/dancers - well, here they are!

I honestly didn't even flinch regarding Michael's position. Let's see: 40 year career, songwriter, producer, dancer, singer, pop culture influence, trendsetter of music videos, inventor of pop music category, using music to talk about humanitarian efforts, providing the template for other artists to use, recycle and abuse, etc etc etc.... Totally top 5 material! Anyone and everyone has called him a musical genius. A legend is someone who influences the game. None of those top 5 artists changed the face of music the way Michael did. While you can argue that Prince can be creative and has released more work, the mark that Michael left is so prolific and unmatched to anyone in musical history. Accept it. Embrace it.

Now.... Beyonce and Justin Timberlake made the list?!

Let's discuss this in the context of the FULL list, shall we?

The Beatles
Bob Dylan
Michael Jackson
Led Zeppelin
Rolling Stones

6. Jimi Hendrix
7. Prince
8. Elvis Presley
9. James Brown
10. Stevie Wonder
11. Bob Marley
12. David Bowie
13. The Who
14. Nirvana
15. The Beach Boys
16. Madonna
17. Queen
18. Pink Floyd
19. U2
20. Marvin Gaye
21. Bruce Springsteen
22. The Clash
23. AC/DC
24. The Velvet Underground
25. Chuck Berry
26. Neil Young
27. Aretha Franklin
28. Elton John
29. Radiohead
30. Aerosmith
31. John Lennon
32. Black Sabbath
33. Guns N’ Roses
34. Tina Turner
35. Johnny Cash
36. Paul McCartney
37. Fleetwood Mac
38. Sly & The Family Stone
39. The Kinks
40. The Police
41. Van Halen
42. Metallica
43. Ray Charles
44. Joni Mitchell
45. Al Green
46. Ramones
47. Jay-Z
48. Rage Against the Machine
49. Parliament-Funkadelic
50. Sade
51. Billy Joel
52. Beyonce
53. Little Richard
54. Public Enemy
55. Peter Gabriel
56. KISS
57. Iggy & the Stooges
58. Cheap Trick
59. Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
60. Whitney Houston
61. Cream
62. Genesis
63. Notorious B.I.G.
64. Talking Heads
65. The Doors
66. Justin Timberlake
67. Coldplay
68. Otis Redding
69. Tupac Shakur
70. Def Leppard
71. R.E.M.
72. Janis Joplin
73. Van Morrison
74. The Cure
75. Rush
76. Run-DMC
77. Lynyrd Skynyrd
78. Judas Priest
79. Eminem
80. Mary J. Blige
81. ABBA
82. Steely Dan
83. Earth Wind and Fire
84. Curtis Mayfield
85. The Band
86. N.W.A.
87. George Michael
88. Bee Gees
89. Beastie Boys
90. Elvis Costello
91. Green Day
92. LL Cool J
93. Pearl Jam
94. Mariah Carey
95. OutKast
96. Journey
97. Pretenders
98. Depeche Mode
99. Hall & Oates
100. Alicia Keys

jackson35 said:

explain how prince should be rank higher that stevie wonder?

Um, because he is a better artist!! Stevie is great!! But he isn't better than Prince, he doesn't have that great of songs as Prince and he doesn't appeal to one's entertainment factor. So what's the problem here? AND Prince has a MUCH better voice, his vocal range is extraordinary!! Get it now?

bboy87 said:

SPOOKYGAS said:

are u saying that fiddling with children is on par with pissing of some arseholes for paying $77 for a website?

Elvis Presley- performing sex acts with Priscilla when she was 14

James Brown- verbally abusive to his wives and girlfriends

The Who- Pete Townsend being accused of possessing child pornography

Marvin Gaye- allegedly pimped out his wife (rumored)

Chuck Berry- caught with an underaged girl and later caught having survellience cameras in the women's bathrooms in his restuarant

Guns N Roses- Axel allegedly being a racist

Tupac Shakur- accused and convicted of rape

GREAT Point!!!!!! Just about everybody has some skeletons in the closet...who are we to judge? This isn't about who is the best moral person, it's about who is the greatest musicians!!

Spinlight said:

I was primarily mentioning Carly Simon and such as pop artists that don't necessarily earn a spot on the greatest artist list.

And re; Pastorius - I'll take Mingus instead, no offense.

Why would I be offended? lol

But I very rarely hear anyone say Mingus was a better or more influential/innovative bassist than Jaco.

Shit, Victor Wooten gets more props.

You're obviously welcome to your opinion, but you might be the only one with it... lol

[Edited 9/5/10 19:44pm]

bboy87 said:

Has anybody noticed Sam Cooke isn't on the list?

What a travesty!!!!!!!!!! This is why I said this list is biased and NOT representative of GOOD music. Sam Cooke's music is extraordinary!! My nephew is named after him, we love him so much!! I have a nephew named after MJ too!!

MyLuv229 said:

Let's discuss this in the context of the FULL list, shall we?

88. Bee Gees

The Bee Gees are WAY underrated on the list. They are #6 all time (as of a few years ago) in record sales with over 220 million records sold and are the only artists in history to write and produce 5 of the top 10 singles on the hot 100.

[Edited 9/5/10 19:53pm]

NouveauDance said:

thedance said:

The top five (in alphabetical order):

The Beatles
Bob Dylan
Michael Jackson
Led Zeppelin
Rolling Stones

Top 5 is all white, again.

alandail said:

MyLuv229 said:

Let's discuss this in the context of the FULL list, shall we?

88. Bee Gees

The Bee Gees are WAY underrated on the list. They are #6 all time (as of a few years ago) in record sales with over 220 million records sold and are the only artists in history to write and produce 5 of the top 10 singles on the hot 100.

[Edited 9/5/10 19:53pm]

Yeah, the Bee Gees deserves some appreciation, cuz they are f*cking great

Shouldn't a greatest artist list include celebrity status? I mean, how can anyone not include an artist that so many around the world likes? Hello? If people like your music, then that makes you pretty darn awesome!! Should it not also include people that crossed over and succeeded in many genres. I mean, it's easy to succeed in 1 genre, but to crossover and have success is almost unheard of!! Now that's musical genius. I don't care if the crossover is rap to pop, country to jazz, etc. It's still equally impressive! There really needs to be a set of standards that is laid out that the artist have to meet... then from there, they need to rank them.

Prince has touched on just about all genres of music and has some success in all of them! He really transcends race, age, and sex. And Prince really has left his mark on musical history!! He is all around the greatest artist the world has ever and probably ever will see. Had he given in and made himself more available to the public, he would have been alot more commercially successful. I mean, all the things he could have done to sell more ablums, etc. is crazy!! He focuses on the music though, and he is true to himself, and stays more reserve.

Michael Jackson wasn't just globally famous, he has the biggest selling record of all time, he has amazing songs, he was an amazing dancer, he impacted the world through humanitarian efforts, he has a career that's last 40yrs and can still sell out 50 concerts, and most importantly, his music transcended all race, age, sex boundaries!! And MJ did give in to the commercialism and it paid off for him money wise.

Mariah Carey is the biggest selling female artist of all time!! And she had a great voice and has really amazing songs (though I'm NOT a fan). She should ideally be higher than Madonna since Madonna cannot sing!! She does have great songs and has had a long career, plus, she does great humanitartian workl!!

IMO, the top 10 artists on the list should embody all those same characteristics, because that is TRUE representation of a great artist!! And honestly, we need to study their body of work!! That alone will tell you the essence of an artist. Does a 15yr old in Austria find the songs as interesting as a 55yr old in South Africa? Does a 26 yr old in New York love it as much as a 48yr old in the UK?