Easy Come Easy Gaughin

I run disc-a-day recommendations on Twitter. My first list, completed about 9 weeks back, was my 100 personal favorite discs in my library. This is not my 100 favorite recordings ever; many of those are on vinyl, and didn’t get included here, and there a few favorites that I never got around to purchasing.

It will be obvious that I frequently return to the music of my youth (which, outside of the Beatles, is roughly 1973 – 1990). I do listen to more recent stuff. My current ongoing list is The Hipster’s Wishlist; Dave’s Best 200 CDs of the New Millenium. If you have any interest in that project, check twitter.com/davefromknoxvil and look at my favorites.

I am not sure how this will format, but thought I would like to pull that first list over here. So here goes.

# DaveFromKnoxvil 1) Bob Dylan – Blood on the Tracks; First Dylan album I paid close attention to; Idiot Wind still kills me emotionally after 33 years.1:51 PM Aug 1st from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 2) The Beatles – Rubber Soul; the other side of Revolver, Norwegian, Seen a Face, Michelle, Girl, In My Life, Run for Your Life?8:36 PM Jul 31st from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 3) Radiohead – OK Computer; got me through wreck convalescence after 1998 car crash; really holds up well to this day. Arrest this man.8:36 AM Jul 30th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 4) Kate Bush – The Dreaming; most experimental successful pop album I know, she worked the Fairlight sampler to death creating insane songs7:29 AM Jul 29th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 5) Fleetwood Mac – Tusk; Made a mix tape of this minus the Stevie Nicks songs. Couldn’t get enough, especially Buckingham’s punk/folk songs.7:40 AM Jul 28th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 6) The Beatles – Revolver; Rigby; Only Sleeping; Here There; Submarine; Good Day Sunshine; Bird Can Sing; For No One; Got to Get You; + more7:28 AM Jul 27th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 7) Neil Young – Zuma; excellent but under-valued. Highlights are slowburn guitar rave-ups Cortez the Killer and Dangerbird; Beautiful fish!5:51 AM Jul 26th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 8) World Party – Goodbye Jumbo; Kurt Wallinger somehow gets comfortable Sly-like funk grooves going using mostly acoustic instruments. Great7:02 AM Jul 25th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 9) The Beatles – Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band; it’s too ornate for some of my famous acquaintances, but still sounds sweet to me.7:03 PM Jul 24th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 10) King Crimson – Red; I still love the old Yes and Genesis, but this is the best prog album ever, and Fripp’s genius trumps his jerkitude.7:04 AM Jul 23rd from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 11) Neil Young – Freedom; Neil finds his way out of the jungle that was the 80’s; this disc has honest to God, stylishly diverse songs.7:35 AM Jul 22nd from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 12) Yes – Relayer: their “difficult” disc. Soundchaser is ten minutes of frenetic insanity mostly in 5/8; To Be Over is amazingly beautiful.5:30 AM Jul 21st from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 13) Jellyfish – Bellybutton; Like all lush pop styles since the Beach Boys all at once. Like if Crowded House was obsessed with Queen.5:34 AM Jul 20th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 14) Jules Shear – The Great Puzzle; EW mag got this exactly right when they said “If Dylan had been the Monkees front-man” and gave it an A+6:25 AM Jul 19th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 15) The Beatles – Magical Mystery Tour; Who needs notes with the Beatles? If you don’t already know them, you’re 14 or your life is a waste.6:41 AM Jul 18th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 16) Creedence Clearwater Revival – Cosmo’s Factory; You never forget your first album. 7 Top Ten hits, and it taught me to play the guitar.4:04 AM Jul 17th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 17) Electric Light Orchestra – A New World Record; It’s derivative of the Fabs, & the lyrics aren’t deep, but it’s beautiful ear candy.5:31 AM Jul 16th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 18) Elvis Costello – King of America; EC takes a solid hold of American folk tradition and winds up with his best album of the 80’s. BY FAR.11:02 AM Jul 15th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 19) Todd Rundgren – Something/Anything; 80 great minutes of pop, rock AND soul, his voice never better, and he plays about 30 instruments.5:16 AM Jul 14th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 20) Jethro Tull – Thick as a Brick; Bloated? Pretentious? Sublimely so. After not hearing it for nearly 20 years, I still knew every note.9:11 AM Jul 13th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 21) The Beatles – Abbey Road; is there anyone alive who needs notes on this album? Come Together, I Want You, Something, Here Comes the Sun?6:37 AM Jul 12th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 22) The Rolling Stones – Exile On Main Street; great sloppy gutter rock, seems to be the major influence on early Replacements. Heroin rock!7:12 AM Jul 11th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 23) Todd Rundgren – A Wizard, a True Star; Todd’s not God, but he’s had fine moments; Zen Archer’s among anyone’s best songs, ever.8:47 AM Jul 10th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 24) Everything But the Girl – Walking Wounded; glitchy dancepop is not my normal thing, but Ms Thorn’s got such a beautiful voice. Essential5:30 AM Jul 9th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 25) Cheap Trick – Heaven Tonight; every song works, Surrender’s the classic, but California Man’s on fire, and Top of the World’s crazy good5:37 AM Jul 8th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 26) The Beatles – The Beatles (White Album); If you don’t own it, buy it today. Long Long Long is an underappreciated Harrison masterpiece5:17 AM Jul 7th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 27) Jellyfish – Spilt Milk; showing the world how to make a perfect album a second time before dissolving into the sands of legend. PERFECT.4:54 AM Jul 6th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 28) Kate Bush – Hounds of Love; although it’s stuck with that 80’s sheen, this is an amazing pack of songs. Frenetically surprising.6:47 AM Jul 5th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 29) Fountains of Wayne – Welcome Interstate Managers; it’s not cool to like such a slick commercial sounding pop group. I don’t care. Grand!7:00 AM Jul 4th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 30) XTC – Oranges and Lemons; complex pop songs, diverse styles, Andy Partridge’s vocal peak, and maybe the greatest bass album ever.8:42 AM Jul 3rd from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 31) David Bowie – Station to Station; doesn’t get talked about, but this is my favorite Bowie. Great galloping title track. Word on a Wing!!5:36 AM Jul 2nd from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 32) John Hiatt – Stolen Moments; funky bluesy countryish singer-songwriter. Voice like a clenched fist grows on you; at his peak as lyricist5:17 AM Jul 1st from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 33) XTC – Skylarking; it’s probably the most critically acclaimed XTC, but it’s not my favorite. Probably Rundgren’s production peak.5:34 AM Jun 30th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 34) The Rolling Stones – Beggar’s Banquet; overwhelmingly country (that’s NOT a slam), you also get Sympathy for the Devil and more classics5:12 AM Jun 29th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 35) Ben Folds – Rocking the Suburbs; It’s his most focused CD, lots of ethereal moments, bouncy piano-pop, and clever lyrics.5:52 PM Jun 28th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 36) David Baerwald – Bedtimes Stories; Springsteeny music with some of the bitterest cynical “There is no hope” lyrics on record. Fun!8:59 AM Jun 27th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 37) Yes – Tales from Topographic Oceans; that’s right, Yes 2 days in a row. This one’s the infamous one with 4 songs in 78 minutes. SUBLIME!5:14 AM Jun 26th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 38) Yes – Big Generator; I can hear you snickering. I don’t care; in the 80’s they briefly turned into eargasmic prog/pop hitmakers.5:20 AM Jun 25th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 39) Matthew Sweet – Girlfriend; snarling guitars with beautiful lush multi-layered harmonies. I am detecting a pattern in my preferences.7:00 AM Jun 24th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 40) John McLaughlin – Johnny McLaughlin Electric Guitarist; seven songs in seven different styles, it’s a love song to guitar diversity.4:38 AM Jun 23rd from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 41) U2 – The Joshua Tree; is there anyone living who can’t write their own blurb for this one? Anthemic goodness.5:14 AM Jun 22nd from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 42) Richard Thompson – Rumor and Sigh; voice like a clenched fist, among the best guitarists ever, as melancholy as any song-writer going.7:38 AM Jun 21st from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 43) Neko Case – Fox Confessor Brings the Flood; Hard to beat the tag “country noir” to describe this; very different from the Pornographers.9:31 AM Jun 20th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 44) Camper Van Beethoven – Our Beloved Revolutionary Sweetheart; hilarious lyrics, raggedy ska-based arrangements with insane gypsy fiddle.5:01 AM Jun 19th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 45) Rush – Roll the Bones; most of their “we decided to do songs instead of stunts” stuff bores me, but I like this one. Why does it happen?5:19 AM Jun 18th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 46) Elton John – Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy; great, overlooked EJ (only one hit.) Awesome songs full of surprises5:18 AM Jun 17th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 47) The Traveling Wilburys – Volume 1; It’s non-stop fun from 5 of my heroes. “Tweeter” should earn Dylan haters’ unconditional absolution.5:32 AM Jun 16th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 48) King Crimson – Three of a Perfect Pair; snaky riffs under surreal (and sometimes goofy) lyrics; vocals that range from Beatley to atonal5:23 AM Jun 15th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 49) Aimee Mann (mostly thank God) – Music from the Motion Picture Magnolia; Aimee Mann canon (Mannon?). Wise Up? Save Me? Devastating.7:39 AM Jun 14th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 50) Kate Bush – Aerial; took 12 years off to “be a real person”, then released this ambitious double disc, with a few cringeworthy moments6:15 AM Jun 13th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 51) Porcupine Tree – In Absentia; like if Living Colour and Crowded House got together to reconfigure Dark Side of the Moonish soundscapes5:24 AM Jun 12th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 52) Weather Report – Heavy Weather; The best recording of all time with no guitar; after hundreds of listings, I know every note. JACO P!!!!5:22 AM Jun 11th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 53) Frank Zappa – Overnite Sensation; the other bookend to Apostrophe, silly, mostly funny, Dinah Mo Hum offensive, but Montana’s incredible5:10 AM Jun 10th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 54) The Beach Boys – Pet Sounds; I’m assuming most know about this one, but may not know that EFK gets her middle name from “Caroline No”.5:21 AM Jun 9th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 55) Frank Zappa – Apostrophe; from Zappa’s best period (mid 70’s), pleasingly nonoffensive lyrics yield to astounding jagged instrumentals.5:31 AM Jun 8th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 56) Ben Folds Five – The Unauthorized Biography of Reinhold Messner; fragile upper register vocals, rich melodies, “Hospital Song” soars.6:39 AM Jun 7th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 57) Kate Bush – The Sensual World; She once said that this was her “feminine album”; This Woman’s Work may be the best single ever produced.12:04 PM Jun 6th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 58) Pink Floyd – Dark Side of the Moon; it should probably be higher, but after hearing it end to end probably 200 times, I am tired of it.5:14 AM Jun 5th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 59) Bob Dylan – Time Out of Mind;a voice like a strangling dog on 70’s arrangements with 90’s production on a 16 minute song? Major league!5:03 AM Jun 4th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 60) King Crimson – VROOM; EP preview of THRAK, it’s as if Sonic Youth met The Beatles and decided to start their own drum and bugle corp.5:18 AM Jun 3rd from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 61) King Crimson – Happy With What You Have To Be Happy With; “EP” (32 minutes, 10 songs) Kicked punks with guitars to the gutter forever.5:59 AM Jun 2nd from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 62) The Rolling Stones – Let It Bleed; Well, we all need someone, we can LEAN on. With that, Sympathy… and Gimme Shelter, it’s essential.5:54 AM Jun 1st from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 63) Lindsay Buckingham – Out of the Cradle; that fingerpicking style is amazing, and that great voice on those incredible songs? Amazing.8:01 AM May 31st from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 64) John Hiatt – Bring the Family; his other masterpiece, a songwriting master-class with a hot band that features Ry Cooder and Nick Lowe.8:06 AM May 30th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 65) King’s X – Gretchen Goes to Nebraska; my first exposure to them. Beatles harmonies meet buzzsaw guitars playing great twisty riffs.5:17 AM May 29th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 66) Alice Cooper – Killer; Not a single bad track. The 1-2 punch of Halo of Flies and Desperado among the best in rock history.5:17 AM May 28th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 67) Mike Oldfield (and pardon me, I have to say it like this)…&LAST…TUBULAR…BELLS; “Exorcist” part is good, and then just gets better6:45 AM May 27th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 68) Aimee Mann – I’m With Stupid; Beautiful voice, amazing melodies, and lyrics that make depression fun. Plus, this one rocks and roars.5:17 AM May 26th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 69) King Crimson – Thrak; their “double-trio” disc sometimes features two trios playing interlocking but separate pieces simultaneously.7:05 AM May 25th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 70) John Eddie – Who the Hell is John Eddie?; Awesome title track sings of being met at every gig with drunks screaming “play some Skynyrd”.8:12 AM May 24th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 71) Wondermints – Bali; lush pop songs, inspired by Brian Wilson’s flights of fancy, they later became Wilson’s touring band behind Smile7:50 AM May 23rd from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 72) Rheostatics – Introducing Happiness; power pop, moments of great beauty, hilarious lyrics.Trees Beatnik please come home, we miss you so7:52 AM May 22nd from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 73) Tom Petty – Into the Great Wide Open; I am a sucker for the efficient simplicity of Petty songs. Love Gunslingers and “You and I Will..”7:24 AM May 21st from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 74) My Morning Jacket – It Still Moves; it’s proximity to Southern-rock scares me, but these are great songs, and the greatest wail in rock.8:26 AM May 20th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 75) John Hiatt – Slow Turning; exceptional funky/bluesy well-crafted songsmithing. His picture’s been on my office door for 18 years.6:02 AM May 19th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 76) The Beatles – Let It Be; has some silly filler, but some great songs, too; Across the Universe, I Me Mine, I Dig a Pony, and so on7:16 AM May 18th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 77) Laura Viers – Year of Meteors; Many would find the voice too “precious”, sing-songy little-girlish, but these songs hit me emotionally.8:19 AM May 17th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 78) New Radicals – Maybe You’ve Been Brainwashed Too; peppiest record ever about the destructive futility of drugs as your only answer. Fun!5:55 AM May 16th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 79) Neil Young – Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere; with 2 songs (Cowgirl and River) Neil did all that the Grateful Dead needed decades to do7:38 AM May 15th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 80) Eric Johnson – Venus Isle: Being a guitar god is not enough for me anymore, and usually this guy never gets a fire going, but this is OK7:20 AM May 14th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 81) Peter Gabriel – Us; it’s no So (for one thing, there’s no Kate Bush) but there are some beautiful dark moments, esp 14 Black Paintings.5:38 AM May 13th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 82) Bob Dylan – Modern Times; kids aren’t going to like these antiquated ditties, but I am an old soul, and find this bleating soothing.7:17 AM May 12th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 83) U2 – Achtung Baby; Yes. I can admit that I sometimes listen to bands that more than 17 people have heard of. I like “The Fly” a lot.7:43 AM May 11th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 84) Jimi Hendrix – Band of Gypsies; My teen cruising music of choice, windows down, head strutting fore and back to Machine Gun.8:33 AM May 10th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 85) King’s X – Faith Hope Love: Beatlesesque harmonies laid over the top of inventive Rush-style heavy metalese? Am I already in heaven?7:55 AM May 9th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 86) Neil Young – Sleeps with Angels. All my best NY is vinyl. Has “crap” throwaways; redeemed by the epic Change Your Mind. Safeway Cart!8:11 AM May 8th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 87) Crowded House – Woodface. The CH disc that featured both Finn brothers;4 Seasons in 1 Day among the greatest of their songs.7:20 AM May 7th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 88) Wilco – Being There; A fine “Americana” disc, with Stonesy overtones. Followed by scads of wannabe hillbillies whose grunge bands failed8:09 AM May 6th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 89) Ben Folds Five – Whatever and Ever Amen; I call it the “Beatles tradition”. Hard to pin down his style, he can do anything. Melody lives5:19 AM May 5th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 90) Dixie Dregs – What If; Awesome eclectic instrumental rock, and this is their best album. Guitarist Steve Morse never quite found his way4:55 AM May 4th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 91) Genesis – The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway; prog-geek fantasy world, 90 minutes of Gabriel era incomprehensibility with synthy goodness.9:11 AM May 3rd from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 92) Frank Zappa – Hots Rats; Zappa in instrumental mode, running from strictly composed to free-blowing jazz, and Cap Beefheart shows up too6:37 AM May 2nd from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 93) Elvis Costello – Painted from Memory; It’s schmaltzy, but Bacharach’s gorgeous melodies suit Elvis’s newly found consistent over-singing5:47 AM May 1st from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 94) Odds – Bedbugs; Tragically Hip may get the press; best Canadian bands are Odds and Rheostatics. Awesome power pop, like many of my faves4:20 AM Apr 30th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 95) Jen Trynin – Cockamamie; the better of her 2 exceptional, mostly jangly alternative pop discs, like REM with balls & husky contralto.5:58 AM Apr 29th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 96) The Rolling Stones – It’s Only Rock and Roll; but I like it. The perfect boozy soundtrack at a party where everybody’s had one too many.5:38 AM Apr 28th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 97) Jason Falkner – Can You Still Feel; nearly an hour of sophisticated Raspberryish power pop from one of the driving lights from Jellyfish5:53 AM Apr 27th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 98) Yes – Magnification; not considered a classic, but the pedal steel on “In the Presence” worked me over like no Yes in years. R.I.P. YES.6:42 AM Apr 26th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 99) Elton John – Madman Across the Water; with the title track, Levon, and Tiny Dancer; you don’t need anything else, but you get it anyway!6:04 AM Apr 25th from web

# dave vinsonDaveFromKnoxvil 100) Elvis Costello – Get Happy. 20 blasts of 60’s-style soul rave-ups, as run through Elvis’s nasal cavity (OK, 15, and 5 duds.)8:07 AM Apr 24th from web

A month without posting is terrible. Unfortunately, my household contains one computer and two teenagers, so I rarely get to update the blog. The actors list is growing, but I never get time to write the all-important blurbs.

So here’s something, just to keep us moving forward. Here’s a list of the artists who got the most plays in my world in the last month. I alternate between podcasts and music, and I am in an extensive podcast phase, so I am not listening to as much music as usual, but here’s what I have for the month of January.

1) King Crimson 2) Bob Dylan 3) Hank Williams
4) Willie Nelson 5) Electric Light Orchestra
6) Bruce Springsteen 7) Bruce Cockburn
8) New Bomb Turks 9) Pink Floyd 10) Faces
11) Emmylou Harris 12) Miles Davis 13) U2 14) Bjorn Olsson
15) Billy Childish 16) Jelly Roll Morton
17) Johnny Cash 18) Spock’s Beard 19) John Lee Hooker
20) Richard Thompson 21) Tool
22) Creedence Clearwater Revival
23) Sly and the Family Stone 24) Hot Chip 25) Pepper
26) Slightly Stoopid 27) Coil 28) Radiohead 29) Jethro Tull
30) mu-ziq 31) Dream Theater 32) Duke Ellington
33) Transatlantic 34) Global Goon 35) Cannibal Corpse
36) Guided By Voices 37) REM 38) Cake 39) Talking Heads
40) Weather Report 41) George Harrison 42) Ron and Fez
43) The Flower Kings 44) Animal Collective
45) Elton John 46) BB King 47) Camper Van Beethoven
48) Keith Jarrett 49) Mark Knopfler 50) Neal Morse
51) The Brian Jonestown Massacre
52) Union Carbide Productions
53) Ariel Pink’s Haunted Grafitti 54) Kate Bush
55) Buddy Guy 56) The Clean 57) The Clash 58) Salvoj Zizek
59) Harry Nilsson 60) Outkast 61) Grateful Dead
62) Charles Mingus 63) Acid Mother’s Temple
64) Chris Thile 65) Fats Waller
66) Chick Corea and Gary Butler
67) Perpetual Groove 68) The Dears 69) Ace of Base
70) Baby Woodrose 71) The Band 72) Lou Reed
73) George Jones 74) Drive-By Truckers 75) Bassholes
76) Meat Beat Manifesto 77) Mastodon
78) The Rolling Stones 79) Phish 80) Jimi Hendrix
81) Neil Young 82) Old 97’s 83) Vince Gill
84) Ella Fitzgerald 85) Neil Diamond 86) Billy Joel
87) Chopin 88) Eric Clapton 89) Belle and Sebastian
90) Peter Gabriel 91) Mitch Hedberg
92) LCD Soundsystem 93) Meat Puppets 94) Scott Miller
95) The Doors 96) Sun City Girls
97) The New Pornographers 98) Girl Talk
99) Ozric Tentacles 100) Maceo Parker

Every year around this time I update my list of the most important musical artists of the new millenium. This is based strictly on the aggregate quality of recordings released for the first time during or since 2000, according to an arcane combination of my opinion and input from over a dozen regular music writers whose tastes I respect even if I don’t necessarily agree. This means that my voice is in here, but this is by no means a list I would come up with on my own (you don’t see Kate Bush at the top, do you?)

Occasionally that means an expanded re-release, or previously unreleased recording gets included, spitting artists who have not recorded in years onto the list. I don’t care; it’s limited, and for the most part those recordings are better than most of the crap being sprayed out into the ether. Here goes the updated list, as of December 14, 2008. The number following the artist’s name represents the chart position at this time last year.

1) David Holmes – 5 (Not many people know this guy, my most significant artist of the new century, but he’s released over 60 tracks with very few duds, and this year’s album, The Holy Pictures, was of the consistent high quality he displayed in the first half of the decade. He’s basically a laptop/dance/what we used to call techno sort of guy.)

2) Tom Waits – 1

3) Spoon – 3

4) Super Furry Animals – 6

5) Bob Dylan – 21

6) The White Stripes – 4

7) Lambchop – 9

8) Drive By Truckers – 28

9) Low – 7

10) The Hold Steady – 38

11) Sigur Ros – 27

12) Sufjan Stevens – 13

13) Radiohead – 8

14) Nick Cave – 56

15) Sleater Kenney – 10

16) Bonnie Prince Billy – 39

17) LCD Soundsystem – 11

18) Outkast – 14

19) Dizzee Rascal – 17

20) Basement Jaxx – 15

21) The New Pornographers – 16

22) Of Montreal – 18

23) Iron and Wine – 2

24) TV on the Radio – 79

25) Elbow – 51

26) Four Tet – 32

27) Ghostface Killah – 12

28) Kanye West – 30

29) Wilco – 19

30) Elliott Smith – 20

31) The Clash – 61

32) Animal Collective – 45

33) PJ Harvey – 23

34) Arab Strap – 26

35) Missy Elliott – 31

36) My Morning Jacket – 29

37) Nas – 50

38) The Roots – 66

39) Bruce Springsteen – 33

40) Blur – 34

41) Bjork – 36

42) Ron Sexsmith – 25

43) The Arcade Fire – 40

44) The Decemberists – 37

45) Mogwai – 24

46) Talking Heads – 41

47) Okkervil River – 91

48) Devandra Banhart – 43

49) Oneida – 60

50) MIA – 44

51) Neko Case – 46

52) Dungen – 95

53) The Magnetic Fields – 98

54) Sam Phillips – new (although I have been enjoying her stuff from all the way back when she still called herself Leslie; the new album’s fantastic, like if Marlene Dietrich grew up in the Appalachians.)

55) Destroyer – new (back in after sitting out one year)

56) The Flaming Lips – 52

57) J Dilla – 48

58) The National – 49

59) Yo La Tengo – new

60) Stephen Malkmus – 82

61) Matmos – new

62) The Streets – 22

63) The Go Betweens – 53

64) The Pernice Brothers – 64

65) Broadcast – 55

66) Cat Power – 58

67) Xiu Xiu – 84

68) Bill Frisell – 57

69) Blood Brothers – 42

70) Jay Z – 62

71) Beck – new

72) British Sea Power – new

73) Queens of the Stone Age – 65

74) The Fall – new

75) Damien Jurado – 93

76) The Mendoza Line – 67

77) Smog – 68

78) System of a Down – 69

79) Books – 70

80) Franz Ferdinand – 71

81) Hayden – 73

82) M Ward – 74

83) Les Savy Fav – 47

84) Aimee Mann – new

85) Lucinda Williams – 85

86) David Kilgour – 75

87) Lightning Bolt – 76

88) Los Lobos – 77

89) Candi Staton – 78

90) Built to Spill – 72

91) The Clientele – 80

92) The Constantines – new

93) Ted FOT Leo – 81

94) Murs – new

95) Richard Thompson – 83

96) Belle and Sebastian – new

97) Led Zeppelin – 86

98) Loretta Lynn – 87

99) Fennesz – new

100) Junior Boys – 89

Artists who fell out of favor with the collected wisdom of hipster music critics (by falling out of the top 100) include the following.

Boards of Canada, was formerly 35th!

Wire, was 54

NERD, 59

OOIOO, 63

Vince Gill, 88

Nick Lowe, 90

Solomon Burke, 92

Steve Earle, 94

Richard Hawley, 96

Hood, 97

The Shins, 99

Broken Social Scene, 100

Write! Perform! Record! Release!

When I was a kid growing up in the 70s (I graduated high school in 1976), my taste in music was limited pretty much to the kind of rock music that any normal middle class white kid would listen to; Grand Funk, Uriah Heep, The Guess Who, and so forth. I was terrified of reggae music, had a real resentment of most country music (growing up in Nashville, as a kid I just got sick of hearing about it.)

Subsequently, there are still these enormous gaps in my musical knowledge.

As I read through the Virgin book, I made notations about albums. Those albums mainly fell into two categories; those that were very important to me, and those that I have an interest in hearing to fill in those gaps.

When I finished the book, I had a list of about 300 records that I subsequently narrowed down to the 100 that make up this list. I don’t even know what to call it. How about “100 Albums from the 70’s that deserve another look”? Really rolls right off the tongue, eh? Except for those few records that made the list because I just couldn’t bear to leave them off, we could call it “Gaughin’s 70s Wish List”.

1970

Larry Coryell – Spaces

Crusaders – Old Socks New Shoes New Socks Old Shoes

Joni Mitchell – Ladies of the Canyon

James Taylor – Sweet Baby James

Tammy Wynette – Tammy’s Touch

Neil Young – After the Goldrush

1971

David Bowie – Hunky Dory

John Cale and Terry Riley – Church of Anthrax

Ry Cooder – Into the Purple Valley

Larry Coryell – At the Village Gate

Family – Fearless

The Kinks – Muswell Hillbillies

Led Zeppelin 4

Joni Mitchell – Blue

Pink Floyd – Meddle

1972

The Band – Rock of Ages

David Bowie – The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars

Can – Ege Bamyasi

Al Green – I’m Still in Love with You

Ralph McTell – Not Until Tomorrow

The Moody Blues – Seventh Sojourn

Tammy Wynette – Bedtime Story

Neil Young – Harvest

1973

The Chieftains 4

The Dramatics – Dramatically Yours

Rory Gallagher – Blueprint

Al Green – Call Me

Presenting I Roy

Keith Jarrett – Solo Concerts, Bremen and Lausanne

Bob Marley – Catch a Fire

Anne Murray – Danny’s Song

Pink Floyd – Dark Side of the Moon

Earl Scruggs – Duelling Banjos

Paul Simon – There Goes Rhyming Simon

Tammy Wynette – Kids Say the Darndest Things

1974

David Bowie – Diamond Dogs

Jack Bruce – Out of the Storm

Can – Soon Over Babaluma

Kevin Coyne – Blame It On the Night

Brian Eno – Here Come the Warm Jets

Al Green Explores Your Mind

I Roy – Hell and Sorrow

Keith Jarrett and Jan Garbarek – Belonging

King Tubby – Black Board Jungle

Joni Mitchell – Court and Spark

Van Morrison – It’s Too Late To Stop Now

Anne Murray – Country

Porter Wagoner and Dolly Parton – Porter n Dolly

Parliament – Up For the Down Stroke

Barbra Streisand – The Way We Were

Tower of Power – Back to Oakland

Weather Report – Mysterious Traveler

Neil Young – On the Beach

Frank Zappa – Apostrophe

1975

The Band – Northern Lights Southern Cross

Burning Spear – Marcus Garvey

King Tubby – The Roots of Dub

Kate and Anna McGarrigle (debut)

Bob Marley – Natty Dread

Willie Nelson – Red Headed Stranger

Dolly Parton – The Bargain Store

Bruce Springsteen – Born to Run

Frank Zappa – One Size Fits All

1976

Keith Jarrett – Sun Bear Concerts

King Tubby Meets The Rockers Uptown

The Maytals – Reggae Got Soul

Steve Miller – Fly Like an Eagle

Joni Mitchell – Hejira

June Tabor – Airs and Graces

Don Williams – Harmony

Frank Zappa – Zoot Allures

Warren Zevon (debut)

1977

David Bowie – Heroes

The Clash (debut)

Kevin Coyne – In Living Black and White

Gregory Isaacs – Mr Isaacs

Keith Jarrett – My Song

Kraftwerk – Trans Europe Express

Steve Miller – Book of Dreams

Pink Floyd – Animals

1978

Burning Spear – Social Living

Elvis Costello – This Year’s Model

Brian Eno – Music for Airports

Gregory Isaacs – The Cool Ruler

The Kinks – Misfits

Fela Kuti – Kalakuta Show

John McLaughlin – Johnny McLaughlin Electric Guitarist

Willie Nelson – Stardust

Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings – Waylon and Willie

Barbra Streisand – Songbird

Tom Waits – Blue Valentine

1979

Burning Spear – Living Dub

The Clash – London Calling

Emmylou Harris – Blue Kentucky Girl

Gregory Isaacs – Soon Forward

Fela Kuti – Coffin for Head of State

Bob Marley – Survival

Graham Parker – Squeezing Out Sparks

Neil Young – Rust Never Sleeps

Frank Zappa – Sheik Yerbouti

The plan was to go back to the 60s book next, but a recent episode of NPR’s All Songs Considered was uncharacteristically condescending to fans of 80s music, so I am going to check that out next.

A friend of mine expressed amusement that Jack Bruce could be listed above Led Zeppelin in the overall achievement list that I posted last week. It’s a math thing that I could not resist explaining.

Remember, the idea is to assess the ratings listed in The Virgin Encyclopedia of 70’s Music.

Jack Bruce		Led Zeppelin
Songs For a Tailor	5	Led Zeppelin IV
Harmony Row	4	Led Zeppelin
Out of the Storm	4	Led Zeppelin II
Question of Time, A	4	Led Zeppelin III
Cities of the Heart	4	Houses of the Holy
Live on the Old Grey Whistle Test	4	Physical Graffiti
Shadows in the Air	4	BBC Sessions
Things We Like	3	Presence
How’s Tricks	3	In Through the Out Door
Truce	2	Song Remains the Same, The
Automatic	2	Coda
Alexis Korner Memorial Concert Volume 1	3
I’ve Always Wanted to Do This	3
Live at the Bottom Line	3
Somethin Els	3
Doing This…..on Ice!	2

In the “Best 5″ rating, the artists are tied; they each have a classic 5-star disc (gotta get me that Songs For a Tailor), and then they each have 4 4-star discs, so they are tied in that regard with 21 total stars.

So we move over to the “Overall above average” rating. Here’s one way to understand how this comparison works. We will remove one album from each artist with matching ratings, then assess what’s left over at the end. Here’s how those match up.

Now the trick is to look at what’s left. Every Led Zeppelin disc is accounted for, but Jack Bruce has 5 discs left. They are these;

Alexis Korner Memorial Concert Volume 1	3
I’ve Always Wanted to Do This	3
Live at the Bottom Line	3
Somethin Els	3
Doing This…..on Ice!	2

Now the deal is, we have effectively “subtracted” Led Zeppelin’s critical ratings from Jack Bruce’s, leaving Bruce with 5 discs and 14 total stars. This gives an average of 2.8. But this average is higher than the overall average for all of the albums in the book, which is about 2.76. Since Jack Bruce is above average even after the equivalent of Led Zeppelin’s discography is extracted from his, Jack Bruce squeaks out a “win”. If his remaining discs had average under 2.76; ie, if he had 5 remaining discs and only 13 total stars, Led Zeppelin would have “won”.

Here’s the quicker version of that “logic”, though it’s not as dramatic. Led Zeppelin has a total of 11 albums in its discography. The average artist with 11 albums would have a total of 11*2.76 = 30.36 total stars; Led Zeppelin has 39, so they are 8.64 stars above the average artist.

Jack Bruce has a total of 16 albums. The average artist with 16 stars would have a total of 16*2.76 = 44.16 total stars; Jack Bruce has 53, so he is 8.84 stars above the average artist.

Jack Bruce by a hair!

I turned 50 recently (I am having my end of life crisis) and I received 7 books derived from the “Virgin Encyclopedia” of music. There is a large and expensive book called The Virgin Encyclopedia of Music that contains thousands of entries from multiple music genres. My local library has a copy of that, and I have coveted it for a long time. It’s in reference, so I can’t check it out of the library and, say, marry it. As it turns out, it’s hard to find a copy for much less than one HUNDRED dollars. And hey man, I’m a teacher. One hundred dollars will buy a lot of bologna, and the kids have got to eat.

For me, obsessive number jockey, the most important thing for each entry was the discography at the end of each mostly well-written and entertaining entry. These discographies are very thorough (at least up to the publication date of 2002), and utilize a 1 through 5 star rating system. For a guy obsessed with ranking systems, that’s like vanilla extract to a wino.

Fortunately, the Virgin Books company must have recognized that they weren’t going to sell too many copies of a book that costs more than most families’ weekly grocery bill, so they broke the book into 5 smaller books by decade, 50’s, 60’s, 70s, 80s, and 90s.

The artists are placed by some method I don’t fully understand having to do with the decade in which they first came to “prominence”. It makes sense that the editors did not want to spread someone like Neil Young across four different volumes of the book, but there are occasional glitches in their system. Take The Kinks, for example. In my mind, they were first prominent in the 60’s, but they show up in the 70’s book.

Despite these sorts of strange incongruities, I love the books, and as I read the entries (yes, they are encyclopedias, and yes, I am reading them cover to cover) all of those numbers at the end of entries keep glowing, calling out to me, must be DEALT WITH.

So here’s the deal. I kept track of all of the ratings for all of the albums listed in the book. I am virtually certain to have made a mistake or two, so these numbers are not exact, but by my count there are 11334 albums in the book which receive a total of 31364 stars for an average of 2.76725 stars per album. Let’s call it 2.8 just to make it easier to talk about.

To assess an artist, I look at their rated discography on an album by album basis. For each album, the artist either gets an award or a deduction according to how far the album in question is above or below the mean for all albums in the book. A three-star album awards the artist .2 points, since that album is .2 points above the mean. For a four-star album, the artist receives 1.2 points, for a 2-star album the artist has .8 points deducted from their score, and so on.

So each artist gets a score that represents their TOTAL points above average.

Another score is awarded to each artist according to their best 5 albums. Alice Cooper, for example, did so many horrible albums throughout the 80’s and 90’s that his overall “above average” score is abysmal. This isn’t a criticism, by the way, the man’s a legend, and he was carving out a living. I can’t imagine many people with the opportunity to stay in the music business quitting, God bless him. And he should/must be recognized for the quality of his Love it to Death/Killer/School’s Out/Billion Dollar Babies run. So each artist gets a score that is equal to the total number of stars from their five best albums.

Then the ranking begins. The artists are ranked, first according to their “above-average” score, with their “best-5″ score serving as a tiebreaker. Occasionally ties still remain, but they are exclusively in the nether regions of the overall list, so I literally break them randomly. Sue me. This ranked list is tagged with a number giving the artist’s place on the list. In this listing, Frank Zappa is number one (sorry, Tom), followed by Keith Jarrett, BB King, Barbra Streisand, and King Tubby.

Then the process is reversed. Artists are ranked first by their “best-5″ score, with the “above-average” score as the tie-breaker. Under this scheme Neil Young is first, followed by Bob Marley, David Bowie, Keith Jarrett and Joni Mitchell.

At this point each artist has two ranks. David Bowie is 90th in “over average” and 3rd in “best 5″. Barbra Streisand is 4 and 23, King Tubby is 5 and 24, Joni Mitchell is 10 and 5, and so on.

I then give the artist the benefit of the doubt, allowing them to retain the rank that most benefits them. So Bowie gets a 3, Streisand a 4, King Tubby a 5, Joni Mitchell a 5, and so on. It is THIS number that determines the final overall ranking. Like in golf, lower numbers are good. I use the overall “above-average” rating as the tiebreaker here. Frankly, I enjoy following an artist as they develop over a long career, and I think making great music for decades trumps popping out a handful of good albums.

Now I will stress that there is NONE of my personal opinion in the following listing. This is strictly an amateur statistical analysis of the information contained in this book. I created a ranking scheme, and it might or might not produce interesting results, but it has nothing to do with my personal tastes, which are scary and deserve your contempt.

Here’s the artist list.

1	Zappa, Frank
2	Young, Neil
3	Jarrett, Keith
4	Marley, Bob
5	King, BB
6	Bowie, David
7	Streisand, Barbra
8	King Tubby
9	Mitchell, Joni
10	Isaacs, Gregory
11	Burning Spear
12	Nelson, Willie
13	Costello, Elvis
14	Kinks
15	Chieftains, The
16	Band, The
17	McLaughlin, John
18	Wynette, Tammy
19	I Roy
20	Harris, Emmylou
21	Morrison, Van
22	Coryell, Larry
23	Springsteen, Bruce
24	Eno, Brian
25	Miller, Steve
26	Whittaker, Roger
27	Bruce, Jack
28	Led Zeppelin
29	Can
30	Williams, Don
31	Pink Floyd
32	Green, Al
33	Taylor, James
34	Jones, Quincy
35	Fairport Convention
36	Murray, Anne
37	Kuti, Fela
38	Waits, Tom
39	Scruggs, Earl
40	Mouskouri, Nana
41	Crusaders
42	Kottke, Leo
43	Parton, Dolly
44	Renbourn, John
45	Martyn, John
46	Duke, George
47	Taj Mahal
48	McGarrigle, Kate and Anna
49	Moreira, Airto
50	Gallagher, Rory
51	Maytals
52	Prine, John
53	Prior, Maddy
54	Tabor, June
55	Collins, Albert
56	DiMeola, Al
57	Parker, Graham
58	Cale, John
59	McTell, Ralph
60	Tower of Power
61	U-Roy
62	Chapman, Michael
63	Zevon, Warren
64	Weather Report
65	Parliament
66	Purim, Flora
67	Aerosmith
68	Glass, Phillip
69	Masakela, Hugh
70	Reich, Steve
71	Whispers
72	Newman, Randy
73	Funkadelic
74	Simon, Paul
75	Diamond, Neil
76	Lynyrd Skynyrd
77	Coyne, Kevin
78	Clapton, Eric
79	Return To Forever
80	Dramatics
81	Cooder, Ry
82	Seger, Bob
83	Harper, Roy
84	Van Zandt, Townes
85	Minnelli, Liza
86	Poco
87	Sahm, Doug
88	Kraftwerk
89	Schulze, Klaus
90	Steely Dan
91	Fripp, Robert
92	Moody Blues
93	Family
94	McGregor, Freddie
95	ZZ Top
96	Johnson, Linton Kwesi
97	Clash, The
98	Lowe, Nick
99	Raitt, Bonnie
100	Pride, Charlie
101	Stills, Stephen
102	Big Youth
103	Prince Far I
104	Ramones
105	Little Feat
106	Jennings, Waylon
107	King Crimson
108	Browne, Jackson
109	Muldaur, Maria
110	Santana
111	Tosh, Peter
112	Reed, Lou
113	Rogers, Kenny
114	Stewart, Rod
115	Magna Carta
116	Rundgren, Todd
117	Persuasions
118	John, Elton
119	Chic
120	Cocker, Joe
121	Jam, The
122	Yes
123	Denver, John
124	Fleetwood Mac
125	Cohen, Leonard
126	Alice Cooper
127	Hill, ZZ
128	Distel, Sacha
129	O’Connor, Des
130	Armatrading, Joan
131	Mandel, Harvey
132	Toure, Ali Farke
133	Strawbs
134	Stewart, Al
135	Meters
136	Professor Longhair
137	Campbell, Glen
138	White, Tony Joe
139	Thompson, Richard and Linda
140	LeDoux, Chris
141	Cale, JJ
142	Rich, Charlie
143	Watersons
144	James, Bob
145	Yabby You
146	Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes
147	Moroder, Giorgio
148	Cockburn, Bruce
149	Muldaur, Geoff
150	Firesign Theatre
151	Williams, Deniece
152	Wire
153	Buckley, Tim
154	Nesmith, Michael
155	Asleep at the Wheel
156	Roxy Music
157	Stivell, Alan
158	Melvin and the Blue Notes, Harold
159	Thomas, BJ
160	Clark, Guy
161	Allman Brothers Band, The
162	Taylor, Chip
163	Hall and Oates
164	Fogelberg, Dan
165	Pastorius, Jaco
166	Hammer, Jan
167	Nilsson
168	Hackett, Steve
169	Black Sabbath
170	Stranglers
171	Jones, Nic
172	UFO
173	Lane, Ronnie
174	Queen
175	Albion Country Band
176	Electric Light Orchestra
177	Tyson, Ian
178	Jethro Tull
179	Last Poets
180	Bee Gees, The
181	Thompson, Danny
182	Lennon, John
183	Pere Ubu
184	Mannheim Steamroller
185	Crosby, David
186	Hyman, Phyllis
187	Van Der Graaf Generator
188	Tavares
189	Shaver, Billie Joe
190	Gibbons, Steve
191	Journey
192	Lindley, David
193	Moore, Dorothy
194	Manfred Mann’s Earth Band
195	Travers Band, Pat
196	Martell, Lena
197	Twilley, Dwight
198	Pasadena Roof Orchestra
199	Plainsong
200	Rogers, Stan
201	Dr John
202	Sweet Honey In the Rock
203	Lofgren, Nils
204	Manhattan Transfer
205	Newbury, Mickey
206	Verlaine, Tom
207	Goodman, Steve
208	Shear, Jules
209	Jones, Rickie Lee
210	Hutchings, Ashley
211	Swamp Dogg
212	Yamash’Ta, Stomu
213	Lunch, Lydia
214	Police
215	Brinsley Schwarz
216	Winter, Johnny
217	Clark, Gene
218	Peebles, Ann
219	Scott-Heron, Gil
220	Guthrie, Arlo
221	Stylistics
222	Wainwright III, Loudon
223	Noakes, Rob
224	Magazine
225	Eagles, The
226	Winter, Edgar
227	Spears, Billie Jo
228	Isley Brothers
229	Stooges
230	Denny, Sandy
231	Badfinger
232	Withers, Bill
233	Romeo, Max
234	Winchester, Jesse
235	Ayers, Kevin
236	Nucleus
237	Doobie Brothers
238	New Grass Revival
239	Iggy Pop
240	Aswad
241	Cheap Trick
242	Parsons, Gram
243	King, Carole
244	Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
245	O’Jays
246	Big Star
247	Ronstadt, Linda
248	Hull, Alan
249	Supertramp
250	McGuinn, Roger
251	Russell, Leon
252	Wings
253	Cliff, Jimmy
254	Flash Cadillac and the Continental Kids
255	Hot Tuna
256	Summer, Donna
257	Smith, Lonnie Liston
258	Harrison, George
259	McGovern, Maureen
260	Hawkwind
261	Sherbet
262	Detroit Spinners
263	Kristofferson, Kris
264	Jones, Wizz
265	Slade
266	Drake, Nick
267	Stevens, Cat
268	Plastic Ono Band
269	Deep Purple
270	Stealers Wheel
271	Flying Burrito Brothers
272	Mahavishnu Orchestra
273	Planxty
274	Mott the Hoople
275	Wesley, Fred
276	Pendergrass, Teddy
277	Enid
278	Sex Pistols
279	Starry Eyed and Laughing
280	Stiff Records
281	Barefoot Jerry
282	Weir, Bob
283	Browne, Duncan
284	Henry Cow
285	Dury, Ian
286	Parker, Maceo
287	Miller, Frankie
288	Third World
289	Bishop, Stephen
290	Crosby and Nash
291	Faces
292	Slapp Happy
293	New York Dolls
294	Garfunkel, Art
295	T Rex
296	Kaukonen, Jorma
297	Scaggs, Boz
298	Kihn, Greg
299	Ackles, David
300	Crazy Horse
301	Crosby Stills Nash and Young
302	Help Yourself
303	Park, Simon
304	Raspberries
305	Smith, Patti
306	Stackridge
307	Swan, Billy
308	Manzanera, Phil
309	Jackson 5
310	Snow, Phoebe
311	If
312	Ballard, Russ
313	Ferry, Bryan
314	Hillage, Steve
315	Steel Pulse
316	Matchbox
317	Webb, Jimmy
318	Siffre, Labi
319	Robinson, Tom
320	Soul Children
321	Nolans
322	Statler Brothers
323	Steeleye Span
324	Ozark Mountain Daredevils
325	Mahogany Rush
326	Rafferty, Gerry
327	Johnny Moped
328	Undisputed Truth
329	La Dusseldorf
330	Tzuke, Judie
331	Knight and the Pips, Gladys
332	Jacksons
333	Marshall Tucker Band
334	Johnson, Wilko
335	Hammill, Peter
336	Parks, Van Dyke
337	Ono, Yoko
338	Dolan, Joe
339	Thin Lizzy
340	Earth Wind and Fire
341	Ross, Diana
342	Foghat
343	Meat Loaf
344	Kansas
345	Redbone, Leon
346	Trower, Robin
347	Whitesnake
348	Stewart, John
349	Hoslips
350	Blunstone, Colin
351	Reed, Jerry
352	Sebastian, John
353	Collins, Dave and Ansell
354	Climax Blues Band, The
355	Derek and the Dominoes
356	Damned
357	Manassas
358	LaBelle
359	Piblokto
360	Split Enz
361	Sill, Judee
362	Osibisa
363	This Heat
364	Sylvester
365	Jarre, Jean-Michel
366	Price, Alan
367	Gap Band
368	LaSalle, Denise
369	Simon, Carly
370	Bell and the Drells, Archie
371	Pure Prairie League
372	Keita, Selif
373	Rufus
374	Terry and the Pirates
375	Ian, Janis
376	Commander Cody and his Lost Planet Airmen
377	Dee, Kiki
378	Sha Na Na
379	Collins, Bootsy
380	War
381	Genesis
382	Concert for Bangla Desh
383	Man
384	Harry J
385	Heart
386	Macaulay, Tony
387	Palmer, Robert
388	Wilson, Dennis
389	Clarke, Stanley
390	Nazareth
391	Davis, Jesse “Ed”
392	McCartney, Paul
393	Duncan, Lesley
394	Scorpions
395	Fogerty, John
396	Savoy Brown
397	Plastic People of the Universe
398	Kooper, Al
399	Rifkin, Joshua
400	Three Dog Night
401	Shakti
402	Chicago
403	Woods, Gay and Terry
404	Midler, Bette
405	Status Quo
406	Uriah Heep
407	Sutherland Brothers
408	Gong
409	Edmunds, Dave
410	Camel
411	Jade Warrior
412	Ohio Players
413	Hunter, Ian
414	Humble Pie
415	Kendricks, Eddie
416	Feliciano, Jose
417	Styx
418	Amon Duul II
419	Boston
420	Carpenters, The
421	Doll By Doll
422	Lindisfarne
423	Dransfield, Robin and Barry
424	Tangerine Dream
425	Geordie
426	Wakeman, Rick
427	Modern Lovers
428	Hayes, Isaac
429	Nash, Graham
430	Pink Military Pink Industry
431	String-Driven Thing
432	Tir na Nog
433	Motors
434	South, Joe
435	Fatback Band
436	Dells
437	Head, Murray
438	Taylor, Livingston
439	Wright, Betty
440	Bob and Marcia
441	CCS
442	Clarke, John Cooper
443	Egg
444	Hell, Richard
445	Matching Mole
446	Matumbi
447	Rhodes, Emitt
448	Sassafras
449	Slick, Earl
450	Slits
451	Starland Vocal Band
452	Vinegar Joe
453	Wayne, Jeff
454	Wizzard
455	X-Ray Spex
456	Delaney and Bonnie
457	Kelly, Jo Ann
458	Lobo
459	Graham Central Station
460	McCrae, George
461	Martha and the Muffins
462	Buzzcocks
463	Flamin Groovies
464	Arrival
465	Back Street Crawler
466	Atlanta Rhythm Section
467	Bell, Maggie
468	Wolf, Kate
469	Chilli Willi
470	Dio, Ronnie James
471	Ducks Deluxe
472	Bishop, Elvin
473	Hatfield and the North
474	Chi-Lites
475	King Harvest
476	Commodores, The
477	Lewie, Jona
478	Average White Band
479	Manfred Mann Chapter Three
480	Wet Willie
481	Neville, Art
482	Wyman, Bill
483	New York City
484	Parsons, Alan
485	Radiators from Space
486	Suicide
487	Rutles
488	Beck, Jeff
489	Stackwaddy
490	Townshend, Pete
491	Telex
492	Lightfoot, Gordon
493	Tonto’s Expanding Headband
494	Scott, Tom
495	White Plains
496	White, Barry
497	Young, Kenny
498	Walsh, Joe
499	Nugent, Ted
500	NRBQ
501	Barclay James Harvest
502	Staton, Cash
503	Gaynor, Gloria
504	Boomtown Rats
505	Grand Funk Railroad
506	Bread
507	Magma
508	Otis, Shuggie
509	Little River Band
510	Pussycat
511	Deodata
512	Reid, Terry
513	Richman, Jonathan
514	Shoes
515	Devo
516	Stone the Crows
517	Walker, Jerry Jeff
518	Streetwalkers
519	Auger, Brian
520	Golden Earring
521	Caravan
522	Manilow, Barry
523	Dr Feelgood
524	Zamfir
525	Flack, Roberta
526	Jeffreys, Garland
527	Frampton, Peter
528	Sensational Alex Harvey Band
529	10cc
530	Vibrators
531	Nico
532	Buggles
533	Kiss
534	CBGB’s
535	Coolidge, Rita
536	Edison Lighthouse
537	Emerson Lake and Palmer
538	First Class
539	Groundhogs
540	Formerly Fat Harry
541	Bellamy Brothers, The
542	Fotheringay
543	Gillan, Ian
544	Jilted John
545	Oldfield, Mike
546	Kongos, John
547	Blue Oyster Cult
548	Last Waltz
549	Kool and the Gang
550	Marshall Hain
551	Rockpile
552	Stills-Young Band
553	Tractor
554	Wingfield, Pete
555	Simon, Joe
556	Delfonics
557	Greenslade
558	Heatwave
559	Neu!
560	Skids
561	Brewer and Shipley
562	Fischer-Z
563	Croce, Jim
564	Jo Jo Gunne
565	Only Ones
566	Patto
567	Radio Birdman
568	Roden, Jess
569	Stanshall, Vivian
570	Taste
571	Television
572	Specials
573	Spedding, Chris
574	Dead Boys
575	Head Hands and Feet
576	Skid Row
577	Wild Turkey
578	Carmen, Eric
579	Free
580	Howe, Steve
581	Lee, Albert
582	Pirates
583	Vanda and Young
584	Ashford and Simpson
585	Atmosfear
586	Birtha
587	Covington, Julie
588	Helms, Jimmy
589	Kortchmar, Danny
590	Geils Band, J
591	Kossoff, Paul
592	Wood, Ron
593	McFadden and Whitehead
594	Focus
595	McVie, Christine
596	Gold, Andrew
597	Orlando, Tony
598	Loggins and Messina
599	Radio Stars
600	Mountain
601	Steinman, Jim
602	Sad Café
603	Yellow Dog
604	Trapeze
605	Tymes
606	Romantics
607	Judge Dread
608	Ronson, Mick
609	Nash, Johnny
610	Slick, Grace
611	Otway, John
612	Valli, Frankie
613	Wetton, John
614	Lee, Alvin
615	Amazing Blondel
616	Faust
617	ABBA
618	999
619	Skellern, Peter
620	Blondie
621	Outlaws
622	Parker Jr, Ray
623	Althea and Donna
624	Rainbow
625	Arrows
626	Syreeta
627	Campbell, Junior
628	Paul, Billy
629	Chicory Tip
630	Derringer, Rick
631	Christie
632	Utopia
633	Disco Tex and the Sex a Lettes
634	Ward, Clifford T
635	Fairweather
636	Matthews, Iain
637	Hello
638	Head East
639	Hotlegs
640	James Gang
641	Jet
642	Shalamar
643	Judas Jump
644	Amazing Rhythm Aces
645	Kenny
646	Buchanan, Roy
647	Leyton Buzzards
648	Main Ingredient
649	London
650	Oldfield, Sally
651	Merton Parkas
652	Brooks, Elkie
653	Our Kid
654	Springfield, Rick
655	Perry, Mark
656	Stiff Little Fingers
657	Pikketywitch
658	Tubes
659	Pipkins
660	Rare Earth
661	Racey
662	Chapin, Harry
663	Rich Kids
664	Dr Hook
665	Sessions, Ronnie
666	Bad Company
667	Splinter
668	Erickson, Roky
669	Titus Groan
670	Manchester, Melissa
671	Wigan’s Chosen Few
672	Seals and Crofts
673	Wilson, Mary
674	Dickson, Barbara
675	Wilson, Meri
676	Gentle Giant
677	Winkies
678	Womack, Bobby
679	Argent
680	Audience
681	Reddy, Helen
682	Gryphon
683	KC and the Sunshine Band
684	Heartbreakers
685	Thorogood, George
686	Jack the Lad
687	Renaissance
688	Jaggerz
689	Sparks
690	Juicy Lucy
691	Osmond, Donny
692	Kursaal Flyers
693	April Wine
694	McGuiness Flint
695	McLean, Don
696	Royal Scots Dragoon Guard
697	Pointer Sisters
698	Ruts
699	Cassidy, David
700	Wood, Roy
701	REO Speedwagon
702	Bachman-Turner Overdrive
703	Mason, Dave
704	Goldsboro, Bobby
705	Mungo Jerry
706	Newton-John, Olivia
707	America
708	Preston, Billy
709	Adverts
710	Rodriguez, Johnny
711	Ashton, Gardner and Dyke
712	Wishbone Ash
713	Kantner, Paul
714	Roussos, Demis
715	Montrose
716	Essex, David
717	Penetration
718	Melanie
719	Pilot
720	UK Subs
721	Richard, Keith
722	Robertson, BA
723	Sniff n the Tears
724	Sweet, Rachel
725	Ware, Leon
726	Bay City Rollers
727	Blodwyn Pig
728	De Paul, Lynsey
729	Medicine Head
730	Memphis Horns
731	Mink DeVille
732	Bardens, Peter
733	Allman, Gregg
734	Bell, Madeline
735	Ace
736	Broughton Band, Edgar
737	Baker Gurvitz Army
738	Dawn
739	Boxer
740	Dickies
741	Bronco
742	Shocking Blue
743	Floaters
744	Curved Air
745	Generation X
746	Saints
747	Hammond, Albert
748	Sister Sledge
749	Johnston, Bruce
750	Firefall
751	Racing Cars
752	McCoy, Van
753	Rezillos
754	Payne, Freda
755	Taupin, Bernie
756	Peters and Lee
757	Wackers
758	Sayer, Leo
759	Toto
760	Sweet
761	New Riders of the Purple Sage
762	O’Sullivan, Gilbert
763	Guess Who
764	Jefferson Starship
765	McDonald, Country Joe
766	Osmonds
767	Addrisi Brothers
768	Airforce
769	Albert, Morris
770	Beck Bogert and Appice
771	Bell and Arc
772	Butts Band
773	Dollar
774	Dundas, David
775	Farren, Mick
776	Jacks, Terry
777	Jobraith
778	Kilburn and the High Roads
779	Middle Of the Road
780	Moore and the Reggae Guitars, GT
781	Babys
782	Paper Lace
783	Be-Bop Deluxe
784	Quiver
785	Blue Mink
786	Tear Gas
787	Cate Brothers
788	Twink
789	Eddie and the Hot Rods
790	Wammack, Travis
791	Riperton, Minnie
792	Widowmaker
793	Taylor, Mick
794	Zavaroni, Lena
795	Blackbyrds
796	Godley and Crème
797	High Tide
798	Vanwarmer, Randy
799	West, Leslie
800	Wright, Gary
801	It’s a Beautiful Day
802	Hartman, Dan
803	Brownsville Station
804	Cockney Rebel
805	Previn, Dory
806	Slaughter and the Dogs
807	Trammps
808	Chairmen of the Board
809	Babe Ruth
810	Miles, John
811	Kokomo
812	Showaddywaddy
813	Marriott, Steve
814	Three Degrees
815	Pavlov’s Dog
816	Osmond, Marie
817	Rubinoos
818	Farnham, John
819	Soul, David
820	Davis, Mac
821	Starr, Ringo
822	Numan, Gary
823	Smokie
824	Blue
825	Christie, Tony
826	Deaf School
827	Fairweather-Low, Andy
828	Flo and Eddie
829	Lovich, Lene
830	Seatrain
831	Souther, JD
832	Black Widow
833	Chelsea
834	Hardin and York
835	Ingram, Luther
836	Knack
837	After the Fire
838	Orleans
839	Alberto Y Lost Trios Paranoias
840	Pink Fairies
841	Bristol, Johnny
842	Rare Bird
843	Darts
844	Aztec Two-Step
845	Gibb, Andy
846	Gates, David
847	Heavy Metal Kids
848	Pablo Cruise
849	Stafford, Jim
850	Ruffin, Jimmy
851	Taylor, R Dean
852	Welch, Bob
853	Woolley, Shep
854	Young, John Paul
855	Bedford, David
856	Cold Blood
857	BT Express
858	Williams, Paul
859	Gallagher and Lyle
860	Glitter, Gary
861	Rubettes
862	Ruffin, David
863	New Seekers
864	Quatro, Suzi
865	Sham 69
866	Throbbing Gristle
867	Ram Jam
868	Vicious, Sid
869	Hayward, Justin
870	Klaatu
871	Lee, Arthur
872	Prelude
873	Stardust, Alvin
874	City Boy
875	Elliman, Yvonne
876	Jupp, Mickey
877	Matthews Southern Comfort
878	Rodgers, Clodagh
879	Bolan, Marc
880	Creach, Papa John
881	Hill, Dan
882	Runaways
883	Captain and Tenille
884	Hot Chocolate
885	MFSB
886	Marvin, Brett
887	Lake
888	Boney M
889	Partridge Family
890	Brass Construction
891	Dana
892	Mud
893	Moore, Melba
894	Rabbitt, Eddie
895	Village People
896	Black Oak Arkansas
897	Baker Selection, George
898	Ford, Martyn
899	Friedman, Dean
900	Frijid Pink
901	Hues Corporation
902	Plastic Bertrand
903	Silver Convention
904	Skin Alley
905	Alessi
906	King, Jonathan
907	Love Unlimited
908	Wombles
909	Sailor
910	Redbone
911	Brotherhood of Man
912	Wurzels
913	Atomic Rooster
914	Greenbaum, Norman
915	Budgie
916	Cheech and Chong
917	James, Tommy
918	Young, Jesse Colin
919	Alternative TV
920	Baccara
921	Pappalardi, Felix
922	Savalas, Telly
923	Blackfoot Sue
924	Father Abraham and the Smurfs
925	Garrett, Leif
926	Lieutenant Pigeon
927	Love Unlimited Orchestra
928	Douglas, Carl
929	Flintlock
930	Reeves, Martha
931	Osmond, Little Jimmy
932	Smurfs
933	Wild Cherry

School’s out, and already I am about to crawl out of my skin, because I don’t know what to do with myself.

So I set up a multi-loss (ten, actually) tournament within my CD collection, and then used the results, after running them through a recursive pairwise ranking scheme, to rank my “favorite” CDs. This list is completely off the cuff, and springs out of thousands of snap decisions on my part (along the lines of “Which would I rather hear, Ozric Tentacle’s Strangeitude, or Elton John’s Peachtree Road?” Which is an odd example, because frankly, I don’t care to hear either of those ever again, but maybe you get the idea.)

There are a number of rules; my idea was to generate a list of actual studio albums, so there was a hierarchy of comparisons that were essentially pre-determined; a studio album always beat a live album (unless the live album featured almost exclusively previously unreleased songs, like Neil Young’s Not Fade Away,) which almost always beat an anthology/greatest hits disk by a single artist, which almost always beat a collection by various artists, which almost always beat a Christmas album (inexplicably, we have dozens.)

So, I am thinking about this first shot at ranking as a trial, and might go back later and be more precise in my record-keeping, but I do feel the list is pretty representative of the types of music I most love, which is mainly geeky proggy-rock and the type of music that I sometimes tag as being in the “Beatles tradition.”

As the summer passes, I may try to undertake choosing my favorite 100 recordings of all time (which would be very different, as I don’t have CD copies of many of my favorites.)

Here’s the list

1 The Beatles, Rubber Soul
2 The Beatles, Revolver
3 Bob Dylan, Blood On the Tracks
4 The Beatles, Sgt Peppers
5 The Beatles, Magical Mystery Tour
6 The Rolling Stones, Exile on Main Street
7 Kate Bush, The Dreaming
8 Fleetwood Mac, Tusk
9 Jules Shear, The Great Puzzle
10 King Crimson. Red
11 Cheap Trick, Heaven Tonight
12 Radiohead, OK Computer
13 World Party, Goodbye Jumbo
14 Creedence Clearwater Revival, Cosmo’s Factory
15 Neil Young, Zuma
16 Ben Folds, Rockin the Suburbs
17 Todd Rundgren, Something/Anything Disc
18 Aimee Mann, (Mostly) Music From the Motion Picture Magnolia
19 Matthew Sweet, Girlfriend
20 Kate Bush, Aerial
21 Jellyfish, Bellybutton
22 Camper Van Beethoven, Our Beloved Revolutionary Sweetheart
23 Neil Young, Freedom
24 XTC, Skylarking
25 Richard Thompson, Rumor and Sigh
26 The Rolling Stones, Let It Bleed
27 Pink Floyd, Dark Side of the Moon
28 The Rolling Stones, Beggers Banquet
29 David Baerwald, Bedtime Stories
30 Everything But the Girl, Walking Wounded
31 Kate Bush, Hounds Of Love
32 XTC, Oranges & Lemons
33 Jethro Tull, Thick as a Brick
34 Lindsay Buckingham, Out of the Cradle
35 Yes, Relayer
36 Elvis Costello, King of America
37 David Bowie, Station to Station
38 The Beatles, Abbey Road
39 Electric Light Orchestra, New World Record
40 Jellyfish, Spilt Milk
41 The Beatles, White Album
42 Mike Oldfield, Tubular Bells
43 Yes, Tales From Topographic Oceans
44 Frank Zappa, Apostrophe
45 Todd Rundgren, A Wizard A True Star
46 John Hiatt, Stolen Moments
47 Fountains of Wayne, Welcome Interstate Managers
48 Yes, Big Generator
49 Ben Folds, Unauthorized Biography of Reinhold Messner
50 Rheostatics, Introducing Happiness
51 Dixie Dregs, What If
52 John McLaughlin, Johnny McLaughlin Electric Guitarist
53 Neil Young, Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere
54 My Morning Jacket, It Still Moves
55 John Hiatt, Bring the Family
56 John Eddie, Who the Hell Is John Eddie
57 King Crimson, VROOM
58 Bob Dylan, Modern Times
59 Ben Folds, Whatever and Ever Amen
60 Laura Veirs, Year of Meteors
61 Frank Zappa, One Size Fits All
62 Neko Case, Fox Confessor Brings the Flood
63 Genesis, Lamb Lies Down on Broadway
64 Elton John, Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy
65 Alice Cooper, Killer
66 Neil Young, Sleeps with Angels
67 Crowded House, Woodface
68 John Hiatt, Slow Turning
69 The Beatles, Let It Be
70 Peter Gabriel, Us
71 U2, Achtung Baby
72 Sting, The Soul Cages
73 Bob Dylan, Time Out Of Mind
74 Porcupine Tree, In Absentia
75 Weather Report, Heavy Weather
76 Eric Johnson, Venus Isle
77 Beach Boys, Pet Sounds
78 Frank Zappa, Hot Rats
79 King Crimson, Happy with What You Have to be Happy With
80 King Crimson, THRAK
81 King Crimson, Three of a Perfect Pair
82 King’s X, Gretchen Goes to Nebraska
83 Kate Bush, The Sensual World
84 Rush, Roll the Bones
85 U2, The Joshua Tree
86 The Travelin Wilbury’s, Volume 1
87 Built To Spill, You In Reverse
88 New Radicals, Maybe You’ve Been Brainwashed Too
89 Tom Petty, Into the Great Wide Open
90 The Anniversary, Your Majesty
91 Sarah McLachlan, Fumbling Towards Ecstasy
92 Wondermints, Bali
93 Jason Falkner, Can You Still Feel
94 Chris Thile, Not All Who Wander Are Lost
95 Tim Finn, Tim Finn
96 King’s X, Faith Hope Love
97 Wilco, Being There
98 Jimi Hendrix, Band of Gypsys
99 Tim Finn, Before & After
100 Jen Trynin, Cockamamie

Apologies for any formatting problems.

I wrote a blog post last year about my attempt to classify the 100 greatest artists of the 21st century. You can review the criteria here

http://gaughin.edublogs.org/2006/12/09/reading-the-musical-zeitgeist/

I am going to try to update that list every year in December. Here’s the updated list from 1 through 100, along with each artist’s position on the chart from last year.

Apologies in advance to “The Kid.”

1-Tom Waits-1

2-Iron and Wine-7

3-Spoon-9

4-The White Stripes-5

5-David Holmes-2

6-Super Furry Animals-3

7-Low-14

8-Radiohead-40

9-Lambchop-4

10-Sleater-Kinney-6

11-LCD Soundsystem-new

12-Ghostface Killah-49

13-Sufjan Stevens-8

14-Outkast-10

15-Basement Jaxx-11

16-The New Pornographers-13

17-Dizzee Rascal-26

18-Of Montreal-37

19-Wilco-16

20-Elliott Smith-61

21-Bob Dylan-15

22-The Streets-17

23-PJ Harvey-82

24-Mogwai-18

25-Ron Sexsmith-19

26-Arab Strap-20

27-Sigur Ros-29

28-Drive-By Truckers-22

29-My Morning Jacket-21

30-Kanye West-41

31-Missy Elliott-24

32-Four Tet-25

33-Bruce Springsteen-23

34-Blur-27

35-Boards of Canada-28

36-Bjork-47

37-The Decemberists-32

38-The Hold Steady-30

39-Bonnie Prince Billy-33

40-The Arcade Fire-new

41-Talking Heads-35

42-Blood Brothers-36

43-Devandra Banhart-31

44-MIA-new

45-Animal Collective-81

46-Neko Case-39

47-Les Savy Fav-new

48-J Dilla-12

49-The National-new

50-Nas-99

51-Elbow-45

52-The Flaming Lips-42

53-The Go-Betweens-44

54-Wire-43

55-Broadcast-46

56-Nick Cave-48

57-Bill Frisell-50

58-Cat Power-53

59-NERD-51

60-Oneida-52

61-The Clash-54

62-Jay-Z-new

63-OOIOO-55

64-The Pernice Brothers-57

65-Queens Of the Stone Age-84

66-The Roots-56

67-The Mendoza Line-new

68-Smog-58

69-System of a Down-59

70-Books-62

71-Franz Ferdinand-60

72-Built To Spill-65

73-Hayden-64

74-M Ward-63

75-David Kilgour-66

76-Lightning Bolt-68

77-Los Lobos-69

78-Candi Staton-70

79-TV On the Radio-67

80-The Clientele-new

81-Ted Leo-new

82-Stephen Malkmus-71

83-Richard Thompson-new

84-Xiu Xiu-72

85-Lucinda Williams-38

86-Led Zeppelin-74

87-Loretta Lynn-73

88-Vince Gill-75

89-Junior Boys-76

90-Nick Lowe-new

91-Okkervil River-new

92-Solomon Burke-77

93-Damien Jurado-78

94-Steve Earle-88

95-Dungen-new

96-Richard Hawley-79

97-Hood-83

98-The Magnetic Fields-80

99-The Shins-new

100-Broken Social Scene-86

Of course, with so many new adds to the list, the same number of bands/artists must have fallen out. Those are Akron/Family (fallen to 112), Joseph Arthur (130), The Bad Plus (123), Beulah (104), Califone (109), The Constantines (106), Destroyer (107), Matmos (101), Mission of Burma (120), Mr Lif (108), Josh Rouse (103), Saint Etienne (114), The Strokes (111), and Ali Farka Toure (115).

Better luck in 2008, artists struggling to be significant!!!

The National Association of Recording Merchandisers (NARM) has published a list they describe as “The Definitive 200 is a list of 200 ranked albums that every music lover should own, celebrating classic recordings by favorite iconic and contemporary artists.”

You can see that list here. The list is not as bad as I would have feared (given the group that produced it, I am amazed that there’s no Black-Eyed Peas disc in the top 10,) although it does have its crazy moments. For me, the worst picks are the ones that are clearly there solely because they sold a kazillion copies. I don’t think anything by Shania Twain, Alanis Morrissette, Whitney Houston, 50 Cent, Jewel, Linkin Park, Nelly, Creed, Celine Dion, Kenny G, Mariah Carey, Destiny’s Child, Shakira, Live, or even my beloved-in-middle-school Grand Funk Railroad are going to be fondly remembered 40 years from now.

You have to expect those overly commercial indulgences, though, from a list put together by a trade association whose stated purpose is to increase revenues. They are going to push what’s popular to the extent that they can. And what’s junk to me is gold to my neighbor; she’s probably mortified that Bob Dylan or Neil Young made the list at all.

Lists get me going, so I thought I would put together my own, along the same lines. Here’s a quick list I threw together; 200 artists I like, along with my gut reaction to the question “Which of this artist’s discs is your favorite?” You’ll notice a strong leaning towards prog-rock. I am unapologetic about it. They are in goofy alphabetical order that will drive any librarians who happen to be reading crazy. (I also refuse to alphabetize McLaughlin before Mandel.) I almost can’t stop myself from wasting 2 hours looking them all up for release date so I can relist them chronologically by order of release. It’s a sickness. It’s probably inevitable, like an itch that must be scratched. And scratched. And scratched again. And then must be washed 50 times, with all the bubbles washed from the soap and it lying perfectly aligned in that soap tray next to the sink. Ooh, what’s that ick in that tray? Now it must be washed. What were we talking about?

ABC-Lexicon of Love

Adrian Belew-Young Lions

Aerosmith-Rocks

Air -Talkie Walkie

Allman Brothers Band-At Fillmore West

Average White Band-Soul Searching

Ayreon-Universal Migrator

B-52’s-B-52’s

Badly Drawn Boy-Hour Of the Bewilderbeast

Band-Stage Fright

Beach Boys-Surf’s Up

Beatles-Revolver

Beck-Midnite Vultures

Belle and Sebastian-Dear Catastrophe Waitress

Ben Folds-Unauthorized Biography of Reinhold Messner

Billy Joel-Nylon Curtain

Bjork-Debut

Black Sabbath-Master of Reality

Blue Oyster Cult-Agents of Fortune

Blur-Think Tank

Bob Dylan-Blood On the Tracks

Brian Eno and David Byrne-My Life In the Bush of Ghosts

Broken Social Scene -You Forgot It In People

Bruce Cockburn-Humans

Bruce Springsteen-Darkness On the Edge of Town

Buddy Miles-Them Changes

Call-Let the Day Begin

Can-Future Days

Charles Mingus-Changes One

Cheap Trick-Heaven Tonight

Clash-London Calling

Coldplay-Rush Of Blood To the Head

Creedence Clearwater Revival-Cosmo’s Factory

Crowded House-Together Alone

Damien Rice-O

Dave Matthews-Drive

David Bowie-Station To Station

Deep Purple-Burn

Devo-Q: Are We Not Men?

Dire Straits-Making Movies

Doves-Last Broadcast

Dream Theater-Awake

Drive By Truckers-Pizza Deliverance

Elbow-Cast of Thousands

Elton John-Goodbye Yellow Brick Road

Elvis Costello-King of America

Emerson Lake and Palmer-Brain Salad Surgery

Faces-Nod is as Good as a Wink to a Blind Horse

Flaming Lips-Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots

Fleetwood Mac-Tusk

Flower Kings-Rainmaker

Frank Zappa-Overnite Sensation

French Frith Kaiser Thompson-Invisible Means

Genesis-Selling England By the Pound

Gentle Giant-Free Hand

George Harrison-All Things Must Pass

Gillian Welch-Time the Revelator

Graham Parker-Squeezing Out Sparks

Gran Torino-Two

Grateful Dead-American Beauty

Herbie Hancock-Maiden Voyage

Jackson Browne-Pretender

Jeff Beck-Wired

Jellyfish-Spilt Milk

Jethro Tull-Minstrel In the Gallary

Jimi Hendrix-Band of Gypsies

Joe Jackson-Night and Day

Joe Satriani-Surfing With the Alien

John Hiatt-Slow Turning

John McLaughlin-Electric Guitarist

Johnny Cash-American III: Solitary Man

Joni Mitchell-Hejira

Jules Shear-Great Puzzle

Julian Cope-Peggy Suicide

Kate Bush-Hounds Of Love

Kate Campbell-Moonpie Dreams

Keith Jarrett-Koln Concert

King Crimson-Red

King’s X-Gretchen Goes to Nebraska

Lambchop-…is a Woman

La’s-La’s

Laura Nyro-New York Tendaberry

Laurie Anderson-Big Science

Led Zeppelin-Physical Graffiti

Lenny Kravitz-Let Love Rule

Liquid Tension Experiment-Liquid Tension Experiment

Little Feat-Time Loves a Hero

Living Colour-Vivid

Loreena McKennitt-Mask and Mirror

Los Lobos-How Will the Wolf Survive

Lou Reed-New York

Lucinda Williams-Car Wheels on a Gravel Road

Lyle Lovett-Joshua Judges Ruth

Lynyrd Skynyrd-Pronounced

Magnetic Fields-69 Love Songs

Mahavishnu Orchestra-Birds of Fire

Mars Volta-De-Loused In the Comatorium

Massive Attack-Mezzanine

Matthew Sweet-Girlfriend

Midnight Oil-Diesel and Dust

Mike Oldfield-Tubular Bells

Miles Davis-Bitches Brew

Mott the Hoople-Mott

My Morning Jacket-It Still Moves

Neil Young-Freedom

Nick Cave-Nocturama

Nick Drake-Bryter Layter

Nilsson-Nilsson Schmilsson

Nine Inch Nails-Fragile (The)

Nobukazu Takemura-10th

Notwist-Neon Golden

Odds-Good Weird Feeling

Oho-Ecce Oho

Orbital-In Sides

Ozric Tentacles-Arborescence

Pat Metheny-As Falls Wichita So Falls Wichita Falls

Patti Smith-Horses

Paul McCartney-Wild Life

Paul Simon-Hearts and Bones

Peter Gabriel-Peter Gabriel (the one with Games Without Frontiers)

Phil Collins-Face Value

Phish-Rift

Pink Floyd-Animals

Pixies-Bossanova

PJ Harvey-Stories Of the City, Stories Of the Sea

Police-Synchronicity

Polyphonic Spree-Beginning Stages of

Porcupine Tree-In Absentia

Prefab Sprout-From Langely Park To Memphis

Pretenders-Pretenders

Prince-Sign Of the Times

Pulp-This Is Hardcore

Queens Of the Stone Age-Songs for the Deaf

Queen-Sheer Heart Attack

Radiohead-OK Computer

Randy Newman-Good Old Boys

Ray Charles-Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music

Ray LaMontagne-Trouble

REM-Automatic For the People

Return To Forever-Romantic Warrior

Rheostatics-Whale Music

Richard Thompson-Hand of Kindness

Rick Wakeman-Six Wives of Henry the Eighth

Rickie Lee Jones-Magazine

Robbie Robertson-Storyville

Robert Fripp-God Save the Queen

Robert Wyatt-Dondestan

Robyn Hitchcock-Globe of Frogs

Rod Stewart-Every Picture Tells a Story

Rolling Stones-Sticky Fingers

Roxy Music-Avalon

Rush-Moving Pictures

Ry Cooder-Bop Til You Drop

Ryan Adams-Gold

Santana-Caravanserai

Sarah McLachlan-Fumbling Towards Ecstasy

Scott Walker-Drift

Shawn Colvin-Fat City

Sigur Ros-Tak

Skinny Puppy-Too Dark Park

Sly and the Family Stone-There’s a Riot Going On

Soft Machine-Third

Sonic Youth-Daydream Nation

Spock’s Beard-V

Steely Dan-Katy Lied

Stereolab-Dots and Loops

Steve Earle-Transcendental Blues

Steve Tibbetts-Yr

Stevie Wonder-Songs In the Key Of Life

Sting-Soul Cages

Strawbs-Hero and Heroine

Sufjan Stevens-Illinoise

T Rex-Slider

Talking Heads-Remain in Light

Tears For Fears-Songs From the Big Chair

Thelonius Monk-5 by Monk by 5

Todd Rundgren-Wizard, a True Star

Tom Petty-Hard Promises

Tom Waits-Frank’s Wild Years

Tony Levin-Pieces Of the Sun

Tori Amos-Under the Pink

Traffic-Low Spark of High-Heeled Boys

Transatlantic-Bridge Across Forever

U2-Unforgettable Fire

Van Morrison-Common One

Velvet Underground-Velvet Underground and Nico

Vince Gill-These Days

Warren Zevon-Bad Luck Streak in Dancing School

Was Not Was-What Up Dog

Weather Report-Heavy Weather

Weezer-(Green Album)

Whiskeytown-Faithless Street

White Stripes-Elephant

Who-Who’s Next

Wilco-Being There

World Party-Goodbye Jumbo

XTC-Oranges and Lemons

Yanni-Port of Mystery

Yes-Close To the Edge

ZZ Topp-Tres Hombres

A part of me thought about taking Yanni off of the list, but hey, I took my Mom to see him once for Mother’s Day, and I enjoyed it. Sue me.

I would be interested in seeing other similar massive lists for any of you individuals inclined to share one.  I think that seeing the breadth of what gives people pleasure tells you a lot about a person. Now I have to go brush my teeth a few times.

If you look at any list of the “greatest musical artists of all time”, it’s understandably dominated by familiar names; The Beatles, Louis Armstrong, Frank Sinatra, The Rolling Stones, etc..

That’s all well and good, and those artists are deserving of the praise they receive, but it’s a shame that there’s no room in that rarefied company for current musical artists to push past these giants and establish themselves as “new classics”. The turn of the new century seems to provide just such an opportunity, so I have attempted to establish a list of the greatest recording artists of the 21st century.

I read and collect music reviews from a variety of sources. This gives me an average rating for each of the albums I have assessed. Years ago I developed a technique (it’s a simple enough method that it’s certainly not original to me, but I did develop it independently) to rank artists according to collections of reviews.

That’s essentially the foundation for the list that follows. I have assigned a master rating for artists who have released records since the year 2000. This is based strictly on the quality of recordings, and is not an attempt to classify “best musicians” on the basis of “most talented”. I am absolutely unqualified to judge skill-level for all instruments with the possible exception of guitar and bass, and probably for those too. It’s simply an attempt to rank recording artists on the strengths of their released recordings.

Straight re-releases are not included in this calculation, but expanded re-releases are, which explains the presence of Talking Heads and The Clash, even though those artists are not likely to produce any more new music later in the 21st century. Likewise, discs made up exclusively of previously unreleased material do get treated like “new” discs, which is how Led Zeppelin snuck in (on the strength of the absolutely perfect How the West Was Won live set, which almost universally scored the highest rating possible from multiple reviewers.)

This list is limited to musicians that work within a “pop” framework. Classical and most jazz artists are excluded, not because they deserve less consideration, but mainly because reviewers of those branches of music are generally disdainful of the music I find more personally enjoyable, and jazz artists rarely (and classical artists never) appear in the sites and magazines I frequent. I am not trying to save the world, just reporting on my part of it.

104 The Handsome Family 103 Comets On Fire 102 The Fall 101 Ted
Leo

100 Mission of Burma 99 Nas 98 Saint Etienne 97 Ali Farka Toure
96 Califone 95 The Strokes 94 Mr Lif 93 Destroyer 92 Beulah
91 Constantines

90 The Bad Plus 89 Josh Rouse 88 Steve Earle 87 Matmos 86
Broken Social Scene 85 Akron/Family 84 Queens Of the Stone Age
83 Hood 82 PJ Harvey 81 Animal Collective

80 Magnetic Fields 79 Richard Hawley 78 Damien Jurado 77
Solomon Burke 76 Junior Boys 75 Vince Gill 74 Led Zeppelin 73
Loretta Lynn 72 Xiu Xiu 71 Stephen Malkmus

70 Candi Staton 69 Los Lobos 68 Lightning Bolt 67 TV On the
Radio 66 David Kilgour 65 Built To Spill 64 Hayden 63 M Ward
62 Books 61 Elliott Smith

60 Franz Ferdinand 59 System of a Down 58 Smog 57 The Pernice
Brothers 56 The Roots 55 OOIOO 54 The Clash 53 Cat Power 52
Oneida 51 NERD

50 Bill Frisell 49 Ghostface Killah 48 Nick Cave 47 Bjork 46
Broadcast 45 Elbow 44 The Go-Betweens 43 Wire 42 The Flaming
Lips 41 Kanye West

40 Radiohead 39 Neko Case 38 Lucinda Williams 37 Of Montreal
36 Blood Brothers 35 Talking Heads 34 Joseph Arthur 33 Bonnie
Prince Billy 32 The Decemberists 31 Devandra Banhart

30 The Hold Steady 29 Sigur Ros 28 Boards of Canada 27 Blur
26 Dizzee Rascal 25 Four Tet 24 Missy Elliott 23 Bruce
Springsteen 22 Drive-By Truckers 21 My Morning Jacket

20 Arab Strap 19 Ron Sexsmith 18 Mogwai 17 The Streets 16
Wilco 15 Bob Dylan 14 Low 13 The New Pornographers 12 J Dilla
11 Basement Jaxx

10 Outkast 9 Spoon 8 Sufjan Stevens 7 Iron and Wine 6
Sleater-Kinney 5 The White Stripes 4 Lambchop 3 Super Furry
Animals 2 David Holmes 1 Tom Waits