'An Innocent Man' is awesome. The Longest Time, Tell Her About It, Uptown Girl, Leave a Tender Moment Alone, Keeping The Faith. Great pop music. As for the three later ones (The Bridge, Stormfront, River of Dreams) all have their moments. 'A Matter of Trust' is probably the most convincing rocker he ever recorded.



And that song was written specifically for the compilation. The Night is Still Young is great too.



He hasn't released any pop music since breaking up with her. GH V1 &2 left out some of his best songs (Summer, Highland Falls, Everybody Loves You Now, All For Leyna, Laura...)

Yeah, I should probably get that GH again.

I don't think it's as terrible as some people make it out to be ("LOL UPTOWN GIRL BILLY JOEL DOO WOP"), but I'm not a big fan of An Innocent Man. I actually like "The Longest Time" and I get what he was going for with that record - I just don't like a lot of it. You're right about "A Matter of Trust" but most of those last 3 albums just aren't worth having. I keep hoping the guy will make some kind of comeback. It seems implausible, but Rick Rubin brought back Johnny Cash and Neil Diamond from being has-been jokes. It can be done. (And Rick Rubin doesn't even have to be involved.)

Joel is still hugely popular, selling out stadiums. 'River of Dreams' was hugely popular. He went out on top. I still hear his hits on the radio fairly frequently.

Educated, No
Stupid, Yes
And When I Say Stupid I Mean Stupid Fresh

#115.




Beastie Boys (395 Points, 13 Votes)

Years Active: 1979-present

All Music Biography: As the first white rap group of any importance, the Beastie Boys received the scorn of critics and strident hip-hop musicians, who accused them of cultural pirating, especially since they began as a hardcore punk group in 1981. But the Beasties weren't pirating -- they treated rap as part of a post-punk musical underground, where the do-it-yourself aesthetics of hip-hop and punk weren't that far apart. Of course, the exaggerated b-boy and frat-boy parodies of their unexpected hit debut album, Licensed to Ill, didn't help their cause. For much of the mid-'80s, the Beastie Boys were considered as macho clowns, and while their ambitious, Dust Brothers-produced second album, Paul's Boutique, dismissed that theory, it was ignored by both the public and the press at the time. In retrospect, it was one of the first albums to predict the genre-bending, self-referential pop kaleidoscope of '90s pop. The Beasties refined their eclectic approach with 1992's Check Your Head, where they played their own instruments. Check Your Head brought the Beasties back to the top of the charts, and within a few years, they were considered one of the most influential and ambitious groups of the '90s, cultivating a musical community not only through their music, but with their record label, Grand Royal, and their magazine of the same name.

It was remarkable turn of events for a group that demonstrated no significant musical talent on their first records. All three members of the Beastie Boys -- Mike D (born Mike Diamond, November 20, 1966), MCA (born Adam Yauch, August 5, 1965), and Ad-Rock (born Adam Horovitz, October 31, 1967) -- came from wealthy middle-class Jewish families in New York and had become involved in the city's punk underground when they were teenagers in the early '80s. Diamond and Yauch formed the Beastie Boys with drummer Kate Schellenbach and guitarist John Berry in 1981, and the group began playing underground clubs around New York. The following year, the Beasties released the 7" EP Pollywog Stew on the indie Rat Cage to little attention. That year, the band met Horovitz, who had formed the hardcore group the Young and the Useless. By early 1983, Schellenbach and Berry had left the group -- they would later join Luscious Jackson and Thwig, respectively -- and Horovitz had joined the Beasties. The revamped group released the rap record "Cookie Puss" as a 12" single later in 1983. Based on a prank phone call the group made to Carvel Ice Cream, the single became an underground hit in New York. By early 1984, however, they had abandoned punk and turned their attention to rap.

In 1984, the Beasties joined forces with producer Rick Rubin, a heavy metal and hip-hop fan who had recently founded Def Jam Records with fellow New York University student Russell Simmons. Def Jam officially signed the Beastie Boys in 1985, and that year they had a hit single from the soundtrack to Krush Groove with "She's on It," a rap track that sampled AC/DC's "Back in Black" and suggested the approach of the group's forthcoming debut album. The Beasties received their first significant national exposure later in 1985, when they opened for Madonna on her Virgin Tour. The trio taunted the audience with profanity and were generally poorly received. One other major tour, as the openers for Run-D.M.C.'s ill-fated Raisin' Hell trek, followed before Licensed to Ill was released late in 1986. An amalgam of street beats, metal riffs, b-boy jokes, and satire, Licensed to Ill was interpreted as a mindless, obnoxious party record by many critics and conservative action groups, but that didn't stop the album from becoming the fastest-selling debut in Columbia Records' history, moving over 750,000 copies in its first six weeks. Much of that success was due to the single "Fight for Your Right (To Party)," which became a massive crossover success. In fact, Licensed to Ill became the biggest-selling rap album of the '80s, which generated much criticism from certain hip-hop fans who believed that the Beasties were merely cultural pirates. On the other side of the coin, the group was being attacked from the right, who claimed their lyrics were violent and sexist and that their concerts -- which featured female audience members dancing in go-go cages and a giant inflatable penis, similar to what the Stones used in their mid-'70s concerts -- caused even more outrage. Throughout their 1987 tour, they were plagued with arrests and lawsuits, and were accused of inciting crime.

While much of the Beasties' exaggeratedly obnoxious behavior started out as a joke, it became a self-parody by the end of 1987, so it wasn't a surprise that the group decided to revamp their sound and image during the next two years. During 1988, they became involved in a bitter lawsuit with Def Jam and Rick Rubin, who claimed he was responsible for the group's success and threatened to release outtakes as their second album. The group finally broke away by the end of the year and relocated to California, where they signed with Capitol Records. While in California, they met the production team the Dust Brothers, and they convinced the duo to use their prospective debut album as the basis for the Beasties' second album, Paul's Boutique. Densely layered with interweaving samples and pop culture references, the retro-funk-psychedelia of Paul's Boutique was entirely different than Licensed to Ill, and many observers weren't quite sure what to make of it. Several publications gave it rave reviews, but when it failed to produce a single bigger than the number 36 "Hey Ladies," it was quickly forgotten about.

Despite its poor commercial performance, Paul's Boutique gained a cult following, and its cut-and-paste sample techniques would later be hailed as visionary, especially after the Dust Brothers altered the approach for Beck's acclaimed 1996 album, Odelay. Still, the record was declared a disaster in the early '90s, but that didn't prevent the Beasties from building their own studio and founding their own record label, Grand Royal, for their next record, Check Your Head. Alternating between old-school hip-hop, raw amateurish funk, and hardcore punk, Check Your Head was a less accomplished than Paul's Boutique, yet it was just as diverse. Furthermore, the burgeoning cult around the Beasties made the album a surprise Top 10 hit upon its spring 1992 release. "Jimmy James," "Pass the Mic," and "So Whatcha Want" were bigger hits on college and alternative rock radio than they were on rap radio, and the group suddenly became hip again. Early in 1994, they collected their early punk recordings on the compilation Some Old Bullshit, which was followed in June by their fourth album, Ill Communication. Essentially an extension of Check Your Head, the record debuted at number one upon its release, and the singles "Sabotage" and "Sure Shot" helped send it to double-platinum status. During the summer of 1994, they co-headlined the fourth Lollapalooza festival with the Smashing Pumpkins. That same year, Grand Royal became a full-fledged record label as it released Luscious Jackson's acclaimed debut album, Natural Ingredients. The Beasties' Grand Royal magazine was also launched that year.

Over the next few years, the Beasties remained quiet as they concentrated on political causes and their record label. In 1996, they released the hardcore EP Aglio e Olio and the instrumental soul-jazz and funk collection The in Sound from Way Out! Also that year, Adam Yauch organized a two-day festival to raise awareness and money about Tibet's plight against the Chinese government; the festival went on to become an annual event. The Beastie Boys' long-awaited fifth LP, Hello Nasty, finally appeared during the summer of 1998, and became their third career chart-topper. A longer wait preceded release of their next album, To the 5 Boroughs, which appeared in mid-2004. In 2005, Capitol issued Solid Gold Hits, a 15-track survey of the Beasties' lengthy career. In 2006, the band released theatrically the concert film Awesome: I Fuckin' Shot That! The film was pieced together from footage shot by 50 DV and Hi-8 cameras that were distributed to fans with little more instruction than to keep shooting. The DVD version appeared in July of that year. In 2007 they released the all-instrumental album The Mix Up.

All Music Album Pick: Paul's Boutique

SOMBies Say:

"50 year old white rappers don't usually sound very good." - Montana

"You know what, To the 5 Boroughs was weak compared to the rest of their catalogue and it wasn't that good, but it's hardly the embarrassing disaster some of you are making it out to be." - UselessRocker

"Paul's Boutique is my favorite, with Check Your Head right behind it. Ill Communication is the most overrated, and Hello Nasty seems rather overlooked. Hello Nasty was their last really progressive album. It's hard to imagine anything but Pauls Boutique winning a popularity contest." - Very Metal

Ranked Highest By: worrywort, Sam(#10)

/\/\/\/\/\__Criterion caliber

It's A Long Way To Heaven
It's A Short Way To Hell

#114.




Uncle Tupelo (399 Points, 8 Votes)

Years Active: 1987-1994

All Music Biography: With the release of their 1990 debut LP, No Depression, the Belleville, IL, trio Uncle Tupelo launched more than simply their own career -- by fusing the simplicity and honesty of country music with the bracing fury of punk, they kick-started a revolution which reverberated throughout the American underground. Thanks to a successful online site and subsequent fanzine which adopted the album's name, the tag "No Depression" became a catch-all for the like-minded artists who, along with Tupelo, signalled alternative rock's return to its country roots -- at much the same time, ironically enough, that Nashville was itself embracing the slick gloss associated with mainstream rock and pop.

Uncle Tupelo was led by singers/songwriters Jay Farrar and Jeff Tweedy, lifelong friends born in the same Belleville hospital in 1967. During high school, the pair formed a punk cover band called the Primitives along with drummer Mike Heidorn and Farrar's older brother Wade. After Wade enlisted in the Army, the Primitives broke up, but in 1987, the remaining trio reunited, changed their name to Uncle Tupelo, and began incorporating elements of country into their music as well as writing original material. Touring constantly throughout the Midwest, the bandmembers eventually quit school as their music became more and more successful, and in 1989 they signed a contract with the small independent label Rockville.

Taking its name from the A.P. Carter gospel song covered therein, No Depression reflected the band's disparate influences, ranging from everyone from Hank Williams to bluesman Leadbelly through to the famed post-punk trio Hüsker Dü. The most rock-centric of Uncle Tupelo's releases, its songs were meditations on small-town, small-time life, candid snapshots of days spent working thankless jobs and nights spent in an alcoholic fog. After the release of "I Got Drunk," a brilliant single backed with a cover of the Flying Burrito Brothers' "Sin City," 1991's Still Feel Gone struck a finer balance between their rock and country aims. While Farrar's contributions -- sung in his reedy, Neil Young-like voice -- were often informed by a rootsy, scorched-earth mentality, Tweedy's, with their grittier vocals, delved deeper into the trio's punk origins, as typified by the song "D. Boon," a tribute to the late frontman of the legendary Minutemen.

A year later, Uncle Tupelo released March 16-20, 1992, an acoustic record which saw the group plunging fully into country and folk. Recorded live in the studio with producer Peter Buck (of the band R.E.M.), the album drew heavily on painstakingly authentic covers of standards like "Moonshiner" and "Satan, Your Kingdom Must Come Down" along with a fitting rendition of the Louvin Brothers' "The Great Atomic Power" and Farrar's and Tweedy's originals, which maintained the record's spare, haunting ambience. Shortly after its release, Heidorn left the group to devote time to his family and was replaced by drummer Ken Coomer, formerly of the group Clockhammer. Multi-instrumentalists Max Johnston and John Stirratt also signed on as part-time members.

In 1992, Uncle Tupelo signed to major label Sire/Reprise and in 1993 issued the LP Anodyne. Widely regarded as the group's definitive statement, it was a true country-rock hybrid which accented the power of both musical forms; the album even featured a cover of the song "Give Back the Key to My Heart" sung with its writer, roots rock pioneer Doug Sahm. After a tour in support of the album, however, the long-standing relationship between Farrar and Tweedy dissolved in bitter acrimony, and Uncle Tupelo disbanded; shortly thereafter, Tweedy recruited Coomer, Johnston, and Stirratt to form the band Wilco, while Farrar reunited with Heidorn in Son Volt.

All Music Album Pick: 89/93: An Anthology

SOMBies Say:

"Uncle Tupelo, the greatest band the midwest has ever produced" - Rocks And Blows

"Just absolutely awesome road trip music meant for the big outside." - Montana

Ranked Highest By: Mike Schank (#2)

Oh You're In My Blood Like Holy Wine
You Taste So Bitter And So Sweet

#113.




Joni Mitchell (402 Points, 8 Votes)

Years Active: 1964-present

All Music Biography: When the dust settles, Joni Mitchell may stand as the most important and influential female recording artist of the late 20th century. Uncompromising and iconoclastic, Mitchell confounded expectations at every turn; restlessly innovative, her music evolved from deeply personal folk stylings into pop, jazz, avant-garde, and even world music, presaging the multicultural experimentation of the 1980s and 1990s by over a decade. Fiercely independent, her work steadfastly resisted the whims of both mainstream audiences and the male-dominated recording industry. While Mitchell's records never sold in the same numbers enjoyed by contemporaries like Carole King, Janis Joplin, or Aretha Franklin, none experimented so recklessly with their artistic identities or so bravely explored territory outside of the accepted confines of pop music, resulting in a creative legacy which paved the way for performers ranging from Patti Smith and Chrissie Hynde to Madonna and Courtney Love.

Born Roberta Joan Anderson in Fort McLeod, Alberta, Canada, on November 7, 1943, she was stricken with polio at the age of nine; while recovering in a children's hospital, she began her performing career by singing to the other patients. After later teaching herself to play guitar with the aid of a Pete Seeger instruction book, she went off to art college, and became a fixture on the folk music scene around Alberta. After relocating to Toronto, she married folksinger Chuck Mitchell in 1965, and began performing under the name Joni Mitchell.

A year later the couple moved to Detroit, MI, but separated soon after; Joni remained in the Motor City, however, and won significant press acclaim for her burgeoning songwriting skills and smoky, distinctive vocals, leading to a string of high-profile performances in New York City. There she became a cause célèbre among the media and other performers; after she signed to Reprise in 1967, David Crosby offered to produce her debut record, a self-titled acoustic effort that appeared the following year. Her songs also found great success with other singers: in 1968, Judy Collins scored a major hit with the Mitchell-penned "Both Sides Now," while Fairport Convention covered "Eastern Rain" and Tom Rush recorded "The Circle Game."

Thanks to all of the outside exposure, Mitchell began to earn a strong cult following; her 1969 sophomore effort, Clouds, reached the Top 40, while 1970's Ladies of the Canyon sold even better on the strength of the single "Big Yellow Taxi." It also included her anthemic composition "Woodstock," a major hit for Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. Still, the commercial and critical approval awarded her landmark 1971 record Blue was unprecedented: a luminous, starkly confessional set written primarily during a European vacation, the album firmly established Mitchell as one of pop music's most remarkable and insightful talents.

Predictably, she turned away from Blue's incandescent folk with 1972's For the Roses, the first of the many major stylistic turns she would take over the course of her daring career. Backed by rock-jazz performer Tom Scott, Mitchell's music began moving into more pop-oriented territory, a change typified by the single "You Turn Me On (I'm a Radio)," her first significant hit. The follow-up, 1974's classic Court and Spark, was her most commercially successful outing: a sparkling, jazz-accented set, it reached the number two spot on the U.S. album charts and launched three hit singles -- "Help Me," "Free Man in Paris," and "Raised on Robbery."

After the 1974 live collection Miles of Aisles, Mitchell emerged in 1975 with The Hissing of Summer Lawns, a bold, almost avant-garde record that housed her increasingly complex songs in experimental, jazz-inspired settings; "The Jungle Line" introduced the rhythms of African Burundi drums, placing her far ahead of the pop world's mid-'80s fascination with world music. 1976's Hejira, recorded with Weather Report bassist Jaco Pastorius, smoothed out the music's more difficult edges while employing minimalist techniques; Mitchell later performed the album's first single, "Coyote," at the Band's Last Waltz concert that Thanksgiving.

Her next effort, 1977's two-record set Don Juan's Reckless Daughter, was another ambitious move, a collection of long, largely improvisational pieces recorded with jazz players Larry Carlton and Wayne Shorter, Chaka Khan, and a battery of Latin percussionists. Shortly after the record's release, Mitchell was contacted by the legendary jazz bassist Charles Mingus, who invited her to work with him on a musical interpretation of T.S. Eliot's Four Quartets. Mingus, who was suffering from Lou Gehrig's disease, sketched out a series of melodies to which Mitchell added lyrics; however, Mingus died on January 5, 1979, before the record was completed. After Mitchell finished their collaboration on her own, she recorded the songs under the title Mingus, which was released the summer after the jazz titan's passing.

Following her second live collection, 1980's Shadows and Light, Mitchell returned to pop territory for 1982's Wild Things Run Fast; the first single, a cover of the Elvis Presley hit "(You're So Square) Baby I Don't Care," became her first chart single in eight years. Shortly after the album's release, she married bassist/sound engineer Larry Klein, who became a frequent collaborator on much of her subsequent material, including 1985's synth-driven Dog Eat Dog, co-produced by Thomas Dolby. Mitchell's move into electronics continued with 1988's Chalk Mark in a Rain Storm, featuring guests Peter Gabriel, Willie Nelson, Tom Petty, and Billy Idol.

Mitchell returned to her roots with 1991's Night Ride Home, a spare, stripped-down collection spotlighting little more than her voice and acoustic guitar. Prior to recording 1994's Turbulent Indigo, she and Klein separated, although he still co-produced the record, which was her most acclaimed work in years. In 1996, she compiled a pair of anthologies, Hits and Misses, which collected her chart successes as well as underappreciated favorites. A new studio album, Taming the Tiger, followed in 1998. Both Sides Now, a collection of standards, followed in early 2000.

Two years later, Mitchell resurfaced with the double-disc release Travelogue. She announced in October 2002 that this would be her last album ever, for she'd grown tired of the industry. She told W magazine that she intended to retire. She also claimed she would never sign another corporate label deal and in Rolling Stone blasted the recording industry for being "a cesspool." By the time Travelogue appeared a month later, Mitchell had simmered down and her plans to call it quits had been axed. Numerous compilations and remasters appeared between 2002 and 2006, culminating in the release of the independent Shine in 2007.

All Music Album Pick: Court and Spark

SOMBies Say:

"Joni is one of my absolute favorite songwriters. The depth of emotional honesty in the lyrics, the songcraft, just hit me somewhere really deep and ineffable. I'm not ashamed to admit that there are a full four Joni songs that make me well up EVERY time I hear them, no matter what." - Vivian Darkbloom

"Every time I listen to her work I shake my head in amazement as to how damn good it is and how much more I enjoy it each time after countless listens." - Trails

"As I've harped ad tedium, I dislike almost all female vocalists and Joni is partly to 'blame' because how could anyone else measure up to her best output--lyrically, vocally, instrumentally? Plus she has mad painting/drawing skills. I had idolized her during my angsty adolescent phase and when she went all Mingus I felt such a sense of betrayal that I couldn't listen to her for the next 20+ years." - Velocity

Ranked Highest By: mike2511, TheGregWitul(#4)

I Never Held Emotion In The Palm Of My Hand Or Felt Sweet Breezes In The Top Of A Tree

#112.




Nick Drake (404 Points, 13 Votes)

Years Active: 1969-1972

All Music Biography: A singular talent who passed almost unnoticed during his brief lifetime, Nick Drake produced several albums of chilling, somber beauty. With hindsight, these have come to be recognized as peak achievements of both the British folk-rock scene and the entire rock singer/songwriter genre. Sometimes compared to Van Morrison, Drake in fact resembled Donovan much more in his breathy vocals, strong melodies, and the acoustic-based orchestral sweep of his arrangements. His was a much darker vision than Donovan's, however, with disturbing themes of melancholy, failed romance, mortality, and depression lurking just beneath, or even well above, the surface. Ironically, Drake has achieved a far greater stature in the decades following his death, with an avid cult following that grows by the year.

Part of Drake's failure to attract a mass audience was attributable to his almost pathological reluctance to perform live. It was at a live show in Cambridge, however, that a member of Fairport Convention saw Drake perform, and recommended the singer to producer Joe Boyd. Boyd, already a linchpin of the British folk-rock scene as the producer for Fairport and the Incredible String Band, asked Drake for a tape, and was impressed enough to give the 20-year-old a contract in 1968.

Drake's debut, Five Leaves Left (1969), was the first in a series of three equally impressive, and quite disparate, albums. With understated folk-rock backing (Pentangle bassist Danny Thompson plays bass on most of the cuts), Drake created a vaguely mysterious, haunting atmosphere, occasionally embellished by tasteful Baroque strings. His economic, even pithy, lyrics hinted at melancholy, yet any thoughts of despair were alleviated by the gorgeous, uplifting melodies and Drake's calm, measured vocals. Bryter Later (1970) was perhaps his most upbeat effort, featuring support from members of Fairport Convention, and traces of jazz in the arrangements. On some cuts, the singer/songwriter, remarkably, dispensed with lyrics altogether, offering only gorgeous, orchestrated instrumental miniatures that stood well on their own.

Neither album sold well, and Drake, already a brooding loner, plunged into serious depression that often found him unable to make music, work, or even walk and talk. He managed to produce one final full-length work, Pink Moon (1972), a desolate solo acoustic album that ranks as one of the most naked and bleak statements in all of rock. He did record a few more songs before his death, but no more albums were completed, although the final sessions (along with some other fine unreleased material) surfaced on the posthumous compilation Time of No Reply.

Drake's final couple of years were marked by increasing psychiatric difficulties, which found him hospitalized at one point for several weeks. He had rarely played live during his days as a recording artist, and at one point declared his intention never to record again, although he wished to continue to write songs for others. (It's been reported that French chanteuse Françoise Hardy recorded some of Drake's songs, but she hasn't released any.) On November 26, 1974, he died in his parents' home from an overdose of antidepressant medication; suicide has been speculated, although some of his family and friends dispute this.

In the manner of the young Romantic poets of the 19th century who died before their time, Drake is revered by many listeners today, with a following that spans generations. Baby boomers who missed him the first time around found much to revisit once they discovered him, and his pensive loneliness speaks directly to contemporary alternative rockers who share his sense of morose alienation.

All Music Album Pick: Five Leaves Left

SOMBies Say:

"Nick Drake is the king of angst. I'm not talking 'my girlfriend left me angst' either." - elementus attacks!

"Nick Drake's guitar work really impresses me, but I don't like much of his stuff outside of Pink Moon and Time of No Reply. I personally don't like his songwriting all that much either, and his voice is rather timid and weak (again that works on Pink Moon though)." - avec

"There's a real soulful vibe (a la Van Morrison) to Nick's music that pulls me in from the get-go." - norton

Ranked Highest By: gwa, Mitchell(#10)

I don't think 'Gun' gets enough props as being one of the most brilliant songs ever written. Fuck it's mind-blowing...

So Won't You Smile For The Camera
I Know I'll Love You Better

#111.




Steely Dan (406 Points, 11 Votes)

Years Active: 1971-1981, 1993-present`

All Music Biography: Most rock & roll bands are a tightly wound unit that developed their music through years of playing in garages and clubs around their hometown. Steely Dan never subscribed to that aesthetic. As the vehicle for the songwriting of Walter Becker and Donald Fagen, Steely Dan defied all rock & roll conventions. Becker and Fagen never truly enjoyed rock -- with their ironic humor and cryptic lyrics, their eclectic body of work shows some debt to Bob Dylan -- preferring jazz, traditional pop, blues, and R&B. Steely Dan created a sophisticated, distinctive sound with accessible melodic hooks, complex harmonies and time signatures, and a devotion to the recording studio. With producer Gary Katz, Becker and Fagen gradually changed Steely Dan from a performing band to a studio project, hiring professional musicians to record their compositions. Though the band didn't perform live after 1974, Steely Dan's popularity continued to grow throughout the decade, as their albums became critical favorites and their singles became staples of AOR and pop radio stations. Even after the group disbanded in the early '80s, their records retained a cult following, as proven by the massive success of their unlikely return to the stage in the early '90s.

Walter Becker (bass) and Donald Fagen (vocals, keyboards) were the core members of Steely Dan throughout its variety of incarnations. The two met at Bard College in New York in 1967 and began playing in bands together shortly afterward. The duo played in a number of groups -- including the Bad Rock Group, which featured future comedic actor Chevy Chase on drums -- which ranged from jazz to progressive rock. Eventually, Becker and Fagen began composing songs together, hoping to become professional songwriters in the tradition of the Brill Building. In 1970, the pair joined Jay & the Americans' backing band, performing under pseudonyms; Becker chose Gustav Mahler, while Fagen used Tristan Fabriani. They stayed with Jay & the Americans until halfway through 1971, when they recorded the soundtrack for the low-budget film You Gotta Walk It Like You Talk It, which was produced by the Americans' Kenny Vance. Following the recording of the soundtrack, Becker and Fagen attempted to start a band with Denny Dias, but the venture was unsuccessful. Barbra Streisand recorded the Fagen/Becker composition ‘I Mean to Shine’ on her album Barbra Joan Streisand, released in August 1971, and the duo met producer Gary Katz, who hired them as staff songwriters for ABC/Dunhill in Los Angeles, where he had just become a staff producer. Katz suggested that Becker and Fagen form a band as a way to record their songs, and Steely Dan -- who took their name from a dildo in William Burroughs' Naked Lunch -- was formed shortly afterward.

Recruiting guitarists Denny Dias and Skunk Baxter, drummer Jim Hodder, and keyboardist/vocalist David Palmer, Becker and Fagen officially formed Steely Dan in 1972, releasing their debut, Can't Buy a Thrill, shortly afterward. Palmer and Fagen shared lead vocals on the album, but the record's two hit singles -- the Top Ten "Do It Again" and "Reeling in the Years" -- were sung by Fagen. Can't Buy a Thrill was a critical and commercial success, but its supporting tour was a disaster, hampered by an under-rehearsed band and unappreciative audiences. Palmer left the band following the tour. Countdown to Ecstasy, released in 1973, was a critical hit, but it failed to generate a hit single, even though the band supported it with a tour.

Steely Dan replaced Hodder with Jeff Porcaro and added keyboardist/backup vocalist Michael McDonald prior to recording their third album, Pretzel Logic. Released in the spring of 1974, Pretzel Logic returned Steely Dan to the Top Ten on the strength of the single "Rikki Don't Lose That Number." After completing the supporting tour for Pretzel Logic, Becker and Fagen decided to retire from live performances and make Steely Dan a studio-based band. For their next album, 1975's Katy Lied, the duo hired a variety of studio musicians -- including Dias, Porcaro, guitarist Elliot Randall, saxophonists Phil Woods, bassist Wilton Felder, percussionist Victor Feldman, keyboardist Michael Omartian, and guitarist Larry Carlton -- as supporting musicians. Katy Lied was another hit, as was 1976's The Royal Scam, which continued in the vein of its predecessor. On 1977's Aja, Steely Dan's sound became more polished and jazzy, as they hired jazz fusion artists like Wayne Shorter, Lee Ritenour, and the Crusaders as support. Aja became their biggest hit, reaching the Top Five within three weeks of release and becoming one of the first albums to be certified platinum. Aja also gained the respect of many jazz musicians, as evidenced by Woody Herman recording an album of Becker/Fagen songs in 1978.

Following the release of Aja, ABC was bought out by MCA Records, resulting in a contractual dispute with the label that delayed until 1980 the release of their follow-up album. During the interim, the group had a hit with the theme song for the film FM in 1978. Steely Dan finally released Gaucho, the follow-up to Aja, in late 1980, and it became another Top Ten hit for the group. During the summer of 1981, Becker and Fagen announced that they were parting ways. The following year, Fagen released his solo debut, The Nightfly, which became a critical and commercial hit.

Fagen didn't record another album until 1993, when he reunited with Becker, who produced Kamakiriad. The album was promoted by the first Steely Dan tour in nearly 20 years, and while the record failed to sell, the concerts were very popular. In 1994, Becker released his solo debut, 11 Tracks of Whack, which was produced by Fagen. The following year, Steely Dan mounted another reunion tour, and in early 2000 the duo issued Two Against Nature, their first new studio album in two decades. It won the Grammy Award for Album of the Year. Steely Dan followed it in 2003 with Everything Must Go. Fagan’s solo album Morph the Cat was released in 2006, and Becker released Circus Money in 2008 as Steely Dan embarked on another tour.

All Music Album Pick: A Decade of Steely Dan

SOMBies Say:

"Steely Dan destroys all comers.

Plus they beat the shit out of the Eagles on Yacht Rock." - Peanut Butter Motherfucker

"Great melodies. Great voice. Great songwriting. One of the best songwriting duos." - Inzane

"Steely Dan think they're so intellectual, writing letters to Luke Wilson amongst other grating examples. It's off-putting. I'll give them Peg and Reelin." - worrywort

Ranked Highest By: TheGregWitul (#5)

#110.




Mogwai (411 Points, 7 Votes, 1 #1 Vote)

Years Active: 1995-present

All Music Biography: The cosmic post-rock band Mogwai was formed in Glasgow, Scotland, in 1996 by guitarist/vocalist Stuart Braithwaite, guitarist Dominic Aitchison, and drummer Martin Bulloch, longtime friends with the goal of creating "serious guitar music." Toward that end they added another guitarist, John Cummings, before debuting in March 1996 with the single "Tuner," a rarity in the Mogwai discography for its prominent vocals; the follow-up, a split single with Dweeb titled "Angels vs. Aliens," landed in the Top Ten on the British indie charts. Following appearances on a series of compilations, Mogwai returned later in the year with the 7" "Summer"; after another early 1997 single, "New Paths to Helicon," they issued Ten Rapid, a collection of their earliest material.

Around the time of recording the superb 1997 EP 4 Satin, former Teenage Fanclub and Telstar Ponies member Brendan O'Hare joined the lineup in time to record Mogwai's debut studio LP, Mogwai Young Team, exiting a short time later to return to his primary projects, Macrocosmica and Fiend. Again a quartet, Mogwai next issued 1998's Kicking a Dead Pig, a two-disc remix collection; the No Education = No Future (Fuck the Curfew) EP appeared a few months later. In 1999, they released Come On Die Young. Rock Action arrived in early 2001. Late that year, Mogwai released the My Father, My King EP; two years later, they issued the ironically titled Happy Songs for Happy People. Government Commissions: BBC Sessions 1996-2004 arrived early in 2005. Mr. Beast, which was released in 2006, found the band going in a softer, more reflective direction. Late that year, the band's collaboration with Clint Mansell on the soundtrack to The Fountainhead arrived; Mogwai also crafted the score for Douglas Gordon's Zidane: A 21st Century Portrait, which was released in the U.K. in 2006 and in the U.S. the following spring. The Batcat EP, which featured a collaboration with garage-psych legend Roky Erickson, arrived in late summer 2008, heralding the release of The Hawk Is Howling that fall.

All Music Album Pick: Young Team

SOMBies Say:

"glasgow mega snake. now that was a song" - attraversoargento

"their records are alright, but they're tremendous live." - st. park

"Start with Young Team and Come On Die Young if you don't like those don't bother with the rest." - Mitchell
Ranked Highest By: Caley (#1)

I Live My Life Like There's No Tomorrow
And All I've Got, I Had To Steal

#109.




Van Halen (413 Points, 10 Votes)

Years Active: 1972-present (or maybe just 1972-1985, for most of us)

All Music Biography: With their 1978 eponymous debut, Van Halen simultaneously rewrote the rules of rock guitar and hard rock in general. Guitarist Eddie Van Halen redefined what electric guitar could do, developing a blindingly fast technique with a variety of self-taught two-handed tapping, hammer-ons, pull-offs, and effects that mimicked the sounds of machines and animals. It was wildly inventive and over the top, equaled only by vocalist David Lee Roth, who brought the role of a metal singer to near-performance art standards. Roth wasn't blessed with great technique, unlike Eddie, but he had a flair for showmanship that was derived as much from lounge performers as Robert Plant. Together, they made Van Halen into the most popular American rock & roll band of the late '70s and early '80s, and in the process set the template for hard rock and heavy metal for the '80s.

Throughout the '80s, it was impossible not to hear Van Halen's instrumental technique on records that ranged from the heaviest metal to soft pop. Furthermore, Roth's irony-drenched antics were copied by singers who took everything literally. One of these was Sammy Hagar, an arena rock veteran from the '70s who replaced Roth after the vocalist had a falling out with Van Halen in 1985. Hagar stayed with the band longer than Roth, helping the group top the charts through the late '80s and early '90s. However, the group's sales began to slide in the mid-'90s, just as tensions between Hagar and Eddie began to arise. In one of the most disastrous publicity stunts in rock history, Hagar was fired (or quit) and Roth was brought back on, seemingly as a permanent member, but only for two songs on a greatest-hits album. He was subsequently replaced by Gary Cherone, a former member of Extreme.

Through all the upheaval over lead vocalists, Eddie Van Halen and his prodigious talent remained the core of Van Halen. The son of a Dutch bandleader, Eddie and his family moved from the Netherlands to Pasadena, CA, in 1967, when he was 12 years old and his older brother, Alex, was 14. As their father supported the family by playing in wedding bands, Eddie and Alex continued their classical piano training. Soon, both boys were enraptured by rock & roll. Eddie learned how to play drums and Alex took up the guitar, eventually switching instruments. The brothers began a hard rock band called Mammoth and began playing around Pasadena, eventually meeting David Lee Roth. At the time, Roth, who had been raised in a wealthy Californian family, was singing in Redball Jet. Impressed by the Van Halen brothers, he joined forces with the group. Shortly afterward, bassist Michael Anthony, who was singing with Snake, became a member of Mammoth. After discovering that another band had the rights to the name Mammoth, the group decided to call themselves Van Halen in 1974, rejecting the proposed Rat Salade.

For the next three years, Van Halen played throughout Pasadena, Santa Barbara, and Los Angeles, playing both clubs and hotel bars. The band's repertoire covered everything from pop and rock to disco, but they eventually worked in their own original material. Within a few years, they had become the most popular local band in Los Angeles, and Eddie became well known for his groundbreaking technique. In 1977, Kiss' Gene Simmons financed a demo recording session for Van Halen after seeing them at the Starwood Club. On the strength of Simmons' recommendation, Mo Ostin and Ted Templeman signed Van Halen to Warner Bros., releasing the band's debut the following year.

Van Halen became a hit due to strong word of mouth, constant touring, and support from AOR radio. Within three months the album had gone gold, and five months later it went platinum. It would eventually sell over six million copies, thanks to the album rock staples "You Really Got Me," "Jamie's Cryin'," and "Runnin' With the Devil." Van Halen II, released in 1979, continued the band's success, as "Dance the Night Away" became their first Top 20 single. Women and Children First (1980) didn't have any charting singles, but was a success on the album charts, reaching number six. The band supported the album with their first headlining, international arena tour, and the group was quickly on their way to being superstars. Released in 1981, Fair Warning wasn't quite as popular as their previous records, yet it still peaked at number six. Diver Down, released in 1982, was a huge hit, spawning a number 12 cover of Roy Orbison's "(Oh) Pretty Woman" and reaching number three.

While all of their previous albums were successful, Van Halen didn't become superstars until 1984, when their album 1984 became an across-the-board smash. Released on New Year's Day, 1984 rocketed to number two on the strength of the number one single "Jump." Like many songs on the album, "Jump" was driven by Eddie's new synthesizer, and while Roth was initially reluctant to use electronics, the expansion of the group's sound was widely praised. Throughout 1984, Van Halen gained steam, as "I'll Wait" and "Panama" became Top 15 singles and "Hot for Teacher" became a radio and MTV staple.

Despite the band's breakthrough success, things were not well within the band. During their 1984 tour, each member played separate solo sets and were physically separated on the stage. Roth was unhappy with Eddie's appearance on Michael Jackson's 1983 hit "Beat It," and Eddie grew tired of the comic antics of Roth. In 1985, Roth released a solo EP, Crazy from the Heat, which spawned hit covers of "California Girls" and "Just a Gigolo/I Ain't Got Nobody." When Roth delayed the recording of Van Halen's follow-up to 1984, he was fired from the band. Most observers were taken by surprise when Sammy Hagar was named as Roth's replacement. The former lead singer of Montrose, Hagar's solo career had been sporadically successful, highlighted by such arena metal hits as "Three-Lock Box" and "I Can't Drive 55."

Though many critics suspected Hagar wouldn't be able to sustain Van Halen's remarkable success, his first album with the band, 1986's 5150, was a huge hit, reaching number one and spawning the hit singles "Why Can't This Be Love," "Dreams," and "Love Walks In." Released in 1988, OU812 was just as successful, earning stronger reviews than its predecessor and generating the hits "When It's Love" and "Finish What You Started." For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge, released in 1991, was another number one hit, partially due to the hit MTV video for "Right Now." Van Halen followed the album with their first live record, the double album Van Halen Live: Right Here, Right Now in 1993.

By the spring 1995 release of Balance, tensions between Eddie Van Halen and Sammy Hagar had grown considerably. Eddie had recently undergone well-publicized treatment for alcoholism, and Hagar was notorious for his party-hearty ways, even writing a paean to Amsterdam's hash bars with "Amsterdam" on Balance. Furthermore, the band had become subject to criticism that it simply repeated a formula. While Balance was successful, entering the charts at number one and selling two million copies shortly after its release, it stalled quickly afterward. The band wanted to release a greatest-hits collection, but Hagar balked at the idea, escalating tensions even further. Following a skirmish in 1996 over the recording of a song for the Twister soundtrack, Eddie decided to make a change by switching singers. Van Halen began recording new material with Roth without informing Hagar, who went ballistic upon learning of the group's reunion.

According to Hagar, Eddie fired him shortly afterward; Eddie claimed Hagar quit. Roth proceeded to record two new songs for Van Halen's Best Of, Vol. 1, and once the reunion became public, the rock media reacted positively to the news; MTV began airing a welcome back commercial days after the announcement. However, the reunion was not to be. Following an appearance at the MTV Music Awards, Eddie Van Halen fired Roth from the band, claiming that he was only on board to record two new songs. Roth said that he was duped into recording the songs, believing that the reunion was permanent. Former Extreme vocalist Gary Cherone was announced as the band's new lead singer. Though the resulting Best Of, Vol. 1 was a success, Eddie's reputation as a nice guy was tarnished once the entire affair was over. Cherone's long-awaited debut with Van Halen, entitled Van Halen III, was finally released in March of 1998. Although the album debuted high on the charts, crashing in at number three, it quickly slipped down the charts, since the reception to the album from fans, critics, and radio was mixed.

After Van Halen III proved to be the worst-selling album of Van Halen's long and illustrious career (the ensuing world tour was poorly attended as well), Cherone was dismissed from Van Halen in 1999. Immediately, rumors began to swirl once more of an impending David Lee Roth/Van Halen reunion. Things were kept completely hush-hush in the Van Halen camp until early 2001, when David Lee Roth went public on his website with an update, confirming that he had recorded several new songs with the band (tracks that Roth described as amazing, phenomenal, and astonishing), but hadn't heard back from them since the previous summer.

Only a few days after Roth's news, Eddie Van Halen admitted to the public that he was battling cancer, but was told by his doctors that chances were good for a complete recovery. In the summer of 2001, Eddie told MTV News that the band's remaining members had penned a total of three albums' worth of new material and that they were still unsure of who their next singer would be. Months later, fans were shocked to hear that the band parted ways with Warner Bros., its label since 1979. The bandmembers blamed the label for promoting younger bands, while also admitting that they had not yet found Cherone's replacement and were no longer considering Roth.

The next three years found various members tending to situations both personal and professional. Eddie and longtime wife Valerie Bertinelli separated, Michael Anthony began making regular appearances with Sammy Hagar's Warboritas, and in a surprise move, David Lee Roth and Hagar hit the road together for the popular Heavyweight Champs of Rock & Roll Tour. In 2004, the band announced that Hagar would return to the fold for an American tour in support of a new greatest-hits collection, The Best of Both Worlds. The shows were undeniably successful, but tensions were high and Hagar and Anthony returned to the Warboritas the following year. In 2007, Van Halen were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and rumors of a reunion tour with Roth began to circulate again. Those rumors were confirmed on August 17th when the group announced legitimate dates, along with a controversial lineup change that replaced Michael Anthony with Eddie's son Wolfgang on bass. The tour kicked off in September and went on to gross over 93 million dollars.

All Music Album Pick: Van Halen

SOMBies Say:

"VH weekend! Niiiiice.

1984 was the first CD I ever bought. I'm not sure if that makes me old or young, but it's a fact." - Uhlersoth

"You know what? Roth may be a self-centered, arrogant asshole, but Eddie Van Halen is the biggest cock-sucking dickhole on the face of the planet for even considering leave Michael off of the 'reunion' tour and standing by while he takes less fucking money for it.

Eddie Van Halen is a smelly turd that needs to be flushed down the fucking toilet." - Bhickman

"I like all the Van Halen albums I've heard because they're short." - Sausage

"Van Halen = great band

Van Hagar = good band" - nosmokeinthelungs

"i just want to see them make the follow-up to 1984. that's all i want. i don't care if the new album makes the albums with sammy sound like fucking classics; i just want to see it done." - DrAftershave

Ranked Highest By: nobodies (#7)

jesus fuck.

Wish The Little Beast Gone
Half-Made Man

#108.




Melvins (432 Points, 4 Votes, 1 #1 Vote)

Years Active: 1982-present

All Music Biography: The Melvins were the first post-punk band to revel in the slow, sludgy sounds of Black Sabbath. Their music is oppressively slow and heavy, only without any of the silly mystical lyrics or the indulgent guitar solos -- it's just one massive, oozing pile of dark slime. The Melvins' first record was released in 1987; they've released several albums since then, but it wasn't until 1993 that they went to a major label, thanks to their protégé, Kurt Cobain. While the Melvins can be dull and repetitious, their place in rock history is interesting, even if it is just a minor footnote. The band formed in Aberdeen, WA, the same town that produced Nirvana's Cobain and Krist Novoselic. For Nirvana and many other Seattle-area bands, the Melvins' sludge was inspirational; the younger bands took the Sabbath-styled heaviness of the Melvins, while adding an equally important pop song structure, which the group tended to lack. While all of their disciples became famous after Nirvana broke big in 1991 (including Mudhoney, who featured former Melvin bassist Matt Lukin), the Melvins only expanded their cult slightly. They did earn a major-label contract with Atlantic, but after releasing three records for the label, they were dropped in late 1996 and the group returned to indie status, landing with Amphetamine Reptile for 1998's Alive at the F*cker Club. The late '90s/early 21st century saw a flurry of releases by the band: The Maggot, The Bootlicker, The Crybaby, Electroretard, The Colossus of Destiny, Hostile Ambient Takeover, Pigs of the Roman Empire, Houdini Live 2005: A Live History of Gluttony and Lust and Senile Animal, all of which (except for the fourth one) were issued on Mike Patton's Ipecac label. In addition to their Melvin activities, singer/guitarist Buzz Osborne joined Patton (and former Slayer drummer Dave Lombardo and Mr. Bungle bassist Trevor Dunn) for the experimental outfit Fantômas, resulting in a pair of releases (1999's self-titled debut and 2001's The Director's Cut), while the Melvins' latest bassist, Kevin Rutmanis, joined Patton in another side project, Tomahawk.

All Music Album Pick: Houdini

SOMBies Say:

"I NEED SOME MELVINS ALBUMS!!!, WHAT THE FUCK!!!!

RIGHT NOW!!!


WHAT THE FUCK DO I BUY??? WHAT THE FUCK DO I LISTEN TO??? WHAT THE FUCK? WHY HASNT ANYONE ANSWERED YET!!!?

FUCKING SHIT!" - Sausage

"Gluey Porch Treatments is my favorite, too. 'Heaviness of the Load,' anyone? Goddamn. And 'Eye Flys' just rules. I mean, half the song is the intro! The thing is six minutes long and the actual song doesn't start until four minutes into the thing! That's actually more than half. Either way, good band." - Pavement Ist Rad

"such a great live band" - solace

"King Buzzo is my hero." - Burz

Ranked Highest By: Burz (#1)

My Sight Was Poor But I Was Sure The Sirens Sang Their Songs For Me

#107.




Phish (438 Points, 4 Votes, 1 #1 Vote)

Years Active: 1983-2000, 2002-2004

All Music Biography: During the early '90s, Phish emerged as heir to the Grateful Dead's throne. Although their music is somewhat similar to the Dead's -- it's an eclectic, free-form rock & roll encompassing folk, jazz, country, bluegrass, and pop -- the group adheres more to jazz-derived improvisation than folk tradition, and they have a looser, goofier attitude. After all, their drummer regularly plays a vacuum during their concerts. Phish's main claim as the inheritors to the Dead's legacy is their approach to their musical career. The band didn't concentrate on albums; they dedicated themselves to live improvisation. Within a few years of their 1988 debut, Phish had become an institution in certain sections of America, particularly college campuses. And their in-concert popularity didn't necessarily translate to huge record sales; their biggest-selling albums usually halted at gold status. Still, Phish were the de facto leaders of the neo-hippie jam band movement, until deciding to go on hiatus in 2000.

Guitarist/vocalist Trey Anastasio, drummer Jon Fishman, and guitarist Jeff Holdsworth formed the band in late 1983 while attending the University of Vermont. After meeting and jamming in their dormitory, the trio posted flyers across campus, recruiting a bassist. Mike Gordon answered the advertisement and he was soon added to the original lineup. The group began practicing regularly and soon assembled a demo tape. In the fall of 1984, Phish began performing off-campus concerts. At this stage in their career, the band was augmented by percussionist Marc Daubert and, occasionally, a vocalist called the Dude of Life. Soon, the group was playing concerts on nearby campuses, including Goddard College's Springfest in 1985. Page McConnell organized the Springfest at Goddard and he became a fan of the band. Later in the year, McConnell convinced the group to add him as a keyboardist. Shortly after McConnell joined Phish, Holdsworth left the group. In the fall of 1986, Anastasio and Fishman transferred to Goddard College.

Early in 1988, Phish recorded Junta, which they sold at their shows as a cassette-only release. In 1989, the group played their first tour outside of New England, traveling through the Southeast. Phish also recorded their second album, Lawn Boy, in 1989, although the album wasn't released until the fall of 1990; the record was released on the independent label Absolute A-Go-Go, a subsidiary of Rough Trade. Throughout early 1991, Phish toured America; during the summer, they recorded their third album, as well as a set of sessions with their old friend, the Dude of Life.

Late in August, Rough Trade collapsed, taking Absolute A-Go-Go with it. Phish was left without a record contract, but they were soon signed by Elektra, which released A Picture of Nectar in February of 1992. After the album's release, the group embarked on an extensive national tour. In the summer of 1992, Phish played a handful of shows on the first H.O.R.D.E. tour. Also that summer, Elektra reissued Lawn Boy and Junta. Rift, the band's fourth album and the first they recorded with a producer, appeared in February of 1993. During Phish's 1993 tour, the group sold tickets that were specifically designed for fans taping the concert, a major gesture of goodwill. Hoist, the band's fifth album, was released in 1994; one of its songs, "Down with Disease," became the band's first video and received some airplay on MTV. Hoist sold better than the group's previous albums, which was an indication of how large the group's fan base had gotten. In the fall of 1994, Crimes of the Mind, the album Phish recorded with the Dude of Life in 1991, was released on Elektra Records.

In the summer of 1995, the band released the double live album A Live One, which attempted to definitively capture the Phish concert experience. In early 1996, Trey Anastasio released a free-form jazz side project called Surrender to the Air. In the fall of 1996, Phish released their sixth album, Billy Breathes, which was produced by Steve Lillywhite and garnered the group's best reviews thus far. Slip, Stitch & Pass, their second live LP, followed in 1997, and the following year, the group resurfaced with the studio effort Story of the Ghost. The six-disc Hampton Comes Alive, capturing four full live sets over the course of two nights, appeared in late 1999 and went gold, a testament to their rabid following.

Phish's popularity only grew during the last half of the '90s, and their ceaseless touring had helped make them indisputably one of the top concert draws in the nation. In the spring of 2000, Phish delivered the pastoral studio effort Farmhouse, which was hailed as one of their finest and tightest to date; they also landed some mainstream exposure thanks to the single "Heavy Things." However, exhausted by touring and separation from their families, Phish decided to take an extended break, announcing a temporary breakup in October 2000. A month later, Elektra reissued The Siket Disc, which was previously available only through mail order; it featured improvisational tracks from the band's 1997 Story of the Ghost sessions.

Each member branched out into different direction with mostly successful results during this period. Anastasio released a series of demos before hooking up with Primus bassist Les Claypool and former Police drummer Stewart Copeland for their bizarre Oysterhead project. Despite all the touring he put into these projects, he also released an eponymous solo album during the spring of 2002. Jonathan Fishman worked with his side project Pork Tornado and the touring jazz combo Jazz Mandolin Project. Page McConnell released the first few recordings from his other band, Vida Blue, as well as contributed keyboards to Tenacious D's first record. Mike Gordon did some work with friend and former employer Col. Bruce Hampton and dabbled in film work both in front of and behind the camera. And both Gordon and McConnell worked on Gov't Mule's The Deep End, Vol. 1.

As for the band, Phish was more a part of American culture than ever when they made an appearance on The Simpsons before releasing a massive set of live albums and a DVD in the spring of 2002. By the end of the year, the group bowed to pressure and came back with the announcement that they would begin to play live again starting at the end of December. They played shows through the following year and a half, then decided to officially call it quits in the summer of 2004 after the release of Undermind and the following support tour. This didn't mean, however, that more albums couldn't be released, and the next year their 1995 New Year's Eve concert at Madison Square Gardens came out, followed in 2006 by Live in Brooklyn, which was recorded on June 17, 2004 on Coney Island.

All Music Album Pick: A Picture of Nectar

SOMBies Say:

"i LOVED them back in the mid to late 90's and then lost interest. i recently listened to a lot of their material for the first time in ages and found myself really liking a lot of it, especially stuff from the first half of their career." - LOL Alzardo

"Some decent songs. Hilarious but enjoyable guitar solos.

But I hate hate HATE those white boy funk grooves that they use as a launch pad for their "jamming." Especially when there's a piano in there." - Pavement Ist Rad

"I have Dave Matthews Band fans name check Phish when they want to prove how eclectic & vast their music collections are. I don't have much of an opinion on the band or their music. Not for me. The only time the band has come up in conversations - oddly enough - is when I make fun of the DMB fan-boys." - Nick

"I dismissed them for quite awhile mostly do to Gordon's awful music schtick. They border on cheese too often. Then a friend made me a comp in about '98 and I just loved it. Played it constantly that summer and then jumped on the band wagon. Of course, still grimacing when they went went for the goofball antics." - Trails

Ranked Highest By: Red Lobster (#1)

But I'm A Champion, So I Turned Tragedy To Triumph
Make Music That's Fire, Spit My Soul Through The Wire

#106.




Kanye West (441 Points, 14 Votes)

Years Active: 2000-present

All Music Biography: In the span of a few years, from 2001 to 2004, Kanye West went from hip-hop beatmaker to worldwide hitmaker, as his stellar production work for Jay-Z earned him a major-label recording contract as a solo artist. Soon his beats were accompanied by his own witty raps on a number of critically and commercially successful releases. West's flamboyant personality also made a mark. He showcased a dapper fashion sense that set him apart from most of his rap peers, and his confidence often came across as boastful or even egotistic, albeit amusingly. This flamboyance, of course, made for good press, something West enjoyed plenty of during his sudden rise to celebrity status. He was a media darling, appearing and performing at practically every major awards show (and winning at them, too), delivering theatrical videos to MTV that were events in themselves, and mouthing off about whatever happened to cross his mind. For instance, he frequently spoke out against the rampant homophobia evident in much rap music, posed for the cover of Rolling Stone as Jesus Christ, and even said during a Hurricane Katrina fundraiser on live television, "George Bush doesn't care about black people." West courted controversy, no question about it, but his steady presence in the celebrity limelight sometimes eclipsed his considerable musical talent. His production ability seemed boundless during his initial surge of activity, as he not only racked up impressive hits for himself like "Jesus Walks" and "Gold Digger," but also graced such fellow rap stars as Jay-Z and Ludacris with productions that led to smash hits. In addition to these many accomplishments, it's worth noting how West shattered certain stereotypes about rappers. Whether it was his appearance or his rhetoric, or even just his music, this young man became a superstar on his own terms, and his singularity no doubt is part of his appeal to a great many people, especially those who don't generally consider themselves rap listeners.

From out of left field (i.e., Chicago, anything but a hip-hop hotbed), West was an unlikely sensation and more than once defied adversity. Like so many others who were initially inspired by Run-D.M.C., he began as just another aspiring rapper with a boundless passion for hip-hop, albeit a rapper with a Midas touch when it came to beatmaking. And it was indeed his beatmaking skills that got his foot in the industry door. Though he did quite a bit of noteworthy production work during the late '90s (Jermaine Dupri, Foxy Brown, Mase, Goodie Mob), it was his work for Roc-a-Fella at the dawn of the new millennium that took his career to the next level. Alongside fellow fresh talent Just Blaze, West became one of The Roc's go-to producers, consistently delivering hot tracks to album after album. His star turn came on Jay-Z's classic Blueprint (2001) with album standouts "Takeover" and "Izzo (H.O.V.A.)." Both songs showcased West's signature beatmaking style of the time, which was largely sample-based -- in these cases the former track appropriating snippets of the Doors' "Five to One," the latter the Jackson 5's "I Want You Back."

More high-profile productions followed, and before long word spread that West was going to release an album of his own, on which he'd rap as well as produce. Unfortunately, that album was a long time coming, pushed back and then pushed back again. It didn't help, of course, that West experienced a tragic car accident in October 2002 that almost cost him his life. He capitalized on the traumatic experience by using it as the inspiration for "Through the Wire" (and its corresponding video), which would later become the lead single for his debut album, The College Dropout (2004). As the album was continually delayed, West continued to churn out big hits for the likes of Talib Kweli ("Get By"), Ludacris ("Stand Up"), Jay-Z ("'03 Bonnie & Clyde"), and Alicia Keys ("You Don't Know My Name"). Then, just as "Through the Wire" was breaking big-time at the tail end of 2003, another West song caught fire, a collaboration with Twista and comedian/actor Jamie Foxx called "Slow Jamz" that gave the rapper/producer two simultaneously ubiquitous singles and a much-anticipated debut album. As with so many of West's songs, these two were driven by somewhat recognizable sample-based hooks -- Chaka Khan's "Through the Fire" in the case of "Through the Wire," and Luther Vandross' "A House Is Not a Home" in the case of "Slow Jamz."

In the wake of his breakout success, West earned a whopping ten nominations for the 47th annual Grammy Awards, held in early 2005. The College Dropout won the Best Rap Album award, "Jesus Walks" won Best Rap Song, and a songwriting credit on "You Don't Know My Name" for Best R&B Song award was shared with Alicia Keys and Harold Lilly. Later in the year, West released his second solo album, Late Registration (2005), which spawned a series of hit singles ("Diamonds in Sierra Leone," "Gold Digger," "Heard 'Em Say," "Touch the Sky"), topped the charts (as did "Gold Digger"), and won a Grammy for Album of the Year. West's production work continued more or less unabated during this time; particularly noteworthy were hits for Twista ("Overnight Celebrity"), Janet Jackson ("I Want You"), Brandy ("Talk About Our Love"), the Game ("Dreams"), Common ("Go!"), and Keyshia Cole ("I Changed My Mind"). West also founded his own label, GOOD Music (i.e., "Getting Out Our Dreams"), in conjunction with Sony BMG. The inaugural release was John Legend's Get Lifted (2004), followed by Common's Be (2005). In addition to all of his studio work, West also toured internationally in support of Late Registration and released Late Orchestration: Live at Abbey Road Studios (2006) in commemoration.

After retreating from the spotlight for a while, West returned to the forefront of the music world in 2007 with a series of album releases. Consequence's Don't Quit Your Day Job and Common's Finding Forever, both released by GOOD, were chiefly produced by West; the latter was particularly popular, topping the album chart upon its release in July. And then there was West's third solo album, Graduation, which was promoted well in advance of its September 11 release (a memorable date that pitted Kanye against 50 Cent, who in one interview swore he would quit music if his album, Curtis, wasn't the top-seller). A pair of singles -- "Can't Tell Me Nothing" and "Stronger," the latter an interpolation of Daft Punk's 2001 single "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" -- led the promotional push.

All Music Album Pick: The College Dropout

SOMBies Say:

"I've totally 180'd since Sept. 07. I'm like a huge Kanye fanboy now. I really got into the first two albums. I still wouldn't technically call him a great rapper, but his flow to me is enthralling. Lyrically, he's very unique and just doing stuff other people aren't doing. Even if on Graduation he's talking about money and cars and women, he does it in a different way that most rappers out there." - Chronodiggity

"I think there are more great songs on Late Registration, personally. I could really do without the Broke Phi Broke bullshit, but that's what the skip button is for. I'm pretty infatuated with most Jon Brion production, but I think it makes that album that much more interesting. Adds little parts to the songs that takes you a few listens to hear/recognize. And We Major..shit, that's a catchy song right there.

Although Graduation has that too-- plus it has Flashing Lights and Can't Tell Me Nothing, which are great songs and probably two of his best singles(although maybe least accessible, as far as Can't Tell Me Nothin goes). I remember listening to that high as hell walking back from Lake Michigan and noticing a new part I hadn't heard in Barry Bonds-- but then again,headphones+weed+outside will get you every time." - Bleep Blop

"I think the first time I sat down to listen to both 'College Dropout' and 'Late Registration' I felt like I was listening to some of the most exciting new music around, it was fresh. " - The Luscious Phil

Ranked Highest By: john the cool kid, Duff.(#9)

These Arms Of Mine
They Are Lonely
Lonely And Feeling Blue

#105.




Otis Redding (442 Points, 10 Votes)

Years Active: 1960-1967

All Music Biography: One of the most influential soul singers of the 1960s, Otis Redding exemplified to many listeners the power of Southern "deep soul" -- hoarse, gritty vocals, brassy arrangements, and an emotional way with both party tunes and aching ballads. He was also the most consistent exponent of the Stax sound, cutting his records at the Memphis label/studios that did much to update R&B into modern soul. His death at the age of 26 was tragic not just because he seemed on the verge of breaking through to a wide pop audience (which he would indeed do with his posthumous number one single "[Sittin' On] The Dock of the Bay"). It was also unfortunate because, as "Dock of the Bay" demonstrated, he was also at a point of artistic breakthrough in terms of the expression and sophistication of his songwriting and singing.

Although Redding at his peak was viewed as a consummate, versatile showman, he began his recording career in the early '60s as a Little Richard-styled shouter. The Georgian was working in the band of guitarist Johnny Jenkins at the time, and in 1962 he took advantage of an opportunity to record the ballad "These Arms of Mine" at a Jenkins session. When it became an R&B hit, Redding's solo career was truly on its way, though the hits didn't really start to fly until 1965 and 1966, when "Mr. Pitiful," "I've Been Loving You Too Long," "I Can't Turn You Loose," a cover of the Rolling Stones' "Satisfaction," and "Respect" (later turned into a huge pop smash by Aretha Franklin) were all big sellers.

Redding wrote much of his own material, sometimes with the assistance of Booker T. & the MG's guitarist Steve Cropper. Yet at the time, Redding's success was primarily confined to the soul market; his singles charted only mildly on the pop listings. He was nonetheless tremendously respected by many white groups, particularly the Rolling Stones, who covered Redding's "That's How Strong My Love Is" and "Pain in My Heart." (Redding also returned the favor with "Satisfaction.")

One of Redding's biggest hits was a duet with fellow Stax star Carla Thomas, "Tramp," in 1967. That was the same year he began to show signs of making major inroads into the white audience, particularly with a well-received performance at the Monterey Pop Festival (also issued on record). Redding's biggest triumph, however, came just days before his death, when he recorded the wistful "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay," which represented a significant leap as far as examination of more intensely personal emotions. Also highlighted by crisp Cropper guitar leads and dignified horns, it rose to the top of the pop charts in early 1968.

Redding, however, had perished in a plane crash in Wisconsin on December 10, 1967, in an accident that also took the lives of four members from his backup band, the Bar-Kays. A few other singles became posthumous hits, and a good amount of other unreleased material was issued in the wake of his death. These releases weren't purely exploitative in nature, in fact containing some pretty interesting music, and little that could be considered embarrassing. What Redding might have achieved, or what directions he might have explored, are among the countless tantalizing "what if" questions in rock & roll history. As it is, he did record a considerable wealth of music at Stax, which is now available on thoughtfully archived reissues.

All Music Album Pick: The Very Best of Otis Redding, Vol. 1

SOMBies Say:

"The records they left us are brilliant, but what I wouldn't give to have seen these shows in person. The way Otis Redding or Sam & Dave work the stage -- they have the fire, the passion, the energy of a hundred punk rock shows." - 54cermak

"Voices, lyrics, totally different for me. A better question would be: if you didn't speak english, would you still listen to Otis Redding and Al Green? Hell yes." - yancy

Ranked Highest By: brobee (#3)

Love Is The Drug And I Need To Score

#104.




Roxy Music (450 Points, 8 Votes)

Years Active: 1971-1983, 2001-present

All Music Biography: Evolving from the late-'60s art-rock movement, Roxy Music had a fascination with fashion, glamour, cinema, pop art, and the avant-garde, which separated the band from their contemporaries. Dressed in bizarre, stylish costumes, the group played a defiantly experimental variation of art rock which vacillated between avant-rock and sleek pop hooks. During the early '70s, the group was driven by the creative tension between Bryan Ferry and Brian Eno, who each pulled the band in separate directions: Ferry had a fondness for American soul and Beatlesque art-pop, while Eno was intrigued by deconstructing rock with amateurish experimentalism inspired by the Velvet Underground. This incarnation of Roxy Music may have only recorded two albums, but it inspired a legion of imitators -- not only the glam-rockers of the early '70s, but art-rockers and new wave pop groups of the late '70s. Following Eno's departure, Roxy Music continued with its arty inclinations for a few albums before gradually working in elements of disco and soul. Within a few years, the group had developed a sophisticated, seductive soul-pop that relied on Ferry's stylish crooning. By the early '80s, the group had developed into a vehicle for Ferry, so it was no surprise that he disbanded the group at the height of its commercial success in the early '80s to pursue a solo career.

The son of a coal miner, Bryan Ferry (vocals, keyboards) had studied art with Richard Hamilton at the University of Newcastle before forming Roxy Music in 1971. While at university, he sang in rock bands, joining the R&B group the Gas Board, which also featured bassist Graham Simpson. Ferry and Simpson decided to form their own band toward the end of 1970, eventually recruiting Andy Mackay (saxophone), who had previously played oboe with the London Symphony Orchestra. Through Mackay, Brian Eno joined the band. By the summer of 1971, the group -- had originally been called "Roxy" but a name change was necessary after the discovery of an American band called Roxy -- had recruited classical percussionist Dexter Lloyd and guitarist Roger Bunn through an ad in Melody Maker; both musicians left within a month, but they did record the group's initial demos. Another ad was placed in Melody Maker, and this time the group landed drummer Paul Thompson and guitarist Davy O'List, who had previously played with the Nice. O'List left by the beginning of 1972 and was replaced by Phil Manzanera, a former member of Quiet Sun. Prior to recording their first album, Simpson left the band. Roxy Music never replaced him permanently; instead, they hired new bassists for each record and tour, beginning with Rik Kenton, who appeared on their eponymous debut for Island Records.

Produced by Peter Sinfield of King Crimson, Roxy Music climbed into the British Top Ten in the summer of 1972; shortly afterward, the non-LP single "Virginia Plain" rocketed into the British Top Ten, followed by the non-LP "Pyjamarama" in early 1973. While Roxy Music had become a sensation in England and Europe due to their clever amalgamation of high and kitsch culture, they had trouble getting a foothold in the United States. Both Roxy Music and the group's second album, 1973's For Your Pleasure, which was recorded with bassist John Porter, were greeted with enthusiasm in the U.K., but virtually ignored in the U.S. Frustrated with Ferry's refusal to record his compositions, Eno left the band after the completion of For Your Pleasure. Before recording the third Roxy Music album, Ferry released a solo album, These Foolish Things, which was comprised of pop/rock covers.

Released in December of 1973, Stranded became the band's first number one album in the U.K. Stranded was recorded with new Roxy member Eddie Jobson, a multi-instrumentalist who previously played with Curved Air; it was also the first record to feature writing credits for Manzanera and Mackay. The album received a warmer reception in the U.S. than its two predecessors, setting the stage for the breakthrough of Country Life in late 1974. Sporting a controversial cover of two models dressed in see-through lingerie -- the cover was banned in several stores, and it was eventually replaced with a photo of a forest in the U.S. -- Country Life was the first Roxy album to break the U.S. Top 40 and became their fourth British Top Ten album. Following a tour with bassist John Wetton, the group recorded Siren. Featuring their first American Top 40 hit, the disco-flavored "Love Is the Drug," Siren was another British Top Ten hit; in the U.S., it was moderate hit, peaking at number 50. Following the tour for Siren, the band members began working on solo projects -- Manzanera formed the prog-rock group 801, and Mackay and Ferry both began recording solo albums -- and announced in the summer of 1976 that they were temporarily breaking up. The live album Viva Roxy Music! was released shortly after the announcement of the group's hiatus.

Roxy Music regrouped in the fall of 1978 after spending 18 months on solo projects. Ferry, Manzanera, Mackay and Thompson added former Ace keyboardist Paul Carrack to the band's lineup and hired Gary Tibbs, formerly of the Vibrators, and ex-Kokomo Alan Spenner as studio bassists; Jobson and Wetton, who were not asked to rejoin the band, formed UK. Roxy Music's comeback effort, Manifesto, was released in the spring of 1979, and it boasted a sleek, disco-influenced soul-pop sound that was markedly different from and more accessible than their earlier records. Manifesto confirmed their British popularity, reaching the Top Ten, and became their highest-charting U.S. record, peaking at number 23 on the strength of the single "Dance Away." Roxy Music supported the album with an international tour that featured Carrack and Tibbs; prior to the tour's start, Thompson left the band after breaking his thumb in a motorcycle accident. Flesh + Blood, the follow-up to Manifesto, was recorded just by Ferry, Manzanera and Mackay, and a host of studio musicians. Released in the summer of 1980, Flesh + Blood became Roxy's second British number one album on the strength of the Top Ten single "Over You"; in America, the album reached the American Top 40. In the spring of 1981, the band's non-LP cover of John Lennon's "Jealous Guy," recorded as a tribute to the slain singer, became the group's only British number one single.

Nearly two years after the release of Flesh + Blood, Roxy Music returned in the summer of 1982 with Avalon. Marking a new level in the group's production and musical sophistication, Avalon became their biggest album, spending three weeks at the top of the British charts and 27 on the U.S. charts, generating the British hits "More Than This" and "Take a Chance With Me." It became the group's only American gold album, and over the years, it worked its way to platinum status. Following a successful supporting tour for Avalon, the group released the live EP Musique/The High Road in the spring of 1983. The Avalon tour turned out to be Roxy Music's final activity as a group. Ferry began to concentrate on his solo career, beginning with 1985's Boys and Girls. Manzanera and Mackay formed a band called the Explorers in 1985; the pair would record under a variety of guises, as well as pursue solo careers, over the next 15 years. The compilation Street Life: 20 Great Hits, which also featured Ferry's solo hits, was released in 1989. A year later, Heart Still Beating, a live album documenting a 1982 concert, was released.

All Music Album Pick: Country Life

SOMBies Say:

"Any band with album covers that good has to be at least pretty great." - yancy

"I only really got into them a few years ago, and god damn if I didnt wait too long to.
Rock music and sex and drugs have always gone together, but all too often when a band would try to inject sex into their sound it would come across as crass, forced, or (worse) Jackyll.
The same goes for drugs. Whenever they become part of a bands mission statement it always tends to be in the most predictable ways: check out how trippy/weird/self-destructive we are.
But what was so rad about Roxy Music is that THEY got it right.
THE PERFECT balance of slick coke and poppers hedonism and sleek, robotic sexuality just this side of brown-paper-wrapper naughtiness.
I was an embryo when these dudes were slinking around London raving up clubs and hiking up skirts, but all of that feels perfectly embedded in every note of their music (not counting that execrable covers record or the late period yuppie douchepop of Avalon)" - Peanut Butter Motherfucker

"Good band." - Mitchell

Ranked Highest By: Trails (#2)

AN ERASER OF LOVE
AN ERASER OF LOVE

#103.




Underworld (455 Points, 8 Votes, 1 #1 Vote)

Years Active: 1986-present

All Music Biography:Underworld became one of the most crucial electronic acts of the 1990s via an intriguing synthesis of old and new. The trio's two-man frontline, vocalist Karl Hyde and guitarist Rick Smith, had been recording together since the early-'80s new wave explosion; after two unsuccessful albums released as Underworld during the late '80s, the pair finally hit it big when they recruited Darren Emerson, a young DJ hipped to the sound of techno and trance. Traditional pop song forms were jettisoned in favor of Hyde's heavily treated vocals, barely there whispering, and surreal wordplay, stretched out over the urban breakbeat trance ripped out by Emerson and co. while Smith's cascade of guitar-shard effects provided a bluesy foil to the stark music. All in all, the decision to go pop was hardly a concession to the mainstream. The first Underworld album by the trio, Dubnobasswithmyheadman, appeared in late 1993 to a flurry of critical acclaim; the trio then gained U.S. distribution for the album with TVT. Second Toughest in the Infants, the group's sophomore LP, updated their sound slightly and received more praise than the debut. Unlike the first, the LP also sold well, thanks in part to the non-album single "Born Slippy," featured on the soundtrack to the seminal film Trainspotting.

The roots of Underworld go back to the dawn of the 1980s, when Hyde and Smith formed a new wave band called Freur. The group released Doot-Doot in 1983 and Get Us out of Here two years later, but later disintegrated. Hyde worked on guitar sessions for Debbie Harry and Prince, then reunited with Smith in 1988 to form an industrial-funk band called Underworld. The pair earned an American contract with Sire and released their debut album, Underneath the Radar, in 1988. Change the Weather followed one year later, even though little attention had been paid to the first. By the end of the decade, Underworld had disappeared also.

As they had several years earlier, Hyde and Smith shed their skin yet again, recruiting hotshot DJ Darren Emerson and renaming themselves Lemon Interrupt. In 1992, the trio debuted with two singles, "Dirty"/"Minneapolis" and "Bigmouth"/"Eclipse," both released on Junior Boys Own Records. After they reverted back to Underworld, 1993's "Rez" and "MMM...Skyscraper I Love You" caused a minor sensation in the dance community. Instead of adding small elements of techno to a basically pop or rock formula (as many bands had attempted with varying success), Underworld treated techno as the dominant force. Their debut album, Dubnobasswithmyheadman, was praised by many critics upon release later in 1993 and crossed over to the British pop charts. Hyde, Smith, and Emerson impressed many at their concert dates as well; the trio apparently relished playing live, touring Great Britain twice plus Japan, Europe, and the annual summer-festival circuit, where their Glastonbury appearance became the stuff of legend.

Dubnobasswithmyheadman was released in the U.S. in 1995 after being licensed to TVT Records. During the rest of the year, Underworld were relatively quiet, releasing only the single "Born Slippy." Finally, Second Toughest in the Infants appeared in early 1996 to much critical praise. The trio gained no small amount of commercial success later in the year when "Born Slippy" was featured on the soundtrack to Trainspotting, the controversial Scottish film that earned praise from critics all over the globe. Underworld also remained busy with Tomato -- their own graphic-design company responsible for commercials from such high-profile clients as Nike, Sony, Adidas, and Pepsi -- and remixing work for Depeche Mode, Björk, St. Etienne, Sven Väth, Simply Red, and Leftfield. Emerson continued to DJ on a regular basis, releasing mix albums for Mixmag! and Deconstruction. Though Underworld's 1999 LP Beaucoup Fish was initially a disappointment, critically and commercially, the band continued to tour the world. The live album Everything, Everything followed in 2000, after which Emerson left to continue his DJ career. A Hundred Days Off, Underworld's first LP as a duo since 1989, was released in mid-2002. One year later, the stopgap compilation 1992-2002 appeared.

By 2005, the duo had officially been joined by one of Britain's most respected DJs, Darren Price (although he contributed to A Hundred Days Off), and his work also appeared on a series of online-only EPs Underworld released during 2005 and 2006. They also recorded new material for the soundtrack of the Anthony Minghella film Breaking and Entering. Their first "proper" full-length since 2002, Oblivion with Bells, appeared in 2007.

All Music Album Pick: Dubnobasswithmyheadman

SOMBies Say:

"underworld rulez" - ddd

"I don't think they deserve as much praise as they recieve. Lyrically one of the worst groups ever. In the music dpt they defenitely have created some classic tracks, but no more than others like Green Velvet who get little praise from anyone outside the dance community. I do look forward to the one or two standout tracks they have on every album though." - BGwaves

"Underworld wouldn't be half as good without the lyrics. You just have to divorce the words they're saying from their actual meaning and enjoy the way they sound twisting around the song's beat and hooks." - The Good Dr Bill

Ranked Highest By: Rez (#1)

And Anyway I Told The Truth
But I'm Afraid I Told A Lie

#102.




Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds (461 Points, 8 Votes)

Years Active: 1984-present

All Music Biography: After goth pioneers the Birthday Party called it quits in 1983, singer/songwriter Nick Cave assembled the Bad Seeds, a post-punk supergroup featuring former Birthday Party guitarist Mick Harvey on drums, ex-Magazine bassist Barry Adamson, and Einstürzende Neubauten guitarist Blixa Bargeld. With the Bad Seeds, Cave continued to explore his obsessions with religion, death, love, America, and violence with a bizarre, sometimes self-consciously eclectic hybrid of blues, gospel, rock, and arty post-punk, although in a more subdued fashion than his work with the Birthday Party. Cave also allowed his literary aspirations to come to the forefront; the lyrics are narrative prose, heavy on literary allusions and myth-making, and take some inspiration from Leonard Cohen. Cave's gloomy lyrics, dark musical arrangements, and deep baritone voice recall the albums of Scott Walker, who also obsessed over death and love with a frightening passion. However, Cave brings a hefty amount of post-punk experimentalism to Walker's epic dark pop.

Cave released his first album with the Bad Seeds, From Her to Eternity, in 1984, which contained a noteworthy cover of Elvis Presley's "In the Ghetto," foreshadowing much of Cave's style and subject matter on the follow-up The Firstborn Is Dead. Kicking Against the Pricks, an all-covers album, broke the band in England with the help of "The Singer," which hit number one on the U.K. independent charts. The album also strengthened Cave's reputation as an original interpreter and a vocal stylist of note. Following 1986's Your Funeral...My Trial, Cave took a two-year hiatus from recording, partially to appear in Wim Wenders' 1987 film Wings of Desire, and then returned with Tender Prey, which featured Cramps guitarist Kid Congo Powers and Cave's strongest vocal performance up to that point.

Cave's productivity picked up immensely over the next two years after he kicked a heroin habit. He had two books (1988's King Ink, a collection of lyrics, plays, and prose, and 1989's And the Ass Saw the Angel, a novel) published; appeared in the 1989 Australian film Ghosts...of the Civil Dead as a prisoner; recorded a soundtrack to the film with Harvey and Bargeld; and released 1990's The Good Son, his most relaxed, quiet album. Cave received his due as one of the leading figures in alternative rock when he was invited to perform on the 1994 edition of the Lollapalooza tour to promote his Let Love In album. Early in 1996, he released Murder Ballads, a collection of songs about murder. Murder Ballads became Cave's most commercially successful album to date, and, with typical perversity, he followed it with the introspective and personal The Boatman's Call in early 1997. A spoken word release, Secret Life of the Love Song, followed in 1999.

Two years later, a rejuvenated Cave teamed up with the Bad Seeds once again for the piano-laden No More Shall We Part. Nocturama was released in 2003, and the double-album Abattoir Blues/The Lyre of Orpheus followed by the end of 2004. After touring in support of the album throughout 2005, Cave embarked on a new project called Grinderman with Bad Seeds members Warren Ellis, Martyn Casey, and Jim Sclavunos. The group's self-titled debut was released in 2007, the same year Cave was inducted into Australia's ARIA Hall of Fame. In 2008, Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds released Dig!!! Lazarus Dig!!!

All Music Album Picks: Abattoir Blues/The Lyre of Orpheus, Dig!!! Lazarus Dig!!!

SOMBies Say:

"I think Nick is going to be one of those artists to watch. His best work is ahead of him." - registered bitch

"And I really love Murder Ballads too. I don't consider it a novelty at all. To me a novelty album is something I listen to once or twice and then forget about. Murder Ballads is a great album that I can and do listen to quite often. It's a theme, not a novelty." - red

"i was only a casual fan who had heard probably 5-6 of his records when i saw him in 2001 w/ Neko Case, and the show completely converted me. one of my favorite shows ever actually." - solace

Ranked Highest By: held (#2)

Friday Nights Have Been Lonely
Change Your Plans And Then Phone Me

#101.




The Strokes (466 Points, 13 Votes)

Years Active: 1998-present

All Music Biography: Equally inspired by classic tunesmiths like Buddy Holly and John Lennon as well as the attitude and angular riffs of fellow New Yorkers Television and the Velvet Underground, the Strokes were also equally blessed and cursed with an enormous amount of hype -- particularly from the U.K. music press, whose adulation for the group rivaled their fervor for Oasis in the early '90s. Barely in their twenties by the time their debut album, Is This It, arrived in 2001, singer/songwriter Julian Casablancas, guitarists Nick Valensi and Albert Hammond, Jr., bassist Nikolai Fraiture, and drummer Fabrizio Moretti's success wasn't quite of the overnight variety, but it still arrived pretty swiftly.

Casablancas (the son of Elite Model Agency Group kingpin John Casablancas), Moretti (who began playing drums at age five), and Valensi started playing together in 1998 while they attended the Dwight School, a private prep school in Manhattan. Soon thereafter they met Fraiture, who attended the Upper East Side's Lycee Français, and added him to their ranks. Hammond (the son of singer/songwriter Albert Hammond, whose songs include "It Never Rains in Southern California," "When I Need You," and "To All the Girls I've Loved Before") came from Los Angeles to attend film school at NYU and was invited into the band by Casablancas; the two met at L'Institut le Rosey in Switzerland when they were kids.

Casablancas officially christened the quintet the Strokes in 1999, and the group spent most of that year writing and rehearsing material in New York City's Music Building. They made their live debut that fall at the Spiral, and word of mouth about the Strokes' incendiary live show propelled them to gigs at venues like Under the Acme, Lower East Side clubs such as Arlene Grocery, Baby Jupiter, and Luna. The Strokes' December 2000 dates at the Mercury Lounge and the Bowery Ballroom not only gained them a manager (Ryan Gentles, who booked them at those clubs), but also helped Strokes mania reach critical mass in New York. Rough Trade released the group's three-song demo as The Modern Age EP in January 2001, which sparked a bidding war from which RCA emerged as the victors.

Meanwhile, the Strokes' acclaim reached the U.K. and grew to massive proportions over the course of the year. NME quickly became their champions, profiling them several times that spring and summer as the Strokes' live act and singles like Hard to Explain (which debuted at number 16 in the U.K. charts) won them a rabid British following. That spring, the band also completed its first U.S. tour as the opening act for the Doves and proceeded to play dates with Guided by Voices and ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead in the U.S. and the U.K. The group's popularity continued to snowball in the U.K., with a side-stage slot at the NME Carling Weekender changed to a main-stage performance for fear of people trampling each other to see the band.

In late summer of that year, Rough Trade released Is This It with an album cover featuring a sexy, Helmut Newton-esque photo of a woman's nude behind and hip with a leather-gloved hand resting on it; the U.K. chains Woolworth's and HMV objected to its controversial nature. The U.S. version of Is This It was released in October and featured a few changes from the U.K. edition. The Strokes opted for an abstract pattern on the cover and removed the song "New York City Cops," feeling the song was inappropriate in the wake of the terrorist attacks that struck New York prior to the album's release; the planned B-side, "When It Started," took its place. The group closed out the fall with an extended tour of the U.S., culminating with a Halloween gig at New York's Hammerstein Ballroom.

The remainder of 2001 and 2002 saw the group's profile continue to rise. Is This It and the Strokes were lauded in many ways, ranging from This Isn't It, an EP of instrumental versions of some of the album's songs performed by a mystery band called the Diff'rent Strokes (Pulp's Jarvis Cocker was rumored to be a member) to 2001 NME Carling Awards for Best New Act, Band of the Year, and Album of the Year. The band toured extensively throughout 2002, including a series of dates that summer in New York and Detroit with the White Stripes, summer festivals at Reading and Leeds, and a string of gigs supporting Weezer, some of which were canceled due to a leg injury Casablancas suffered. During these shows, their fall tour, and their dates opening for the Rolling Stones, the Strokes debuted some new songs, including "Meet Me in the Bathroom," "You Talk Way Too Much," and "The Way It Is."

By March 2003, the band was ready to start recording its new album, but instead of working with Is This It producer Gordon Raphael as previously reported, the Strokes began recording with Nigel Godrich of Radiohead and Beck fame. That May, however, the Strokes' sessions with Godrich came to an end, and they returned to Raphael to finish the album, Room on Fire. The single 12:51 introduced the more meticulous, new wave-inspired sound of Room on Fire, which arrived in fall 2003. Just before the album's release, the Strokes hit the road once again, taking Kings of Leon with them. Early in 2006, they returned with the even poppier and more polished First Impressions of Earth.

All Music Album Pick: Is This It

SOMBies Say:

"Anyways, Meg [White] has some great hooters. The Strokes have some great songs. Having to choose tears me up inside." - Pavement Ist Rad

"I hope that everyone who said The Strokes 'sound like Television' or are 'Velvet Underground-esque' back in 2001 has actually heard a Television or VU record by now." - UselessRocker

"'Electricityscape' is a song that sounds like it should be on a Game Boy Castlevania game." - Sausage

"the Strokes are the Velvet Underground of rock music" - ___

Ranked Highest By: cpl-593h (#6)

I think I might shed a tear that The Strokes placed higher than Nick Cave, but I'll try not to let it bug me. I knew people would poll higher, I was prepared for that (hell, Cave wasn't my #1 for sure)... but The Strokes??? Man, that's brutal.

Great pic. Regret not voting for him.

Yeah, great to see Otis this (relatively) high.

I really need to listen to some Underworld. I always mean to, but I never know which album to start with.

Yeah, you can't let placement of one over another upset you. Just a very fickle, small sampling group. And remember, this is what people listen to, and is not reflective of musical merit necessarily. Nick Drake beating out Joni. Come on, that's funny.

Was holding out hope that Roxy would make top 100. C'est la vie.

Of course this is this board's list, it's going to have recent Indie from the US and Canada all over the top 100 like syphilis


Then you say something daft like this



Sorry what? of all the artists that have followed Joni Mitchell you choose Nick Drake to mention?

Just that they were back to back and similar in that they would be considered folk rock.

Funny as in a co-incidence not ludicrous. Gotcha!

If I'm going to protest the placement of something, its Phish based on Red Lobster's funny, but ultimately not serious #1 placement.

red's just speaking for those of us who were too ashamed to put them on our lists. i haven't heard a single phish song this decade, but i used to love them as a kid (who had just discovered drugs) and i bet there are a bunch of others here who would say the same. i'd never put them on a favorite artists list, but their presence makes me chuckle at worse. sure they're disproportionately high up, but this is a list where underworld is ahead of sam cooke. it's not going to make sense, but it does seem like it's going to be eerily accurate.

yeah, I'm all for inclusion, but looking at Red's list, it was obviously not seriously intended as a vote. But whatever, it didn't foul the top 100 at least.

Pretty much anyone who put Phish on their list should have their list thrown out and their account banned.

Okay guys, enough is enough.

Ummm, no?

how about Barnes & Barnes?

my opinion is as valid as yours, who do you think you are?

Taking Red Lobster off the SOMB menu might be the most unpopular move in the history of the board.

I'm with Trails (I thin it was trails) - every time I hear something I like by them and explore further, I run into their whimsy, and it puts me right off again.

You had to see them live. Phenomenal band.

In 1996 our district manager dropped by our restaurant for a quick visit and left a few tickets behind for their show at Alpine Valley later that night. Our manager was going to take them, but he had a family emergency and had to leave work early. My buddy Tre and I took one look at each other and it was obvious what we were thinking. "ROAD TRIP!" We grabbed the tickets and convinced our hostess Carmen to drive us in exchange for some free "Molly" once we'd arrived. We snuck into the kitchen, loaded up the cooler with some popcorn shrimp and strawberry daiquiris, and hit the road.

Amazing experience. I was definitely "bouncing round the room" that night.

Hmmm...when they get all serious is when I lose them.

Me too. If "Born Slippy" makes my heart beat faster, what's album's best to try--Second Toughest?

I'm a big fan of Red Lobster actually, and have nothing personally against Phish, but this is like The Real Guest voting "Fuck" #1 and them placing as a result.

funny rock bands bug me. Something usually suffers - music or comedy. Too often, both.

Looking forward to the next ten or so. Finally in big boy teritory.

I'd put "Phish's Greatest Hits" above much of the one hit wonder indie tripe that has pockmarcked this list.

lol

Time has not been kind to thy.

The latest list update:

101. The Strokes
102. Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
103. Underworld
104. Roxy Music
105. Otis Redding
106. Kanye West
107. Phish
108. Melvins
109. Van Halen
110. Mogwai
111. Steely Dan
112. Nick Drake
113. Joni Mitchell
114. Uncle Tupelo
115. Beastie Boys
116. Big Star
117. The Jesus Lizard
118. Lou Reed
119. Charles Mingus
120. Guns N' Roses
121. The Verve
122. Ben Folds Five
123. Frank Zappa
124. The Stone Roses
125. Public Image Ltd.
126. Cocteau Twins
127. Fishbone
128. Soundgarden
129. Descendents
130. Fennesz
131. Stereolab
132. Stars of the Lid
133. Bob Mould
134. Slayer
135. Funkadelic
136. The Mekons
137. Steve Earle
138. Orbital
139. Queens of the Stone Age
140. Broken Social Scene
141. John Coltrane
142. Wire
143. The Allman Brothers Band
144. Buffalo Tom
145. Autechre
146. Sun Kil Moon
147. Joy Division
148. King Crimson
149. Rocket From The Crypt
150. Dinosaur Jr.
151. Kraftwerk
152. Sunny Day Real Estate
153. Joanna Newsom
154. Television
155. Bob Marley
156. Jeff Buckley
157. X
158. The Hold Steady
159. Kings Of Leon
160. Curtis Mayfield
161. Super Furry Animals
162. Queen
163. Jawbox
164. Boredoms
165. Deftones
166. Meat Puppets
167. The Cars
168. Cat Stevens
169. Nas
170. The Police
171. Eels
172. The Mountain Goats
173. Chuck Berry
174. Peter Gabriel
175. Leonard Cohen
176. Paul McCartney/Wings
177. Scott Walker
178. The Pogues
179. Jens Lekman
180. Paul Westerberg
181. Kiss
182. Sugar
183. Bauhaus
184. The Notorious B.I.G.
185. Unwound
186. Buzzcocks
187. Public Enemy
188. Oasis
189. Swans
190. Tortoise
191. The Doors
192. Destroyer
193. The Go-Betweens
194. Green Day
195. Tori Amos
196. Sunset Rubdown
197. Neurosis
198. Prong
199. Grant Lee Buffalo
200. Michael Jackson
201. Ray Charles
202. Robyn Hitchcock
203. Air
204. Supergrass
205. Thelonious Monk
206. The Zombies
207. Jimmy Eat World
208. Morphine
209. The Fiery Furnaces
210. Bright Eyes
211. John Lennon
212. The Libertines
213. The Magnetic Fields
214. The Chemical Brothers
215. Echo and the Bunnymen
216. Motörhead
217. King's X
218. Arvo Pärt
219. Willie Nelson
220. John Prine
221. This Heat
222. Jane's Addiction
223. Pet Shop Boys
224. The Streets
225. Superchunk
226. Kate Bush
227. Social Distortion
228. The Mars Volta
229. Al Green
230. Jawbreaker
231. Wu-Tang Clan
232. Billy Bragg
233. Jets To Brazil
234. Tool
235. Ted Leo and the Pharmacists
236. Nick Lowe
237. Wolf Parade
238. Dexys Midnight Runners
239. Townes Van Zandt
240. Saint Etienne
241. Morrissey
242. Woody Guthrie
243. The Birthday Party
244. American Music Club
245. Booker T & The M.G.'s
246. Mr. Bungle
247. The Olivia Tremor Control
248. The Sea and Cake
249. Marvin Gaye
250. Elvis Presley
251. Chris Whitley
252. Hanoi Rocks
253. Marillion
254. Patty Griffin
255. [Insert your favorite band that got left out here]
256. Pretty Girls Make Graves
257. Steve Reich
258. The Sword
259. The Misfits
260. ABBA
261. Fiona Apple
262. Howlin' Wolf
263. The Orb
264. Jay Reatard
265. Ricardo Villalobos
266. Todd Rundgren
267. James Brown
268. At The Drive-In
269. LCD Soundsystem
270. Red House Painters
271. Death Cab For Cutie
272. The Jayhawks
273. The Tragically Hip
274. Gillian Welch
275. Sparklehorse
276. Patti Smith
277. Opeth
278. Sufjan Stevens
279. Unrest
280. Paul Simon
281. Frank Sinatra
282. Genesis
283. Mötley Crüe
284. Nine Inch Nails
285. Primal Scream
286. The Wrens
287. DJ Shadow
288. Phil Spector
289. The Specials
290. Low
291. Eminem
292. Joe Strummer/Joe Strummer & the Mescaleros
293. The Byrds
294. Counting Crows
295. Gram Parsons
296. Slowdive
297. Faust
298. Foo Fighters
299. Interpol
300. Doves
301. Rilo Kiley

Nostalgia trip in 5,4,3...

i am most surprised by the beastie boys not making the top 100.
i thought this board had a crush on them.
some people must not have voted.

2, 1, 0...