4 Bands were my favorite at one time ...and the 5th would be a strong second at a time in my life when the rankings really mattered ...Wildly commercial taste i have
@SteveInJoburg I have this recurring fantasy about Stromness, Orkney, but would settle for Perthshire or the East Neuk of Fife. None are likely to happen......
@riverdude4 When I was on the road, I had a job for awhile on a traveling magazine sales crew. I used to knock doors with this Scottish kid sometimes and whenever we teamed up we had the highest sales on the crew.
NOTE: Don't ever buy magazines from these travelling crews. It's a complete scam. They're not in a contest, they're not in a youth program and most of them are mistreated, robbed of their earnings by the "company" and left stranded far from home when they quit or inevitably are fired for starting to look too old. In fact, if one of these kids knocks your door, ask them if they need help.
If I care? I kill about three hours a week playing an elf in The Lord Of The Rings online. The game is based on the books, not the movies, and the world is rendered beautifully. I nerd out hard on Tolkien.
@Jerseyfornia These might be too basic for you, then—I used to skim the Silmarillion but was never able to actually read it, and I'm not sure I've ever even cracked open one fo the many posthumous volumes edited by Christopher.
My oldest kid, on the other hand, not only read and re-read the Silmarillion, she learned to read and write in Tolkien's Elvish runes. I would try to tell her some fascinating tidbit I'd learned and she listen patiently with an encouraging expression on her face and realize this was something she'd know since she was 15.
@Scott Peterson The Silmarillion is a tough read, being what it is. I'm no Tolkien scholar like your daughter, but I can find my way around Middle-earth without a map and I've killed tens of thousands of Orcs and goblins.
This is the difficult spot... a bunch of artists here that I've loved for a period and pummelled my way through the back catalogue at some stage, but don't listen to as now. Dire Straits might at a pinch win out against Neil Young, REM, Tom Petty, Midnight Oil, Creedence Clearwater Revival.
@Jerseyfornia I assume, from your knowledge of classic Aus rock, you have also heard The Angels and Paul Kelly? Paul Kelly especially is someone I thought you would enjoy. I've just posted a 47 minute live Angels clip in the Songs Listened To Today thread if you haven't seen it, also.
@Bosstralian Oh, yeah. I listen to both of them. The Angels actually charted a single over here in the mid 80s. My Aussie top five is tough to crack because three of the slots are permanently held by AC/DC, Cold Chisel and LRB (1975-88 incarnations only. The current American version of the band is a glorified covers band, but that's another thread).
I actually often avoid listening too often to my very favorites, as I don't want to ever risk losing the spine-tingling moments, and learned that such a thing is in fact possible.
So the artists I've listened to the most over the past 4 years—since late November 2016—have been primarily Blue Note musicians, with a surprising (to me) amount of prog thrown into the mix, as well as some ambient and minimalist. Very little of the stuff that I loved in high school or college.
Yeah, five is tough. If we could do top 5 from different genres or categories, I could manage that easily. For purposes of this general top five, I've got to stick to my favorite songwriters and choose five that I keep on my phone at all times so I can carry them in my pocket for listening anywhere I end up.
I am beyond gobsmacked that I'm the first one to list the Fabs. No judgment! Just surprised. Also, I need 6 spaces for my Top 5. Stupid math. 1) The Beatles2) R.E.M.
Great to see Paul Kelly mentioned here, one of my favorite songs is "Rally 'Round the Drum."
4 Bands were my favorite at one time ...and the 5th would be a strong second at a time in my life when the rankings really mattered ...Wildly commercial taste i have
Queen
The Beatles
The Rolling Stones
R.E.M.
ELO
Early Clash
Bob Dylan
Lu Williams
Beatles
Late 60’s/early 70’s Stones
.......so no room for the Byrds, Costello, JAMC, Aztec Camera, OJ........🙁
@MagicRatAFC + @Jerseyfornia If we're being picky, Colin Hay is too.😉
Sorry, I'm claiming ACDC as Scottish.
Does it have to be bands? Because that would be different than solo artists, at least for me.
OK Bands:
Beatles
CCR
Limeliters (remember them? I bet you don't)
Seekers
Travelling Wilburys
😉
My top 5 Aussie acts would be something like...:
Colin Hay
Paul Kelly
John Butler Trio
INXS
Midnight Oil
At least the bottom two on that list I've actually seen live back in the mid Nineties, which is pretty cool....
Cold Chisel
The Rolling Stones
U2
The Killers
This is the difficult spot... a bunch of artists here that I've loved for a period and pummelled my way through the back catalogue at some stage, but don't listen to as now. Dire Straits might at a pinch win out against Neil Young, REM, Tom Petty, Midnight Oil, Creedence Clearwater Revival.
You see now? You've reminded me that I listen to a heck of a lot of Jimmy Smith, especially in the evening... Choosing top 5 lists is HARD.
I actually often avoid listening too often to my very favorites, as I don't want to ever risk losing the spine-tingling moments, and learned that such a thing is in fact possible.
So the artists I've listened to the most over the past 4 years—since late November 2016—have been primarily Blue Note musicians, with a surprising (to me) amount of prog thrown into the mix, as well as some ambient and minimalist. Very little of the stuff that I loved in high school or college.
For me I would have to base it on the artists/bands I listen to most often. So I think it would be something like:
Johnny Clegg
Bob Marley
Pink Floyd
Deacon Blue
Rosanne Cash
And the 5 making up a top 10 would probably be...
Alison Krauss
Dylan
David Baerwald
John Hiatt
Tracy Chapman
Yeah, five is tough. If we could do top 5 from different genres or categories, I could manage that easily. For purposes of this general top five, I've got to stick to my favorite songwriters and choose five that I keep on my phone at all times so I can carry them in my pocket for listening anywhere I end up.
Not in any order.
Bob Dylan
Steve Earle
David Baerwald
Neil Young
Buffy Sainte-Marie
Love the Beatles too, just listen to others more.
I am beyond gobsmacked that I'm the first one to list the Fabs. No judgment! Just surprised. Also, I need 6 spaces for my Top 5. Stupid math. 1) The Beatles 2) R.E.M.
3) The Replacements
4) Bob Dylan
5) David Bowie
That's a tough one...........in no particular order -
The National, The Hold Steady, Jesse Main, Jason Isbell and Billy Bragg.
Honourable mentions to Leonard Cohen, Marillion (Fish era only), Steve Earle, The Clash, The Skids............
Bob Dylan
Tom Petty
Roxy Music/Bryan Ferry
Leonard Cohen
Al Stewart
Very hard to just pick 5 but I went with artists I play most and I’ve seen all of them live and they didn’t disappoint.
Emmylou
Four Tops
Jackson Browne
Josh Ritter
Stevie Wonder
i had a debate with myself about Stevie Wonder/Marvin Gaye/Otis Redding and tomorrow, I might choose one of the others!