Thursday, November 13, 2008

Aretha Franklin Named Greatest Singer of Rock Era

Rolling Stone's new issue names their picks for the 100 greatest singers of the Rock Era based on a poll of 179 industry professionals.

Aretha Franklin tops the list with Mary J. Blige saying "Aretha has everything — the power, the technique. When it comes to expressing yourself through song, there is no one who can touch her. She is the reason why women want to sing." Franklin is followed by Ray Charles and Elvis Presley.

For the poll, each individual was asked to name their 20 "best" vocalists from the Rock era in order of importance. All of the lists were then combined, using a weighting factor based on how high they were on each individual list, producing the final 100.

Among those voting were Eric Burdon, Solomon Burke, Dave Clark, Alice Cooper, David Crosby, Clive Davis, Dion, Mick Fleetwood, Art Garfunkel, Merle Haggard, Daryl Hall, Etta James, Billy Joel, B.B. King, Mike Love, Loretta Lynn, John Mellencamp, George Michael, Bette Midler, Iggy Pop, Keith Richards, Carlos Santana, Bruce Springsteen, Ringo Starr, Roger Waters and many more.

What is striking about this particular list is the abbundance of what we call Veteran Artists (those whose recording career started at least 25 years ago). Only eight singers whose career started before the mid-80's even made the list.

Rolling Stone has been guilty in the past of loading many of their "Best-Ofs" with modern artists may not have belonged on the lists and leaving off much more deserving artists. This time, the breadth of the people asked to vote has been able to keep a better perspective of older artists withing the framework of the times.

Veteran artists who made the list:

1. Aretha Franklin
2. Ray Charles
3. Elvis Presley
4. Sam Cooke
5. John Lennon
6. Marvin Gaye
7. Bob Dylan
8. Otis Redding
9. Stevie Wonder
10. James Brown
11. Paul McCartney
12. Little Richard
13. Roy Orbison
14. Al Green
15. Robert Plant
16. Mick Jagger
17. Tina Turner
18. Freddie Mercury
19. Bob Marley
20. Smokey Robinson
21. Johnny Cash
22. Etta James
23. David Bowie
24. Van Morrison
25. Michael Jackson
26. Jackie Wilson
27. Hank Williams
28. Janis Joplin
29. Nina Simone
30. Prince
31. Howlin' Wolf
32. Bono
33. Steve Winwood
34. Whitney Houston
35. Dusty Springfield
36. Bruce Springsteen
37. Neil Young
38. Elton John
40. Curtis Mayfield
41. Chuck Berry
42. Joni Mitchell
43. George Jones
44. Bobby "Blue" Bland
46. Patsy Cline
47. Jim Morrison
48. Buddy Holly
49. Donny Hathaway
50. Bonnie Raitt
51. Gladys Knight
52. Brian Wilson
53. Muddy Waters
54. Luther Vandross
55. Paul Rodgers
56. Mavis Staples
57. Eric Burdon
59. Rod Stewart
61. Roger Daltrey
62. Lou Reed
63. Dion
65. David Ruffin
67. Jerry Lee Lewis
68. Wilson Pickett
69. Ronnie Spector
70. Gregg Allman
71. Toots Hibbert
72. John Fogerty
73. Dolly Parton
74. James Taylor
75. Iggy Pop
76. Steve Perry
77. Merle Haggard
78. Sly Stone
80. Frankie Valli
81. John Lee Hooker
82. Tom Waits
83. Patti Smith
84. Darlene Love
85. Sam Moore
86. Art Garfunkel
87. Don Henley
88. Willie Nelson
89. Solomon Burke
90. Everly Brothers
91. Levon Helm
92. Morrissey
93. Annie Lennox
94. Karen Carpenter
95. Patti LaBelle
96. B.B. King
97. Joe Cocker
98. Stevie Nicks
99. Steven Tyler

SOURCE: http://winkscollectibles.blogspot.com

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