Rolling Stone List of Greatest 200 Singers of All Time

[The Knize]

Thank you @The Knize that is helpful! (I didn't want to click through that many pages just to get the list of names...)

My pleasure. I think it is annoying that RS does not provide a simple list. Maybe they want us all to look at ads or something. Or maybe it makes it easier to critique the list when it is easy to figure out who is on it.

again, am I wrong here, no Janis Joplin?...

Janis is on there. That really would be laughable to leave her off!

Thanks for the corrections. I returned to the list and noticed that there were some glitches every now and then when scrolling from my end. This led to sections being missed.

I am happy to assist! RS makes it hard. And do not feel bad at all. I have watched any number of You Tube videos critiquing this list now, and I would say that actually most presenters make errors as to who is and who is not on the list. This includes folks I would consider careful and knowledgeable. If I were making a You Tube video I would really have an incentive to be accurate. I do not think anyone would hold anyone making a casual post on B&B to any high degree of accuracy. There is not need for it!

I may come back and respond to more things later. I do not have time right now, but I love the robust and extensive discussion! I think the topic supports lots of discussion!

Mickey Thomas didn't make the list, but Axl Rose did? (Axl Rose doesn't even make the top billion, IMO!)

That is funny. I would have said that Axl was an incredible unique vocalist. That on songs like "November Rain" he was amazing. But discussing this list made me go back and listen critically to him, and he seemed less impressive. Mickey Thomas is great.

Jim Morrison

That, to me, may be the biggest error on the list. He just seems to squarely fit all the RS criteria. I think it has become fashionable to dis and dismiss The Doors for some reason.

Tim Buckley

Yes. It could be argued that Jeff Buckley's output and influence was too limited. But his Dad was important.

Alice Cooper could croon pretty well IMO on songs like "Blue Turk."

I would not have thought so until I went back and listened, but as a crooner, I would put Billy Idol on the list. "Looks like Sting, sounds like Bing" as SNL put it.

Lou Reed's

As much as I like Lou Reed, I think listing hm as a great singer is very controversial.

Gene Clark and David Crosby

I think of Crosby as one of the very best harmony singers ever, and I love Gene Clark. I do not think top 100 though. Top 200 seems like a big net to cast!

I do not know why I am a bit down on Aretha, but I seem to be. I do not seem to really have another number one choice.

Lots of other good names in there. I am not a big John Lee Hooker fan, even though I am a big blues fan.

 

[The Knize]

I thought thus was an excellent review of the RS list. I like these guys anyway.

 

[Alum of Potash]

Thanks for the link. I totally agree with the comment at 6:55-7:05 regarding Steve Winwood. Forgot about him. Great singer. Other comments as given there were also appreciated, particularly with regard to the supposed arrival at Rolling Stone's decisions based on the bigger picture.

Late Boomer/Generation Joneser here, which may explain my preferential tastes, given towards the overlooked and obscure on all fronts.

This thread has caused me to revisit my Fred Neil and Tim Buckley records. I was listening to Fred Neil's 1966 recording, "Faretheewell (Fred's Tune)," and I was struck by how it might have influenced Tim Buckley's 1970 recording, "I Had a Talk with My Woman." If one accepts that Aretha's number one, then Fred Neil is number two in my book and sadly overlooked...

And one more Tim Buckley track from the same album for good measure, "Driftin'." He was not included on the list.

 

[Doc4]

*cough*