KevShmev's FAVORITE 25 MUSICIANS (#1 now featured!!)

[KevShmev]

And no more spoiler or hints from those of you who know me and my tastes well.

[TAC]

The joke will be on you clowns when Michael Sweet is number 1.

That'll be a sweet #1!

[King Postwhore]

 

Mad props Kev.

[Serah Farron]

Exucse my lack of musical taste, but what's a winger?

[TAC]

Been trying to figure that out for years!

[King Postwhore]

You just opened up a can find 80's worms.

[KevShmev]

The joke will be on you clowns when Michael Sweet is number 1.

That'll be a sweet #1!

[King Postwhore]

To hell with the TAC devil.

[Serah Farron]

Been trying to figure that out for years!

Ah, sorry bout that!
Just your signature and Kip Winger? so I was just wondering what a Winger was.

You just opened up a can find 80's worms.

can find 80's worms? What's that?

The joke will be on you clowns when Michael Sweet is number 1.

That'll be a sweet #1!

OMGEE it's DiCaprio!!!! <3

[TAC]

You just opened up a can find 80's worms.

can find 80's worms? What's that?
 

Yeah, what the hell is that?

[King Postwhore]

TAC never liked the band Winger. We all harass him about it.

He even has this made for him.  Check this out.

[King Postwhore]

You just opened up a can find 80's worms.

can find 80's worms? What's that?
 

Yeah, what the hell is that?

Kip's Playgirl spread. 

[Serah Farron]

TAC never liked the band Winger. We all harass him about it.

He even has this made for him.  Check this out.

Oooohhhh, that's why! Ah, thanks! 

And I'm so sorry TAC for bringing that up. My apologies. I didn't know, but now I do so I won't make that mistake again.

[Serah Farron]

You just opened up a can find 80's worms.

can find 80's worms? What's that?
 

Yeah, what the hell is that?

Kip's Playgirl spread. 

[bl5150]

You just opened up a can find 80's worms.

can find 80's worms? What's that?
 

Yeah, what the hell is that?

Kip's Playgirl spread. 

Out of respect for Kev I will delay posting that photo until Kip is announced in the list. 

[TAC]

WTF just happened to this thread. One minute I'm enjoying Kev's list, and the next I'm getting Wingered!

Assholes!

[bl5150]

Something had to be done to stop the thread being Maidened 

[Cool Chris]

Honorable mentions
Tomas Bodin
Thom Yorke

Who? 

I had to google Tomas Bodin. And Buck Dharma. And Michael Sweet for that matter.

Thom Yorke is with Radiohead. Or Coldplay. Or one of those other British bands with whiney-sounding vocals.

[Imaginos]

Great call on (almost) Buck Dharma, the solo on Harvester of Eyes is one of my favorites from any guitar player. His kinda quirky style of playing suits BOC perfectly. Plus I've always thought Buck Dharma was just a cool stage name.

[Cool Chris]

Not sure how anyone named Buck is not a porn star.

[Kwyjibo]

There was a time when every thread turned inevitably to Kevin Moore after some discussion. Now it seems that every thread has to have a Winger mention, and rightfully so. 

[Elite]

Honorable mentions
James LaBrie

Really??

[Mladen]

Thom Yorke is with Radiohead. Or Coldplay. Or one of those other British bands with whiney-sounding vocals.

Yorke is an absolutely insane, over the top singer. He has his calm and warm moments, but he's way too upfront and eccentric to be thrown together with guys from Coldplay, Keane or Travis.

There are some fantastic choices in your honorable mentions, Kev. I agree with your thoughts on some guys not ending up as favorites because of their personality aside from musicianship. That's why Mike Portnoy probably wouldn't end up on my list neither, but Roger Waters will nevertheless hang on my living-room wall soon, and John Lennon already does (along with the rest of The Beatles).

[Stadler]

Thom Yorke is with Radiohead. Or Coldplay. Or one of those other British bands with whiney-sounding vocals.

Yorke is an absolutely insane, over the top singer. He has his calm and warm moments, but he's way too upfront and eccentric to be thrown together with guys from Coldplay, Keane or Travis.

There are some fantastic choices in your honorable mentions, Kev. I agree with your thoughts on some guys not ending up as favorites because of their personality aside from musicianship. That's why Mike Portnoy probably wouldn't end up on my list neither, but Roger Waters will nevertheless hang on my living-room wall soon, and John Lennon already does (along with the rest of The Beatles).

Just a little counter point....


Portnoy would be on my list - and very high indeed - BECAUSE of his personality, not in spite of it.  Maybe it's because I'm the same age, and from the same part of the country, but with a couple exceptions, I can relate - even if it isn't necessarily something I'd be proud of - to him and his love for music, and his protectiveness over his band and career. 

Thom Yorke wouldn't get anywhere near my list - I'd put Ian Hill of Judas Priest in there before Thom Yorke.  Or Dennis Stratton.  Or the guy that took over for Joe Perry for half a tour in '78.   He would, however, have a prominent place - easily top five if not top three - on my lists of grossly overrated musicians and/or exceedingly pretentious musicians.

 

[Elite]

Thom Yorke wouldn't get anywhere near my list - I'd put Ian Hill of Judas Priest in there before Thom Yorke.  Or Dennis Stratton.  Or the guy that took over for Joe Perry for half a tour in '78.   He would, however, have a prominent place - easily top five if not top three - on my lists of grossly overrated musicians and/or exceedingly pretentious musicians.

Come on, you might not like his voice or his personality, but Thom Yorke is in many ways a defining musician of the last 20-odd years. His music with Radiohead may be pretentious indeed, but you can't deny the critical acclaim the band has gotten for being inventive and non-conforming. That's not even counting the 'classic' albums they have released with OK Computer, Kid A and, to a somewhat lesser extent, Insomniac. Their latest release was featured on many a top X list of 2016. Thom Yorke is an polarising artist, for sure, but an artist nonetheless and a damn good song-writer and musician.

[Prog Snob]

No, I am saying that Wakeman is a fast player.

I never denied that, though.

[KevShmev]

On to the top 10...

10. Freddie Mercury



It was not my intention to have the two Queen members back-to-back, but it's just the way it worked out.  Anyway, who can argue with the voice of Freddie Mercury?   He is arguably both the greatest rock singer ever AND the greatest rock frontman ever.  Watching Live at Wembley '86 is just inspiring, seeing him hold that many in the palm of his hand.  His vocals over the years were jaw-dropping already, and then you listen to Innuendo and realize he did those when he was on the verge of death from AIDS...it's just unbelievable, no matter how you slice it.  The list of musicians you never see anyone say a bad thing about is really short, and Freddie Mercury is at the top of that list.  He might be the most universally loved rock star ever. 

[TAC]

It was not my intention to have the two Queen members back-to-back, but it's just the way it worked out.   

No problem, so long as John Deacon isn't #9!


Anyway, as I said, The Lovely Mrs TAC isn't wicked into music, but she loves Queen. I'm a casual Queen fan and Freddie Mercury is simply amazing. Amazing!

As great as he was in his prime, I think his performance on Innuendo was one of his finest. Great album.

[bl5150]

It was not my intention to have the two Queen members back-to-back, but it's just the way it worked out.   

No problem, so long as John Deacon isn't #9!


Anyway, as I said, The Lovely Mrs TAC isn't wicked into music, but she loves Queen. I'm a casual Queen fan and Freddie Mercury is simply amazing. Amazing!

As great as he was in his prime, I think his performance on Innuendo was one of his finest. Great album.

Agreed.  I played some Queen albums yesterday during my 70's splurge of Zep, The Who , Queen, The Eagles and I came to the conclusion that I had been right all these years to keep it to their Best Of's because I rarely liked anything other than the hits 

I prefer the more standard commercial rock side of Queen to the "out there" theatrical, pompy stuff.  Not that you could call Bohemian Rhapsody standard anything , but I think you know what I mean   Speaking of Innuendo , a good example of a song from Freddie that I love is The Show Must Go On , not only because it's amazing but because of the circumstances.

[erwinrafael]

Brent, I know I made a mistake of sending you The Prophet's Song in your roulette, but I hope you give a listen to the Queen song I was originally planning to send to you: It's Late. I think that would suit your tastes just fine.

[bl5150]

Brent, I know I made a mistake of sending you The Prophet's Song in your roulette, but I hope you give a listen to the Queen song I was originally planning to send to you: It's Late. I think that would suit your tastes just fine.

Yeah - I quite like that Erwin and it's more the rocking style of Queen I like.  That riff sounds very familiar , so I have either heard it before or it's very close to another prominent song by someone .

Sorry about the rating I gave The Prophet's Song but I couldn't deal with all the waffle.  I used Skip a few minutes in when I played A Night At The Opera yesterday

[Cool Chris]

Notable exceptions who didn't make it because of non-musical reasons
Roger Waters (one of my favorite songwriters and my 2nd favorite lyricist, but he's been too much of a dick over the years)

I was curious if your list would be solely based on musical output or not. I try not to base my opinions of an artist too much around their personality characteristics. If they are a cool person outside the studio (like Brian May of Freddie Mercury, from your list) it just enhances my admiration for them. If they are pricks, I tend to look the other way and just enjoy their music. Though I will say seeing Roger enjoying himself as much as he seems to be doing these days is quite a pleasure.

[Stadler]

It was not my intention to have the two Queen members back-to-back, but it's just the way it worked out.   

No problem, so long as John Deacon isn't #9!


Anyway, as I said, The Lovely Mrs TAC isn't wicked into music, but she loves Queen. I'm a casual Queen fan and Freddie Mercury is simply amazing. Amazing!

As great as he was in his prime, I think his performance on Innuendo was one of his finest. Great album.

Agreed.  I played some Queen albums yesterday during my 70's splurge of Zep, The Who , Queen, The Eagles and I came to the conclusion that I had been right all these years to keep it to their Best Of's because I rarely liked anything other than the hits 

I prefer the more standard commercial rock side of Queen to the "out there" theatrical, pompy stuff.  Not that you could call Bohemian Rhapsody standard anything , but I think you know what I mean   Speaking of Innuendo , a good example of a song from Freddie that I love is The Show Must Go On , not only because it's amazing but because of the circumstances.

That's my ONE knock against Queen; I don't want all AC/DC albums (ten variations on a theme every year and a half) but it's just too jarring sometimes to go from "Death on Two Legs" to "Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon", then from "I'm In Love With My Car" to "My Best Friend", then from "The Prophet Song" to "Love of My Life"... That's in some measure why Queen II is by far my favorite Queen record; it's the most consistent and flowing. 

By the way, technically speaking, Brian wrote "The Show Must Go On" as a sort of "Hey, I can only imagine what you're going through, my friend" gesture.   Then, of course, Freddie sang the ever-living SHIT out of that song. 

[KevShmev]

I'm always mystified at the love for Prophet's Song.  Most of the song is good, but the middle section is way too long and gets annoying really quick.  I know quite a few Queen fans in "real life" , and not a single one ever brings that song up when we talk about them.

[Stadler]

Thom Yorke wouldn't get anywhere near my list - I'd put Ian Hill of Judas Priest in there before Thom Yorke.  Or Dennis Stratton.  Or the guy that took over for Joe Perry for half a tour in '78.   He would, however, have a prominent place - easily top five if not top three - on my lists of grossly overrated musicians and/or exceedingly pretentious musicians.

Come on, you might not like his voice or his personality, but Thom Yorke is in many ways a defining musician of the last 20-odd years. His music with Radiohead may be pretentious indeed, but you can't deny the critical acclaim the band has gotten for being inventive and non-conforming. That's not even counting the 'classic' albums they have released with OK Computer, Kid A and, to a somewhat lesser extent, Insomniac. Their latest release was featured on many a top X list of 2016. Thom Yorke is an polarising artist, for sure, but an artist nonetheless and a damn good song-writer and musician.

Not going to hijack someone else's thread too much, but while I see some of what you write - and have already gotten my arms around the ludicrous idea that Radiohead will be first-ballot inductees into the Jann Wenner^TM Rock and Roll Hall of Fame - some of the stuff you write is subjective, and no, I don't buy all of it.  Sure, lot's of critical acclaim, and sure their "non-conforming" angle is part of that.  But I don't see all the "inventive", and while Yorke clearly doesn't "suck" (I'm able to separate the idea that just because I don't like it doesn't mean he "sucks"), in my view, he's not the legend that some make him out to be.