Vote: Which musical artist would you choose?

[fresh_42]

For most of those you just listed, that is why someone extracted the term, "The Twenty-Seven Club".

There are more tragic cases outside 27 besides Buddy Holly. Eva Cassidy (33), Melanie Thornton (34). It's not always drugs and Rock'n'Roll.

 

[PeroK]

Another coincidence is that the two famous drummers to die young, Keith Moon and John Bonham, both died at 32.

 

[rsk]

Hmm, I did not think of that. And it wouldn't surprise me if it was true.

(Edit: Recently I noticed two suspicious ads for me on facebook. One time it was an ad for binoculars from a company called AstroSweden, just a day after I had talked about binoculars and telescopes in a mail (Gmail) with my friends. Next time it was an ad for the beer Staropramen a couple of days after I had sent a test photo with a Staropramen beer to my friends on Gmail.)

I sometimes wonder about the companies who pay for this targetted advertising based on spying.
Do they realize you always see the ads just AFTER you've already bought the item in question?

 

[pinball1970]

Well, Whitney was the only one in the collection who could actually sing.

She could sing but I always used to rather that she would not have.

 

[pinball1970]

Hendrix was the easy choice for me.

There are so many lost legends I would forcefully introduce. Just imagine a jam between Jimi Hendrix, Duane Allman, EVH, and Stevie Ray Vaughan.

Also, Randy Rhoads and Bon Scott.

We always forget Terry Kath. Hendrix rated him apparently.

 

[pinball1970]

So, this musician dies and goes to hell. All the great musicians go to hell. The devil meets him there, and introduces him to his band - on guitars are Brian Jones and Duane Allman. Bass is John Entwistle, "but sometimes Jaco Pastorius sits in". Keyboards is Keith Emerson.

Our musician is wondering "Who's the drummer? John Bonham? Ginger Baker? Maybe Moon? Sure...got to be Keith Moon"

In comes a skinny girl, sits at the drums and she says, "All right everybody. Rainy Days and Mondays, in E-flat".

Alternative ending to that.
As all the great drummers are arguing who should take a seat at the kit Everyone hears this incredible drumming above them.
John Bonham says, "that sounds like Buddy Rich!"
St Peter appears and says, "Nah, it's god. He just thinks he's Buddy Rich."

 

[fresh_42]

She could sing but I always used to rather that she would not have.

I like coloratura soprano.

 

[pinball1970]

I like coloratura soprano.

I did not have you down as one of those guys.

 

[fresh_42]

I did not have you down as one of those guys.

It doesn't prevent me from liking Lemmy, too. I believe that music is a Western way to influence our autonomic nervous system on purpose, i.e. manipulate moods. A cheap trick to cut short the long education to a Tibetian monk. So the bandwidth of music I like or don't like is pretty large. I observed that I like songs with a total tacet, a pause for a few notes. I have no idea why.

 

[pinball1970]

It doesn't prevent me from liking Lemmy, too. I believe that music is a Western way to influence our autonomic nervous system on purpose, i.e. manipulate moods. A cheap trick to cut short the long education to a Tibetian monk. So the bandwidth of music I like or don't like is pretty large. I observed that I like songs with a total tacet, a pause for a few notes. I have no idea why.

Yes, more like that guy.

 

[PeroK]

To continue the morbid theme, Motorhead and the Jimi Hendrix Experience are the only really famous groups where they are all gone.

 

[Vanadium 50]

Meat Loaf is touring without Meat Loaf. Kind of vegetarian meatloaf.

 

[symbolipoint]

I believe that music is a Western way to influence our autonomic nervous system on purpose, i.e. manipulate moods. A cheap trick to cut short the long

That is ONE of the uses, but it is not the most important use.

I observed that I like songs with a total tacet, a pause for a few notes. I have no idea why.

The meaning and effect of Rhythm. Too, many people feel a fascination with changes in rhythm.

 

[Klystron]

There is something of a morbid coincidence that Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Brian Jones and Jim Morrison were all 27 when they died. Poor Buddy Holly was only 22.

Buddy Holly and fellow passengers including rising star Ritchie Valens; Ricky Nelson and bandmates; and music promoter Bill Graham died in separate aircraft accidents anent to concert travel; apparently an occupational hazard of that business.

(I linked Bill Graham to wikipedia for disambiguation of his assumed name. While famous among rock fans after mid 1960's in the San Francisco Bay Area, Graham and the Family Dog probably are not well known elsewhere (and elsewhen).)

 

[Astronuc]

Hendrix is my first choice, Marley my second.

Of course, if the list was expanded, I'd pick James Dewar with Robin Trower. I'd love to hear "Bridge of Sighs", "A Tale Untold", "For Earth Below" and "About to Begin".

 

[DennisN]

Of course, if the list was expanded [...]

For fun, I tried expanding the list for me, and here is how it went:
(Edit 1: I did not think of only deceased, I thought of all my favorite bands I've never seen)

Other artists I wish I would have seen live are R.E.M., Pink Floyd (with Roger Waters present), Guns N' Roses (when they were good), Soundgarden, Eurythmics (at ca 1983-85) and Alanis Morissette (Jagged Little Pill tour; regrettably she canceled a concert I was planning to go to).

Among these, I don't know which one I would buy a ticket to, it would be a VERY hard choice for me.
Hmm, let's cut it down to four:

• David Bowie
• R.E.M.
• Pink Floyd
• Eurythmics

From there it's almost impossible for me to choose only one of them!

Ok, scrap Pink Floyd, they can be rather depressing. Please note I am a huge fan, though .

Ok, David Bowie, R.E.M., Eurythmics...

Darn, they all got so many good songs each of them.

It hurts a lot, but I think I scrap Eurythmics.

Ok, David Bowie versus R.E.M..

Let's try listing five awesome songs with each one:

David Bowie: Life on Mars, Heroes, Ziggy Stardust, Rock 'n' Roll Suicide, Let's Dance.
R.E.M.: The One I Love, Get Up, Drive, What's The Frequency, Kenneth?, Losing My Religion.

Do I really have to choose only one of the artists? It's like torture!
First I thought I would go for R.E.M., but then I listened to the five songs by Bowie above.
Again, I choose David Bowie as number one. The songs are just fantastic.

------------------------------------

Luckily I have seen a lot of my other favorites live, among them Pixies (2004 Reunion), The Cure (Disintegration tour 1990), U2 (Achtung Baby tour) and Massive Attack (Mezzanine tour) which are among the most memorable live concerts I've been to.

------------------------------------

Edit 2: I forgot two of the really big ones, The Beatles and The Rolling Stones, which of course I also would have loved to see. Other bands I wouldn't mind seeing is Swedish ABBA (of course!)*, Led Zeppelin, AC/DC and some of the famous funk bands/funk artists.

* Three awesome ABBA songs of many:

• Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (it is SO well composed, in my opinion, and even Madonna used it)
• The Winner Takes It All (fantastic)
• The Visitors (awesomely haunting, and it's about dissidents in the Soviet Union, Poland maybe, I don't know)

 

[Astronuc]

which are among the most memorable live concerts I've been to.

My memorable concerts were in the 1970s with Spirit, Santana, Yes, Jethro Tull, Kansas, Rush, . . . .

The most memorable was Yes 1978.

 

[BillTre]

Interesting post @DennisN!

It would not surprise me if everybody had a list of favorites many of which would be different or unique.
For example, I really like the band Little Feat (1970's New Orleans-ish funky rock and blues band with fun lyrics).
They were big in the DC area where I regrew up, but mostly southern region:


There several other less popular performers I really like.
As well as some I have seen a lot of.
However, with respect to the original question, some of these guys I have seen a lot of and therefore would be less of a draw for a viewing, compared with seeing some completely different performance(r).

I guess some of this would be age related; what music was current when one's favorites were developing?

Never seen Yes, but I like them!
Did they put on a good show?

 

[Vanadium 50]

DC area where I regrew up, but mostly southern region

DC is the south. The Mason-Dixon Line is the northern border of Maryland.
And, ironically, Lowell George died in the DC area.

 

[BillTre]

DC is the south. The Mason-Dixon Line is the northern border of Maryland.

Culturally, but not politically and with a mixed history.

 

[DennisN]

Little Feat (1970's New Orleans-ish funky rock and blues band with fun lyrics)

I've never heard them before, but they sound very good! I love that kind of groove, and also the musical setup on stage. Thanks for the suggestion!

 

[pinball1970]

My memorable concerts were in the 1970s with Spirit, Santana, Yes, Jethro Tull, Kansas, Rush, . . . .

The most memorable was Yes 1978.

That would have been something, I would have liked to have seen Yes in the 70s

 

[PeroK]

The first band I saw live was Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow in Edinburgh in 1980 (my last year at school):

https://www.concertarchives.org/concerts/rainbow--4

The last band I saw was King Crimson at the London Palladium in 2018. Despite the band's age (Robert Fripp is 75 now), they were on stage for nearly three hours. They were utterly brilliant.

 

[Astronuc]

Jimi Hendrix, Little Wing

 

[Klystron]

My memorable concerts were in the 1970s with Spirit, Santana, Yes, Jethro Tull, Kansas, Rush, . . . .

The most memorable was Yes 1978.

Not to foment jealousy, but Carlos Santana formed his blues band and performed all over the San Francisco Bay Area from 1966 onward. I could not count the number of times I heard him and various bandmates play live. Santana opened for other Bay Area bands at fairs and parks, often playing to distracted audiences who came early expecting to hear some popular band.

"Who are these (people)? What are they doing onstage? Checking sound levels?"

Local Santana fans would patiently explain and quiet people down to listen to the great music. Santana provided innovation and mixed genres adding something different each live performance. When Santana opened nights for the Santa Clara County fair circa 1969, each show sounded unique. The first audio cassette tape I owned featured Santana's first album. Carlos would later lament on stage how they missed the early days.

"Now they all want to hear "Jingo Va"; and it better be note perfect to the recording on their album at home lest they complain."

 

[Astronuc]

I could not count the number of times I heard him and various bandmates play live. Santana opened for other Bay Area bands at fairs and parks,

One of the band members was Neal Schon, an American rock guitarist, songwriter, and vocalist, best known for his work with the bands Journey and Bad English. He was a member of the rock band Santana before forming Journey, . . . Ref: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neal_Schon

Another Santana member was Gregg Rolie, who served as lead singer of the bands Santana and Journey – both of which he co-founded. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gregg_Rolie

I listened to Santana in the early 70s, and finally got to see them live in 1977 when Moonflower album was released. About the same time, I saw Journey in a separate concert. By that time, Journey had become more of a pop-rock band. I think there best album was the first one, the eponymous Journey (1975). My favorite Journey tune is "Of a Lifetime".

One band that I didn't see was Quicksilver Messenger Service, which also came out of the San Francisco Bay area. I would have liked to see John Cipollina perform. They had some great tunes like "Fresh Air" (1970), "What About Me" (1971).

 

[Klystron]

One band that I didn't see was Quicksilver Messenger Service, which also came out of the San Francisco Bay area. I would have liked to see John Cipollina perform. They had some great tunes like "Fresh Air" (1970), "What About Me" (1971).

Quicksilver Messenger Service had a large youthful fan base in the Bay Area in that period. The artwork for their "QMS" performances was also very popular with 'psychedelic' concert handouts and posters particularly for Fillmore West and The Family Dog.

I am/was quite poor at remembering the names of musicians, bands and even songs. I could remember and sometimes play musical phrases I heard but was hopeless at discussing band members and who was in and out of which band; a major topic of conversation among teens.

I do remember other 60's-70's local Bay Area band favorites Ace of Cups (all female musicians), It's a Beautiful Day, Creedence Clearwater Revival (CCR) and Jefferson Airplane; only the last two achieving international fame AFAIK.

It could be difficult to know for sure if a band was actually local. Many locals assumed Doctor John: The Night-Tripper (Mac Rebennack) to be from the Bay Area, mistaking his thick New Orleans accent for backwoods Northern Californian. On the obverse, many CCR fans assumed Berkeley natives John Fogarty and his brother came from the deep South. The accents can be confusing, particularly on recordings.

 

[BWV]

Have recordings of all of them, now hearing Beethoven, Liszt or Mozart improvise would have been something

 

[JT Smith]

Have recordings of all of them, now hearing Beethoven, Liszt or Mozart improvise would have been something

 

[JT Smith]

I would buy a ticket to any of them, all of them. But if I had to choose just one, it wouldn't be one of those on that odd, limited list. Where did that even come from? There are so many great artists, current as well as past.

 

[DennisN]

But if I had to choose just one, it wouldn't be one of those on that odd, limited list. Where did that even come from?

I'm part guilty, I started the thread. I got it from facebook. I thought it was a fun question so I shared it here.

There are so many great artists, current as well as past.

I agree.

 

[pinball1970]

Wow, very cool!
If I remember correctly the (or one of) the Monterey concert(s) were filmed and considered to be one of the best concerts. According to one of my friends who is a huge fan of Hendrix (and if I remember correctly).

And I would pay a nice amount of cash to see this live, as I would be rocking out in the audience :

Jimi Hendrix - Johnny B Goode (Live at 'The Berkeley Community Theater', 1970)

I saw David Bowie in 2000 at Glastonbury, he was great, did all the old stuff. Hendrix for me though, a game changer.

 

[pinball1970]

I chose Whitney, because I think her performance would be maybe the most powerful/emotional. That kind of thing you can appreciate more live I think.



Jimmy Hendrix, at the time, was really different, and for that earns some points but I only like a few of his songs. His version of Along the Watchtower is one of my favorite songs, as is Little Wing. But his live performances weren't always that great.




He is not dead but this is a lovely little demo of what the pick ups can do on a guitar and he throws in Little Wing.

 

[symbolipoint]

I would buy a ticket to any of them, all of them. But if I had to choose just one, it wouldn't be one of those on that odd, limited list. Where did that even come from? There are so many great artists, current as well as past.

Somebody in the topic explained, the artists on the list are all very popular and are all dead now. I guess if they are all dead, then they WERE popular.

 

[DennisN]

My memorable concerts were in the 1970s with Spirit, Santana, Yes, Jethro Tull, Kansas, Rush, . . . .

The most memorable was Yes 1978.

I just remembered a concert I did not think about before, and thought it would be fun to share a story of since there apparently are a lot of Hendrix fans here.

I once saw the US rock band The Hooters (song examples: Satellite, All You Zombies) on a musical festival in Denmark a long time ago. I knew about them and liked them but I didn't consider myself a huge fan.

It turned out to be one of the best concerts I've ever seen. They were astoundingly good live!
And they won the entire audience easily (a couple of thousand people, if I remember correctly).
The ecstatic audience made the band make several encores, which they did, going way overtime.

But the audience did not want them to go.
Finally they told the audience "we would love to play more, but we are out of rehearsed material" .
And then they started jamming instead, playing Jimi Hendrix songs to the ecstatic audience. And they performed it great.

It was marvellous.