September 06, 2008
10 Singer-Songwriters Who Marked Our Path
So many greats.
These artists turned popular music into a movement -- a movement whose legacy includes changing the world ... 
Bob Dylan
If not Dylan, who? Whose legacy has withstood the revisionism, the mood swings, and the fascination with teen tarts? Who else has a hit record in five different decades … and is still respected? Who else is headlining some of the biggest music festivals in the country surrounded by rock stars who weren't even born when he switched to electric? Sure he's esoteric, sometimes confusing and clings to a lyric style you can trace back to Woody Guthrie, but the fact is, he could easily have three of the top-five best songs ever. 
The Rolling Stones
A handful of school-boy Brits tried to play Mississippi blues and ended up with brilliant pop-oriented Brit rock. The Rolling Stones didn't create bad-boy rock, but their incessant, successful, cavalier attitude towards the law and all means of authority has epitomized bad-boy rock for every generation that's followed. Unlike their music-making contemporaries, the Stones' appeal has never waned. Their tireless touring is of itself astounding, but when you consider that they sell more concert tickets today than they did during their first decade, it's staggering. 
The Beatles
It's hard to write about the fab four and not use the words "the best band in history" – go ahead, you try it. Suffice it to say, they sit next to Elvis as the defining icons of rock 'n' roll. The most impressive evolution of Beatles lore is the band's ability to grow. From rockabilly kids playing Carl Perkins to a mop-top, harmonizing boy band to the Dylan-influenced psychedelic musical masterminds of their later years, they redefined themselves more successfully than anyone ever. And as popular music gets farther from the band's heyday, it's getting harder not to trip over their musical influence. Need proof? Let's see, even in the last year, the Beatles, Paul McCartney and even John Lennon have all had new hit releases.
Paul Simon (and Garfunkel)
On June 29, Paul Simon became recipient of the first annual Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song, celebrating the singer-songwriter's exhaustive catalog of roundly popular music. Few can argue Simon's pop cultural significance. Heck, Saturday Night Live even lists him as one of the most popular recurring characters on its show even though Simon's not funny. His music never led the revolution, but it provided the soundtrack for many baby boomers' lives. 
Jimi Hendrix
In four years, Hendrix set the bar that all rock guitarists have been judged by since and for any foreseeable future. But Hendrix was more than just a guitarist. Hendrix flouted authority with dense lyrics and an overtly cool stage persona that had rarely ever been matched (some would say it hasn't). With works like "Purple Haze," "Voodoo Child" and "Foxy Lady," his could be the most tragic death of the '60s, given the creative wellspring that had just started to flow by the time of his overdose.
Carol King
Her masterpiece record, "Tapestry," topped the charts for months and remained one of Billboard's best for more than six years. After writing hits for everyone from the Beatles to the Animals to Dion, she left pop music and redefined herself as a toned-down folkie, recording Tapestry which immediately became one of the most impacting albums of the generation.
Just the list of songs is impressive: "I Feel the Earth Move," "So Far Away," "It's Too Late," "Home Again," "Beautiful," "Way Over Yonder," "You've Got a Friend," "Where You Lead," "Will You Love Me Tomorrow?," "Tapestry" and "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" (can't you just hear Aretha sing it, too).
Crosby, Stills & Nash (and Young)
The musical partnership of David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Graham Nash, with and without Neil Young, was not only one of the most successful acts of the '60s-'80s, it was the only American band that approached the societal impact of the Beatles. The colorful nature of the members, not to mention their lefty connections to the political and cultural upheavals of the time, resonated with baby boomers far more than the member's original groups (Crosby with the Byrds, Nash with the Hollies, Stills and Young with Buffalo Springfield.) They were an instant hit with their 1969 debut Déjà Vu ("Suite: Judy Blue Eyes," "Marrakesh Express"), but wouldn't produce another studio album until after Ronald Reagan left politics. CSNY continue to maintain their fantastic appeal with live albums and stadium tours evoking the ideals of their early beginnings.
James Brown
"Papa's Got a Brand New Bag" created the modern rock rhythm section music as we know it. But James Brown did more than put his stamp on modern music. Never slowing throughout his career, Brown may not have been a revolutionary, but his music became anthems for a generation of African Americans challenging the authority of an unimpassioned government, essentially helping fuel the Civil Rights revolution that began in '60s and continues today.
The Who
One of the key figures of the British Invasion and the mod movement of the mid-'60s, The Who were a dynamic, powerful sonic force powered by one of finest British songwriters of the time in Pete Townshend. Songs such as "The Kids Are Alright" and "My Generation" loomed as teenage anthems, but Townshend's opus was the seminal rock opera, Tommy, which earned him respect from mainstream music critics as well as the rock 'n' roll community. What The Rolling Stones were for rockers, The Who were for Mods. You could argue The Who challenged the status quo even more, wantonly reviling authority and propagating the flowing idealism of the day, albeit with a nihilistic spin. 
Bruce Springsteen
Upon release of Born to Run, the country's media dubbed Bruce Springsteen the embodiment of rock 'n' roll, and for the last 30 years, it's increasingly apparent they weren't wrong. The Boss was the natural extension of John Lennon and Jim Morrison, a mythic, iconoclast rocker who'd sooner castrate himself than sellout his ideals for a buck. Springsteen turned down the extraordinarily popular Ronald Reagan when he asked to use his "Born in the USA" during his reelection campaign. He responded the same way to General Motors. And just when you think you've got him pegged as a classic rocker, Springsteen releases a throwback folk album of Pete Seeger covers, bringing the seminal music of the early '60s back into popularity.
EXTRA BONUS (because 10 is never enough):
Cat Stevens (now Yusuf Islam)
Few boomer singer-songwriters have reinvented themselves as completely as Yusuf Islam. As Cat Stevens, he penned a slew of pop hits in the '60s, some of which are still being successfully covered ("The First Cut Is the Deepest," a hit for Stevens, Rod Stewart and Sheryl Crow in '67, '77 and 2003, respectively.) But disillusioned by the mainstream music business, Stevens started writing more introspective material. "Wild World" started a cascade of idealistic hits ("Moon Shadow," "Peace Train") that served him up as one of the most important figures in the nascent folk-rock singer-songwriter set alongside James Taylor and Carole King. A handful of years later, Stevens, weary of pop stardom, checked out, changed his name, auctioned off his possessions and entered an arranged marriage to settle down. But the music wouldn't let him go. In 2006, nearly 30 years after the final Cat Stevens studio album, Islam released a new studio effort, An Other Cup, to much acclaim.
AND WE JUST COULDN'T LEAVE OUT:
Miles Davis
His vitriolic genius changed popular music five times during his lifetime, and throughout, Davis always rose above his genre's diminishing popularity – jazz's bebop and post-bop heyday of the '50s – appealing to the mainstream as much as to his collegial aficionados beginning in the '60s and up until his death decades later. He redefined himself so often, new generations continually thought they were discovering something new. As ideals go, his allegiance was to the music, and he suffered no one in his pursuit of it.
So Who Would You Pick?
Popular music existed long before baby boomers began to make their mark on the musical landscape, but the creative explosion that began during the 1950s, the boomer formative years, was something of an American musical renaissance that some would argue has lasted until today.
Because there have been so many great artists in so many genres (rock, jazz, R&B, country, folk, etc.) we are limiting ourselves here to focus on singer-songwriters who performed their own creative works and who helped us expand our consciousness as we came of age. It's not a "who's who" from the singer-songwriter genre, though plenty are included, but rather a list of the musical minds whose song craft is as inspiring as his or her musical ability. The artists below turned popular music into a movement – a movement whose legacy literally includes changing the world.
If not Dylan, who? Whose legacy has withstood the revisionism, the mood swings, and the fascination with teen tarts? Who else has a hit record in five different decades … and is still respected? Who else is headlining some of the biggest music festivals in the country surrounded by rock stars who weren't even born when he switched to electric? Sure he's esoteric, sometimes confusing and clings to a lyric style you can trace back to Woody Guthrie, but the fact is, he could easily have three of the top-five best songs ever.
A handful of school-boy Brits tried to play Mississippi blues and ended up with brilliant pop-oriented Brit rock. The Rolling Stones didn't create bad-boy rock, but their incessant, successful, cavalier attitude towards the law and all means of authority has epitomized bad-boy rock for every generation that's followed. Unlike their music-making contemporaries, the Stones' appeal has never waned. Their tireless touring is of itself astounding, but when you consider that they sell more concert tickets today than they did during their first decade, it's staggering.
It's hard to write about the fab four and not use the words "the best band in history" – go ahead, you try it. Suffice it to say, they sit next to Elvis as the defining icons of rock 'n' roll. The most impressive evolution of Beatles lore is the band's ability to grow. From rockabilly kids playing Carl Perkins to a mop-top, harmonizing boy band to the Dylan-influenced psychedelic musical masterminds of their later years, they redefined themselves more successfully than anyone ever. And as popular music gets farther from the band's heyday, it's getting harder not to trip over their musical influence. Need proof? Let's see, even in the last year, the Beatles, Paul McCartney and even John Lennon have all had new hit releases.
Paul Simon (and Garfunkel)
On June 29, Paul Simon became recipient of the first annual Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song, celebrating the singer-songwriter's exhaustive catalog of roundly popular music. Few can argue Simon's pop cultural significance. Heck, Saturday Night Live even lists him as one of the most popular recurring characters on its show even though Simon's not funny. His music never led the revolution, but it provided the soundtrack for many baby boomers' lives.
In four years, Hendrix set the bar that all rock guitarists have been judged by since and for any foreseeable future. But Hendrix was more than just a guitarist. Hendrix flouted authority with dense lyrics and an overtly cool stage persona that had rarely ever been matched (some would say it hasn't). With works like "Purple Haze," "Voodoo Child" and "Foxy Lady," his could be the most tragic death of the '60s, given the creative wellspring that had just started to flow by the time of his overdose.
Carol King
Her masterpiece record, "Tapestry," topped the charts for months and remained one of Billboard's best for more than six years. After writing hits for everyone from the Beatles to the Animals to Dion, she left pop music and redefined herself as a toned-down folkie, recording Tapestry which immediately became one of the most impacting albums of the generation.
Just the list of songs is impressive: "I Feel the Earth Move," "So Far Away," "It's Too Late," "Home Again," "Beautiful," "Way Over Yonder," "You've Got a Friend," "Where You Lead," "Will You Love Me Tomorrow?," "Tapestry" and "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" (can't you just hear Aretha sing it, too).
Crosby, Stills & Nash (and Young)
The musical partnership of David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Graham Nash, with and without Neil Young, was not only one of the most successful acts of the '60s-'80s, it was the only American band that approached the societal impact of the Beatles. The colorful nature of the members, not to mention their lefty connections to the political and cultural upheavals of the time, resonated with baby boomers far more than the member's original groups (Crosby with the Byrds, Nash with the Hollies, Stills and Young with Buffalo Springfield.) They were an instant hit with their 1969 debut Déjà Vu ("Suite: Judy Blue Eyes," "Marrakesh Express"), but wouldn't produce another studio album until after Ronald Reagan left politics. CSNY continue to maintain their fantastic appeal with live albums and stadium tours evoking the ideals of their early beginnings.
James Brown
"Papa's Got a Brand New Bag" created the modern rock rhythm section music as we know it. But James Brown did more than put his stamp on modern music. Never slowing throughout his career, Brown may not have been a revolutionary, but his music became anthems for a generation of African Americans challenging the authority of an unimpassioned government, essentially helping fuel the Civil Rights revolution that began in '60s and continues today.
The Who
One of the key figures of the British Invasion and the mod movement of the mid-'60s, The Who were a dynamic, powerful sonic force powered by one of finest British songwriters of the time in Pete Townshend. Songs such as "The Kids Are Alright" and "My Generation" loomed as teenage anthems, but Townshend's opus was the seminal rock opera, Tommy, which earned him respect from mainstream music critics as well as the rock 'n' roll community. What The Rolling Stones were for rockers, The Who were for Mods. You could argue The Who challenged the status quo even more, wantonly reviling authority and propagating the flowing idealism of the day, albeit with a nihilistic spin.
Upon release of Born to Run, the country's media dubbed Bruce Springsteen the embodiment of rock 'n' roll, and for the last 30 years, it's increasingly apparent they weren't wrong. The Boss was the natural extension of John Lennon and Jim Morrison, a mythic, iconoclast rocker who'd sooner castrate himself than sellout his ideals for a buck. Springsteen turned down the extraordinarily popular Ronald Reagan when he asked to use his "Born in the USA" during his reelection campaign. He responded the same way to General Motors. And just when you think you've got him pegged as a classic rocker, Springsteen releases a throwback folk album of Pete Seeger covers, bringing the seminal music of the early '60s back into popularity.
EXTRA BONUS (because 10 is never enough):
Cat Stevens (now Yusuf Islam)
Few boomer singer-songwriters have reinvented themselves as completely as Yusuf Islam. As Cat Stevens, he penned a slew of pop hits in the '60s, some of which are still being successfully covered ("The First Cut Is the Deepest," a hit for Stevens, Rod Stewart and Sheryl Crow in '67, '77 and 2003, respectively.) But disillusioned by the mainstream music business, Stevens started writing more introspective material. "Wild World" started a cascade of idealistic hits ("Moon Shadow," "Peace Train") that served him up as one of the most important figures in the nascent folk-rock singer-songwriter set alongside James Taylor and Carole King. A handful of years later, Stevens, weary of pop stardom, checked out, changed his name, auctioned off his possessions and entered an arranged marriage to settle down. But the music wouldn't let him go. In 2006, nearly 30 years after the final Cat Stevens studio album, Islam released a new studio effort, An Other Cup, to much acclaim.
AND WE JUST COULDN'T LEAVE OUT:
Miles Davis
His vitriolic genius changed popular music five times during his lifetime, and throughout, Davis always rose above his genre's diminishing popularity – jazz's bebop and post-bop heyday of the '50s – appealing to the mainstream as much as to his collegial aficionados beginning in the '60s and up until his death decades later. He redefined himself so often, new generations continually thought they were discovering something new. As ideals go, his allegiance was to the music, and he suffered no one in his pursuit of it.
So Who Would You Pick?
Would you replace any of these singer-songwriters, or just add to the list? Who would it be? Maybe Joni Mitchell? Pink Floyd? James Taylor? Led Zeppelin? Or maybe you think they should be numbered with one being the best. Let us know -- tell us who and why. We want to hear from you.
Here at ReZoom, we're exploring ways to leave behind a positive legacy. Click here to see the rest of our stories. Get inspired. It's never too late to create a legacy. More
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