Greatest Rock Artists Of All Time (Revision Version)

[Tim]

I don't really agree with Ice Cube losing musical impact to Chicago, they may have been acclaimed instrumentalists but he's one of hip-hop's top MCs/lyricists. (not that musical impact comes down to instrumental prowess only). I would def give him acclaim portion of criteria and he's overall much more influential figure than Chicago though most of his influence should be credited to NWA rather than his solo career. Not really opposed to Motörhead and Hayes moving up though Steely Dan I'd say are more acclaimed than Hayes as a recording artist.

[Tim]

Next group:

The (Young) Rascals
MC5
The Shadows
The Marvelettes
Joe Tex
Tina Turner
Beck
Tom Waits
Gloria Estefan & Miami Sound Machine
Robbie Williams

1. Beck
2. Tom Waits
3. MC5
4. The Marvelettes
5. Joe Tex
6. The (Young) Rascals
7. The Shadows
8. Tina Turner
9. Gloria Estefan & Miami Sound Machine
10. Robbie Williams

Beck & Waits acclaim beasts with some influence within alt rock/on singer-songwriters and in Beck's case, decent amount of success. MC5 legends live, huge influence on punk, Kick Out the Jams a classic.

Rascals highly succesful (& well-respected) 60s rock/soul band. Marvelettes one of the earliest Motown successes, large influence on girl groups, Motown or otherwise, Please Mr. Postman still a legendary track. Tex leading artist in Southern soul, cited as a precursor to rap even. Shadows legends of instrumental rock & British rock music in general, came to prominience as Cliff Richard's backing back but rather clearly surpassed him in terms of influence, Hank Marvin idolized by generation of British guitarists.

Tina Turner huge popularity worldwide during the 1980s, legendary raspy voice but her influence and acclaim rather comes from her Ike & Tina days. Robbie Williams popularity beast (in UK especially) but rather notoriously lacking in US popularity. Gloria Estefan pre-dated a Latin pop boom of the 1990s - 2000s with significant success in the 1980s.

[Tim]

Inserting a ten above:

185. A Tribe Called Quest
186. Wu-Tang Clan (incl. solo projects)
187. Pixies
188. Snoop Dogg
189. Lana Del Rey
190. Alice Cooper
191. Isaac Hayes
192. James Taylor
193. Steely Dan
194. Bob Seger (& the Silver Bullet Band)
195. The Mamas & the Papas
196. Solomon Burke
197. The Flamingos
198. The White Stripes
199. Smashing Pumpkins
200. Duran Duran
201. The Human League
202. Neil Diamond
203. The Monkees
204. Alicia Keys
205. Rush
206. Destiny's Child
207. The Moody Blues
208. Sonic Youth
209. Chicago
210. Ice Cube
211. KISS
212. The Staple Singers
213. Usher
214. Björk
215. Arctic Monkeys
216. Chuck Willis
217. Little Willie John
218. Del Shannon
219. Nine Inch Nails
220. Beck
221. Rage Against the Machine
222. Motörhead
223. Def Leppard
224. Afrika Bambaataa & Soulsonic Force
225. Bon Jovi
226. The Cars
227. Bad Bunny
228. Kool & the Gang
229. Lionel Richie/Commodores
230. The Ventures
231. The Animals
232. Ivory Joe Hunter
233. Tom Waits
234. Pretenders
235. Leonard Cohen
236. Frank Ocean
237. Massive Attack
238. MC5
239. Hüsker Dü
240. Jackson Browne
241. Phil Collins
242. Sade
243. Ariana Grande
244. Nicki Minaj
245. Hall & Oates
246. Boyz II Men
247. Pet Shop Boys
248. Future
249. War
250. Salt-N-Pepa
251. The Marvelettes
252. Peter Gabriel
253. The Prodigy
254. Joe Tex
255. Johnny Ace
256. The Righteous Brothers
257. The (Young) Rascals
258. T.I.
259. Cher
260. R. Kelly
261. The Spinners
262. Barry White
263. Weezer
264. Jethro Tull
265. The Shadows
266. Emerson, Lake & Palmer
267. Gary Numan/Tubeway Army
268. 50 Cent
269. Boston
270. Justin Bieber
271. Journey
272. John Mellencamp
273. ZZ Top
274. Heart
275. Alice in Chains
276. Bryan Adams
277. Tina Turner
278. The Dells
279. Tyler, the Creator
280. Moby
281. The Chemical Brothers
282. Jan & Dean
283. Boogie Down Productions
284. Gloria Estefan & Miami Sound Machine
285. Robbie Williams
286. Shirley & Lee
287. Judas Priest
288. Giorgio Moroder
289. Screamin' Jay Hawkins
290. Aphex Twin
291. Bonnie Raitt
292. Yellow Magic Orchestra

[Tim]

Next:

The Eurythmics
Tori Amos
Tracy Chapman
Queen Latifah
Electric Light Orchestra
Sarah McLachlan
Todd Rundgren
The Moonglows
Duane Eddy
Patti LaBelle

[Fido]

Beck is too high, his only strenght is acclaim, the whole bunch directly below him is more well-rounded than him in the criteria or are way more influential, more than he is acclaimed.

[ManPerson]

I don't really agree with Ice Cube losing musical impact to Chicago, they may have been acclaimed instrumentalists but he's one of hip-hop's top MCs/lyricists. (not that musical impact comes down to instrumental prowess only). I would def give him acclaim portion of criteria and he's overall much more influential figure than Chicago though most of his influence should be credited to NWA rather than his solo career. Not really opposed to Motörhead and Hayes moving up though Steely Dan I'd say are more acclaimed than Hayes as a recording artist.

I agree with all of this.

[ManPerson]

Agreed about Beck, I think he's pretty comparable to, say, Frank Ocean in all the criteria and I think I could even see Ocean ahead of him.

[Tim]

Next:

The Eurythmics
Tori Amos
Tracy Chapman
Queen Latifah
Electric Light Orchestra
Sarah McLachlan
Todd Rundgren
The Moonglows
Duane Eddy
Patti LaBelle

1. The Eurythmics
2. Electric Light Orchestra
3. Todd Rundgren
4. The Moonglows
5. Duane Eddy
6. Tori Amos
7. Tracy Chapman
8. Queen Latifah
9. Patti LaBelle

Out: Sarah McLachlan

Eurythmics one of defining New Wave/synth-pop artists of the 1980s with a smash hit "Sweet Dreams", lead by Lennox' androgynous look and counteralto voice. ELO heavily classically influenced pop/rock band, succesful and innovative brain child of Jeff Lynne. Todd Rundgren prominient as both producer and performer, succesful with a couple of hit singles and diverse influence found in art pop, power pop, prog rock, electronic music, music videos, interactive albums pioneer etc. Moonglows noted for their association with Alan Freed, crossover hit with Sincerly, their harmony influential on later vocal groups. Duane Eddy might have been ultimate solo instrumental guitar player in rock, sorry Jeff Beck, noted for his "twangy" sound, cited as influence by numerous guitar players. Tori Amos clasically-trained piano-based singer-songwriter, decent amount of commercial and critical success through the 90s, cited as inspiration by numerous female singers-songwriters that followed. Chapman's smash successes of her s/t album and New Beginning, solid acclaim plus making stripped-down singers-songwriters trendy again. LaBelle one of the greatest female vocalists in rock, smash hit in Lady Marmelade with both #1 album Winner in You and #1 duet "On My Own". Queen Latifah one of  pioneering women in hip-hop cited as influence by the most female hip-hop stars that followed. McLachlan I would omit, primarily adult contemporary, with (soft) rock/adult alt secondary genres for her, though I am open to dissenting views here.

[pauldrach]

Maybe Labelle should be listed next to Patti LaBelle.

Not sure about McLachlan. I always considered her a soft rock artist first and foremost. But I haven't listened to her in a long time. So maybe my memories fool me. She'd mainly be there for popularity anyway and would probably end up dead last in the current ranking.

[Tim]

Inserting a ten (including McLachlan) above plus moving Beck down a bit:

230. The Animals
231. Ivory Joe Hunter
232. Tom Waits
233. Pretenders
234. Leonard Cohen
235. Frank Ocean
236. Beck
237. Massive Attack
238. MC5
239. Hüsker Dü
240. Jackson Browne
241. Phil Collins
242. Sade
243. Ariana Grande
244. Nicki Minaj
245. Hall & Oates
246. Boyz II Men
247. Pet Shop Boys
248. Future
249. War
250. The Eurythmics
251. Salt-N-Pepa
252. The Marvelettes
253. Peter Gabriel
254. Electric Light Orchestra
255. The Prodigy
256. Joe Tex
257. Johnny Ace
258. The Righteous Brothers
259. The (Young) Rascals
260. T.I.
261. Cher
262. R. Kelly
263. The Spinners
264. Barry White
265. Weezer
266. Jethro Tull
267. The Shadows
268. Emerson, Lake & Palmer
269. Gary Numan/Tubeway Army
270. Todd Rundgren
271. 50 Cent
272. Boston
273. The Moonglows
274. Duane Eddy
275. Justin Bieber
276. Journey
277. John Mellencamp
278. ZZ Top
279. Alice in Chains
280. Heart
281. Bryan Adams
282. Tina Turner
283. The Dells
284. Tyler, the Creator
285. Moby
286. The Chemical Brothers
287. Jan & Dean
288. Boogie Down Productions
289. Gloria Estefan & Miami Sound Machine
290. Tori Amos
291. Tracy Chapman
292. Robbie Williams
293. Queen Latifah
294. Shirley & Lee
295. Patti LaBelle (incl. Labelle)
296. Judas Priest
297. Giorgio Moroder
298. Screamin' Jay Hawkins
299. Aphex Twin
300. Bonnie Raitt

301. Yellow Magic Orchestra
302. Sarah McLachlan

[Tim]

Next:

The Ronettes
The Doobie Brothers
The Hollies
Dusty Springfield
Chubby Checker
The B-52s
Buffalo Springfield
Mary Wells
INXS
Annie Lennox

[ManPerson]

Catching up on the last couple groups

- I think Judas Priest and Screamin' Jay Hawkins would take acclaim and influence over Robbie Williams.

- Marvelettes and Joe Tex both seem a bit high. I think it would be hard to argue that either of them take acclaim and popularity over The Righteous Brothers, Rascals or T.I., for example

I'd propose something like this
252. Peter Gabriel
253. The Righteous Brothers
254. The (Young) Rascals
255. T.I.
256. The Marvelettes
257. Joe Tex
258. The Prodigy
259. Johnny Ace

- If we're putting Patti LaBelle and LaBelle together I think they look low. Strong musical impact for LaBelle as a vocalist + two number one hits + cited as influential on future girl groups + Patti LaBelle as a gay icon would seem to make them comparable to Tina Turner, for example.

- Not to pick on YMO too much, but as long as we're considering Sarah McLachlan rock I think it would be difficult to argue that she doesn't take acclaim and popularity over them.

- I'm not sure Queen Latifah beats Judas Priest in any part of the criteria. She also seems very comparable to Giorgio Moroder, he's more influential while she's more popular, acclaim seems like a wash. If anything I think Moroder's win is more definitive.

- Not necessarily saying that ELO's placement is wrong but it also occurred to me that I'm not sure that they beat Jethro Tull in the criteria. Of course, it could also be argued that Jethro Tull are too low.

- Moonglows and Duane Eddy seem a tad high. I think ZZ Top would take popularity and acclaim over both of them, for sure.

[ManPerson]

So, basically this is what I would suggest:
230. The Animals
231. Ivory Joe Hunter
232. Tom Waits
233. Pretenders
234. Leonard Cohen
235. Frank Ocean
236. Beck
237. Massive Attack
238. MC5
239. Hüsker Dü
240. Jackson Browne
241. Phil Collins
242. Sade
243. Ariana Grande
244. Nicki Minaj
245. Hall & Oates
246. Boyz II Men
247. Pet Shop Boys
248. Future
249. War
250. The Eurythmics
251. Salt-N-Pepa
252. Peter Gabriel
253. The Righteous Brothers
254. Jethro Tull
255. Electric Light Orchestra
256. The (Young) Rascals
257. T.I.
258. The Marvelettes
259. Joe Tex
260. The Prodigy
261. Johnny Ace
262. Cher
263. R. Kelly
264. The Spinners
265. Barry White
266. Weezer
267. The Shadows
268. Emerson, Lake & Palmer
269. Gary Numan/Tubeway Army
270. Todd Rundgren
271. 50 Cent
272. Boston
273. Justin Bieber
274. Journey
275. John Mellencamp
276. ZZ Top
277. The Moonglows
278. Duane Eddy
279. Alice in Chains
280. Heart
281. Bryan Adams
282. Tina Turner
283. Patti LaBelle (incl. Labelle)
284. The Dells
285. Tyler, the Creator
286. Moby
287. The Chemical Brothers
288. Jan & Dean
289. Boogie Down Productions
290. Gloria Estefan & Miami Sound Machine
291. Tori Amos
292. Tracy Chapman
293. Shirley & Lee
294. Judas Priest
295. Giorgio Moroder
296. Queen Latifah
297. Screamin' Jay Hawkins
298. Robbie Williams
299. Aphex Twin
300. Bonnie Raitt

301. Sarah McLachlan
302. Yellow Magic Orchestra

[ManPerson]

Next:

The Ronettes
The Doobie Brothers
The Hollies
Dusty Springfield
Chubby Checker
The B-52s
Buffalo Springfield
Mary Wells
INXS
Annie Lennox

This is how I'd rank them

1. Ronettes
2. Chubby Checker
3. Dusty Springfield
4. Buffalo Springfield
5. INXS
6. Doobie Brothers
7. Mary Wells
8. B-52s
9. The Hollies
10. Annie Lennox

Ronettes were a pioneering girl group and arguably responsible for Phil Spector's most influential production work, really strong acclaim and lasting popularity for a couple songs. Chubby Checker was hugely successful in the early 1960s and popularized its most cultural significant dance craze. Dusty Springfield is a highly acclaimed vocalist with a renowned discography, a couple big hits, and a cultural icon as well. Buffalo Springfield are obviously behind one of the most important songs of the 1960s, including many musicians who would become prominent later in their careers while being influential on folk rock. INXS have strong popularity and solid acclaim as well, ditto for Doobie Brothers, a bit of influence as well, though that's not necessarily either artist's strong suit. First female solo artist to emerge successful for Motown as well as her song "My Guy" being a classic. B-52s are an acclaimed new wave group with a couple big hits as well, cited as an influence on some future alt rock groups. Hollies were a British Invasion group that had strong commercial success in the UK, with a couple hits in the US as well, Graham Nash emerged from the group. Annie Lennox had a few hits and some acclaim as well. Clearly belongs last in this group, though.

[Tim]

I will post what I drafted in comparison.

1. The Ronettes
2. Dusty Springfield
3. Chubby Checker
4. The B-52s
5. Buffalo Springfield
6. Mary Wells
7. The Doobie Brothers
8. INXS
9. The Hollies
10. Annie Lennox

Ronettes legendary collaboration with Phil Spector, huge sonic influence with Wall of Sound plus changing of the guard for girl groups with heavy reliance on sex appeal in contrast to much more modest ones that came before. Dusty Springfield one of the icons of Swinging Sixties & the greatest female vocalists in rock, Dusty in Sprinfield despite poor initial performance now considered one of the greatest albums, major popular and critical resurgence since the 1990s.

B-52s one of ultimate New Wave acts, noted for their campy style, eclectic, dance-friendly sound and prominient role of their female members. huge influence on their townsmates REM and numerous other alt acts. Buffalo Springfield folk rock pioneers, "For What It's Worth" one of defining songs of '60s counterculture. Chubby originated and sustained the twist craze, enough said, being a huge direct influence on some of the top acts of the 1960s through this fact alone not to mention worldwide cultural impact the twist has.

Doobie Brothers vocal group/rock band succesful through the 1970s and, since the arrival of Michael McDonald synonymous with so-called "yacht rock" genre. Hollies changed their style multiple times from mercybeat to hard rock to disco yet retained their legendary three part vocal harmony, consistent singles success through mid 60s to early '70s with classics like "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother", "Long Cool Woman in a Black Dress". Mary Wells one of the first Motown solo stars, "My Guy" a classic, nicknamed the Queen of Motown. INXS arguably third most succesful Australian rock artist behind AC/DC and Bee Gees, noted for their funk- New Wave- influenced sound and Michael Hutchence's charisma. Lennox continued her success with her solo career with two #1 albums in UK even if her greatest impact both musically and image-wise was made already with Eurythmics. Let's also not forget her Oscar win for LOTR original song.

[Tim]

Not opposed to Man's suggested revision. Fido?