Life Is A Blessin', It's A Delicatessen

I was tagged by the all knowing Boz. Not too surprisingly He and I share some picks.

 
Here are the easy rules:
 
1) Pick your 10 favorite musical artists.
2) Tag the journal "top 10 bands" so we can have a full tag page of all our lists!
3) Pick 8 more people to do this! Make sure to link them to your original post.

I listen to so much music and a rather large variety. However these are the artists or groups that I always return to no matter how far or for how long I stray. Also, In the spirit of Nigel Tufnel this list goes to eleven.



In alphabetical order;


The original incarnation. An ungodly mix of blues, rock and jazz influences. Almost every speeding ticket I ever recieved was earned while listening to Live at the Filmore East. At their peak they were giants. Now, not so much but in the day and those were the days of Hendrix and Janis and The Dead etc., they were at the top of the heap.



Again, the original incarnation. The Last Waltz was intended to be just that. No group captured Americana better. Not bad for a group that is 4/5ths Canadian. Each member was a truly gifted multi-instrumentalist. At their best no one was ever better. As long as they didn't let Robbie sing.



I'm all about singer/songwriters and Vic is amongst the very best. His songs are often very beautiful in a lo-fi vein however simulaneously chock full of nasty truths about our society today. Plus he's the King of Athens Georgia. See his crown?



I know, it's a sucker pick. It's like picking The Beatles or The Stones. Well, I didn't pick either of them so get off my back. Truth is, he is the very best and is still proving it with each new album. Sure he had some off years when he produced some horrible music. I blame heroin.



Yet again, the original incarnation. I think I've said it before here, If pressed and please don't, neither of us will enjoy it much, Little Feat is probably my all time favorite band. The greatest southern rock band ever to come out of  Los Angeles. Probably the greatest contribution made to music by Frank Zappa was to kick Lowell George out of the Mothers of Invention so that he could form this band. A tighter band you will not easily find.



Another singer songwriter of the highest order.You have to get beyond the hits Short People and I Love L.A. to understand his genius. Beyond that he could have been a tremendous success based only on his work scoring films.



I guess every music list has to include a tragedy. As cliche as it may be Gram Parsons career was much too short and his contributions were not realized soon enough to save him. His influence is astounding. Without him the Stones never concieve Exile on Main Street. That alone makes him praise worthy.



I'm not sure I can explain the appeal of John Prine. He can't sing or play the guitar very well. Oh yeah, now I remember it's the songs. (are you sensing a theme here?) It's all about the songs. Plus he is one of the most entertaining live performers still amongst us. That is if are lucky enough to get a ticket. He sells out faster than you can say Sam Stone.



Hey look, Brits. I'm cheating but only slightly here. They kind of count as two since most of their recordings are done seperately and I love them both but together they are tremendous also. Linda posseses perhaps the most beautiful voice I have ever heard and is producing some of the very best English folk music ever . (and can there be too much English folk music, don't answer) Richard is a triple threat. Wonderful writing, voice and he may be the greatest living guitarist. He's remarkable.



I don't think I have listed a singer/songwriter yet have I? Okay, just seeing if you have been playing along. Townes truly equals Dylan in nearly every way except for success. Another tragic story. His excesses were many. Fortunately talent was among his excesses but it was too quickly overtaken by personal demons. Let that be a lesson to you kids.



He writes songs and he sings them. I guess that makes him a......
I would love Bill Withers even if he wasn't from just up the road from my hometown. You may not think you have heard of him but when you hear his music you'll invariably say so that's who wrote that song.
Lean On Me, Use Me Up, Ain't No Sunshine, Just The Two Of Us.... Yeah he's that guy.


I'm not sure who has or has not been tagged so I'm taking the high road and tagging anyone who wants to participate.  Jump in.