[Aman]

This thread is to show your list of the top ten men or women who made your love of music autobiographical and personal.

I'll give my list as an example:

Please note that my list ranges from when I was six years old to present, at age 19 for me. Try to dig as deep back into your lives as you can.

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

1. Steven Tyler - Without him, I'd be nowhere. Aerosmith was my first 'favorite' band, and they were the first band that allowed me to explore other bands and styles.

2. Todd Rundgren - Without him, I'd be still making terrible impressions based on appearances. I always considered Todd to be a "lover boy", producing a lot of pop music that mostly my mother seemed to appreciate. However, further inspecting what he did for the music world showed me that there was more underneath the surface. Before judging, now, I go online and look up what musicians have done for themselves and for the music world. Rundgren not only produced some of my favorite bands, but also produced some fantastic, brilliant, beautiful music which often times gets overlooked. He made me realize that the necessity of being ahead of the game was a great one, and that if it weren't for Todd, music would be a very different (and maybe even backwards) art by now.

3. Jim Morrison - The ultimate musical poet. He also got me to listen to much more of the "golden age" of rock music.

4. Bob Dylan - He gave me the ability to appreciate music in a much broader sense - being that his music was not wrapped up in a "pretty" package - you really had to _listen_ to understand it. My tastes matured greatly due to his music.

5. John McLaughlin - My first venture into Jazz and Fusion music. He gave me a gigantic appreciation for instrumental jazz with his work with the Mahavishnu Orchestra and with Miles Davis... speaking of which:

6. Miles Davis - He wrote my favorite Jazz album of all time, which got me to explore more jazz. Bitches Brew is simply one of the best albums I've ever heard, and that album alone put jazz up in the air for me.

7. George Harrison - The first time I ever looked at the biography of an artist and tried to connect it to their music - George Harrison taught me how much influence of their own lives goes into lyrics.

8. Frank Zappa - He was maybe one of the wierdest people to ever release an album, and at the same time still made his music accessible. He was EXTREMELY tallented in multiple areas, and his influence and tallent gave me the courage to buy my first all-instrumental record, "The Grand Wazoo".

9. Roger Waters - His innovation was what got me to hear my first concept album, "Dark Side of the Moon". Because of him, I got into many other progressive artists including Jethro Tull, Genesis, Gentle Giant, Yes, Kansas, Emerson Lake and Palmer, and King Crimson.

10. Kurt Cobain - Simply put, this guy got me to listen to more than just the "catchiness" of a tune - the emotion, the lyrics, and the way the instrumentals were crafted - were all first noticed by me when listening to his music.

 

[kramer5150]

Here are mine...

Stweart Copeland
Robert Fripp
Ray Manzarek (SP?) as much as Jim Morisson
Freddie Mercury
Brian Setzer
Sting
Annie Lennox
Prince
Ray Charles (My first live concert experience as an 8 year old)
Steve Howe

Garrett

 

[saturnine]

#1) Billy Corgan (Smashing Pumpkins/Zwan)
#2) Elliott Smith
#3) Nick Drake
#4) John Lodge (Moody Blues) (My parents listened to them a LOT when I was young, and I still like them)
#5) Sam Beam (Iron & Wine)
#6) Devendra Banhart
#7) Richard James Edwards (Manic Street Preachers)
#8) Jon Crosby (VAST)
#9) Trent Reznor
#10) Miles Davis

 

[fante7]

Well, here goes nothing...

1) Keith Emerson - ELP was the band that showed me that music could be so much more interesting than what was on the radio. I've listened to them since I was maybe 7 years old, when my father introduced me to them. Keith was particularly influential to me because I have played piano my whole life, and he took piano to a new level for me. I listened to ELP pretty much exclusively until I was 14 years old.

2) Carl Palmer - Yes, another member of ELP makes the list. As a young drummer, I was always amazed by his technique. His style really makes ELP exciting.

3) Marty Friedman - His guitar work in Megadeth's album Rust In Peace is what inspired me to learn how to play guitar. I can't think of words to describe how I felt about his guitar playing when I was 15 years old.

4) Jon Anderson - This man showed me how the voice can be used as purely a musical instrument.

5) Chuck Schuldiner - I never knew music this heavy could be so pleasant.

6) Mikael Akerfeldt - Opeth just has something magical and unique about them.

7) Sean Malone - Chapman Stick. Enough said.

8) Neil Peart - Wow, Rush is just an amazing band, and this guy is a precise drummer. Not a bad lyricist either; I like the sci-fi stuff.

9) Bela Fleck - I never thought I would be buying CDs from the Bluegrass section.

10) David Gilmour - I just had to include somebody from Pink Floyd, and I didn't want to put Waters on here.

 

[Aman]

fante7: I am surprised by your listing of Carl Palmer. Not necessarily surprised, actually, but rather interested. I really never thought about it from the self-musician perspective, but I suppose that he too was a big one that should have gone on my list, since he, along with Pert, Bonham, and Ansley Dunbar, were my main inspirations when it came to drumming. As a drummer, I too really appreciated his sound that he gave ELP - it was essential! The filler notes in the later sections of Tarkus are to die for! So simple, yet so creative and original!

 

[JMT]

It will be tough the limit my list to only 10, but I will try:

1) The Beatles (both collectively and individually)
2) Maurice White (I went through high school listening to EWF)
3) Stan Kenton
4) Dizzy Gillespie
5) Clark Terry
6) Bill Chase (He died way too young)
7) Don Ellis (ditto)
8) Bela Fleck
9) Oscar Peterson
10) Karen Carpenter
11) Wynton Marsalis (suprisingly, I really prefer his classical music)
12) Terry Kath (his death took the heart and soul out of Chicago)

Sorry, I tried but couldn't limit it to 10.

 

[Ingo]

I don't know if I can name ten off hand but I'll try as many as I can.

Alison Krauss - First time I ever paid attention to the quality of the music was listening to her stuff.

Bela Fleck - The one musician that I think has more talent than anyone else on any instrument that I've ever heard.

Eddie Van Halen - When I first became interested in guitar, someone told me that he wa their favorite guitarist. I can now see why he said that.

Ricky Skaggs - Great singer, great mandolin player, and creates the best sounding gospel music that I've listened to. (IMO of course.)

Jack Johnson - The first time I went to a Jack Johnson concert I just couldn't believe my ears. He's honestly the most accurate singer I've ever heard in concert. I like his mello-yello, Hawaiin inspired guitar stuff as well.

Henry Garza - (Los Lonely Boys) I've been following the Los Lonely Boys for quite a while. I had heard them long before their album came out, and the first time I heard Henry's guitar playing, I knew he was probably one of the best guitarists I'll ever see live.

 

[asmox]

in no particular order -

1. Sean Malone - ex-Cynic bassist, currently of Gordian Knot. easily one of the most versatile bassists/chapman stick players around today. his work with Cynic changed my world, and his work with Gordian Knot has carried it off into a whole other universe.

2. Thomas Lang - session drummer. in short, this man is the definition of being the ultimate drumming machine while still dedicating all of your effort to the song. i don't even play drums, and he inspires me. un-paralleled limb independence, mastery of multi-pedal orchestrations, the ability to play any and every style with inhuman precision.. aghhh.

3. Daniel Gildenlow - well, he convinced me that intelligent lyrical content is still alive and well in the world of prog.

4. Fernando Corona - otherwise known as Murcof.. in 'Martes', he has crafted one of the most beautiful albums i own.. organic orchestration wrapped around minimalist electronica.. but.. done in a fashion that is really head and shoulders above just about any other artist that has attempted melding electronic sounds with analogue elements. the music is densely textured, very well constructed, and very clear. it's a healthy marriage of electronic tones, rhythms, irregular beats, clever and unexpected breaks and intervals, violins, pianos, haunting wordless vocals, etc. the end result is something that conflicts with itself in what's often a disturbing fashion, but at the same time is soothing and beautiful.

5. John Mclaughlin (sp?) - long live fusion.

6. James Hetfield - before i got into all of this crazy music i listen to today, i was into Metallica just like everybody else. they were my gateway to metal. also, i've always loved hetfield's stage presence.

7. Masami Akita - Merzbow. say what you will, but if it wasn't for Merzbow, my appreciation for music would be considerably narrower than it is.

8. Mike Patton - probably one of the most versatile and accomplished singers in all of rock music. i mean, come on.. the man has worked with Bjork, Dillinger Escape Plan, John Zorn, Merzbow, and countless other weird artists.. and he always makes things work with his demented virtuosity. not to mention Mr. Bungle, which alone wins him a place on this list.

9. David Gahan/Martin Gore - sorry, this is going to count as one person. Depeche Mode was a life changing group for me.. and this pair still remains one of the most powerful vocal duets ever, in my mind. 'Waiting for the Night' still gives me shivers to this day.

for my last choice.. i don't really know.

10. -

i'm tempted to say Conlon Nancarrow.. an incredible composer that used the player piano to craft infinitely complicated pieces that were basically impossible for a human being to play.. that is, unless said human being somehow managed to depress every key on a piano at the same time (or every key on multiple pianos at the same time). truly some of the finest experimental, difficult, progressive, and simply wonderful music i've heard. quoting a review, 'Conlon Nancarrow is one of those composers who could exist only in real life, as he would be too implausible for fiction..'

on the other hand, i also want to mention Tore Ostby.. formerly of Conception, currently of Ark. his flamenco-metal guitar stylings really get to me, in a good way.

 

[fante7]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Aman fante7: I am surprised by your listing of Carl Palmer. Not necessarily surprised, actually, but rather interested. I really never thought about it from the self-musician perspective, but I suppose that he too was a big one that should have gone on my list, since he, along with Pert, Bonham, and Ansley Dunbar, were my main inspirations when it came to drumming. As a drummer, I too really appreciated his sound that he gave ELP - it was essential! The filler notes in the later sections of Tarkus are to die for! So simple, yet so creative and original!

I had the pleasure of seeing Carl Palmer give a drum clinic to under 50 people when I was 15-ish years old. He spent about 20 minutes of the clinic just showing us the various things he can do with just a hi-hat and two sticks, with the sticks bouncing off each other, the hi-hat stand, and the cymbal itself. It was amazing. I've met Carl twice and Greg once, but unfortunately never Keith. I did get to see Keith play twice last summer though in NYC, at the Moogfest and again with a few young English musicians backing him up.

 

[Alu]

- Maynard James Keenan (he and his band Tool introduced me to how good metal or music in general can be; brilliant song writing too of course)
- Yoko Kanno (opened up the world of classical and jazz music to me, in a very different way)
- Ludwig Van Beethoven (made the greatest piece of classical music that I know of: the 9th, even though I'm not that much of a classical fan)
- John Williams (as I'm a completely insane filmfreak, his music was the soundtrack of my youth

)
- Zack de la Rocha (incredible song writing he did for RATM, I could've mentioned Morello too)
- Mike Portnoy (you know why...but I still love Danny Carey the same as him)
- Trent Reznor
- Kurt Cobain (the first rock I listened to, and that I was aware of listening to)
- Eminem (I remember listening a lot to his works, nowadays I dislike the whole Rapgenre though, at the time I was overwhelmed by his lyrics of course)
- Take That (

the first pop band I listened too)

 

[wakeride74]

Maynard James Keenan - Tool & A Perfect Circle

Kenny Chesney

John Williams - Composed many excellent soundtracks like Star Wars, Indiana Jones, & Superman to name a very few

Melissa Kaplan - Splashdown & Universal Hall Pass (my all time favorite female vocalist)

Bradley Nowell - Sublime

Chris Hall - Stabbing Westward & The Dreaming

Howard Ashman & Alan Menken - Disney composers responsible for works such as The Little Mermaid, Beauty And The Beast, and Aladdin

Frederick Chopin

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Jem - Another very original recent female vocalist

 

[Enverxis]

In order of appearance

Peter Barret (Midnight Oil)
Andrea Corr (The Corrs)
Jon Crosby (VAST)
Sean Yseult (White Zombie) - some strange fascination with her
Layne Staley (Alice in Chains)
Tairrie B (Tura Satana/My Ruin) - the first female vocal rock voice i heard
Dave Murray (Iron Maiden)
Tarja Turunen (Nightwish) - made me search far and wide for as much female vocal metal i could
Diana Krall
10 TBD

 

[bjjp2]

These are pretty standard I'm afraid:

Pete Townshend
Bob Dylan
John Lennon
Mick Jones
Joe Strummer
Jimmy Page
Jimi Hendrix
David Byrne
Paul Westerberg
Neil Young

 

[gratefulshrink]

A little Spinal Tap quote (and because I just couldn't narrow it down any further than eleven, sorry). Not including classical music, here it goes:

Grateful Dead (big surprise)
Dylan
John Coltrane
Sun Ra
Sonic Youth (hey, they're a NYC band)
Velvet Underground
John Lee Hooker
Neil Young
Jimi Hendrix
Jefferson Airplane
Pink Floyd

 

[greyghost]

Nine Inch Nails- first time I heard a nin vynil on a well setup system, I was
hooked, and if it weren't for Trent I wouldn't have spent a quarter of the money I have on stero equipment. It's a give and take I guess

Rage against the Machine- The passion and power of their music really made an impact on me in earlier years, still does too.

Elton john- My goodbye yellow brick road tape got a lot of play in my old school walkman!

And a bunch of other cheesy ones I'd rather not admit!