Posted on 03/25/2011 1:05:27 PM PDT by GSWarrior
There is no way to quantify if a band or artist is overrated. It’s more of a feeling than anything else.
There exists in popular music a hierarchy. It’s been created, and is constantly altered, by both natural and artificial means. At the top sits The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Elvis, Michael Jackson, U2, and Madonna. At the bottom rests the 8th place American Idol contestant. Everyone else fall somewhere in between.
Determining which artists are overrated and which are correctly rated is not a science. It’s not even an art. It’s just an exercise to start a conversation. It’s a lot like asking the question who is the greatest guitarist of all-time or what rocker, if still alive, would be a contestant on Celebrity Apprentice.
For this article, Land of Punt will throw out five artists we think are overrated and why we think that way. Hopefully our choices will elicit a response other than apathy. Maybe you’ll cheer, maybe you’ll purse your lips in anger, or maybe you’ll do a little of both.
LOP’s intention with this list isn’t to denigrate the five artists enumerated below, but to examine the machinations and politics of music and the music industry. The hierarchy of artists we refer to is that of the macrocosm not the pecking order of your own personal microcosm.
Bob Dylan
Before you freak out and delete our bookmark from your favorites, hear LOP out. When we say Bob Dylan is overrated we are not disparaging his contributions to popular music. What we are saying is if Dylan is rated a 9 (for example) Land of Punt believes his rating should actually be an 8.3. He’s just a bit overrated but overrated nonetheless.
First of all, the dude has released over 60 albums in his career but has only sold 70 million units. Almost assuredly if you own one Dylan album you own them all. So if you do the math there are about 1.16 million Dylan fans in the world.
By the way, only five of his albums have reached number one. To put that in perspective, Dylan has the same amount of number one albums as Metallica and less than half the amount of Jay-Z.
Dylan has probably composed a gazillion songs in his life, but not once has he charted a number one single or written a bridge.
The reason why Dylan is so highly rated is Rolling Stone Magazine. They absolutely love the guy. Sure, he’s influenced a bunch of artists but the number of people who actually say “Hey, let’s listen to some Dylan” is rather small. Dylan is not synonymous with fun.
Of course, if you’re a songwriter or a poet you’re a big Dylan fan. But to most of us he’s like a Socratic dialogue. You know that it’s brilliant but you don’t want to experience it unless you’re getting college credit.
To prove our points, in 2004 Rolling Stone Magazine named Dylan’s “Like A Rolling Stone” the number one song of all-time. That’s just Rolling Stone being sycophantic about a song that most people only need to listen to once in their life.
Fleetwood Mac
Fleetwood Mac could launch an arena tour of America right now and sell out every show. They are one of the biggest bands from the 1970′s, they’ve sold over 100 million albums throughout their career, and the lineup of Lindsey Buckingham, Stevie Nicks, Christine McVie, John McVie, and Mick Fleetwood is legendary.
Yet, they are a one album band. Rumors. 1977. That’s it!
Okay, their self-titled 1975 album was pretty good and 1982′s Mirage went number one, but most people drive to a Fleetwood Mac concert with Rumors blaring in the CD player.
The band has been around since 1968, and with the exception of a few years in the 1970′s, Fleetwood Mac has mediocre at best.
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young are members of the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame as both a group and as individuals.
How in the heck did they swing that?
For one, they are beloved by Rolling Stone Magazine. Secondly, they epitomize the bleeding heart liberalism of the 1960′s. Ignorant baby boomers, with their free love and ridiculous peacenik attitudes, love them some CSN&Y.
But the main reason CSN&Y are rated so highly is the guys were well-liked. They knew everyone. If rock and roll in the late 1960′s and throughout the 1970′s was a high school, then Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young was the popular kid who always wore the fashionable jacket.
That has to be it because how else would they have joined the immortals of rock and roll?
In more than 40 years as band they’ve released just 16 albums. That includes studio, live and compilations. They’ve only seen one of their studio albums reach number one and most of their stuff is just downright awful.
Their highest charting single is “Just a Song Before I Go” which reached #7 in 1977. Their only other top ten hit was “Wasted on the Way” which peaked at #9 in 1982.
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young recorded some good stuff but certainly not enough to warrant a place in the hall of fame.
Tom Petty
This one is easy. Is Tom Petty a big enough star to perform at a Super Bowl halftime show? The answer is no. But he did as much in 2008 at Super Bowl XLII.
Now, Petty has been extremely successful throughout his career. He’s sold more than 50 million albums worldwide and Tom Petty concerts continue to sell out year after year.
But, he’s never had a number one album or a number one single.
One of the reasons why he’s on our list is because ever since his 1981 album, Hard Promises, all his stuff sounds the same.
Another reason why he’s overrated is he doesn’t elicit much enthusiasm. He’s not very exciting. Yes, LOP likes him and you probably do too, but when you hear the name Tom Petty your eyes don’t light up and your heart doesn’t flutter. More than likely you just shrug your shoulders and say “meh.”
Green Day
Furthermore, the Bay Area punk trio is often credited with ushering in the 1990′s wave of punk-pop bands. Music critics often cite them as progenitors of a whole new generation of punk.
And that’s why they are on our list–their association with punk music. For as we all know, they’re not punk rockers they’re pop stars. They write catchy tunes that feature whining lyrics about contrived political oppression.
Yet, they have more in common with Burt Bacharach than they do in Johnny Lydon.
If they lost the ridiculous eye makeup, dropped the bogus teenage angst, and shopped at the Banana Republic they’d make one heck of a pop band.
Only two types of people think Green Day is actually punk. The first type is record executives who want a safe, accessible brand of pop/rock music they can label and sell as punk. The second type is kids who want to listen to punk music as they drive around in their parents BMW.
In the shopping mall of popular music, Green Day is the store “Hot Topic.”
After all, what do a bunch of American kids born in 1972 have to rebel against? Not having cable? No Goonies 2? Sega Dreamcast not given enough of a chance to succeed?
Bottom line, the last thing any punk band would ever want is their music used in a Broadway musical. If punks thought mainstream music was commercial and corporate (both anathema to their world view), they should know Broadway is ten-times worse.
I just read Keith Richards' "Life" and he admits that the Stones were trying desperately to be a "blues band" based on American Blues artists. I have to give them points for trying.
I like some of the Stones' works, but "blues" they AIN'T. Rod Stewart comes close in his early years (my favorite), but unless you're black and from the American South in the 20's-40's you're jut NOT going to cut it.
Isn't that true--My all-time favorite Beatles song, The Girl That I Love, is pure clean fun.
Shudder!!
The Feelies
Pere Ubu
Wire
Prefab Sprout
Lambchop
The Fleshtones
Like JFK, the best career move Jim Morrison ever made was dying.
Now you are just lying. I don’t particularly care since it merely makes you look stupid.
The Kinks had two great albums the Beatles had at least five and perhaps six or seven. No comparison in creativity or longevity of interest as the continuing album sales clearly show.
You just can’t resist an opportunity to make yourself look even more ignorant with each post, can you?
I didn’t lie at all. You insulted me in all your most recent posts here’s some quotes:
Stu’s ridiculous comments deserve all the scorn I have poured
Consistent stupidity.
his moronic comments
And you can shove your amateur psychoanalyzing up your whazoo.
every idiot comment you made
See those are called insults, point out you throwing insults isn’t slander. And you claiming it is makes you the liar. Oh and look then you called me stupid, there’s ANOTHER insult.
And now you’ve just proven you know nothing about music. The Kinks have never made a bad album, and their output spans the genres from pop, through R&B, progressive/ theatrical and semi-metal all the way to proto-punk. It’s not just longevity, it’s pure creativity. Even if the Beatles still existed today they’d have never stretched into that many genres.
And there you go throwing more insults. Must be sad to be you, to have so much of your sense of self worth wrapped up in a band you weren’t even in that you have to constantly throw insults to defend them, and then lie about and claim the other guy is slandering you when he points out your need to insults. I mean it would be sad if it wasn’t hilariously pathetic.
We’re done, rescan all your insults to me and understand they actually apply to you, and above them you’re just a lying no good weasel. Bye now, enjoy your Beatles obsession, remember they were at best an above average pop band, slightly creative but only a complete fool would ever say they were the most creative band ever. None of your replies will be read.
Hell I HAVE a very mediocre Kinks album.
Yes you lied by claiming that I had no response to your inanities other than insult. I pointed out time after time where your over the top rhetoric lost its connection to reality (slim though it ever was).
There probably isn’t a genre of music where my knowledge doesn’t surpass yours by leaps and bounds with the possible exception of Country and Western.
It isn’t an insult to point out ridiculous comments nor to point out to consistent stupidity, moronic comments, idiot comments or to suggest what you can do with you amateur psychoanalyzing. An insult is if I called YOU stupid, a moron, or an idiot.
Even one as brilliant as I make stupid comments. Rarely I will admit but it has happened.
There has always been talk that the opening riff from Touch Me by the Doors was lifted from C’Mon Marianne by Frankie Valli and the 4 Seasons.
When this was brought up, one of the surviving DOORS, said something like, Who are the 4 Seasons?
As I said in my earlier post, these guys had ZERO talent, and that they are in the Rock Hall of Fame and that their lead writer Bob Gaudio is in the Songwriter’s Hall of Fame too, speaks volumes as to the horrible music taste of the general public, who have purchased 200,000,000 or more of their records.
Crap is king, I suppse!
Yes they were...
And...Buddy Holly....
Lots of bands overrated....
I do believe an underrated band(at least in the eyes of the esteemed music critics) is the Eagles.
Highest selling album of all time, great songwriters, influential, creators of one of the few American rock songs that can go toe to toe with the english bands in the battle for the title of greatest rock song ever( Hotel California ), success with several styles of rock, longevity, very successful solo careers, still drawing enormous numbers to their tours.
Oh, and they have Joe Walsh!! Lol
Seriously, I think they can stake a claim like no others, to the title of greatest American band.
And really, does anyone not sing along to “Take it Easy”?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.