Wednesday, June 30, 2021

Cover Songs: Top 100

Cover Songs:

Top 100

Cover songs have long been a staple of music, although listeners tend to favor the originals. However, there have been some covers which outshone the original – in some cases, to the point that people may not realize the song with which they’re so familiar is not recorded by the original artist. Here, according to the rankings in Dave’s Music Database, are the top cover songs of all time:

Click here to see other genre-specific song lists.

1. Whitney Houston “I Will Always Love You” (1992)
2. Bill Haley & His Comets “We’re Gonna Rock Around the Clock” (1954)
3. Marvin Gaye “I Heard It Through the Grapevine” (1968)
4. Aretha Franklin “Respect” (1967)
5. Bobby Darin “Mack the Knife” (1959)
6. The Animals “The House of the Rising Sun” (1964)
7. Sinéad O’Connor “Nothing Compares 2 U” (1990)
8. Elton John “Candle in the Wind 1997 (Goodbye England’s Rose)” (1997)
9. Elvis Presley “Hound Dog” (1956)
10. Artie Shaw “Stardust” (1941)

11. Artie Shaw “Begin the Beguine” (1938)
12. Joan Jett & the Blackhearts “I Love Rock and Roll” (1981)
13. Chubby Checker “The Twist” (1960)
14. The Righteous Brothers “Unchained Melody” (1965)
15. Bessie Smith with Louis Armstrong “St. Louis Blues” (1925)
16. Billy Murray with the Haydn Quartet “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” (1908)
17. Al Jolson “Swanee” (1920)
18. Ethel Waters “Stormy Weather (Keeps Rainin' All the Time)” (1933)
19. Gene Austin “My Blue Heaven” (1927)
20. Ray Charles “Georgia on My Mind” (1960)

21. The Kingsmen “Louie Louie” (1963)
22. The Jimi Hendrix Experience “All Along the Watchtower” (1968)
23. Fats Waller “Ain’t Misbehavin’” (1929)
24. Patti Page “Tennessee Waltz” (1950)
25. Bing Crosby “Silent Night” (1935)
26. Haydn Quartet “Sweet Adeline (You’re the Flower of My Heart)” (1904)
27. Elvis Presley “All Shook Up“ (1957)
28. Ray Charles “I Can’t Stop Loving You” (1962)
29. Haydn Quartet “In the Good Old Summertime” (1903)
30. Billie Holiday “Summertime” (1936)

31. Soft Cell “Tainted Love” (1981)
32. Kim Carnes “Bette Davis Eyes” (1981)
33. Dooley Wilson “As Time Goes By” (1942)
34. Etta James “At Last” (1961)
35. Sophie Tucker “Some of These Days” (1911)
36. Elvis Presley “Are You Lonesome Tonight?” (1960)
37. Woody Herman “Blues in the Night (My Mama Done Tol’ Me)” (1941)
38. The Byrds “Mr. Tambourine Man” (1965)
39. Debby Boone “You Light Up My Life” (1977)
40. The Weavers “Goodnight Irene” (1950)

41. Jerry Lee Lewis “Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On” (1957)
42. Louis Armstrong “All of Me” (1932)
43. The Flamingos “I Only Have Eyes for You” (1959)
44. Red Nichols “I Got Rhythm” (1930)
45. Vaughn Monroe “Riders in the Sky (A Cowboy Legend)” (1949)
46. Marion Harris “After You’ve Gone” (1919)
47. Pee Wee Hunt “Twelfth Street Rag” (1948)
48. Cyndi Lauper “Girls Just Want to Have Fun” (1983)
49. Larry Clinton with Bea Wain “Deep Purple” (1939)
50. Ben Selvin “Happy Days Are Here Again” (1930)

51. Arthur Collins with Byron Harlan “The Darktown Strutters’ Ball” (1918)
52. Vess Ossman “Maple Leaf Rag” (1907)
53. Run-D.M.C. with Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler & Joe Perry “Walk This Way” (1986)
54. The Harmonicats “Peg O’ My Heart” (1947)
55. Harry MacDonough “Down by the Old Mill Stream” (1911)
56. John McCormack “It’s a Long, Long Way to Tipperary” (1915)
57. Henry Mancini with Audrey Hepburn “Moon River” (1961)
58. Paul Whiteman “Smoke Gets in Your Eyes” (1933)
59. The Beatles “Twist and Shout” (1963)
60. Cliff Edwards “I Can’t Give You Anything But Love” (1928)

61. The Ink Spots “The Gypsy” (1946)
62. Les Paul & Mary Ford “How High the Moon” (1951)
63. Ritchie Valens “La Bamba” (1958)
64. Fats Domino “Blueberry Hill” (1956)
65. Willie Nelson “Always on My Mind” (1982)
66. Glenn Miller “Tuxedo Junction” (1940)
67. The Fifth Dimension “Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In” (1969)
68. Perry Como “Some Enchanted Evening” (1949)
69. Vess Ossman “The Old Folks at Home (Swanee River)” (1900)
70. Harry Nilsson “Without You” (1971)

71. The Five Satins “In the Still of the Nite (I’ll Remember)” (1956)
72. Bunny Berigan “I Can’t Get Started” (1938)
73. Count Basie “April in Paris” (1956)
74. Rudy Vallee “Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?” (1932)
75. Judy Garland with Gene Kelly “For Me and My Gal” (1942)
76. Coleman Hawkins “Body and Soul” (1940)
77. Alma Gluck “Carry Me Back to Old Virginny” (1915)
78. Paul Whiteman “Three O’Clock in the Morning” (1922)
79. Mitch Miller “The Yellow Rose of Texas” (1955)
80. Natalie Imbruglia “Torn” (1997)

81. John Yorke Atlee “Listen to the Mocking Bird (aka “The Mocking Bird”)” (1891)
82. Peerless Quartet “I Didn’t Raise My Boy to Be a Soldier” (1915)
83. Knickerbocker Quartet “Pack Up Your Troubles in Your Old Kit Bag and Smile, Smile, Smile” (1917)
84. Hal McIntyre with Ruth Gaylor “My Funny Valentine” (1945)
85. Fred Astaire “They Can’t Take That Away from Me” (1937)
86. The Tokens “The Lion Sleeps Tonight (Wimoweh)” (1961)
87. Louis Armstrong “When the Saints Go Marching In” (1939)
88. Elvis Presley “That’s All Right, Mama” (1954)
89. The Temptations “Papa Was a Rolling Stone” (1972)
90. Dionne Warwick & Friends “That's What Friends Are For” (1985)

91. Paul Whiteman “My Mammy” (1921)
92. Ada Jones & Billy Murray “Come Josephine in My Flying Machine” (1911)
93. All-4-One “I Swear” (1994)
94. Louis Armstrong “Hello Dolly!” (1964)
95. Fats Waller “Honeysuckle Rose” (1935)
96. Charles Harrison “I’m Always Chasing Rainbows” (1918)
97. Roy Acuff “Wabash Cannonball” (1938)
98. Ray Noble “I’ve Got You Under My Skin” (1936)
99. Ben Selvin “I’m Forever Blowing Bubbles” (1919)
100. Bert Williams “Nobody” (1906)

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First posted 11/23/2018; last updated 6/30/2021.

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Children’s Songs and Nursery Rhymes: Top 100

Children’s Songs and Nursery Rhymes:

Top 100

While most of the song lists at Dave’s Music Database focus on specific recordings by specific artists, this list focuses on songs without any specific recordings. This is an aggregate of 30 best-of lists focused on children’s songs and nursery rhymes. Some of the nursery rhymes date back a few centuries while there are also songs from the last decade which were popularized in Disney films and other animated fare. The song’s title and year of publication are listed.

Click here to see other genre-specific song lists.

1. “Old MacDonald Had a Farm” (1706)
2. “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star” (1806)
3. “The Itsy Bitsy Spider” (1910)
4. “The Wheels on the Bus” (1939)
5. “Row, Row, Row Your Boat” (1852)
6. “If You’re Happy and You Know It” (1905)
7. “Alphabet Song (The ABC Song)” (1761)
8. “Bingo (B-I-N-G-O)” (1780)
9. “Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes” (1961)
10. “Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed” (based on “Shortenin’ Bread,” 1900)

11. “Mary Had a Little Lamb” (1830)
12. “Frere Jacques (Are You Sleeping?)” (1780)
13. “London Bridge Is Falling Down” (1744)
14. “I’m a Little Teapot” (1939)
15. “The Hokey Pokey” (1826)
16. “Do You Know the Muffin Man?” (1829)
17. “You Are My Sunshine” (1940)
18. “She’ll Be Comin’ ‘Round the Mountain” (1870)
19. “Hush Little Baby” (1918)
20. “This Old Man (Nick Nack Paddiwak)” (1842)

21. “Baa Baa Black Sheep” (1744)
22. “Pat-a-Cake, Pat-a-Cake, Baker's Man” (1698)
23. “Ring Around the Rosie” (1881)
24. “Five Little Ducks Went Swimming One Day” (1982)
25. “Hickory Dickory Dock” (1744)
26. “Baby Shark” (2016) *
27. “Yankee Doodle” (1754)
28. “Humpty Dumpty” (1797)
29. “The Ants Go Marching” (based on “When Johnny Comes Marching Home,” 1863)
30. “The Farmer in the Dell” (1883)

31. “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” (1908)
32. “I’ve Been Working on the Railroad” (1894)
33. “Jack and Jill” (1765)
34. “Skip to My Lou” (1832)
35. “Ten in the Bed (Roll Over)” (?)
36. “Do Your Ears Hang Low?” (1900)
37. “Home on the Range” (1873)
38. “Pop Goes the Weasel” (1853)
39. “Down by the Bay” (1976)
40. “This Is the Way” (?)

41. “The Grand Old Duke of York” (1642)
42. “The Bear Went Over the Mountain” (?)
43. “Little Bo Peep” (1870)
44. “Baby Beluga” (1980)
45. “When You Wish Upon a Star” (from Pinocchio, 1940)
46. “Alouette” (1879)
47. “Hey Diddle Diddle” (1765)
48. “Rain, Rain Go Away” (1687)
49. “Old King Cole” (1708)
50. “This Land Is Your Land” (1944)

51. “Let It Go” (from Frozen, 2013)
52. “The Bare Necessities” (from The Jungle Book, 1967)
53. “Sing a Song of Sixpence” (1790)
54. “Happy” (from Despicable Me 2, 2013)
55. “Rock-a-Bye Baby” (1884)
56. “The Doggie in the Window” (1953)
57. “Three Blind Mice” (1609)
58. “You’re Welcome” (from Moana, 2016)
59. “Five Little Speckled Frogs” (?)
60. “O Where, O Where Has My Little Dog Gone” (1864)

61. “Happy Birthday to You” (1893)
62. “On Top of Old Smoky” (1841)
63. “Hot Cross Buns” (1798)
64. “My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean” (1881)
65. “Hakuna Matata” (from The Lion King, 1994)
66. “Polly Wolly Doodle (All the Day)” (1843)
67. “A-Tisket, A-Tasket” (1938)
68. “Little Miss Muffet” (1805)
69. “Pease Porridge Hot” (1760)
70. “This Little Piggie Went to Market” (1760)

71. “Oh Susanna” (1846)
72. “Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush” (1842)
73. “Little Jack Horner” (1902)
74. “Skinnamarink (aka ‘Skidamarink’)” (1910)
75. “There’s a Hole in My Bucket” (1700)
76. “Polly Put the Kettle On” (1803)
77. “Lavender Blue (Dilly Dilly)” (from So Dear to My Heart, 1948)
78. “When the Saints Go Marching In” (1896)
79. “One, Two, Buckle My Shoe” (1805)
80. “Daisy Bell (A Bicycle Built for Two)” (1893)

81. “Can’t Stop the Feeling!” (from Trolls, 2016)
82. “Over the River and Through the Woods” (1844)
83. “Over the Rainbow” (from The Wizard of Oz, 1939)
84. “Michael Row the Boat Ashore” (1867)
85. “There Was a Crooked Man” (1842)
86. “Do You Want to Build a Snowman?” (from Frozen, 2013)
87. “John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt” (1926)
88. “Brahms' Lullaby (Wiegenlied) (aka ‘Cradle Song’)” (1868)
89. “Do Re Mi” (from The Sound of Music, 1959)
90. “Froggie Went A-Courtin’” (1700)

91. “For He’s a Jolly Good Fellow” (1709)
92. “Amazing Grace” (1800)
93. “Shortenin’ Bread” (1900)
94. “Be My Little Baby Bumble Bee” (1912)
95. “Eeeney Meeney Miney Moe” (1820)
96. “Miss Mary Mack” (1888)
97. “Kumbayah” (1926)
98. “Jimmy Crack Corn (The Blue Tail Fly)” (1848)
99. “Little Boy Blue” (1891)
100. “Peter Cottontail” (1950)

* This song has origins much earlier than 2016, but it became a sensation that year when Pinkfong released a video for it which has since become the most-watched video of all time on YouTube with more than 8 billion views.

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First posted 6/30/2021.

 
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Tuesday, June 22, 2021

Styx et al: Top 100 Songs

Styx et al

Top 100 Songs

l to r: John Panozzo, James Young, Tommy Shaw, Chuck Panozzo, Dennis DeYoung

Rock band from Chicago, IL. Active: 1969-1984, 1990-. Members: John Panozzo (d – TW4: 69-71; Styx: 71-84,90; died of gastrointestinal hemorrhage on 7/16/96 at age 47), Chuck Panozzo (b – TW4: 69-71; Styx: 71-84,90-), Dennis DeYoung (v/k: 71-84,90-99), John Curulewski (g/v – TW4: 69-71; Styx: 71-76; died of an aneurysm in 1988), James Young (g/ v – TW4: 70-71; Styx: 71-84,90-; solo), Tommy Shaw (v/g: 76-84,95-), Glen Burtnik (v/g: 90; b: 00-04), Todd Sucherman (d: 95-), Lawrence Gowan (v/k: 00-), Ricky Phillips (b: 03-).

The Panozzo twin brothers started playing in their garage at the age of 12. Their neighbor, DeYoung, joined them. When the trio went to Chicago State University, they formed TW4 with Curulewski. Young joined in 1970. In 1971, Wooden Nickel Records heard them, signed them the following year, and Styx (named after river Hades in Greek mythology) was born. In 1975, the group signed with A&M after a revival of the song "Lady" restored their Styx II album from three years earlier. After their first A&M album (Equinox), Curulewski left the group; replaced by Shaw. Group broke up in ‘84. Shaw, DeYoung, and JY did solo projects. In 1990, Styx reunited. They toured in 1995, recorded a few more songs in the studio, and released their first studio album in nearly a decade in 1999.

This post has been updated in light of new albums from Styx and Dennis DeYoung in June 2021.

Click here to see other best-of lists from performers and here to see other best-of lists from songwriters and/or producers.

Check out Dave’s Music Database podcast: The Best of Dennis DeYoung and Styx and Dave’s Music Database podcast: The Best of Tommy Shaw and Styx, both based on this list.

Awards for Styx:

Top 100 Songs

In addition to Styx songs, this list includes solo material from Dennis DeYoung and Tommy Shaw as well as Damn Yankees, which featured Shaw. Dave’s Music Database lists are determined by song’s appearances on best-of lists as well as chart success, sales, radio airplay, streaming, and awards. Songs which hit #1 on various charts are noted. (Click for codes to singles charts.)

DMDB Top 5%:

1. Babe (1979) #1 US, CB, HR, RR, CL, CN

DMDB Top 10%:

2. Renegade (1978) #1 CL
3. Come Sail Away (1977) #1 CL
4. Lady (1973)
5. The Best of Times (1981) #1 RR, CL, CN
6. Mr. Roboto (1983) #1 CB, CN

DMDB Top 10%:

7. Fooling Yourself (Angry Young Man) (1977) (1977)
8. High Enough (Damn Yankees, 1990)
9. Too Much Time on My Hands (1981)
10. Blue Collar Man (Long Nights) (1978)

11. Mademoiselle (1976)
12. Desert Moon (Dennis DeYoung, 1984)
13. Lorelei (1975)

DMDB Top 20%:

14. Don’t Let It End (1983)
15. Why Me? (1979)
16. Love Is the Ritual (1990)
17. Music Time (1984)
18. Sing for the Day (1978)
19. Suite Madame Blue (1975)
20. Call Me (Dennis DeYoung, 1986)

21. Nothing Ever Goes As Planned (1981)
22. Borrowed Time (1979)
23. Show Me the Way (1990)
24. Crystal Ball (1976)
25. Girls with Guns (Tommy Shaw, 1984)
26. Rockin’ the Paradise (1981)
27. Love at First Sight (1990)
28. Snowblind (1981)
29. Light Up (1975)
30. Come Again (Damn Yankees, 1990)

31. This Is the Time (Dennis DeYoung, 1986)
32. The Grand Illusion (1977)
33. Best Thing (1972)
34. Don’t Wait for Heroes (Dennis DeYoung, 1984)
35. You Need Love (1973)
36. Coming of Age (Damn Yankees, 1990) #1 AR
37. Lights (1979)
38. Where You Goin’ Now (Damn Yankees, 1992)
39. Golden Lark (1974)
40. Silence Is Broken (Damn Yankees, 1992)

41. Miss America (1977)
42. Fanfare for the Common Man (1972)
43. What If (Remo’s Theme) (Tommy Shaw, 1985)

Beyond the DMDB Top 20%:

44. High Time (1983)
45. What Has Come Between Us (1972)
46. Boat on the River (1979)
47. All in a Day’s Work (1990)
48. Dear John (1997)
49. Pieces of Eight (1978)
50. Father O.S.A. (1973)

51. Castle Walls (1977)
52. Earl of Roseland (1973)
53. Man in the Wilderness (1977)
54. Jennifer (1976)
55. Haven’t We Been Here Before (1983)
56. Mister Please (Damn Yankees, 1992)
57. Ballerina (1976)
58. Everything is Cool (1999)
59. Black Wall (Dennis DeYoung, 1986)
60. Grove of Eglantine (1974)

61. Heavy Metal Poisoning (1983)
62. Put Me On (1976)
63. A Day (1973)
64. Don’t Tread on Me (Damn Yankees, 1992)
65. Lonely People (1981)
66. She Cares (1981)
67. Harry’s Hands (1989)
68. Southbound Ryan (Dennis DeYoung, 1986)
69. Children of the Land (1972)
70. My Hallucination (Shaw/Blades, 1995)

71. First Time (1979)
72. This Old Man (1976)
73. Great White Hope (1978)
74. Half Penny, Two Penny (1981)
75. I’m O.K. (1978)
76. Man of Miracles (1974)
77. Lonely Child (1975)
78. Blue Collar Man @ 2120 (2005)
79. On My Way (1997)
80. A Song for Suzanne (1974)

81. I’m Gonna Make You Feel It (1973)
82. I Am the Walrus (2005)
83. Mother Dear (1975)
84. Queen of Spades (1978)
85. Double Life (1983)
86. You Better Ask (1973)
87. Paradise (1997)
88. Lords of the Ring (1978)
89. A.D. 1928 (1981)
90. Right Away (1972)

91. Mother Nature’s Matinee (1972)
92. Lonely School (Tommy Shaw, 1984)
93. Brave New World (1999)
94. Runaway (Damn Yankees, 1990)
95. Evil Eyes (1974)
96. Christopher Mr. Christopher (1974)
97. Winner Take All (1974)
98. Ever Since the World Began (Tommy Shaw, 1987)
99. A.D. 1958 (1981)
100. Gone, Gone, Gone (2017)

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First posted 2/3/2020; last updated 6/22/2021.

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Dave's Music Database Hall of Fame: Music Makers' Inductees (June 2021)

Originally posted 6/22/2021.

January 22, 2019 marked the 10-year anniversary of the DMDB blog! To honor that, Dave’s Music Database announced its own Hall of Fame. This tenth class of music maker inductees is comprised of the top R&B acts. Inductees were determined by looking at the DMDB list of the top 100 R&B acts, ranking them by overall points in Dave’s Music Database, and then inducting the ten highest-ranked acts not previously inducted. See the full list of music maker inductees here.

Chuck Berry (1926-2017)

Inducted June 2021 as a “Top R&B Act”

R&B/early rock-n-roll singer, songwriter, and guitarist born in St. Louis, MO. He is considered one of the architects of the early rock and roll sound. Inducted into the inaugural class of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. His songs “Maybellene” and “Johnny B. Goode” rank in the top 1% of all time. The latter is featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Songs of the Rock Era. His compilation, The Great Twenty-Eight ranks as one of the top 1000 of all time. Read more.

Beyoncé (1981-)

Inducted June 2021 as a “Top R&B Act”

R&B/pop singer born Beyoncé Giselle Knowles in Houston, TX. “Say My Name,” “Independent Women” (both with the girl group Destiny’s Child before she went solo), “Crazy in Love,” “Irreplaceable,” and “Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)” rank in the the top 1% of all time. Her albums Dangerously in Love, I Am…Sasha Fierce, Beyoncé, and Lemonade rank the top 1000 of all time. Read more.

James Brown (1933-2006)

Inducted June 2021 as a “Top R&B Act”

R&B/funk singer and dancer born in Toccoa, GA. Nicknamed “The Godfather of Soul.” Inducted into the inaugural class of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. “Papa's Got a Brand New Bag” and “I Got You (I Feel Good)” are in the DMDB’s the top 1% of all time. His Live at the Apollo Volume 1 is in the DMDB book The Top 100 Albums of All Time and rates #1 on the DMDB list of the top live albums of all time. Read more.

Sam Cooke (1931-1964)

Inducted June 2021 as a “Top R&B Act”

R&B singer/songwriter born in Clarksdale, Mississippi. Inducted into the inaugural class of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. “You Send Me” and “A Change Is Gonna Come” are the top 1% of all time. His compilation, The Man and His Music, ranks as one of the top 1000 of all time. Read more.

Fats Domino (1928-2017)

Inducted June 2021 as a “Top R&B Act”

R&B singer and pianist born in New Orleans, LA. Inducted into the inaugural class of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Also in the Blues Hall of Fame and Songwriters Hall of Fame. “Ain’t That a Shame” and “Blueberry Hill” rank in the top 1% of all time. The latter is featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Songs of the Rock Era. Read more.

Marvin Gaye (1939-1984)

Inducted June 2021 as a “Top R&B Act”

R&B singer born in Washington, D.C. “I Heard It Through the Grapevine” and “What's Going On” are both in the DMDB book The Top 100 Songs of the Rock Era. Those two, as well as “Let’s Get It On” and “Sexual Healing” rank in the top 1% of all time. What's Going On and Let's Get It On rank in the top 1000 albums of all time; the former is in the DMDB book The Top 100 Albums of All Time Read more.

Little Richard (1932-2020)

Inducted June 2021 as a “Top R&B Act”

R&B singer and pianist born Richard Wayne Penniman in Macon, GA. Inducted into the inaugural class of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. “Tutti Frutti” and “Long Tall Sally” rank in the top 1% of all time. Here's Little Richard! is one of the top 1000 albums of all time. Read more.

Lionel Richie (1949-)

Inducted June 2021 as a “Top R&B Act”

R&B/pop singer born in Los Angeles, CA. “Brick House” and “Three Times a Lady,” both recorded with the Commodores, rank in the top 1% of all time, as do his solo hits “All Night Long (All Night),” “Hello,” and “Say You Say Me.” “Endless Love,” a duet with Diana Ross, also ranks there and is in the DMDB book The Top 100 Songs of the Rock Era. Can't Slow Down ranks as one of the top 1000 albums of all time. Read more.

Smokey Robinson (1940-)

Inducted June 2021 as a “Top R&B Act”

R&B singer/songwriter and music executive born William Robinson, Jr. in Detroit, Michigan. This Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Songwriters Hall of Fame inductee makes the DMDB’s lists of top executives, R&B acts, singers, and rock-era songwriters. “The Tracks of My Tears” and “The Tears of a Clown,” both recorded with the Miracles rank in the top 1% of all time. Read more.

The Temptations (active 1960-)

Inducted June 2021 as a “Top R&B Act”

This R&B group from Detroit, Michigan, has existed in different incarnations for decades, but its best known members from their ‘60s heyday include Eddie Kendricks, David Ruffin, and Paul Williams. “My Girl” is in the DMDB book The Top 100 Songs of the Rock Era. That song, as well as “Ain’t Too Proud to Beg,” “Just My Imagination Running Away with Me,” and “Papa Was a Rollin’ Stone” rank in the top 1% of all time. Read more.
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Saturday, June 19, 2021

Dave’s Top 100 Acts of All Time

Dave’s Faves:

Top 100 Acts

These are my personal favorites. To offer some context, I was in grade school in the ‘70s and middle school through college in the ‘80s. As is the case with most people, it is the music of my youth which most dictates my personal tastes. Note: links go to the acts’ entries in the DMDB Music Makers encyclopedia at Davesmusicdatabase.com.

See other Acts/Music Makers by Genre lists.

1. The Beatles
2. Bruce Springsteen
3. Marillion
4. Styx
5. U2
6. David Bowie
7. The Rolling Stones
8. Bob Dylan
9. Sting
10. John Mellencamp

The Beatles

11. Eric Clapton
12. Prince
13. Pearl Jam
14. Pink Floyd
15. Elton John
16. Tori Amos
17. The Who
18. Billy Joel
19. Queen
20. Indigo Girls

Bruce Springsteen

21. Lyle Lovett
22. Stevie Wonder
23. The Rainmakers
24. Olivia Newton-John
25. Fish
26. Led Zeppelin
27. Tears for Fears
28. Eagles
29. Squeeze
30. R.E.M.

Marillion

31. Jimi Hendrix
32. The Police
33. Lou Reed
34. Journey
35. Alan Parsons Project
36. Sheryl Crow
37. Crowded House
38. Rush
39. Tom Petty
40. Elvis Presley

Styx

41. Paul McCartney
42. Melissa Etheridge
43. Pat Benatar
44. Michael Jackson
45. Van Halen
46. Rod Stewart
47. Genesis
48. Yes
49. Madonna
50. Peter Gabriel

U2

51. David Baerwald
52. Velvet Underground
53. Aerosmith
54. Del Amitri
55. Don Henley
56. Neil Young
57. Alabama
58. Bob Seger
59. Crosby, Stills & Nash
60. Eurythmics

David Bowie

61. Fleetwood Mac
62. Foreigner
63. Hooters
64. Frank Sinatra 65. The Doors
66. Aretha Franklin
67. The Beach Boys
68. Sinéad O’Connor
69. Elvis Costello
70. Tracy Chapman

The Rolling Stones

71. ZZ Top
72. Phil Collins
73. Ray Charles
74. REO Speedwagon
75. Little River Band
76. Asia
77. Simple Minds
78. John Lennon
79. Bing Crosby
80. Shawn Colvin

Bob Dylan

81. Violent Femmes
82. Robert Plant
83. Johnny Cash
84. Marvin Gaye
85. Roger Waters
86. Dire Straits
87. Berlin
88. Kevin Gilbert
89. Mike + the Mechanics
90. Aha

Sting

91. Dennis DeYoung
92. Split Enz
93. Bad Company
94. Alanis Morissette
95. Terence Trent D’Arby
96. INXS
97. Boston
98. Nirvana
99. Guns N’ Roses
100. The Cars

John Mellencamp

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First posted 1/15/2013; last updated 6/19/2021.

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Friday, June 18, 2021

Styx released Crash of the Crown

Crash of the Crown

Styx

Released: June 18, 2021

Peak: 114 US, -- UK, -- CN, -- AU

Sales (in millions): -- US, -- UK, -- world (includes US and UK)

Genre: veteran classic rock

Tracks:

Song Title (Writers) [time] (date of single release, chart peaks) Click for codes to singles charts.

  1. The Fight of Our Lives [1:54]
  2. A Monster (Shaw, Evankovich, Gowan) [3:27]
  3. Reveries [3:03] (6/4/21, --)
  4. Hold Back the Darkness [3:58]
  5. Save Us from Ourselves [3:02]
  6. Crash of the Crown (Shaw, Evankovich, Gowan) [3:46] (5/6/21, --)
  7. Our Wonderful Lives [3:06]
  8. Common Ground (Shaw, Evankovich, Gowan) [4:00]
  9. Sound the Alarm [3:25]
  10. Long Live the King (Evankovich) [2:33]
  11. Lost at Sea (Gowan) [0:38]
  12. Coming Out the Other Side (Shaw, Evankovich, Phillips) [3:48]
  13. To Those [3:01]
  14. Another Farewell (Evankovich) [0:26]
  15. Stream (Shaw) [2:56]

Songs are written by Tommy Shaw and Will Evankovich unless noted otherwise.

Total Running Time: 43:03

The Players:

  • Tommy Shaw (vocals, guitar)
  • James Young (guitar, vocals)
  • Chuck Panozzo (bass)
  • Lawrence Gowan (vocals, keyboards)
  • Ricky Phillips (bass)
  • Todd Sucherman (drums, percussion)

Rating:

3.529 out of 5.00 (average of 6 ratings)

About the Album:

Styx returns with its 17th album, four years after 2017’s The Mission. The “15-song supersonic cyclone…encapsulates universal emotions, wrestles with top-of-mind issues, and celebrates personal triumphs over adversity in ways everyone can relate to personally.” SW “Crash of the Crown is a modern-day sonic chronograph of the endless regenerative cycle of the rise and fall – and rise again – of our shared human experience.” SW

The album brings back the same players who appeared on The Mission and sees Will Evankovich, who produced The Mission returns in the same capacity here and co-writes most of the songs. He also plays “a multitude of instruments throughout the entire album.” SW

Reveries, with its “wistful observational musings,” SW is “an instantly catchy song featuring STYX’s patented, always-uplifting four- and sometimes five-part harmonious vocal blend on its choruses.” SW The song date back to The Mission. SW

“The unmistakable snarl of A Monster” SW is “bolstered by a whirlwind outro solo from co-founding guitarist/vocalist James “JY” Young.” SW It “was born and bred during a scenic tour break in British Columbia.” SW

There’s a “breathe-easier singalong mantra that permeates Sound the Alarm.” SW “The angelic vocal bridge that cements the relieved bliss” SW of that song “reached final fruition during the recording process itself.” SW

There’s also “the dark yet redemptively hopeful cautionary tale that frames Hold Back the Darkness.” SW and “the elegiac communal grace of To Those.” SW

Regarding the impact of the pandemic on the recording process, chief songwriter Tommy Shaw said, “Absolutely no obstacles were going to get in the way of how we approached creating this album…and everything came out exactly the way we wanted to hear it.” SW Recording happened primarily at Shaw’s home studio in Nashville, “albeit in strategic, quarantine-approved doses.” SW Bassist Ricky Phillips said, “Because we connected so well as a band when we recorded The Mission, I just had to go there to make my contributions.” SW

Similarly, original bassist Chuck Panozzo said, “I traveled over 900 miles by car to record with Will and Tommy in person. They’re both so good at getting the best bass performances out of me in the studio. Making that trip to Nashville was the highlight of my year!” SW He contributes “his signature low-end tone for the inspirational Our Wonderful Lives and the acute aquatic fever dream Lost at Sea.” SW

Shaw previewed an acoustic version of “Lives” at the Big Love Benefit Concert which streamed online in January 2021. It is “a track that serves as a stirring ode to taking stock of the finer points of life amidst trying times.” SW It also marks the first appearance of banjo on a Styx song. Shaw said, “I never imagined playing banjo on a STYX record…but as we were cutting ‘Our Wonderful Lives,’ I thought maybe a touch of Americana might work — so I auditioned it, and it felt like it belonged.” SW The song also features a “jubilant piccolo trumpet solo from guest performer Steve Patrick, which exhibits quite the deliberate Beatlesque flair.” SW

Some songs “were workshopped in hotel rooms all across the continent while the band was on tour.” SW There were others which pre-dated the lockdown. Keyboardist and singer Lawrence Gowan “had laid down many vocal and instrumental tracks in Nashville in the fall of 2019, including some of the synthesized flourishes that reign over the unifying come-together entreaty of Common Ground that recall The Who at their Quadrophenia peak.” SW He recorded other parts from his homebase in Toronto. SW

The title track “holds the unique distinction of featuring three lead vocalists, with JY lending his distinctive baritone to the opening verses, Tommy heading up the heroic stacked-vocal middle section, and Lawrence taking the lead for the final verse.” SW Young compared it to how he and Shaw traded lead vocals on 1981’s “Snowblind.” It received its world premiere during Eddie Trunk’s Sirius XM show “Trunk Nation.” SW

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First posted 6/18/2021; last updated 8/3/2021.

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Thursday, June 17, 2021

Hollywood Walk of Fame

Hollywood Walk of Fame:

1957-2022

The Hollywood Walk of Fame is comprised of stars awarded to people in the entertainment industry for motion pictures, television, theater/live performance, recording, and radio. E.M. Stuart, the volunteer president of the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, is credited with conceiving the idea in 1953. The design for the star was approved by 1956 and between then and 1957 more than 1500 honorees were selected by a committee representing the different entertainment industries. There are now more than 2700 stars.

This page acknowledges all of those stars who received stars on the Walk of Fame for recording as well as music-related stars for motion pictures, theater/live performance, television, and radio. Stars are for recording unless noted otherwise. The 2022 class was announced on June 17, 2021.

See other Hall of Fames.

A

B

C

D

E

  • Earth, Wind & Fire (1995)
  • Billy Eckstine
  • Nelson Eddy (1960 recording, 1960 radio)
  • Ralph Edwards (1960 radio)
  • Duke Ellington
  • Mama Cass Elliot (2016)
  • Missy “Misdemeanor” Elliott (2021)
  • Mischa Elman
  • Emilio Estefan Jr. (2005)
  • Gloria Estefan (1993)
  • Melissa Etheridge (2011)
  • Dale Evans (1960 radio)
  • Ray Evans (1995)
  • The Everly Brothers (1986)
F

G

  • Kenny G (1997)
  • Ana Gabriel (2021)
  • Juan Gabriel (2002)
  • Amelita Galli-Curci
  • Judy Garland
  • Erroll Garner
  • Lucho Gatica (2008)
  • Marvin Gaye (1990)
  • Crystal Gayle (2009)
  • George Gershwin (1998)
  • Ira Gershwin (1998)
  • Georgia Gibbs
  • Beniamino Gigli
  • Vince Gill (2012)
  • Dizzy Gillespie (1995)
  • Mickey Gilley (1984)
  • Jackie Gleason (1960)
  • Arthur Godfrey (1960 recording, 1960 radio)
  • The Go-Go's (2011)
  • Ernest Gold (1975)
  • Jerry Goldsmith (2017)
  • Al Goodman
  • Benny Goodman
  • Berry Gordy Jr. (1996)
  • Eydie Gormé (1960)
  • Lukasz “Dr. Luke” Gottwald (2015)
  • Morton Gould
  • Robert Goulet (1975)
  • Amy Grant (2006)
  • Glen Gray
  • Dick Gregory (2015 live performance)
H

I

  • Ice Cube (2017)
  • Julio Iglesias (1985)
  • Pedro Infante (1994)
  • Jose Iturbi
J

K

  • Kitty Kallen
  • Casey Kasem (1981 radio)
  • Danny Kaye (1960 recording, 1960 radio)
  • Sammy Kaye (1960 recording, 1960 radio)
  • KC & The Sunshine Band (2002)
  • Shotgun Tom Kelley (2013 radio)
  • Stan Kenton
  • Chaka Khan (2011)
  • B.B. King (1990)
  • Carole King (2012)
  • Pee Wee King
  • Dorothy Kirsten
  • Kiss (1999)
  • Eartha Kitt (1960)
  • Evelyn Knight
  • Gladys Knight (1995)
  • Kool & the Gang (2015)
  • André Kostelanetz
  • Dave Koz (2009)
  • Fritz Kreisler
  • Kay Kyser
L

M

N

O

P

Q

R

S

  • Carole Bayer Sager (2000)
  • Tommy Sands
  • Carlos Santana (1998)
  • Alejandro Sanz (2021)
  • Lalo Schifrin (1988)
  • Al Schmitt (2015)
  • Ernestine Schumann-Heink
  • Stephen Schwartz (2008 live performance)
  • Earl Scruggs
  • Ryan Seacrest (2005 radio)
  • Neil Sedaka (1978)
  • Bob Seger (1987)
  • Selena (2017)
  • Rudolf Serkin
  • Shakira (2011)
  • Tupac Shakur (2014)
  • Artie Shaw (1960)
  • Robert Shaw
  • George Shearing
  • Richard Sherman (1976 motion picture)
  • Robert Sherman (1976 motion picture)
  • Dinah Shore (1960 recording, 1960 radio)
  • Beverly Sills (1977)
  • Frank Sinatra (1960)
  • Nancy Sinatra (2006)
  • Slash (2012)
  • Carl Smith
  • Joseph B. Smith (2016)
  • Kate Smith
  • Keely Smith
  • Snoop Dogg (2018)
  • Antonio Marco Solis (2010)
  • Sons of the Pioneers (1976)
  • John Phillip Sousa (1990)
  • Britney Spears (2003)
  • The Spinners (1976)
  • Rick Springfield (2014)
  • Jo Stafford (1960 recording, 1960 radio)
  • Kay Starr
  • Ringo Starr (2010)
  • Eleanor Steber
  • Don Steele (1995 radio)
  • William Steinberg
  • Isaac Stern
  • Rod Stewart (2005)
  • Sting (2000)
  • Frederick Stock
  • Leopold Stokowski
  • Mike Stoller (1994)
  • Morris Stoloff
  • Cliffie Stone (1989 radio)
  • Gale Storm (1960)
  • Igor Stravinsky
  • Barbra Streisand (1976 motion picture)
  • Yma Súmac
  • Donna Summer (1992)
  • The Supremes
  • Gladys Swarthout
  • Joseph Szigeti
T

U-V

W

X-Y-Z

  • Dwight Yoakam (2003)
  • Victor Young (1960)

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First posted 6/28/2016; last updated 6/17/2021.
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