Rock'N'Roll, Pop, Indie - Which Country Has Done It The Best?

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Rock'N'Roll, Pop, Indie - Which Country Has Done It The Best?

  • The Union Jack Rules

    Votes: 15 83.3%
  • The Stars and Stripes Rule

    Votes: 2 11.1%
  • Some Other Country Has Done It All Better

    Votes: 1 5.6%

  • Total voters
    18

User211

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Naturally biased being a Brit, this tiny little island has come out with some pretty amazing music over the years. And the US is probably the "next" best producer...

Am I right? I'm sitting here, ready to take the onslaught...

This is just a bit of fun, and totally subjective, but is it true (if it's subjective, can it ever be true?)?

Asking for the most part a bunch of Americans is possibly a sure fire sign of losing... but it'd be interesting to see what the pool results indicate. And read any backing comments.

Broad question - wide category to consider. Let's see how we do.
 
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Justin, I actually voted for the UK too. A LOT of my favorite bands have come from your homeland. I think the US also has had a huge influence, but I think per capita you are an amazingly musical people.

I also think that Canada and Australia are right up there too.
 
sadly, I too voted for the UK because quite frankly, pop music from the USA is 90% garbage.. There ARE exceptions, of course, including this one which I will be reviewing shortly....
 

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I guess it depends on your time frame. If you are meaning the ENTIRE history of Rock-n-Roll, then I'd say it's a REALLY close tossup between th eUS and the UK, because although the US comes up with sheer numbers when it comes to good bands in the '50s, 60's, and '70s, the UK produced several truly historical groups like the Stones, the Beatles, the Who, Pink Floyd, and Kate Bush.

Technically, some purists would put Jimi Hendrix in the "UK" category, because although he was born here in the US, he did his first concerts and records that we would call the "Hendrix style" while living in the UK. Of course, under that Logic, the Beatles would qualify as a German band... ;)

So it's a close tie for me. So many of my favorite bands have come from the US over the years, but almost every musician or group who I consider life-changingly talented are from the UK...

And then there's Canada, (Martha and the Muffins, David Bowie, Coyboy Junkies, Steppenwolf, Rush, the list goes on...) and Australia ( Little River Band, Men at Work, AC/DC, INXS, Midnight Oil, Crowded House, The Church, Dead Can Dance, Yothu Yindi, Jet).

When you really look at the history of Rock, it HAS been pretty much dominated by people from English-speaking nations. No wonder the French hate us. We stole their musical fire just when Jazz was hitting it's peak in the '50's and they haven't had a chance since...

And although Canada and Australia have made soem signifigant contributions, I think the US and the UK are pretty much tied as far as their contributions to the canon of Rock-n-Roll.

But if I HAD to choose, I'd have to say th UK. I mean, the Beatles (as a group and as solo acts), Pink Floyd, and Kate Bush are pretty much quoted by EVERY manistream rock band after them as being some sort of fundamental inspiration. It's hard to find ANY rock band in any country that isn't somehow derivative or at least aesthetically informed by these three artists?
 
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Take away everyone the UK has produced and leave the Beatles and I'd still vote UK - what they did was unrepeatable!
 
Kate Bush, you say, Dreamer... now that's just plain weird, I think. Not to put the old girl down, but I'm not sure we really rate her much over here in general.

In her time, sure, she was really popular. But outside her time frame, I'm not sure many here would regard her as a true great.

Interesting... and baffling... looks like she was/is perceived differently in the US.

Personally, I found her vocals really annoying. But virtually all the blokes in my class at school thought she was amazing... mainly from the "boy, what would I like to do with her given the chance?" type of perspective, if you get my meaning.:)

Hendrix was a difficult one for me. I didn't like him much for years. Then I found/downloaded some great bootlegs I found in newsgroups, and suddenly he clicked. I remember driving to work one day, about a year after starting to learn to play the guitar. I had a real moment - I just got completely gobsmacked/astounded by his playing. I spent a lot of the rest of that day discussing his "true greatness" with a work collegue and genuine fan. Good times indeed:).
 
sadly, I too voted for the UK because quite frankly, pop music from the USA is 90% garbage.. There ARE exceptions, of course, including this one which I will be reviewing shortly....

Napster has it... since I thought Collective Soul were OK, I'll give it a "spin".

This is going landslide UK... have to admit I am a bit surprised.

Dreamer - David Bowie is, er, English... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_bowie
 
Kate Bush, you say, Dreamer... now that's just plain weird, I think. Not to put the old girl down, but I'm not sure we really rate her much over here in general.

Have you heard her "new" album, "Aerial"? It's really interesting, and the production quality is astounding. It really shows that the ARTIST did the post-production, not some effects-box-drunk "engineer". It's clean, clear, and has an astounding soundstage. And the vinyl release is supposedly WAY better thant he CD, but I haven't heard the vinyl yet.


In her time, sure, she was really popular. But outside her time frame, I'm not sure many here would regard her as a true great.

The thing about Kate is her lyrics. If you're a listener who listens to music for just the music, then you probably won't "get" Kate. But if you listen to her lyrics, and then dig into the background of where they're coming from, it adds a whole other dimension to her work. You really have to approach her work like a collection of short stories that just happen to have music set to the words...

As far as influence, pretty much EVERY piano-and-vocal female artist since then has cited her as an inspiration. Tori Amos pretty much owes here entire sound to Kate, and although SHE admits that, her fans can't seem to...


Personally, I found her vocals really annoying. But virtually all the blokes in my class at school thought she was amazing... mainly from the "boy, what would I like to do with her given the chance?" type of perspective, if you get my meaning.:)

Yeah, I'll admit, that's what made me buy her first album. And the thing is, even today, in her mid-40's, she's still HOT. I credit that mostly to her seculsion and lack of touring. I mean have you seen Debby Harry lately? Talk about "rode hard and put away wet"...

And yeah, I don't what I was thinking with the David Bowie thing. The Thin White Duke is definitely a Brit.
 
Yeah Debbie's a mess - too much brown sugar, I guess. I often think it must be so hard for people who are truly great looking when young that become the opposite when older.

Audrey Hepburn IMO was the most beautiful woman of all time... and she still looked great when she was old. But in Breakfast At Tiffany's - I mean, wow!

I walked into Tiffany's in NYC, tried to take a photo, and got immediate attention from security:D

Aerial's playing now... at least she isn't whinning like on Wuthering Heights!
 
As Dreamer said...tough call, but I too give Merry 'ole England the nod ! Myself a big Moddy Blues fan (somehow a dubbie always tasted better listening to "Knights in White Satin") , as Amey said the Beetles alone sealed the deal ! But one needs to thank Ed Sullivan and that memorable evening back in '63 (I believe) here in the Good 'ole "US of A" !!!
 
Toss up
UK -- no ones mentioned Zeppelin

American, here's a short list of influential artists who've stood the test of time

Eagles
Doors
Queen
Dylan
Steely Dan
Grateful Dead
Beach Boys
Springsteen
Creedance
Crosby,Stills, & Nash
Aerosmith


I'm sure you can come up with others.

No vote here I say it's even
 
Toss up
UK -- no ones mentioned Zeppelin

American, here's a short list of influential artists who've stood the test of time

Eagles
Doors
Queen
Dylan
Steely Dan
Grateful Dead
Beach Boys
Springsteen
Creedance
Crosby,Stills, & Nash
Aerosmith


I'm sure you can come up with others.

No vote here I say it's even

Um, Wayne, Queen were Brits too. So is Graham Nash of CS&N.
 
TomDac,

I'm in total agreement with you on the new "Melee" album. I listened to a downloaded high-bit-rate torrent copy recently and it has prompted me to hunt down the CD or LP for my collection. It verges on a little too "bubble-gummy" in places, but overall, this is a REALLY good example of what pop-rock can be if the producers actually want it to sound like MUSIC, rather than a digitally molested exercise in effects-mongering.

I'll definitely be getting the CD, and probably the vinyl release too (just for the cool cover art if nothing else...)

--Richard
 
Um, Wayne, Queen were Brits too. So is Graham Nash of CS&N.

OOPS
Okay scratch Queen add

Elvis

Still say CSN is American, how bout CSN&Y

Here's a few more
Janis Joplin
Jefferson Airplane
Tom Petty
Mellencamp
Skynyrd
ZZ Top
Wacko Jacko
 
TomDac,

I'm in total agreement with you on the new "Melee" album. I listened to a downloaded high-bit-rate torrent copy recently and it has prompted me to hunt down the CD or LP for my collection. It verges on a little too "bubble-gummy" in places, but overall, this is a REALLY good example of what pop-rock can be if the producers actually want it to sound like MUSIC, rather than a digitally molested exercise in effects-mongering.

I'll definitely be getting the CD, and probably the vinyl release too (just for the cool cover art if nothing else...)

--Richard
Hey Richard,

You're right on the mark about it being too bubble-gummy in places, but I like it anyway. :p It has flashes of DeadEye Dick and The New Radicals, which is probably why I like it.

Here are some other great US Rock/Pop bands:
Boston
Kiss - their music doesn't stand up today, but back in the day, they were the shite.
Nirvana
Foo Fighters
Metallica
Green Day
Oingo Boingo
Cheap Trick
Pat Benatar
Pearl Jam
Soundgarden
Styx
Stone Temple Pilots
Journey
Kansas
The Smithereens
Smashing Pumpkins
Van Halen
Sammy Hagar
Death Cab For Cutie
 
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In the British tradition of always supporting the underdog, here are some of my US faves, no order of preference here:

Nine Inch Nails - my fave US band
Television (I can do all the solos on Marquee Moon!:))
Dandy Warhols
The Doors
Madonna - not all but some of her stuff is fantastic
Lou Reed
Ramones
Yeah Yeah Yeahs
B-52s
Iggy Pop
Queens Of The Stoneage

But there's only a few top league acts in there... The Doors, Madge and Lou Reed, I guess. And let's face it - Madge has been mega...

Some Presley and Sinatra tracks move the hell out of me, but I am not a "fan".

Point of note - Witchcraft by Sinatra just blows me away for sound quality. It is absolutely stunning with NO CAVEATS - i.e. an allowance for when it was recorded.
 
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