musical godlike geniuses

[david dissadent]

Thom Yorke for me. Aphex definently has his moments but also his duff notes. And the I find the Chemo's come very close to that catagory.

 

[Johnny Canuck3]

Wendy O Williams and Nash the Slash.

 

[Termite Man]

Wendy O Williams

was she is the plasmatics ?

 

[futha]

he's one of the finest songwriters of the last twenty years, but he's no genius

ill agree with that. genius is a weird word isnt it.i think people (me included) use it a little too often.

 

[stavros]

I'm tempted to remark on how the musical intelligence is so subjective in judgement of it that it's difficult to qulaify geniuses.

However I do like lists (I feel like Nick Hornby here) like this so here goes;
Prince, Dylan and Eno I would agree with.
Whilst I just about prefer Timbaland to Dre, and both qualify in my eyes, Dre has been through more transitions (Wold Class Wreckin' Crew, NWA, G-Funk, Eminem-era). Is the RZA worthy of consideration? He's certainly unique.

Some will say Aphex but I honestly prefer Squarepusher. He's more unpredictable for me, and sounds like nothing I've ever heard on the bass.

Finally, to represent the 1950s, I have to nominate Chuck Berry, the father of rock'n'roll. John Lennon said, "If you tried to give rock and roll another name, you might call it 'Chuck Berry'."

 

[futha]

if chuck berry what about buddy holly too?

 

[Dubversion]

Some will say Aphex but I honestly prefer Squarepusher. He's more unpredictable for me, and sounds like nothing I've ever heard on the bass.

ah, but to me squarepusher is just flash, showboating, jazz-fusion fucking about. Sure, it's amazingly proficient but it doesn't communicate anything except skill for its own sake.

 

[futha]

yeah aphex gets across an emotion/a feeling much better than squarepusher to me.

 

[Kaka Tim]

She's a Goddess and paid the studio time for the Specials to record Nelson Mandela.
You can stick your size="5" up your arse.

So being right on with your cheque book make you a 'musical genius'?

If she'd have written the specials songs then maybe you would something of a case.

But i cant see how being the purveyor of bland, coffee table jazz pop makes one a genius. OK, genre wise, shes less offensive then heather smalls from M-people - but it doesn't exactly make her Nina Simone does it?

And its a size 12 BTW.

 

[stavros]

if chuck berry what about buddy holly too?

I'm not sure he's turned out to be as influential or unique; Berry put the rebellious tone into the music, taking away a certain amount of the music-by-numbers structure and allowing for some showboating. I suppose it's bit like the Stones and the Beatles. I also have the suspicion that Berry would be far more feted if he had died young and/or been white.

 

[Johnny Canuck3]

was she is the plasmatics ?

She was is.

 

[Dubversion]

she's dead - killed herself, didn't she?

 

[Monkeygrinder's Organ]

Some will say Aphex but I honestly prefer Squarepusher. He's more unpredictable for me, and sounds like nothing I've ever heard on the bass.

I don't get that tbh. The range of stuff Aphex Twin has put out is immense compared to Squarepusher.

 

[London_Calling]

I never worked out where Ronson ended and Bowie began - certainly don't think Bowie would have shone anything like as brightly without Mick.

Prob not too many derivative white boys, tbf.

 

[stavros]

I don't get that tbh. The range of stuff Aphex Twin has put out is immense compared to Squarepusher.

True. As I said, musical intelligence can only really be interpreted subjectively. I just think Jenkinson's a little more focused in his work than James, but he still maintains the allure of abstraction. Each to their own I guess.

 

[Termite Man]

she's dead - killed herself, didn't she?

shot herself according to wikipedia

Williams died at age 48 in 1998 in a wooded area near her home of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. While some argued she committed suicide rather than compromise her art, Swenson reportedly described her as "despondent" at the time of her death. This is what she is said to have written in a suicide note regarding her decision:

 

[Monkeygrinder's Organ]

I never worked out where Ronson ended and Bowie began - certainly don't think Bowie would have shone anything like as brightly without Mick.

Prob not too many derivative white boys, tbf.

I think maybe you could call Bowie as genius as a pop star. Not really as a musician though. He was all about the image as far as I can tell (which isn't a criticism.)

 

[Termite Man]

I never worked out where Ronson ended and Bowie began - certainly don't think Bowie would have shone anything like as brightly without Mick.

Prob not too many derivative white boys, tbf.

I agree there . A lot of bowies greatest songs were done with Mick Ronson . It's a shame he did some utter shite for his solo stuff

 

[Barking_Mad]

It matters not whether is a genius or not, Dylan's got a away with words......

I can't feel you anymore, I can't even touch the books you've read
Every time I crawl past your door, I been wishin' I was somebody else instead.
Down the highway, down the tracks, down the road to ecstasy,
I followed you beneath the stars, hounded by your memory
And all your ragin' glory.

I been double-crossed now for the very last time and now I'm finally free,
I kissed goodbye the howling beast on the borderline which separated you from me.
You'll never know the hurt I suffered nor the pain I rise above,
And I'll never know the same about you, your holiness or your kind of love,
And it makes me feel so sorry.

Idiot wind, blowing through the buttons of our coats,
Blowing through the letters that we wrote.
Idiot wind, blowing through the dust upon our shelves,
We're idiots, babe.
It's a wonder we can even feed ourselves.

 

[Paulie Tandoori]

i must admit to liking people with something to say for themself, as well as being musical geniuses. So i'd have Joe Strummer, Bobbie D, Jello Biafra, Kirk Brandon, y'know

But then there are people like Miles Davis and John Coltrane that are currently sending me into orbit, and Marc Almond and Johnny Cash, Missy Elliot and Bjork, Tom Waits and Dizzee Rascal.

Maybe i'm just easily impressed but i hope not

 

[Julie]

Although I know very little about it, the classical composers were pretty (erm) shit hot.

What an eloquent description

 

[Dr. Furface]

Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Charlie Parker, Fela Kuti, Sly Stone, Holger Czukay, Joni Mitchell, Kraftwerk

 

[The Groke]

Thou shalt not put musicians and recording artists on ridiculous pedestals no matter how great they are or were.
The Beatles - Were just a band.
Led Zepplin - Just a band.
The Beach Boys - Just a band.
The Sex Pistols - Just a band.
The Clash - Just a band.
Crass - Just a band.
Minor Threat - Just a band.
The Cure - Were just a band.
The Smiths - Just a band.
Nirvana - Just a band.
The Pixies - Just a band.
Oasis - Just a band.
Radiohead - They're just a band.
Bloc Party - Just a band.
The Arctic Monkeys - Just a band.
The Next Big Thing - JUST A BAND.

they may have a point.....




"God-like genius" eh?

I dunno.

 

[Spion]

dylan had stopped making Guthrie style folk records when he went electric, and never actually electrified songs in the Guthrie style at all.

You're quite right. I realised my error soon after I dashed off the statement

so you think that the whole of dylan's 45 year career can be summed up as simply an electrification of woody guthrie? leaving aside what a ridiculous simplification that is,

I was reacting to the ridiculous simplification 'Bob Dylan is a genius', which cannot be applied to the stages of someone's career when they more or less copied an existing artist

 

[kained&able]

Not having rza stavros. The bloke is danm good producer but he acyully hasn't done that much stuff, and all of wu tang get pissed off with him for taking so fucking long to do an album.

Hes done very little non wu as well.

I rate muggs(cypress hill, soul assasins) higher then i do rza.

dave

 

[Iam]

I don't really do godlike genius stuff with artists, but there's a few who come close for me in terms of the amount of their stuff I like...

For instance.

 

[fieryjack]

Don Van Vliet's the only one that qualifies for me, although if I was pissed I'd argue for Mark E Smith.

 

[rekil]

HMHB, TMBG, Beefheart, Mozart, Mark E.Smith and Mark Chapman.

I don't really do godlike genius stuff with artists, but there's a few who come close for me in terms of the amount of their stuff I like...

For instance.

And he gets double points for being such a first class gent.

 

[futha]

was reacting to the ridiculous simplification 'Bob Dylan is a genius', which cannot be applied to the stages of someone's career when they more or less copied an existing artist

i don't think its a simplification. its my opinion.

 

[ebonics]

I don't know about "genius," or "godlike," but I think Otis Redding, Chris Whitley, and Mahalia Jackson are all transcendent.