Thirty or Thirty-One Great Singers and Some of their Greatest Moments

Here are 31 great singers and some of the moments that I thank them for. There were originally 30.

I know that this is a fool's errand. You will probably, and rightfully, say, "How did you miss Sam Cooke/Delroy Wilson/Andy Partridge/Emmylou Harris/Hank Williams/John Lydon/Sandy Denny/Buddy Holly/Rob Tyner/Sam Phillips/Martha Reeves/Bing Crosby/Kurt Cobain? What are you smoking?" Guess it just shows how many truly great singers there are.

I suppose that I could have done artists who had just one great thing and did it fantastically well, like Little Anne, or the guy from the Castaways who sang "Liar, Liar," but I wanted artists who did more than one fantastic thing. So here they are, mostly long-term artists, and thankfully, not a Celine Dion, Bruce Hornsby, or Jon Bon Jovi among 'em.

These artists aren't really listed in order, except maybe for the first few.

Why are there 31 and not 30? Because I refuse to leave out Gene Clark.


John Lennon, “God,” “You’ve Got to Hide Your Love Away,” “All I’ve Got to Do”

Paul McCartney, “Long Tall Sally,” ”Got to Get You Into My Life,” “For No One”

Carl Wilson, “Long Promised Road,” “I Can Hear Music,” “God Only Knows”

Sheila Chandra, “ABoneCroneDrone 5,” “Om Namaha Shiva,” “Dhyana and Donalogue”

Sade Adu, “Is it a Crime,” “It’s Only Love That Gets You Through,” “Like a Tattoo”

Arthur Lee, “Maybe the People Would be the Times or Between Clark and Hilldale,” “Nothing,” “Seven and Seven Is”

Dusty Springfield, “I Close My Eyes and Count to Ten,” “Just a Little Lovin’,” “The Windmills of Your Mind”

Aretha Franklin, “I Never Loved a Man (The Way I Love You),” “Spanish Harlem,” “I Say a Little Prayer”

Ray Charles, “Mess Around,” “Night Time is the Right Time,” “Busted”

Smokey Robinson, “The Tears of a Clown,” “Ooh Baby Baby,” “The Tracks of My Tears”

The Bee Gees, “Nights on Broadway,” “Blue Island,” “In My Own Time”

The Everly Brothers, “Sleepless Nights,” “Cathy’s Clown,” “Devoted to You”

Nick Drake, “Which Will,” “Time Has Told Me,” “Clothes of Sand”

Michael Jackson, “Billie Jean,” “I Want You Back,” “I Am Love”

John Fogerty, “Bad Moon Rising,” “Lodi,” “Who’ll Stop the Rain”

Marvin Gaye, “Can I Get a Witness,” “What’s Going On,” “I’ll Be Doggone”

Colin Blunstone (The Zombies), “The Way I Feel Inside,” “Time of the Season,” “She’s Not There”

Bill Withers, “Grandma’s Hands,” “Use Me,” “You”

Brian Wilson, “Please Let Me Wonder,” “You Still Believe in Me,” “The Warmth of the Sun”

Art Garfunkel, “Bridge Over Troubled Water,” ‘For Emily, Wherever I May Find Her,” “So Long, Frank Lloyd Wright”

Michael Nesmith, “What Am I Doin’ Hangin’ Round?,” “Grand Ennui,” “Silver Moon”

Steve Winwood, “I’m a Man,” “Empty Pages,” “No Face No Name No Number”

Glenn Tilbrook (Squeeze), “Pulling Mussels,” “Woman’s World,” “Satisfied”

Elvis Presley, “Love Me,” “Hound Dog,” “Burning Love”

Ella Fitzgerald, “Angel Eyes,” “Let’s Do It,” “Black Coffee”

Syd Barrett, “See Emily Play,” “Golden Hair,” “Lucifer Sam”

Frank Sinatra, “I Get Along Without You Very Well,” “That’s Life,” “In the Wee Small Hours”

Little Richard, “Keep a Knockin’,” “Tutti-Frutti,” “Good Golly Miss Molly"

Rodd Keith, “Atomic Wise,” “I Died Today,” “Ecstasy to Frenzy”

Juanes, “La Camisa Negra,” “A Dios Le Pido,” “Suenos”

Gene Clark (The Byrds), "I'll Feel a Whole Lot Better," "From a Silver Phial," "If You're Gone"


Comments welcome!