What are some Veeky Forums tier musicians?

Neil Young

Fabrizio De André

>For you — the blind who once could see —
>bell tolls for thee…

Bruce Springsteen

Chico Buarque, he even wrote some interesting novels.

before he went downhill

Paddy MacAloon
youtube.com/watch?v=1bSPNboKCzM

Joanna Newsom tbqh

Are Veeky Forums's preferred books the literary equivalent to these entry level singer-songwriters?

all singer-songwriters are entry-level

sure

Leonard Cohen is head and shoulders above any other musician, tBh.

I believe Bob Dylan said pretty much exactly that.
He also said his (Cohen's) melodies were superior to everyone else's, too.

>(Cohen's) melodies were superior to everyone else's, too.

Eh... Len got a lot of help from his producers and arrangers on this one, especially in the first half of his career.

>especially in the first half of his career

Which was undoubtedly the best half. Seems the real artists, the unsung heroes, were those producers and arrangers,

this

Jon Anderson

Joni Mitchell

>destroyer
writes great music, and the lyrical content is fairly dylanesque

these and mine for more contemporary artists

The most telling thing I've read, from John Lissauer (produced New Skin and Various Positions):

"Leonard had just been on Broadway and bought a Casio piece-of-crap synthesizer, for tourists. I go to his hotel, and he pushes a button, and it goes, boom-tish, boom-tish. He starts to sing the song, and I envisioned it with real musicians, letting it build and build. But he had his finger on this one key, playing the drumbeat. He was grinning like a school-kid. He loved the simplicity of it, and the fact that talented musicians weren't over-playing, Leonard can be stubborn. Usually to champion simplicity, or demo-like takes."

I have the feeling that a lot of his songs were basically just spoken word pieces before he got into the studio. That seems to be the case with The Captain, which I think is his best song. Granted, there is something to his idea of simplicity, and even the basic frameworks that he came up with are inspired. So I don't mean to insinuate he's talentless aside from his writing.

...

I remember reading about him and what was probably that same Casio, how he loved using it in a ultra-simplistic childlike solo on Tower of Song.
It's so anti-music it's got more of a fuck-the-music-establishment feeling than most punk songs
Even moreso as it was done in the late '80's when everyone was trying to build these lush soundscapes with their cutting edge synths.
I remember Kate Bush saying something like, "If I hear Orc.5 in one more song I'll go insane!"

this!

I respect that she tried to play just as much regular piano as synthesizer as the '80s chugged on.

Gord Downie & The Tragically Hip

All of these guys, and Elvis Costello.

youtube.com/watch?v=fZGNJTdh-Z0

He's only getting better.

"I'm having guy problems" for more than 2 songs gets a little tedious

This fabulous lunatic

Mark E Smith

"The mad kid walked left-side south side towards me – he was about seven. His mother was a cleaning lady; she had a large black dog. And the mad kid said: 'Gimme the lead, gimme the lead, GIMME THE LEAD!' I'd just walked past the alcoholics dryout house... The lawn was littered with cans of Barbican. There was a feminist's Austin Maxi parked outside, with anti-nicotine anti-nuclear stickers on the side. The boys on the inside said 'give me a smoke'... Anyway two weeks before the mad kid had said to me 'I'll take both of you on! I'll take both of you on!' Then he seemed the young one. He had a parka on and a black cardboard Archbishop's hat, with a green-fuzz skull and crossbones – he'd just got back from the backward kids' party. Anyway then he seemed the young one, but now he looked like the victim of a pogrom."

also these

Jim Morrison

Morrissey

I am a poor, freezing-cold soul,
So far from where I intended to go.
Scavenging through life's very constant lulls,
So far from where I'm determined to go.

Wish I knew the way to reach the one I love.
There is no way.
Wish I had the charm to attract the one I love,
But, you see, I've got no charm.

Tonight I've consumed much more than I can hold,
Oh, this is very clear to you.
And you can tell I have never really loved.
You can tell, by the way, I sleep all day.

And all of my life no-one gave me anything.
No-one has ever given me anything.
My love is as sharp as a needle in your eye.
You must be such a fool to pass me by.

Sir Isaac Brock

Kevin Barnes

And by musicians, you mean songwriters, right?
Burt Bacharach is a great songwriter but not a great musician.
Cohen could barely sing.
Ritchie Blackmore can play a mean guitar but is not known for being a songwriter.

Is that fucking Ratko Mladic?

Jeff Mangum not even memeing

Kendrick Lamar
Drake
Kanye West

Gainsbourg

John Darnielle
Gil-Scott Heron
Jandek

Gasping - but somehow still alive
This is the fierce last stand of all I am

Gasping - dying - but somehow still alive
This is the final stand of all I am

Beethoven

MOTHER I CAN FEEL THE SOIL FALLING OVER MY HEAD

mommy! :3

youtube.com/watch?v=h1DDndY0FLI