[amber]

Originally Posted by Sarah

Mellencamp - No. No, no, no. Just no. Boring. Generic. No impact. No inspiration. Please go away. Just go the hell away.

No. Wrong. CougieMellenball has had many, many deep thoughts disguised as paprock. Pink Houses is sublime. Only album I ever saw my mom buy, and she is purposefully non shallow.

Truth be spoken simply but sublimely by CougyMellenball. Lyrics to Pink Houses and Jack and Diane rate among the best, in addition to some of his other lyrics which do so also, but not as notably. Plus, he just rocks. It's just plain good rock, with good words. Not so simple as to be inconsequential, not deep enough to be nerd/esoteric rock.

Just. Perfect. Regular. Rock. Plainspoken good sounding. Deep without obviously seeming so. It's real, it's a genre, it's valuable and talented. He has good bands and good backup singers.
You don't always have to send up fireworks to make a great point with a great sound. You don't always have to flip and complicate your words to make them meaningful (Linds!).

And that - THAT! - is the essence of Cougarmelloncamp. Clean, simple, good, yet subtly compelling in it's simplicity, and apropos (true) in his points.

Plus great harmonies, melodies, and bandwork. He really is a prime example of simple yet great rock.
Sorry, if people mess with the Melloncougar, I have to defend. In part because he is easy to discount, but not deserving of discounting. Go back, listen to Papah and Fiyah. My god, the point he is making with the words, and the chick he chose to do a fantastic harmony on it! Extremely compelling. And the notes his band played, and the notes he sang. Truly great. This song makes me think every time I hear it, and it also makes me rock. Think and rock. Just pure joy.

Listen to the lyrics of Pink Houses (a personal anthem of mine). Look me in the eye and tell me that life doesn't go on even after the thrill of livin' is gone. Do it. Try. Try to resist the beat and the voice when the Walls Come Tumblin' Down. And try to pretend that his duet with Me'Shell Ndegeocello on the Van Morrison classic wasn't a good idea. Me'Shell is playing here in a couple days, she is a huge talent, I will see her, his decision to play with her was flawless.
Gold. I urge anyone to revisit his words, even if they don't like his sound. Simple depth, is what he espouses. Plainspoken truth, in a just clever enough to be subtley original. Plainspoken yet original, could you ask for more?
Plus, he is a Libra like Linds, and Bruce, and Tom P, and...uh...Gwen...and...superfluous aside over. Just saying, he isn't as simple as he seems. And I should know. You know how TP makes the most regular points, yet it has so much emotional resonance? Yeah, like that.

Sorry, I just love the Cougarmellon. I see his limitations, but I think I recognize his value more than most, and it is real. In short, don't mess with the CougieMellon unless you want an argument.

Originally Posted by Sarah

Donna Summer - I'm on the fence here. Part of me says yes, part of me says no. I think there needs to be a dance music hall of fame, tbh... but that kind of goes against what dance music is about... celebrating the underground, etc.

She's totally in, but not before Stevie. Not in anyone's imagination. Both have awesome vocal virtuosity, but Stevie has even more than that.

Originally Posted by Sarah

Chic - No. Nile Rodgers, absolutely hell yes... but as a producer. Yes, Chic songs were good, but there are other dance/funk acts on the same level. I personally believe they're only getting the nod because of Nile. He is deserving in that, anyone he works with and everything he does is going to sound good. Any other collection of people would have the hits that Chic did because of him. That's jmo.

Yes, but not before some others.

Originally Posted by Sarah

The Dave Clark Five - Absolutely. WTF took so long?

The Ventures - *hell yes*. This is what the RRHoF is about.

Afrika Bambaataa - I have to say yes, but really just because I said yes to the Beastie Boys. Admitting the BBs and leaving out a true, early, rap/hip hop pioneer like Bambaataa would be a slap in the face to the genre. I'm glad they have some respect, even if the tracks are farrrr too old school for me to enjoy.

Worthy, for sure, but not before some others.

Originally Posted by Sarah

Leonard Cohen - I'm saying no, just because I can't stand his voice, but whatever. Gotta have one for the snobs.

I'm not sure anyone is legally allowed to leave out Cohen, L. It's like that thing where you may disagree, but you can't really fight it. It almost has the weight of a legal prohibition.