The O-town Scene - Oneonta, NY
Issue link: http://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/113992
DEBATE continued from page 13 Ask me to choose between James Taylor and Jackson Browne, and I'm stumped. I dislike them both so much that I can't bring myself to pick one over the other. I took this question — Taylor v. Browne — to resident music critic Mark Boshnack to get his opinion. Much discussion ensued, and somehow the March Music Madness brackets were born. Since Mark and I announced our initial list for the brackets (we decided to go with 32 bands instead of 64, in the interest of not going insane), it's been a nonstop argument about who gets in, and where to put them. Do you put Led Zeppelin in the 1960s, or the '70s? What about Bruce Springsteen or U2 — where do they go? We invited our readers to weigh in with their choices via Facebook surveys, but used our own judgment to make the final calls. And I'm proud to say that I at least tried to keep my own personal feelings out of it. For example, I would a thousand times rather listen to the Clash than Pink Floyd. I would rather listen to the sound of fingernails on a chalk board than Pink Floyd. But I digress. Anyway, although the voters narrowly approved my punk heroes toppling the overblown, self-indulgent Associated Press I seriously hate this guy. Pink Floyd, I couldn't in good conscience argue that the Clash was a more significant band in the long run. (I am pretty sure I just lost whatever shred of musical credibility I ever possessed, but there you have it.) Then there are the bands that didn't make the cut. I'm haunted, currently, by the omission of Pearl Jam. Not that I'm a huge Pearl Jam fan, mind you (although I did see them open for Neil Young in 1992 or so, and it was AWESOME.) But I have to ask myself, years from now, when people are looking back at the bands that defined the '90s, wouldn't Pearl Jam be among them? Then there was the Dave Matthews Band, which I included on the list with gritted teeth, given that my hatred of their musical stylings is rivaled only by that of The Eagles. (I grudgingly allowed them into the '70s bracket to represent exactly what was awful about some of the music of that decade.) In the end, March Music Madness was kind of an academic exercise, because we all knew in our hearts that The Beatles were going to prevail. They're like a musical juggernaut, destroying everything in their path. But, at least for me, the path was an interesting one. SHOWDOWN continued from page 13 or the '70s when "Who's Next" and "Quadrophenia" were released as some suggested. For me there was really no contest and I was glad to see it was in its proper category. A similar debate occurred over Bruce Springsteen. He has to be placed in the '70s when "Born to Run" made him a household name. But someone who was not born at the time might have placed him in the '80s when "Born in the U.S.A." was even cited by President Ronald Reagan. If I cared more about Pink Floyd, I would have argued more about placing them in the '60s where they belonged, but since I didn't, I went along with their placement based upon "The Dark Side of the Moon." When it comes to favorite bands, I found for most people, they echo a part of their life, usually the formative years, and they will argue based on the criteria. But for me, I'll give every band a chance to speak to me though I was born in the '50s. So I was ready for one of the '90s matchups. I came to know Oasis after my daughter went to college. I love their music and made sure the band was on the list. I came to know Radiohead not with the release of "Creep" in 1992 or "OK Computer" in 14 O-Town Scene March 7, 2013 1997. Instead it was with "In Rainbows" in 2007, and album I review for my O-Town Scene column. It pained me to see the two matched up in the first round, but the latter are much more innovative, and they didn't split up. Led Zeppelin vs Jimi Hendrix — that was a soul searcher. One of the greatest bands in the world, with rock god Jimmy Page, vs. the ultimate rock god who died way too early — it pained me, but it was only right to vote more Jimi. But in the end ... who can beat The Beatles. No one, except maybe some die-hard Rolling Stones fans. www.nbtbank.com