Bob Dylan, Neil Young, or Tom Waits?

demagogue on 29/4/2008 at 16:01

Dylan's music had the largest influence on the direction of mainstream culture and popular music at the time it was made. If you tap into that cultural context, you can feel the power of his songs in a way you couldn't with the others. And he left a greater legacy to the way music sounds today. He's seriously #2 on Rolling Stones list of greatest, "immortal" rock artists ever, just behind the Beatles, just ahead of Elvis, and Young and Waits ... are they even in the top 50? I have to look again. [edit: Young is #34, an Waits isn't in the top 100]

OTOH, if you don't tap into that context, then yeah, at best he's a tenuously relevant Travelling Willbury, and both Young and Waits had more individual lasting power. And between those two, I don't know ... Neal Young had a network t.v. Christmas special I liked. :sweat:

rachel on 29/4/2008 at 16:06

I've been discovering Dylan over the last year, and along I found a ton of others. My latest acquisition was the DVD and 4-CD boxset of The Last Waltz, which absolutely blew me away.

So Dylan/Young here :)

Turtle on 29/4/2008 at 16:18

Cohen.
He's the easiest to listen to and he he has some serious skills as a writer and poet.

Queue on 29/4/2008 at 16:31

Quote Posted by Muzman

I thought this thread would be "Which of The Travelling Wilburies 2 should I kill first"
Thank god I'm not that far behind the times.

I killed Roy Orbison...made an offhanded remark that he should drop dead (then he did).

henke on 29/4/2008 at 17:45

Quote Posted by Stitch

I do think Jack White is one of the only rock personalities from my generation to possess enough distinct style and skill as an individual to possibly rank among the likes of Dylan, Young, and Waits.

Hey, I don't disagree that he's perhaps one of our generations greatest rock artists. I just can't lump him in with Dylan, Young and Waits. They're much more about song-writing(ok, I can't be certain about Young) and delivering a message than about the sound. If this were a discussion about Jimi Hendrix, Chuck Berry and Paul McCartney I could see why you'd mention White. But what makes him great and what makes D, Y & W great are, in my mind, two entirely different things.

Ok, Waits has done really fresh things with his sound in his later years(nineties and forward) too, but that's not mainly what he's about.

Stitch on 29/4/2008 at 17:58

Quote Posted by henke

Have you ever actually listened to White's work beyond the singles? Have you ever heard, say, "You've Got Her in Your Pocket"?

The biggest argument to be made against White's inclusion among the likes of the original post is the fact that it's too soon. He hasn't really been around all that long at this point and we have yet so see how he further develops.

nickie on 29/4/2008 at 18:06

Quote Posted by Queue

I killed Roy Orbison...made an offhanded remark that he should drop dead (then he did).

Does this work on anybody? 'Cos I've got quite a list.

You lot make me feel so old. Dylan - 30 something years ago absolutely - June 1996 I saw him at Hyde Park - he was only outdone by Alanis Morisette in inability to sing in tune - mind you he was as pissed as a fart or similar. But he will always be one of the greatest and the fact that people are still listening is testament to that. Neil Young - yes, happy memories there. Tom Waits I regret I don't know particularly well but have just done a youtube search to remind me. Much more Springsteenish than Dylan - nice job of Jersey Girl indeed. And the other stuff of his I've heard on youtube as well since searching - very well worth listening to.

Lyrically? Buggered if I know.

henke on 29/4/2008 at 18:08

Quote Posted by Stitch

Have you ever actually listened to White's work beyond the singles? Have you ever heard, say, "You've Got Her in Your Pocket"?

I've listened to all of the Stripes albums, except for the first one. Many times. Haven't listened to The Racounters albums but I absolutely love (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Van_Lear_Rose) Van Lear Rose. I like every album I've heard by White, even "Get behind me Satan" has it's moments. White's lyrics are decent. At times they're funny enough to get a chuckle out of me. But, unlike Waits and Dylan, he's never brought a tear to my eye or managed to move me in any deeper way.

I like White better as a producer than as a singer/frontman.

Kole_Koiott on 29/4/2008 at 19:49

Quote Posted by nickie

Nice job of Jersey Girl? Can you elaborate on that?

Ben Gunn on 29/4/2008 at 20:02

I had good times with all three of them but on the long run- speaking in staying power terms- Id definetly go with Dylan.
I think it's his persona, as coming through his words and music- the man is just on a constant spiritual quest, always changing, defiling any defintion. Waits and Young, great as they are, have always been more or less what they are- Waits with his gutter songs and Young with his holly hippy wrath and love. It's as if they are singing the same song for over 35 years. As if.

Only Dylan can inspire a movie such as Im not there . Not a great movie, I know, but it has some very strong parts (mostly the Cate Blanchet ones) where it does a very good job at pointing out the mysteriousness of the phenomena called B.Dylan.