Recently, the idea of putting together a Mount Rushmore of Various Sports Figures was re-introduced by comments made by the greatest NBA player of today, LeBron James. King James forwarded his own view as to who should be on his Mount Rushmore of Greatest NBA Players of All Time. While there is much debate about his own views regarding which four players should be among the greatest, it has opened debates by everybody coming up with their own personal Mount Rushmore on various topics. Actors, Presidents, even Breakfast foods.
Well, I figured it was time for me to get in on the act, with a slightly different twist. Each of us has a Mount Rushmore when it comes to Music. Four Musicians/Groups that we love and that have shaped our musical tastes in ways that we may or may not completely understand. But when we hear these musical acts, we stop, listen, and enjoy.
Some of us wear our musical influences out in the open. I know several of my friends loves various musical artists. The Beatles, Jimmy Buffett, RUSH, … the list goes on and on. So, who would be on your Mount Rushmore?
This is where I open up on a hidden part of my life. My Mount Rushmore of Musical Influence has a diverse nature to it, allowing me to love music from jazz to metal rock & roll to 80s rock. But it all has one common denominator: all of these acts had a dominant run of top hits in the 1970s.
Kind of weird for a child of the 1980s to not be influenced by the MTV era, huh? But then some people forget I had two much older sisters who grew up in the late 1960s & 1970s. So, I guess you could say my sisters had a tiny bit of influence on how my musical tastes evolved. And while some people would guess that John Denver, Neil Diamond, Barry Manilow, Bruce Springsteen, or Elton John would be on my list, they would be wrong. Got any thoughts? Well, here’s my Mount Rushmore of Musical Influence…
(1) STEELY DAN. Walter Becker & Donald Fagen were a unique duo when it came to their musical background. Heck, at one time, they were part of a group that had comedian Chevy Chase as a drummer. But the duo clearly had their most successful run as the heart & soul of the group Steely Dan, an act that evolved from a early 70s rock to a more Jazzy, R&B rock. Their run at all stages of the evolution from 1972 to 1980 was incredible with lyrics that were almost as smart as Lennon/McCartney, and Musical Tones that may have been smarter. Note, I didn’t say Steely Dan was better than The Beatles, I just said smarter. You need a certain musical sophistication to truly enjoy Steely Dan’s tunes. And as for musical influence, they had a backup singer at one time named Michael McDonald, who left Steely Dan to become the lead singer for The Doobie Brothers. Not bad for group named for a female adult toy from “Naked Lunch”. This is where my Jazz influence comes from as well as early 70s guitar rock. I have about a Dozen favorites, but my Top 5 Steely Dan Tunes have to be FM, Josie, Kid Charlemagne, Deacon Blues, and Bodhisattva. FM is maybe my favorite tune of all, and I made sure it was the final song I listened to before I got married in October, 2006.
(2) EARTH, WIND, & FIRE. Even though EWF has been around in various incarnations since 1969, EWF’s greatest successes came during the mid to late 1970s. The Maurice White founded group’s diverse musical background mixed jazz, smooth soul, gospel, pop, rock & roll, psychedelia, blues, folk, African music, and, later on, disco—quite an interesting combination. And it just seemed to call to me. There are about 10 to 12 personal favorites of mine from this group, but my Top 5 are That’s The Way of The World, Shining Star, After the Love is Gone, Boogie Wonderland, and Let’s Groove.
So, Steely Dan & Earth, Wind, & Fire explain my tastes in jazz & R&B, but where does my rock & roll vibe come from? A group of four 1960s rock and rollers from England … whose last names are Page, Plant, Jones, & Bonham…
(3) LED ZEPPELIN. There are two kinds of people in this world… those who like Led Zeppelin’s music, and those poor souls who have never heard a Led Zeppelin tune. My baptism into the legendary rock group came with the Untitled Fourth Album—one of the few albums I can listen to cover-to-cover and thoroughly enjoy each and every tune. In fact, I don’t think there is a single tune from “The Biggest Band in The World” that I don’t like. Makes it very tough to pick just 5, but… My Fave 5 in this group is Kashmir, Stairway to Heaven, Whole Lotta Love, The Ocean, and Heartbreaker/Living Loving Maid (OK, that last one is two songs, but they are usually played together, so it counts as one in my book).
The fourth member of this quartet was the hardest to pick. Initially, I put Stevie Wonder as my fourth. A musical performer for six decades, he had an incredible run of #1 music that began in the 1970s. But with EWF acting as my R&B, I needed a pop rock musician that started and had his greatest success in the 1970s but that carried into the 1980s and beyond. I needed a Piano Man…
(4) BILLY JOEL. OK, some of you wouldn’t be surprised, but the Long Island musician definitely had an influence. Plus, he was married at one time to a Supermodel in Christie Brinkley. Yes, I know he has some personal demons, but it does not diminish his great talent behind the ivory keys or his ability to collaborate with other musicians. With him, I have about 10 or 11 favorites to choose from, but my Fave 5 are Piano Man, Movin’ Out, My Life, Pressure, and We Didn’t Start the Fire.
So there’s my Mount Rushmore of Personal Musical Influence. Nothing against groups like The Beatles, Jimmy Buffett, Chicago, and others that I love listening to, but these four have influenced my musical tastes. To repeat my earlier question in closing: Who’s on your Mountain?
