Moving quickly to personal preferences of this year's nominees, it's been a bit of a roller coaster. Since I listen to these artists while working, it's tough to not allow the stress of the daily workload or the amount or quality of sleep I got the night before, or if I wake up with a migraine affect my appreciation. In other words, I'm human. Worse, I'm an adult who doesn't have the free time I once had. Other than taking sick leave one day and a week FMLA, I've been working six days a week (minus weeks with holidays) since the week after Labor Day, and once, I got mandated on a Sunday. Enough complaining though. The reason why ranking by personal tastes matters is because it is an influential force in a voter's decisions. And since a voter can only vote for five, sometimes the reason to choose an artist and not another is that a voter just likes them more. So I give two ranks and try to average them out, and see how that works out. And I'll be including favorite songs by each artist. Onto the list.
1. The Spinners
I did not like this group when I first heard them, but they have grown on me, and now this is a group I really want to see make it just for the sake of my ears. I love soul, many kinds of soul, many soul artists. Especially vocal groups.
Favorite song: "One Of A Kind (Love Affair)"
Merits Rank: 10
Average Of Ranks: 5.5
2. Sheryl Crow
I really enjoyed a lot of her duets and side projects in addition to her albums and singles. And that's why "safe" music has a fighting chance. You can just jam out to her.
Favorite song: "Soak Up The Sun"
Merits Rank: 13
Average Of Ranks: 7.5
3. Willie Nelson
The man of many nicknames, I find it simpler to just call him The Friendly Red-Headed Stranger Outlaw. Whatever. His music is fun to listen to, even if you're not a big country fan.
Favorite song: "Roll Me Up"
Merits Rank: 1
Average Of Ranks: 2
4. Cyndi Lauper
Admittedly, my ability to appreciate her songbook interpretations are a bit more mood dependent than might be fair. That said, when listening to just enjoy it, it's pretty fabulous overall. If she's a K-Mart Madonna, point me to the blue light.
Favorite song: "She Bop"
Merits Rank: 14
Average Of Ranks: 9
5. The White Stripes
It's a Michigan thing. Or it's just a matter of great music and great production. And while all the iconic songs have Jack singing, can we just give some love to Meg's vocals too? "In The Cold, Cold Night" is just plain sexy. Not quite my favorite, but up there. My favorite here has a pretty clear Kinks' influence, which I love.
Favorite song: "Apple Blossom"
Merits Rank: 4
Average Of Ranks: 4.5
6. Missy Elliott
My rule is that the favorite song must be one where she is the primary artist, but listening while doing other things and not always having time to glance and see who got top billing nearly makes it a matter of guesswork. That said, there are some great songs where she is a featured artist too. "Tempo" is awesome, as is "Told Ya," and "One, Two Step," to name a few. "Whatcha Think About That" is probably my favorite feature of hers.
Favorite song: "Hot Boyz"
Merits Rank: 3
Average Of Ranks: 4.5
7. Kate Bush
Some of her higher register performances are a little difficult to me when sleep-deprived. The fact that listening to performance art while doing blue-collar work is itself an odd juxtaposition, to a degree, but she still makes the upper half for taste.
Favorite song: "Rubberband Girl"
Merits Rank: 11
Average Of Ranks: 9
8. A Tribe Called Quest
I still can't audiate a full song or remember much of what is expressed in the verses, but I can recall a bit more of the choruses' hooks, and they were catchy.
Favorite song: "I Left My Wallet In El Segundo"
Merits Rank: 5
Average Of Ranks: 6.5
9. Warren Zevon
My first listen through was a bit of a slog because it took me time to acclimate to his voice again. He's an acquired taste to some extent, but he does have some fine arrangements.
Favorite song: "Excitable Boy"
Merits Rank: 12
Average Of Ranks: 10.5
10. Rage Against The Machine
Even though they're meant to be listened to studiously, the funky beats and rhythmic delivery by De La Rocha makes them good for grunt work too.
Favorite song: "Testify"
Merits Rank: 9
Average Of Ranks: 9.5
11. George Michael
Some of the more popular and well-known slow songs didn't do it for me. "One More Try" bores me, as does "Father Figure," and they always did, even when I worked in radio. There were some pretty cool and interesting finds though.
Favorite song: "Monkey"
Merits Rank: 6
Average Of Ranks: 8.5
12. Iron Maiden
This is the act that really suffers from listening to while working. Prog rock and prog metal like Iron Maiden really requires time to sit and bask and savor the movements within a single song. That said, I didn't hate them, and the riffs were pretty cool.
Favorite song: "Run To The Hills"
Merits Rank: 2
Average Of Ranks: 7
13. Soundgarden
Last time they were nominated, they really tanked on this list. This time, I didn't find myself dreading the thought of listening to them again, but the favorite song is a Beatles cover from my least favorite Beatles album, so that's kind of telling.
Favorite song: "Everybody's Got Something To Hide Except Me And My Monkey"
Merits Rank: 8
Average Of Ranks: 10.5
14. Joy Division/New Order
The nice thing about the joint nomination is that I don't have to decide which incarnation I liked less. If they're your thing, more power to you, but neither do anything for me.
Favorite song: "Love Will Tear Us Apart"
Merits Rank: 7
Average Of Ranks: 10.5
So, when looking at the averages, it appears my votes should go to Willie Nelson, Missy Elliott, the White Stripes, the Spinners, and A Tribe Called Quest. And that's pretty close, actually. I probably have voted fewer than five times (I'm a slacker), but when I have, Kate Bush has been in the five spot instead of Tribe, mainly because I just want to see her get cleared off the board. Rage, being insider and all, can go another round. Announcements will be soon, and I'll probably have a last second prediction up that will look nothing like my usual format. Sorry.
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