I remember back in October when Colin did a post of his musical “Guilty Pleasures”. Artists we like but with arguable artistic credibility. I was inspired to post my picks but it took me awhile to figure out who’d make the cut. Then I forgot, until now so I’ve dusted it off and posted it here for your pleasure. Artists I like but don’t like to admit to.
10. Bachman-Turner Overdrive
: Sure it was acceptable for drunk frat guys in the 70s and now drunk middle aged men but I don’t think you’d find a lot of folks these days that would consider it “cool” to like Bachman-Turner Overdrive. With a catalogue primarily of formulaic blues/rock tunes like; “Roll On Down the Highway”, “Let it Ride”, or the blue collar anthem “Takin’ Care of Business” they were hardly cutting edge. Even Randy Bachman thought “You Ain’t Seen Nothing Yet” was an embarrassing song but I like em. It’s good ol’ hard drinking party rock.
9. Keane
: What makes wimpy balladeers Keane uncool? Is it their innocent image? Tom Chaplin’s vocals? The fact they play “Piano Rock”? Yeah, those all seem about right. Anyhow I still love their lush melodies and their debut album was one of my favorites of 2004.
8. Ricky Nelson
: A 50s teen dream and for awhile 70s folk singer, Ricky Nelson has had great influence on musicians like John Fogerty but he never could escape his squeaky clean image. Nonetheless I’m a fan of his non offensive 50s pop hits such as “Poor Little Fool”, “Hello Mary Lou” and “Travelin’ Man” a song for whatever reason I know all the words to. Plus if it wasn’t for him we wouldn’t have pop duo Nelson.
7. Rod Stewart
: I’m just talking about 70s Rod Stewart but I guess that’s still pretty embarrassing. A popular sex symbol about 100 years ago, I prefer Rod for his raspy vocals as the frontman of Faces. Not to mention Rod’s critically acclaimed solo album Every Picture Tells Story, you gotta love “Maggie May.”
6. Herman’s Hermits
: More or less another 60s British import trying to cash in on the British Invasion. Herman’s Hermit’s laid the roots for bubble-gum with their clean cut sound and image and that’s nothing to really be proud of. Though I’m surprised how many songs they have that I’m all about; “I’m Into Something Good”, “Mrs Brown You’ve Got a Lovely Daughter”, “Listen People”, “Can’t You Hear My Heartbeat”, “There’s a Kind of Hush” not to mention the silly but infectious “I’m Henry VIII, I Am”. For all those entertaining tunes I’ll always be behind Peter Noone and company.
5. Tom Jones
Swinging 60s/70s pop crooner can still pack em in, well middle aged women that is. It was so hard to find a picture of him without his shirt off so I just gave up. I don’t think I’m the target audience but if anyone ever asked me to go to a Tom Jones concert, I’d probably go.
4. The Association
An ensemble pop group that although talented vocalists had some pretty corny hits in the sixties. I think most know them best for their cheery #1 hit “Windy” which is a perfect example of their cheesy sound. “Cherish” is another lovey dubby tune for whatever reason I enjoy and “Along Comes Mary” always gets my head bobbing.
3. The Four Seasons
In the early 60s doo-wop/blue-eyed soul was as hot as ever and no one could belt em out quite like The Four Seasons. With ear splitting falsetto it’s not hard to see why these guys have become the epitome of cheesy doo-wop music. Though I can’t deny my fondness for such hits as; “Sherry”, “Walk Like a Man” and “Big Girls Don’t Cry”. Hey they even have a musical Jersey Boys about them, what’s cooler than a musical?
2. The Bay City Rollers
Little separates a bubble-gum pop group like this from The Osmonds but these guys can be catchy. Even I shudder looking at those tartan-trimmed suspenders but they did have some nice arrangements of some notable pop songs and I’ll always be a fan of Scottish anthem “Saturday Night.”
1. Bee Gees
Liking Disco is basically the most uncool genre of music to be a fan. Making it a little more than embarrassing to be a fan of the group that was at the forefront of the movement. I don’t consider myself a disco fan but I’ve always really liked the Bee Gees. A Bee Gees cd was the second cd I ever bought, a purchase I do not regret…. Though I don’t often bring it up either.