# Name a musician you admire for their talent but can't stand personally **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 9, 2003, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-musician-you-admire-for-their-talent-but-cant-stand-personally/174025 "2003-05-09T01:58:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2003, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-musician-you-admire-for-their-talent-but-cant-stand-personally/174025/41 "2003-05-09T21:28:59Z")
Joe Cocker. Creeps me out, man… John Belushi’s impersonation was _scary…_ ---
**Author:** ![ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chockfullofheadygoodness/32/511_2.png) [@ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2003, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-musician-you-admire-for-their-talent-but-cant-stand-personally/174025/42 "2003-05-09T21:58:26Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by RikWriter \* > \*\*Bruce Springsteen. I may be oversimplifying things, but he’s married…he suddenly brings a woman to play TAMBORINES into his all-guy band, and then Gosh! Surprise! He’s involved with her romantically and divorcing his wife… > Scumbag. \*\* Not oversimplifying, just flat-out incorrect:p Patti Scaflia was added as a BACK UP SINGER (not tamborines, jeez, you make her sound like Linda McCartney:D) prior to the start of the Born in the USA tour (summer/fall 1984), at which time Bruce was single and in fact, had not yet even met Miss .38 Special-video-is-only-claim-to-fame-prior-to-becoming-Mrs.-Bruce-Springsteen. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2003, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-musician-you-admire-for-their-talent-but-cant-stand-personally/174025/43 "2003-05-09T22:58:55Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by SolGrundy \* > \*\*Anyone from R.E.M., Michael Stipe in particular. They’ve made several of my favorite songs, but every one of them is a pretentious, self-indulgent twat. I can still vividly remember Peter Buck on some MTV interview show being all pompous that “Losing My Religion” was “the only top 10 hit with a mandolin as the main instrument,” \*\* And incorrect. Ever hear of “Maggie Mae”? The guy from Limp Bizkit seems like a jerk from his head to his toes, but I don’t admire him as a musician all that much, so I guess he doesn’t count. ---
**Author:** ![RikWriter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/49beb7/32.png) [@RikWriter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RikWriter)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2003, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-musician-you-admire-for-their-talent-but-cant-stand-personally/174025/44 "2003-05-09T23:02:56Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by spoke- \* > \*\ ***RikWriter** : Wasn’t Patty Scialfa (sp?) in Springsteen’s band long before he got married to his first wife? This seems more like a case of two old friends (Springsteen and Scialfa) discovering a spark between them late in the game. \*\* Not as far as I can recall. I am fairly sure she came around long after Bruce got married. ---
**Author:** ![I\_can\_t\_believe\_that\_s\_butter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8edcca/32.png) [@I\_can\_t\_believe\_that\_s\_butter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/I_can_t_believe_that_s_butter)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2003, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-musician-you-admire-for-their-talent-but-cant-stand-personally/174025/45 "2003-05-09T23:03:36Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by blowero \* > \*\* > > And of course: > > [Buddy Rich](http://www.cis.rit.edu/~ejipci/buddy_rich.htm) \*\* Of course! How could I have forgot? ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2003, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-musician-you-admire-for-their-talent-but-cant-stand-personally/174025/46 "2003-05-09T23:06:57Z")
Just got done with the Buddy Rich stuff! Jeez, what a floater. At least he will never need the services of a proctologist. He’s a perfect asshole. * * * She told me she loved me like a brother. She was from Arkansas, hence the Joy! ---
**Author:** ![dinahmoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/8797f3/32.png) [@dinahmoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dinahmoe)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2003, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-musician-you-admire-for-their-talent-but-cant-stand-personally/174025/47 "2003-05-09T23:10:00Z")
On the flipside, Billy Ray Cyrus is a lovely, lovely sweet and funny man. Can’t say the same for his music. I enjoy Hole’s music, but I would hate to take a long car trip with Courtney Love. I’m a huge Widespread Panic fan, but they have been ruder to me than almost anyone else I’ve ever worked for. No one gets away with slamming a door in my baby sister’s face! (Okay, yeah they can, but I don’t have to like it!!) ---
**Author:** ![Mithril](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mithril/32/3517_2.png) [@Mithril](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mithril)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2003, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-musician-you-admire-for-their-talent-but-cant-stand-personally/174025/48 "2003-05-09T23:30:25Z")
Geoff Tate from Queensryche has an amazing set of pipes, but is a pompous jerk. Reading things he wrote made me rethink my uber-fandom. ---
**Author:** ![Payton\_s\_Servant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3da27b/32.png) [@Payton\_s\_Servant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Payton_s_Servant)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2003, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-musician-you-admire-for-their-talent-but-cant-stand-personally/174025/49 "2003-05-09T23:50:28Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by RikWriter \* > \*\*Not as far as I can recall. I am fairly sure she came around long after Bruce got married. \*\* Incorrect. Scialfa and Springsteen had known each other for a good number of years before she joined the E. Street Band. ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2003, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-musician-you-admire-for-their-talent-but-cant-stand-personally/174025/50 "2003-05-10T00:08:44Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by gatopescado \* > \*\*I just think he was a whiney, over-hyped, under-talented junkie coward. \*\* Damnit, that’s all I had too ☹ . > [@](#): > > Eminem is merely a talented lyricist, nothing more. That’s like saying Frank Lloyd Wright was “merely” a talented architect, nothing else. ---
**Author:** ![RikWriter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/49beb7/32.png) [@RikWriter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RikWriter)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2003, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-musician-you-admire-for-their-talent-but-cant-stand-personally/174025/51 "2003-05-10T00:31:03Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Payton’s Servant \* > \*\*Incorrect. Scialfa and Springsteen had known each other for a good number of years before she joined the E. Street Band. \*\* That’s what I was saying…that he brought her into the band BECAUSE they were involved and he was cheating on his wife with her. ---
**Author:** ![jack\_ss](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c77e96/32.png) [@jack\_ss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jack_ss)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2003, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-musician-you-admire-for-their-talent-but-cant-stand-personally/174025/52 "2003-05-10T00:38:51Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Wyld Stallyn \* > \*\*It seems like this thread was started so that someone could mention Eddie Van Halen, I’m quite surprised no one has done so as of yet. > > Also, one of my favorite artists to discuss on this board, Ronnie James Dio, also qualifies. Not only did he name the band after himself, but all of the group’s videos are thoroughly centered on him, despite the fact that he may be the ugliest human being ever. \*\* Well, I’ve met the ugly little dwarf, and I thought he was a really nice guy. Same with Rob Zombie. Al Jourgenson (of _Ministry_) is a complete prick. ---
**Author:** ![Sir\_Rhosis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d9b06d/32.png) [@Sir\_Rhosis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_Rhosis)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2003, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-musician-you-admire-for-their-talent-but-cant-stand-personally/174025/53 "2003-05-10T00:47:58Z")
Although I wouldn’t say he is a jerk, and as much as I like his music, I don’t think I would really want to spend a lot of time with John Mellencamp. In interviews, he seems too loud, too boistrous, and just annoying. Again, not saying he is a prick, just saying that his over-the-top persona would clash with my extremely laid-back one. Sir Rhosis ---
**Author:** ![hebesphenomegacorona](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b9e5f3/32.png) [@hebesphenomegacorona](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hebesphenomegacorona)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2003, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-musician-you-admire-for-their-talent-but-cant-stand-personally/174025/54 "2003-05-10T01:19:59Z")
Well, Marylin Manson’s voice sounds like an enraged rabid hippo with strep throat being sodomized… Music’s okay though. ---
**Author:** ![serenitynow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9c0ed/32.png) [@serenitynow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/serenitynow)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2003, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-musician-you-admire-for-their-talent-but-cant-stand-personally/174025/55 "2003-05-10T03:40:20Z")
I can’t believe that no one mentioned (unless I totally missed it) the most pompous performer of all time, Diana Ross. Call me Miss Ross, HA! There are a lot of things I would call her, but that isn’t one of them. Of course, the OP did say musician (which she wasn’t) and admiring them for their talent (which I don’t), so maybe she doesn’t qualify. Second on my list is Whitney Houston. Great pipes, major issues. I know one of the guys from REM, and I don’t think they are that bad, but one of them (and we all know who) is really, really wierd. Repeat after me, bathing is a good thing! I don’t mean to pick a fight, but Eminem should not be mentioned in the same sentence with Frank Lloyd Wright. One is a genius, the other is… well, likely to spend a lot of time in prison. That’s all I’ve got to say about that. ---
**Author:** ![Purd\_Werfect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e47c2d/32.png) [@Purd\_Werfect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Purd_Werfect)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2003, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-musician-you-admire-for-their-talent-but-cant-stand-personally/174025/56 "2003-05-10T04:16:05Z")
I’m surprised to see Sinatra mentioned here. From what I’ve heard, he was pretty nasty if you were his enemy, but otherwise he was an incredibly generous man. Then again, anyone famous probably has hundred’s of people regularly forming an opinion about them based on just a few seconds interaction, so who knows what’s true. The whole damn world is an extended version of Rashomon. [sub](at least, that’s the way I see it…)[/sub] ---
**Author:** ![jack\_ss](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c77e96/32.png) [@jack\_ss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jack_ss)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2003, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-musician-you-admire-for-their-talent-but-cant-stand-personally/174025/57 "2003-05-10T04:17:36Z")
And there are the stories about J. Lo. Oh, we’re talking about musicians; talented people I **respect**. Never mind, then. ---
**Author:** ![Wristy\_McSlashalot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Wristy\_McSlashalot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wristy_McSlashalot)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2003, 7:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-musician-you-admire-for-their-talent-but-cant-stand-personally/174025/58 "2003-05-10T07:25:18Z")
I love Pink Floyd, but Roger Waters comes across as an egotistical, arrogant, self-obsessed prick. ---
**Author:** ![Krisfer\_the\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Krisfer\_the\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Krisfer_the_Cat)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2003, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-musician-you-admire-for-their-talent-but-cant-stand-personally/174025/59 "2003-05-10T14:17:50Z")
back asswardness rules! I admire Blackie Lawless’ stand against PMRC(correct order of letters?) and his opinions as I have heard them on VH1 but WASP just plain sucks… I adore Disturbed and David Draimon rocks my fatasies but man dude shut up and buy a brain. gotta go with Andrew Eldritch also… Sisters of Mercy was amazing but Andrew is a total twit… ---
**Author:** ![cleops](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/2acd7d/32.png) [@cleops](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cleops)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2003, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-musician-you-admire-for-their-talent-but-cant-stand-personally/174025/60 "2003-05-10T14:39:50Z")
For me, what’s interesting about Courtney Love is _her_ and people’s reaction to her, not the “music” she manages to find the time to get recorded. Never did like Townshend ever since he refused to get on the helicopter to play at Woodstock until he and band had the cash payment in hand (although _now_, but only _now_, would _I_ do the same thing), but he sure can play rhythm. Funny how the baby-boom generation always wanted those pop stars to be something more than what they actually were–heros of some kind–when they were just out to make a buck like the rest of us, and just as limited as the rest of us, except for their odd talents. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-musician-you-admire-for-their-talent-but-cant-stand-personally/174025.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-musician-you-admire-for-their-talent-but-cant-stand-personally/174025.md?page=4)