# The Essential Music Library: Pop **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 21, 2005, 5:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-essential-music-library-pop/332041 "2005-11-21T05:25:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![who\_me\_2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/87869e/32.png) [@who\_me\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/who_me_2)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2005, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-essential-music-library-pop/332041/21 "2005-11-22T02:29:38Z")
Prince-Purple Rain Nirvana-Nevermind The Cure-disintegration Counting Crows-August and Everything After Nick Drake-Pink Moon Jimi Hendrix-Are You Experienced White Stripes-White Blood Cells Bob Marley-Natty Dread The Smiths-Singles Velvet Underground-White Light, White Heat and Loaded Bjork-Debut U2-The Joshua Tree Weezer-Weezer, also called “the blue album” Beach Boys-Pet Sounds Buddy Holly-hell, one of those collections Ramones-Leave Home James Brown-hmm, pick one Dave Matthews Band-Under the Table and Dreaming Cowboy Junkies-The Trinity Session Uncle Tupelo-No Depression I’m sure those guys from Liverpool go in there somewhere, but where do you put Zappa? ---
**Author:** ![Talon\_Karrde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Talon\_Karrde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Talon_Karrde)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2005, 7:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-essential-music-library-pop/332041/22 "2005-11-22T07:16:09Z")
> [@Happy Lendervedder](#): > > New Order - _The Best of New Order_ Am I the only one who likes Substance better than The Best Of? I like the older mixes better. > [@ultrafilter](#): > > Nick Lowe, Basher That’s a great album. **Myler Keogh** , I love David Bowie, but I don’t know if any of the albums you mentioned would fit best in pop. Maybe Young Americans would. **who, me?** , I don’t think most of the stuff you listed would be considered part of the genre “pop”. And I’m totally baffled by your inclusion of VU’s White Light/ White Heat. That’s their least poppy album. ---
**Author:** ![Anastasaeon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/73ab20/32.png) [@Anastasaeon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anastasaeon)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2005, 7:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-essential-music-library-pop/332041/23 "2005-11-22T07:56:36Z")
**Blur** - _Parklife_, definitely. **Pulp** - _Different Class_ **Sloan** - _Twice Removed_ And I tentatively submit \*\*The Smiths \*\* - \*The Queen Is Dead \* - tentatively, because there may be a better album for this list, but it’s the one I consider “essential”, personally. ---
**Author:** ![who\_me\_2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/87869e/32.png) [@who\_me\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/who_me_2)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2005, 8:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-essential-music-library-pop/332041/24 "2005-11-22T08:03:07Z")
**Talon Karrde** Well, I guess it depends on your definition of Pop music. to me, most styles of music you’re going to find on the radio are pop. Regardless of whatever tagline the stations choose to use, “Today’s hottest country!!” is pretty much the same as “the only station that really ROCKS”, when it gets down to nuts and bolts. Most rock/pop bands have a core consisting of drums, bass, 1 or 2 guitars, vocalist, and auxiliary instruments such as piano or horns. The rhythms and chord progressions also tend to be used and re-used variations on a basic theme. Contrast this with Jazz, which makes a virtue out of completely changing the song structure in favor of spontaneous improvisation, sometimes with completely off-the-wall instrumentation (bassoon, anybody?). Of course, in classical music (and modern classical, and any non-tonal music for that matter), all bets are off. Not that I think that’s a bad thing. I really enjoy most of the above bands, I just tend to think of them all as “pop with a \_\_\_\_ flavor” ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2005, 8:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-essential-music-library-pop/332041/25 "2005-11-22T08:31:11Z")
**Fountains of Wayne** - _Welcome, Interstate Managers_ **The Eagles** - _Hotel California_. Or better yet, their greatest hits Vol 1. It’s the best-selling CD in history. **Jackson Browne** - _Running on Empty_ There’s a pretty fine line between pop, modern country, and rock. A lot of these acts could probably wind up on several lists. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2005, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-essential-music-library-pop/332041/26 "2005-11-22T13:20:33Z")
> [@who](#): > > Prince-Purple Rain > Nirvana-Nevermind > The Cure-disintegration > Counting Crows-August and Everything After > Nick Drake-Pink Moon > Jimi Hendrix-Are You Experienced > White Stripes-White Blood Cells > Bob Marley-Natty Dread > The Smiths-Singles > Velvet Underground-White Light, White Heat and Loaded > Bjork-Debut > U2-The Joshua Tree > Weezer-Weezer, also called “the blue album” > Beach Boys-Pet Sounds > Buddy Holly-hell, one of those collections > Ramones-Leave Home > James Brown-hmm, pick one > Dave Matthews Band-Under the Table and Dreaming > Cowboy Junkies-The Trinity Session > Uncle Tupelo-No Depression > I’m sure those guys from Liverpool go in there somewhere, but where do you put Zappa? I wouldn’t include ONE of these bands in a pop list. Well, maybe the Beach Boys. ---
**Author:** ![who\_me\_2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/87869e/32.png) [@who\_me\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/who_me_2)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2005, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-essential-music-library-pop/332041/27 "2005-11-22T17:39:23Z")
OK, I’ll bite. **kalhoun** what is it about a band that makes it pop/non-pop? ---
**Author:** ![Talon\_Karrde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Talon\_Karrde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Talon_Karrde)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2005, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-essential-music-library-pop/332041/28 "2005-11-22T19:36:17Z")
**who, me?** , I personally think of a lot of that stuff as “pop”, but there’s also Pop as a genre, which I don’t think includes all poppy music. But still… I wouldn’t call WL/WH pop of any kind. :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![who\_me\_2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/87869e/32.png) [@who\_me\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/who_me_2)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2005, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-essential-music-library-pop/332041/29 "2005-11-22T22:19:02Z")
great! I was getting butterflies in the stomach at the thought of actually having to fight on such a mundane subject. so, would someone like to define pop, so that we can get the ball rolling on the main purpose of the thread? Bob Dylan-Highway 61 Revisited, pop? Talking Heads-Stop Making Sense, pop? Saturday Night Fever Sdtrk., pop? ---
**Author:** ![Ghanima](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Ghanima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ghanima)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2005, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-essential-music-library-pop/332041/30 "2005-11-22T22:45:47Z")
Pop Music just means music that’s popular. Beatles - pop Elvis - pop Fleetwood Mac - pop Prince - pop Madonna - pop Etc. I think this particular category is too broad. ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2005, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-essential-music-library-pop/332041/31 "2005-11-22T22:56:14Z")
A lot of so-called pop is better described by another genre tag–pop punk, hip-hop, country, etc. The rest defies easy recategorization, unless you just want to describe it as some flavor of rock. That’s not good, because rock is really too broad a category to be a useful descriptor, and that’s the wrong label for synthpop and similar genres. I think that [AMG](http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&token=ADFEAEE4781ED948A97520CE992D4DDABD7DF529D64CEE831F29461BDFBA3C54851472F353F28C93FDFB74AB7BADE02CA45A0A9FCFE453FDD667392DED93&sql=77:4489)’s take on pop/rock is a pretty good statement of what I’m after: > [@](#): > > Pop/Rock is a catchall phrase, referring to nearly any pop music made after rock & roll was absorbed into the pop mainstream. In general, it is melodic, catchy music that relies equally on tightly constructed songs and well-crafted and produced records. Pop/Rock can refer to anything from the Everly Brothers and the Beatles to Madonna and Crowded House. ---
**Author:** ![who\_me\_2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/87869e/32.png) [@who\_me\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/who_me_2)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2005, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-essential-music-library-pop/332041/32 "2005-11-23T00:11:07Z")
**Ultrafilter** That still seems like a fairly loose definition of pop. Since you are the one who is taking the burden of putting the Essential Music Library (EML for short?) together, though, I will bow to your judgement. Are there any bands/albums I’ve listed so far that you don’t think mesh well with your definition of pop music? I’m just searching for a little clarity, so that I don’t brainstorm stuff that’ll get rejected anyways. Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Shayna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shayna/32/17976_2.png) [@Shayna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shayna)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2005, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-essential-music-library-pop/332041/33 "2005-11-23T00:44:01Z")
No Pop collection would be complete without at least one **Barry Manilow** album. And don’t forget about **Hall & Oates** , particularly [_Voices_](http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&token=ADFEAEE47E17DC49A97220C7932B43C0A67FA458FE4AED81106E495AD1A930499F0563F240A4D8D2B3F86AB679AFFA62A3500CD4C0EC51ECBC1B&sql=10:8e831vgjzzba) > [@](#): > > Essentially, _Voices_ unveils the version of Hall & Oates that made them the most successful duo in pop history, the version that ruled the charts for the first half of the '80s. or [_Private Eyes_](http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&token=ADFEAEE47E17DC49A97220C7932B43C0A67FA458FE4AED81106E495AD1A930499F0563F240A4D8D2B3F86AB679AFFA62A3500CD4C0EE50ECBC1B&sql=10:o227gjurj6in). > [@](#): > > Hall & Oates don’t repeat the formula of _Voices_; they expand it, staying grounded in pop-soul but opening up the stylized production, so it sounds both cinematic and sharp. ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2005, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-essential-music-library-pop/332041/34 "2005-11-23T01:08:50Z")
> [@who](#): > > Are there any bands/albums I’ve listed so far that you don’t think mesh well with your definition of pop music? I’m still not sure exactly how the compilation process is going to work, and all along I haven’t been too worried about keeping strict genre lines, so don’t worry too much about it. The goal of this thread is more to pick up things that wouldn’t get picked up if there was no pop category–so Michael Jackson, Madonna, Britney Spears, Nick Lowe, etc. If you want direction, those are the terms to think in. ---
**Author:** ![Talon\_Karrde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Talon\_Karrde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Talon_Karrde)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2005, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-essential-music-library-pop/332041/35 "2005-11-23T04:33:34Z")
> [@ultrafilter](#): > > I’m still not sure exactly how the compilation process is going to work, and all along I haven’t been too worried about keeping strict genre lines, so don’t worry too much about it. The goal of this thread is more to pick up things that wouldn’t get picked up if there was no pop category–so Michael Jackson, Madonna, Britney Spears, **Nick Lowe** , etc. If you want direction, those are the terms to think in. (bolding mine) I think he could fit into other categories. I first heard him with the song Heart of the City on a punk compilation. That song would definitely fit into early punk. I would probably call him New Wave. Though, I admit, my view of modern music is kind of punk-centric. All right, I’ll try to stop nitpicking other people’s posts. I don’t want to be the kind of person who does that. ---
**Author:** ![swissmtndog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/85e7bf/32.png) [@swissmtndog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/swissmtndog)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2005, 6:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-essential-music-library-pop/332041/36 "2005-11-23T06:03:15Z")
Any discussion of good pop groups that leaves out The New Pornographers is incomplete. Pop = good beat required, can have some limited amount of funk, very small dose of soul is acceptable ---
**Author:** ![who\_me\_2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/87869e/32.png) [@who\_me\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/who_me_2)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2005, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-essential-music-library-pop/332041/37 "2005-11-23T17:50:15Z")
Oh, great, now we’re limited to soulless, unfunky music. which only leaves us with Celine Dion. Just joking. And yeah, my highjack ends here. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-essential-music-library-pop/332041.md?page=1)