# Which 60s rock star's death would make the biggest splash? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** music\ **Created:** [July 13, 2023, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-60s-rock-stars-death-would-make-the-biggest-splash/986997 "2023-07-13T18:00:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2023, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-60s-rock-stars-death-would-make-the-biggest-splash/986997/41 "2023-07-14T13:35:33Z")
> [@digs](#): > > And that’s going to differ for each person. I’d propose a world-wide poll, but does anyone know what their subjective list would be when someone dies? > … > The deaths of Bowie, and the other Davy Jones, Chris Cornell, Dr.John, Neil Innes and George Martin would not have been on my list, but hit me hard. Agree 100% with the upper part of the snip. As to the lower part … I cannot imagine giving two shits if any celebrity died. Current or past. Not that I have any animosity towards any of them individually or the concept of celebrity in general. But they’re strangers to me, not friends or even acquaintances. The idea of their death hitting me, much less hard, is simply foreign to my nature. Their individual product may be kinda unique, or may be pretty generic within its genre. In the case of almost everyone on the OP’s list, they are making no new product. Whether e.g. Ringo Starr is dead or alive, I can listen to everything he ever released whenever I’m so inclined. Be that often, seldom, or never. Whether a celeb is dead or alive means just about exactly zero to me. No different from anyone else in the phone book who I’ve never met, be they famous, a fat-cat, or a humble laborer. I’m not trying to call you out or say you’re wrong and I’m right. You did a nice job of outlining a position very different from my own, so I just wanted to comment from the other end of the spectrum. _Vive la différence_! ---
**Author:** ![songsoflovetrouble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@songsoflovetrouble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/songsoflovetrouble)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2023, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-60s-rock-stars-death-would-make-the-biggest-splash/986997/42 "2023-07-14T13:55:40Z")
> [@whitetho](#): > > The most ironic will be Roger Daltrey, who turns 80 next year, and sang “hope I die before I grow old” on The Who’s “My Generation”. The Who were already zinged out of existence 30 years ago when Kurt Cobain wrote “I hope I die before I become Pete Townshend.” ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2023, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-60s-rock-stars-death-would-make-the-biggest-splash/986997/43 "2023-07-14T14:06:43Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > > [@kenobi\_65](#): > > > > birthday. He doesn’t look like an octogenarian. 😉 > > Damn. That’s some Picture of Dorian Gray shit right there. He dyes his Dorian Gray. Sir Paul is way ahead of everyone. He had the most widespread personal impact and he’s stayed in the public eye. Dylan may have a huge impact to musicians of a certain age but he’s tried to hide from the world for decades. ---
**Author:** ![Charlie\_Tan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/charlie_tan/32/12582_2.png) [@Charlie\_Tan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Tan)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2023, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-60s-rock-stars-death-would-make-the-biggest-splash/986997/44 "2023-07-14T14:10:46Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > they are making no new product. Whether e.g. Ringo Starr is dead or alive, I can listen to everything he ever released whenever I’m so inclined. Be that often, seldom, or never. I don’t know if you dropped Ringo’s name next to the previous sentence on purpose, i.e. an example. But both he and Macca still produce new music. In Ringo’s case it’s, IMO, totally forgettable but nice pop. But he does make new stuff. As for affecting me - No, I don’t know them. Many who are past their prime as creators and still put out stuff are not at the level they once were. But I’m still sad that Prince died too young. Even though his output over the years has been, um, varied in quality, there was always a hope that he had one more really great album in him. Same with Bowie. And Macca still makes really good stuff, as this colab with Beck proves: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2Q4hAQ4fEw ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2023, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-60s-rock-stars-death-would-make-the-biggest-splash/986997/45 "2023-07-14T14:20:13Z")
Ringo was a mostly random choice, with a bit of name recognition and not needing to look up how to spell it 🙂 . I had no idea he was still releasing new material. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2023, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-60s-rock-stars-death-would-make-the-biggest-splash/986997/46 "2023-07-14T14:51:31Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > Dylan may have a huge impact to musicians of a certain age but he’s tried to hide from the world for decades To me, that’s a big part of his mystique. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2023, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-60s-rock-stars-death-would-make-the-biggest-splash/986997/47 "2023-07-14T14:52:51Z")
It’s also a big part of why so many people now have no idea who he is or what he did. Possibly he helped popularize the name ‘Dylan’ further adding to his obscurity. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2023, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-60s-rock-stars-death-would-make-the-biggest-splash/986997/48 "2023-07-14T15:00:42Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > Whether a celeb is dead or alive means just about exactly zero to me. No different from anyone else in the phone book who I’ve never met, be they famous, a fat-cat, or a humble laborer. I feel similarly, but there’s a difference when the celebrity is an artist who is still creating. Most of the people on the list are not doing much that’s new or groundbreaking, but some are. (Dolly Parton was excluded, but she’s a good example.) Their death is not just the death of an acquaintance you’ve never met, but the loss of any future material from them. Personally, with musicians, I find that they have a range of about 20 years, max—either they stop producing good material, or they evolve as artists but the good new material they produce doesn’t speak to me in the same way that their early career stuff did. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2023, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-60s-rock-stars-death-would-make-the-biggest-splash/986997/49 "2023-07-14T15:15:18Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > I had no idea he was still releasing new material. Yeah, the people who pay attention enough to know this would probably be more affected by his death than you would. Paul Simon also has a recent release: > [@Seven Psalms (New Paul Simon album)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seven-psalms-new-paul-simon-album/984429): > > Hot off the presses. Has anybody else listened to it yet? I’d love to know what you think. I will put my thoughts in later in the thread. One thing I would recommend, Listen to it all at once, on a really good pair of headphones. I will also say this. It’s different than anything I’ve ever heard Paul Simon, or anybody else for that matter, do. [[Seven Psalms: The Lord / Love Is Like a Braid / My Professional Opinion / Your Forgiveness /...] ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ANtntuDslnk) ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2023, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-60s-rock-stars-death-would-make-the-biggest-splash/986997/50 "2023-07-14T16:34:58Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > Dylan may have a huge impact to musicians of a certain age but he’s tried to hide from the world for decades. Dylan is still releasing new albums and is currently on a leisurely concert tour in Europe. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2023, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-60s-rock-stars-death-would-make-the-biggest-splash/986997/51 "2023-07-14T16:36:31Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > Paul Simon also has a recent release: Which I find interesting, given that I saw him in concert in 2018 or 2019, on what was billed as his retirement tour. Even then, I figured that odds were high he wasn’t going to be actually and fully retiring. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2023, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-60s-rock-stars-death-would-make-the-biggest-splash/986997/52 "2023-07-14T16:52:58Z")
I’d say that you said the rest of what I think. I could imagine a young phenom with his/her best days ahead of them dying young and me semi-lamenting what they never had a chance to do / never did. For somebody 60+ or 80+, any new work they do will mostly be obsolete & derivative, or mediocre. Or both. Missing on that sort of potential work after they kick it seems little loss. In any case, IMO the personal connection so many fans seem to feel for “their” artists is simply the triumph of marketing over any sort of sense. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2023, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-60s-rock-stars-death-would-make-the-biggest-splash/986997/53 "2023-07-14T16:58:58Z")
> [@Kent\_Clark](#): > > Dylan is still releasing new albums and is currently on a leisurely concert tour in Europe I’ve seen him in concert many times. At one show in particular he was classic Dylan; halfway through a song he glanced at his watch and immediately stopped singing. He was supposed to play until 10 and it was 10. Thank you and goodnight! ---
**Author:** ![glowacks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/glowacks/32/5548_2.png) [@glowacks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glowacks)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2023, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-60s-rock-stars-death-would-make-the-biggest-splash/986997/54 "2023-07-14T17:00:44Z")
Some places have really harsh penalties for playing past curfew, though 10 seems really early for that. He likely was just contractually obligated to play a set amount of time, and did. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2023, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-60s-rock-stars-death-would-make-the-biggest-splash/986997/55 "2023-07-14T17:07:35Z")
> [@glowacks](#): > > He likely was just contractually obligated to play a set amount of time, and did. Yep, classic Dylan. I and everyone around whooped&cheered when he slammed on his brakes at 10. People around us who didn’t get it wondered what was going on. ---
**Author:** ![JohnGalt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johngalt/32/184_2.png) [@JohnGalt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnGalt)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2023, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-60s-rock-stars-death-would-make-the-biggest-splash/986997/56 "2023-07-14T17:12:00Z")
I think Elton John would be on a few people’s list; he’s currently 76 and just did his last concert tour (yeah, right). There was that other recent thread somewhere here with many people loathing him, but his death would be a leading news story. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2023, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-60s-rock-stars-death-would-make-the-biggest-splash/986997/57 "2023-07-14T17:17:21Z")
I’d say that the biggest splash will be the last of the Beatles, whichever one that happens to be. “Turntables of the Night”, by Terry Pratchett: > [@](#): > > “Do you have a complete collection of The Beatles?” > “NOT YET.” ---
**Author:** ![Tibby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tibby/32/17030_2.png) [@Tibby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tibby)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2023, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-60s-rock-stars-death-would-make-the-biggest-splash/986997/58 "2023-07-14T17:19:19Z")
McCartney, Jagger and Dylan are the 60s Bach, Mozart, and Beethoven. So…any one of them. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2023, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-60s-rock-stars-death-would-make-the-biggest-splash/986997/59 "2023-07-14T19:16:34Z")
Every ranking is subjective. It is also has to have one bizarro entry so that instead of people nodding and going to the next thing, they stop in fury and amazement and respond endlessly. Rolling Stone made a career of those rankings. If blogs still exist I’m sure they’re filled with scorn at the Top Hundred Guitarists from 2015. No matter what your personal feelings are, the fact is that huge percentages of the population everywhere feel personal connections. To celebrities in general, to musicians in particular. Music fills countless hours of our lives. For many people its a near constant background. This creates not merely a connection, but awe and wonder around the creator. Nor did this connection start with rock music, although that had the amplification function of television and dedicated radio stations. What we now call classical music and opera developed fan bases that appear identical to today’s veneration. My personal top ten would look different from what I posted. I thought it would be more fun to have a guessing game about the world. I’m a little disappointed that none of the UK crowd submitted a list. I’m sure that it would look different. People will go bananas when Cliff Richard dies, even as the Americans go who? C’mon, any UKians out there? The rest of the world? I want to hear from you. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2023, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-60s-rock-stars-death-would-make-the-biggest-splash/986997/60 "2023-07-14T20:13:21Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > > [@Loach](#): > > > > Dylan may have a huge impact to musicians of a certain age but he’s tried to hide from the world for decades > > To me, that’s a big part of his mystique. The thread is about the biggest splash that would happen upon someone’s death. Not your personal feelings about him. > [@Kent\_Clark](#): > > > [@Loach](#): > > > > Dylan may have a huge impact to musicians of a certain age but he’s tried to hide from the world for decades. > > Dylan is still releasing new albums and is currently on a leisurely concert tour in Europe. I didn’t know that. Which illustrates the point. Sir Paul does interviews, he goes on late night talk shows, he still gets followed by paparazzi. Just Bob…doesn’t. He released an album to his niche audience and has a quiet tour. McCartney will have a much bigger splash. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-60s-rock-stars-death-would-make-the-biggest-splash/986997.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-60s-rock-stars-death-would-make-the-biggest-splash/986997.md?page=4)