Yeah, I think that this is the point about Dylan. The fact that he still puts out a new album every couple of years (though most of that has been either older, previously unreleased recordings, or recordings of songs he didn’t himself write), and he still tours, does mean that he’s not entirely “hiding from the world.” But, that said, my understanding is that he doesn’t do many interviews or non-concert public appearances, and when he does, he’s still often evasive or chimeric (which, I suppose, he always has been).
His public face is, and for decades, likely has, been almost entirely through his music.
In Joan Baez’s autobiography, she says something to the effect that the hysteria in his British tour in 1965 scared the hell out of him. Everybody wanted pieces. He was distant and standoffish before. After he built a wall. He throws stuff over the wall, including his voice in concerts, records, and books, but nobody is allowed to touch him anymore. He replaced the person with a simulacrum named Dylan. He’s the ultimate icon. McCartney is an icon and a personality. That wins, I think.
He did sell out to Victoria’s Secret. Which reminded me of the old NatLamp radio bit about him hawking “Golden Protest.” Still could come true.
I read a collection of Dylan interviews and he’s always put on a mask, especially for clueless interviewers.
I saw Dylan and Simon as the two acts at Shoreline once, with them singing together between the acts, and I doubt Simon would agree with you.
My sister also saw them together in a show with my dad. She went to see Dylan and he went to see Simon - she said that she was surprised to have enjoyed Paul Simon far more than Dylan. I’m sure Paul Simon does admire Dylan, doesn’t change that he’s still a great song writer in my very personal, sentimental opinion.
Clapton would have been a shock if he passed before Ginger and Jack, Both of whom weren’t in good health and he was the youngest of the trio. He’s not in good health himself now and it’s amazing he lived through his drug and alcohol abuses
Between him and Page, whomever goes last will probably make the biggest headlines as the last of the 60’s (and IMO, true) guitar gods. Yes, I know Townsend’s still around, but to me the true guitar gods all played with the Yardbirds!
Clapton’s problem is that he’s fallen out of the spotlight quite a bit. I haven’t heard much of his music for a long time. Even ‘classic rock’ stations seem to be skipping a lot of his solo work. So I don’t know how much non-Boomers really care about him any more. And his vaccine stand during the pandemic likely lost him some fans, especially in the music press.
Franki Valli will hardly be noticed. I suspect a lot of people will say, “He was still alive?”
McCartney is the most likely to kick off a world-wide rememberence. And if he goes before Ringo, Ringo will likely make the second-biggest splash simply because he’ll be the last Beatle, and we’ll get all the end of an era stories, etc.
The Cream and Yardbirds angles will be huge in the UK, but I’m not sure about elsewhere.
I think Zimmie, followed by Neil Young. Maybe a distinction needs to be made between the commercial angle. The Beatles were and are an advertising institution without peer, so McCartney’s passing in particular will be a Big Deal, but in terms of emotional impact on the boomer generation I think there are more important figures. The Beatles were more followers than anything later on in their careers.
The “Magical Mystery Tour” - driving around in a bus tripping on acid whilst filming themselves? Old hat, was just a rehash of the Merry Pranksters several years prior. “Get Back” was old hat, Dylan had already retired to upstate New York with Robbie Robertson and the Band, having left the day-glo flourescent foo foo stuff behind. In fact, I don’t think Dylan ever participated in the psychodelic stuff particularly.
The Grass Roots were a fairly popular U.S. band in the late '60s and early '70s. They had a couple of top-10 hits in the U.S.: “Let’s Live for Today” (1967), “Midnight Confessions” (1968), and “Sooner or Later” (1971), as well as eleven more that made the top 40.
Not nearly as popular as the other acts discussed in this thread, though they did do well in Canada, too.
“Let’s Live for Today” was a pretty big hippie/counterculture anthem, but again, that’s 50+ years ago. The later two hits were more poppy. They were pretty big hits back then, but they likely aren’t as enduringly popular as songs from bigger acts of that era, so unless you listen to oldies stations or classic rock stations, it wouldn’t surprise me that you don’t otherwise encounter their songs.
very few of those would be on www.CNN/BBC for more than 1-2 days (my random threshold for big splash)
I throw Waters/Gilmour into the equation …
even though their most emblematic catalogue is from the 70ies, they did substantial and relevant work in the 60ies and both ARE relevant today (if for different reasons) …
… show me another 60ies rocker with a top grossing world tour like our beloved “Rog, the tankie” (Stones and Macca aside)