# Which musical artist attains your highest score? (explanation in OP) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 18, 2017, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-musical-artist-attains-your-highest-score-explanation-in-op/780132 "2017-02-18T02:56:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2017, 12:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-musical-artist-attains-your-highest-score-explanation-in-op/780132/21 "2017-02-18T12:26:14Z")
This day and age? **Dave Grohl** across **Nirvana** , **Foo Fighters** , side bands, his documentaries Sound City and Sonic Highways, etc. Respected, liked, popular. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2017, 12:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-musical-artist-attains-your-highest-score-explanation-in-op/780132/22 "2017-02-18T12:39:33Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > I loathe Michael Jackson, so that puts paid to the OP. > > BBBBRRRRUUUUCCCCEEEE!!! Gotta go with The Boss. I’ve always said you had good taste, and that’s why!! ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2017, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-musical-artist-attains-your-highest-score-explanation-in-op/780132/23 "2017-02-18T12:52:40Z")
I hadn’t thought of **Stevie Wonder**. Does anyone really badmouth his music (I Just Called To Say I Love You notwithstanding)? Actually, as lame a song as that is, it still has Stevie’s distinct and awesome vocals. mmm ETA: I know _plenty_ of Springsteen haters. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2017, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-musical-artist-attains-your-highest-score-explanation-in-op/780132/24 "2017-02-18T13:06:01Z")
**Adele** **Beyonce** ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2017, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-musical-artist-attains-your-highest-score-explanation-in-op/780132/25 "2017-02-18T13:12:04Z")
Handel. ---
**Author:** ![Busy\_Scissors](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d78d45/32.png) [@Busy\_Scissors](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Busy_Scissors)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2017, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-musical-artist-attains-your-highest-score-explanation-in-op/780132/26 "2017-02-18T14:40:43Z")
Beyonce now. The Beatles then. Do a minority of people love to hate the Beatles (I mean for real reasons besides the usual contrarian bullshit)? You could at least frame an argument that the Rolling Stones, say, are massively overrated. It would likely be bullshit too, but it would be an argument. The Beatles though? I ain’t heard of that. ---
**Author:** ![Made\_in\_Macau](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eada6e/32.png) [@Made\_in\_Macau](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Made_in_Macau)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2017, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-musical-artist-attains-your-highest-score-explanation-in-op/780132/27 "2017-02-18T14:52:18Z")
There’s always going to be an outlier - I for instance cannot bear to hear anything by Pink Floyd or The Doors, so… but on the subject of haters, I was on the Guardian website and in the comments on Aretha retiring, there were Aretha-haters! I mean, who could hate Aretha Franklin! It beggars belief. I could only comprehend it as trolling. As for the OP how about Bob Marley? Popular, talented and anecdotally, is the most likely to appeal across disparate people from several countries in my experience. MiM ---
**Author:** ![nachtmusick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ac91a4/32.png) [@nachtmusick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nachtmusick)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2017, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-musical-artist-attains-your-highest-score-explanation-in-op/780132/28 "2017-02-18T14:55:05Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > My first thought was\*\* The Beatles\*\*. Few doubt their talent, I don’t think anyone can belittle their popularity, but I know they have some very vocal haters. They are the band many love to hate. > So I am going with Michael until someone comes along and convinces me otherwise. > > Thoughts? > mmm You should have gone with your first thought - the Beatles. More popular than Jesus, nobody questioned their talent, and it took two full generations before it became cool to hate them. ---
**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:** [February 18, 2017, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-musical-artist-attains-your-highest-score-explanation-in-op/780132/29 "2017-02-18T16:22:50Z")
My first thought was Beethoven, but I can’t see much to argue with for Johnny Cash, either. The only quibble I would have with him is that I think his fame was mostly just in the US, while Beethoven is worldwide. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2017, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-musical-artist-attains-your-highest-score-explanation-in-op/780132/30 "2017-02-18T16:27:58Z")
> [@nachtmusick](#): > > You should have gone with your first thought - the Beatles. More popular than Jesus, nobody questioned their talent, and it took two full generations before it became cool to hate them. I’d stick with the Beatles, too. Whatever points they lose in category 3, they make up for in categories 1 and 2. Johnny Cash is a pretty good call, too. I can’t think of anyone who doesn’t like him. Even the contrarian hipsters who claim to hate the Beatles seem to like him. The thing is, the Beatles score higher on the two other scales so that, in my scoring system, they’d surpass Cash. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2017, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-musical-artist-attains-your-highest-score-explanation-in-op/780132/31 "2017-02-18T18:09:34Z")
More random thoughts… (all, obviously, IMHO) **Beyonce** , gawd no. The only catergory in which she has any traction is popularity. **Tom Petty** is a fine song craftsman and an above-average musician, but falls far short of the elite in all three criteria. The classical composers are difficult to wedge in to the discussion for various reasons. Maybe we should exclude them? I dunno, I’m just asking. **Bob Marley** is a fine nomination. I’m not sure he is in the upper echelon of popularity, though. Is he considered a gifted musician? Songwriter, yes, I think. I should have included, as part of the musical ability criterion, influence on other musicians. Maybe should have included staying power within the popularity tract. Does anyone have any thoughts on bringing \*\*\*\*Simon & Garfunkel \*\*\*\*and/or **Paul Simon** to the discussion? I just thought of them and I am bringing them (both incarnations) right to the head of my class. mmm ---
**Author:** ![Totenfeier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/4bbf92/32.png) [@Totenfeier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Totenfeier)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2017, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-musical-artist-attains-your-highest-score-explanation-in-op/780132/32 "2017-02-18T18:18:15Z")
First one in my head is **Steely** **Dan**. Not sure I could crunch the numbers, but we’re talking expertly crafted pop expertly crafted to be expertly crafted pop, amirite? And, somewhat along the same lines, **Chicago**. ---
**Author:** ![Dale\_Sams](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/779978/32.png) [@Dale\_Sams](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dale_Sams)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2017, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-musical-artist-attains-your-highest-score-explanation-in-op/780132/33 "2017-02-18T18:33:06Z")
> [@Totenfeier](#): > > First one in my head is **Steely** **Dan**. Not sure I could crunch the numbers, but we’re talking expertly crafted pop expertly crafted to be expertly crafted pop, amirite? And, somewhat along the same lines, **Chicago**. Chicago utterly destroy their legacy with their later work ---
**Author:** ![drad\_dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@drad\_dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drad_dog)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2017, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-musical-artist-attains-your-highest-score-explanation-in-op/780132/34 "2017-02-18T18:51:48Z")
> [@Totenfeier](#): > > First one in my head is **Steely** **Dan**. Not sure I could crunch the numbers, but we’re talking expertly crafted pop expertly crafted to be expertly crafted pop, amirite? And, somewhat along the same lines, **Chicago**. I wish, my friend. But I think Steely Dan is hated by more people who don’t understand them than anyone in rock. People are lazy and need tags and pigeon holes to organize their opinions. Nobody hates Chuck Berry though. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2017, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-musical-artist-attains-your-highest-score-explanation-in-op/780132/35 "2017-02-18T19:20:30Z")
I’d love to say Mozart or Beethoven… or even Tchaikowsky. But realistically, way too many people would turn the radio dial. So I’d have to go with the Beatles, on the grounds that most people are familiar with them, while not that many people actually hate them. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2017, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-musical-artist-attains-your-highest-score-explanation-in-op/780132/36 "2017-02-18T19:33:39Z")
> [@astro](#): > > The person who scores highest across these factors is (IMO) Frank Sinatra. Frank Sinatra is a good nomination but, if we are going retro, I am going to have to throw out Louis Armstrong for the win. Most of the other nominations are just performers. Louis Armstrong helped invent jazz (which eventually spawned all the rest) AND [he has a major international airport named after him.](http://flymsy.com/) His music, especially “What a Wonderful World”, is still widely played today (it was my wedding song) 115 years after his birth. I have never heard of anyone that didn’t like some of his music. In short, I don’t think that anyone has presented a nomination that invented whole music genres and has massive amounts of infrastructure named after them except for me. I think he scores an unbeatable perfect 30. ---
**Author:** ![nachtmusick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ac91a4/32.png) [@nachtmusick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nachtmusick)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2017, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-musical-artist-attains-your-highest-score-explanation-in-op/780132/37 "2017-02-18T20:54:27Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > Does anyone have any thoughts on bringing \*\*\*\*Simon & Garfunkel \*\*\*\*and/or **Paul Simon** to the discussion? I just thought of them and I am bringing them (both incarnations) right to the head of my class. > mmm Not Paul Simon solo, but I strongly considered mentioning Simon and Garfunkel. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2017, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-musical-artist-attains-your-highest-score-explanation-in-op/780132/38 "2017-02-18T21:23:24Z")
I guess we’d be stuck with pleasant acts, rather than great ones. Preferably acts that straddle genres. The Eagles and Fleetwood Mac, maybe ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2017, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-musical-artist-attains-your-highest-score-explanation-in-op/780132/39 "2017-02-18T21:32:29Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > I guess we’d be stuck with pleasant acts, rather than great ones. Preferably acts that straddle genres. > > The Eagles and Fleetwood Mac, maybe Plenty of people hate them both, especially the Eagles. (At least that’s the impression I’ve always gotten. Or maybe I just naturally hang out with people who are none too fond of the Eagles.) Chuck Berry is another good nomination. Never heard anyone say a bad thing about him. He’s one of the few (maybe along with Johnny Cash and Aretha Franklin) that I’ve never heard anyone talk smack about. I’m surprised by the R.E.M. nomination. I like them a lot, but they were very polarizing in my circles. Unless you ran in that alternative/college rock crowd, they were kind of seen as music for weirdos. With Berry, Cash, and Franklin, I think pretty much everyone from the classical kids to the metal heads to the house/techno kids to the hip hop – they all could respect them. ---
**Author:** ![ioioio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ioioio/32/316_2.png) [@ioioio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ioioio)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2017, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-musical-artist-attains-your-highest-score-explanation-in-op/780132/40 "2017-02-18T21:36:33Z")
Carole King. from wikipedia: > [@](#): > > She is the most successful female songwriter of the latter half of the 20th century, having written or co-written 118 pop hits on the Billboard Hot 100 between 1955 and 1999. King also wrote 61 hits that charted in the UK, making her the most successful female songwriter on the UK singles charts between 1952 and 2005. > > King has made 25 solo albums, the most successful being _Tapestry_, which held the record for most weeks at No. 1 by a female artist for more than 20 years. > > She has won four Grammy Awards and was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for her songwriting. Popularity: How do you even judge this? Decades of achievement in songwriting and performance. Musicality: Gotta be close to 10. Haters: If you hate Carole King, you hate life. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-musical-artist-attains-your-highest-score-explanation-in-op/780132.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-musical-artist-attains-your-highest-score-explanation-in-op/780132.md?page=3)