Nevermind The Posers

TNT’s #4 Musician of All Time
4. George Gershwin – George Gershwin drove American music to a new style and this musical genius pretty much did it all – piano rolls, songs, string quartets, piano concertos, orchestrations, Broadway musicals, jazz concerto (“Rhapsody in Blue”), movie scores, the list goes on and on.  I consider Gershwin responsible for introducing a modernized America to musical experimentation with my favorite piece, “Rhapsody in Blue”- the jazz is lifted from the symphonic arrangements while still holding true to a classical form.   I also love “An American in Paris” and “Concerto in F”.

Alex’s #4 Musician of All Time
4. Santana – Anybody that has followed Santana from Moonflower, one of his first releases, knows that this dude can make a PRS sing like an angel.  On top of that, his fusion of Latin and Rock elements were as groundbreaking then as they are now.

Mark’s #4 Musician of All Time
4. Martin Gore – Primarily known as the main songwriter of Depeche Mode, his songwriting features heavy use of minor keys and dark imagery such as religion, sexuality, love, hurt, philosophy to bring to life compositions that are as beautiful as they are haunting.  He is also a criminally underrated guitarist, with his playing style featuring flourishes of blues and folk blended together with rock simplicity.  In no song is this more apparent than in the 1990 hit “Personal Jesus”, where his distinctive riffs create a simple, yet danceable rock groove that wouldn’t have been out-of-place in a Stray Cats song. RECOMMENDED: Violator (“Personal Jesus”), Songs of Faith and Devotion Live (“I Feel You”), Playing the Angel (“Suffer Well” and “A Pain That I’m Used To”)

Angela’s #4 Musician of All Time
4. Silverchair – Now…not a lot of people talk about this band…us fans ARE out there, but they aren’t huge.  Beyond their early 90’s release of Frogstomp most people don’t know a damn thing about them…but I Love this band.  Their music has also been able to evolve and singer/guitarist Daniel Johns musicality and brilliance in recent years has been compared to that of Brian Wilson.  The last two albums, Diorama and Young/Modern have used intricate melodies and dynamics to create truly unique music that can only be defined as the sound of Silverchair.  They’re also wonderful live, keeping their sound full and tight.  Their music has the ability to reach depths musically and emotionally.

Klone’s #4 Musician of All Time
4. Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 – 1827) – Ludwig van Beethoven began his life and career composing in the shadow of Mozart, which in and of itself is an incredible undertaking.  To then attain notoriety and acclaim is a feat worthy of mention, but not so much as his most famous characteristic – that he continued to compose, conduct, and perform his works even after completely losing his hearing.  Think about that the next time a concert you want to see gets canceled because a singer sprained their ankle, or a guitarist sprained their wrist.  Beethoven composed by remembering the sounds of the notes, and was so skilled in this way that his famous “Ode to Joy”, popularized in the 80s as the closing piece to the Bruce Willis film “Die Hard” (1988).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beethoven
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0095016/