Top 5 songwriters of our generation...

[sloslunas]

Just curious, as our tastes change...

Steve

 

[piebaldpython]

Stephen Stills for starters...........have to think about the rest

 

[Rick23]

Bob Dylan
Jim Croce
Harry Chapin
Warren Zevon
James Taylor

Oh crap, I'm a folkie!!??

 

[sloslunas]

Bob Dylan
Jim Croce
Harry Chapin
Warren Zevon
James Taylor

Oh crap, I'm a folkie!!??

You nailed #1 on my list...

Steve

 

[PapaRaptor]

Bob Dylan
Lennon-McCartney
Carole King
Willie Nelson
Paul Simon

 

[EJG]

Bob Dylan
Lennon/McCartney
Garcia/Hunter
Bruce Springsteen
Jackson Browne

I cheated by giving Lennon/McCartney and Garcia/Hunter one spot each. Paul Simon probably deserves a spot on the list too.

 

[Grateful_Ed]

Bob Dylan
John Prine
Willie Nelson
Kris Kristofferson
Billy Joel
Do I really have to stop at 5? I'm not sure I could pick 5 out of my favorite 25. This is a "first to pop into my noggin" list of my favorites.

 

[CaptainMoto]

I think I need to add:
- John Prine
- Leonard Cohen
- Tom Petty
- Prince
- David Bowie

 

[Paleo]

I'll mention some that haven't already been listed.

Brian Wilson
Barry Gibb
Chuck Berry
Smokey Robinson
Joni Mitchell

Oh Yeah. And Jagger/Richards.

 

[dvs]

Same here, 5 who haven't been mentioned already:
John Hartford
Sam Cooke
Marvin Gaye
Gordon Lightfoot
Bill Withers

 

[arock]

Bob Dylan
Neil Young
John Prine
Jimi Hendrix
Jim Morrison

 

[sloslunas]

Great to see Willie Nelson and Joni Mitchell on your lists. How about Van Morrison?

Steve

 

[blackcoffeeblues]

It would probably be a whole lot easier for me to come up with the 5- I don't like.
John Prine
Bob Seager
Willie Dixon
Chuck Berry
Bob Dylan

but still got to reserve a spot for The Beatles and the Stones. I got to say Beatles because George Harrison wrote 2 or 3 of my favorite songs.

 

[MikeS]

This just goes to show why this kind of thread is just an argument starter on Facebook.
I'd post a vomit emoji on some of the selections on these lists.

 

[sloslunas]

Who are you guys??? I see no love for the two greatest groups ever. 1910 Fruitgum Co. and the Archies...

Steve

 

[Grateful_Ed]

Yummy, Yummy, Yummy I got Sugar, ah Honey, Honey!

 

[PapaRaptor]

Who are you guys??? I see no love for the two greatest groups ever. 1910 Fruitgum Co. and the Archies...

Steve

I don't believe anyone in either group (assuming you can actually find out who was really in those groups) has a writing credit. There were some very talented session musicians who made those recordings, but I doubt any of them had more than a day's work recording the tracks.

Seulb - 1910 Fruitgum Company

 

[ChrisGSP]

I just looked up the definition of "a song", and it told me it has to have words, meant to be sung. So that snuffs my #1 Miles Davis.

2. Lennon/McCartney
3. Page/Plant
4. The Brothers Gibb
5. Brian Wilson
6. Gilmour/Waters(Mason,Wright)

 

[ChrisGSP]

I just looked up the definition of "a song", and it told me it has to have words, meant to be sung. So that snuffs my #1 Miles Davis.

2. Lennon/McCartney
3. Page/Plant
4. The Brothers Gibb
5. Brian Wilson
6. Gilmour/Waters(Mason,Wright)

I just realised that they're all British except Miles and Brian. (yeah, I'm an Aussie and I know a lot of my country-persons are going to claim the Gibbs, but we all know they grew up here but were initially and ultimately English).

 

[jmin]

What, no Barry Manilow?! He wrote the songs that made the whole world sing.