100 Greatest Rock 'n' Roll Artists of The 1960s

Criteria: - Rock 'n' Roll Artists of The 60's are based equally on Musical and Commercial Impact, Influence and Importance of their Recorded Work from 1960-1969 only.

Edited By: Sampson
Last Updated 3-25-05

Link: http://digitaldreamdoor.com/pages/best_artists60s.html

1. The Beatles
2. James Brown
3. The Supremes
4. The Beach Boys
5. The Rolling Stones
6. Bob Dylan
7. Aretha Franklin
8. Sam Cooke
9. Jimi Hendrix
10. Ray Charles
11. Elvis Presley
12. Otis Redding
13. Marvin Gaye
14. The Byrds
15. The Who
16. The Four Seasons
17. The Temptations
18. The Miracles
19. Wilson Pickett
20. Stevie Wonder
21. The Kinks
22. Roy Orbison
23. The Drifters
24. The Four Tops
25. The Shirelles
26. The Doors
27. Martha & The Vandellas
28. Dion
29. Sam & Dave
30. Jefferson Airplane
31. The Impressions
32. The Mamas & The Papas
33. Solomon Burke
34. Cream
35. Jackie Wilson
36. Creedence Clearwater Revival
37. Booker T. & The MG's
38. Sly & The Family Stone
39. The Yardbirds
40. Simon & Garfunkel
41. The Rascals
42. The Marvelettes
43. The Animals
44. Buffalo Springfield
45. Etta James
46. Del Shannon
47. Joe Tex
48. Jan & Dean
49. The Velvet Underground
50. The Ronettes
51. The Lovin' Spoonful
52. Janis Joplin/Big Brother & Holding Company
53. Lee Dorsey
54. The Ventures
55. The Crystals
56. The Band
57. The Chiffons
58. Frank Zappa & The Mothers Of Invention
59. Mary Wells
60. Ike & Tina Turner
61. The Monkees
62. Gary "US" Bonds
63. Canned Heat
64. Dick Dale
65. The Isley Brothers
66. Ben E. King
67. Paul Butterfield Blues Band
68. Gladys Knight & The Pips
69. Chuck Berry
70. Sam The Sham & The Pharoahs
71. Lesley Gore
72. The Righteous Brothers
73. The Turtles
74. Jerry Butler
75. The Hollies
76. Irma Thomas
77. Sonny & Cher
78. The Grateful Dead
79. The Everly Brothers
80. King Curtis
81. The Dave Clark Five
82. Van Morrison/Them
83. Percy Sledge
84. Moby Grape
85. Gene Chandler
86. Eddie Floyd
87. Junior Walker & The All-Stars
88. Tommy James & The Shondells
89. Love
90. Carla Thomas
91. Rick Nelson
92. Major Lance
93. Garnet Mimms & The Enchanters
94. James & Bobby Purify
95. Paul Revere & The Raiders
96. Chuck Jackson
97. Mitch Ryder & The Detroit Wheels
98. James Carr
99. Donovan
100. Billy Stewart

101. Blood, Sweat & Tears
102. Don Covay
103. The Dells
104. Steppenwolf
105. John Mayall's Bluesbreakers
106. Fats Domino
107. The Troggs
108. Darlene Love
109. Bobby Womack/Valentinos
110. Pink Floyd
111. William Bell
112. Manfred Mann
113. Tammi Terrell
114. Maxine Brown
115. The Kingsmen
116. Arthur Alexander
117. Quicksilver Messenger Service
118. Clarence Carter
119. The Spencer Davis Group
120. Betty Everett
121. Bo Diddley
122. The Surfaris
123. Country Joe & The Fish
124. The Cookies
125. Rufus Thomas
126. The Bobby Fuller Four
127. Aaron Neville
128. The Tokens
129. Captain Beefheart
130. Brenda Holloway
131. Little Anthony & The Imperials
132. Johnnie Taylor
133. O.V. Wright
134. Bill Black Combo
135. Arthur Conley
136. The Youngbloods
137. The Showmen
138. The Coasters
139. The Velvelettes
140. The Olympics
141. The Box Tops
142. Jimmy Hughes
143. The Dovells
144. Hank Ballard & the Midnighters
145. Lonnie Mack
146. Willie Mitchell
147. Edwin Starr
148. Cannibal & The Headhunters
149. The Moody Blues
150. Barbara Lewis
151. The Shangri-Las
152. ? & The Mysterians
153. The Orlons
154. The Pretty Things
155. Charlie Rich
156. Lou Rawls
157. Roy Head & The Traits
158. The Guess Who
159. The Steve Miller Band
160. Howard Tate
161. Dr. John
162. Electric Flag
163. The Platters
164. Buster Brown
165. Procol Harum
166. The Meters
167. Strawberry Alarm Clock
168. The Jive Five
169. Duane Eddy
170. Toussaint McCall
171. The Standells
172. Joey Dee & The Starliters
173. Barbara Lynn
174. The Seeds
175. Davie Allan & The Arrows
176. Joe Simon
177. Traffic
178. The Zombies
179. Ronny & The Daytonas
180. Count Five
181. Joe South
182. Fontella Bass
183. The Buckinghams
184. Johnny Adams
185. Small Faces
186. Maurice Williams & The Zodiacs
187. The Radiants
188. Sandy Nelson
189. Iron Butterfly
190. The Chambers Brothers
191. The Sims Twins
192. The Dixie Cups
193. Shep & The Limelites
194. The Strangeloves
195. The Sweet Inspirations
196. Ten Years After
197. The Sonics
198. Johnny Kidd & The Pirates
199. Blue Cheer
200. Peter & Gordon

I'm going to sound like a broken record here, but no way should the Beach Boys be ahead of the Stones and Dylan. Dylan should definitely be #2 as well.

^Fact. There is no way he could be anything less than that.

I don't have any problem with Brown ahead of Dylan. They're similar in influence, and it could be argued that Brown beats Dylan in commercial impact by more than Dylan beats Brown in musical impact, since Brown is also very high in the latter.

However, I don't see how the Supremes are ahead of Dylan, or how they're ahead of the Beach Boys, the Stones, or Aretha.

For the sixties? Why not?

Well, The Beach Boys in terms of the 60s have only one really great 60s albums as opposed to Dylan's four.

How about the singles comparison? The Beach Boys have about a dozen great sixties singles. And you're selling their non-Pet Sounds albums short.

If Stones and Dylan jump BB this list is void

But don't Dylan and the Stones as well? Like a Rolling Stone, Blowin' in the Wind, The Times They Are A-Changin' and Satisfaction, Sympathy for the Devil, Jumpin' Jack Flash etc. I'm not sure The Beach Boys even beat them on singles, it's certaintly close.

I'm not saying the Beach Boys didn't have great albums outside Pet Sounds, but they're certaintly not on the same level as Dylan's electric trilogy + The Freewheelin' or Beggar's Banquet and Let It Bleed.



Why? Surely, Dylan and the Stones are more influential and had a bigger musical and cultural impact.

Dylan beats the Beach Boys in influence and musical impact, but the Beach Boys beat the Stones in influence, and if the Stones beat them in musical impact, as I suspect they do, I don't think it's by very much.

On the album thing, the Beach Boys emerged a couple years before the Stones and Dylan, when albums were less important, so the classicness of their albums compared to the Stones and Dylan is in keeping with their time. And the Beach Boys early albums were popular at the time, they just mostly aren't considered mega-classics today.

The Rolling Stones are probably comparable to the Beach Boys in sixties singles success, but I'm pretty sure Bob Dylan isn't close.

True, but Surfin' USA, All Summer Long, Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!), and The Beach Boys Today! are all still very well-regarded albums. They're all ranked at acclaimedmusic.net, which admittedly is critic-based, not artist-based. And Pet Sounds is ranked #1 for the year, for the decade and for all-time. The Beach Boys next-most best-ranked album for the sixties is The Beach Boys Today! at 715 all-time. That beats The Times They Are A-Changin' at 779, for example.

Surely LARS is the greatest single of the 60s? And Blowin' in the Wind, Subterranean Homesick Blues, The Times They Are a Changin' and Positively 4th Street have huge cultural significance as well. I don't see how he's not comparable.



But The Times They Are A-Changin' is like Dylan's 9th or 10th most acclaimed album and I wouldn't call it top tier at all, so for the Beach Boys' second most acclaimed album to be just ahead of that is actually less than what I was saying in the first place.

According to acclaimedmusic.net Dylan has six 60s albums before the next highest ranked Beach Boys one after PS.

Time Magazine says it's "My Generation".



Dylan's sixties singles may perhaps be comparable to the Beach Boys sixties singles in musical impact, but the Beach Boys singles trump Dylan's in commercial impact. I don't think any singles have actual cultural impact except for maybe "Rock Around the Clock", "The Twist" and "My Generation".



I was just taking issue with the notion that the only album the Beach Boys have going for them in the sixties is Pet Sounds.

You really don't think Like a Rolling Stone or Blowin' in the Wind have musical or cultural impact?! I'd say Dylan quite easily trumps the Beach Boys in singles for cultural impact, even if the Beach Boys did outsell Dylan for singles.

And where did I say The Beach Boys only have Pet Sounds going for them as 60s albums, I said that's the only really great one.