On second thought, so much time has passed since Armstrong and Johnson that 10 years don't make very much difference. Especially since some of the Armstrong music that continues to sell is contemporary to and later than Johnson. A better point would have been that Armstrong might not have a single record that sells as well as Johnson's Complete Recordings, but if you add all of Armstrong's sales together and all of Johnson's sales together, there's a good chance that Armstrong would come out ahead.

Johnson never had anything resembling a hit single, I don't think. Amrstrong hit number one at the age of 63 and had another hit single posthumously when he would have been in his late 80s.

well i think part of the reason RJ's Complete Recordings continue to sell well is simply because its the only RJ purchase that makes sense. yeah, some people are gonna get the smaller one disc comp, but most people are just gonna buy the 2 disc Complete Recordings. Louis Armstrong doesn't have that one perfect purchase that everyone buys. rather, he has dozens of comps that just get thrown into stores. the essential recordings are usually box sets that aren't really all that convenient for casual fans. id be curious to see how many different comps he sells each year, as opposed to the sales of one in particular.

in name recognition alone, he crushes Robert Johnson in terms of mainstream exposure. RJ is usually a discovery that comes from first getting exposed to the heavy 60s blues and then working back. Louis Armstrong is a household name.

Just sent Lew some position changes. There's been a lot of support for the Who and Madonna to move up into the top 50, so I moved these 4 acts to the spots listed:

40. The Who
41. Madonna
54. Barbra Streisand
59. Billy Murray and the American Quartet

Wow, top forty for The Who! Awesome.

Billy Murray and the American Quartet?

Good changes, but I think Madonna could go higher.

Billy Murray was the biggest artist in the early days of records, before Jolson came around. He was also a member of the American Quartet, usually the lead singer, and they were a huge vocal group in the same era.

Murray was the 5th biggest artist of the 1890-1954 era, and the American Quartet was #28.

Here's one of his many huge hits, the biggest record of 1910:

Just in time, as their music is being featured during the world series pregame show right now. So far "Won't Get Fooled Again" and "Love, Reign O'er Me."

Well, you know, it's not as if the two cities represented this year have much in the way of musical traditions of their own to draw on, especially from that era.

Roy Brown did not deserve to be on the list?

I think I had him as one of the last 5 cuts. He could certainly be there. But there's some pretty big names near the bottom of the list.

All right. Thanks.

Bruce,

Just noticed on the current list that you have:

104. Jackie Wilson
104. Sarah Vaughan

I assume this is unintentional and Wilson should be 103? Also it would be a nice (although difficult and time consuming) enhancement to maybe suggest an essential complilation/recording as an introduction to each artist. I know I wouldn't have the foggiest idea what to jump into for half of these artists.

Thanks, I'll have it corrected.

24. Beach Boys
36. Led Zeppelin

Absolutely no way, especially by to these criteria. Zeppelin takes influence (according to Sampson's list) and both initial and lasting popularity.

Initial popularity:

Led Zeppelin: three #1 albums, one #2 album, four Top 20 hits in the first 5 years, plus huge touring success.
The Beach Boys: one #1 album, one #2 album, thirteen Top 10 hits in the first 5 years.

Lasting popularity:

Led Zeppelin: 25 million records sold since 1991
The Beach Boys: 15 million records sold since 1991