This year's big acts

[The Modernist]

In 2009 it seems BCB has gone for...Yo La Tango, Diana Ross, Nick Cave, New Order, Can, Neu, William Bell and Gang Of Four.

A motley crew to be sure (Motley Crue are my prediction for 2010 btw).

Anyone I missed? Any comments?

[Butch Manly]

Yo La Tango, Diana Ross, Nick Cave, New Order, Can, Neu, William Bell and Gang Of Four.

*Heads back to drawing board*

[Matt Wilson]

Next year I'm going for Styx, Kansas, Rush, Ted Nugent, Journey & Triumph, but not the obvious tune choices.
No, I'm talking the good songs.

[Leg of lamb]

I think the Krautrock turnout is to be expected - it's long been a healthy bias on BCB and this is the first year I remember it being really expressed. And in Can, you have a band which are actually capable of reaching out beyond the experts. I put them in my list, first, because I've genuinely been blown away by the discovery of 'Halleluwhah' in the last year, but also because they're a band who take me out of my poppy comfort zone and give me some edge. I'll be up front about that. Clearly, the calculation backfired - hard for Can to be edgy when every man and his dog are picking them as well.

I'm most frustrated about the William Bell situation. I honestly could've picked about four other Bell numbers - especially 'Crying All By Myself', which I prefer to 'I Forgot to Be Your Lover' - but I judged that 'IFTBYL' would have greater visibility from its recent inclusion on Take Me to the River. Unfortunately, everyone else judged the same!

I'm very interested by the cyclical group-think of how we pick artists every year. I'm also interested in how one can inadvertently appear very foolish and hackneyed by coinciding with lots of other people. It's a minefield.

[PENK]

I'm very interested by the cyclical group-think of how we pick artists every year. I'm also interested in how one can inadvertently appear very foolish and hackneyed by coinciding with lots of other people. It's a minefield.

The best way around it is to be wilfully obscure. That's what I was aiming for by picking complete unknowns like Gene Clark, Caetano Veloso, Brenda Holloway, the Congos and John Cale, anyway. Wouldn't expect anyone on a music board to have heard of any of them.

[Bungo the Mungo]

I'm very interested by the cyclical group-think of how we pick artists every year. I'm also interested in how one can inadvertently appear very foolish and hackneyed by coinciding with lots of other people. It's a minefield.

The best way around it is to be wilfully obscure. That's what I was aiming for by picking complete unknowns like Gene Clark, Caetano Veloso, Brenda Holloway, the Congos and John Cale, anyway. Wouldn't expect anyone on a music board to have heard of any of them.

[Bungo the Mungo]

I'm very interested by the cyclical group-think of how we pick artists every year. I'm also interested in how one can inadvertently appear very foolish and hackneyed by coinciding with lots of other people. It's a minefield.

The best way around it is to be wilfully obscure. That's what I was aiming for by picking complete unknowns like Gene Clark, Caetano Veloso, Brenda Holloway, the Congos and John Cale, anyway. Wouldn't expect anyone on a music board to have heard of any of them.

yes, well said penk.

for a board of music geeks it's absolutely shocking what's considered willfully obscure.

i think i might choose a beatles b-side next year, just to put the cat amongst the pigeons.

of course i'll post a youtube link with it.

[Diamond Dog]

i think i might choose a beatles b-side next year, just to put the cat amongst the pigeons.

of course i'll post a youtube link with it.

Surely you only know how to input "West Ham" into the Youtube searchbar?

[Bungo the Mungo]

i think i might choose a beatles b-side next year, just to put the cat amongst the pigeons.

of course i'll post a youtube link with it.

Surely you only know how to input "West Ham" into the Youtube searchbar?

"west ham united" to you.

[Walk In My Shadow]

cat amongst the pigeons.

BROS!!!!

[Corporate whore]

I'm very interested by the cyclical group-think of how we pick artists every year. I'm also interested in how one can inadvertently appear very foolish and hackneyed by coinciding with lots of other people. It's a minefield.

The best way around it is to be wilfully obscure. That's what I was aiming for by picking complete unknowns like Gene Clark, Caetano Veloso, Brenda Holloway, the Congos and John Cale, anyway. Wouldn't expect anyone on a music board to have heard of any of them.

yes, well said penk.

for a board of music geeks it's absolutely shocking what's considered willfully obscure.

i think i might choose a beatles b-side next year, just to put the cat amongst the pigeons.

of course i'll post a youtube link with it.

I assumed he was taking the piss.

[Davey the Fat Boy]

The best way around it is to be wilfully obscure. That's what I was aiming for by picking complete unknowns like Gene Clark, Caetano Veloso, Brenda Holloway, the Congos and John Cale, anyway. Wouldn't expect anyone on a music board to have heard of any of them.

yes, well said penk.

for a board of music geeks it's absolutely shocking what's considered willfully obscure.

Actually I'm pretty sure that Cale has appeared on at least three lists and both Clark and Holloway have appeared on at least two.

[Bungo the Mungo]

The best way around it is to be wilfully obscure. That's what I was aiming for by picking complete unknowns like Gene Clark, Caetano Veloso, Brenda Holloway, the Congos and John Cale, anyway. Wouldn't expect anyone on a music board to have heard of any of them.

yes, well said penk.

for a board of music geeks it's absolutely shocking what's considered willfully obscure.

Actually I'm pretty sure that Cale has appeared on at least three lists and both Clark and Holloway have appeared on at least two.

i assume i was taking the piss.

[Davey the Fat Boy]

[Billybob Dylan]

Next year I'm going for Styx, Kansas, Rush, Ted Nugent, Journey & Triumph, but not the obvious tune choices.
No, I'm talking the good songs.

The Nuge's Hey Baby is a cracker, and from the same era, how about Les Dudek's City Magic?

[Copehead]

I don't understand the William Bell thing, a rightfully obscure Stax soul artist. Have we run out of songs by rightfully famous 60s and 70s soul artists so we have to start mining the second division now?

Why not Sam Cooke better singer better songs, same with Otis Redding, are they just a bit too obvious for us now or was 2007 the year of the Bell rediscovery?

[Bungo the Mungo]

It interests me, rather than pisses me off, that so many went for 'I Forgot....'. How can this be? Did someone start a thread on it recently?

[Goat Boy]

It interests me, rather than pisses me off, that so many went for 'I Forgot....'. How can this be? Did someone start a thread on it recently?

I think it was included on the Take Me To The River compilation which has been pretty popular on this board hence its inclusion. Personally, I first heard it on that Mojo Soul Riot cd.

[The Modernist]

I don't understand the William Bell thing, a rightfully obscure Stax soul artist. Have we run out of songs by rightfully famous 60s and 70s soul artists so we have to start mining the second division now?

Why not Sam Cooke better singer better songs, same with Otis Redding, are they just a bit too obvious for us now or was 2007 the year of the Bell rediscovery?

You see I fundamentally disagree with this. Your idea that there is some premier league of famous soul artists -marvin, smokey, aretha etc. And below this some next division of slightly less famous soul singers -Soloman Burke say or Ann Peebles and then you have a division below this of more obscure names..and this is supposedly meant to be a guarantee of the respective quality of this stuff. I don't know where you get this stuff from, I don't know anyone who loves soul music who thinks this way. Are some of the records on Dave Godin's deep soul compilations poor because the artists are obscure?
This is nonsense frankly. It's about the record, it always has been.

[Johnny Fartpants]

In 2009 it seems BCB has gone for...Yo La Tango, Diana Ross, Nick Cave, New Order, Can, Neu, William Bell and Gang Of Four.

All of whom, with the possible exception of early New Order, are shite.