Thursday Thirteen -- The Bands

Since music is a big part of my life, I thought I would take this Thursday Thirteen to share some of my favorite bands--easier said than done, I realized as I sat down to make this entry. I can get about halfway to my thirteen with bands of whom I can say that I own most everything they've produced and my love for the band grows out of that deep knowledge. After that, there's a second tier of bands where I have a hard time saying which I prefer, and yet another tier where I may really like one album, but I don't feel like I know the band's music enough to call myself a big fan. Fair warning, then, this list will be a mixture and there will be some bands that could probably bump some others from the list depending on the mood I'm in.

The order isn't exactly "in order," but it's not randomly ordered or alphabetical or anything either.

1. Queen -- This is the first band I ever really got into. "Bohemian Rhapsody" had a big resurgence with the release of Wayne's World, and I almost bought the soundtrack, but I figured if I liked that song, I might like other songs by this band. I bought Classic Queen followed by the other Greatest Hits album, then started buying other albums based on hits I'd liked until I owned pretty well everything they recorded. The complexity, the virtuosity, the musical intelligence--they all pulled me in and blew me away. Queen has a lot of great music even beyond the hits.

2. Led Zeppelin -- My best friend in college got me into Zeppelin. Though the sound is obviously different, many of the same characteristics that drew me to Queen drew me in here. The shorter career also made it easier to get caught up!

3. Rush -- While we're in the '70s... I was first introduced to Rush in college, by another friend, but it didn't really "take" until graduate school, when I spent a night comparing notes with a fellow Queen fan and he assured me that I needed to listen to Rush's Roll the Bones album. I did, then reacquainted myself with the stuff I'd heard in college, and soon acquired the complete collection of albums... which is still growing. I'm a big fan of the lyrics, though the complex music is also great. I've seen them in concert several times.

4. Barenaked Ladies -- This is another one to chalk up to my best friend. I loved the quirky sense of humor and the vocal harmonies. This was the first band I ever saw live, and their live show was so much fun--I'm sure that played into my love of the band. For whatever reason, though, I lost interest partway through the album Maroon and never followed whatever they recorded after that, so my love is really based on the period of the band's first four and a half studio albums (plus a live album and, obviously, my experiences during that time going to shows). 

5. Moxy Fruvous -- While we're on the subject of Canadian bands, I first caught wind of Fruvous late in college, but didn't check out the music until graduate school. A good friend of mine and I saw them perform late in the band's last tour before they broke up. I loved the combination of political satire, quirky humor, and beautiful love songs on the one hand and the band's musical intelligence and dense vocal harmonies on the other.

6. O.A.R. -- One of the guys I worked with in my first teaching job introduced me to O.A.R., which became the band I've seen most often in concert. A big part of the band's appeal, no doubt, is its live performances. A jam band, they love to change up their songs, even the old favorites. The addition of a saxophone also gives the band a unique sound. 

7.  Carbon Leaf -- My newest discovery, I think this band is amazing. Again, I'm drawn to unusual instrumentation (frequent use of tin whistle to great effect, as well as mandolin), but I'm held by the compelling vocals and strong songwriting. I've seen Carbon Leaf in concert once and had a great experience.

8. Boiled in Lead -- I guess this is the unusual instrumentation section of my list, because this now-defunct band had a fiddle player. Rock mixed with a sort of folksong, reinterpreted.

9. Dave Matthews Band --  I guess while I'm on the subject of different instrumentation... great band.

10. Toad the Wet Sprocket -- Another college discovery. Great songwriting. It's mostly Fear and Coil that I love.

11. Jason Mraz -- another more recent discovery, thanks to a blogger who is no longer with us (that is, she's no longer blogging!). There's a real musical intelligence here allied with clever lyrics.

12. U2 -- I couldn't really get into Pop, though I did return for All That You Can't Leave Behind. My love of this band is largely based on The Joshua Tree, The Unforgettable Fire, Achtung Baby, Rattle and Hum, and War. 

13. Stephen Kellogg and the Sixers -- It was tough to nail down #13, and it could have gone a lot of different ways (as could 12, for that matter), but SK6ers got the spot based on the times I've seen the band live. The best, in some ways, was a trip of ESL students at a summer camp that a friend of mine and I took the kids to--it was a free concert put on by the city of Greensburg, PA, just this band, and they manage to be compelling for an audience that probably ranged in ages from 8 to 80. I've seen them open for other bands since, and they're quite good with any audience, I should think. I only really know a couple albums, but like those from top to bottom.

I could probably go on for weeks here with my second tier, third tier, and beyond, but this can stand for the time being. What about you? What are your favorite bands? 

tags: queen  led zeppelin  rush  barenaked ladies  moxy fruvous  oar  carbon leaf  boiled in lead  dave matthews band  toad the wet sprocket  jason mraz  u2  stephen kellogg and the sixers  

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