Wanda Jackson.

I'm just gonna keep saying her name till somebody listens

That got me laughing, Sean. I just haven't heard Wanda Jackson enough. I'll check her out today, though.

Cat Power's "Good Woman" is the saddest song I know, also one of the best, but I can never listen to it because it just breaks my heart.

And yes, Pat Benetar! Glad to see her on the list.

What's your next list going to be?? :)

Be sure to check out the stuff from the fifties. She went into a brief retirement and came back as a syrupy country singer. That stuff is ok but the stuff from the fifites is white hot rock and roll.

Great list by the way. I was very happy to see the Slits and X on there

Willdo, Sean, thanks for the tip. I realize now as I type this that she was nominated for Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame induction earlier this year. For that reason alone, her omission is glaring.

Thank god for peer-to-peer.

(note to RIAA, I meant peer-to-peer music fan consultation, not file swapping)

jones--

If I tell, it'll spoil the surprise. But some surprises will be forthcoming in the weeks ahead. I'm taking a different approach to music these days.

I was winking with that RIAA comment, btw. But I won't say towards whom.

;-)

I suggest Aimee Mann: I would've put her in the top 25, but, unless I overlooked it, I didn't even see her man in the honorable mentions.

er, "her man"? sorry, temporary dyslexia of some kind I guess, or my butterfingered typing skills.

Aimee Mann is one of a whole lot of singers who lurk around the nexis where rock, pop, r&b meet. I couldn't get 'em all in, but she does deserve a mention.

I'm pleased to find that there is now a Castration Squad Home Page. I actually never got a chance to hear them (til nowm I guess; we'll see if the video works on my antique Mac), but one cannot deny that they had a very nice name.

Other old LA punks: Alleycats/Zarkons and UXA (like their album a lot, kind of a mix of X, Pistols and Sabbath, with a touch of Doorsiness, although they were barely able to stand the one time I ever saw them).

Oh yeah, and punk/prog/reggae/funk LA allstars Twisted Roots. With the guitarist from the Germs (and some other band that lots of people like)! And the keyboardist from the Screamers! And that hot (in both senses) bassist who married Mike Watt, whatever her name is! And some chick named Maggie on vocals! And a drummer!

But I guess this would really be for a different list. Anyway, I love women. I really need to go get me one.

Ah, that's better now that you added them.
Thanks.

Come on, Uao.... Where's Patsy Cline??

Honorable Mention of The Carpenters? I guess I will be happy that you mentioned them...

Aww, Guppusmaximus. You know I can't put Patsy Cline on there. Because then people will say "Where's Aretha Franklin?" or "How come no Dolly Parton?"

I didn't know you were a Carpenters fan; I have very mixed emotions about them myself, and waffled on their inclusion, ultimately denying them on the grounds that they were less "rock" than anyone else on the list.

Uao,

Hey...Patsy Cline was Rock in my opinion(Rockabilly) so I don't think people would necessarily question it considering Dolly Parton was Country. Maybe you should've mentioned Mrs. Franklin because R&B was where rock started...

Why Yes, I am a Carpenters fan maybe not the #1 fan(Funny enough I'm a metalhead)Karen's voice was superb and she played drums while singing which in my book is definately ROCK!!

You know another metalhead who is also a Carpenters fan? Tony Iommi.

Maybe Pasty could have gone on, but then it opens the doors for so many others. If Aretha Franklin is included, someone will ask where is Diana Ross, which leads us to Carla Thomas, LaBelle, Mary Wells, et. al.

Then I'd have no room left for Ani DiFranco and LiLiPUT.

Real estate on my lists is very exclusive; Patsy'll have to be a good sport and wait until I get her on another. Same with Karen Carpenter.

But thanks for the ideas; the lists people come up with of names left off are often more interesting than the original list.

I meant "Patsy" not "Pasty" Me and my typing.

speaking of the Carpenters--guilty pleasure: "Rainy Days and Mondays" despite the fact, dammit, that they always get me down. Now don't get me started on Abba ...

My guilty Carpenter pleasures are their versions of Carole King's "It's Gonna Take Some Time", Herman's Hermits' "A Kind of a Hush" and Klaatu's "Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft". I also like "Superstar", but I prefer Delaney and Bonnie's original "Groupie", 'cause it's dirtier.

As for ABBA, I'm a "Chiquitita" "Name of the Game" "On and On and On" and "Summer Night City" man.

But I don't like admitting this stuff when the place is crawling with music critics.

um, "Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft" by Klaatu (the second coming ot the Beatles)? Is that more of a delusionary pleasure? Not there's anything wrong with that ...

"Rainy Days and Mondays" fans ought not be snobs.

;-)

But you're right though; it isn't a guilty pleasure. It's just guilty. :D

I felt better when Elvis Costello had mentioned he's a big ABBA fan.

Yeah...Definately "Superstar" especially in that scene from Tommy Boy. You guys are reminding me of that exact moment where David Spade tells Chris Farley that he can change the station when that song comes on...:-)

Oddly, this isn't the exact list that I would have come up with - funny how that happens. But I'm glad that Tina Weymouth made it. I wonder if Sheryl Crow will be on this list in 20 years.

oops, very sorry uao: Carpenters did cover "Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft." Who'd would've thought I'd've thunk it?

Maybe I should've known better: back in the day when the Carpenters had just come onto the scene (as the kid's say), before anyone got a load of Richard's helmet hair or caught Karen's Mega-Meg White drumming skills, their version of the Beatles "Ticket to Ride" caught FM rawk's fancy, and for a while the song, and this mysterious unfrozen-caveman Carpenters group were the epitome on heaviosity.

Again, my apologies.

The "comments" count should be reimplemented. It was useful.

Which "comments count"? The "Top Commenters" is back on the sidebar now; is that what you meant?

You lost me on that one too, godoggo.

Heya Big Lug, you owe me no apology. I mistunderstood your post too. I took it to mean first "Calling Occupants" wasn't worthy of guilty-pleasure status. That's what the first line of my post meant. After I posted it, I then realized I was mistaken, and you meant "Klaatu was an 'imaginary' Beatles so "Calling Occupants" was an imaginary song." Which wasn't quite what you meant either. I'll confess I was enjoying some Sunday afternoon beers, and probably shouldn't have been operating heavy machinery, like a computer. ;-)

Baronious: I was wondering about Sheryl Crow myself. She has a lot running against her for remaining large in posterity. For one thing, she was discovered late in life for a woman singer, she never had a young-chick sex symbol phase that always leaves deep impressions. She's already fairly adult contemporary; "If It Makes You Happy" was probably the best song she had in her, and that was 9 years ago. She hasn't cultivated much of a public image like the memorable names on the lists. She's not a particularly renowned lyracist. We'll see...

Great list and a lot of work on your part, uao.

Thanks a lot, Rob. It was a fun project.

Bree Sharp is worth a listen. And if you're putting Liz Phair in the top 25, Bree should definately be in the top 100 :P

Hey UAO,

Again, where are Amy Lee and Pink?!?!

Yay for Macy and Alanis though!!

Please start a Top 25 Female lead singers blog, that would make a good read if YOU wrote one. :-)

Where's Tina Turner?

In the top 25.

It really is an excellent list. It's nice to see that you did seem to be neutral and did take input from commenters (I read the first page). Anyway, all I'm getting at is that The Slits, Alanis, and The Pretenders made the cut, so I'm happy. And kudos on giving The Go-Go's the punk credit they usually don't recieve.

And on a totally different note, I do consider Pink rock, as you said you didn't on the first page. She's as much rock as Macy Gray, at least.

Annie Danielewski of Poe....sexy as hell voice

I agree about Wanda Jackson; definitely a pioneer as far as women in rock are concerned. I also think that Annie Lennox should be on the top fifty and Nina Hagen should have an honorable mention. Again, there are so many great women, it's hard to choose.

Aaron

I do not know if you consider Tori Amos rock, but I must say she is one of the many women (along w/PJ Harvey, Poe, Liz Phair, Ani, and Bjork) who rocked it and rocked it hard. Your list is pretty good though!

if macy gray is considered rock, then pink shud be there too. pink is more rock than her

Patsy Cline's voice was too beautiful for Rock music. Thats why she wasn't Rock. She was a Country singer with a gorgeous voice!