“The 3” - A bit of a game

I'm not much of an instumentalist to make a judgement but I'll toss these names out

Barry Manilow
Johnny Cash
Roy Orbison
Roger Miller

 

I thought of Ian Anderson in the late 1970s when I saw the question

 

Why not Ian Anderson in the late 60's/early 70's? He was a much better singer back then IMO.

 

Well, if Macca makes it
Hendrix is definitely in

 

I think Thompson's voice is the iffy part of it. It does tend to be an acquired taste.

 

Good question. You start off thinking it's easy, but then realise most great artists have two of these, but not three, including many suggested on this thread. First ones I though of were Richard Thompson and Nina Simone, but that's probably stretching it a little in one category each.

How about this one though; Leroy Sibbles - lead singer and songwriter for the Heptones whilst also playing bass and leading the Studio One band that played on 100's of great tracks.

 

...oh, and how about Nick Drake.

 

Stevie Wonder was the one that immediately sprung to mind, just incredible. The vocals alone... The songwriting alone... The playing alone...

Really, is there anyone who can top him in "the big 3"?

 

Aretha Franklin may not be a world-class pianist, but she can bang out a serviceable accompaniment and she's got the other two wrapped up.

 

winwood, probably like Wonder a child prodigy famous for his vocals, guitar and piano skills, and later songwriting with Traffic, Blind Faith and solo

 

Maybe Brian Wilson at his peak? He might not have been a virtuoso musician, but he was solid on bass and keyboards. Though he generally needed a lyricist to help deliver his best work, he was a world class composer and vocalist.

 

Sly Stone

 

Kate Bush

 

All I know is that I saw Willie at the Hollywood Bowl in 2006, and I had no idea going in what a fantastic guitarist he was.

 

To be honest, it was Stevie that got me thinking about this whole topic about 15 years ago. He is, in my prior discussion, the most universally agreed-upon artist in "The 3."

It's hard to think of someone else who can top him. And he's not even my favorite artist, but I like to think that I know "The 3" when I see it.

 

Could his bass or keyboard playing alone have made him world-famous? That is the question...

 

Hendrix...he who hated his own voice. Well, he's a contender, for sure. But ask yourself: could he have had a wildly successful career on his voice alone? Most people who I have discussed this with wind up deciding they agree with the master himself...

 

Little Walter Jacobs

Aaron

 

The Beach Boys are my favorite rock band, but Brian wasn't really "solid" on bass. He plays pretty ineptly, actually, especially live. He only played the instrument live because there was no-one else to do so. Most of the really good bass parts on the studio recordings performed by the boys themselves were performed by Bruce, Al, or Carl. And this is leaving aside the parts contributed by session musicians (not as many as are usually suspected, by the way).

He was a decent keyboardist, but couldn't really solo and would never have shot to fame on that basis alone.

 

Roy Orbison is one of the 30 on the list that I alluded to in my original post and have wondered about for a long time. Need more feedback for sure.

 

You're correct! That's the point. This is a hard game to play!

 

Hendrix didn't hate his voice, he was self conscious in the beginning of his career of singing in front of others, tours and recording wore that self consciousness away. His voice is no better or worse than Brian Wilson, Macca, etc.,

 

....Nick Drake a good shout on Instrumentalist and Song Writing but not sure his vocal abilities make the grade.

In a similar vein John Martyn might be in with a shout and his vocals are maybe an upgrade on Nick's (but of course it is totally subjective).

 

Jimi Hendrix???

 

If you are using that criteria for all of your artist considerations, I wouldn't agree that Willie Nelson's guitar playing alone would've made him world-famous. And I say that as a fan of Willie Nelson.

I still think David Gilmour's singing, guitar playing, and song-writing all make him world famous though.