Answers to Music-Related Questions on Quora

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Estimated reading time is 12 minutes.

QUESTIONS ABOUT POP MUSIC and pop records (pop, rock, soul, even a bit of country) can be found on Quora every day. Over the past few years, I have attempted to answer some of them. As the nature of the questions varies from serious to asinine, so does the nature of my answers. In many, I take a farcical or ironic tone as the question is too d-u-m-b to deserve serious consideration.

Below you will find links to answers that I have posted to these questions. A few answers include comments from other readers. Should you want to read other people’s answers to the same question, simply click on the question at the top of the page on Quora and it will take you to other answers and comments.

I know, I know: I shouldn’t be wasting my time answering many of these ridiculous questions. Instead, I should be pecking away at my keyboard, finishing serious articles about music and records. But sometimes, writers just want to have fun.

Now, some questions deserve and require serious, lengthy responses; a few of them I have used as the basis for an article on this blog. To find those articles, go to the search option above (the spyglass in the navigation bar at the top of every page), and type in “quora.”

 

BeachBoys Today m 800

Byrds TurnTurnTurn US s 800

RollingStones DecembersChildren LP m 800 1

Here are three fantastic LP albums from 1965: The Beach Boys Today!, the Byrds’ Turn! Turn! Turn!, and the Rolling Stones’ December’s Children. On Quora, I occasionally address questions about records like these, whether it’s correcting an error (there are so many) or expressing an opinion (ditto).

The questions

Questions are listed chronologically from oldest (top of the list) to newest. There are more than sixty questions, so you are not going to get through them all in one sitting! All the questions appear below as they appeared on Quora—warts and all (grammar, punctuation, dumbness, etc.). So, if you have been here before and want to see the latest questions and answers, scroll all the way to the bottom of the list.

 

Beatles RubberSoul Capitol s 800

The Beatles’ Rubber Soul was released in the final weeks of 1965. It was strikingly different from their previous albums, both in the more “mature” music on the record and with the slightly mind-bending graphics on the front cover.

The Beatles

As the Beatles are the Beatles, I have a separate page devoted to the questions on Quora about them. So, for questions specifically about the Beatles as a group, the four members as solo artists, and topics related directly to either of those, click here. More generalized questions that also include the Fab Four may be found below.

 

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What song did you “rock out to” this morning?

Will Boston ever be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame?

Who is the absolute worst artist to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame?

Why did the NWA get inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame?

What British artist or band was most responsible for the “Blues Revival” of the 1960’s?

What classic rock guitar would you kill to own?

If you were tasked with saving a single album before all others were destroyed -- what would you save and why?

What other songs have a melody similar or identical to that of Coldplay’s “42”?

Why are Drakes songs so popular with people?

What do heavy metal music fans think about modern pop music?

Why are Britney Spears’ songs so edgy?

What are some good current pop albums?

What are the best albums that didn’t sell well?

What is the reason bands have big fandoms?

Is it uncommon to naturally not pay attention to the lyrics in most songs?

Why are the best British rock bands?

Who was the first rock & roll superstar to be discarded and forgotten to time?

Who’s more talented: One Direction or Justin Bieber?

Which relatively unknown musicians will gain widespread popularity?

Who’s the worst vocalist in music?

Who’s a better singer, Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston, Aretha Franklin, Diana Ross or Celine Dionne?

Could Kurt Cobain have stood the test of time in terms of remaining a relevant song writer?

What was songwriter/musician Joe South like, personally, as a man?

What famous singer could you replace on stage, because you know their music so well?

Who are the all time great front men in music?

Who likes this singer?

Do old people enjoy pop music?

Which musicians ruined their careers with their reckless behavior?

If you were a famous musician, who would you want to do a show with?

Would you rather live with Michael Jackson, Mick Jagger, Prince or Elvis Presley?

Who are the five greatest musicians of all-time?

Do you know of an album that has a heart or hearts on the cover art?

Was there music that sounded like modern Rock or Pop before the 1900’s?

Who are some of the most overrated singers/musicians?

Which famous singers are also really talanted?

What singer or group would you like to release new music?

Isn’t it time that we gave Chubby Checker more credit for the invention of rock & roll than Elvis?

Who are some up and coming artists that you listen to?

Why is there often drama within successful music bands?

When is Jackie gonna ask a question about Free Will so Neal can try to answer it?

What musician had the greatest fall in stature?

What is the point of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame?

Why did Mick Taylor leave The Rolling Stones?

What do you think of Bono?

What was your favorite era of pop music (ie 80s, 90s, 2000s) and why?

When did people start to dance and create music?

What are some audio formats that should have been more popular with the public?

What is your review of Michael Jackson’s 1982 album, Thriller?

What is the greatest lead track on an artist’s debut album?

What is the most misunderstood Led Zep album?

Are Pop lyrics getting more and more repetitive?

How did ABBA get into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame? They were very good musically but it was pop not rock. The hall has never been consistent in its enshrinement criteria, has it?

What is your favorite Southern Rock song?

What is Madonna’s greatest talent?

What is your review of Madonna’s new song Medellin?

What was your favorite Springsteen concert or performance?

What classic rock memorabilia would you like to own?

Why aren’t Herman’s Hermits in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame?

What rock bands did you listen to growing up?

Does Arthur Lee and Love belong in Rock and Roll Hall of Fame?

Should the Carpenters be inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame?

What qualifies an artist(s) to be considered for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame?

What will you always remember Madonna for?

Why did the solo career of Mick Jagger fail?

Who sings the song As tears go by better The Rolling Stones or Marianne Faithfull?

Did the Moody Blues break up?

Was the Beach Boys’ Pet Sounds the best album of the 1960s?

What is your honest review of Bruce Springsteen’s 1975 album, Born to Run?

What are some examples of how famous Madonna really was in her heyday?

Which bands deserve to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame but still aren’t?

Should Mick Jagger be inducted into the Rock and Roll of Fame as a solo artist?

Does Bad Company belong in the Rock and Roll of Hall of Fame?

Does Mott the Hoople belong in the Rock and Roll of Fame?

What’s your current favourite song?

What is The Vogues’ most successful song?

How is the best song ever decided?

Which musician has suprisingly good (or bad) sales?

How successful was the Rolling Stones’ Voodoo Lounge album?

What are the similarities between Jimi Hendrix and Kurt Cobain?

What rock bands only have two members?

Was Led Zeppelin a better rock group than the Beatles and Rolling Stones?

What is your honest review of The Rolling Stones’ 1972 album, Exile on Main Street?

What is your least favorite Rolling Stones album and why?What is the Rolling Stones song Satisfaction about?

Will Jack White eventually be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame?

Did you ever think that you’d still be listening to The Rolling Stones when they were in their 70s, and had to take pee breaks during their sets?

What is your review of Funkadelic’s 1971 album, Maggot Brain?

What is Johnny Mathis’ most successful song?

What are some classic albums that make you sob uncontrollably?

How can you determine a record album’s value?

What is Hank Ballard’s most successful song?

When did rock music stop being banned?

What was the most famous musician during the year you were born?

Are there any of the classic rockers still over-indulge on the road?

What’s your favourite song on Bob Dylan’s Slow Train Coming album?

What would Mick Jagger have done with his life if he hadn’t had a career with The Rolling Stones?

Most great classic bands have one song that’s definitive of the group. The Beatles do not. Why?

What do you think of when ‘Daydream’ by the Lovin’ Spoonful comes in the radio?

Which famous rock or pop star aged 60 or older has written and performed a song that has equaled or surpassed those for which the artist was known at the peak of his/her career?

What changes are there in a popular song from 40-60 years ago when it is “digitally remastered”?

Who was the greatest musician ever that is still being referenced today even after their death?

Do you consider Johnny Cash as rock and roll?

What’s on your classic rock playlist?

Does the Guess Who belong in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame?

What scales are good for psychedelic music?

Why did Johnny Cash write so much about jail?

What first got you interested in music?

If The Rolling Stones released an album of Beatles songs, would you buy a copy?

Who truly deserves credit for inventing rock music? Who were the most influential forerunners?

What is your favorite song from The Rolling Stones’ 1967 album, Their Satanic Majesties Request?

Who gets to call Mick Jagger, Mike or Michael?

What do expert vocalists think of Mick Jagger’s singing?

Now that we’re about two decades into digital and streaming music, why have we not seen the much prophesied “Death of the album”?

How do you straighten warped record albums?

What Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductions have moved you the most?

What is rock and roll?

Have you ever seen Bruce Springsteen in concert when he did not appear to be at his best?

What is your honest review of The Clash’s 1980 album, London Calling?

Why did the 60s rock group The Byrds disband?

What year has rock music changed the most?

Will people still listen to The Rolling Stones in 100 years?

Why wasn’t “Three Dog Night” not inducted into the Musical Hall of Fame? What qualifications did the band fail to meet? Is judging highly subjective?

What is the first ‘classic’ rock vinyl record(s) you ever got?

Why was the Rolling Stones album in the 1978 album “Some Girls” so New York-centric?

Will Link Wray ever make the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame?

Why does the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induct members that do not play Rock and Roll?

Are the Doobie Brothers Hall of Fame worthy?

If you were stuck in an elevator with a rock star (living or dead), who would it be?

Why has the rock band AC/DC stayed successful for so long?

After Rush, is there a close 2nd for the greatest Canadian rock band of all time?

Is the creativity in albums purposefully moderated as most albums I have listened to are a 4.5 out of 5 with low standards for a 5/5 in quality? Is there a formula for getting that quality rating?

How would you rank every BTS album?

What’s the best selling bootleg album of all time?

Who are/were the most conniving and ruthless big wigs in the music industry?

Why do young people listen to really old rock music?

Do you agree with Johnny Ramone, that the Ramones are the most influential American rock band ever? If not, what American band do you think was more influential?

How is rock and roll history viewing Herman’s Hermits?

How important to rock and roll was Little Richard, who died on May 9, 2020?

What was the most anticipated album of the late 1960’s?

What are your favorite Rock and Roll Hall of Fame performances?

What do you think of the Rolling Stones’ first new song in eight years, “Living In A Ghost Town”?

What is meant by “steam marks” on a vinyl record album?

What causes tiny speck marks down in the surface of a record album that is otherwise new old stock but in near mint condition?

Who was the most influential American singer between the two World Wars?

What is the best bassline in rock music of all time?

What are your thoughts on the recent Grammy nominations?

What popular songs mention or allude to time in the song title?

What’s a great classic rock song that most people have never heard?

Who are some deceased musicians that you wish you could have played/jammed with?

I heard there was a short lived supergroup comprising Keith Richards, John Lennon, Eric Clapton, and Mitch Mitchell. Who was Mitchell, and why is he not well known?

What is the best rolling stones album for a newbie? I’m 15 and just started getting into metal and rock

Was 1996 one of the best years for musical albums?

When did artists first begin releasing albums?

What was the most significant moment in America’s age of Rock n’ Roll?

Why is “Jay Z” being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, yet Billy Squier is not? “Jay Z” has nothing to do with rock and roll.

When Bill Wyman released his solo album, Monkey Grip Glue, what was the reaction from the other members of The Rolling Stones?

What’s one thing you would ask Michael Jackson to stop if he were still alive?

Why isn’t Bobby Goldsboro in the Rick and Roll Hall of Fame?

How do music artists get platinum records now?

How many records did The Monkees sell worldwide?

Would a rare, unreleased album be a compilation album?

What song gave you chills the first time you listened to it?

For those who were around in the 1960s and saw Michael Jackson as a little kid around the age of 9-10, did you ever think then that he would become the greatest entertainer and icon that had ever lived?

How come I know so much about The Beatles and very little about The Rolling Stones?

What are the different types of record sleeves?

How many different versions of an album have been released by artists before they settle on one final version to sell to their fans?

What are the best Frank Zappa songs to start with if you are not familiar with his music?

Which artist sang the song “Break away”?

How many takes did it take to shoot the scene where Mick Jagger sings Sympathy for the Devil?

Is the resurgence of vinyl records just a fad that will fade away like cassette tapes and CDs did before them?

What are some albums that were huge hits but never went platinum?

What are the best albums by The Band?

If I went back in time and played country music for him, what would he think?

Why are the Beach Boys and the Beatles considered two of the greatest bands of all time?

Is it a possibility that one day the “Rock and Roll Hall of Fame” will have broadened its eligigibility criteria so much that it will include modern “classical music” and then they’ll have to induct Mozart and others to be consistent?

What is a good name for a psychedelic rock band?

What was the first album or artist that you bought with your own money?

If you could have any vinyl record, what would it be?

Which band has the worst album covers?

What is the number of records the Byrds sold, and if “Mr. Tambourine Man” and “Turn, Turn, Turn” ever received gold records?

What is the best album by The Rolling Stones that is not as well-known as their other albums?

How much money did Little Richard make from Pat Boone’s cover of his songs?

 


 

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