Battle of the Decades

Jessie Hill the last battle's big winner with seven. And I won't stop trying till I create a disturbance in your mind. I have The Hustle with two, but I have a feeling it got three, and I've lost one. The Gin Blossoms tied with Hall and Oates with one vote, which doesn't seem right. Doesn't seem right that the Gin Blossoms only got one, and it doesn't seem right that Hall and Oates got any. But hey, I just record the votes (what am I saying? I record the votes and cast acerbic judgments).


Here's the new batch.



40s
Wayne King
Josephine
http://www.lala.com/#artist/Wayne_King


50s
Danny & The Juniors
Rock N Roll Is Here To Stay
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-DTZnMjiJe8

60s
Martha and the Vandellas
Dancing in the Streets
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CdvITn5cAVc

70s
Santana
Black Magic Woman
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ik8JjtxHI0M&feature=related

80s
Heart
Never
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQcQnDFhjxo


90s
Four Non Blondes
What's Up
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXcQGsoDkDk



We can cheerfully relegate Wayne King, the Waltz King, to the bottom of the heap. I don't really recommend giving this one a listen at all. unless you want to just how bad music by white people can be when they put their minds to it.

After that, it gets harder. Heart's won one ot these before, if I remember right, and this is one of their best. They're young and tough and sexy.

And I was tempted to put them up above Four Non Blondes on the basis of being sexier, but Four Non Blondes are great, and they're grungier, and Linda Perry is some kind of amazing singer, as well as being a superstar producer and songwriter.

In fact, there's no reason for me to put Danny and the Juniors ahead of either of these groups, because they really weren't very good. But they were classics in their own way, so I'm voting them for third place -- it was meant to be that way, though I don't know why. Besides, who can resist this gran video que me da cuenta cuan original se era en aquellos tiempo, es impactante como se paran de sus asientos y chasquean sus dedos al compas de la cancion


Then it gets totally unfair. How am I supposed to choose? Martha and the Vandellas, the toughest, most streetwise Motown group-which I know is a little like saying the most liberal member of the Bush administration, but Martha and the gals really did take it to the streets. Santana - guitarist extraordinaire, evolved spirit. Jelly Roll Morton said that all jazz needs to have a Latin tinge, and Santana brought that Latin tinge brilliantly to 60s rock. I know he was better, but how can I vote against Martha?

I can't. It's Inauguration Day. Time for dancing in the streets. It's Martha.