157 John Lennon John Lennon The shorthand assessment of Lennon was as the tough rock genius and McCartney as the sweet pop craftsman has always seemed facile (and unfair to Paul). But with John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band , Lennon brutally, brilliantly, and definitely underlined the differences between himself and his ex-Beatle brother. " Love " is one of John's prettiest songs, and " Look at Me " is all fragile yearning, but the rest isn't just anitpop: rather, it's rock & roll as Lennon always understood it: anger, catharsis, deliverance. One of the most demanding albums ever made, Plastic Ono Band is also one of the finest-singing with more verve than he's mustered since the Beatles' " Money ," his urgency encouraged by primal scream therapy with Arthur Janov, Lennon bares his soul. The trio lineup- John on guitar and piano, Ringo on drums, and longtime Beatle ally Klaus Voorman on bass keeps the playing fierce, spare and commandin
155 John Williams / John Williams John Williams The NBC Olympics ; Jaws ; Indian Jones ; Jurassic Park ; Harry Potter ; [mother fuckin'] STAR WARS ! You can easily imagine each of those epic melodies for each of those iconic movies in your head & for good reason: each were created by the legendary (and [as of this writing] 80-year-old) & the always-high-in demand-Hollywood composer John Williams! And it's easy to see why for Mr. John Williams has a wickedly great-and-keen-sense of creating a true score which not only just fits every FILM he is responsible for scoring- but nearly every God-damn SCENE! It's almost like God undoubtedly blessed him with this-other-worldly sixth-sense. And the credibility and recognition is there: He has 75 Grammy nominations & with that ultimately brings him to be the 6th most winning-est with 26 [!]. A complete compositional genius. Newbies should seek out his John Williams Greatest Hits 1969-1999 - but unfortunately that doesn&