Chicago
Doobie Brothers
Moody Blues

There's a casino in Temecula CA that books these types of groups. They usually bring in a big name about every other month. In addition to seeing all of the above in the last 12-18 months, we've seen Styx and Peter Frampton.

Rock:
Beatles
Slick (anyone ever hear her when she sang with the Great Society)?
Joplin (Janice, not Scott)

Classical:
Mozart
Beethoven
Tchaikovsky

Folk:
Peter Paul and Mary
Dylan
Buffalo Springfield

Doobie Brothers
James Taylor
Paul Simon

Beatles
Hollies
Byrds

then-
Spoonful
Rascals

Only three?
The Beatles
The Eagles
Michael Jackson

Bands:

Beatles
Smiths
Radiohead

Singer/Songwriters:

Joni Mitchell
David Crosby
Nick Drake

Jazz:

Miles
Coltrane
Nat King Cole Trio

American Song Book:

The Gershwins
Cole Porter
Johnny Mercer

Musicians/songwriters
 

Glad to see someone mention Johnny Mercer. Are you familiar with a song called "When October Goes"? The lyrics are by Mercer, and it was set to music after his passing by Barry Manilow. It's on Manilow's "2 AM Paradise Cafe" CD, and it is hauntingly beautiful.

B.

Hard to limit it to three. Not counting the Beatles...

Simon & Garfunkel
Jefferson Airplane
Fleetwood Mac

Mercer
 

[QUOTE=bandsdavis;549878]Glad to see someone mention Johnny Mercer. Are you familiar with a song called "When October Goes"? The lyrics are by Mercer, and it was set to music after his passing by Barry Manilow. It's on Manilow's "2 AM Paradise Cafe" CD, and it is hauntingly beautiful.

B.[/QUOTe[/I]

I'm not aware of When October Goes but, I'll look it up despite my allergy to Barry Manilow.

Mercer was great...a lyric master...just short of Cole Porter...and he could write a great melody (Somethings Gotta Give).

And in the end..who could beat...

waitin' 'round the bend
My huckleberry friend

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6fZcTSsxVJs[/ame]


Aside from the multiple internal rhymes...what an incredible metaphor! So unexpected....so perfect.

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6fZcTSsxVJs]Breakfast at Tiffany's - Moon River (Audrey Vocal) - 11 - Music From the Films of Audrey Hepburn - YouTube[/ame]

Frank

Ella

Nat

.

Tom, you have to go by genre at least

Country. 1. Jim Reeves. 2. Hank Snow. 3. Marty Robbins
Easy Listening. 1. Nat King Cole. 2. Dean Martin. 3. Julie London
Folk. 1. Joan Baez. 2. Peter, Paul and Mary. 3. Kingston Trio
Blues. 1. Muddy Water. 2. John Lee Hooker. 3. Howling' Wolf
Pop. 1. Pat Boone. 2. Elvis. 3. Frank Sinatra
I give up. No way I can select even in the genre.

Being that you asked for three, I'll give you four that can at any given time be interchanged:


1. Led Zeppelin
2. Rolling Stones
3. Bruce Springsteen
4. Frank Sinatra

From a pure nostalgic standpoint....the Kit Kats...from the Riptide in Wildwood NJ...are my favorite. Not well known outside of Philly but considered the Philly Beach Boys.

Elvis
The Moody Blues
The Who
Really surprised at how many mentioned the Moody Blues-still touring still sounding pretty good all things considered.

This thread has a life of it own. I posted the original starting post nearly a year ago. And yes, asking for three (3) favorites was ridicules. Asking for ten favorites would even difficult to choose from. We all relate from special songs in our past and as our lives change so does our taste in music. I remember in the early to mid mid 60's some of my favorite bands included, Hermins Hermits, Gary Lewis and the Playboys and Dave Clark Five. Of course, noteworthy bands like the Four Seasons, Beachboys and Rolling Stones were on the same list and of course the greatest of them all The Fab Four.

Although my music interest didn't capture me until mid 1963 I remember my first favorite songs was "Quicksand" by Martha and The Vandella's. My first record (of more than a thousand in my collection) was Lesley Gore's "You Don't Own Me. Shortly after my interest in music began I witnessed The British Invasion. Lucky me.

As a kid I heard lots of Big Band music as my father worshiped Glenn Miller as I did The Beatles. Although not my style I am the first to admit Glenn Miller was on a plateau of his own.

A few of my favorites from 1950's- early 1960's--- Chuck Berry, Dion, Everyly Brothers, Roy Orbison.