Loaded with so many greats from New York’s legendary jazz, hip-hop, and rock scenes, it’s tough to call this list “shit,” even if we’d shake things up a bit. Time Out New York‘s cover story this week is The 50 Greatest New York Musicians Of All Time, and it’ll probably make you appreciate this fair city of ours more than incense your list-parsing sensibilities. Or maybe it’ll enrage you that Miles Davis is at #4, who knows. Only one “rock” act in the Top 10. We’ll letcha guess which one.
50. Paul Simon
49. Laura Nyro
48. William Parker
47. A Tribe Called Quest
46. Lydia Lunch
45. Bobby Short
44. Fats Weller
43. Fania All-Stars
42. Albert Ayler
41. Bette Midler
40. Arto Lindsay
39. The Notorious B.I.G.
38. John Zorn
37. Eddie Palmieri
36. Television
35. Cecil Taylor
34. Nas
33. August Darnell
32. Charles Mingus
31. The New York Dolls
30. Wu-Tang Clan
29. Héctor Lavoe
28. KISS
27. Jay-Z
26. Sonny Rollins
25. Sarah Vaughan
24. Patti Smith
23. Beastie Boys
22. Ethel Merman
21. Madonna
20. Afrika Bambaataa
19. Talking Heads
18. Dizzy Gillespie
17. Sonic Youth
16. Thelonios Monk
15. Grandmaster Flash
14. Blondie
13. Ornette Coleman
12. Barbara Streisand
11. The Ramones
10. Ella Fitzgerald
09. Al Jolson
08. Run-D.M.C.
07. Tito Puente
06. Billie Holiday
05. Public Enemy
04. Miles Davis
03. Chic
02. Duke Ellington
01. The Velvet Underground
The TONY kids clearly think “time elapsed” is a factor in determining greatness, so hey maybe Morningwood will make this list one day. And then we’ll be able to call it shit! Everybody wins.
UPDATE: OK, you convinced us this list is shit. You know how we feel about Billy Joel (xoxo).
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New Yawn, New Yawn…
how is jeff buckely not on this list?
Jeff spent his first 23 years in Cali before moving to NYC, so that’s probably why they didn’t include him. If he was a native New Yorker and was excluded, though, this would be a shit list
No Philip Glass?
beastie boys #23, RUN DMC #8? I can only think of 4 great RUN DMC records and 5 0r 6 Beastie records…
so wait is miles davis being #4 supposed to be too high or what? he is one of the greatest anywhere musicians of all time. i’d put him ahead of duke ellington, personally.
Paul Simon, A Tribe Called Quest, The Notorious BIG, Nas, the New York Dolls, and the Wu-Tang Clan are not as good as KISS?
madonna spent her first 15-20 years in Michigan, so I doubt that’s why buckley isn’t on the list
madonna also has lived substantially longer
No Takka Takka?
Mikey T — you’re right, but License to Ill wouldn’t be what it is/was (for better or worse) if it weren’t for Run DMC.
It should be called best performers or entertainers because a lot of those people don’t play a musical instrument
where the fuck is richard hell?
Kiss is on this list. therefore, it has no credibility.
I’m surprised Billy Joel isn’t on that list, actually.
51. Jon Spencer
television’s on the list, and paul verlaine(also richard hell) were from Lexington, I think.
Am I missing something about Chic? Because you guys seem cool with them at #3. And I’m not one to nitpick lists, cause that doesn’t make sense, but really, Chic, 47 in front of Paul Simon?
The mere fact that Hector Lavoe is on the list makes it totally awesome.
Uhh… where’s Billy Joel?
I read these things line-by-line in order, so I was furious right up till the end that Lou Reed wasn’t on here..
Chic is the third greatest NY musician of all time? And no Billy Joel? Yeah, great list.
you know that kiss is on my list … when i turn out the lights.
Paul Simon at 50 and Billy Joel doesn’t make the list while Bette Midler and Notorius BIG above both of them? And maybe this should be “artists” rather than “musicians” since many of these don’t even play instruments or write their own music. Yikes.
Miles is, in my humble opinion, the greatest musician of all time, New York or elsewhere.
As great as the Velvets and Duke are (and, maybe I’m showing my ignorance here, but Chic? who?), Miles cannot be touched.
It’s all subjective, of course. Just had to throw in:)
personally, i think the lack of Billy Joel gives it even more validity.
You’re right, no Billy Joel?! This IS a shit list. Maybe we should change it.
Also — Chic at #3 I don’t get.
Madonna was nothing until Danceteria … although I guess you could say Jeff Buckley wasn’t on the music map until his NY gigs, so … I dunno.
there has to be room somewhere on there for glenn branca and arthur russell hell damn hell…
People, get to know Chic. One of the best and most influential bands around. Ask David Bowie, Grandmaster Flash, Talking Heads and Madonna.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CHIC_%28band%29
They took dance music to the next level and they were a bad ass band toboot! They are definitely top 3 NY bands.
PS: Billy Joel does suck.
I was about to argue for Beck, but then I saw all the rappers on the list and thought, “No Tupac!?” So now I’m arguing for Tupac.
Vyral this is a New York list. Beck and Tupac are from Cali. Come now.
Billy Joel, KISS and the Beastie Boys suck. And Miles at number 4 is too low. No Interpol or the Strokes. I think that they would be suitable replacements for some of these guys.
wu tang above nas? jay-z above both!? yuck…
miles at #4 being too high???? whoever said that chic (whoever they are) were so influential, think about all that miles did. i love the underground, but miles should probably be at the top
I’m pretty sure any person from Detroit would more than quibble with the notion that Madonna and- even more so- *KISS* are ‘New York Musicians’. What’s their criteria- having played a show in the city?
eh. this list is hardly worth commenting about.
Evan: Gimme Billy Joel or The Beasties Boys over Bette Midler or Ethel Merman any day. Howzabout we kick them instead?
Also, that should be Fats Waller (not Weller) up there. He plays a mean piany.
Terrible list. When people think New York, they don’t think the Ramones — they think Chic. Right.
always amazed at how much New Yorkers like to overhype themselves and their city. Even w/o the world trade towers, that city still manages to have a perpetual HARD ON for itself. Miles Davis is from Illinois/st.louis, lou reed from subrban long island, john cale from wales, KISS is in another musical league than anyone on that list, why isn’t Beethoven on here? Coldplay? Sebastian Bach? (not J.S. hes lame)
I’ll be honest. I’ve never heard of Chic, and the name really turns me off, but I’m definitely downloading anything I can get from them. This list has serious class. No Strokes, little rock, ample hip-hop and female jazz vocalists. Buckley’s absence is a little alarming though. I think the intern switched him for Kiss at the last second.
they might be giants?
Guys, Billy Joel is from Jersey, guys.
Duke Ellington below anybody on a list of “greatness” makes me laugh.
Billy Joel’s really from Hicksville. I mean, he still lives on Long Island now. So I guess he wouldn’t really be on a ‘NYC’ list. But I don’t know what Time Out NY’s rules are. List is fucked up anyway.
At first glance, this list appears upside-down.
Isn’t Steely Dan from NY?
The first thing I thought was “Kiss were from New York?” And then I realized that their big thing was always Detroit Rock City, so I don’t understand why they’re on there.
I wanna say that Regina Spektor’ll be there in a few years’ time, but if Paul Simon’s number fifty, then I’m not sure (even though I am maniacally obsessed with Spektor).
chris, js bach is not lame.
I love the choice of VU. I wasn’t expecting that. Otherwise, complete shit. Wu-Tang Clan, Talking Heads, Grandmaster Flash, Ramones,Television and the Beasties all too low. Th inclusion of Barbara Streisand is absolutely unacceptable. A lot of big oversights. Awful list.
kiss?
How is there no Joe Jackson on there. That man is a brilliant 80′s pop- musician, plus he has left his mark on the piano-jazz type.
For some reason, I thought this said “TONY’s 50 Greatest New York Moustaches of All Time” when I first read it.
RICHARD HELL is quintessential New York and a genius who made one of the great albums of all time. It’s unbelieveable that the could put Lydia Lunch and Arto Lindsay and Television and the Dolls and Patti Smith and leave out Richard Hell.
2Pac was born in NY, he moved to Cali when he was a kid. So he should be on the list. Where is Kool Herc, what inventing hip hop was not enough to make the list? and the fact that Kiss is on this list makes this a definite SHIT list, and I don’t get the Miles Davis comment, he is one of the best artists of all time, maybe he should have been higher in my opinion higher than a disco band for sure, what the fuck is that?
Joe Jackson probably isn’t there because he’s Canadian.
I might wonder what the hell Madonna is doing on a New York list if it weren’t for the fact that I really don’t care.
List seems Ok to me, would probably change the running order and add Suicide, Kid Creole, Lizzy
Mercier Descloux and James White + the Contortions.
strokes deserve to be there
Miles should be #1. Paul Simon should be in the top ten. I can understand Chic being high on the list, but #3 is ridic.
strokes deserve to have their room lit on fire. my first impression of them was “is this it?” i still feel that way.
What is wrong with this list?? no Billy Joel, and Chic is above Miles Davis? I can only think of one hit from them – “Le Freak”
and Jay Z??
what total bullshit is this?
…honestly, I have never in my life dealt with a more self absorbed group than those who live within what is considered NYC. I’m sure most of you are looking for some obscure band that plays shitbox “theatres” somewhere in the village on Wednesday nights. Then one day you’ll try and pawn them off on VH1 as good and force it down the throat of the rest of the United States as GOOD…jesus mary and chain, GET OVER YOURSELVES. Ps, I’m from Chicago and have lived in NYC on and off over the past ten years.
Whoops, New York. I need to read carefully.
Glaring omissions are Bad Brains,De La Soul,Chic,Luther Vandross,Bill Joel (debatable but very NYC),Suicide, ,Grand Master Flash and the Furious 5,Cameo, Slave, Richard Hell,Living Color,LL Cool J,FatBack Band,Busta Rhymes,Big Joe Turner ( He played at the Cookery for 20 years once a week and helped invent rock and roll) Les Paul,Mel Lewis and Thad Jones( The jazz symphony rocked at the village gate once a week for 20 plus years!) James White and the Blacks and of course Gil Evans and the Gil Evans orchestra.
On the plus side August Darnell (Kid Creole/Dr Buzzard). He was a bad motor scooter!
On the questionable side Al Jolson how could that racist bullshit get on there. Also how many times has anyone ever enjoyed Arto Lindsey or John Zorn really? Pretentious poppycock I say! Not enough Black folx on the list is what it boils down to cats and kittys!