The Rock & Roll Mt. Rushmore, Part II

My post of last week proposing a Mt. Rushmore of American Rock & Roll didn't exactly caused the fiber optics lines to burn up, but it did bring a few interesting responses.  Most agreed with my automatic choices of Elvis Presley and Chuck Berry, and by "most" I mean everyone except my friend Ray Queen, whose opinion I highly respect, by the way, who questioned Berry's inclusion for two reasons: (1) a questionable moral character, and (2) "My Ding-a-Ling".  I say that "Johnny B. Good" trumps any damage caused by "My Ding-a-Ling",  but will agree that it's hard to look the other way on a Mann Act conviction.  Still, he stays on my mountain, if for no other reason than no less that The Beatles and The Rolling Stones cite Berry as a major influence on their development as singers, song writers, and performers.

As I said, the response was not overwhelming, but here are the clear-cut candidates  from those who did respond:

• Brian Wilson
• Bob Dylan
• Buddy Holly
• Bruce Springsteen

You may recall that I did not include Springsteen among my original list of candidates, and this was no disrespect on my part, as I am a big fan of The Boss.  I did not include him only because he came on to the scene in the early to mid-seventies long after Rock & Roll was an established and accepted art form, or, in other words, after it was "here to stay".   I felt that a Mt. Rushmore would be more a tribute to the pioneers of the genre.  However, perhaps I need to rethink that.

One of the more interesting responses came from Loyal Reader Nick Frankart in Long Beach, CA.  After weighing in on his candidates (Holly and Springsteen), he proposed another fun exercise at the other end of the spectrum, and he called it the Rock & Roll Molehill.  I think the name is self-explanatory, but he kicks it off with the following suggested nominees....Mac Davis, Christopher Cross, Peter Cetera, The Captain (without Tenille), Norman Greenbaum, and Gilbert O'Sullivan.

That's a pretty good list to start, and with a little help from our friends, I am sure it can be expanded exponentially.