Articles written by Rob Jones

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About me - Rob Jones

I am many things - music fan, parent, husband - and enjoy exploring my passions by writing about them. I live in British Columbia, Canada.

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Entertainment > Musicians & Bands Best guitarist alive today: 1 of 35
Keith Richards was asked if he truly believed that the Stones were the greatest rock n' roll band in the world, a name foisted upon them during the middle period of their career. He said (to paraphrase), "well, sometimes we are the greatest rock n' roll band in the world. But on other nights, it's some other band in some othe... More..
Entertainment > Music Business Can a "manufactured" band ever achieve lasting fame?: 1 of 13
Consider this: All music is manufactured by someone. The real question is; is it any good? There has been much debate on the issue of how valid a band is, or a series of songs are, if they are put together by an outside source, or manufactured by a producer. I think the thing which comes into play is not really about lasting ... More..
Entertainment > Musicians & Bands Top 20 favorite singers of all time: 6 of 49
I like honest singers who are not trying to sound a certain way, but rather sound the way they sound because their vocal strengths and quirks alike naturally flow out of them. My top 20 favorite singers is a varied list across all musical genres. Sometimes, I like a voice because I'm used to it, that I grew up hearing it. It ... More..
Entertainment > Music (Other) Are great singers born with their talent?: 7 of 57
Great singers are born with their talent, but some develop greatness by wanting to be great. It's the old nature versus nurture argument. But, it really doesn't need to be an argument at all, because both factors affect the outcome.It can be argued that genetics come into play when assessing vocal abilities. One's parents are... More..
Entertainment > Musicians & Bands Assessing David Bowie's talent and career: 1 of 8
David Bowie was one of the first people to manipulate the idea of the rock performance, and to use it to his advantage. Besides his unique vocal talents and songwriting abilities, this has been his genius and this ability is played out in at least two ways.First, Bowie was one of the first people to give a performance "once r... More..
Entertainment > Musicians & Bands World's best guitarists: 10 of 50
Guitarists are great for the same reason any musician is great. They know how to make their sound work with other musicians to serve the whole sound of the band, and of the song they're playing.I think this is why I personally tend to steer away from most so-called "virtuoso" guitarists, and for that matter, a lot of over-the... More..
Entertainment > Music Genres, Trends & Scenes 20th century developments in western music: 3 of 13
The key in the development of Western music is the same that marks it up until this point- the rise in technology.Historically, the rise in manufacturing and technology has allowed composers to expand their creative pallets as musical instrument invention and production allowed for a wide tonal range for composers. But, in th... More..
Entertainment > Musicians & Bands Band reviews: The Beatles: 12 of 22
The genius of the Beatles can be traced to the one thing that made them better than many of their peers their musical curiosity.From the very beginning, each member of the Beatles was interested in adding anything and everything to their musical vocabularies. Some of the many musical styles which the Beatles incorporated into... More..
Entertainment > Musicians & Bands Deciding if the Beatles really were "bigger than Jesus": 21 of 30
I think John Lennon was surprised himself, perhaps even saddened by the fact that the Beatles, and rock n' roll, was more popular than Jesus. And they were more popular, in many cases. This was the context of the interview. It was not a value judgment, a comparison, or an attempt at blasphemy. It was Lennon's observation that... More..
Entertainment > Musicians & Bands Assessing Bob Dylan's talent and career: 6 of 8
Bob Dylan's importance to music as a whole is impossible to measure. Setting aside the astronomical quality of the material, Dylan's capacity to inspire other songwriters to write compelling material of their own remains to be one of his most enduring assets. Bob Dylan was one of the first singer-songwriters to show other wri... More..