[jonny]

Getting ready to kick this off. I think we'll start the day after the oscars, but we'll do some voting and such prior to that.

Now, hopefully we'll get some more participation this year and I'm looking for suggestions on how to help that. Last year really tapered off. One thing we're going to implement is the cherry pick idea. Each person playing will ensure their top artist gets a shot to play (we'll do this by the suggested method in this thread).

i'm willing to allow those artists that should be taking a year off to play if they're someone's top pick. i'll dig through the files in a bit to see who is taking the year off.

if you're planning on playing, let me know here. i'd prefer not to get a cherry picked list from someone that isn't going to actually play the game. that would just be rude.

also, start with the FYCs, questions and such here.

[tonygoldenemmy]

Off the top of my head, some artists who are way overdue to play this thing...

Barry White
Big Maybelle
The Chantels
The Crystals
Darlene Love
Dionne Warwick
Gladys Knight and the Pips
Harry Nilsson
John Denver
John Lennon
Martha and the Vandellas
Natalie Merchant
The Spinners
The Stylistics

Bonus kudos to The Crystals and Martha and the Vandellas, who would make absolute mincemeat out of their competition with "Then He Kissed Me" and "Dancing in the Street." And, unlike The Ronettes, who I'd nonetheless say have about one more good go-around in them, those gals have very extensive catalogues beyond their most legendary singles.

[Greg]

I'm definitely in. And for the long haul.

And I'd like to FYC a new participant who I think has finally earned her spot, with three quality albums and an increasingly strong artistic vision and voice with each project, not to mention a strong following 'round here:



[MIRANDA LAMBERT]

[Dr.ciski77]

I'd be willing to commit to it as well.

I was thinking that one cool rule we could implement is that someone's #1 pick on the lists we send to start the game automatically makes it in. It'd be a cool way to expose people to smaller acts/artists that wouldn't make it in otherwise. If the pick is too obscure for the participants to lists songs, the person who voted them in could submit a Top 4 for it. Makes sense?

Dunno. I think it'd be a cool way to shake things up and open up the game to even more music.

[Greg]

Pretty sure that's what jonny's referring to with the cherry-picking idea. I really like it too. Will shake things up a bit.

[Tristan]

I'm in! And very interested to see how these guaranteed picks play into things. Would people have freedom to pick the potential 4 songs for whichever band they prop up onto the list? Or would the whole group get to vote on it? The former option would seem the fairest, since people will be submitting artists of varying exposure, and it the group is obscure enough, only the submitter my vote for their songs anyway.

[Misplaced Validity]

I think the 'cherry pick' idea is a great one, and I think that alone (particularly if we get to pick the top 4 for our top artist) could breathe some new life - and participation - into the game. It would mean people have a bit more personal investment.

Having said that, I am in it regardless!!

[Smithie]

Yeah, I've been making the case that if the Cherry Pick rule were implemented (which seems a certainty at this point), it would be necessary that whoever cherry picks a particular artist be responsible for picking their four songs as well.

Even among artists who make it into the Top 100 by consensus, there are always quite a few who only one or two Top Four ballots, so I think there's no way we'd get a good ballot sample for artists who, by definition, were put into the game by only one player.
_________________

[jonny]

yes, the top 4s would be picked by the submitter, but people won't necessarily know it's an artist that was cherry-picked. i'm figuring the best way to work that, but that's the plan.

[bradcar77]

I'm in, and very much looking forward to a new year of Cult Hero!

[Sanny]

I'm in!

[dug11]

I plan on playing this year. Things got busy for me last year, so I had to drop out, unfortunately. Hopefully I can make it all the way through this time (if we're still going with you can join at any point this round).

[jonny]

oh yeah, it's definitely play when you can. i just want to avoid people playing just one week when it's their favorites because that's annoying.

[dug11]

I definitely agree with that.

Just wanted to check.

[Big Ted]

I'm so ready for this year.

[Smithie]

My FYCs for this year (which look a lot like my FYCs for all previous years):

Gram Parsons, Digable Planets, Stereolab, John Coltrane, The Jesus & Mary Chain, X, Iggy & the Stooges, Uncle Tupelo, Brian Eno, Wire, The Faces, Parliament/Funkadelic, Merle Haggard, A Tribe Called Quest, Connie Smith, Portishead, Rod Stewart, Steely Dan, Love, Buck Owens, Steve Earle, Big Star, Isaac Hayes.

My cherry pick will almost certainly be one of these.
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[jonny]

it looks like these are the artists that are ineligible. i'm going to double check, in case i (actually smithie via brad) forgot something. but yes if you decide to cherry pick (that's really catching on) one of the following, the ineligibility will be waived.

Kate Bush
Sheryl Crow
Janet Jackson
Aimee Mann
Modest Mouse
Queen
The Replacements
TLC
Weezer
The White Stripes
Neil Young

[Stag Trall Road]

Yay for the cherry pick idea.

I'm in. No school/semi-regular work schedule should make it easier to commit to this.

And I know rap artists haven't done too well in this game so my first FYC would be for their godfather (even if he continues to be ignored): Gil Scott-Heron. He finally released a new album and, damn, it's good to have him back.
_________________

[Matty]

I hope to be more consistent this time around.

Question/suggestion: After we choose said cherry picked artists, would it be possible for those to be revealed so we can offer any song suggestions of our own? Even though we wouldn't make the final decision for those artists, I know I would like to at least toss a few ideas in.

[bradcar77]

Just to throw my two cents in about the cherry picking thing, I think it would be best if they weren't revealed as cherry-picked artists and instead, they get announced just like any other artist would, people can throw out their FYC's and such, but only jonny, Smithie, and the person who picked them would know that the songs have already been predetermined.

[Matty]

[jonny]

yeah, that's the idea. sometimes, not always, but sometimes, people can be petty and if they think an artist is cherry picked, they might not be as objective as they would normally.

[Smithie]

[hamactor1]

I'll definitely support Isaac Hayes. (But sadly, I can't back Coltrane.)

Cherrypicking idea is great. I might miss a week here or there, but I'll play.


Repeated almost verbatim from last year, with only one change:

For Your Consideration
35 artists who have never competed in this game

Antonio Carlos Jobim

Dave Matthews
Mel Torme
Erykah Badu
Simply Red
Hector Lavoe

Ray Charles

The Doobie Brothers
Patti Labelle
The Bee Gees
Teddy Pendergrass

The Isley Brothers

Bob Seger
Luther Vandross
The Animals
Tom Jones
Bobby Darin

The Doors

Curtis Mayfield
Duran Duran
Parliament Funkadelic
Jill Scott

Steely Dan

The O'Jays
Nancy Wilson
Joe Cocker
Mary J. Blige
Fats Domino

Santana

Rick James
Jackie Wilson
Chaka Khan
Jose Feliciano
Diana Krall

Aerosmith


Several of those continue to surprise me.

[hamactor1]

Also FYC:

Genesis
Culture Club
Smokey Robinson
Frank Sinatra
Bill Withers
INXS
Ella Fitzgerald
En Vogue
Foreigner
Sia Furler
D'Angelo
Chicago
Tony Bennett (one of a few possibilities for my auto-pick, but just in case)