My recent columns on the Top 10 Albums and Ten Great American Bands provoked a bit of internal dissension here at ManufactureThis.  It was jokingly suggested that my musical awareness/appreciation ends at around 1980.  I’d disagree and would point out all the 90’s bands I’ve cited, including Guided By Voices, Nirvana, REM (an 80’s/90’s band), not to mention such 80’s heavyweights as The Replacements and The Clash. That said, for this week it was suggested that I pick Ten Great Bands, post-1981.  (FYI: This is not about solo acts, so Prince, Beck, and Elliott Smith wouldn’t qualify, for example, no matter how influential).  To come up with a thorough list, I polled some of my key advisors and musical comrades, including David Lane, Dan Wiffler, Jason Prince, Scott Boos, and my punk guru, Stephen Scollard (the great front man of NYC’s greatest garage band, Tied For Last). Professor Furious (aka Steve Scollard) was a particular help and pointed out that, among nationally recognized rock bands post-1980:

“Aside from the two obvious choices (REM and Replacements), it's tough because even the greats have been spotty at times - sometimes horribly so.  And, to me, the critical darlings (Wilco, White Stripes, Nirvana, Radiohead, etc.) usually left me cold.”

One great irony is that there are tons of amazing bands in America post-1980.  But we just never hear about them.  In fact, that’s what this week’s column should really be about—the death of the music industry.  Great songwriters and great bands simply cannot get noticed amidst a business that favors drivel, drum machines, and processed vocals rather than real artists.  Case in point: I think the best band in America is Stymie and the Pimp Jones Luv Orchestra.  But how many of you have ever heard of them?  The best singer, hands down, is Jethro Jeremiah.  And the best songwriter is Bernie Reilly.  All three acts have been knocking around for more than a decade.  Yet we’re busy debating 80’s and 90’s acts. The real shame is that it’s hard to name any truly great bands that rose up in the past decade.  Wilco started in the more industry-friendly 90’s.  And maybe My Morning Jacket qualifies (though I was really underwhelmed by their live show).  But the music business ain’t what it used to be, and too many great bands remain forever anonymous. Anyway, and with apologies to the naysayers, here’s a consensus list on the best bands of the past 30 years or so. The Top Ten (in no particular order) Public Enemy: I loved early rap, but am not a fan of more recent hip-hop.  That said, IT TAKES A NATION OF MILLIONS was such a big album in New York when I was growing up.  Public Enemy left a huge impression—sort of a Nirvana-like impact on the music/cultural scene.  Everyone walked around spouting Chuck D lyrics, and imitating Flavor Flav.  The band had a major cultural moment, too, in Spike Lee’s Do the Right Thing, with ‘Fight the Power.’ U2: The biggest stadium act of the past 25 years and one of the biggest bands of all time.  Commensurate with their success was Bono’s grandiose posturing in the Nineties.  But U2 have proven as enduring and important as The Beatles or The Stones, and have recorded some of the greatest anthems in rock 'n roll.   Radiohead: I can’t even listen to some of their stuff at times, but they redefined the aural landscape of rock ‘n roll. OKAY COMPUTER is a landmark album, though, and 'Karma Police' is just fantastic. R.E.M.: Where U2 was sonic stadium bombast, R.E.M. was more sing-songy and folkish, with a lot of great songs and iconic moments.  They defined "college band."  But they're also the perfect band for depressed high school afternoons.  Having written a lot of great songs, and a few anthems, R.E.M. helped bring "alternative" music to a much wider audience. Run-DMC: I loved these guys when 'It’s Tricky' came out.  And back in the 80’s, I had the thick laces on my Adidas, could moonwalk, etc.  I was into it all.  Run-DMC lasted roughly 20 years, and helped bring rap into the mainstream.  Rest in peace, Jason "Jam-Master Jay" Mizell. Wilco: Jeff Tweedy has that great raspy voice, the great vocals, and the great, melodic songwriting.  And he pithily summarized a whole generation in one lyric: “Short on long-term goals.”  Wilco are slowly building an enduring legacy of intricate songs and great, live rock 'n roll.  PS: Start with SUMMERTEETH-- my favorite of their albums. Nirvana: Tragic story or tragically overrated?...  Personally, I loved Nirvana.  Their success felt like a big blow against the empire.  When ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’ first appeared on MTV, I thought, “Great song-- too bad they’ll never get anywhere.”  And that was because the music business seemed to swallow up anything raw and vital.  Yet they somehow made it.  Cobain has some great, overlooked lyrics, too: “Give me a Leonard Cohen afterworld/So I can sigh eternally.” Guided by Voices: The unlikeliest success story and the best live band I ever saw (June, 1995).  See my review of them in the Top 10 albums of All Time. Metallica: All right, I don’t listen to Metallica.  But look—we all loved ‘Enter Sandman.’  And they’re the biggest, baddest, and best at what they do. Replacements: They were the Stones and Clash of the mid/late 80’s, with Westerberg’s amazing lyrics (“Hush was the first word you were taught”) lifting them far above the sloppy noise.  Great melodies, great attitude, and as David St. Hubbins would have said, “Great look.”  Check out LET IT BE’s ‘Unsatisfied’ if you want to hear one of the greatest rock ‘n roll songs ever—just achingly painful, yet beautiful, and very, very heartfelt. And here’s ten more great bands that also received some votes from the team (in no particular order): Pavement.  Low-fi, good melodies, original. Outkast.  Catchy, good act, good songs.  They received a few votes from my informal panel. White Stripes.  Personally I think the White Stripes are way overrated-- all style, no substance.  Weak vocals, not much songwriting.  But everyone else loves them, so what do I know?... Green Day. Funky punk, but overrated.  ‘American Idiot' is just watered down Clash.  But apparently they’ve made a lasting impression. Beastie Boys.  Talk about progress-- these guys went from simple teen-rap (admittedly really catchy and cool) to great, experimental fusions of funk, hip-hop, and rock 'n roll.  They set the blueprint for many artists who came later.  In fact, these guys should be in the top ten list noted above. Rage Against the Machine. Loud, angry.  Tom Morello is a great, inventive guitarist. Jane’s Addiction.  These guys (especially Perry Farrell) are somewhat iconic now.  And ‘Jane Says’ remains a classic. Fishbone. As soon as I heard ‘Ma and Pa’ I went out and bought TRUTH AND SOUL. Pixies. A great band and a major influence on what followed (including Nirvana). Husker Du. Loud but melodic punk.  (The loudest concert I ever saw was Bob Mould solo acoustic, if you can believe that.  He was slashing away on this distorted, amp’ed up 12-string guitar and kept breaking strings).  Check out ZEN ARCADE's 'Pink Turns to Blue.' So, there you have it.  Feedback/comments are welcome.  PS: Can anyone identify the who/what/why of the tiny photo pasted above?