May 6, 2023·edited May 6, 2023Liked by Thomas Bevilacqua
What a fun exercise! Hard to argue against some of the picks here. I'll have to think about what I might've done different in the others. '77 is indeed a tough year, but my bracket would have the Talking Heads making a run. Their debut record might not be their best (depending on one's taste), but this was the year they planted their flag and told us they weren't going anywhere.
That said, the line "Big Star, putting out Radio City, would be like one of those mid-major schools you love that makes a deep and magical tournament run" is probably gonna be the best thing I read all day. That's a line I wished I'd written myself!
The Talking Heads were a band that I'd expected to crack in one of those years, and in 77 or 78 they'd definitely be a candidate if those years weren't so stacked. But since I'm taking popularity into account, I gave those other groups a boost knowing that TH is primed in 1983 (Speaking in Tongues/the tour that was filmed for Stop Making Sense).
Fascinating concept and execution, Thomas! Another decade (or maybe build up using years in a decade) you might consider trying a thread format, and asking readers to vote as part of a "seeding" of sorts to get not only their engagement, but draw their rationales for their winners! Just a thought.
What a fun exercise! Hard to argue against some of the picks here. I'll have to think about what I might've done different in the others. '77 is indeed a tough year, but my bracket would have the Talking Heads making a run. Their debut record might not be their best (depending on one's taste), but this was the year they planted their flag and told us they weren't going anywhere.
That said, the line "Big Star, putting out Radio City, would be like one of those mid-major schools you love that makes a deep and magical tournament run" is probably gonna be the best thing I read all day. That's a line I wished I'd written myself!
The Talking Heads were a band that I'd expected to crack in one of those years, and in 77 or 78 they'd definitely be a candidate if those years weren't so stacked. But since I'm taking popularity into account, I gave those other groups a boost knowing that TH is primed in 1983 (Speaking in Tongues/the tour that was filmed for Stop Making Sense).
I enjoyed Thomas' internal "wrasslin'" with 1972, also! But, he offered solid rationale for his contenders and winner!
Fascinating concept and execution, Thomas! Another decade (or maybe build up using years in a decade) you might consider trying a thread format, and asking readers to vote as part of a "seeding" of sorts to get not only their engagement, but draw their rationales for their winners! Just a thought.
That's a really good idea! Hadn't thought about going that way but definitely something I'll consider.