The New Great Songwriters

When trying to look at who I would consider the new great songwriters it was hard to narrow this list down to a certain bracket. I decided to just write about those who have been putting out records since the early 90’s.

When I think about the great songwriters in history I think of Townes Van Zandt, Bob Dylan, Van Morrison, John Lennon, Bob Marley, Johnny Cash, James Taylor, Tom Petty, and Bruce Springsteen to name a few. I couldn’t help but wonder what artists who started putting out records in the last thirteen years or so would be considered great songwriters thirty or forty years from now. I decided to break it down into an all pro team. So, here we go.

Honorable Mention:

1) Jack White- The front man of The White Stripes has gotten a lot of press these past couple of years, and not undeservingly. He was thrown to the forefront of the new garage rock with the release of “White Blood Cells” in 2002 and has stayed there since. Songs such as “Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground,” “Hotel Yorba,” and “Finding it Harder to be a Gentleman” “White Blood Cells” has some wonderfully written songs. His short catalog is what kept me from putting him on the 3rd team.

2) Rhett Miller- Rhett has garnered lots of good press reviews and attention for his work with The Old 97’s, and this past year released his solo debut “The Instigator.” He’s not quite to the level of his alt country rival Ryan Adams, but has still written some pretty good tunes. If he continues to put out solid efforts, he will be mentioned with this group many years down the line.

3) Lisa Loeb- Loeb has been writing at a prolific pace since the early nineties and finally hit it big in 1994 with her single “Stay” off of the record “Tails.” She has also written some other strong songs such as “Do You Sleep,” “Falling In Love,” and “Wishing Heart.” Although she has written a lot of songs, I don’t believe that they make as strong of a collection as do the songs of those of the other songwriters on the list.

4) Gavin Rossedale- Yes, the Bush front man. I know I’ll lose some respect from you kids who hate anything that a lot of people get because it makes you feel ordinary, but “16 Stone” was one of the better records released in the decade of the nineties. Songs like “Glycerine,” “Chemicals Between Us,” “Machine Head,” and “Everything Zen” warrant placement on this list. I also don’t think that his career is even close to over.

5) Pete Yorn- I know that he’s only had one record, but it may have been one of the most impressive debut releases ever. I strongly believe that when the year 2015 rolls around we’ll all regard him as one of the best songwriters of his generation. Songs such as “Strange Condition,” “EZ,” “Lose You,” “Life on a Chain” and “Murray” (Written about the father of Brian Wilson) are so good and there is no was beginners luck is this good.

3rd Team:

1) Jakob Dylan- The son of one of the greatest of them all has not disappointed. He has put out two good records and two really good records. Dylan gained his own notoriety in the mid-nineties with the release of The Wallflowers record “Bringing Down the Horse.” Songs such as “6th Avenue Heartache,” “One Headlight,” “Invisible City,” and “Three Malenas” made this record stand out among a lot of Nirvana want-to-be’s in the mid nineties. He made the 3rd team due to the strength of the writing on “Bringing Down the Horse” and the writing on The Wallflowers latest release “Red Letter Days.” The songs “How Good it can Get” and “When You’re On Top” are examples that he is still writing good songs and will continue to for a long time.

2) Rivers Cuomo- The Weezer front man has written possibly 350 songs by different accounts and shows no signs of slowing down. The first Weezer record alone is enough to get him on this list with tunes like “My Name is Jonas,” “Say it Ain’t So,” “Undone,” and “In the Garage.” All of these tunes also helped Cuomo explode onto the scene in the early nineties. The second Weezer record “Pinkerton” was not as well received, but just as well written. The songs “Tired of Sex,” “Pink Triangle,” and “El Scorcho” are the strongest penned songs of the record. After a hiatus of about 5 years he came back with Weezer’s second self titled record. This along with 2002’s Maladroit proved that Cuomo had plenty in the vault and plenty left to say.

3) Alanis Morrisette- I think we all got a little tired of Miss Morrisette in the mid nineties after “Jagged Little Pill” sold 29,000,000 copies. It was killed by commercial radio, and Morrisette got a bad rap for all of that. “Jagged Little Pill” was, however, a very well written record. She then came with another well received record in 2002 called “Under Rug Swept.” The title wasn’t very well written, but the record was. By writing at such a prolific pace for so long, she proved herself to be the premier female songwriter of her generation.

4) Jay Farrar- Mr. Uncle Tupelo and Sun Volt himself. About ten years ago it looked like this guy was going be it, but things haven’t worked out that way. After he left Uncle Tupelo to pursue Sun Volt he really hasn’t gotten as much notoriety for his work. He still puts out fine record after fine record, but he doesn’t seem to have lived up to the potential that was seen back in the Uncle Tupelo days.

5) Sheryl Crow- Crow worked a long time before finally getting the accolades she deserved when she released “Tuesday Night Music Club” in 1994. The songs that stood out on this record as far as songwriting is concerned were “Leaving Las Vegas” and “Strong Enough.” She then released a self titled record in 1996 that featured the songs “If it Makes You Happy” and “Everyday Is a Winding Road.” Then in 1998 she released “The Globe Sessions” that had my favorite Crow song “My Favorite Mistake” and “Maybe That’s Something.” After these three records she deserved recognition as one of the great song writers of her generation. Then in 2002 she released “C’Mon, C’Mon” and proved that she could still do it as well as anybody.

2nd Team

1) Ryan Adams- At 28 years of age Adams has written more songs than most do in a lifetime. He first gained respect with the release of the Whiskeytown record Faithless Street in 1996. It featured such songs as “Factory Girl,” “Faithless Street,” and “16 Days.” Then he proved that his early success and brilliance was no fluke with the release of Whiskeytown’s second record Stranger’s Almanac in 1997. This record defined the genre that was Alt Country. The songs “Everything I Do,” “Houses on the Hill,” “Inn Town” and “Yesterday’s News” proved that Adams was both prolific and socially conscious. Then he slammed home the brilliance of Stranger’s Almanac with the absolute genius acoustic song “Avenues.” Adams then grew tired of the constant revolving line up and bickering of Whiskeytown and released his solo debut Heartbreaker in 2000. It was a Dylan/Westerbergish masterpiece. Tunes like “Oh My Sweet Carolina,” “My Winding Wheel,” “Come Pick Me Up,” and “In My Time of Need” proved that Adams was as close to the next Dylan that we have and he was going to be around awhile. He then released the weakest of his records, Whiskeytown’s Pneumonia in 2001. Although it wasn’t as strong as the others it had some very well written songs such as “Easy Hearts” and “My Hometown.” Then, he released Gold in 2001 to a slue of positive reviews and press. It garnered two Grammy nominations and was on hundreds of critics’ top ten lists. He then released “Demolition” in 2002 to some more positive press and my top ten list. The songs “Hallelujah,” “You Will Always Be the Same,” “Desire” (Written about third teamer Alanis Morrisette), “Cry On Demand,” and “Dear Chicago” proved that Adams may be the most prolific writer of his generation and maybe the best.

2) Adam Duritz- The Counting Crows front man has put out four really good records, but none of them have really been classic. He approached classic status with August and Everything After and Recovering the Satellites, but his last two records haven’t lived up to the earlier brilliance of his career. Such wonderful songs like “Round Here,” “Mr. Jones,” “A Long December,” “Colorblind,” “Black and Blue,” “Hard Candy,” “Amy Hit the Atmosphere,” and the breathtaking “Raining in Baltimore” are the kinds of songs that garnered placement on the second team. He still has a lot of songs left in him and I think some of those will be great.

3) Art Alexakis- Alexakis is the singer song writer for Everclear. He didn’t have a major label release until the age of 29 when Capitol records signed Everclear to a record deal and released World of Noise in 1993. World of Noise rang of a band that had listened to a lot of The Replacements and Led Zeppelin. Alexakis showed early that he had the ability to write very socially conscious and relevant songs. The songs that stood out on World of Noise were “Your Genius Hands,” “Fire Maple Song,” “Malevolent,” “Sparkle,” (Written about Kurt Cobain) and “Evergleam.” Then Everclear released the more radio friendly Sparkle and Fade in 1995. His penchant for socially conscious songs was once again very evident. The songs “Heroin Girl,” “You Make Me Feel Like a Whore,” “Santa Monica,” Strawberry,” “Twistinside,” “Heartspark Dollarsign,” “Pale Green Stars,” and “My Sexual Life” made this record a classic. In my opinion I believe that it was one of the top five records released in the 1990’s. Everclear then released So Much for the Afterglow in 1997. He kept his socially conscious voice and blended it into melodies and riffs that were catchier than those on his previous records. He penned the songs “Everything to Everyone,” “Normal Like You,” “I Will Buy You a New Life,” “Father of Mine,” “Why I Don’t Believe in God,” and “Like a California King” for the record. The strength of these songs and Alexakis’s growling vocals made it easily one of the best records of 97. He then released Songs From an American Movie Vol. 1: Learning How to Smile in 2000 to mixed reviews. It wasn’t his strongest record and was very poppy. The highlight of the record was an acoustic number entitled “Thrift Store Chair.” It has become my favorite Everclear song. Then in 2001 Everclear released Songs From an American Movie Vol. 2: Good Time For a Bad Attitude. It was much heavier than Vol. 1 and garnered more positive press. Songs such as “When it All Goes Wrong Again,” “Short Blonde Hair,” and “The Good Witch of The North” were the standouts on the record. With this extensive catalog of socially conscious and relevant songs Alexakis has proved himself to be one of the great contemporary songwriters.

4) Roger Clyne- Roger was the front man of the band The Refreshments and is currently the singer songwriter for the Arizona based Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers. Clyne is easily the most underrated and unknown writer on the lists. Clyne has written at a prolific pace and has written hundreds of songs, a great amount for a 32 year old. The songs that I felt put him on this list were “Nada,” “Banditos,” “Horses,” “Sleep Like a Baby,” “Buffalo,” “Beautiful Disaster,” “City Girls,” “Bury My Heart at the Trailer Park,” “Ashes of San Miguel,” and the amazing “Green and Dumb.” Clyne is certainly deserving of placement on this list due to his extensive catalog of songs and the amount of great songs he has written.

5) Dave Grohl- Grohl has lasted longer than Cobain did and has definitely rescued himself from Cobain’s shadow. Since 1995 Foo Fighters have released four records; 95’s “Foo Fighters,” 97’s “The Colour and the Shape,” 99’s “There is Nothing Left to Lose,” and 2002’s “One By One.” He has released these records on his own terms and has written some of the best songs that were actually radio hits since the mid nineties. Songs such as “Big Me,” “Learn To Fly,” “My Hero,” “Monkey Wrench,” “Everlong,” “Next Year,” and “All My Life” have been huge hits without sacrificing one bit of artistic integrity. Over the past decade Grohl has become one of the most important and influential song writers of his generation and will be around writing wonderful tunes for years to come.

1st Team

This section of the songwriters is for those songwriters that will first come to mind in forty years when people speak of the decade of the nineties and into the 21st century. Trimming the 1st team down to these five songwriters was extremely hard. I had to look at song strength, how much these writers would influence songwriters to come, and how important they would be to the future of song writing.

5) Beck- There isn’t much that I can say about Beck that hasn’t been said already. At only 33 years of age he has already written hundreds of songs and released nine full length records. He does everything from blues, folk, funk, and country to alternative rock and straight up rock and roll. Of all of the songwriters on the list he easily has the most range.

4) Noel Gallagher- Yes, the smuggest man in the history of music made the 1st team. Oasis was the best band from across the pond to hit the US since 1964. His first record, Definitely Maybe, came out in 1993 to a world that was missing the great British music that we were spoiled by in the 60’s and 70’s. The Songs “Cigarettes and Alcohol,” “Supersonic,” and “Live Forever” showed early that Gallagher was close to songwriting genius. Then in 1995 Oasis released the best record to come from a Brit band since Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club band. (What’s the Story) Morning Glory? was a musical masterpiece. The songs “Wonderwall,” “Don’t Look Back In Anger,” “Cast No Shadow,” “Morning Glory,” and “Champaign Supernova” poured out of the speakers with a previously unknown wonder, brilliance, and sadness. He has since penned songs for four more Oasis records. The latest being Heathen Chemistry released in 2002 with two more Gallagher classics “Little By Little” and “Stop Crying Your Heart Out.” His immense catalog and genius spanned over a decade and six records solidifies his spot on the first team.

3) Kurt Cobain- It’s hard to think about what might have come if Cobain hadn’t committed suicide in 1994. All the great songs that would have come and all the classic records we could’ve all heard. What puts Cobain on my list are all of the amazing songs he put onto four records. He wrote songs that defined a time in U.S. history. The early nineties were and will always be Cobain’s. With the release of Nevermind Nirvana sparked a musical revolution of the likes the world hadn’t seen since Beetle Mania. “Smells Like Teen Spirit” pounded its way from the speakers and made everything else on the radio seem insignificant and unworthy in the process. The social conscious that Cobain showed in songs such as “Polly,” “Smells Like Teen Spirit,” “Rape Me,” and “Lithium” showed that he had the mind and talent that makes someone a musician and songwriter of historical significance.

2) Billy Corgan- Remember when Melon Collie hit the world in the mid nineties. How amazing and wonderfully different it was. None of us had heard anything like what Billy Corgan did then and he has only been matched by himself since. Siamese Dream and Melon Collie and the Infinite Sadness were two of the most artistic musical accomplishments in the past three decades. What Corgan did was more important to music than what anyone had done in recent memory. He introduced this new music to the world and changed the way people think when they think of calling any record or piece of music “art.”

1) Jeff Tweedy- Believe it or not it wasn’t hard for me to pick the person to head this list. Jeff Tweedy is the best songwriter to come along since Townes Van Zandt and Bob Dylan. Every single song on every single record that he has put out has been brilliant. His career started in the later eighties when he teamed with Jay Farrar to form Uncle Tupelo. After Farrar left the band to form Sun Volt Tweedy formed Wilco and the music world has been given gift after gift by Tweedy. Wilco’s debut record A.M. came out to lots of positive press and fan approval. It sounded a lot like Uncle Tupelo which was not a sign of things to come from Tweedy. In 1996 Wilco released Being There a musical masterpiece by most standards. The songs “Misunderstood,” “Monday,” “Forget the Flowers,” “Red-eyed and Blue,” “Sunken Treasure,” and “The Lonely One” put Tweedy on the map as one of the great songwriters of his generation. The only person that could’ve top Tweedy was Tweedy himself, and he did with the 1999 release Summerteeth. It was a melodic wonder. The songs “Can’t Stand It,” “She’s a Jar,” “We Just Friends,” and “Via Chicago” gave this record range and excellence. Tweedy was approaching genius status at this point. People in the know knew that what Tweedy was accomplishing was nothing short of brilliant. After Summerteeth it was thought that Tweedy was up for a let down due to the greatness of the record. Then, in 2002, Wilco released Yankee Hotel Fox Trot to nothing but positive press and fan approval. It was by far the best record released since Melon Collie and The Infinite Sadness and was just as much as an artistic accomplishment as Corgan’s masterpiece. What puts Tweedy ahead of Corgan and the rest of the field of songwriters is the sheer beauty of his words. Lines like “The ashtray says/you were up all night,” “All my lies are only wishes/I know I would die if I could come back new,” and a slue of others have a certain sadness and brilliance that no other songwriter on this list has been able to duplicate or surpass. Tweedy has proven himself to be the great songwriter of the last thirteen years and when what we do today is considered history he will be known as the defining songwriter of a generation.

Well, that’s what I think. You, of course, are free to disagree with me and get pissed or whatever. If you have any comments or you think that I’m just full of it drop me a line at saulsbery_7@hotmail.com.

- William Saulsbery