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The Anti-Stereotyping List
 7.4 What the closed minded say:
He's a child molester! A freak! How can you listen to him!? First off, Michael Jackson was proven innocent on those charges. Second off, for a freak, he never did any crazy shit. People tormented this man while he was still alive just so they could turn around pretend to like him now that he's dead. Where the fuck were these people when he was still alive? Am I the only one that still remembers getting made fun of for listening to Beat It or Dangerous while he was still alive? Everyday, he was called a freak by the media and it just kills me how much they pretend to like him now. No matter what you listen to you cannot deny that Michael Jackson truly loved music, and I honestly believe he was a good person. No one in history has donated more money to charities for sick kids than MJ, and you never seen him doing dumb ignorant things. That's the whole thing about hating MJ, I can understand if he did crazy stupid things, but he didn't. He never criticized his fans, he never got into politics, and he was just a nice guy that made classic records. Frank's rating:
 
7.8 What the closed minded say:
"OMG What is wrong with you!? He married his adopted step daughter! Shame on you for saying he makes great movies!" Lord knows how many times I have been bitched out in life for praising Woody Allen, I lost count years ago. My own family gave me most of the hell when I was getting out of high school and watched some of his movies and thought the guy was great, and started buying his movies. It always shamed me that they would rather tell me how bad I was for liking the guy when they are judging him on his personal life, and refuse to actually sit down and watch his movies. Most the people that just discard him as a director by stereotyping him like this are the same people we can thank for buying tickets to garbage like Adam Sandler's dumb movies. When it all comes down to it, it don't matter. I put Woody Allen as the king of stereotyping cause I see it worst than anything. People automatically dismiss his talents as a director, and go on some rants about how sick he is for marrying someone so young (as if these same people are absolute saints). It don't matter to me at all, the guy still gave me Annie Hall, Mighty Aphrodite, Manhattan, and Match Point to name a few. If anyone asked me who was my favorite person to deal with comedy, I will always say Woody Allen. The guy made you laugh without stereotyping, and making light fun of heavy situations. Frank's rating:
8 What the closed minded say:
"Class A Prick, drug addict, criminal and a woman beater, find someone better to listen to that stays out of jail!" How people come up with excuses to hate JB is beyond me. This man was one of the hardest working people in music ever. There will never be another James Brown for 1 reason; the guy put his heart and soul in everything he did. Now I know, JB had some shady things in his personal life. He had been arrested before, still in trouble with the law, beat up his wife a few times, but musically? How can you judge him by this musically? They didn't call him the hardest working man in show business for nothing. I don't even listen to a lot of R&B/Funk but I have the upmost respect for James Brown because the guy actually CARED about his fans going to shows. The guy used to fine his musicians for missing notes on stage, commanding them like a general on the warfield. Not many people after 30 years in the business really care about that anymore, but up to his death, JB did care. I've heard all the stories and all the jokes making fun of him, but anyone that buys tickets to concerts and has seen some lazy shows from bands (and believe me, I have seen bands that didn't care how bad they sounded live) let me ask you this; would you rather see a band totally half ass a show, or would you want someone that is die hard, straight up drill Sargent making sure every note is correct? I think I will go with option B. Rest In Peace. Frank's rating:
7.6 What the closed minded say:
He's gay or bi sexual and dresses like an idiot! Why do you listen to someone that is such a crazy freak? Where do I go wrong constantly taking up for Bowie in life? Hmmm that's a rather strange question. When I was getting out of high school and all my friends were obsessed with Marilyn Manson, I had the real albums; Ziggy Stardust and Aladdin Sane. Everyone thought it sounded "old" or "boring" or some other excuse to keep listening to the modern gimmick of a legend. There's a million excuses people give to not listen to Bowie. The ones about him being gay are quite common, another comical ones is calling him a nazi over his Station to Station/Thin White Duke persona. I really don't get how anyone that listens to anything related to Rock and Roll can hate Bowie, cause without this man you wouldn't have a number of bands, and even to this day, there are so many people that take over 50% of their ideas recycled from the name (Marilyn Manson, Lady GaGa) but most of all, he is the 1 artist I know that I think anyone can find a good album from no matter what you listen to. R&B and Soul (Young Americans), Rock (Ziggy Stardust, Aladdin Sane), Heavy Metal (The Man Who Sold the World), Alternative Rock (Heroes, Low, Lodger). Stop hating on the man and give him some love, cause he surely deserves it for all his accomplishments. Frank's rating:
 
7.8 What the closed minded say:
He was a racist, and part time drug addict. Why listen to someone that hates white people? Yawn...I had to live with this for my last few years living at home. Thank god Miles Davis entered my life when I was maturing, cause the people around me sure didn't. My whole thinking of music changed forever when I heard Miles' trumpet leading over a fleet of instruments, but that wouldn't stop people from constantly coming up with excuses to try and make me hate him. Was he racist? Now I do believe Miles had a little in him, but do I blame him? No...The man had to deal with discrimination back in the days blacks were divided among whites, but did he really hate all white people? His best friend was Gil Evans, he worked with Bill Evans, annd John McLaughin, David Holland, do I really have to list all those white musicians in his electric bands? Hating on Miles is like spitting on music as a whole. Even people that don't listen to Jazz admit that he changed music, and the most important lesson he can teach you as a musician is to never limit yourself; listen to his Jazz/Rock Fusion albums from the 70's before judging him by his attitude or wanting to call him a racist just to make an excuse out of not giving his music a try. Frank's rating:
7.8 What the closed minded say:
"All he ever made was westerns and war movies, same character every movie." A little conflict of interest in my life. I grew up watching John Wayne from my grandparents, heavy westerns. My grandparents loved him to death, my parents absolutely hated him and could not stand me liking him. As far as the "same character in every movie" like I heard a lot growing up, watch True Grit, The Searchers, Sons of Katie Elder, Stage Coach, and even Angel and the Badman. Different character in all those. Of course there is so many excuses people give to talk shit about The Duke, but I don't care for personal reasons, yet he was a great actor, and played one hell of a cowboy. Frank's rating:
8.4 What the closed minded say
"He couldn't read music and played out of tune, he's overrated!." I would defend Jimi Hendrix like I do other legends, but people that use excuses of ones that can't read music is really ignorant. I am listing Hendrix as the only one that couldn't read music, but there is a big number of them that couldn't, yet made a huge impact on the world of guitar player, yet I believe Hendrix had the most impact, as he was really the first real guitar hero, and everytime I see a Fender Stratocaster the first thing that comes to mind is the Band of Gypsys album cover. This man gave the guitar everything he had. Already limited enough being left handed, he didn't let that stop him, by playing it reversed. Practicing for several hours a day, and not giving up even though he couldn't read music, and yeah I know, he did play out of tune a few times live, but we all do. Anyone that bends the living hell out of strings like him is going to end up out of tune a few times. Only from super "genius" guitar players do I hear this kind of non sense. We shouldn't be idolizing guitar players that couldn't read music they say, but from the top of my head, there's a lot of legends that couldn't read music, and Hendrix takes the top spot among them for his wide inspiration to the world of guitar playing. The Voodoo Child did all the crazy creative stuff first, even if he was playing out of tune. Frank's rating:
6.4 What the closed minded say:
"Scientology made him a nut case, he used to be great." Come on now, Tom Cruise is a little nutty but we still love him right? I admit it, I laughed at him over the Oprah thing, and have laughed at the Scientology stuff but since when was he a bad actor? Even today, I would put him in a top 10 of leading men in today's age. The man works his ass off in his movies. To anyone that thinks Tom Cruise can't act, I ask you to go rent Collateral and watch it yourself. Cruise took live ammunition and police academy training to pull that movie off and it isn't your typical Tom Cruise. Watch him play a super bad ass sociopathic hitman alongside a shell shock panicked Jamie Foxx. That movie alone, shows his talent. Frank's rating:
8.2 What the closed minded say:
"Metallica is better, he's a prick." It will never end, the whole Metallica vs Megadeth manifesto of arguing between heavy metal fans, is really old. I for one believe that without Dave Mustaine, Metallica would not have had all those great solos on their debut album, but I also believe you can't judge Megadeth just because you like the other better. People should drop the Metallica comparisons and look at Dave Mustaine as a guitar player and lyricist, cause as far as Metal goes he writes some of the best lyrics still to this day knocking down the problems of the world, and he has always been one of the top elite guitar players in heavy metal. Frank's rating:
8.9 What the closed minded say:
"He's a fag! Why do people listen to a gay guy?" YAWN....I got picked on so bad in middle school for listening to Judas Priest, cause Rob Halford was gay. Everyone else was listening to Nirvana and Pearl Jam at the time, I even had to hear it from my own folks about how I was listening to "fags" and had a difficult time getting my hands on some of Priest's albums cause I was restricted from it as a young kid (which made me want it even more) The famous leather and studs that Priest was famous for in the 70's probably did have a gay reference but they are to thank for that style going into the 80's. Laugh it off right now, but that was their signature look. I really don't care what Rob Halford's sexual status is, the man can wail his ass off and has some of the most powerful vocal chords ever. I got to witness it myself when I seen Priest live on the Angel of Retribution tour and when Halfod wailed out the chorus of Screaming for Vengeance, he sounded just as powerful as I always imagined seeing Priest live as a kid. Frank's rating:
8.4 What the closed minded say:
"Wife beating snobby actor." Blah blah blah...Wah wah wah. Most people that judge the old actors of the golden years of Hollywood appear to be those same people that whine and complain about the movies being in black and white or having "dumb and cheesy" quotes or special effects. Just like some of the other great leading men of his era, Cary Grant was no angel. It's documented of him hitting women, but I don't see this as a reason to judge him over his acting talents. Of all the leading men in Alfred Hitchcock's suspense tales, Grant was my favorite. Put him along side Ingrid Bergman; classic in Notorious. Next to Grace Kelly, he's even better. Put him in war movies like Destination for Tokyo, and he's still gold. Frank's rating:
 
7.5 What the closed minded say:
"He treated fans like crap during the Animals tour, and has a major ego problem." First off let's get this out the way: Roger Waters DOES have an ego problem, but at the same time that colossal sized Me first attitude gave us 2 classic Pink Floyd albums; Animals and The Wall. I was raised on Pink Floyd as a kid...Wish You Were Here and Animals are literally drilled into my skull from years of countless listening. I remember when cds were first being pressed into circulation, Animals was the very first cd my father ever bought for me. As a fan the whole Roger vs David Gilmour thing is old. Anyone that claims The Wall is the greatest album ever, yet insults Roger for being a prick is contradicting themselves, cause that album was driven by his super sized ego, and essentially is over 80% his. You can argue for a hundred years what's the best Pink Floyd album, but at the end it don't matter, except the contribution from Roger Waters is at a great level on all of their classic albums, and even greater level on Animals and The Wall. Amazing singer, great musician, and forever shining as a diamond in my world. Frank's rating:
8.2 What the closed minded say:
"Douchebag to the extreme, bad actor with a bad attitude." A lot of name calling comes to this man, and it is never a middle ground. You either love him or you hate his stinking guts. I used to hate Christian Bale myself, and I have to admit I thought he was a prick. When I watched Batman Begins though, and The Prestige, my opinion quickly changed; He's a great actor. We all can admit that he has moments of rage that make him look like a total asshole (yet Terminator Salvation I believe that director could have put a stop to that audio leaking of his tantrum) but he played a damn good Batman so far in the newer series of movies, and was very good in The Prestige. Great talent indeed. Frank's rating:
7 What the closed minded say:
"Keith Richards is a drug addict, the Stones were nothing but junkies." I have heard this a thousand times, maybe even a million. People are very quick to judge Keef as a drug addict for his documented struggles with cocaine and heroin, because drugs are bad, and we shouldn't idolize people that do drugs right? Can you imagine the Rolling Stones NOT on drugs? That's pretty tough for me. Drugs may be quite damaging but at the same time, I can't imagine them without it. The band wrote their best music on drugs, don't think for a second that they weren't clean when writing Sticky Fingers, Let it Bleed, and Exile on Main Street. Before judging Keef as a drug addict, I think what should be mentioned is how big a role he has with the Stones. People don't even care anyone that his solo in Sympathy for the Devil was absolutely killer and he wrote all the guitar work by himself on the Let It Bleed album, including Gimme Shelter, and You Can't Always Get What You Want. One thing I am going to say though is I think Keef gets too much credit as a guitar player. I love him to death, but him getting all the credit for Mick Taylor's leads and solos from 1969-1974 including the solo in Honky Tonk Women always makes me sick to my stomach as a Stones fan. Frank's rating:
8.4 What the closed minded say
"Heroin addict! How dare you use him and list him as some workaholic!" I really never have been able to understand why anyone would even badmouth Mr. Parker, or shall I say 'Bird'. We're talking about a man that played the saxaphone for over 12-15 hours a day. Anyone want to talk about that before dismissing him as some crazy drug addict cause he had a Heroin problem at the end of his short life? I often use Bird as an example of work ethic in music, little did I know that it would constantly get shot down by some negative closed minded typical opinion. For some years, he played his sax for 12-15 hours a day, that right there is work, and not quitting when it gets hard. When someone gets mad at their instrument or frustrated, this is what should immediately come to mind; do you love playing as much as Bird loved his saxophone? Play your heart out! Frank's rating:
8.7 What the closed minded say:
The book: The Secret Life of Humphrey Bogart While he don't get this as much, I felt like putting it on here anyway. Humphrey Bogart was my role model as a kid. Spending most my time around my grandparents and being exposed to his movies as a teenager, he was the definition of "cool" to me. I wanted to dress like him, talk like him, I even wanted to smoke like him. Bogart made the everyday things of life just seem so cool in his movies because he was him, and his characters were right down to the core, perfect. When I seen this book and actually read a little bit of it, my mind started to grow with fury, and I was absolutely pissed off wanting to write a letter to the author. Humphrey Bogart was one of the greatest actors ever and is a statue of adding life to characters in pictures, and not to mention; he's been dead for over 50 years now and someone wants to badmouth him, let the guy rest in peace. Frank's rating:
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Many people mix up their personal lives and talent (whichever field) and this causes confusion and I think this is what led you to make this list... right??
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You hit the nail right on the head with James Brown. Even some people who don't like Funk, Soul, or R&B, are fans of James Brown's music. You were also right about his work ethic. He took his music, and especially performances, very seriously. It is no coincedence that his most successful early album was the classic 'Live at the Appollo'. He not only fined band members for infractions, he also instituted a dress code and insisted they look sharp and together onstage. His shows were a marathon of dancing, wailing, crooning, shouting, and doing fancy moves like dropping into a split on the floor and coming back up just as effortlessly. And, of course, there was the old routine of his valet putting on his cape and leading him offstage only to have James break free, run to the microphone, and continue singing 'Please, Please, Please'. In spite of his own demons, he was always publically anti-drug. He wrote songs like 'King Heroin' that discussed the evils of drug addiction and made statements encouraging kids to stay in school and get a good education. Some may criticize this as being hypocritical, but I say he was doing this because he cared. He cared about his music, he cared about his performances, and he cared about the message he was sending to his young fans. His performances were so ledendary, there is a story about a package show he was doing with several other acts in the 60's. One of the other acts was The Rolling Stones and Mick Jagger insisted they play before JB, he made it clear he did not want to follow James. He may have had marital and drug problems offstage, but onstage, he was the consumate professional.
I have never been a big Bowie fan, but I can recognize talent when I see it. Bowie first gained international fame during his Glam-Rock Ziggy Starbust period. Bowie shed personas and styles in those days like a reptile will shed his skin. He was constantly exploring new sounds and changing his stage show to reflect it. I, personally think he announced he was bi-sexual back then to enhance the Ziggy character. I think he has been a closet heterosexual all these years. I know this means nothing, but he has been married to Iman for a very long time now. Even if he was gay, what difference would that make? Are there no talented gay musicians? What about Freddie Mercury, Elton John, or Little Richard? They have no talent? Straight, Bi, or Gay, talent is talent. You may not like his music, but you can't deny the talent. As you pointed out, he has worked in so many different genres, there is bound to be some Bowie music out there that you like.
I am not big into Jazz, but I do like some of the old Bebop artists and I am into rock. I also enjoy some of the rock/fusion bands. So that means I do like some of Miles' stuff. I think he started out in Dizzy's band. He totally had the Jazz performer's cool attitude onstage. He appeared to be playing for himself only and practically ignored the audience as he took them on the trip with him. I agree he must have encountered racism performing and touring in the segregated 1950s and 1960s. I am not making excuses for how he felt, I just agree with you that it has nothing to do with his musical ability.
I grew up playing cowboys and watching all the western TV shows and movies I could. Naturally, John Wayne was one of my heroes. I would watch any of his movies that would come on TV. I still do. I have heard all the criticism of his acting. To me, Wayne was the definitive cowboy of his era. Much more so than Gene Autry, Roy Rogers, Hopalong Cassidy, or The Lone Ranger. Those guys were for the little kids. John Wayne made adult westerns. And he was a damn good actor, too. He finally won an Oscar late in his career for True Grit, but that was not his best performance. I think the Academy gave him the Oscar for a career of good performances and because they failed to recognize Oscar-caliber performances in 'Red River', 'The Searchers', and 'The Wings of Angels'. He gave a hell of a performance in his last movie, 'The Shootist', as well. After his big break starring in 1939's 'Stagecoach', Wayne went on to be a big box office draw in the 40s and 50s. Wayne's popularity began to suffer in the 60s when his ultra-conservative views clashed with the new liberalism the younger generation was beginning to preach. But his politics did not make him a bad actor or diminish his appeal. He made some good westerns in the 60s like 'Rio Bravo', 'The Sons of Katie Elder', 'The War Wagon', 'McClintock', 'The Commancheros', and 'El Dorado'.
Jimi Hendryx couldn't read music. Neither can Paul McCartney. It didn't seem to hurt him any. He even wrote some classical pieces by ear.
I like Judas Priest, and the same thing I wrote about Bowie goes for Halford. You either recognize the talent and enjoy it or you don't.
I like Keith Richards, but agree that he gets a lot of credit that should go to Mick Taylor, The Stones' lead guitarist through their best period. They had good albums, 'Beggars Banquet' and 'Let it Bleed' while Brian Jones was still an offical member, but not contributing much. Taylor joined prior to going on the '69 tour that they took the live album 'Get Yer Ya Ya's Out' from. Kieth was turned onto the open tuning method, but Taylor was responsible for a lot of the licks on songs like 'Honky Tonk Women' (single version), 'Can't You Hear me Knockin'?', 'Brown Sugar', 'Tumblin' Dice', etc. Taylor left the band shortly after 'Its Only Rock n Roll' was released. I am not saying Taylor was better than Keith, but that was the end of their golden age for me. I admit they made some good music after Taylor, like the 'Some Girls' and 'Tatoo You' albums, but they were never as consistent.
As a big fan of classic movies, Bogart is a favorite of mine. He often gets the same flap as John Wayne, people saying he is always the same character. I don't beleive that is true, but like Wayne played a lot of cowboys, Bogie played a lot of tough guys. In Hollywood during that era, a movie star had an image to project to the public. it was like they were always playing themselves. Bogert always played Bogart, just like Cagney always played Cagney and Wayne always played Wayne. You didn't have Bogart playing a tough detective, you had Bogart playing Bogart playing a tough detctive. Bogart has made some great films that will always be remembered as classics. I will watch any movie with Bogart in it cause I know I will get a great performance from him.
I ran into the same shit when I was young for listening to Queen, as well as Judas Priest. Just for the record, I will be a Stones fan for life!
Great list!
Anyway very nice list!
I've been playing guitar for over 15 years and I've studied Jimi Hendrix for a long time. You clearly have not studied him at all if you think he is overrated. Berkeley Guitar Institute could run a whole yearly program on his song "Little Wing" or "Red House" and still not understand it. Study the song Machine Gun and tell me he's overrated. That song defines guitar...even all those shred guitarists like Malsteem and Vai will tell you he was their hero.
and you know he's telling it right. They went after MJ because he was black. Look at what happened when he was alive. They totally destroyed him. If he was white, it would have been different. Look at what they did to James Brown and you even mention this. he was drug through the mud for years as being a wife beater. rick james was ridiculed as a drug addict the last years of his life, to the point that most people don't even know just how talented he truly was anymore!
That's why I try to write about those old guys as much as I can, I am trying to push that stuff to younger people so they can find great music. I know there's a lot of bullshit in music today but there is some good stuff, and if you're like me constantly digging in the past you'll find gems and treasures that are not even listened to anymore. When I get people emailing me telling me they read something I wrote and dug up an old album I talked about, it makes me feel like I did something good, it makes me smile.
Thanks for that quote from Rick James. Wish you had posted a link, I'm going to dig for that interview and I think I am going to use it on this list, if I ever find it. Rick James is telling it like it is.
http://www.listal.com/list/25-favourite-classic-actresses
Yeah, ummm, you might want to re-read that sentence.
Sooo, almost throwing an infant of a balcony is not 'crazy shit' to you...hmmm, ok.
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I'm not saying that their personal lives affect their 'talent'. All I'm doing is confronting the mistakes in your comments. It has to be done. No offence.
If you're offended that I said someone couldn't act, get in line. You're not the first one to be angry at me over that.
In my opinion Marilyn Monroe was not a good actress. Yeah she was pretty but she was not a good actress in my book, and to call me closed minded, I have watched a number of her movies and never found what the hype was around her besides her beautiful body.
You can dig on this site for hours and ridicule my posts if it makes you feel any better about yourself. Personally I don't care, and I don't take it back. I seen enough of Marilyn's movies to know she couldn't really act worth a damn. I'm sure I'm not the only one at least on this site, that will tell you in times she was an awful actress. But you throwing that out there at me, really made my day full of laughs cause I didn't expect it.
Michael Jackson in interviews often said that he was holding his baby over the balcony to let them get a picture of it. He never threw his kid over the balcony like the media would make you think as bad as they reported that to make him look crazy. Was he crazy or was he not? I don't know, he never did anything to harm a child. Holds the record for most money ever donated to children hospitals, yeah I think he was pretty crazy.