More Than the Grammys? The Music Pantheon

As you may know, I'm a lifelong music-lover and musician that comes from long line of music-loving musicians. I grew up surrounded by the sounds of my grandmother–a charter member of the USO–singing and playing jazz tunes from her career in WWII, while my mom, aunts, and uncles strummed, played, and sang the music of The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Neil Young, and a bunch of other stuff (from the very famous to the very random, like my mom's cover of Patsy Cline's "Crazy," my Aunt Terese's renditions of "Teddy Bear Picnic" and the waltz from the 1951 Scrooge, starring Alistair Sim, and my Uncle Joe's hilarious "Mama, Yo Quiero").

As for me, I started playing the piano and singing with my grandmother when I was very young. Over the years, I took up the piano–first classically and then branching out into jazz and rock–trumpet, percussion, voice, and a bunch of other things. I've tried my hand at rock, classical music, conducting, composing, and just about everything else (to varying degrees of success). Needless to say, music has always been and will always be a central part of my identity.

So, with another Grammys behind us, I thought I'd give my take on a few things musical, in the form of what I want to call THE MUSICAL PANTHEON, a possibly-controversial table showing who I think ranks where in the musical stratosphere. Because you know, it's easy to get caught up in NOW! THAT'S WHAT I CALL MUSIC 3,458 and forget just how much work and talent it takes to "make it," and I think it's worth remembering–albeit with limits–the great women and men who have shaped the music industry making it the sometimes praiseworthy and sometimes ludicrous thing it is today.

Let me know what you think, and I'll add your suggestions to the chart (this definitely isn't exhaustive, or disagree with you and start Twitter wars that put Iggy to shame.

Without further adieu, here goes!

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THE OLYMPIAN GODDESSES

Those women permanently enshrined in music history.

Ella Fitzgerald, Queen of Jazz and Mother of the Gods

Aretha Franklin, Queen of Soul and Queen of the Gods

Diana Ross, Queen of the 60's

Whitney Houston, Queen of the Belt

Céline Dion, Co-Queen of the Belt

Madonna, Queen of Pop

Janet Jackson, Co-Queen of Pop

Stevie Nicks, Queen of Rock

Dolly Parton, Queen of Country