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with re-listening to Lennon lately and my constant listening to Eminem over the years, i realise i like these two artists because they wear their hearts on their sleeves, describing their lives in warts and all songs, regardless of whether they make them look weak,insecure and "not man enough" with bravado etc etc....
just wondering if there are any other artists out there who do the same thing on a level equal to Lennon and Eminem.....?
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Don't know if either of these match up to Lennon or Eminem, but the Eels album I listened to the other day (Electro-Shock Blues) is pretty raw emotionally, and UK Folkie Roy Harper is unflinching about himself in a lot of his songs.
And another one that's just popped into my head is Iggy Pop, both solo & with The Stooges.
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I think your idol Neil Young and Leonard Cohen may fit the bill, CH !
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I think most artists, not just musicians do. Steve mentioned Cohen and Young, and I would add Waits to those two. How about the way Neil Peart did with Rush after the death of his daughter, then his wife, or pretty much any Bruce album, say "The Rising" and the tune "Mary's Place", or perhaps Simon and Garfunkel's "Silent Night/ 6 O'clock News". Much of James Taylor's early stuff was a direct result of his mental health treatments when he was younger, and Bad Religion, NoFX, and Anti-Flag have not just worn their hearts on their sleeves (Black Hearts for Anti-Flag), but thrust them up in people's grills with great regularity! Even Genesis (go re-listen to "Jesus He Knows Me") have done it. Since most artists expose some part of themselves in their work, I believe pretty much any music outside the realm of "Yummy, Yummy, Yummy" by the Archies (and its ilk thru the years) has some part of the artist's heart and soul being offered up for inspection by the masses.
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Paul Simon - Train in the Distance - about his divorce.
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I think a lot of "Guitar Virtuoso" guys can fit this bill. They just go out and get lost in the music and whatever they're feeling at that point comes out. Prime examples for me would be Carlos Santana, Robin Trower and John McLaughlin (Especially during the Mahavishnu Orchestra days... He seems to have calmed down a bit since then, in my opinion). When you watch them play live, you know they've completely taken technical ability out of the equation, and they're just running on fumes and emotion.
Chris Isaak's a vocalist who I think kind of lays everything out there. Especially on the Forever Blue album where the inside liner notes featured a handwritten letter he had wrote for his ex, who was basically the inspiration for the entire album, as a coping mechanism with the breakup.
Another guy I can think of is Cris Brown (Not the hip-hop artist + domestic abuser). He's the lyricst and vocalist for One Less Reason and Jassepy Moses. A lot of his songs come back to relationships and how he fucked things up. Doesn't care about the rockstar bravado. One of my favorite quotes about music comes from him; "We never write fiction lyrics that are just there because it sounded good in a rhyme scheme. Instead we want to meet people where they are in their lives and when they hear one of our songs they can say ‘I have felt like that before... or do right now."
Though I do agree with Gater's idea that most do. I think an endearing quality in music is the personability of lyrics, where you feel like you know the artist. Obviously there's more universal ones too, but I know for me, I love artists and bands who I can feel a connection with through their lyrics. You get that from opening up and letting your guard down.
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Weezer's "Pinkerton" is probably the best example I can give. You knpw all those horrible feelings you went through as a teenager; it's basically that in musical form. Same with Neutral Milk Hotel's "In the Aereoplane Over the Sea", that one perhaps even more vulnerable
A lot Feldman pieces are quite emotionally powerful, "For Philip Giston" in particular
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Forgot Eric Clapton and his heartfelt Tears in Heaven ! Such a horrrible tragedy losing a child that way !
Eric just kept on playing and forged ahead to retain his sanity I suspect !
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not so sure NY has done it anywhere near as often as Lennon and Eminem have,both of whom did it album after album...
but thanks for the suggestions guys.
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Adele is one that comes to mind. She definitely wears her heart on her sleeve and you can feel her pain in all of her songs.
