Even over two weekends, it’s a daunting task to see each of the 148 bands who played on Coachella’s five stages – but we sure as hell tried. Here’s the 10 acts who made it worth the double down. Read full story

It’s hard to imagine that Bob Dylan, Three 6 Mafia and Toby Keith have much in common, but all three artists understand the power of a classic stoner track. Marijuana has served as the inspiration for classic cuts in rock, hip-hop, pop, and of course, reggae, and is still influencing more than a few of our biggest artists (hello, Wiz Khalifa!) today. For 4/20, Billboard.com has put together a countdown of 20 tracks that talk about toking up, with each song including a “potency” level that measures their inebriated energy on a scale of one (mildly buzzed) to 10 (totally stoned). Read

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Here you’ll find all of the 2011 Readers Poll results, including your choices for Top Albums and Top Tracks, along with Most Underrated and Overrated Albums, Most Annoying Singles, Best Reunions/Comebacks, Best Musician Twitters, Best Live Acts, and more.

From Madonna to Prince Royce and from Tim McGraw to Timbaland and far beyond, Billboard spotlights which rock, hip-hop, Latin, country, indie and pop artists and albums to watch for in the year ahead. Who will reign supreme in 2012? Here are dozens of contenders we’ve got our eyes on.

Meet 17 New Artists Whose Time is Now

Sales have leveled out, but artists can kick-star careers with a click. It’s a good time to be new. Meet 17 acts whose debut albums will win your ears in 2012.

U2′s “360″ tour may have been an extravagance on a colossal scale, but it’s paid off for the Irish stars, who have been named the highest-paid musicians in the world in a new survey by Forbes Magazine. Bono and co made $195m last year, the magazine estimates – $70m more than the second-placed act, Bon Jovi, and $95m more thanElton John in third. In all three cases, the money came from extensive touring rather than sales of new music.

Forbes’s list shows the US is still the main territory for acts hoping to make their fortune. Many of those in the top 25 – including the Dave Matthews Band, Toby Keith and Brad Paisley – have made little impression outside North America. The one new act in the list is Justin Bieber (ninth with $53m), testimony to the financial power wielded by very young artists, and to the promotional power of YouTube.

Forbes’s list of the 25 highest-paid musicians in the world:

1. U2 ($195m)
2. Bon Jovi ($125m)
3. Elton John ($100m)
4. Lady Gaga ($90m)
5. Michael Bublé ($70m)
6. Paul McCartney ($67m)
7. Black Eyed Peas ($61m)
8. The Eagles ($60m)
9. Justin Bieber ($53m)
10. Dave Matthews Band ($51m)
11. Toby Keith ($50m)
12. Usher ($46m)
13. Taylor Swift $45m)
14. Katy Perry ($44m)
15. Brad Paisley ($40m)
16. Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers ($38m)
17. Jay-Z ($38m)
18. AC/DC ($35m)
19. Sean “Diddy” Combs ($35m)
20. Beyoncé ($35m)
21. Tim McGraw ($35m)
22. Muse ($35m)
23. Rascal Flatts ($34m)
24. Kenny Chesney ($30m)
25. Rihanna ($29m)

Rock concerts are a huge part of modern life, but some stand out more than others. While there are many criteria for notable shows; largest gross, largest attended, most bands played, etc., truly great concerts are measured in their influence and impact on music, art culture, and sometimes the rock bands themselves.

The Top 10 Rock Concerts Of All  Time list includes these truly great rock concerts, and the reason why. We are sure there will be plenty of debate and personal opinion about this list, and we would love to hear your views in the comments below!

Top 10 Rock Concerts – #10

Simon and Garfunkel at Central Park, Central Park, New York City, September 19, 1981: More than 500,000 people attended the historic show, where Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel seemed to forget about their decade long separation. It was a homecoming for the duo, who performed their timeless hits, and produced a stellar live album.

Top 10 Rock Concerts – #9

Peter Frampton Comes Alive, Marin Civic Center, San Francisco, June 13/14, 1975: As comedian Mike Myers once commented, “Frampton Comes Alive was delivered to every American’s door along with a sample of Tide laundry soap”, or something to that effect. But in reality, the Marin Civic Center shows produced the best selling live album in history, with over 16 million units sold. Peter Frampton and crew performed brilliantly, and produced timeless live hit after hit.

Top 10 Rock Concerts – #8

Led Zeppelin at Madison Square Garden, New York City, 1973: Three consecutive shows by Led Zeppelin at Madison Square Garden in 1973 led to the celebrated live video, “The Song Remains the Same.” The band was on top of their game, as documented in the video, and the performances of each song have reached legendary status.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Top 10 Rock Concerts – #7

The Rolling Stones at Wembley, Wembley Arena, England, September 13/15, 2003: Just when you thought the Stones were through, a two-day, sold out 40th anniversary concert proved that the aging Englishmen had a lot more under the hood than anyone realised.

Top 10 Rock Concerts – #6

The Who Live At Leeds, University of Leeds, Leeds, England, May 16, 1970: The Who, performing at University of Leeds in England, recorded the show and released one of the must-have live albums in rock music history.

Top 10 Rock Concerts – #5

U2 atop a liquor store in LA, Los Angeles, California, March 27, 1987: U2’s twenty minute show to thrilled onlookers resulted in the LAPD pulling the plug, and appearing on the group’s “Where the Streets Have No Name” video. This stunt was neck-and-neck for our list with the Beatle’s legendary 1969 “Rooftop Concert” in London, differing only in the Beatles managed 42 minutes before police pulled the plug, and the fact that fans couldn’t view the action.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Top 10 Rock Concerts – #4

George Harrison’s Concert for Bangladesh, Madison Square Garden, New York City, August 1, 1971: 40,000+ fans packed into Madison Square Garden in New York City to see Harrison, along with Eric Clapton, Bob Dylan, Ravi Shankar, and Billy Preston, perform a benefit show for humanitarian relief to the troubled country of Bangladesh.

Top 10 Rock Concerts – #3

Pink Floyd’s “The Wall” Tour, various venues worldwide, 1980-1981: Massive visual effects, including the famous “exploding wall”, and animatronic puppets, gave rock concert goers new meaning to the phrase “really big show”. Technical difficulties abounded, but the Wall tour was hugely successful. It also marked the end of live performances with David Gilmour and Roger Waters together in the same stage.

Top 10 Rock Concerts – #2

Jimi Hendrix at Woodstock, Woodstock, NY, August 18, 1969: Woodstock has always held many concert records, but it was Jimi Hendrix’s performance that made it even more memorable. Although only about 30,000 fans were left at Woodstock by day three, they witnessed Hendrix’s unforgettable performance of “The Star-Spangled Banner”, which became the anthem of an era when civil rights and anti war protests were in full swing.

Top Rock Concert Of All Time

The Beatles at Shea Stadium, New York City, August 15, 1965: The first ever stadium concert was held at Shea Stadium in New York City featuring the Beatles. Help! Had just been released to the US market, the Fab Four had just appeared on Ed Sullivan, and the roar of the 55,000+ fans turned the show into a deafening experience for the band. The Beatles refused to play live not long after, as they simply were unable to perform over all the noise.

Click here to view the embedded video.

By Scotty Smith
Guitarist Rock

1. “Summer in the City” made popular by the Lovin’ Spoonful. This song is an oldie; it was released in 1966. Mark Sebastian and Steve Boone wrote the summer hit. You’ve never heard it before? Actually, if you are a fan of The Simpsons or Bruce Willis’ action film Die Hard with a Vengeance, you’ve encountered the hit.

2. “A Summer Song” by Chad and Jeremy grabs the second slot. They are a British duo who released the song in 1964. It became a natural hit and climbed to the 7th slot in the Billboard Hot 100 in the same year.

3. “Hot Fun in the Summertime” sung by Sly and the Family Stone takes third place. This song is one of those songs that you want to replay several times. It has a quick tempo and happy feel to it. It was released in 1969.

4. “All Summer Long” by the Beach Boys. Like the previous winners, this song has a quick tempo, making it easy for the listener to enjoy the single. It would be a great song to have on hand just before school starts.

5. “In the Summertime” by Mungo Jerry. This English rock band reached their most notable success in the early 1970s. This summertime song is their most successful and recognizable hit. Even the young generation has probably heard of this song.

6. “Theme from a Summer Place” by Percy Faith. It was released in 1965 and quickly became a hit. The most popular version of the tune stayed at number one on Billboard Hot 100 singles in 1960 for nine weeks. What you might not realize is that it is an instrumental piece. Faith won a Grammy Award for Record of the Year. The song was crafted for the movie A Summer Place. It was the first instrumental theme that won a Grammy. After this hit, Faith went back into the studio to record a female choral version in 1976 and a disco version of the song.

7. “Summertime” by Billy Stewart. Stewart was an American artist who had a scat-singing style. He become popular in the 1960s. Stewart gave the song an R&B feel. He recorded the song in 1965 with many musicians from the Chess label which he was signed under. “Summertime” was his first crossover into the pop charts. It rested at number 7 on the R&B charts.

8. “Summertime Blue” by Eddie Cochran. This song has a different feel than the other summertime songs listed above. It still has an upbeat tempo and it is a song that has been covered dozens of times, including a well-known version done by the 60s rock icons, The Who.

9. “California Girls” by the Beach Boys. This hit was recorded in 1965. The song was released as a single. “California Girls” landed in the number three slot on the Billboard Hot 100. It is one of their most recognizable songs.

10. “Summertime, Summertime” by The Jamies. It’s no surprise that this was a summertime hit with lyrics like “Well shut them books and throw em away, Say goodbye to dull school days. So come on and change your ways. It’s summertime.”

From dmx.com

Remember when you could’ve sworn you saw the young Bob Dylan looking shy and introspective on the cover of the latest Rolling Stone?

You weren’t hallucinating - this time.

Is ”Like a Rolling Stone” Bob Dylan’s greatest song?

That was Dylan. Rolling Stone decided to commemorate his 70th birthday with a list, of course – this one compiling the 70 Greatest Dylan Songs. As lists go, it’s not bad, with “Like a Rolling Stone” at No. 1 and “I Shall Be Released” at No. 6, although the outrageous omission of the first song I thought of when thinking of classics they might have omitted, the awe-inspiring “Most Likely You Go Your Way (And I’ll Go Mine),” has left me looking for a fight.

But rather than weigh in on that list, which would take forever just to get you nowhere, here’s a list of Dylan’s greatest albums (not including box sets, greatest hits or any volume of “The Bootleg Series”). After all, he is the greatest album artist America’s ever produced (in addition to being the greatest American songwriter ever).

So while Rolling Stone goes their way, I’ll go mine.

1. “Blonde on Blonde” (1966)

There’s never been a more compelling argument in favor of the double album as an art form, with apologies to Dylan’s friends, the Beatles. The lyrics are brilliant, naturally. And Dylan never made a better-sounding record. Every detail plays its part, from the sinister horn and harmonica intro of “Most Likely You Go Your Way (and I’ll Go Mine)” to the subtle Motown accents of the folk-rock classic “Visions of Johanna.” And it kicks off with the drunken swagger of a marching band as Dylan somehow manages to have his weed and smoke it, too, taking shots at the establishment for persecuting anyone caught marching to a different band on his way to a gleeful chorus hook of “Everybody must get stoned.”

2. “Highway 61 Revisited” (1965)

He sets the stage with “Like a Rolling Stone,” an organ-driven whirlwind of images that takes the listener on a trip down Dylan’s stream of consciousness for six amazing minutes while he skewers some poor little rich girl who “never turned around to see the frowns on the jugglers and the clowns when they all did tricks for you.” That the rest of the album more than holds its own against that towering accomplishment – in highlights ranging from the caustic “Ballad of a Thin Man” to his loopy rewrite of the book of Genesis – says all you really need to know about why no home is complete without this album, either.

3. “Bringing It All Back Home” (1965)

Could there have been a more inspired way to go electric than swaggering in with a surrealistic spin on everything he ever loved about Chuck Berry in the greatest rap song of the pre-rap era, “Subterranean Homesick Blues”? Not hardly. Dylan’s never jammed more playful rockers on a single album, to the point where even he can’t keep from laughing on “Bob Dylan’s 115th Dream.” That still leaves room for the emotionally devastating unplugged soul of “It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue,” the anti-establishment rage of “Maggie’s Farm” and the whimsical psychedelic poetry of “Mr. Tambourine Man.”

4. “The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan” (1963)

Dylan’s second album kicks off with the antiwar, civil-rights campfire sing-along “Blowin’ in the Wind” and gets better from there. Worlds better. On “Masters of War,” he sneers with righteous indignation at all the right targets, telling the people who profit from “young people’s blood” that “even Jesus would never forgive what you do.” But Dylan’s sense of humor also shines here in the talking blues, especially “I Shall Be Free.”

5. “Blood on the Tracks” (1975)

His marriage having hit the rocks, he sets the tone here tangled up in blue, taking shots at the in-laws before admitting, in the end, that “we just saw it from a different point of view.” The prevailing mood of this primarily acoustic affair is more broken than bitter, though, at least until he takes the gloves off on “Idiot Wind,” whose seething smackdowns (“It’s a wonder that you still know how to breathe”) effectively render the lyrical barbs of “Positively 4th Street” toothless by comparison.

 

6. “The Basement Tapes” (1975)

Recorded in 1967 while Dylan was reportedly recuperating from a motorcycle accident with members of the Band in the basement of Big Pink, a house near Woodstock, this oft-bootlegged double album finds him letting his guard down while the world was waiting on a follow-up to “Blonde on Blonde.” There’s a tossed-off quality that underscores the you-weren’t-meant-to-hear-this charms of “Million Dollar Bash” and “Orange Juice Blues,” in which the great Bob Dylan contributes “I looked at my watch/I looked at my wrist/I punched myself in the face with my fist” to the annals of rock and roll poetry.

 

7. “Planet Waves” (1974)

There are occasional hints of the devastation Dylan was about to document on this album’s emotional flipside the following year. But most songs find him feeling pretty good about the flowers of romance (with sympathetic backing from the Band). He sets the stage with “On a night like this, I’m so glad you came around; hold on to me so tight and heat up some coffee grounds” and signs off with a wedding song.

 

8. “John Wesley Harding” (1968)

A clear retreat from the psychedelic expectations raised by “Blonde on Blonde,” these stripped-down morality tales find Dylan going un-electric on such understated new folk standards as “I Dreamed I Saw St. Augustine” and “All Along the Watchtower.” And he signs off with one of his sweetest, most unguarded love ballads, “I’ll Be Your Baby Tonight.”

 

9. “Another Side of Bob Dylan” (1964)

Released the same year as “The Times They Are A-Changin’,” Dylan’s only underrated album of the ’60s kicks off with a love-struck yodel, “All I Really Want to Do,” and ends with “It Ain’t Me Babe,” a put-down so cold, it makes “Under My Thumb” sound like foreplay. But he hasn’t turned his back on protest folk, from “Chimes of Freedom” to the playful political jabs of “I Shall Be Free No. 10.”

 

10. “Time Out of Mind” (1997)

The album that ushered in his unexpected late-career resurgence still sounds haunted, like a late-night radio transmission from the afterlife. He sets the tone with “Love Sick,” a creaky, almost reggae-flavored sleepwalk that starts with a rasp of “I’m walkin’ through streets that are dead” and follows through with any number of his best recordings since the ’70s, making the most of producer Daniel Lanois’ sense of atmosphere.

by Ed Masley
The Arizona Republic