Vote for your winners, results posted tomorrow:
#1 Elvis Costello vs. #16 Meat Loaf
#8 Abba vs. #9 Bad Company
#5 Television vs. #12 Styx
#4 Curtis Mayfield vs. #13 Joe Jackson
#3 Patti Smith vs. #14 Mott The Hoople
#6 Tom Petty vs. #11 Gary Numan
#7 Boston vs. #10 John Cougar Mellencamp
#2 Queen vs. #15 Bonnie Raitt

#1 Elvis Costello
#8 Abba
#5 Television
#4 Curtis Mayfield
#3 Patti Smith
#6 Tom Petty
#7 Boston
#2 Queen

Thanks!

#1 Elvis ~~~ So many great songs, close to pure hatred for Meat Loaf's music...
#9 BadCo ~~~ Abba annoys me, there are about 10 or 12 Bad Company songs I like...
#5 Television ~~~ I see Television as a band that overhyped for one album that was good, but not as great as some have made it out to be, but I could not in good faith vote for Styx over them...
#4 Curtis ~~~ Tough draw for Joe Jackson
#14 Mott The Hoople ~~~ Call it an upset, just not a huge Patti Smith fan and I like a few MTH songs so they get the nod.
#6 Petty ~~~ I hate to not at least vote for Numan once, I wish he had a matchup against Television or Patti, I think I could give him the nod.
#7 Boston ~~~ I would say tough draw for JCM, but he has a few good songs in a large catalogue, where as Boston has more good songs in a smaller sample size...
#2 Queen ~~~ I would vote for Kevin Federline over Bonnie Raitt, she bugs me for some reason, maybe not as much as Meat Loaf. Anyway, easy time voting for Queen but not an automatic pick to win this bracket because the competition is pretty tough...

#1 Elvis Costello (I kinda like Meat Loaf, and his debut is one of my favorite albums. It used to be my #1 of 1977, but it has dropped to #6 over the years. Guess who's #1 now)
#8 Abba
#5 Television
#4 Curtis Mayfield
#3 Patti Smith
#6 Tom Petty
#7 Boston (very, very close)
#2 Queen

Costello
Bad Company (more of a vote against Abba)
Television
Curtis Mayfield
Patti Smith
Gary Numan
Boston
Queen

#1 Elvis Costello
#8 Abba
#5 Television
#4 Curtis Mayfield
#14 Mott The Hoople
#6 Tom Petty
PAss
#2 Queen

#1 Elvis Costello
#8 Abba
#5 Television
#4 Curtis Mayfield
#3 Patti Smith
#6 Tom Petty
#10 John Cougar Mellencamp
#2 Queen

#1 Elvis Costello
#8 Abba
#5 Television
#13 Joe Jackson
#14 Mott The Hoople
#6 Tom Petty
#7 Boston
#2 Queen

#1 Elvis Costello
#8 Abba
#5 Television
#4 Curtis Mayfield
#3 Patti Smith
#6 Tom Petty
#7 Boston
#2 Queen

#1 Elvis Costello
#8 Abba - Awful matchup. Hate both of them.
#5 Television
#4 Curtis Mayfield
#3 Patti Smith
#6 Tom Petty
#7 Boston
#2 Queen

#1 Elvis Costello
#9 Bad Company
pass
#4 Curtis Mayfield
pass
pass
pass
pass

#1 Elvis Costello (Declan Patrick MacManus and Michael Lee Aday both chose stage names for their music careers. The first chose Elvis Costello. The second chose Meat Loaf. Even if I knew nothing about their music, that’s an excellent prima facie case for picking Elvis. And of course, knowing their music makes it no contest.)

#8 ABBA (A singular act which is deeply misunderstood. Whereas Bad Co is not deeply anything.)

#5 Television (Oh, come on. There’s no way we’ve had a bigger mismatch than this…Lobster Thermidor vs. stale french fry.)

#4 Curtis Mayfield (Joe’s good, too.)

#3 Patti Smith (Mott the Hoople was name-checked in one of R.E.M.’s biggest hits. But Patti sings on their records. No, that’s not why I’m voting for her; my actual reasons have more to do with liking the whole punk-poetess-laureate thing more than the third-tier-garage-remade-as-glam thing.)

#6 Tom Petty (I’ve been too uncharitable about Gary Numan in the past. But Petty, despite a hit-or-miss career, has written two or three absolute pop masterpieces.)

#7 Boston (Whatever else you want to say about Boston – and I’m not a big fan – they’re the real deal: hairy, spotty, a little smelly, with great licks. Johnny Cougar is watered-down 1984-period Springsteen. He’s blow-dried.)

#15 Bonnie Raitt (Yes, really. Didn’t even have to think twice.)

Elvis Costello
Abba
Television
Curtis Mayfield
Patti Smith
Tom Petty
Boston
Queen

#1 Elvis Costello (I'm not a big fan of Elvis Costello, with the notable exception of the musically and lyrically wonderful Lipstick Love, but the only reason to vote for Meat Loaf would be that he appeared in South Park's Chef Aid, both an hilarious episode and a pretty fine album)
#8 Abba
#5 Television (I fear the non AM votes on this one)
#4 Curtis Mayfield
#3 Patti Smith
pass
pass
#2 Queen

#1 Elvis Costello
#9 Bad Company
#12 Styx
#13 Joe Jackson
pass
#6 Tom Petty
#7 Boston
#2 Queen

Elvis Costello
ABBA
Television
Curtis Mayfield
Mott the Hoople
Tom Petty
Boston
Bonnie Raitt

#1 Elvis Costello
#8 Abba
#5 Television
#4 Curtis Mayfield
#3 Patti Smith
#6 Tom Petty
pass
#2 Queen

Except Petty, these were incredibly easy choices. I will be sad if ABBA don't win.

Elvis Costello
Abba
Television
Curtis Mayfield
Patti Smith
Tom Petty
Boston
Queen

Elvis Costello
Bad Company
Styx
Curtis Mayfield
Patti Smith
Tom Petty (in a VERY close one)
Boston
Queen

Elvis
Bad Co.
Styx (Sorry, Marquee Moon doesn't cut it for me)
Mayfield
Mott (Sorry, Horses doesn't cut it for me)
Petty
Boston
Queen-FAVORITE OF ALL TIME

#1 Elvis Costello
pass
#5 Television
#4 Curtis Mayfield
#3 Patti Smith
#6 Tom Petty
#7 Boston
#15 Bonnie Raitt
My dad loves to tell me about the first time he saw Springsteen live -- opening for Bonnie Raitt.

#1 Elvis Costello
#8 Abba
#5 Television
#4 Curtis Mayfield
#3 Patti Smith
#6 Tom Petty
#10 John Cougar Mellencamp
#2 Queen

#1 Elvis Costello
Don't care
#5 Television
#4 Curtis Mayfield
#3 Patti Smith
#6 Tom Petty
#10 John Cougar Mellencamp
Don't care

#1 Elvis Costello: Easiest choice here, for This Year's Model alone.
#8 Abba: They're more than the Eurovision launchpad would indicate.
#5 Television: Styx is cheesy in a way that I don't like, whereas Television's guitar thrills still thrill.
#4 Curtis Mayfield: An artist I'm eager to explore vs. one I'm not.
#3 Patti Smith: I like "All the Young Dudes", but Horses and Easter are phenomenal records and among my favorites of the 70s.
#11 Gary Numan: I'd like to vote for Tom Petty (he'd easily win either of the next 2 matches), but Gary Numan solo or as Tubeway Army is synth pop future dystopic heav... dystopia!
#7 Boston: More of an anti-Mellencamp vote than one in favor of Boston.
#15 Bonnie Raitt: She ain't no ameba, and she's thankfully not glam-lite either.

#1 Elvis Costello
#9 Bad Company
#5 Television
#4 Curtis Mayfield
#3 Patti Smith
#6 Tom Petty
#7 Boston
#2 Queen

RESULTS:
Elvis Costello 91.4% / Meat Loaf 8.6%
Abba 64.7% / Bad Company 35.3%
Television 64.7% / Styx 35.3%
Curtis Mayfield 85.7% / Joe Jackson 14.3%
Patti Smith 71.9% / Mott The Hoople 28.1%
Tom Petty 88.2% / Gary Numan 11.8%
Boston 71% / John Cougar Mellencamp 29%
Queen 81.8% / Bonnie Raitt 18.2%