#1 Bruce Springsteen vs. #16 Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes
#8 Siouxsie & The Banshees vs. #9 Jackson Browne
#5 Peter Gabriel vs. #12 Cameo
#4 Blondie vs. #13 The Alan Parsons Project
#3 Al Green vs. #14 New York Dolls
#6 Lynyrd Skynyrd vs. #11 Whitesnake
#7 Hall & Oates vs. #10 Kansas
#2 Joy Division vs. #15 Black Uhuru
#1 Bruce Springsteen (This is not a blowout win for Bruce. He’s rock’s Benny Goodman; take that as you will.)
#8 Siouxsie and the Banshees (I look for the 70’s region to include a few pre- vs. post-punk matchups, and they don’t get any more representative than Siouxsie vs. the future Mr. Daryl Hannah.)
#5 Peter Gabriel (Although “Word Up” is better than any one song he ever created.)
#4 Blondie (see my Siouxsie comment)
#3 Al Green (I don’t like the Dolls as much as I’m supposed to.)
#1 Bruce Springsteen
#9 Jackson Browne
#5 Peter Gabriel
#13 The Alan Parsons Project (shame to see Alan go in the first round, my favorite artist/group not featured on AM)
#3 Al Green
#6 Lynyrd Skynyrd
#10 Kansas
#2 Joy Division
#1 Bruce Springsteen - Love Pendergrass' voice. Sorry to see a tough matchup for them.
#8 Siouxsie & The Banshees
#5 Peter Gabriel
#4 Blondie
#3 Al Green
#6 Lynyrd Skynyrd
#7 Hall & Oates
#2 Joy Division
#1 Bruce
#8 Siouxsie
#5 PG
#4 Blondie
#3 AL
#11 Whitesnake... if for no other reason, pure hatred for "Sweet Home Alabama" & "Freebird". It cancels out the 3 or 4 Skynyrd songs I actually like.
#10 Kansas
#2 Joy Division
Bruce Springsteen
Siousxie and the Banshees
Peter Gabriel
Alan Parsons Project
Al Green (closest one, and even then, it was by more than ten points)
Lynyrd Skynyrd
Hall & Oates
Joy Division
#1 Bruce Springsteen: I'm no Bruce fan, but he should advance.
#8 Siouxsie & The Banshees: One of my top 10 artists needs to at least get to the next round, even if they'll be slaughtered by Bruce once there.
#12 Cameo: Very close, but Peter Gabriel's solo material is slightly disappointing.
#4 Blondie: I love "Old and Wise", but Blondie is a top 10 artist, and they have a chance to make it past round 2!
#3 Al Green: Closer than it may appear, but the Reverend has an edge.
#11 Whitesnake: Hair metal beats country-rock all day, every day.
#7 Hall & Oates: Blue-eyed soul beats arena rock all day, every day.
#2 Joy Division: A top 50 artist vs. a relative unknown for me.
#1 Bruce Springsteen
#9 Jackson Browne
#5 Peter Gabriel
#4 Blondie
#3 Al Green vs. #14 New York Dolls
#6 Lynyrd Skynyrd
#7 Hall & Oates
#2 Joy Division
RESULTS:
Bruce Springsteen 96% / Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes 4%
Siouxsie & The Bnashees 52.2% / Jackson Browne 47.8%
Peter Gabriel 82.6% / Cameo 17.4%
Blondie 75% / The Alan Parsons Project 25%
Al Green 87.5% / New York Dolls 12.5%
Lynyrd Skynyrd 78.2% / Whitesnake 21.8%
Hall & Oates 69.6% / Kansas 30.4%
Joy Division 90.5% / Black Uhuru 9.5%