FYI: 4 brackets left until the 2nd round which starts next Wednesday. Championship will take place in early June...

Vote for your winners, results posted tomorrow:
#1 Bob Dylan vs. #16 Procol Harum
#8 Jethro Tull vs. #9 Isaac Hayes
#5 Frank Sinatra vs. #12 Jerry Lee Lewis
#4 The Byrds vs. #13 The Coasters
#3 Chuck Berry vs. #14 MC5
#6 The Stooges vs. #11 The Righteous Brothers
#7 Jefferson Airplane vs. #10 Yes
#2 James Brown vs. #15 Blind Faith

#1 Bob Dylan
#9 Isaac Hayes
#5 Frank Sinatra
#4 The Byrds
#14 MC5
#6 The Stooges
#7 Jefferson Airplane
#2 James Brown

Thanks!

Bob Dylan
Jethro Tull
pass
Byrds
MC5
Stooges
Yes
James Brown

Bob Dylan
Isaac Hayes
Frank Sinatra
The Byrds
Chuck Berry
The Stooges
Jefferson Airplane
James Brown

#1 Dylan ~~~
#8 Tull ~~~ Chef was tempting, just like a few more Tull songs...
#5 Sinatra ~~~
#4 The Byrds ~~~
#3 Chuck ~~~
#6 The Stooges ~~~
#10 Yes ~~~ I wonder if the reincarnation of this band that built this city on rock 'n roll makes me think less of Jefferson Airplane???
#2 JB ~~~

Not alot of comments today...

Bob Dylan (Though Procol got serious consideration)
Jethro Tull
Frank Sinatra
The Byrds
Chuck Berry (tough call)
Righteous Brothers (went with my heart on this one)
Jefferson Airplane (another tuffy)
James Brown

#1 Bob Dylan
#8 Jethro Tull
#12 Jerry Lee Lewis
#4 The Byrds
pass
#6 The Stooges
#7 Jefferson Airplane
#2 James Brown

#1 Bob Dylan
#9 Isaac Hayes
#5 Frank Sinatra
#4 The Byrds
#3 Chuck Berry
#6 The Stooges
#7 Jefferson Airplane
#2 James Brown

Bob Dylan
Isaac Hayes
Frank Sinatra
The Byrds
Chuck Berry
The Stooges
Yes
James Brown

#1 Bob Dylan
#9 Isaac Hayes
#5 Frank Sinatra (although Jerry Lee Lewis has made the best live album ever!)
#4 The Byrds
#3 Chuck Berry
#6 The Stooges
#7 Jefferson Airplane
#2 James Brown

#1 Bob Dylan
#8 Jethro Tull
#5 Frank Sinatra
#4 The Byrds
#3 Chuck Berry
#6 The Stooges
#10 Yes - I'm glad I didn't pick up that 2nd hand copy of Big Generator the other day. They still win on earlier stuff...
#2 James Brown

#1 Bob Dylan
#8 Jethro Tull - Hayes is a bit of a one-trick pony. Then again, so is Jethro Tull. And despite the fact that I enjoy Hayes' trick better than Tull's trick, Tull has done more with it. Put another way... I like Aqualung a lot more than Shaft.
#12 Jerry Lee Lewis - Really tough match up here. But I have been finding less and less in Sinatra as the years go by. I loved him in college, but not so much any more, even as I have picked up some of his classic albums. But the Killer I have always felt was an underrated pioneer, and just simply a blast to listen to.
#4 The Byrds - I gave the Coasters serious consideration, whose singles are a joy. But aside from being broad and having a unique sound, the Byrds have the best song of the two artists: "I'll Feel a Whole Lot Better."
#3 Chuck Berry - MC5, who are slightly overrated, are thoroughly outclassed.
#6 The Stooges
#10 Yes - For all their excesses, Yes can be super catchy and tuneful. The less said about the unpleasant sound of Jefferson Airplane, the better.
#2 James Brown

#1 Bob Dylan

#9 Isaac Hayes (I guess it’s true that Tull has a more extensive body of work. But with a body like that…)

#12 Jerry Lee Lewis (A surprisingly easy choice for me. It feels much more in the spirit of the UMT – and AM generally – to go with the Killer over the Chairman. And yes, Henrik, Live at the Star-Club is awesome.)

#4 The Byrds

#3 Chuck Berry (No contest…and it’s too bad, because a Stooges/MC5 matchup in round 2 would have been fun.)

#6 The Stooges

#7 Jefferson Airplane (John Lennon notwithstanding, when I think of the “sound” of 1967, I think of “White Rabbit” and “Somebody to Love.”)

#2 James Brown

#1 Bob Dylan
#9 Isaac Hayes
#12 Jerry Lee Lewis
#4 The Byrds
#3 Chuck Berry
#6 The Stooges
#7 Jefferson Airplane
#2 James Brown

#1 Bob Dylan
#8 Jethro Tull
#5 Frank Sinatra
#4 The Byrds
#3 Chuck Berry
#11 The Righteous Brothers
#10 Yes
#15 Blind Faith

#1 Bob Dylan - too bad Procol Harum had to run into a buzzsaw, because they were a great band, so much more to 'em than "Whiter Shade of Pale"
#9 Isaac Hayes
#5 Frank Sinatra
#4 The Byrds
#3 Chuck Berry
#6 The Stooges
#10 Yes - Their run in '71-'72 is pretty spectacular. And I'm with Schwah on Jefferson Airplane...yuck.
#2 James Brown

I agree. Though Yes did put out a lot of crap over their career, some of my favorite musical moments are contained on The Yes Album, Fragile, and Close to the Edge. I can see why many dislike Yes, but it's hard to think of a rock band that assembled a more talented lineup than early-70s Yes.

#1 Bob Dylan
#8 Jethro Tull
#12 Jerry Lee Lewis
#4 The Byrds
#3 Chuck Berry
#6 The Stooges
#10 Yes
#2 James Brown

#16 Procol Harum
#9 Isaac Hayes
#12 Jerry Lee Lewis
#4 The Byrds
#3 Chuck Berry
#6 The Stooges
#7 Jefferson Airplane
#2 James Brown

#1 Bob Dylan
#8 Jethro Tull
#12 Jerry Lee Lewis
#4 The Byrds
#3 Chuck Berry
#6 The Stooges
#10 Yes
Only hard vote today.
#2 James Brown

#1 Bob Dylan
#8 Jethro Tull
#5 Frank Sinatra
#4 The Byrds
#3 Chuck Berry
#6 The Stooges
#7 Jefferson Airplane
#15 Blind Faith

I’ve been doing a little forecasting now that the entire region has been revealed. If I was running this tournament myself, these are what the Final Four artists in the 50s/60s region would be (along with who they would beat to get in, in parentheses):

The Beatles (over the Velvet Underground, in an EPIC tussle)
David Bowie (over Hank Williams)
The Rolling Stones (over either Parliament/Funkadelic or the Kinks, haven’t decided yet)
Bob Dylan (over Stevie Wonder)

I realize that’s the top four seeds in this region. I feel very boring.

Mr. Zimmerman
Jethro Tull
Jerry (have I mentioned I don't like blue eyes?)
Byrds
Berry (But who can't love a guy screaming KICK OUT THE JAMS, MOTHERFUCKERS!!!)
Pass
Jefferson
Pass

#1 Bob Dylan
#9 Isaac Hayes
#12 Jerry Lee Lewis
#3 Chuck Berry
#6 The Stooges#10 Yes
#2 James Brown

RESULTS:
Bob Dylan 96.9% / Procol Harum 3.1%
Jethro Tull 56.2% / Isaac Hayes 45.7%
Frank Sinatra 67.7% / Jerry Lee Lewis 32.3%
The Byrds 96.9% / The Coasters 3.1%
Chuck Berry 90.6% / MC5 9.3%
The Sooges 76.7% / The Righteous Brothers 23.3%
*** TIE *** Jefferson Airplane & Yes 50% EACH ***
James Brown 90.6% / Blind Faith 9.4%

I wish it could be possible to give a double vote to one of the 8 match-ups (the one that you care about most). Anyone else who think this would be a good idea?

I am actually kicking around an idea for next year's tournament where there would be 3 artists in each matchup where you can give 2 votes to one artist or 1 vote to 2 of the 3 artists...

I tossed around an idea like that for Moderate, except you would just be picking one 'Favorite' per week, and that 'Favorite' vote would be the first tiebreaker.

My only reservation for this idea is that it may favor more well known acts even more than they are already favored. If you introduced this rule you would also need a 'No voting against bands you've never heard a single thing by' rule.

I like the favorite vote for each region. My idea right now is to have 9 matchups for each brackets consisting of 3 artists. For each matchups you get 2 votes to divy out, either 2 for one artist or 1 to 2 different artists.

For the entire bracket you would get a +1 vote for your favorite from the bracket and a -1 vote for an artist you dislike the most. Making voting more strategic.

As for not being familiar with certain artists, that is something that is each to its own for each voter. That being said, there are resources online such as youtube and others where a voter can check out what each artist is all about and form an opinion. Sometimes they might surprise themselves to find out they are familiar without knowing it. But in all fairness it does make it uneven once people vote for only artists they know, perhaps there is a way to work that part of the problem out.

There is a year to figure out the best way to do this.

I like the idea in general of letting voters put greater emphasis on their favorite, but I don't like the -1 for least favorite. I think bands that are loved and hated should win over bands everyone thinks is just okay.

And I think having three in a bracket will have far fewer upsets than having two. I'd rather have rule changes that help the underdogs, not hurt them.

Again, these are some ideas I have been kicking around.