IMHO I think its Lennon/ Mac Cartney for ovious reasons I'll fill in the rest when I get back from dinner

Sorry abd thanks.

Here is my list:

Barry, Robin, Maurice Gibb
Willie Nelson
Carol King
Bob Dylan

Willie Dixon
Dylan
Buddy Holly

the last 20 years
Bob Mould

Off the top of my head, Leonard Cohen.

Bob Dylan!!!!!!!!!!!!

Leonard Cohen
John Hiatt
Townes Van Zandt
Gordon Downie (Tragically Hip)
Dylan
John Prine
Guy Clark
Schoolhouse Rock...

Simon/Garfunkel

Cole Porter

Dylan
Prince

George Gershwin

George Gershwin

Ok, now I like that one, along with Berlin & Copeland. I wasn't thinking along those lines.

IMHO I think its Lennon/ Mac Cartney........

Now, back to rock & roll. It's tough to top the Lennon/McCartney works. When I read the posted question, the first names that popped into my head were Elton John/Bernie Taupin.

Partnership: Lennon/McCartney and Jagger/Richards

Solo: Dylan and Lou Reed

Vastly underrated: Nick Lowe

Bob Dylan!!!!!!!!!!!!

+1 also add Guy Clark, John Hiatt,and that Cohen guy from Canada

i'll go with the Quint format.

partnership - the abovementioned plus plant/page and axl/slash
solo - dylan, neil young
vastly underrated - melissa etheridge

+1 on Simon and Garfunkel. Also need to mention Mark Knopfler. He's a great storyteller, creates vivid characters in his songs.

Quint format:

Collaboration: Hands down Simon and Garfunkel
Solo: Neil Young, Cole Porter, Mark Knopfler,
Vastly underrated: Jimmie Spheeris and Steve Scott

Cole Porter
Robyn Hitchcock
Jonathan Richman

All of the above, plus:

Irving Berlin
Rogers and Hammerstein
Nick Cave
Hank Williams
Don Robertson
Jack Clement
Harlan Howard

....we can't all just say Lennon/McCartney, otherwise there'd be no thread....:D

C.

Chrissie Hynde

cohen,dylan, van zandt. but then, simon and 'funkel, and what about old hank w.?

and what about old hank w.?

Yep, he wrote lots of classics. Bob Wills too.

Can't forget Stephen Foster either.

Hart/Hammerstein
Kern/Hammerstein

All above

Add: Steve Goodman

Other than those already mentioned, I've always been partial to Jackson Browne's writing, esp. on the first 5 albums.

Enjoy the music,
-Mark

Franz Schubert

Bob Dylan
John Hart
Neil Young
Leonard Cohen

George and Ira Gershwin, Johnny Mercer, Hank Williams Sr. Burt Baccarack, Kris Kristoferson. Willie, Mick & Kieth. Hendrix. Merle Haggard, Elton & Bernie. Barry Gordie and the Motown machine. Dylan, Chuck Berry.

I think Woody Guthrie wrote more than anyone.
4000 unrecorded songs when he died.

Very hard to round it down to one so I'll give three

Brian Wilson
Stevie Wonder
Elton John

Neil Diamond.

He may not be the greatest, but I find his songs and performances to be incredibly memorable and moving -- Richard Shindell. Several of his songs have driven me to tears.

http://www.richardshindell.com/index.php?page=home

Go see him perform should he be appearing near you.

...Barry Gordie and the Motown machine. Dylan, Chuck Berry.

Barry Gordy really wasn't a writer or composer. He was more of an executive producer. Holland Dozier Holland, Smokey Robinson, Barrett Strong and Norman Whitfield, and Stevie Wonder were the prolific writers at Motown.

I will suggest Brian Wilson, John Sebastian, Roy Orbison, Paul Anka, Bob Gaudio, John Fogerty, Bob Seger, Don Henley, Justin Hayward, Al Stewart and Harry Chapin.

+ Thelonious Monk

the last 20 years
Bob Mould

Bob Mould is pretty damn good

"a simple word or two... I need a little clarity if you make it clear doubt would surely disappear"

Some more not mentioned yet:
Jim Croce
Cat Stevens
Paul Kelly
Pete Seeger

Barry Gordy really wasn't a writer or composer. He was more of an executive producer. Holland Dozier Holland, Smokey Robinson, Barrett Strong and Norman Whitfield, and Stevie Wonder were the prolific writers at Motown.

I will suggest Brian Wilson, John Sebastian, Roy Orbison, Paul Anka, Bob Gaudio, John Fogerty, Bob Seger, Don Henley, Justin Hayward, Al Stewart and Harry Chapin.

I didn't say he was the only writer, that's why I added the Motown machine.
http://tracy_prinze.tripod.com/atributetomotown/id31.html
Read the article and you will see he wrote many songs. Lonely teardrops was one of his first. Give him a Google and you will see he started as a composer in the music bizz.

Gordy did write "Money (that's what I want)"
That is the only one I know of.

Lightfoot, Gordon...Dvorak, his ninth.

Ian Anderson

Julian Cope
Andy Partridge
Steve Earle

[B]Vastly underrated: Nick Lowe

:thmbsp:

Tom Waits

Eddie Spaghetti

Many greats mentioned......but I do believe we've forgotten Kris Kristofferson, who is certainly gifted with great genius even though he did waste a lot of time wasted.

From that experience we got Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down.

Rich Mullins wasn't bad either.

Greatest songwriter ever? J. S. Bach.

John Lennon

Barry Gordy really wasn't a writer or composer. He was more of an executive producer. Holland Dozier Holland, Smokey Robinson, Barrett Strong and Norman Whitfield, and Stevie Wonder were the prolific writers at Motown.

I will suggest Brian Wilson, John Sebastian, Roy Orbison, Paul Anka, Bob Gaudio, John Fogerty, Bob Seger, Don Henley, Justin Hayward, Al Stewart and Harry Chapin.

I'll second Al Stewart.

He wrote and performed most of his music (95% ?)

Once you get past his "radio hits" you will see what an intellectual he was. His songs are about history, and you'll learn from them.

Being an intellectual he writes some amazing "play on words" tunes.

Randy Newman & Bruce Cockburn as well

Dirk Hamilton

Laura Nyro :thmbsp:

Tom Rapp in the top five.

Strummer/Jones
Woody Guthrie

Brian Wilson

I agree with a lot of the above mentioned but you can't leave out RICHARD THOMPSON

Kris Kristofferson

David stewart
bob geldof

Lennon/McCartney can't be the greatest songwriter.......that's two guys.

They'd be right close to the top of the much shorter list of two-guy songwriting teams, though.

Bob Neuwirth

Bob Dylan
Kurt Cobain
Marshall Mathers

I'll throw two more into the mix, you may not recognize their names but you certainly know their songs:
Otis Blackwell: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otis_Blackwell
Check out this tribute cd: http://www.google.com/musicl?lid=56t-TaCZV7I

Doc Pomus: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doc_Pomus

Check out the great Johnny Adams tribute to Doc Pomus:"The Real Me", Johnny Adams Sings Doc Pomus. Wonderfully crafted songs played by an all star rotation of New Orleans session men, paired with Johnny Adams wonderful voice. Not Doc's most famous works but great material nevertheless.

http://www.google.com/musicl?lid=hlD8306bKaL&aid=ykXft0mIcj

Robert Hunter & Jerry Garcia, Joe Strummer & Mick Jones, and Bob Weir & John Perry Barlow are three partnerships not yet mentioned.

Robert Hunter & Jerry Garcia, Joe Strummer & Mick Jones, and Bob Weir & John Perry Barlow are three partnerships not yet mentioned.



Flo & Eddie. :smoke:

more great songwriting teams

Gerry Goffin and Carole King
Burt Bacharach and Hal David
Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil
Jerry Lieber and Mike Stoller
Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart
Neil Sedaka and Howard Greenfield
Ellie Greenwich and Jeff Barry
Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman
Nick Ashford and Valerie Simpson
Albert Hammond and Mike Hazelwood
Morrissey and Johnny Marr
Lerner and Loewe
Rodgers and Hart
George and Ira Gershwin
Rodgers and Hammerstein

Bruce Springsteen. Can't say he's the absolute greatest, but definitely worth mentioning.

Well, it's amazing how many truly great songwriters there are.......and here's another that deserves a nomination as greatest.

http://www.mickeynewbury.com/bio.htm

Bernie Taupin

Ellie Greenwich and Jeff Barry


Jeff Barry was a genius! is a genius?

Leonard Cohen
John Hiatt
Townes Van Zandt
Gordon Downie (Tragically Hip)
Dylan
John Prine
Guy Clark
Schoolhouse Rock...

All of the above plus Greg Brown :yes:

Thankfully there have many merely great but the GREATEST? Toss up Lennon/McCartney and Dylan

Jimmy Buffett.

Songwriters, solo and tandem:

Gustav Mahler
Stephen Sondheim solo and with Leonard Bernstein
Harold Arlen often with Yip Yarburg or Johnny Mercer
Harry Warren, often with Al Dubin
Johnny Mercer
Hoagy Carmichael
Buddy Holly
Jerome Kern with Dorothy Fields or Oscar Hammerstein II
Comden and Greene
Richard Rogers with Lorenz Hart or Oscar Hammerstein II

Bob Dylan for me. Can't stand his singing but love his writing....

Lots of great folks already mentioned, so for an individual, I would suggest Ray Wylie Hubbard. For a team, I would nominate Roger Chapman and Charlie (sometimes listed as John) Whitney who were first together in Family and later in Streetwalkers.

***Paul Westerberg***
***Bob Dylan***
***Neil Young***

How did we go 70+ posts without a mention of John D. Loudermilk?


"Norman...Norman, my love..."

Many great ones mentioned here.

Have to add my .02 cents.

Neil Young is definitly on my list as well as CSN & CSN&Y.

Townes Van Zandt
Lucinda Williams
Patty Griffin
Tori Amos
Mary Gauthier
Buddy & Julie Miller
Ry Cooder (Is there anyone as diverse and prolific)

Some of these artist have huge catalogs of great music others not as much, but everyone of them write lyrics that can tear your heart out as they are great story tellers.:yes:

And many I can't remember at the moment.:scratch2:

eddie vedder
chris cornell