Pete Townshend's windmill!

We all know iconic rock stars like Mick Jagger, Freddie Mercury, Jimi Hendrix and Prince but how did they reach this legendary status? 

In the summer of 1996, I was in an American Folk Music class taught by a Grammy Award winning professor Kip Lornell.  One of our assignments was to define folk music.  Not so surprisingly, everyone enrolled in the class came up with different definitions.  But the consistent answer was that all of our responses included the term regionalism.

I also believe that regionalism plays a part in defining rock stars as well.  A music fan heavily entrenched in the 1990s Seattle, WA music scene might find Mike McCready to be a rock star, while those growing up in Central New Jersey in the mid-2000s would place Brian Fallon on a pedestal.  McCready is a founding member of Pearl Jam, and has contributed to Seattle super group Temple of the Dog as well as the well known side-projects Mad Season.  For me, he is the guitarist who produced the solo to the song “Alive”, Pearl Jam’s first hit single and was also voted to one of Guitar World's “100 Greatest Guitar Solos” list.  On the flip side, Brian Fallon fronted The Gaslight Anthem from 2007 thru 2015 and has been dubbed the “true heir to Springsteen,” by rock historian Matt Pinfield.  The talent of the prominent songwriter and vocalist of The Gaslight Anthem played a huge role in making British music history becoming the first band to ever appear on the cover of Kerrang! magazine without the magazine having previously written about them.

What gives birth to a rock star?  Rock Star: INXS was a reality television show where 15 contestants competed to become the lead vocalist for the Australian rock band INXS.  The winner of the series, J.D. Fortune, was announced and following the series, the band released the studio album ‘Switch’ with J.D. Fortune on lead vocals.  Just like that a ‘Rock Star’ was born.   I was personally partial to the other finalist Marty Casey, but was not consulted. 

There are new bands and performers paying their dues right now as I type this who will eventually become more than the next big thing.  Their moves will be emulated in front of mirrors, their songs sung along to on road-trips and posters hung from the walls.  When that time comes, I believe the criteria of being rock star will have evolved again.  In fact, it has just turned 2016, have you seen or heard Jack Garrat yet?  Consequence of Sound calls him the “textbook definition of an artist on the rise. Hailing from London, the 24-year-old multi-instrumentalist has. . .gone on to open for megastars like Mumford and Sons while simultaneously selling out his own solo headlining shows across Europe”.  His first studio album (‘Phase’) will be released on Island Records in February 2016.

And maybe not in early 2016, but one of these days, I hope to make it to both the cities of Seattle and Minneapolis.   The full itinerary is not finalized yet, but to get a real sense of the impression that both Hendrix and Prince made on their hometowns stops at EMP Museum and Paisley Park will certainly be in order. 

Thanks for reading.