Who is the greatest british musician in our lifetime?

[tommy toes]

I've got include my musical hero as nobody else has seen fit to.
Ian Anderson, former leader of Jethro Tull.
He's been writing and performing for 50 years and as anyone who saw Tull will agree, a mesmerising showman. He's still going strong and touring all the time despite vocal problems.
He's written hundreds of songs from blues,rock, folk, jazz, ballads, world music and classical and is a multi instrumentalist.
The blokes a genius.

[MachoMadness]

He's a man who cares about his responsibilities. He doesn't run away from his mistakes and he is there when his friends and family need him. He doesn't miss. That makes him a decent guy as far as I'm concerned. If you're worried about a genius focussing on his art, then I'm afraid there's an awful lot of brilliant people you're not going to like.

BobG

He did focus on his art, apart from the time he stopped playing music to give a white power speech on stage, describing Britain as a "black colony" and repeatedly referring to "wogs". He's never apologised for that, by the way, and in fact has repeatedly praised Enoch Powell decades after the fact. Goes above and beyond a rock star being a bit 'difficult', really.

Great musician for sure, but it is puzzling that you refer to an overt racist as a decent guy.

To be on topic, Tony Iommi revolutionised playing the guitar and invented an entire genre, so surely he deserves a mention?

[NickDRFC]

Similarly I'm not sure his Doncaster-born daughter would agree that he is there for his family when they need him. Brilliant musician, genius even, yes, decent, no.

[TommyC]

Eric also nicked his best mate's wife as well. George Harrison bore no grudge about it and they remained close mates apparently but even so, certain lines you don't cross.

Incidentally and given someone mentions it, I once took said daughter Ruth to the pictures back when we were teenagers. Nice girl and still lives locally I believe. Now the mother to ECs grandkids.

[silent majority]

As I've said before I rate him as a musician, and I mean really rate him. But his autobiography is a real eye opener. The people around him, girlfriends etc, who he introduced to hard drugs who then subsequently died is a shocker! His attitude to women was a disgrace.

The point I made him being dedicated to his music, to the detriment of his fellow musicians in a lot of cases, mirrors his personal life. Seems to be a very, very selfish individual.

[BobG]

Don't be silly Nick. Not only was EC always there for her, but he made trip after trip after trip to her school to see school plays, school concerts and school events. He also gave a private concert in the school almost every year. He was there for his daughter constantly. He invited a boy in his daughters' class, who she had got the hots for, to his ranch in Arizona or wherever, to spend Christmas with the girl, him and Sharon Stone.

You are deluded mate. I repeat: maybe as a kid he played about - but so did I and, unless you're a saint, so did you. He has stood by his friends and his family for decades. It's not just me that thinks this puts him above a huge crowd of other mortals. Our political leaders extol those virtues too.

Bob

[NickDRFC]

Charming anecdotes, but I stand by what I said - I'm not sure she would agree that he's there for his family when they need him. Not always.

I'm still surprised that you consider him a decent person. Put it this way - if, when I have kids, I had a son who behaved like he so often has, I would be appalled. Even if he had twice the musical talent that Clapton has.

Anyway, it seems pretty clear that you have the one view and several others of us have an opposing one, so perhaps we should get back to discussing the great musical talent this country has produced!