The top 100 - Harry Secombe is hot, the Sex Pistols are not
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Your support makes all the difference.NO SURPRISES about the winners, then. With boring predictability, The Beatles were yesterday voted Britain's favourite music performers of all time, ahead of the equally predictable Elvis, Frank Sinatra, Queen and Elton John.
So much for the top five, but what about further down the list. What about No. 31 - Daniel O'Donnell? Or how about No. 48 - Michael Ball? And both ahead of the likes of Bruce Springsteen, the Beach Boys and Stevie Wonder? And no Clash, Sex Pistols, T Rex or James Brown.
If there is anything that can be said about the survey carried out by the British Market Research Bureau (BMRB), it is that it certainly canvassed listeners of all ages. And tastes.
A total of 5,000 people were questioned face-to-face in their homes in April and May. The results were published yesterday by the middle-of-the- road pop and rock magazine Mojo.
Analysis of the full list shows that the British public prefer "the pleasant, the healing, the memorable and, above all, the radio-friendly," according to Mojo editor Mat Snow. "While many younger voters will have changed their minds since this survey was conducted, many older respondents obviously gave the same answer they would have done 20 years ago."
At least two generations of 1970s music fans seem to have been forgotten, with only David Bowie representing glam rock. Similarly, the only charting acts that could be described as remotely punk are Paul Weller and the Police, both of whom completely changed their images and their music after the safety-pin strewn 1970s. The stars of the 1980s seem to have lacked staying power. There is no Duran Duran, no Smiths and no Spandau Ballet on the list.
Golden oldies such as Mario Lanza, Glenn Miller, Nat King Cole, Harry Secombe and Vera Lynn get a good hearing. Sir Cliff Richard emerges as the true housewives' choice. His 96 votes included only nine from men - and just 12 from under 45s.
Nineties acts had to console themselves with lowly placings. Oasis were the favourites of the British youth, and the only Nineties band to make it to the Top 10. Celine Dion emerged as the most successful Nineties artist, winning 118 votes, 89 of which came from women.
The Beatles vote (five per cent) was fairly evenly split between men and women, mainly from the 45-54 age group and middle-class music lovers. Elvis got nearly as many votes from women as The Beatles, and fans of the King of Rock 'n' Roll tended to be more working class.
So what is it about Mr O'Donnell, who inspires women to queue for days to throw teabags at him? His spokeswoman, Alison Griffin, said: "He is a very nice man who sings nice songs, very nicely."
Exactly.
Britain's All-Time Favourites
1. The Beatles
2. Elvis Presley
3. Frank Sinatra
4. Queen
5. Elton John
6. Celine Dion
7. Cliff Richard
8. Oasis
9. Luciano Pavarotti
10. Phil Collins
11. George Michael
12. Nat King Cole
13. Bing Crosby
14. Michael Jackson
15. Shirley Bassey
16. Jim Reeves
17. The Rolling
Stones
18. Simply Red
19. Rod Stewart
20. Madonna
21. Abba
22. Neil Diamond
23. Bob Marley
24. U2
25. Diana Ross
26. Bon Jovi
27. Pink Floyd
28. Eric Clapton
29. David Bowie
30. Barbra Streisand
31. Daniel O'Donnell
32. The Carpenters
33. Dire Straits
34. Ella Fitzgerald
35. Placido Domingo
36. Boyzone
37. Wet Wet Wet
38. Tom Jones
39. Tina Turner
40. Backstreet Boys
41. Bob Dylan
42. Roy Orbison
43. Meat Loaf
44. Paul Weller
45. The Verve
46. Led Zeppelin
47. John Lennon
48. Michael Ball
49. Radiohead
50. M People
51. The Lighthouse
Family
52. Michael Bolton
53. Status Quo
54. The Prodigy
55. Prince
56. Luther Vandross
57. R.E.M.
58. The Spice Girls
59. Fleetwood Mac
60. The Three Tenors
61. Glenn Miller
62. All Saints
63. Bryan Adams
64. Enya
65. Simon & Garfunkel
66. Lionel Richie
67. Whitney Houston
68. Paul McCartney
69. James Last
70. UB40
71. Matt Munro
72. Mario Lanza
73. Buddy Holly
74. The Eagles
75. The Stone Roses
76. Barry Manilow
77. Vera Lynn
78. Frankie Vaughan
79. Genesis
80. Bruce Spring steen
81. Perry Como
82. Paul Robeson
83. Nirvana
84. Johnny Mathis
85. Robbie Williams
86. Chris Rea
87. Kiri Te Kanawa
88. Stevie Wonder
89. Eternal
90. The Beautiful
South
91. Billy Joel
92. The Seekers
93. Take That
94. Harry Secombe
95. Jimi Hendrix
96. The Beach Boys
97. Alanis Morissette
98. Madness
99. Tammy Wynette
100. The Police
Compiled by the British Market Research Bureau for 'Mojo' magazine
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