Artists You Don't Have To Bend Over Backward To Defend

I saw this note on Substack:

Ezra Pound, despite a checkered political history, brought an unquestionable erudition, energy and integrity to his poetry. You can launch many complaints against him but in his poetry Pound offered, as Donald Hall writes, "the best of himself and of the cultures he loved." What more is an artist supposed to do?

I mean, Ezra fucking Pound? In 2024?

I want this to be a Scott Seward-esque Zone of Positivity. Share with me artists who aren't massive pieces of shit, artists whose work you can enjoy without offering self-evidently absurd caveats or granting yourself moral absolution first.

Who ya got?

Also, a particular challenge: Let's see if we can go 100 posts before we nitpick other people's nominees.

Kim Deal

2814

Holly Near

Jeanne-Paule Marie Deckers, aka "The Singing Nun"

Beverly Cleary

Basho

Stephen Malkmus

Neil Young

Ezra Pound

Oops already mentioned

Iannis Xenakis

Roscoe Mitchell

the Native Tongues, all of them.

Fred Rogers

David Carson

Aretha

Ursula K. Le Guin

is the question artists *i* dont feel the need to fall over backwards defending or are we looking for nominations for unimpeachably perfect people who happen to have made art i also like

wary either way tbh because of the obvious presumption that's rather at the heart of the question

thread designed to age terribly

not sure I get this impulse

Laurie Anderson

“Also, a particular challenge: Let's see if we can go 100 posts before we nitpick other people's nominees.”

This is the funniest part. “Don’t kill my vibe!”

Barry Chuckle

Funny this is breaking people's brains.

The assignment: Post artists who were not as massive pieces of shit as Ezra Pound and make 100 posts before tearing into other people's nominees.

ILX should be racing to get to 100.

25. Jimmy Buffett

26. Keith Richards

27. Keith Sweat

geez this is hard!!

Yup. I checked out Dr Seuss on Wikipedia and found a noteworthy blot on his record. Probably not enough to undo all the good he promoted, but enough that I didn't feel like he fit the profile for this thread.

Weird Al

Pete Shelley

cindy sherman
parker posey
rita moreno
carol burnett

Timothy Spall
Jim Broadbent
Bill Nighy
Nitin Sawnhey

Think that takes us to 37.

BOOTSY COLLINS

In July 2010, Collins, in partnership with former child actor Cory Danziger,[21] launched Funk University ("Funk U"), an online-only bass guitar school in which he also serves as curator and lead professor. Funk University offers an intense curriculum tailored for intermediate to advanced bass players as well as anyone interested in a deeper understanding of funk.

In an April 2011 interview with The Guardian, Collins stated that, at one point in his life, he took LSD every day for over two years.[30]

Hero

Ezra Pound

― A So-Called Pulitzer price winner (President Keyes), Sunday, May 26, 2024 5:08 PM (yesterday) bookmarkflaglink

Oops already mentioned

― A So-Called Pulitzer price winner (President Keyes), Sunday, May 26, 2024 5:09 PM (yesterday) bookmarkflaglink

I lolled