I see some hands over here...
Dixville Notch, District of Columbia!
They Might Be Giants: And, no, I'm not doing this because somebody asked me. I just want to give some love to the geek rock genre.
Barenaked Ladies: See above.
Elvis Costello and the Attractions: Arguably, see above.
Jimi Hendrix Experience: This is more about giving some love to the late, lamented, Noel Redding. Plus, Jimi kicks ass.
Oh, and as for non-musical contests: you'd lose me for sure on sports, unless it exclusively involved football, in which case, maybe. I'd more than likely stick around for a Notre Dame-centered contest, but I know the odds of that happening on this blog.
You'd also probably lose me on television, as I'm one of those people who know a lot about a narrow selection of shows and is ignorant about the vast majority of the vast wasteland.
More music's fine for me, I guess, but what about movies? I'd probably be up for that.
Led Zeppelin.
Metallica.
The Eagles.
Jimi. Pearl Jam was really good for two or three years but it's been a decade since they've done anything worthwhile. Well...someone had to become the dino grunge band.
Oh, I'm one of the folks who suggested a shift from music for a little while. I'm beginning to have a sense of "been there, done that" what with the best song, best band stuff. While you won't lose me for TV or sports, a movie tournament would delight me to no end.
The reason I was shying away from movies is two-fold:
1). While I love movies and have taken film classes to understand WHY I love movies, the level of effete v. populist seen in these tournaments would be nothing compared to movies, and I am not sure I want to wade through that Big Muddy.
2). No, in reality, that was the main reason. But I am just sitting here thinking about how much I adore Thirteen Days and how it would never make the field and that to me feels like a microcosom.
Craig,
I think that's exactly why I SUPPORT a movie tournament. Nowhere in my pop culture diet do high and low class meet more than my love of movies. My music tastes are not nearly as diverse. The biggest problem I forsee with movies is the genre breakdown, but I think I have an idea to solve that.
You'd think the easiest call of the tournament would be in the first round. But no, it's in the second round. The most storied hard rock band of all time against an obnoxious cult act who've never written so much as one good song. (If TMBG wins, I'm protest voting Led Zeppelin for every match in this bracket from now on, except maybe for those that involve Hendrix.)
2. This is an interesting matchup. I go with Metallica on the sheer power of their top rank stuff, after they learned to write songs and before they got rich and lazy. I'm still trying to figure out how BNL got a #5 seed.
3. Elvis Costello. Now this one is tough. The coin flip says Eagles. But then I count the number of great songs by each band, and while Don Henley's best tunes can give EC a run for his money, EC's second tier wallops anything Glenn Frey ever wrote.
4. Hendrix. I have nothing against Pearl Jam - I like and respect them a bunch - but, come on. I don't think even Eddie Vedder would vote for Pearl Jam here.
1. Zeppelin, to spite my ex-housemate Dan, who hated Kashmir. I do too, but moreso because Puff Daddy used it for "Come With Me" from the Godzilla soundtrack. Anyways, they rule, says I, as I go over the waterfall with Otto.
PS: Sweet songs by TMBG not listed by Craig: S-E-X-X-Y and James K. Polk
2. Ouch. Too hard. Metallica for their early work, although Gordon may be one of my favorite CDs. BNL gets long overdue punishment for "The Old Apartment" - I hate that song!
3. The Eagles, for their fusion of country and rock. I respect the Elv, but I would push him more as a solo artist.
4. Jimi. Pearl Jam sucks. So sad.
How about something along the lines of "Most important moment in 20th Century American history"? That would eliminate the geekdom factor and would seem to make for some compelling arguments - discussions in the later rounds on the moon landing versus the Fourteen Points versus the fall of communism versus the Watergate scandal could get very interesting very quickly.
1. Zeppelin. More and better songs.
2. Metallica. More and better songs.
3. The Eagles. More and better songs (and the alternative is more of a one-man act)
4. Pearl Jam. More and better songs (and the alternative is more of a one-man act)
Hayden,
Let me see if I understand you correctly. You want me to spend my summer off from teaching AP U.S. History running a debate about U.S. History on my blog? It's not the worst idea...but it may have to wait until while I am back to work 
The only way I'd do a sports poll is if CWebb calling the TO and Debbie McCormick leading the US to curling gold were both #1 seeds.
Movies would be interesting, but at the same time I'm not that interested in participating in anything where The Palm Beach Story loses out to the f*cking Goonies.
Led Zep. I own nearly all TMBG's albums and no Zeppelin. I would have voted for TMBG had Edmund not opened his yap.
Metallica. Who should really be losing to XTC here, you bunch of hammerheads.
Costello et. al. The Eagles are one of the reasons punk had to happen.
The JHE. Even Vedder would agree.
* Led Zeppelin
* Barenaked Ladies
* The Eagles
* Jimi Hendrix Experience . . . what the hell is Pearl Jam, whom I always considered a Nirvana knockoff, doing at the TWO seed?!?!
1. Led Zeppelin
2. Bare Naked Ladies as a Napster vote.
3. The Eagles. "One of These Nights"-I've been searching for the daughter
of the devil himself/I've been searching for an angel in white/I've been waiting for a woman who's a little of both/And I can feel her but she's nowhere in sight. Pretty much explains why teen-aged boys are so screwed up.
4. Pearl Jam
Again, deferring to Mr. Gigundous Winamp Playlist on these:
TMBG: somewhere around 20
Zep: 1
Voting for the upset, though I'll be happy either way.
BNL: 0
Metallica: 0
Ordinarily, this would signal an abstention, but I forgot to add:
Lifetime ban from gigundous winamp playlist: BNL
Hence, Metallica.
The Eagles: 3, I think
Elvis Costello in his various incarnations: upwards of 50
A blowout!
Hendrix: 2
Pearl Jam: 0
I think I need to go download some Hendrix.
1. Particle man, particle man, particle man hates zeppelin man, they have a fight particle wins, particle. (c'mon someone was gonna do it.)
2. Metallica. It was once argued to me that the barenaked ladies was the best live show ever, not only do I doubt that it left enough of a sour taste to vote them down.
3. The Eagles.
4. Jimi Hendrix.
As for the ongoing debate, a non-music topic wouldn't lose me, although sports I'd be a little less likely to understand, but such is life. Movies would be interesting if done correctly, but I'm open to most anything.
1. TMBG, 'cause we were once so close to heaven, Peter came out and gave us medals declaring us the nicest of the damned.
2. Whoa contrast. I think Metallica is probably the "better" band, but I'd rather listen to BNL, so they get my vote.
3. The Eagles, because I have stood on a corner in Winslow, Arizona, and they're the only ones who could've made that a cool experience.
4. Pearl Jam. I'd abstain, but since--like, I imagine, all Joes--I want to shoot the next person who makes the "Hey Joe" joke, I'm voting anti-Hendrix.
5. Craig: music, sports, history, TV, book, film, beverage--if it's trashy or history-y, I'll be here.
Zep
BNL
EAGLES
PEARL JAM
-MMM
1. Zeppelin
2. BNL
3. Elvis
4. Hendrix
1. Led Zeppelin
2. Metallica---(I actually think Lars is kind of cute)
3.Elivs Costello--because I DESPISE the eagles
4.Jimi---because,I really don't get into Pearl jam.
As far as the next round goes, I think T.V. or movie would be the best/most interesting tournaments, But if it were, say sports, I would still vote, would just be very uninformed, thus skewing the results.
1.Zeppelin
2.Oooh, this is a tough one. I'll go with Metallica.
3.Elvis Costello etc. The Eagles blow.
4.Jimi.
Voting from a Republican Texas House District. (IOW, my Statehouse rep is in Austin, not neccesarily that I voted that way)
Zeppelin
BNL
Eagles
Hendrix
And yet, I can see myself voting for any of the other four bands against different competition.
I'd like to second Mr. Hurst's nomination of a U.S. History tournament, although I'd probably vote on just about anything thrown out there by the panel, save maybe for a movie tournament.
ozma is in the tournament right?
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