Most Influential Songwriters of All Time
The musicians who, by the force of their writing, have changed the way we view music and, quite often, life.
Across The universe, Imagine, And your Bird Can sing, Sexy Sadie, It won't be Long, Nowhere Man, Strawberry Fields, Walrus, All you Need Is Love, Benefit of Mr. Kite, Bungalow bill, Dear Prudence, Revolution, Come Together. What kind of ignorant dunce would moronically label this genius overrated? Pity the fool!
Johns lyrics are the most poignant, unflinchingly self reflective, other worldly and cutting edge. He is my favorite of all time. closely rivaled by Paul Simon who also writes other worldly songs as well My two choices..."Across the Universe" and "Only Living Boy in New York".
Only a delusional Freddie Mercury lover could call John Lennon "overrated". Thank God there are The Beatles towering at #1 to keep Queen fans in their place.
Unparalleled in his brilliance. He's the best there ever was and the Beatles were so lucky to have him! Actually..it's us who were so lucky to have him. Miss him so much!

Again, I'm not a big fan of his music, but he's still going after over fifty years, which is something not many musicians can claim.
John Lennon above Bob Dylan ? What is this nonsense ? Bob Dylan TAUGHT John Lennon and Paul McCartney ! Whats not to understand ?
Actually, after getting past his voice, I am now a big fan of his music. Should have put him higher.
He has been very creative through the years. He is an excellent songwriter.

In terms of success how could you not choose Paul? Also you have to remember he has written some of the most recorded songs in history including the number 1 recorded song in history with Yesterday. Also his appeal rivals Dylan although Dylan was and is a great songwriter and should be in the top 10 you can surely argue that Paul deserves the number 1 spot.
It was a toss-up between Lennon and McCartney for the top spot. But Paul holds the first two slots on the TheTopTens Best Beatles Songs list with Hey Jude and Let It Be. Not to mention the most covered song of all time in Yesterday.
First of all, get a real pic of him. He rivaled Lennon in the Beatles, and maybe even edged him out. But don't forget the 1970s. Wings may catch a lot of crap but there were some stellar songs. If nothing else, he wrote "Maybe I'm Amazed."
Lennon or McCartney, The Beatles are the most influential ever!

As a duo with Art Garfunkel, he crafted materpieces such as The Sound of Silence and Bridge Over Troubled Water. After they split, Simon had a successful solo career.
Beyond brilliant. a true cutting edge pioneer. The most beautiful lyric and music of all time!
Insecure, neurotic genius. Hardly a crap song in his repertiore

I'm more a queen fan in fact, but in songwriting I think bowie would beat them anyway...

The album Pet Sounds is Brian's greatest contribution to popular music. It includes the beautiful God Only Knows. But his most famous and influential song is, without a doubt, Good Vibrations, slated for release on the cancelled SMiLE project.
Progressive genius - greatest producer of all time, greatest pop songwriter of all time - could neglect all rules there are to songwriting and come up with incredibly catchy tunes.
The one songwriter who Lennon and McCartney thought they had to try extra hard to keep up with.

Australia's prince of darkness. Has written some of the most beautiful but dark songs ever!
Has produced tons of music able to influence people and men.
More than 40 years of creativity!
He influences me a lot!

He's Canadian gotta go with my countryman!

Totally underrated... Should be top 5!

Nobody captured teenage angst like Pete Townshend. And he could communicate it succinctly as in a song like "The Kids Are Alright" or "I Can't Explain", or delve deeply into the teenage psyche as he did in the double album Who masterpiece, "Quadrophenia" A lyrical and musical genius. Ask anybody!
Wrote songs like you wouldn't believe.
The Newcomers


During his short career, Holly wrote, recorded, and produced his own material. He is often regarded as the artist who defined the traditional rock-and-roll lineup of two guitars, bass, and drums. Holly was a major influence on later popular music artists, including The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Eric Clapton, and Elton John. ...read more.
The Beatles are one of the many groups he influenced, and The Crickets were one of the first true bands in rock 'n' roll. He was with us far too short of a time.

"All the lonely people, where do they all come from? All the lonely people, where do they all belong?"
"There are places I'll remember, all my life, though some have changed; some forever, not for better, some are gone, but some remain".
"He didn't notice that the lights had changed".
"She told me she worked in the morning and started to laugh; I told her I didn't, and crawled off to sleep in the bath".
Love, love me do
You know I love you
I'll always be true
So please, love me do
Whoa, love me do
...
Is this the real life?
Is this just fantasy?
Caught in a landslide
No escape from reality
Open your eyes
Look up to the skies and see
I'm just a poor boy, I need no sympathy
Because I'm easy come, easy go
A little high, little low
Anyway the wind blows, doesn't really matter to me, to me...
...
Is there any question?
He was much more creative, experimental than Paul McCartney and John Lennon together. He created a lot of amazing and timeless songs is a lot of genre, not just pop/rock as McCartney and Lennon.
Idontreallycaretoomuch:
Bicycle race is a great song.
He never ever wrote such stupid and easy songs like "Love me do", or "I want to hold your hand", or "Yellow submarine"...

John Denver was very underrated. If you don't believe me, listen to take me home country roads or sunshine on my shoulders. Both are really calming and happy songs.
His songs never fail to lift the spirit. Put him on when you're down. He'll raise you up.
Highly underrated. His songs are so poetic and inspirational.

With songs such as Johnny B. Goode, Sweet Little Sixteen, and Rock and Roll Music, he paved the way for rock 'n' roll to grow even bigger.

There isn't absolutely no way that the lyrics he wrote from Medley to The Final cut will ever be topped by another lyricist in the history of popular music. Especially the lyrics from Dark side of the Moon, which are in great part responsible for the album still selling five thousand copies every week in the US alone.
Main songwriter for Pink Floyd. He wrote all of the songs for Wish You Were here, Dark Side of The Moon, and The Wall, the latter being a concept album and a DOUBLE album, meaning that it was on 2 CDs.
18?I don't know what life is without him
Listen to the entire the wall and try to tell me this man isn't the best songwriter of all time

Can't say I'm a fan, but there's no denying his influence.
He has definitely changed peoples' lives!

Clearly number one!

He's definitely as great and talented as Lennon and McCartney!
An underrated talent that deserves to be higher than 28!
One of the greatest musicians and songwriters of all time. Unfortunately, he was only the third best in his own band.



Barry Gibb has been an amazing songwriter for decades!
He is a musical genius who people overlook because of hits written during the disco era.
Immorality and Too Much Heaven are top notch songs!
Only Lennon-McCartney have produced more number ones in history.
Dude is so awesome with just the lyrics he has written for others.


Not only did he pen many of the songs that brought Sex Pistols to stardom, he also completely turned music and the basic structure of songwriting on its head with Public Image Limited, MULTIPLE times. With each new release, even up to 2015's What the world needs now... there's always something new and innovative, and his evolution of songwriting from pistols to where he is now, is a transformation that very few musicians have accomplished

To the person who posted 'He didn't write any of his songs'... crawl back under your rock. Bernie Taupin wrote the lyrics, handed them to Elton & within 1/2 hour, Elton had composed the whole song from start to finish, all the arrangements, everything PLUS he plays them on the piano and SINGS them. I heard Elton say in one interview that he composed the music to one of his songs in 10 minutes.
