THE CREEM READERS GUIDE TO 1974

So, that was 1974, huh? Well, the gnarled little old gnome who counts the ballots just came out of the closet - Good to see you again, Elmo. What’s it been, six weeks? -and has presented us with his tabulations of over 5,000 votes and a letter of resignation. Which is okay. It’s been getting increasingly difficult over the years to decipher the old sot’s handwriting. But not nearly as difficult as it is to discern a voting pattern from you freaks. But that doesn’t mean we’re not gonna try, right?

It looks like the Rolling Stones really hit home with that new album. Or was Goat’s Head Soup so bad that this one looks like a gem in comparison? Anyways, they made a significant comeback in the poll over last year, copping Best Album and Top Group, among a slew of other mentions. Bad Company won Best New Group in a no-contest, no-surprise race. And, once again, you people out there in CREEMland are way ahead of the rest of the country, placing Roxy Music and Eno high in several categories. But can you explain to us why David Bowie did so well when you had nothing but scorn for his... well, we’ll call it his “soul” tour? Elton did well, but for a man with an endless succession of hits we’d expect more. Then there’s these two newcomers Sparks and Kiss. No single hits, but they show up several times in the poll. Like we said, you’s unpredictable.