What??!  Babymetal didn't make your list Bubba?  The favorite band of metalhead lolita pedophiles everywhere!  12-year old Asian girls singing to headbanging, what more could you want?
 

 

Sadly, their singing is much easier on the ears and more understandable than Cookie Monster vocals (which I call puking into a microphone). 

Hey, I already admitted to Brainticket a year or so ago. I think that's enough.
 

Vintage Trouble..as Jonbouy used to say, these guys really 'turn up for work'
 

 

Bubba, you covered about 3/4 of my list right there and can add most of the 70's rock bands like Deep Purple, Robin Trower, Van Halen, and YES even Foghat etc....
 
A big +1 for Joe Satriani.
 
Also a big fan of Megadeth (especially when Marty Friedman was the lead guitarist), but do like their work.

Those that "did not make it"
 
1. Clear Light (well, Cliff de Young did go on to be an actor and Douglas Lubahn played bass on some Doors albums)
2. Black Oak Arkansas (I saw them at The Teenage Fair in about '69)
3. Cat Mother & The All Night Newsboys

There are to many to list but...
I've been listening to The Dave Brubeck Quartet-Time Out - most all morning.
 
Here is the latest that I think is most excellent....and listened to yesterday most all day while at work.
It also has one of my favorite album covers to date.
 

That's a fantastic lineup, Spacey.

And a very cool cover.

besides the Beatles Elvis Costello is bye favorite artist ever.
Others on the list of artists that I will buy everything they ever put out (but probably aren't household names) include: Tony Carey, October Project, Procol Harum, Marshall Crenshaw, Richard Harris and Lesley Gore.

WSS