There are many people in the music industry who have made a difference to the shape and style of music today...
From Ozzy Osbourne to Simon Cowell.

Who for YOU is the one that inspired, shaped or even destroyed your musical preferences.

I'll start.

For me it has to be John Peel.
He discovered and introduced us to more new music than any other i know of, and even if it was awful shite the worst he'd say is "not my cup of tea". A true gentleman and sorely missed.

The Wurzels, gotta dig the use of real instruments on stage pmsl

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kAh_A7N3_mc

Frank Black - lead singer of the Pixies. They were the first band I was truely passionate about and started my obsession with music. Seeing their influences got me into grunge, punk etc. and opened up a world of music I'd never paid attention to before.

i actually like simon cowell, he's brutally honest and quite amusing with it !
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True... And he is an influential figure.

But do I take it he shaped your musical preference???

No, not really, i'd never heard of him until the x-factor thing.

I'm not really in to mainstream music, there's a few songs out and about that i like but not that many. My music taste ranges from westlife to Rammstein - i don't have a specific 'type' so i don't really see that anyone really influences my taste.

i'm just awkward
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I have to say two, there have been 2 music 'phases' for me;

Metallica - they got me into the general rock/metal thing. I always hated the real screamy messy kinda stuff so the melodic, decent singing got me into the genre, then along from that, i looked deeper and found Iron Maiden, etc etc. But eventually....

I got into Motley Crue, and their music, attitude, their innovation just blew my mind straight away. Now i consider them my favs and from them i got into loads of other 80s hairspray/sleazy rock stuff, i just love the statement it makes that they don't care what people think about them, they have their fans and that's all that matters, they don't need to cater for a wider audience.

Never looked back since

Undoubtedly PJ Harvey! Absolute Goddess.

JG Ballard - as Will Self said, "he knocked other avant garde authors into a hatted brain"
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"The tighter you grasp Lord Vader, the more it will slip through your fingers."