well i am gonna throw myself in the deep end and say for defining an entire genre of music (albeit surf music) for just about everyone (yeah yeah i know dick dale was more authentic but thats not my point) brian wilson deserves some credit ,i reread the article and it uses the word "arguabley" and hence we have the arguement ,number two of the last 40 years (so thats 1960 and gershwin was by then well and truly dead) and i think its a valid (but very debatable and highly subjective) number two , chuck berry ? maybe in the fifties but my ding a ling doesnt make a top ten list for me anywhere,ditto for most of lieber and stollers 60's output (best stuff really was the 50's for them even though i love their drifters stuff) and paul simon? i liked him better when he was a songwriter and not a conduit