The coolest musicians of all time

It could be argued that all musicians are cool. Even the spottiest, weediest nobody suddenly gets the frisson of cool when he dons the mantle of a wannabe rock god, and cut-price Jim Morrisons can be found in any sixth form common room.

But, only a few select men have transcended the image and have embraced their own epic coolness in their lives and their approach to music making. Cool is not about ‘being cool’ but about exuding total cool in all things, and these men are fine examples for us all to aspire to. In no great order of merit, for they are all truly wondrous, here are the 5 coolest musicians of all time.

1. JIMI HENDRIX

Innovator, guitar genius, transcendental talent and all-round hero to anyone who ever fancied being that god-like presence on the stage embracing a higher consciousness through music. Jimi will always and forever be THE tie-dyed, hard playing, visionary of music who single- (left)-handedly tore up the tightly bound, overly self-limiting rulebook of guitar-playing. As inspiring now as he has always been to millions of music lovers, his coolness endures and increases.

2. MILES DAVIS

Effortlessly cool, beyond compare in his lifetime and after, Miles just played music with a preternatural sense of his own awesomeness. Whether striking out on his own, or working in collaboration with his colleagues and contemporaries, this Jazz master breathed in air and exhaled pure cool Jazz perfection. In his playing, in his explorations in style and in perfecting his craft, Miles radiated that rare and elusive quality of epic cool just by being alive – his cool is the rarest; the kind you can never learn, you either have it or you don’t.

3. KEITH RICHARDS

Perhaps not truly acknowledged (yet) as being amongst the coolest of musicians, Old Keef has been painted as a cruel caricature of himself, a feeble shadow of his true and monumentally massive coolness. He has been parodied and disregarded, and his lifestyle choices have overshadowed his musicianship and his songwriting for those who are easily swayed by cliché. But Keith is a true survivor who has taken British music and Rock ‘n Roll on a hell of a ride for more decades than anyone else, and he’s still playing, writing, and wowing audiences the world over.

He may be well known for his excesses, but his talent, his coolness and his place in the pantheon of British Gentleman Rockers are undeniable. Arise, Sir Keith – the Great British Knight of Rock ‘n Roll Cool.

4. ROBERT PLANT

The Black Country boy who dominated the world as a Golden God, flying in Led Zeppelin’s private plane with the rest of that gang of hard rocking hedonists, Robert Plant has been a man of many cool times, eras and songwriting genres. As a young man, beguiling the ears and minds of fans and star-struck worshippers with his howling voice, golden good looks and lyrics of charming playfulness, Robert was unassailably cool. With the end of Zeppelin, he embarked on a new path of solo work and has ever since reinvented himself time and again, always following his heart, never buckling to populist pressure and always seeking out new musical paths to explore. A true individual, never swayed by popular opinion and always ready to walk away and start a new project at the drop of a hat, Robert Plant is the epitome of the gifted individualist – always cool, and always ready to amaze with something new.

5. SERGE GAINSBOURG

People may cry ‘What about Bowie?’, ‘What about Lennon?’ and so on, and personal preference always shines through reasonable argument. But cool isn’t just about ‘being cool’ and being quotable, popular, hip or modern, or even ‘accepted as such’. It’s about being true to your craft, being exceptional, with people hanging on your every note, word and action. Cool is about real innovation and individuality, and there was no-one as individualist and innovative as Serge Gainsbourg. He’s not just the little French chainsmoker who did a sexy record with Jane Birkin while looking like he’s spent the last two nights sleeping in a Normandy hedgerow – he was a truly genius songwriter and performer who transcended genres from French Chanson, Pop, Rock, Blues, Jazz and Reggae, and he even wrote the 1965 Eurovision winning song. If you ever want to listen to some musical perfection, try his 28-minute concept album ‘Histoire de Melody Nelson’ and you’ll never look back. Serge was cool, he exuded cool and professionalism and sex appeal – and he never stopped knowing it, owning it and living it. Vive Serge. Vive le Cool.

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