Elliott Smith for me, just because I love/d pretty much everything he did.

I guess Buckleys loss is tragic and the biggest "what if" but its hard to make much more of it than that. Grace is a great album, and maybe if we hadnt been deluged with so much stuff that sounds just like it since then, I might be a little more easily swayed. I definitely think Cobains loss is bigger than Buckley's and may have been one of the biggest losses of the 90's, musician or otherwise.

Nirvana really did change the musical landscape, which is something that you cant argue about anyone else on this list.

I strongly disagree. I think he was underrated and would have put out some good work if he were still alive.

I'm pretty damn MEH on Buckley. Never a huge Alice in Chains "fan" per se, but I really like a lot of their stuff. Blind Melon and Elliot Smith don't do it for me. So, Cobain. I'd love to know if they would have come out with a more polished and clear sounding pop album ala the Foos, or started getting into beats and shit ala U2 in the mid 90s, or if any of that type of experimentation would have happened if Nirv continued to dominate the charts and the prevailing ZEITGEIST (for harry).

And really, after following up Nevermind with an arguably better album and then what remains one of the best acoustic albums ever, would they have fallen apart under the pressure from within and without, if Courtney hadn't have had him killed?

Fuck, now I wanna play "In Bloom" at top volume.

If you're not being a smartass here, I would say that you have to listen to Jeff Buckley's Grace. You don't have to like it, but you have to listen to it. It'd probably be in my top ten albums list were I to have one.

of the list - Shannon Hoon.

my vote: Andrew Wood

no artist in the poll would be as highly regarded had they lived. that being said, i go with buckley.

Buckley had the most potential and left the smallest recorded legacy.
Easy choice for that very reason.

There's not enough talk about Layne! He easily had one of the most unique voices around.

death didn't do a whole lot for shannon hoon or lane staley's career.

Cobain. Staley a somewhat-close second. I missed Buckley the first time around, and outside "Last Goodbye" I haven't really been compelled to listen to him.

Smith's death affected me most personally, but I have a hard time including him in his poll since Figure 8 is a 2000 release, and AFAIK all the From a Basement... stuff was written afterwards.

I went with Cobain more as a default than anything.

I don't know a thing about Smith or Buckley...only heard a couple tracks of each and never cared enough to listen for more.

To Shannon Hoon I say good riddance.

I like Layne Staley all right, but I don't think it's sane to think he's a bigger deal or more influential or whatever than Cobain.

I also agree that Nowell should probably be included. I think he could have done some really good stuff.

But he released four albums in the '90s. Or did you mean that since he released stuff post-90s that he shouldn't be included?

That was my take on it, yeah. I get that his most highly-rated works were 90s releases, but I got on the train late (XO) and am still a Figure 8 guy.

i hated lane staley so much that i felt guilty when he died.

not even death can polish a turd

blech.

Darcy Clay as well

I like Jeff Buckley and Elliott Smith quite a bit, but I think I'm a little more interested in hearing what else Kurt could have come up with. As for the other 2, I liked some AIC, but feel their self titled was a bit of a misstep. I never knew much Blind Melon aside from "No Rain", which I liked.

Their self-titled is probably my favorite AIC album.

Also, if you like "No Rain" you should check out Blind Melon's debut. There's a bunch of great songs on there. "Tones of Home," "I Wonder," "Change," "Time," etc.

double blech.

Personally, I can't see how anyone could pick anyone BUT Cobain (or Biggie, if he were on the list), and I'm not even much a Nirvana fan.