Is there a new Mozart or Wagner? Of course not. A new Dylan or Beatles? never. Society different. Exposure different (everyone listened to 2 or 3 stations). Generation gap. Fashion. Musical tastes too fractured. I could go on and on. The formative years of modern pop/rock were the 50s. The maturation and expansion to all genres was the 60s/early 70s. A new artist simply cannot have the same impact on the world mainly because the circumstances do not exist to do so.
The Beatles and Dylan were the most talented and prolific artists of the past 50 years and I'm sure their influence will be felt for many years to come. But I can't listen to them every day. So we must soldier on and there's plenty of music that is great and worth listening to today.
Had the Beatles and Dylan come of age today, they could not be the Beatles or Dylan. For those of us who grew up on them, it is to our great fortune that they came when they did and changed our lives and the world.
Let's never hear of the "new" Dylan again. Let's hear about a guy who is talented in a style reminiscent of Dylan.
