Welcome to the Tournament of Rock – Legends Final Four. Let’s get it started. Up first, The Rolling Stones and Neil Young, the winners of the Budokan and Red Rocks regions, respectively.

#2 The Rolling Stones: Listen	#5 Neil Young: Listen

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First, the results: perhaps S&R voters are tired of conventional wisdom. Some would examine the results of ToR voting to date and reply that “conventional” isn’t the problem, they just lack wisdom, period. In any case, voters felt no reverence whatsoever for the seedings, as they have now evicted the last (and most prominent) of the #1s. The numbers: #3 The Who 53%; #1 The Beatles 47%. Isn’t that a fine kettle of fish?

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Results: Many, if not most people probably expected The Rolling Stones to make it as far as the finals in the ToR. Only one band now stands in the way of that eventuality. The numbers: #2 The Rolling Stones 58%; #4 The Police 42%. The Stones move onto the Final Four.

Up next, our search for the greatest band of all time heads out to the final of the Hollywood Bowl region – and the first showdown between members of the “Holy Trinity.” This oughta be fun.

#1 The Beatles: Listen	#3 The Who: Listen

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Results: When you saw that two legendary bands were going head to head you probably expected a slugfest. Hopefully you weren’t disappointed by what proved to be the tightest match we’ve seen. In the end, Pink Floyd nudged ahead for an extremely narrow win. The numbers: #2 Pink Floyd 52%; #1 Led Zeppelin 48%. Floyd is into the Final Four.

Up next, our search for the greatest band of all time takes you to the Budokan regional final. Do The Police have one more (really huge) upset left in them? We’ll soon find out.

#2 The Rolling Stones: Listen	#4 The Police: Listen

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The results: Nobody saw it coming when the tournament began, but everybody saw it coming entering the Great 8, I’ll bet. So now we know – one of the four greatest artists of all time is Neil Young. The numbers: #5 Neil Young 62%; #2 The Clash 38%. NY is into the Final Four.

Up next, our search for the greatest Baby Boomer band of all time takes you to the Fillmore region. Hold still – this is going to sting a little.

#1 Led Zeppelin: Listen	#2 Pink Floyd: Listen

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Results: And Carlos Santana’s magical Cinderella run to the Great 8 … well, as they say, it’s not the fall that hurts, it’s when you hit the ground. The numbers: #2 Pink Floyd 81%; Santana/Carlos Santana 19%. Pink Floyd advances.

We have reached the Great 8 in our contest to name the greatest band of all time. Let’s begin with the Red Rocks regional final, where our readers’ apparent choice for best punk band ever takes on the lowest remaining seed.

#2 The Clash: Listen	#5 Neil Young: Listen

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Results: Those of you expecting surprises, please move along. Nothing to see here. The numbers: #1 The Beatles 67%; #4 Elvis Costello 33%. The Beatles advance to the Great Eight.

Up next, our search for the greatest Baby Boomer band of all time takes you to the Fillmore region, where the ToR’s upset king (and our lone remaining unseeded contestant) faces The Wall.

#2 Pink Floyd: Listen	Santana/Carlos Santana: Listen

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Results: It was only a matter of time: there are now officially no Gen Xers left in the ToR, as a great Boomer legend waxes U2 … by nearly a two-to-one margin. Wow, on so many levels. The numbers: #5 Neil Young 65%; #1 U2 35%. NY moves on to the Great Eight.

Up next, our search for the greatest Baby Boomer band of all time takes you to the Hollywood Bowl region where the heavy favorite awaits another challenger. Can Elvis pull off the biggest upset ever?

#1 The Beatles: Listen	#4 Elvis Costello: Listen

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Results: I know. It’s only rock & roll. But I like it. So, too, do our voters, although it was a pretty good race from wire to wire. The numbers: #2 The Rolling Stones 54%; #3 David Bowie 46%. The Stones move on to the Great Eight.

Up next, our search for the greatest band of all time takes you to the Red Rocks region. In the red corner, a band that’s had the same lineup since day one. In the blue corner, an artist who has established his greatness in three different incarnations. Get your thinking caps on, kiddies.

#1 U2: Listen	#5 Neil Young: Listen

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Update 2: The poll is closed. For some reason PollDaddy is having technical issues and as a result you can still vote. However, we have a final tally as of 11 am MST and no further votes are being accepted. Sorry about this.

UPDATE: As much as we love The Police, we never expected this match to be so close. But here it is – 8am, neck-and-neck. We’ll leave the polls open until around 11, so if you haven’t yet voted, please step into the booth…

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Results: Can it ever be an upset when the favorite wins? Honestly, even though they’re seeded higher, it has to be a bit of a surprise that The Clash managed to beat “the voice of Generation X.” Or maybe it isn’t… The numbers: #2 The Clash 55%; #3 Nirvana 45%. I don’t klnow about the Casbah, but The Clash will be rocking the Great 8. Full story »

Results: It was a see-saw battle where each artist surged dramatically, but Zep surged hardest and latest. The numbers: #1 Led Zeppelin 60%; #5 Jimi Hendrix 40%. Led Zeppelin is into the Great 8.

Up next – since our quest for the greatest band of all time tortured Boomers in the last pod, it seems only fair that we provide equal opportunity for Gen Xers to tear their hair out trying to decide between two of the bands that defined th-th-th-their generation. There aren’t any wrong answers here, although there are lots and lots of bad reasons. Let the anguish commence.

#2 The Clash: Listen	#3 Nirvana: Listen

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Results: I suppose when a #3 seed beats a #2 seed and the #3 seed is one of the most important and influential bands of all time it’s hard to call it an upset, huh? The numbers: #3 The Who 66%; #2 Bruce Springsteen/E Street Band 34%. The Who are our first band into the Great 8.

Now let’s truck the tournament to name the greatest band of all time out to the Fillmore region and see if we can’t incite fans of incendiary hard rock guitar into a galloping hissy fit.

#1 Led Zeppelin: Listen	#5 Jimi Hendrix: Listen

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Welcome back to the Scholars & Rogues quest for the greatest band of all time. Let the Sweet 16 commence. It’s now one-on-one, and our first head-to-head features two of the most dynamic bands – both in the studio and in concert – in history. Your contestants:

#2 Bruce Springsteen/E Street Band: Listen	#3 The Who: Listen

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Our last pod ended the Great 48 on a subdued note. Nirvana won handily, but voter turnout was low. Does this mean trouble for “the voice of Generation X” at the next level? We’ll know soon enough. The numbers: #3 Nirvana 56%; #8 John Mellencamp 32%; Los Lobos 12%. Full story »

Results: About what you’d expect – The Stones laid an Altamont on all comers. Maybe they’ll find stiffer competition at the next level. The numbers: #2 The Rolling Stones 80%; #7 Bob Marley/Wailers 13%; #10 The Sex Pistols 7%. Stones advance to the Sweet 16.

And now, the final Great 48 pod in our search for the greatest band of all time. Let’s head out to the Red Rocks region for a throwdown hosted by one of the most important game-changers in rock history.

• #3 Nirvana: Listen
• #8 John Mellencamp: Listen
• Los Lobos: Listen

Polls close tomorrow. Full story »

Results: Boomer legend nard-stomps Xer legend. In other news, sun rises in East. The numbers: #5 Jimi Hendrix 67%; #4 REM 24%; Joan Jett/Blackhearts 10%. Jimi advances to the Sweet 16.

Up next, our quest to find the greatest band of all time slides over to the Budokan region, where one of the stronger candidates to unhorse The Beatles looks to start it up.

• #2 The Rolling Stones: Listen
• #7 Bob Marley/Wailers: Listen
• #10 The Sex Pistols: Listen

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Results: Surprise! The Beatles win! *ahem* Okay, so maybe we all saw that coming. Still, Zappa thumping The Beach Boys this hard for second? Interesting things happen in the battle for second, too – not that it impacts the rest of the competition, of course. The numbers: #1 The Beatles 72%; Frank Zappa 22%; #6 The Beach Boys/Brian Wilson 6%. Fabs advance to the Sweet 16. (By the way – we’ve had a couple of Pope John Pauls. Why no Pope George Ringo?)

Three pods left in the Great 48. So let’s head our search for the greatest band of all time out to the Fillmore region, where the band that defined the Southern Gothic sound for the Alternative era hosts what promises to be a very challenging match. (Once again, let’s see if we can make voters hate themselves…) Full story »

Results: Not only was this one of the tightest contests yet in terms of victory margin, it was also a case where the arguments to be made in favor of one artist or another were anything but definitive. In the end, Elvis nudges The Ramones. Hey, we asked for drama. The numbers: #4 Elvis Costello 43%; #5 The Ramones 39%; ZZ Top 18%. Mr. McManus advances to the Sweet 16.

All the drama is wearing us down, so move our search for the greatest band of all time to the top of the Hollywood Bowl region where four lads from Liverpool begin their ritual march to a preordained coronation. Or do they? Let’s see if we can’t make it a little hard on them, at least. Full story »

Results: Top-seeded U2 looked poised to be our highest-ranked upset victim yet as of last night, but then put on a strong finishing kick to win one of the strongest pods we’ve seen yet. The numbers: #1 U2 56%; #6 Queen 37%; #12 Black Sabbath/Ozzy Osbourne 8%. U2 advances to the Sweet 16.

Our search for the greatest band of all time now moves to the Hollywood Bowl region and an artist who walked away from the music that had made him one of the biggest names in the world to follow his own curious muse. Full story »

Results: Well, the top seeds are on a roll now, and this time there wasn’t even a hint of drama to be had, as “Which one’s Pink?” Floyd administered the worst butt-kicking we’ve seen so far. The numbers: #2 Pink Floyd 88%; The Kinks 9%; Robert Palmer 2%. Floyd advances to the Sweet 16, where hopefully they can find a little competition.

Speaking of competition, we may encounter a little now as our search for the greatest band of all time heads out to the Red Rocks region. There, the band that defined Red Rocks in the minds of millions hosts a pod that’s packed with peril. Full story »