Blue-Eyed Soul

Blue-eyed soul is what happens when the basic requirements of great soul and R&B — big voice, earth-moving energy, raw emotion — are met by artists whose skin color happens to be white. Here we've assembled the sub-genre's founding fathers, including the Righteous Brothers, the Rascals, Van Morrison, and, of course, Elvis Presley.

The icons of blue-eyed soul have earned a place in the highest reaches of the pop hierarchy (Foreigner, Rolling Stones) as well as the most important intersections in the rock 'n' roll underground. The Box Tops, for example, featured a teenage Alex Chilton, who would go on to found the legendary and influential Big Star.

The community of blue-eyed soul singers is based on one universal litmus test: the existence of a direct link from voice to soul. So it is that ABC's soul-icon homage, "When Smokey Sings," makes it onto our list alongside the Jam ("The Bitterest Pill") and one of the funkiest of all the Beach Boys' tracks, "Wild Honey."

The soul talents of "whitey" can so often look sub-par next to the pantheon of black soul artists, which makes inclusion on our list of the blue-eyed elite an instant mark of quality. The Rascals — led by keyboardist singer Felix Cavaliere — represented a force for racial integration in song as in life, while the work of artist/producer Dan Penn had a significant bearing on the output of the Box Tops and the godmother of soul, Aretha Franklin. Forget the colour — feel the quality.