100 MOST ESSENTIAL WOMEN IN ROCK / POP MUSIC. 
This post: #40- 31. Continues next week.

Caffé Latté presents: The  100 MOST ESSENTIAL WOMEN in POP/ROCK MUSIC The history of rock music is dominated by males: Elvis, The Beatles, The Stones and countless other men. This countdown tells the rest of the story, highlighting the 100 female acts –soloists and groups- that have had a major influence on the evolution of rock & pop music.

- 40 - OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN Born in England but raised in Australia, Olivia Newton-John has enjoyed success as a country, pop, adult contemporary and rock vocalist. She also will forever be remembered for her starring role in the box office hit film ‘Grease’. O✚ - 39 - CHRISSIE HYNDE American lead singer of rock band The Pretenders, Chrissie Hynde was one of the key exponents of new wave to the mainstream. O✚ - 38 - SALT -N- PEPA Rap was a male dominated and sexist genre until the arrival of American group Salt-N-Pepa. They were just as fierce as their male counterparts, tackling serious subjects on songs such as “Push It”, “Let’s Talk About Sex” and “Whatta Man”. O✚ - 37 - MARIAH CAREY American vocalist with an impressive octave range that accumulated record-breaking sales. Her singles dominated the charts around the world, most notably: “We Belong Together” and “One Sweet Day”. O✚ - 36 - JANET JACKSON American sibling of The Jackson 5, Janet emerged from their shadow and carved out an identity all her own with hits that included: “What Have You Done For Me Lately?”, “Control”, “Miss You Much” and “That’s The Way Love Goes”. O✚ - 35 - ANNIE LENNOX Scottish musician Annie Lennox first came to the public’s attention as one half of the duo Eurythmics. As well as her considerable vocal and songwriting talents, she was one of the first women to embrace the advent of the music video in the age of MTV. O✚ - 34 - CHER American singer and actress, Cher is a unique performer whose career has spanned 6 decades. Few artists have re-invented herself as often and effectively as her. She paved the way for artists such as Bette Midler, Madonna and Lady Gaga. O✚ - 33 - RONNIE SPECTOR The voice that graced the gorgeous pop nuggets from American gitl group The Ronettes belonged to Ronnie Bennett. She married producer Phil Spector who wrapped her influential vocal energy around his legendary Wall Of Sound. O✚ - 32 - STEVIE NICKS The addition of Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham catapulted Fleetwood Mac to another level. The American singer/ songwriter has contributed significant songs to the rock group’s catalogue, including: “Rhiannon”, “Sara”, “Gypsy” and “Dreams”. Of all its members, Nicks has achieved the greatest success as a soloist with hits such as: “Edge Of Seventeen”, “Stand Back” and “Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around” (the latter with Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers). O✚ - 31 - CARLY SIMON In the early 1970s, Carly Simon emerged as one of the leading acts in the Singer / Songwriter era. The American musician created several songs that dealt with relationships; among them are “You’re So Vain”, “That’s The Way I’ve Always Heard It Should Be”, “Vengeance”, “Jesse” and “You Know What To Do”. O✚