The final Montauk Madness post honors The Beatles, who won the bronze medal over Bob Dylan with 63% of the vote.
In an alternate universe, the Fab Four would be our overall winners. They lost to Elvis Costello in the semi-finals after an influx of Costello votes from a fan site, and otherwise would likely have won. Had they advanced to the finals, I’d give them pretty good odds against Billy Joel.
Now that we know the first and second place winners of Montauk Madness, today’s runner-up matchup will decide who gets the bronze medal: Bob Dylan or The Beatles?
This pairing was the one considered inevitable by many readers, and indeed it’s the championship battle I arrived at when running through the brackets myself. It pits the most celebrated solo artist in history against the most celebrated band.
Four months, six rounds, 64 contestants, and one Montauk Madness champion. He appeared in the very first matchup and he’s here at the end. Ladies and gentlemen, your winner: Mr. Billy Joel!
Joel faced off against Elvis Costello in the final round, and it was quite a battle. In fact, the outcome was decided by our closest margin yet, 51% to 49%. Just a couple of votes separated these two well-loved entertainers.
And now, four months of Montauk Madness voting comes down to one last decision as we crown a grand champion. Our contestants face off across the pond, with Billy Joel repping New York and Elvis Costello hailing from merry England.
Two singer-songwriters in their 60s, each with a healthy catalog of original material. Joel has enjoyed far more commercial success, while Costello is the critics’ darling.
Our second Final Four matchup is a battle of London lads: Elvis Costello vs. The Beatles.
A nice connection here, as Costello has been a die-hard Beatles fan since he was nine years old and 27 years later teamed up with Paul McCartney to write an excellent batch of songs that both men released on future albums.
Meet Me In Montauk 