I completely agree. The Doors didn't do a single thing that The Velvet Underground didn't do before, and much better. Jim Morrison being a complete looney doesn't make them good.
If you want an example of what the Doors would sound like if they didn't suck, get Patti Smith's album Horses.
Fastball has only two hits that I know of, The Way, and Out Of My Head. They released another single that I remember, entitled You're An Ocean, which I enjoyed quite a bit, but it never did anything.
And I'm no ICP fan, but they're hardly the worst artists ever. They're perfectly harmless, and even sometimes guiltily enjoyable the majoraty of the time, except when they try to get socially conscious, ala "Terrible".
Prince - Darling Nikki
John Lennon - Working Class Hero
The Hives - Introduce The Metric System In Time
The Flaming Lips - Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots Pt. 1
Elvis Costello - Two Little Hitlers
If we're talking REM, let me just say that I never was a huge fan of Automatic For The People. I much prefer Murmur, and I'd consider it somewhat essential.
And I don't know about it, but would you guys consider Van Morrison's Astral Works to be essential?
They have a second album called Director's Cut that's a little bit more accessable, but still really damn cool. It's all covers of movie theme songs. Tracks I recommend are Rosemary's Baby, Twin Peaks, and Der Golem.
As for favorite vocalists.
Al Green
Barry White
Frank Black
Mike Patton
Robert Johnson