Anybody who's into the blues will find Robert Johnson and probably Clapton's readings of his style... which will lead them to Cream, his association with George Harrison and...the Beatles.

Definitely possible.

But some artists are truly extraordinary. We can't enjoy Mozart's symphonies conducted by Mozart because they couldn't record them. As albaby said, we can re-perform them today because the raw music was written down. Today, we can record them. So Yoyo Ma or Perlman or Clapton or Hendrix -in principle- can persevere. Not just their style and influence, but their actual performances could be listened to 100 years from now. I think it's possible that maybe some of them may be held in high regard 50 or 100 years hence. Others will fade away (K-Pop, please!).

And then there are some individuals/groups that seem to be a nexus (for lack of a better word). They were so pervasive, and they had that *something* intangible that they almost certainly will. Not just the music on the page, but the actual recordings. I sometimes wonder what it would have sounded like with Mozart (or Beethoven, or some of the other giants) conducting/performing their work. Would it be similar to today?

I've enjoyed watching Gen-Xers listening to the Beatles for the first time. Also, the Doors. I don't know if the Doors will have the same staying power as the Beatles (and I love the Doors!), but the Gen-Xers are blown away by them, too. They seem confused (the Oedipal references in "The End" throw them), but still blown away.