10 greatest rock bands

[jterrell]

My favorite two are U2, the band I grew up with, and Led Zep (still follow Plant avidly), followed by Springsteen and the E St band, Blue Oyster Cult, and the Clash. Also liked the Who a lot.

But if it's the best I go with Juke's top three. Tho I don't like the "British Invasion" mopping up the top 3...we might all be listening to doo-wop if they Brits hadn't whitewashed Chuck Berry.

1. Beatles (Like Mike Irvin they belong in the HOF if just for historical significance)

2. Stones (with that longeveity and soul influence, they have a justifiable claim to "greatest rock band" ever)

3. Led Zep (those eastern influences, not just the musicians.)

4. Springsteen and E St. (bringing it all back home to be born again in the USA= Little Stephen Jersey Guys Rule!)

5. U2 ( for the message as well as the music, the seminal musical influence in my life)

6. Nirvana (yeah, they were that good, and some of their clones are as well. Grunge was too major an influence to overlook)

7. The Ramones (can't overlook what they, or the Sex Pistols, did for rock)

8. Bowie, in any manifestation from the thin white duke to glitter king..

9.The WHO - some of their their rock anthems are immortael, Baba P'Reilly, folks?

10. Linkin Park..mark my words...they'll go down as the best rock-rap fusion ever.

I want to get Clapton and Beck in there, but nothing from the Yardbirds thru Cream to the solos had as much the band influence..just individual musician..they will have to top another list)

Honorable mention: The Doors.

I really, really like Linkin Park and their Jay Z compilation stuff is top notch.
I didnt think of them historically but of the last 5 years they are astoundingly good.

 

[Juke99]

They aren't my favorite, just up there. But - wow. I guess I should have consulted the Billboards from those days. I thought all those songs were up there, mostly because I still hear them all often on the classic rock stations. ifeelsmall.

(For the record, favorite band, as far as rock goes, is Styx. Funny - 3 of my favorites are all corporate rock bands - Styx, Journey and Boston. But the other band that received the corporate rock label, Foreignor, I can't stand. Odd, eh?)

The killer for Boston was that Sholz was a control FREAK! And more than anything he was the guy that simply refused to change. If you listen to his solos, even the sound on the guitar is exactly the same...and his guitar playing was such a huge part of the band's sound that sooner or later it was gonna grow old.

Hey...I have to tell ya, I am damn impressed by the groups you have selected as some of your favorites. There aren't many people who are your age who reach that far back so give yourself a huge pat on the back for that.

Funny thing, I go to concerts all the time...and I have the utmost respect when I see young people at an Aerosmith, Eagles, etc...concert.

When I was a kid (geez, that sounds old) there's no way I'd be caught dead at a concert that my parents might go to...although, today, I have to admit..if I had the choice to come back as someone, it would be Dean Martin.



So anyway, thanks for being a passionate fan..that's the most important thing of all. Well done, indeed.

 

[Yeagermeister]

I'd have to add Metallica to the list of great bands, they've been around for awhile now and have put out a lot of good stuff IMO.

Until they released St Anger. I bought it and listened to about half of it and turned it off.

 

[BrAinPaiNt]

They aren't my favorite, just up there. But - wow. I guess I should have consulted the Billboards from those days. I thought all those songs were up there, mostly because I still hear them all often on the classic rock stations. ifeelsmall.

(For the record, favorite band, as far as rock goes, is Styx. Funny - 3 of my favorites are all corporate rock bands - Styx, Journey and Boston. But the other band that received the corporate rock label, Foreignor, I can't stand. Odd, eh?)

I like journey as well. Perry has a great voice and I think the guitarist for Journey was very underated however just like the guitarist for boston I think both were great studio guys and both had an ability to make their own products (sound effects/boxes).

However Like just said about boston....I never did get another tape of them after 3rd stage.

Foreinger.....uh I like some of their songs but to be honest I could leave them and not be bothered about it....great voice but still.....they and bad company are about the same for me. Very limited listening to them and I am ok....play more then a few songs in at a time and they both get old for me very quickly.

 

[BrAinPaiNt]

Until they released St Anger. I bought it and listened to about half of it and turned it off.

It took you that long....or did you get the album titles mixed up.

LOAD was the one I listened about 1 and a half times and then sold it.

The only thing I have liked from them since that album is some of their cover songs....and I was a HUGE metallica fan.

 

[Yeagermeister]

1. LZ Gotta have Black Dog on any workout tape, not to mention all the "grinding" music off LZ IV.
2. Nirvana. Bah to all the 40 plus who dotn get their twisted greatness
3. RS. 4 zillion albums and a great hit on essentially every one. Satisfaction has to be top 10 song of all time. Need to keep them away from 16 year old chicks tho.
4. Beatles. Pure genius. Most intellectual band by far.
5. Fleetwood Mac-- Hey I love Stevie Nicks raspy voice.
6. Black Sabbath. Ozzy for the win!
7. Areosmith. longevity and hits.
8. ACDC. Long lasting anthems. stadium rock for true.
9. Def Leppard. Stripper Rock at its finest. Rock of Ages.
10. Motley Crue. see 9.

I can agree with your list except I'd have to include Skynyrd.

 

[LaTunaNostra]

I like journey as well. Perry has a great voice and I think the guitarist for Journey was very underated however just like the guitarist

yeah, Neil Schon..was that his name? Perry did have great pipes, but it was Schon who kept that outfit from being pure Top 40 fluff. That song "Can't Stop the Feeling" tho, can still give me radio goosebumps. Perry had some soul. Kinda turned me off that he Anglicized his name tho...I mean the Portuguese surname was gonna turn us off? Geez.

[/quote]Foreinger.....uh I like some of their songs but to be honest I could leave them and not be bothered about it....great voice but still.....they and bad company are about the same for me. Very limited listening to them and I am ok....play more then a few songs in at a time and they both get old for me very quickly.[/QUOTE]

I liked their hits..they WERE Top 40 formulaic but had a lot of female fans. The true head banging metalers never had the fanbase with girls they had with guys..and if my friends were any indication, catchy Top 40 tunes from AC/DC or Van Halen were great, but a Metallica concert..no way.

As "heavy" as I went was Blue Oyster, and a lil Dio.

Oh year, and Aldo Nova, that little Canadian rocker.

 

[Khartun]

It took you that long....or did you get the album titles mixed up.

LOAD was the one I listened about 1 and a half times and then sold it.

The only thing I have liked from them since that album is some of their cover songs....and I was a HUGE metallica fan.

I totally agree, but everything from the Black Album back solidifies them in my top 10. I just can't hear the And Justice for All or Ride the Lightning albums enough.

 

[jterrell]

It took you that long....or did you get the album titles mixed up.

LOAD was the one I listened about 1 and a half times and then sold it.

The only thing I have liked from them since that album is some of their cover songs....and I was a HUGE metallica fan.

Metallica's legal fight with Napster showed what they really are. Corporate pirahnas.
Couple that with some really horrid music since and well they are no longer even relevant and I now question alot of their older stuff as being "fake".

 

[BrAinPaiNt]

yeah, Neil Schon..was that his name? Perry did have great pipes, but it was Schon who kept that outfit from being pure Top 40 fluff. That song "Can't Stop the Feeling" tho, can still give me radio goosebumps. Perry had some soul. Kinda turned me off that he Anglicized his name tho...I mean the Portuguese surname was gonna turn us off? Geez.


I liked their hits..they WERE Top 40 formulaic but had a lot of female fans. The true head banging metalers never had the fanbase with girls they had with guys..and if my friends were any indication, catchy Top 40 tunes from AC/DC or Van Halen were great, but a Metallica concert..no way.

As "heavy" as I went was Blue Oyster, and a lil Dio.

Oh year, and Aldo Nova, that little Canadian rocker.

I liked some of BOC....especially like Godzilla because it is just so out there.

LOVE Dio, the little man just has some amazing pipes and even though the topic of his lyrics are silly at times, I like his style that he writes in.

 

[jterrell]

I can agree with your list except I'd have to include Skynyrd.

I really like them too but they prolly get deducted for trying to carry on without the "talent".

Some true classics in their library. I am fairly certain it was here where we listed their great songs and prolly had 20 different ones mentionned.

 

[Tio]

Oh, Tio, you can laugh...it was that transparent a homerism ..getting my CURRENT favorite rock band onto a top ten list viaa "predicton".

Absolutely Norish.

But really, it's been a long time since I've been into a rock band as much as this one..unless of course, Evanescence comes out with a strong follow-up...let's not forget the 'Goth' bands

I think you are rite, a current rock band will move u to the top 10 list this decade, but its not linkin park.

I stick my fingers into my............

 

[Crown Royal]

yeah, Neil Schon..was that his name? Perry did have great pipes, but it was Schon who kept that outfit from being pure Top 40 fluff. That song "Can't Stop the Feeling" tho, can still give me radio goosebumps. Perry had some soul. Kinda turned me off that he Anglicized his name tho...I mean the Portuguese surname was gonna turn us off? Geez.

Neil Schon was greatness. Perry may have been the face of Journey, but Schon was the heart.

 

[Chief]

Van Halen was always the favorite band of my buddies and me. A record-store guy recommended their first album to my brother a week or two after it came out in 1977 or 1978. From there, it spread to me and my friends.

We saved pop bottles to raise money to make the trek to Lubbock to see them in 1980. We loved Van Halen for a lot of reasons ... a few of my friends were musicians and they loved Eddie's talent ... we were all athletes and played basketball and Van Halen was an athletic band .. in shape ... and we loved the fact that they had fun playing their music. In concert, they laugh, smile, joke, jump, run, slide.

It wasn't really the same when Roth left, but they were still pretty good and had some good songs with Sammy.

I also liked some of Rush's songs, as well as the Scorpions and U2.

I realize the band members of changed dramatically through the years, but Santana always will be one of my favorites.***

 

[Avery]

No Great White? What is wrong with you people?

*gunshots*

 

[Banned_n_austin]

What? Led Zeppelin at 5!?!?! Fleetwood Mac at 2! No one is better the Zeppelin is this your personal rankings or did you find them on Vh1 or something? Led Zeppelin is the #1 Rock and Roll Band of All Time. Here is why:

1. BEST PLAYERS

First of all, John Bonham was the best rock and roll drummer ever to walk the face of this planet. John played drums unlike anyone else ever did, still does, or ever will, and that fact is continually demonstrated in the astounding breadth and depth of his recorded work. He had complete independence in all four limbs, he slammed his drums harder than anyone else, and he did it with speed and total precision, never once dropping the beat. His beats were were innovative and creative. John was never stuck in simple grooves. His fills were also innovative, creative, complex, and technically brilliant. He knew when to keep it relatively simple (i.e. Kashmir), but he was always simply in the stratosphere of drumming. And to top that all off, John created a giant drum sound which is unique. It inspired a host of immitators who could only approach the sound of his snare drum, but just with a simple backbeat. But not one of them can begin to touch his creativity, speed, precision, or technical brilliance. At the time that Led Zep was formed, Jimmy Page could have gotten any drummer in the world to play with him, and he chose John.

Secondly, Jimmy Page has always been one of the best rock guitarists ever, right from his earliest days as a session player and the beginning of his real public stardom in the Yardbirds. I believe that Jimmy is the most brilliantly prolific of all the rock and roll guitarists. I suspect that Jimmy would agree with me that Jimi Hendrix was the genius because he came from another galaxy in terms of his sound and his use of feedback. But unfortunately, Jimi died and we will never know how much further he would have progressed. When I listen to Jimmy's solos using the violin bow, I get the urge to put him on the same pedestal as Hendrix and wonder which galaxy they both came from. As a songwriter, Jimmy used his superior ability to play lead guitar to create actual song structure. Led Zep's songs use not one or two of Jimmy's incredibly powerful, complicated and unbelievably SEXY riffs in each song, but there are four, five or more riffs in some songs. Jimmy's riffs differ from each other within each song, and also from song to song. His lead guitar playing can be HARD and sexy, he can be sensitive and beautiful, and he can be technically brilliant - all in the very same song.

Thirdly, John Paul Jones is a bass player who attained a level of brilliance comparable to Paul McCartney. Just like McCartney, John could play beautiful "melodic" bass (i.e. "Ramble On"), he could play as fast as it gets, but he also knew when to keep it simple and just hold down the bottom, although I think he was incapable of simply doing that without utter sophistication. No one at all can touch those two on bass, and John also played consistently brilliant keyboards - piano, organ and synthesizer. The intricate way in which he wove his bass guitar playing into, through, and underneath Jimmy's guitar playing is nothing short of perfection iteslf.

And last but not at all least, Robert Plant had an incredibly high vocal range, emotionally as well as in terms of octaves. Just like Dylan was for his own music, Robert's voice was perfect for Led Zep's music and there's no other singer who could possibly have fit in. Personally, and also as a professional singer, Robert knocks me out both technically and emotionally. He also understood the concept of using his voice like a musical instrument, creating fascinating sounds without using lyrics. And Robert co-wrote with Jimmy too. A lot of the time you can't understand his lyrics and I've heard that was Robert's intent because just like Mick Jagger, all he cared about at that time was that you connect with the emotion and the energy in the totality of the music. But when you can get the lyrics (like in Stairway to Heaven, their tribute to Janis Joplin), you find a great piece of poetry. And on top of all that, Robert had the best "oooh yeahs" in the business.

2. CREATIVE SONGWRITING

Hardly anybody has ever covered Led Zep songs for very good reasons. Their song structure is based on their vastly superior playing abilities and there's no one who can actually play what they played. I'm talking about songs that are not based on simple chords like all other rock and roll is. Jimmy and Robert based their songs on Jimi's riffs and on his chordal tonalities that to this day stand alone as being unique. I'm also talking about length of songs that maintain a constant and intense high, up to 11 minutes in length without resorting to an overly repetitive chorus. I know from Robert's solo work after Led Zep that he also uses unusual tonalities in his writing, but even without actually knowing this I would have to assume that due to Jimmy Page being an erupting fountain of brilliant guitar work, the majority of the non-vocal music creation came from Jimmy. The Beatles certainly deserve abject worship for John and Paul's creative songwriting ability, no question about that. Certainly Mick and Keith wrote a slew of classic, historic and truly memorable rock songs, but the very nature of their comparatively simple rock and roll structure and basic similarity to each other in terms of using major and minor chord progressions, simple and basic rock and roll rhythms, and verse/chorus/bridge approach defines them as being less innovative when compared to Robert and Jimmy.

3. SUM TOTAL OF BRILLIANT WORK

Here they outdistance The Stones because most of the Stones' albums have "filler" material in terms of not hitting the same high that they slammed in all their best songs. However, I'd like to say that I don't think either Mick or Robert are capable of recording anything short of a brilliant vocal. The Beatles actually exceed Led Zep in terms of numbers of great albums that constitute a greater body of brilliant and uniquely innovative work that literally broke new musical ground with every single song they recorded. The Beatles were simply The Beatles, and they were the most creative rock and roll band ever, from being the best singers and songwriters ever right down to their individual charm and charisma. But without denegrating their gorgeous, sensitive and original style of playing, what they recorded is not the heavy type of rock and roll that either the Stones or Led Zep played. George, Paul and John were all brilliant and creative guitarists, but because they did not improvise on stage, they were not really master guitarists. I love and respect Ringo as both a person and as a very creative drummer who mastered the art of drum sounds. He has his own unmistakeable Ringo style for both, but he's not really a master drummer in the sense of being able to play with great speed and dexterity. I'm talking about 9 albums chock full of brilliant and intensely high Led Zep songs - I don't know how many hours of great rock and roll listening that is. There's hardly a single weak track among all that work, and there's simply no question that they consistently broke new ground musically. Their debut album is still the best one of all time (including Cream's), and Coda, their "swan song" is equally perfect.

4. STAGE PRESENCE

Led Zep was there when the concept of "rock and roll star" was still evolving. I will grant that the Stones at least deserve honorable mention as the best rock and roll band ever, but it's mostly because of their impressive touring record and Mick's superstar stage presence with his ability to put on a great show every single time he appears. And he's still doing it at age 60 for goodness sake! My point isn't that Led Zep necessarily had the best stage presence, just that they did have that true rock star sexual aura, and when you add all these important qualities together, they really do deserve being called the number one rock and roll band of all time.

I could go on about Jimmy Page's abilities as a producer, and there are other aspects to their greatness like the length of time they were together without a change of band members. And the life they actually led as archtypical wild rock and roll bad boys equals the life led by the Rolling Stones in intensity, if not length. In this sense both bands are perfect examples on a conceptual artistic level of what I call FORM = CONTENT. The above four categories do enough to fully qualify Led Zeppelin for my not-so-humble award. There will never be another rock and roll band to approach the stratospheric musical heights that Led Zep reached. The Recording Industry Association of America, who has the correct statistics, lists Led Zeppelin as the third best selling musical act/artist in history. The Beatles are first, with 166.5 million albums sold in the USA alone, Elvis is second with 117.5 million, and Led Zep is third with 106 million. I think it's very significant that those statistics are becoming geometrically times greater than the number of albums that they sold during their performance lifetimes. What has happened and is happening is that the young people of today are discovering them in droves because they are coming of age sexually and they recognize and connect with the most powerful musical example of that sexual power. They are buying their CD's, shirts, posters and other memorabilia. And frankly, I'm thrilled.

Somebody is in the know ...

Great post and right on ...

 

[Banned_n_austin]

Just not many great bands right now.

I blame it more on the record industry and it's need to carbon copy a forumula to make a buck.

I blame it on the listening culture ... and rap music.

Actual talent has gone to the wayside in favore of rhyming about how hard it is to sell crack and bust caps.

 

[Juke99]

I blame it on the listening culture ... and rap music.

Actual talent has gone to the wayside in favore of rhyming about how hard it is to sell crack and bust caps.

Well, technology has a lot to do with it also...

It's one thing to use the technology to supplement the creative process...another thing entirely to replace it.

For instance, I can go up to my MotifES7 right now and dial up just about any sound I want. And that's in a rinky dink home studio.

It's why I have always HATED MTV.

When I was a kid, I'd listen to John Fogerty's imagery in his lyrics..."Green River" for instance. And what I'd conjure up in my head was a blast. Now, MTV shows you what you should be thinking. Bad idea.

As one of my heros, Lewis Black says, "MTV is to music what KFC is to chicken"

 

[Banned_n_austin]

Well, technology has a lot to do with it also...

It's one thing to use the technology to supplement the creative process...another thing entirely to replace it.

For instance, I can go up to my MotifES7 right now and dial up just about any sound I want. And that's in a rinky dink home studio.

It's why I have always HATED MTV.

When I was a kid, I'd listen to John Fogerty's imagery in his lyrics..."Green River" for instance. And what I'd conjure up in my head was a blast. Now, MTV shows you what you should be thinking. Bad idea.

As one of my heros, Lewis Black says, "MTV is to music what KFC is to chicken"

I agree on MTV. It is for the mindless musicians. For instance, you can have 450lb woman with a great voice and exceptional talent ... but she'll never get a contract because she doesn't look that part of Brittney Spears.

MTV is the worst thing that ever happened to music.

Technology, I feel if you use it correctly, is not a big deal for the most part.

However, spinning records and speeding them up like this AKON guy is doing is a complete rip off of and utterly classless - not to mention it sounds like fecies.

And I agree with you on loops too ... I hate them.

 

[jterrell]

Pop Music has flatly always sucked.
Really there is little difference between 2005 top 10 pop hits and 1970 pop/soft rock hits.
Yea they may be more rappy now but they flatly suck just the same.

Anyone who grew up with rap music realizes almost none of what they play on the radio is really rap at all.

Creativity is seldom rewarded with record sales. It is simply too easy to program listeners and buy radio play for drivel. Some Britney Spears crap has even grown on me.

BTW, Journey and alot of those bands sucked too, lol. Just boy bands from a different era rofl.

And its easy to attack the content of rap music but whose content really has depth?

Its all about sex, drugs(doing or selling), suicide(or murder), heart break(or being a heart breaker), yada yada, same ole same ole.

As I have gotten older I realize all genres of music have some good offerings but its seldom what you'll see on any current top 10 lists or hear on the radio. Thus I listen to sports talk radio and rely on mp3 music.