The Best Rock Band of All Time
 

It is my contention that Led Zeppelin is by far the best overall rock band ever.

Here's why:

1. Good song/ bad song ratio
10 albums.....maybe 5 bad songs in total and they were mostly on presence and in through the out door

2. Power
They move me

3. Versatility
They cover all the bases. rock, heavy metal, regae, ballads, folk, country( appropriately only 1 song)

4. Lifestyle
They tore hotels up, abused groupies, and created general mayhem wherever they went

5. Formula
2 front men and a super talented rythm section ( this is the model for most successful bands today)

6. Timelessness
their songs still rock, and bear repetition

7. Longevity
11 years at the top

some of the other big 4 have some of these factors, but none have it all.

You left out an "ummm... who?" choice on your poll! :cool:

This "Led Zeppelin" fellow sounds pretty good by your description.

Maybe I'll see if there are any bootleg songs on the net by him.

Best rock band
 

"Led Zep" were a great band,but the thing is they are no more
(Mores the pity)So I think the Stones just shade it for me.
On a good night they can blast anything off stage...

This poll is inherently unfair to old people like me. My sentimental favorite is The Who, as they are my all-time favorite band. But greatness is measured by more than my personal preferences, and it is difficult for me to find an argument against choosing the Fab Four. IMHO, there is no such thing as a bad Beatles song, period. They had terrific range of style when they chose to use it, and each subsequent album they released showed clear growth and forward movement, even to the point of defining a genre.

I didn't include the hotel-trashing criteria, because it is irrelevant to the music, but had I used it, The Who would probably have come out on top for me.

I don't think the Beatles were really rock anyway.

And Radiohead is missing from the list.

They were rock...and much more.

Beatles rock songs (not a complete list, by any means):

Back in the USSR
Revolution
Birthday
Everybody's Got Something to Hide (cept for me and my monkey)
Get Back
Come Together
Glass Onion
I Want You
Savoy Truffle
...and about half of their early work.

You could make a good argument for them not having been a *hard* rock group, though.

What would you classify them as?

Pop.

from a purely musical stand point, i still like zeppelin, but i wanted to incorporate the whole picture here. el, you should have voted with your gut....that's what i'm after. all things considered. i think the beatles have several lame songs(their early stuff was just so queer), but i'll need some time to look through and tell you which ones i mean......im at work now, and time is limited.

The Beatles were a product of British popular music, and their early work reflected that in many cases. Since I personally have always had a very broad appreciation of musical styles, I *admire* the early work of The Beatles. Where others might find their renderings of music from our grandparents, and even great-grandparents' day, *I* think it is proof positive of their genius.

The Beatles were equally comfortable with a wide variety of styles, from Standards to Country to British Music Hall, and on through being one of the progenitors of psychedelica.

Doesn't get much better than that, IMHO.

Only the Monkees did it better than the Beatles.

UT, I'd say the pre-1965 Beatles is pop, but 1965-70 is definitely rock.

Let's make the case for Radiohead though, based on Jimbo's factors:

1. Very rarely do they make a bad song....not even "Fitter happier" could be considered bad.

2. One need to only see Thom Yorke on stage to see the power of the band.

3. Britpop to grunge-like to electronic to straight ahead rock to jazzy.

4. Cool and collected--people seem to be in awe of them.

5. 5 guys taking music all over the place.

6. "Creep" still sounds as good today as it did in 1993. Their songs could easily fit anywhere into the last 20 years of music...maybe 30.

7. 10 years, 6 critically acclaimed CDs that actually sell well with minor radio and video play.

Another person not listed that also fits the criteria: Bowie

are you out of your goddamn mind?



ps syc, title suggestion: "list maven"


One entry found for maven.
Main Entry: ma·ven
Variant(s): or ma·vin /'mA-v&n/
Function: noun
Etymology: Yiddish meyvn, from Late Hebrew mEbhIn
Date: circa 1952
: one who is experienced or knowledgeable : EXPERT; also : FREAK 4

The pre-1965 Beatles is "rock n roll".

Rubber Soul and Revolver are the transitional albums, rock-n-roll with pop infused

Sgt Pepper's = pure pop
Magical Mystery Tour = pure pop
White Album = rock
Abbey Road = bridges rock and pop with psychedelia
Let It Be: pop

Enough said

What's wrong with Bowie?

I dig what you're saying UT...I hadn't thought of it like that. Though, have you heard the stripped-down version of Let It Be yet?

I haven't!

Also missing from the poll is U2.

I think the Who is appalling for putting that drumming out as the pinnacle of rock drumming. It was shit. It was always shit. The biggest problem with post-Moon Who is that the drumming isn't shitty enough and so it isn't Who music. When Townshend went out on his own he got only the best session drummers. I think he got the idea and wasn't going to be held back by a drummer ever again.

Yeah...U2 is definitely up there among the greats.

Haven't heard Let it Be...Naked yet myself...and nothing from The Beatles is available on Rhapsody. But I've heard that the "new" version is quite different from the "original."

I like bowie. I even think he was cool in "The Labrynth" with the muppets, but he's not in the same league as these other bands...he's more in a league with Tom Petty or Elton John or Billy joel. ( god i hate billy joel) as far as power ranking goes. They had some good songs, even some #1s, but it's just not the same. They're not supergroups.

I only used the who because they are always considered when you talk about supergroups. Personally, other than "magic Bus" and "Boris the spider", you can keep the Who. I even slept out one night at the Vet (might have actually been JFK before it got knocked down)for the party, but didn't buy tickets, cuz i just dont like them and wouldnt pay to see them. Too bad the poll doesn't have "write in capability"

Other ommisions:
U2- noted
Aerosmith
VanHalen
Pink Floyd
Nirvana
Hendrix


AS for RadioHead, I always hear that they are so great, and people get way into them , and I'm sure i must have heard them, but i honestly couldn't name one song they do. Why is that?

I have to stay out of the discussion now, lest my too-strong opinions regarding certain statements made about music and musicians by others cause me to become less than diplomatic and become an asshat. :cool:

You're already an asshat. :)

yeah, people can get really funny about music. it's a very personal thing, and you identify with a band. emotion is involved. 'fore long you wind up saying, " fuck you elspode, you ugly baby havin, pathetic beatles fan, Led zeppelin is the best ever, man!" and look like a real asshat. You are wise to abstain, elspode....because this is an issue that can be argued indefinately.


what was it i said that twisted your musical nipple?

Put it out there, man, it's the only way.

I can never remember if being an asshat is a badge of Cellar honor or some sort of derogatory term.

No, no one has twisted my musical nipple yet, LJ, but I can see it coming. I'm still on a rather short fuse lately, even though things are looking up for me and mine around here. Lots of various stressors, and I have tendency to blow off when and where I shouldn't.

I'm exercising self-control, damnit. Look quick, it won't last long!

Fuck that self control. The Beatles did it all. The Beatles did it first. The Beatles did it best.

Aside- UT, you miss the point. Moon is the pinnicle of rock drummers because he could get more fucked up than anyone and not fall off his stool (usually). He just couldn't keep time. He was better than Charlie (stones) however, but that ain't much.

Aside2- Jim, Bowie is a God, because he made women so horny. Bowie got more guys laid than Masters and Johnson. I will be forever grateful to him.

and robert plant is chopped liver?

you know those lists people keep of 5 celebrities you would be allowed to bang if an opportunity arose? Robert plant is on my wife's.......bowie is on most of my gay friends lists...

did you know he got caught in bed with mick jagger? by mick's wife! she let the cat out of the bag on howard stern a while ago.

were these guys getting laid by women?

no reflection on you, bruce. just not feelin the whole bowie thing. He's a solo act, anyway.

NO, no, no. Listen, you take any (almost) chick to a Bowie concert, and you're getting laid that night.;)

And... how old are you?

Doesn't matter that I'm talking about Bowie when he was doing concerts regularly. Isn't this thread retrospect?:)

Oh. :)

The way I see it the Stones are the greatest rock band. When I think rock, I think Rolling Stones, its that simple. That said, I don't own any Stones cds. I've always considered the Beatles to be the best pop band, anyone playing pop music is just trying to do what the Beatles already did better. I also don't own any Beatles cds. I was born the summer of the invasion so they just are not interesting to me, they've "always" been around so there is nothing life changing about them.

It's funny because I feel exactly the same way about Led Zep. Going through high school in Central PA in the late 70s early 80s meant that Led Zep 4 was the quintessential rock album and all the hard-ass kids with their long jeans jackets were Zep-heads and wrote "ZOSO" on their notebooks and stuff.

Whearas I present as evidence "Miss You", which was the Stones' attempt to broaden themselves to include the DISCO era. Disco! They even released it as an extended 12" single.

(McCartney also tried that schtick with "Goodnight Tonight", which is in competition for the least-interesting song he ever wrote.)

(See Syc I used to have that music-indexing brain, until real life stood in the way)

Ah..yes..excellent point. I was driving home from college on a Friday when I first heard the Beatles "I want to hold your hand". Not much of a song, really, but it was so different from what I'd heard, it was an epiphany of what music could do/be. In the context of vinyl 45s, 33 1/3s and AM radio all in mono, the Beatles led the way to the enlightenment you young 40something whipper snappers take for granted. :D

Bowie is on tour now, behind his new CD, Reality. I'd love to go see him, but I'm not paying $75+ for cheap seats.

As I was growing up, Zep had just broken up, U2 was in its infancy, Paul McCartney's solo career was producing Top 40 gems, Thriller became a mega-smash, pop was probably in its heyday and Bowie decided to go that route with Let's Dance.

As I went from junior high age through college, Seattle bands brought the alternative to the mainstream; Radiohead led a Britpop invasion then abandoned it with record #2; the country went Beatles crazy again; industrial bands like Ministry, NIN, Skinny Puppy and Front 242 scared the shit out of people; Smashing Pumpkins brought back the big rock record and Bowie went through two more genre changes with 1995's Outside (industrial) and 1997's Earthling (techno).

It seems like most people stick closest to what they were listening to as teenagers...so for me, the music of 1991-1997 is probably most prominent. (And if you look at my CD collection, you'll probably see that a good number of my CDs are from that period.) For Rho, it's the late '80s (and her tape and CD collection reflect that).

I try very hard not to be a musical snob. I listen to all sorts of stuff, though admittedly, I don't listen to a lot of new bands anymore. I haven't bought a new band's CD in...damn, it has to be years now. With Rhapsody, I've been mainly listening to stuff I've always wanted to listen to, but haven't bought (Keb' Mo', The Roots, Megadeth, etc.). And while I try not to be a snob, I admittedly haven't listened to much Top 40 music over the past 12 years...though that MIGHT be a good thing. ;)

Speaking of Van Halen, I tried listening to the Gary Cherone-sung Van Halen III last night...NOT recommended. Loved Gary Cherone in Extreme, loved VH with Diamond Dave, tolerated VH with Sammy, but I think VH3 was a BAD idea.

Feh.

You guys are just all wrong.

All this arguing back and forth, and the truth is SOOOO apparent.

The Doors.

'Nuff Said.

Sorry Wolf, Morrison was too smart to define rock n roll.