OT: Greatest American Rock n Roll Band

[angmo]

We sidetracked into this in a previous thread a few months ago...I'm sticking with my list but expanding to a top 10 (and admittedly missed the Eagles re: oversight last time).

Aerosmith
VanHalen
Springsteen
Tom Petty
Pearl Jam
The Eagles
Journey
Lynyrd Skynyrd
The Cars
R.E.M.

Cmon guys the Beach Boys are/were popular but they're not rock.

Okay. Just list some bands and singers from Wilipedia and then dirt the Beach Boys. Pet Sounds is considered one of the greatest rock and roll albums of all times, The Beach Boys aren't rock but The Cars are? Half of the items you listed aren't even bands. Fail.

 

[RUShea]

That's not the discussion. Read the title friend. Nobody cares about your keyboard diarrhea of some band you just listened to. Name a real band. The Black Crows...lol. Bon Jovi is a band too I guess.

Someone mentioned Southern Rock so I replied to it. Sorry that offended you. Don't pay attention then, Were you always a prick or did you recently transition?

 

[angmo]

Regardless of having named “front men,” E Street, Heartbreakers, and Silver Bullet Band are BANDS, not back up players. Personally not crazy about exclusion of The Band or Crazy Horse. Beyond those complaints, I’d name Allman Brothers, Santana, Talking Heads, REM, and of more recent vintage Weezer.

Start your own thread.

 

[angmo]

Someone mentioned Southern Rock so I replied to it. Sorry that offended you. Don't pay attention then, Were you always a prick or did you recently transition?

Just trying to keep to the original thread concept. I was not offended and I have always been a prick to pricks. Most of the time I'm not bad. I withdraw my nasty response.

 

[BIGRUBIGDBIGredmachine]

Okay. Just list some bands and singers from Wilipedia and then dirt the Beach Boys. Pet Sounds is considered one of the greatest rock and roll albums of all times, The Beach Boys aren't rock but The Cars are? Half of the items you listed aren't even bands. Fail.

LOL wikipedia--I had multiple ALBUMS and cassettes back in the day from these, yes, bands.

 

[WhichReligionIsRight]

It's funny to me that people mention Journey. They are iconic, no question. However, they had a long down period. There was a concert hall in Grenich Village that I used to walk by with my friends. Twice we got second-row seats for Journey at a great price in a half-fiiled place. Both times, the band kind of sucked. I know they are again hugely popular, but a lot of it is because of the Philipino frontman.

Damn, I wish I could remember the name of the concert hall. If memory serves, it had a capacity of two or three thousand. The concert I went to would have been in the late 70s.

 

[WhichReligionIsRight]

Regardless of having named “front men,” E Street, Heartbreakers, and Silver Bullet Band are BANDS, not back up players. Personally not crazy about exclusion of The Band or Crazy Horse. Beyond those complaints, I’d name Allman Brothers, Santana, Talking Heads, REM, and of more recent vintage Weezer.

The Band was Canadian. Mostly.

 

[RUGuitarMan]

It’s an interesting question because rock n roll was invented and perfected by 2 men:
Elvis Presley and Chuck Berry.

When I think rock n roll I think chuck berry. The category and his name are inextricably linked in my mind.

Now, with all that said, I understand you are asking for a band here and that disqualifies both Presley and Berry.

So with that long context, im gonna go Lynyrd Skynyrd.

I wouldn’t say Rock & Roll was perfected by anyone considering it’s a mix of mostly R&B/ Country Western in its original form. I would add Little Richard and Jerry Lee Lewis to the two you mentioned.

 

[Randal7]

I wouldn’t say Rock & Roll was perfected by anyone considering it’s a mix of mostly R&B/ Country Western in its original form. I would add Little Richard and Jerry Lee Lewis to the two you mentioned.

Ur right. I was probably too generous in saying perfected

 

[RUGuitarMan]

I couldn’t possibly name one or a few bands. It is dependent on the day and my mood and any list could change by the day. I’ve always favored the American bands over most of the UK bands (I loved many UK bands) because they tended to be less pretentious and more respectful of American roots music which was the basis of Rock music. I will put together some kind of list and post it.

 

[hoquat63]

Jefferson Airplane DQd. Skip Spence was Canadian... Lol. Love them.

You’re right, and thinking it outSpoonful are out since Yanovski was CNadian

 

[BIGRUBIGDBIGredmachine]

…Steven Tyler has entered the chat.

Can't believe no mention of Aerosmith up to this point...they dominated the mid-late 70's until all the heavy drug abuse burned them out. Great comeback in the late 80's-90s and on...that's what the great ones do.

 

[Knight Owl]

sorry to see him go. Awful band. Dream on was a good song.

Steven Tyler is still alive…in fact all of the well known (basically the five “original”members) are living. They did swap out the first rhythm guitar player very early on.

 

[BIGRUBIGDBIGredmachine]

sorry to see him go. Awful band. Dream on was a good song.

oh you're trolling lol

 

[zebnatto]

Start your own thread.

I don’t see you as to OP, so This isn’t your thread. You made stipulations that weren’t stated by the OP. So if you want your stipulations to apply go begin your own thread.

 

[Randal7]

I just had a name pop into my head. Steve Miller Band.

Justified or no?

 

[charliem24]

Unrelated to the core question. Can I throw out an interesting name? Ricky Nelson. Underrated. Just saying.

In the underrated category I nominate Little Feat.

 

[zebnatto]

I just had a name pop into my head. Steve Miller Band.

Justified or no?

Yeah, belong in convo.

 

[zebnatto]

Some iterations of Pretenders were also very good.

 

[wheezer]

This is a category where I might have English bands ahead of my favorite American bands, but as far as American bands go, we can make cases for acts like Elvis Presley and the Beach Boys. Both would be excellent choices, but they haven't stood the test of time for creating new music. Tom Petty and Van Halen - sure. Both were/have been around a long time and made great music spanning decades. I would have Aerosmith and the Talking Heads on any list. Eagles, Allman Brothers, Metallica, Nirvana, Pearl Jam - they all deserve consideration. And of course, Bruce Springsteen. Bob Dylan (more of a solo act), Billy Joel, Santana. Jimi Hendrix, the list goes on.

But for me, the greatest American band has to be the Grateful Dead. They started out almost 50 years ago, having played thousands of concerts along the way to many millions of fans. They have the distinction of hosting the first concert with more than 100,000 ticketed fans (Englishtown Raceway), and drew over 600,000 to Watkins Glen (along with the Allman Brothers and the Band [Canadian]. This year, they just concluded another successful touring by selling out huge stadiums across the USA. At a minimum, the Dead are certainly the greatest touring band of all time.

I understand and appreciate your analysis of the Grateful Dead

Personally I did not like them

So much so, that even after I won free tickets to see them at the Capitol theater in Passaic years ago, I could not sit through the the entire show, I found it so distasteful and left

They are the only Group that I did that for

 

[WhichReligionIsRight]

I understand and appreciate your analysis of the Grateful Dead

Personally I did not like them

So much so, that even after I won free tickets to see them at the Capitol theater in Passaic years ago, I could not sit through the the entire show, I found it so distasteful and left

They are the only Group that I did that for

I understand. I walked out on Dylan once at MSG. He was truly terrible that night. OTOH, I saw Dylan and the Dead and thought the show was fantastic.

 

[WhichReligionIsRight]

Some iterations of Pretenders were also very good.

Love the Pretenders. Saw them at the Capitol Theater in 1980. They were the warmup for UB40. UB40 was great that night, but the Pretenders blew the ****ing roof off the place. James Honeyman-Scott was still in the band at that point (RIP).

Chrissie Hynde is, of course, American. But the rest of the band was British.

 

[ashokan]

A great band should have had a long career with many hits and been popular overseas.
On the list of the highest grossing bands all-time the first US band is Springsteen and E Street (4th).
#1 is Stones followed by U2, Elton John and then Springsteen (who has said 2/3 of his fans are in Europe).

List of highest-grossing live music artists - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

A problem with rock bands is that they were very druggy and self-destructive - many died young.

R&B acts had their problems but nothing close to the swath of destruction left by rockers. A lot of the R&B singers and musicians learned their skills in church ( that's mostly gone and the rappers took over and they are worse than the rockers).

The Dead were great improvisers and great on mushrooms but they never had the footprint ar home and abroad that S'steen did.

One thing I learned bout Brits is they are much more atuned to the langauge and it comes across in British bands. There is no American version of Elton John and Bernie Taupin.


Springsteen played East Berlin in 1988 (wall still up). They were one of few western performers allowed and they had the biggest gig. They sold 160k tickets but the crowd was estimated at 500k

 

[Shelby65]

No love for Jersey’s own Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons ? Definitely qualifies as a band, also a long time span and big hits.

Definite Final Four of US band tournament.

 

[RutgersDom]

This is a category where I might have English bands ahead of my favorite American bands, but as far as American bands go, we can make cases for acts like Elvis Presley and the Beach Boys. Both would be excellent choices, but they haven't stood the test of time for creating new music. Tom Petty and Van Halen - sure. Both were/have been around a long time and made great music spanning decades. I would have Aerosmith and the Talking Heads on any list. Eagles, Allman Brothers, Metallica, Nirvana, Pearl Jam - they all deserve consideration. And of course, Bruce Springsteen. Bob Dylan (more of a solo act), Billy Joel, Santana. Jimi Hendrix, the list goes on.

But for me, the greatest American band has to be the Grateful Dead. They started out almost 50 years ago, having played thousands of concerts along the way to many millions of fans. They have the distinction of hosting the first concert with more than 100,000 ticketed fans (Englishtown Raceway), and drew over 600,000 to Watkins Glen (along with the Allman Brothers and the Band [Canadian]. This year, they just concluded another successful touring by selling out huge stadiums across the USA. At a minimum, the Dead are certainly the greatest touring band of all time.

I have to go Eagles

 

[angmo]

I don’t see you as to OP, so This isn’t your thread. You made stipulations that weren’t stated by the OP. So if you want your stipulations to apply go begin your own thread.

Okay. Continue to bitch that you don't like the parameters and suck your thumb.

 

[zebnatto]

Okay. Continue to bitch that you don't like the parameters and suck your thumb.

Good one.

 

[Knight Owl]

I vote Eagles #1 based on a very deep catalog and always flawless performances including amazing vocal harmonies…and Aerosmith #2 based on having three songs becoming true rock anthems and Tyler is a truly other-worldly rock singer.
Springsteen should count as a band because as a live act it is the entire ensemble that really works and I vote them #3.

I’ve seen all three bands live (Aerosmith three times) and was blown away by each and every show.

The Foo Fighters have a lot of work to do…

 

[RUGuitarMan]

My list of top American rock bands. I’m including Jimi Hendrix who was from Seattle and The Band who originally backed Bob Dylan and were based out of Woodstock, NY:

Jimi Hendrix (Experience/Band of Gypsys)
The Doors
Creedence Clearwater Revival
The Eagles
Steely Dan
The Allman Bros Band
The Doobie Brothers
Santana
The Band
Bruce Springsteen/E Street Band
Bob Seger/Silver Bullet Band
The Grateful Dead
Little Feat
The Beach Boys
Journey
Sly and The Family Stone
The Black Crowes
Nirvana
Pearl Jam
Heart
Lynyrd Skynyrd
Aerosmith
Van Halen
The Black Keys

The order would depend on my mood.

 

[611george]

I have this discussion a lot. Along with best band of all time, most underrated, most influential etc..

The Dead come up a lot and I get it. I think solo artists should be considered. Elvis, Little Richard, Robert Johnson etc

I have had days where I argue The Pixes, The Cars, GnR. It's a hard question to answer but worth discussing.

 

[mdk01]

My list of top American rock bands. I’m including Jimi Hendrix who was from Seattle and The Band who originally backed Bob Dylan and were based out of Woodstock, NY:

Jimi Hendrix (Experience/Band of Gypsys)
The Doors
Creedence Clearwater Revival
The Eagles
Steely Dan
The Allman Bros Band
The Doobie Brothers
Santana
The Band
Bruce Springsteen/E Street Band
Bob Seger/Silver Bullet Band
The Grateful Dead
Little Feat
The Beach Boys
Journey
Sly and The Family Stone
The Black Crowes
Nirvana
Pearl Jam
Heart
Lynyrd Skynyrd
Aerosmith
Van Halen
The Black Keys

The order would depend on my mood.

Hendrix was backed by 2 Brits

 

[Lerxst72]

This is a good podcast, though I find the narrator's voice to be tedious sometimes. The episode on the Dead was one of his best. I'm learning at lot from it. For example, For What's it Worth (The iconic song that mostly recently appeared at the Democratic National Convention) was about protests/riots in LA over a bar curfew where patrons were getting too rowdy). I always thought it was an anti-war or free speech protest song.

Episode 165: “Dark Star” by the Grateful Dead

Episode 165 of A History of Rock Music in Five Hundred Songs looks at “Dark Star” and the career of the Grateful Dead. This is a long one, even longer than the previous episode, but don’t wor…

500songs.com

"For What's It's Worth" was not a Grateful Deaf song. It was a Buffalo Springfield song, penned by Stephen Stills. Great, short lived band that was a pioneer in the Country-rock, alt-country genres.

 

[R1766U]

I agree and have to vote for The Grateful Dead.

 

[DJ Spanky]

Golden Earring hands down!

Oh, wait, this isn't about Dutch rock bands?

 

[WhichReligionIsRight]

"For What's It's Worth" was not a Grateful Deaf song. It was a Buffalo Springfield song, penned by Stephen Stills. Great, short lived band that was a pioneer in the Country-rock, alt-country genres.

Yeah, I should have much clearer on that. Love Steven Stills, CSN, Stills-Nash, CSNY and the other permutations.

 

[ashokan]

Hendrix is funny - didn't have a pedal until 67.
I respect his talent but to me he's making that psychedlic drug music that's long gone.
I dont think I ever saw a Hendrix intervew where he wasn't high on something.
I don't think he's overrated but he's one of those dudes I never listen to and dont care if I ever do again

 

[jerseybird]

It's funny to me that people mention Journey. They are iconic, no question. However, they had a long down period. There was a concert hall in Grenich Village that I used to walk by with my friends. Twice we got second-row seats for Journey at a great price in a half-fiiled place. Both times, the band kind of sucked. I know they are again hugely popular, but a lot of it is because of the Philipino frontman.

Damn, I wish I could remember the name of the concert hall. If memory serves, it had a capacity of two or three thousand. The concert I went to would have been in the late 70s.

Maybe The Academy of Music. Saw Ten Years After there. Believe it was torn down to build NYU dorms.

 

[jerseybird]

Hendrix is funny - didn't have a pedal until 67.
I respect his talent but to me he's making that psychedlic drug music that's long gone.
I dont think I ever saw a Hendrix intervew where he wasn't high on something.
I don't think he's overrated but he's one of those dudes I never listen to and dont care if I ever do again

Customized/custom-built guitars and amps help a lot.

 

[BigEastPhil]

There a nothing more American than The Beach Boys!
I beg people to listen to The Beach Boys Music from 1965 and on after the Surfin / Cars fad !
Brian Wilson was ahead of his time and it’s a tragedy that his mental illness / drugs and simple bandmates were on different planets in terms of vision - otherwise one can only imagine what Brian could have done musically.
One of the Beach Boys greatest albums in 1965 called “ Beach Boys Today” was a prelude to Pet Sounds
Post 1965 Beach Boys includes album above / Pet Sounds album including so many classics / ill fated smile album / good vibrations / heroes and villains / surfs up / darlin / do it again / sail on sailor and so many more underrated / non commercial songs.

 

[Knight Shift]

There a nothing more American than The Beach Boys!
I beg people to listen to The Beach Boys Music from 1965 and on after the Surfin / Cars fad !
Brian Wilson was ahead of his time and it’s a tragedy that his mental illness / drugs and simple bandmates were on different planets in terms of vision - otherwise one can only imagine what Brian could have done musically.
One of the Beach Boys greatest albums in 1965 called “ Beach Boys Today” was a prelude to Pet Sounds
Post 1965 Beach Boys includes album above / Pet Sounds album including so many classics / ill fated smile album / good vibrations / heroes and villains / surfs up / darlin / do it again / sail on sailor and so many more underrated / non commercial songs.

These things are subjective, as always. I love all kinds of music, but to me, most of the Beach Boys tunes are nails on a chalk board with the high pitched squealing. I'm prepared to be crucified for that remark, but that's my subjective view. I recognize them as a great American band though.

Someone cut out Springsteen and the E Street Band, lumping them in as a troubadour with a backup band. A troubadour is a singer of folk songs. IMO, that is way off base, especially if one wants to include Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.

For most of his career and catalogue, the E Street Band is integral with Springsteen's music and sound. Consider that every album except for a few have included the E Street Band. The band's core members have been constant since 1972, except when Clarence and Danny passed away, and Steve's temporary absence from the band. But the mix of the bass, drums, Steve's guitars, saxophone, piano and organ are integral to Springsteen's music. Billy Joel is different story. His band has no constants.