# Musicians who completely switched genres **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 10, 2009, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musicians-who-completely-switched-genres/485257 "2009-02-10T19:03:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![rooostra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d07c76/32.png) [@rooostra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rooostra)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2009, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musicians-who-completely-switched-genres/485257/21 "2009-02-10T20:44:24Z")
10,000 Maniacs began as a Joy Division cover band ---
**Author:** ![Miss\_Woodhouse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/838e76/32.png) [@Miss\_Woodhouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miss_Woodhouse)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2009, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musicians-who-completely-switched-genres/485257/22 "2009-02-10T20:47:15Z")
Darius Rucker, lead singer for Hootie and the Blowfish, recently released a country solo album. ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2009, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musicians-who-completely-switched-genres/485257/23 "2009-02-10T21:05:46Z")
I’m mistrustful of ‘genre’ as the CDDB defines it, but still… Benny Goodman not only led a fantastic jazz big band, but he also [recorded with Bela Bartok](http://www.amazon.com/Bart%C3%B3k-Contrasts-Mikrokosmos-Excerpts/dp/B0000027PE). Then there’s Wynton Marsalis’ success as both a jazz and a classical trumpeter in the [Haydn, Hummell and Leopold Mozart trumpet concerti](http://www.amazon.com/Haydn-Hummel-L-Mozart-Concertos/dp/B00077F95M/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1234299555&sr=1-1) John McLaughlin’s guitar styles have always straddled many genres - there’s a tremendous difference between his work with Mahavishnu Orchestra, Paco de Lucia/Al DiMeola, Shakti and with Herbie Hancock on the ‘Round Midnight’ soundtrack. ---
**Author:** ![Starving\_Artist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aeb1de/32.png) [@Starving\_Artist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Starving_Artist)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2009, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musicians-who-completely-switched-genres/485257/24 "2009-02-10T21:30:29Z")
Rick Derringer has gone from full-blown rock and roll to smooth jazz and Christian music. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2009, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musicians-who-completely-switched-genres/485257/25 "2009-02-10T21:42:06Z")
Jan Akkerman went from progressive jazz/rock to more or less classical. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2009, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musicians-who-completely-switched-genres/485257/26 "2009-02-10T21:46:29Z")
**Fleetwood Mac** went from blues to pop. **David Benoit** went from jazz to smooth jazz. Yes, it’s a complete switch. **Fats Domino** went from blues/jazz to pop. **Nat King Cole** went from jazz to pop. **Cannonball Adderly** : ditto ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2009, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musicians-who-completely-switched-genres/485257/27 "2009-02-10T21:53:15Z")
Kenny Rogers started off with a Doo Wop group, then a jazz band, then the New Christy Minstrels, then a lame rocker who flirted with drug references before striking paydirt as a country artist. Lyle Lovett and k. d. lang started out as fairly mainstream country artists. He flirted with jazz and big band, she drifted towards lounge and standards. I love them both. What single genre description could describe the careers of Ray Charles, Michelle Shocked, Elvis Costello or Wynton Marsalis? ---
**Author:** ![Manduck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/manduck/32/256_2.png) [@Manduck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Manduck)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2009, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musicians-who-completely-switched-genres/485257/28 "2009-02-10T21:54:09Z")
I think Elvis Costello is jazz now. ---
**Author:** ![Fiddle\_Peghead](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiddle_peghead/32/3506_2.png) [@Fiddle\_Peghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiddle_Peghead)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2009, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musicians-who-completely-switched-genres/485257/29 "2009-02-10T21:57:22Z")
There was quite a distance between the **Replacments’** first album, the post-punk “Sorry Ma, Forgot to Take Out the Trash”, and their last album, the pop classic “All Shook Down”. ---
**Author:** ![Claptree](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58f4c7/32.png) [@Claptree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Claptree)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2009, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musicians-who-completely-switched-genres/485257/30 "2009-02-10T22:04:20Z")
Metallica went from being good to … something else. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2009, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musicians-who-completely-switched-genres/485257/31 "2009-02-10T23:08:22Z")
Exile went from scoring a #1 single (“Kiss You All Over”) as a soul band to playing almost nothing but country music. ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2009, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musicians-who-completely-switched-genres/485257/32 "2009-02-10T23:11:11Z")
Penelope Houston - punk chanteuse with The Avengers to neo-folkie. ---
**Author:** ![criminey.jicket](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dfb087/32.png) [@criminey.jicket](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/criminey.jicket)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2009, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musicians-who-completely-switched-genres/485257/33 "2009-02-10T23:20:38Z")
Robert Plant! Led Zeppelin to The Honeydrippers to…to I’m not sure how to describe his collaboration with Allison Krauss on _Raising Sand_. It’s all good, anyways. ---
**Author:** ![eleanorigby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee7513/32.png) [@eleanorigby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eleanorigby)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2009, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musicians-who-completely-switched-genres/485257/34 "2009-02-10T23:51:28Z")
Alanis Morrisette started off as bubble gum pop, no? What is she now? adult pop? I came in here to say that Dennis DeYoung from Styx was classically trained, but Wikipedia says I’m wrong, thus ending a 20+ year bit of “knowledge” for me. He was a music teacher, does that count? He had a helluva voice. Linda Ronstadt went from folk/bluegrass to standards to Spanish something. Leif Garret went from teeny bopper icon to washed up wannabe that appears on some cop show on cable. He used to be cute, believe it or not. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2009, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musicians-who-completely-switched-genres/485257/35 "2009-02-10T23:54:44Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Depeche Mode went from cheesy, dancey synth pop to some much darker (but still danceable). Oh yeah. They did “I Just Can’t Get Enough.” I have it on my iTunes, and I figured whoever I got it from must have mislabeled it, because there’s no way the band that did “Policy of Truth” and “Strangelove” did that. ---
**Author:** ![interface2x](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c0e974/32.png) [@interface2x](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/interface2x)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musicians-who-completely-switched-genres/485257/36 "2009-02-11T00:15:22Z")
That’s partially because Vince Clarke was their primary songwriter in the beginning while Martin Gore took over duties later. Some fun examples of Depeche Mode’s style change (although, to be fair, “I Like It” was a cover) … [I Like It](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BpwVndh4Xpk) vs. [A Pain that I’m Used To](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=visw9EoB3M8) [What’s Your Name?](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z5XieuteEaY) vs. [Better Days](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CwN_hzlxpxA) ---
**Author:** ![ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chockfullofheadygoodness/32/511_2.png) [@ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musicians-who-completely-switched-genres/485257/37 "2009-02-11T00:16:02Z")
Smashmouth went from an average mid-90s third-wave ska/punk band to a retro-60s pop act and ubiquitous movie soundtrack fixture after “Walking on the Sun” became a huge hit. Green Day released a new wave album under the name The Network, and a garage rock album under the name Foxboro Hot Tubs, although the latter was more of an evolution of the sound they explored on “Warning” rather than an abrupt switch. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musicians-who-completely-switched-genres/485257/38 "2009-02-11T00:28:07Z")
There’s, of course, the Beatles. They didn’t exactly “switch” genres as so much moved between them, while creating a few of their own. ---
**Author:** ![Knowed\_Out](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/knowed_out/32/7380_2.png) [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musicians-who-completely-switched-genres/485257/39 "2009-02-11T00:32:47Z")
Vanilla Ice went from rap to numetal, which raced his 15 minutes of fame closer to the end. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musicians-who-completely-switched-genres/485257/40 "2009-02-11T01:38:19Z")
**Sting** has evolved to essentially a jazz singer, although it’s something more than that. When Herbie Hancock played for one of his numbers, he had difficulty figuring out exactly what the hell Sting was doing. It’s all about complex structures and rhythm changeups that defy classification. **Conway Twitty** went from rockabilly to country pretty quickly, as did **Carl Perkins**. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musicians-who-completely-switched-genres/485257.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musicians-who-completely-switched-genres/485257.md?page=3)