Suggestions for a Classic Rock bracket.

[Happy_Lendervedder]

@Justin Credible

I think a random seeding process (at least after the initial #1 seeds) would be really cool. That would allow for some upsets and cinderella bands perhaps.

For the Beatles tourney, I kept my seeding a secret, but really made the seeds based on my opinions. That did allow for some upsets, and those “upsets” apparently upset some people, which was nice. It got people talking.

Wargamer, I’d say since you’re setting this up, you can let your opinion really guide the seeding.

[Rebo]

I don’t think I saw Creedence mentioned…

[Wargamer]

I was looking at the bracket last night, and I said to myself, ‘How in the name of all that is Holy and Good are those guys a #15?’

Well, actually I didn’t say anything, but that was how I felt. So I had to move Jefferson Airplane up a bit. But damn, the Airplane a #15? I think that is indicative of how tough it’s gonna be to seed this thing.

[AndyPolley]

@Diomedes

Region 1:

1. The Beatles
2. Bob Dylan
3. The Eagles
4. Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
5. ZZ Top
6. Blue Oyster Cult
7. Journey
8. Rush

I like your breakdowns Diomedes, but Rush has to be a higher seed in this bracket. I’d put them 6 and move down BOC & Journey.

Rush would be a #1 seed in my tourney.

[Really_Not_All_That_Bright]

@Diomedes

It’s a question of inspiration versus chops. Billy Gibbons, no question, is an amazing guitar player, far better than Tom Petty or anyone he played with (outside of the Travelling Wilburys). Petty, however, had more great singles and more great albums. The best album either of the two released was Petty’s Full Moon Fever.

But ZZ Top writes your standard white boy electric blues songs, with the occasional disco sound tossed in. Petty’s music is filled with riffs that get stuck in your head, and the content is practically the definition of the complex theme rolled into a simple delivery that makes rock good. Out of the Great American Songwriters, Petty rocks the hardest.

Well, I see your point then.

IMHO, though, long after Petty’s been forgotten, Billy Gibbons’ guitar work will still be getting ripped off. You can hear ZZ Top in so much modern music, but I don’t hear Tom Petty the same way.

Notice that I won’t go around saying that ZZ Top’s lyrics were great or awesome or even good - the musical arrangements only.

My top ten goes like this, I think - assuming we’re defining “classic rock” as “stuff that is now classic, and also rock”, rather than the classic-rock radio standards:

1. Led Zeppelin
2. Fleetwood Mac
3. Queen
4. The Who
5. Depeche Mode
6. Faith No More (yes, really - they did more to define modern rock than any bands of their era, regardless of their actual record sales… same goes for DM above)
7. The Rolling Stones
8. The Clash
9. The Scorpions (if you were a guitarist born around 1980 and you paid attention, you wanted to be able to play Michael Schenker’s riffs)
10. Guns and Roses

If I were to do a bracket based roughly on genre (rather than era) it’d go something like this:

Metal

1. The Scorpions
2. Guns and Roses
3. Black Sabbath
4. Metallica
5. Queensryche (I know, everyone will laugh at this)

Electronic/“Bands that have a keyboard player”

1. Depeche Mode
2. Faith No More
3. Deep Purple
4. Journey

Classic Rock

1. Led Zeppelin
2. Fleetwood Mac
3. Queen
4. The Who

Punk/Alternative

1. The Clash
2. Nirvana
3. The Damned
4. Iggy Pop

ETA: There’s a #5 in the Metal region because… um… Queensryche won a play-in game against Bethune-Cookman College.

[Hoopy_Frood]

Others notably missing (granted they probably sit lower on the seeds):

Bob Seeger
Metallica
Black Crowes
Iron Maiden
Yardbirds
Queensryche (the original Seattle band)
The Kinks
Bad Company
Sex Pistols
Judas Priest
Ramones
Ozzy Osbourne (Sabbath was mentioned, but Ozzy had a significant career after Sabbath)

[astorian]

Pink Floyd
Aerosmith
Rush
The Kinks
Jethro Tull
The Doors
Deep Purple
Creedence Clearwater Revival
Jimi Hendrix

[5_time_champ]

Here’s what I had. #1 Seed in first row, #2 in bottom row etc like brackets

S
Beatles vs Boston
U2 vs Bad Company
Emerson Lake & Palmer vs The Byrds
Eagles vs Beach Boys
The Doors vs Steppenwolf
Elton John vs Steve Miller Band
John Mellencamp vs Journey
Bob Seger vs Grateful Dead

D
The Who vs Joe Cocker
Cream vs Steely Dan
Tom Petty vs Heart
Bruce Springsteen vs ZZ Top
Doobie Brothers vs Bob Dylan
Billy Joel vs Traffic
Styx vs Allman Brothers
CSN & Y vs REO Speedwagon

M
Led Zepplin vs Jethro Tull
The Police vs Fleetwood Mac
Lynyrd Skynyrd vs Charlie Daniels Band
Janis Joplin vs Genesis
Chicago vs Little River Band
Moody Blues vs Rush
Cars vs Kansas
Rod Stewart vs Yes

B
Rolling Stones vs BTO
CCR vs Def Leppard
Aerosmith vs Guess Who
Santana vs Hendrix
Queen vs Jefferson Airplane
Eric Clapton vs .38 Special
Supertramp vs Foreigner
Pink Floyd vs Alice Cooper

[anyrose]

@5 time champ

Here’s what I had. #1 Seed in first row, #2 in bottom row etc like brackets
<snip>

and again, none of the women of rock are listed. How can you ignore Janis’ influence?
or Joan Jett and Patti Smith as contenders in the hard rock arena?
or Heart or The Prentenders or Pat Benetar?
Crickies, fellas, honestly!

[Southern_Yankee]

Janis Joplin vs Genesis is in there.

[anyrose]

ok - I rescind - I also see Heart on his list.

[5_time_champ]

Never mind

[Suburban_Plankton]

Wargamer, when do you plan to post your ‘final’ bracket? I think we’ve listed well over 64 bands now, and we could all probably spend the next several weeks arguing about seedings and brackets and who should be ‘on the bubble’…

I’ll defer to whomever you think should be included in the official list.

and then complain bitterly about it later

[Wargamer]

Well, I don’t want to step on Happy L’s toes by running this the same time as his Beatles bracket, plus I think the Mods like to have just one type of game going at a time.

So, once that is done, I’ll post mine ASAP. Plus, I think I’ve hit on a take that will shock the Board. More later, but there will be a surprise among the Number 1 seeds…

[5_time_champ]

What . . . the Monkees?

[Wargamer]

You’ll just have to wait and see.

[Boozahol_Squid_P.I]

::kicks zombifying thread::

You gonna do this one, Wargamer? I’ve been looking forward to it!

[Southern_Yankee]

Me too! Enough of the individual band madness… What’s next, Flock of Seagulls Madness?

[NAF1138]

Me three!