# Ten Great Bands Of All Time: NAME 'EM **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 24, 2000, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ten-great-bands-of-all-time-name-em/38073 "2000-10-24T03:31:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![sugaree](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cc9497/32.png) [@sugaree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sugaree)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2000, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ten-great-bands-of-all-time-name-em/38073/21 "2000-10-24T18:09:56Z")
> [@](#): > > _originally posted by mouthbreather_ > I would say, more accurately IMO, that Nirvana wasn’t doing anything that the Pixies weren’t doing in 88-89 At any rate, we agree that Nirvana wasn’t doing anything breathtakingly new, they were just carrying on the continuum. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2000, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ten-great-bands-of-all-time-name-em/38073/22 "2000-10-24T19:19:14Z")
I’m a bit disappointed that no one’s mentioned Blondie yet. Their significance should not be ignored; until Blondie, most women in rock were members of “girl groups”. And where the hell is KISS, you philistines? ---
**Author:** ![barton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@barton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/barton)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2000, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ten-great-bands-of-all-time-name-em/38073/23 "2000-10-24T19:30:33Z")
Going solely by the tapes cluttered around my stereo, and heavily, heavily biased, of course: 1. Hendrix 2. Beatles 3. Doors 4. Led Zep 5. The Who 6. The Police 7. Soundgarden 8. Dylan (various backers) 9. Clapton (Cream, D & the D’s) 10. U2 Jimi edges out the Beatles as even though his bassist was unremarkable, he bloody well could have recorded his albums solo while fast asleep. Cream was a big influence on other bands but never really great. Inconsistent albums, really. Still I had to put a Clapton band on there. Why the hell is Soundgarden on here, you ask? Because, well, I liked them only out of zillions of other bands from the '90’s. A close 11th would be the Stones. They’re really overrated. ---
**Author:** ![Ivar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/51bf81/32.png) [@Ivar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ivar)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2000, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ten-great-bands-of-all-time-name-em/38073/24 "2000-10-24T20:04:19Z")
my list is a little different, i think The Clash The Pixies U2 James Brown The Replacements Big Star Husker Du Public Enemy Prince NRBQ ---
**Author:** ![Milossarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Milossarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Milossarian)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2000, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ten-great-bands-of-all-time-name-em/38073/25 "2000-10-24T20:47:09Z")
Using RickJay’s OP criteria, and not looking at anyone else’s lists in order to keep them from polluting mine: **10. Public Enemy** (edging out Run-DMC, the Beasties and Nirvana) **9. AC/DC** If aliens landed on Earth and wanted to know what hard rock is, I would hand them “Back in Black.” **8. Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band** Great, prolific songwriter; the king of his particular roots-rock niche and a legendary live performer. **7. The Sex Pistols** The Clash was better; The Velvet Underground cooler; The Ramones more American and likeable. But these guys made such an impact when they came to the U.S., and the reverberations are still felt today. **6. Pink Floyd** Some don’t like them. But I can rattle off three or four of their albums that I’ve worn out multiple copies of. They seem to have been predecessors of some musical styles that are commonplace today. **5. Black Sabbath** Along with the Number One band on this list, the inventors of heavy rock and roll. Extremely influential. And NO ONE sounded like them at all when they started. **4. Elvis Presley** Helped invent what rock and roll was all about. Was sort of a bridge between the old, crooner-style performer and modern rock. **3. The Beatles** I’m not their biggest fan. But it’s hard to deny their great and prolific songwriting, their persona and influence. An extremely important band in the maturation of rock and roll from its infancy. \*\*2. The Rolling Stones \*\* Quibble all you want with me ranking these guys higher than The Beatles. But to me, the mid-to-late '60s Stones define what I feel rock and roll should be about - the Bad-Boy image, the element of darkness and danger to the music, the sexuality. (I like their old stuff so much, I forgive the fact that they have been corporate whores for about two decades now.) **1. Led Zeppelin** Just about every song they ever wrote has been played into the ground by countless radio stations. And the stuff still stands up. A unique sound that came on the scene like an explosion, and has never been duplicated. Now it will be interesting to look back and see what others put … ---
**Author:** ![Motorgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e36b37/32.png) [@Motorgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Motorgirl)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2000, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ten-great-bands-of-all-time-name-em/38073/26 "2000-10-24T21:15:37Z")
In no particular order: U2 REM Replacements Rolling Stones Ramones Nirvana (I include them because whether or not they were doing anything significantly new, they changed the face of mainstream music. The Pixies may have been doing it in 89, but not enough people were listening.) Beatles (even though I can’t stand them) Led Zeppelin (even though I can’t stand them) Blondie Eric Clapton in his many incarnations Black Sabbath ---
**Author:** ![Nacho4Sara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Nacho4Sara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nacho4Sara)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2000, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ten-great-bands-of-all-time-name-em/38073/27 "2000-10-25T03:37:53Z")
I’m doing this without looking at any other replies, to make sure I am unbiased: 1. The Beatles 2. Bob Dylan (I hope he counts as rock/pop, he’s a little folky) 3. Nirvana 4. Eric Clapton, in any band or solo 5. Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band 6. Wilco, with or without Billy Bragg 7. Run DMC 8. Aretha Franklin 9. The Rolling Stones 10. Michael Jackson Honorable mentions goes to the Beach Boys, Queen, the Temptations, REM and U2. I like most of them, although I only really love #1, 4, and 6. The rest I am familiar with, and I think their contributions to the music of the time is incredible. Hope my list isn’t too crazy for you. ---
**Author:** ![rundogrun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/5daacb/32.png) [@rundogrun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rundogrun)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2000, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ten-great-bands-of-all-time-name-em/38073/28 "2000-10-25T13:35:28Z")
Surprisingly enough, no one has mentioned David Bowie yet. He was changing his looks long before Madonna even got started. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2000, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ten-great-bands-of-all-time-name-em/38073/29 "2000-10-25T13:48:42Z")
Here are mine, in no particular order: **Rush Deep Purple The Reverend Horton Heat Bad Religion Genesis The Beatles The Ramones Led Zeppelin Cheap Trick** and of course \*\*The Dickies \*\* ---
**Author:** ![Fretful\_Porpentine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fretful_porpentine/32/2873_2.png) [@Fretful\_Porpentine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fretful_Porpentine)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2000, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ten-great-bands-of-all-time-name-em/38073/30 "2000-10-25T14:05:59Z")
What, _nobody_ has mentioned the Velvet Underground? Buncha heathens (grumble). ---
**Author:** ![Milossarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Milossarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Milossarian)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2000, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ten-great-bands-of-all-time-name-em/38073/31 "2000-10-25T17:51:12Z")
See above, FP. I mentioned 'em; they just didn’t make the cut. ---
**Author:** ![kid\_charlemagne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e8c25b/32.png) [@kid\_charlemagne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kid_charlemagne)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2000, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ten-great-bands-of-all-time-name-em/38073/32 "2000-10-25T19:01:56Z")
1. Led Zeppelin - the sound has been copied by many bands, anywhere from Rush to Black Sabbath, but noone comes close to Zep. Bonhams slamming beats, Jonesy solid grooves, Rob’s incredible voice and Pageys songwriting and guitarwork. 2. Jimi Hendrix - pop in Band of Gypsys and you’ll see why Hendrix was and still is the greatest guitarist ever. 3. Stevie Ray Vaughan - tough putting him 3rd, but even Stevie wouldn’t want to be ahead of Jimi. essentially reinvented the blues in the early 80’s where rock/blues was completely dead. 4. Steely Dan - it helps if you play an instrument to recognize the talent in this band, Fagens lyrical writing and musical composition are unmatched. Thank god the masses never caught on to this band. And to any one who thinks that the Dan where just a studio band, pick up The Record Plant 1974 bootleg and prepared to be blown away. 5. Eric Clapton - well, one needs to look no further than his work w/ Cream, D & D, and Blind Faith to realize he was god, never mind all his phenomenal solo work. 6. Allman Bros. - I hate the term southern rock, this was southern electric blues at its best, Duane and Dickey dueling slides. many musicians have made there way through the brothers, 1992 arguably may have even spawned their greatest line up with Warren Haynes and Allen Woody of Gov’t Mule(another great band) 7. Pink Floyd - Roger Waters is a genius and an ass, but it was this attitude that made Pink Floyd a great band. Animals is/was the greatest album ever. 8. Chuck Berry - it was mentioned above, but I gotta say it again, he invented rock n roll. Every guitarist was trying to imitate him. 9. The Beatles - doing things first doesn’t nescessarily make you the best in this case. They were great writers and lyricists but lacked in the instrument talent. 10. Gov’t Mule - you probably don’t know this band, nor should you. I threw this one in for me, these guys were the only ones getting it right in 2000 sadly no more, as their bassist Allen Woody died in August. RIP Woody. ---
**Author:** ![Eutychus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Eutychus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eutychus)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2000, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ten-great-bands-of-all-time-name-em/38073/33 "2000-10-25T20:20:59Z")
Okay … maybe no real rationale for my list, but just because it’s MY list … 1 : The Beatles 2 : Frank Zappa and the Mother of Invention (the original group) 3 : Gentle Giant (who??) 4 : The Move and ELO as long as Roy Wood was with them 5 : King Crimson (I like them, plus when I was a kid, I saw the cover of “In the Court of the Crimson King” in someone’s backseat and couldn’t get it out of my mind for weeks afterwards.) 6 : The Allman Brothers Band (around the time of the Fillmore album and “Eat a Peach.” After Duane died, it was straight downhill, though.) 7 : Jethro Tull (anyone with the audacity to release “Thick as a Brick” deserves to be on this list.) 8 : Captain Beefheart and His Magic Band (any incarnation except for the time of the two mercury albums) 9 : Pink Floyd 10 : Creedence Clearwater Revival (CREEDENCE!!) 11 : Mike Oldfield (okay, not technically a “group” but try listening to “Amarok” and see if you’re a cloth-eared nincompoop or not.) And of course, my list is the best, because it goes to 11. ---
**Author:** ![Sophie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/35a633/32.png) [@Sophie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sophie)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2000, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ten-great-bands-of-all-time-name-em/38073/34 "2000-10-25T20:33:12Z")
Beatles Lyle Lovitt Chuck Berry Ella Fitzgerald (I think this counts) Joni Mitchell Elvis Costello (that’s just for me) Steely Dan The Police Willie Nelson Bob Dylan ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2000, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ten-great-bands-of-all-time-name-em/38073/35 "2000-10-25T20:43:57Z")
The Beatles The Eagles Simon & Garfunkel Pink Floyd Bruce Springsteen Melissa Etheridge The Police (Sting in particular) Elton John Billy Joel The Who ---
**Author:** ![canmewda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/67e7ee/32.png) [@canmewda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/canmewda)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2000, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ten-great-bands-of-all-time-name-em/38073/36 "2000-10-25T23:25:16Z")
here’s my top 20 after an hour and a half of thinking 1. U2, made college rock cool 2. The Beastie Boys, made rap possible for white kids 3. Run DMC, the true pioneers of rap 4. Queen, best live band with best frontman ever 5. Buddy Holly, made being a geek cool 6. Black Sabbath, made heavy metal a lot more demonic 7. Kiss, you can’t argue with a whole army of fans 8. The Sex Pistols, best punk band hands down 9. The Rolling Stones, overrated but still one of the best 10. Prince, a good musician but he oozes sex and sex sells 11. The Greatful Dead, has a truly dedicated following more so than Kiss 12. Nirvana, true The Pixies along with a whole slew of bands were “grunge” but they made it mainstream 13. The Who, one of the top bands from the british invasion still around today 14. Eric Clapton, a true guitar god if there ever was one with a carreer of almost 40 years 15. The Doors, a dark band in the time of flower power, they were an art/hard rock influence 16. Bob Dylan, not a winderful musician but the most political artist ever 17. Jimi Hendrix, the best guitar player ever, anyone who argues should be shot on sight 18. Pink Floyd the best stoner band ever and the best band for"zoning out" 19. Led Zeppelin, the originators of classic rock /heavy metal often imitated never duplicated 20. The beatles, nobody can argue their influence and the expansive work they did ---
**Author:** ![avacado](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e47774/32.png) [@avacado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/avacado)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2000, 9:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ten-great-bands-of-all-time-name-em/38073/37 "2000-11-02T09:00:15Z")
ok, i know this post is a week old already (forever in message board time), but it turned up during a search, and as i read, i felt i had to mention: sonic youth - they laid the noisy “alternative” bricks for everyone from nirvana to polvo, they covered madonna! it was good, too! velvet underground - just honorable mention? they would’ve scared the make-up off marylin manson. plus, when the beatles were vaguely alluding to acid, they were were straight-up talking about shooting smack. the mc5 - you might call the mc5 the first punk band. they kicked uptight america’s collective butt ten years before malcom macclaren’s manufactured sex pistols hit the states. and they collaborated with sun ra, for pete’s sake! devo - there’s more than just “whip it,” kids. devo let a whole generation of commodore users in on a now infamous secret: the geeks will inheirit the earth; in the meantime, they can amuse themselves with incorporating the technology of the day to protest an already overly-technological world. plus, the costumes! the packaging! they were like new wave and prog rock rolled into one inscrutable little spheroid. joy division - arguably the first post-punk band. they helped launch goth, new wave and after an unfortunate suicide, new order. fugazi - in the words of my crazy friend ray-ray, “fugazi kicks your ass.” and they do. they’ve made changed more than a bank teller (sorry, had to), but have always stayed innovative and passionate. they might be the most independent band in america. who else books their own sold-out tours, plays exclusively all-ages shows, and _still_ charges only $5 per show? all without having ever sold merchandise or making a single video. they only take two other people on tour. compare that to jagger’s entourage. “though this is politically correct, it comes to you spiritually direct, an attempt to thoughtfully affect your way of thinking.” anyway, sorry for the soapboxing (too many years in college radio), but, caffiene, nicotine and due dates take their toll on the ol’ psyche. in my humble opinion. ---
**Author:** ![Tommy\_the\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/74df32/32.png) [@Tommy\_the\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tommy_the_Cat)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2000, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ten-great-bands-of-all-time-name-em/38073/38 "2000-11-02T14:13:00Z")
The Police The Allman Brothers The Beatles The Beach Boys Chris Whitley Willie Nelson Rush Run DMC Frank Sinatra (I can’t believe this is the first mention that The Chaiman has gotten.) Van Halen (David Lee Roth era) I’m probably going to think of a ton more as the day goes on. For now though, that’ll do. ---
**Author:** ![Coldfire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a587f6/32.png) [@Coldfire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Coldfire)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2000, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ten-great-bands-of-all-time-name-em/38073/39 "2000-11-02T14:36:18Z")
Good for you, naming Rush. But why don’t I see PRIMUS on your list, Tommy the Cat?? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![pezpunk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@pezpunk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pezpunk)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2000, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ten-great-bands-of-all-time-name-em/38073/40 "2000-11-02T14:58:03Z")
1. The Beatles - No explanation needed 2. Sex pistols - Pioneers and snappy dressers. Who doesn’t love sid vicious’s versions of both My way by sinatra or something else by eddie cochran (another great) 3. Velvet underground - Personally changed my perception of what music should be. Inspired numerous other incredible bands such as Luna and Galaxie 500. Lou Reed kicked ass. 4. The Pixies - Like Velvet Underground, they took rock to a whole new level. 5. Elvis Presley - The king of rock n roll. Redifined rock performance. Plus I got engaged next to his grave so he scores big brownie points for making her say yes. 6. Pavement - Indie rock Gods. They made stripped down dime store guitars and poor recording quality into a musical masterpiece. 7. Jawbreaker/jets to brazil (really just blake the lead singer who is the most incredible lyric writer ever) 8. The Chairman of the board FRANK SINATRA - 'nuff said 9. The Minutemen - Jazz, Punk, Funk, Rock. You name it they did it and did it well. Mike Watt is the bassist that all bassists want to be. 10. Descendents - Took raw punk like the sex pistols and became the godfathers of pop/punk as we know it. If it were not for them you wouldnt have the punk bands we have today…then again that might have been a good thing 😉 These are just a few of the greats…this list could go on for days. They are in no particular order. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ten-great-bands-of-all-time-name-em/38073.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ten-great-bands-of-all-time-name-em/38073.md?page=3)