# The biggest coasters in rock **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 9, 2006, 7:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-biggest-coasters-in-rock/375790 "2006-10-09T07:42:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Cardinal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardinal/32/4000_2.png) [@Cardinal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardinal)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2006, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-biggest-coasters-in-rock/375790/41 "2006-10-10T03:05:56Z")
Actually, I give the final win to Kiss, whom I had forgotten entirely. In fact, that proves my point. I am of the firm opinion that Kiss has never been artistically relevant. They succeeded (if I can use that word) on the image and the concert spectacle. Except for a minor league ode to rock and rolling all night party-ing ev-e-ry day, Kiss has not done anything memorable. I don’t care what sales figures they brag of, what concert grosss they’ve reaped, artistically, no one cares. I personally just don’t understand being into that band as an artistic and creative unit. I’ve listened to rock radio for 20 years, and I know literally two Kiss songs, and the other one I can’t even think of right now. Plus, personally I can’t stand the perpetual state of adolescence they glory in maintaining. At least the Who were funny and personable and one of the greatest bands ever, to go with their tv throwing and hotel hatcheting. ---
**Author:** ![NDP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ndp/32/55_2.png) [@NDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NDP)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2006, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-biggest-coasters-in-rock/375790/42 "2006-10-10T03:31:43Z")
[QUOTE=Lemur866] But Rod Stewart doesn’t pretend to be a rock/pop musician anymore. He isn’t going out and prancing around in a silver lame jumpsuit and singing “Do You Think I’m Sexy?” at the Emerald Queen Casino this weekend. To qualify as “coasting” I think a band or artist has to be just repeating the same stuff, doing the same stage show, and playing the same songs that they did back when they were relevant. It’s not coasting that Rod Stewart’s not relevant anymore, he’s moved on and is doing different stuff. [/QUOTE] True, I should’ve mentioned his current standards phase. But he did seem to coast on the reputation he made for himself in the early 70’s for about 20 years. [QUOTE=Spiff] Ah, the ol’ Ship of Theseus dealie. [/QUOTE] Also see, e.g., the current incarnation of Guns N’ Roses. ---
**Author:** ![Hippy\_Hollow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hippy_hollow/32/4841_2.png) [@Hippy\_Hollow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hippy_Hollow)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2006, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-biggest-coasters-in-rock/375790/43 "2006-10-10T04:02:06Z")
I originally thought “Rolling Stones!” but now that Kiss has been introduced to the conversation, I’d like to say that they own this thread. Everyone has their guilty pleasures, but once someone starts waxing philosophical about the _musical_ contributions of Kiss, I begin to question their sanity and hearing. Image- and theatre-wise, certainly considerable heavyweights. I mean, I know who’s in the band, some of their songs… color me unimpressed. ---
**Author:** ![Askance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askance/32/8281_2.png) [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2006, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-biggest-coasters-in-rock/375790/44 "2006-10-10T04:20:31Z")
I agree **Kiss** wins, but surely \*\*Meat Loaf \*\*deserves an honourable mention for coasting on, what, 2 tracks for 30 years. And then there’s the truly sad case of **Andrew Strong** (the lead singer in the film _The Commitments_) who as of this year is still touring on the strength of his impersonation of \*\*Joe Cocker \*\*doing _Mustang Sally_. ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2006, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-biggest-coasters-in-rock/375790/45 "2006-10-10T05:15:16Z")
[QUOTE=Askance] And then there’s the truly sad case of **Andrew Strong** (the lead singer in the film _The Commitments_) who as of this year is still touring on the strength of his impersonation of \*\*Joe Cocker \*\*doing _Mustang Sally_. [/QUOTE] I think to qualify as “biggest” he’d have to have been heard of by more than you and his mom. ---
**Author:** ![InternetLegend](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/internetlegend/32/13154_2.png) [@InternetLegend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/InternetLegend)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2006, 5:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-biggest-coasters-in-rock/375790/46 "2006-10-10T05:19:01Z")
Y’know, the Eagles are still touring, and they haven’t released an album of new material since 1979. And they’ve sucked for a lot longer than that. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2006, 6:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-biggest-coasters-in-rock/375790/47 "2006-10-10T06:43:51Z")
You know, Cardinal, I think your question is too vague to have a reasonable answer. There are too many ways to measure how significant the band once was. There’s no simple way to decide what the last good album the group put out was. It’s hard to decide whether a band is no longer together or is just taking a long time between tours. There’s no clear line between coasting and just doing their job as long as they can hold out. ---
**Author:** ![Imasquare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Imasquare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Imasquare)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2006, 7:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-biggest-coasters-in-rock/375790/48 "2006-10-10T07:40:54Z")
[QUOTE=Lemur866] But Rod Stewart doesn’t pretend to be a rock/pop musician anymore. He isn’t going out and prancing around in a silver lame jumpsuit and singing “Do You Think I’m Sexy?” at the Emerald Queen Casino this weekend. [/QUOTE] My mum has a DVD of a Rod Stewart concert from a couple of years ago, in which he performed some of his big hits. And some other stuff. ---
**Author:** ![Imasquare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Imasquare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Imasquare)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2006, 7:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-biggest-coasters-in-rock/375790/49 "2006-10-10T07:43:16Z")
[QUOTE=Cardinal] Just for the geekiness of being right, I’ll point out that the formula should probably just be “amount of money made from largely irrelevant tours and albums after an artist has ceased to matter.” [/QUOTE] Elvis in the 70s. ---
**Author:** ![mamboman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ecb155/32.png) [@mamboman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mamboman)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2006, 10:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-biggest-coasters-in-rock/375790/50 "2006-10-10T10:07:58Z")
The Beach Boys. C’mon. ---
**Author:** ![OneCentStamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/13edae/32.png) [@OneCentStamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OneCentStamp)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2006, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-biggest-coasters-in-rock/375790/51 "2006-10-10T14:50:11Z")
Jimmy Buffett. ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2006, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-biggest-coasters-in-rock/375790/52 "2006-10-10T14:57:58Z")
[QUOTE=OneCentStamp] Jimmy Buffett. [/QUOTE] Welll… what is “coasting” really? Buffett has a huge following because I’m told (never been to one of his concerts) he puts on one heck of a show and people love it. If we’re going to say that “coasting” only makes sesne in the context of having had a big career at some point to coast\* from\*, who isn’t coasting past a certain point? Some are just better at it than others. The number of big musical stars that keep pushing the envelope past the age of say, 40 is a mighty tiny number. ---
**Author:** ![SpartanDC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b2d939/32.png) [@SpartanDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpartanDC)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2006, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-biggest-coasters-in-rock/375790/53 "2006-10-10T16:51:15Z")
I was amazed that it took so long for someone to mention The Beach Boys. I was also disappointed, because I was looking forward to being the first to mention it. Thanks a lot, **mamboman**. 😉 I’d rank the Beach Boys second behind the Stones. At least the Stones still go full-bore into their live show. The Stones still _rock_ when you see them live, from all I’ve heard. But the Beach Boys? Pure nostalgia act, and nothing more. Haven’t had a hit since the dreadful “Kokomo.” On the other hand, Brian Wilson is decidedly _not_ coasting, having released a critically acclaimed record not long ago. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2006, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-biggest-coasters-in-rock/375790/54 "2006-10-10T17:06:37Z")
Hate to say it, but how about Ringo Starr and the All Starr band? ---
**Author:** ![Rico](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rico/32/3582_2.png) [@Rico](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rico)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2006, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-biggest-coasters-in-rock/375790/55 "2006-10-10T17:14:26Z")
And I hate to mention it since I never miss them when they come to town, but **Chicago** must be mentioned in this discussion. No hits since the 18th album, and they just released _Chicago XXX_. ---
**Author:** ![OneCentStamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/13edae/32.png) [@OneCentStamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OneCentStamp)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2006, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-biggest-coasters-in-rock/375790/56 "2006-10-10T17:38:54Z")
[QUOTE=Rico] And I hate to mention it since I never miss them when they come to town, but **Chicago** must be mentioned in this discussion. No hits since the 18th album, and they just released _Chicago XXX_. [/QUOTE] In much the same club as Chicago, The Beach Boys and The Rolling Stones, how about **ZZ Top**? ---
**Author:** ![Bearflag70](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Bearflag70](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bearflag70)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2006, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-biggest-coasters-in-rock/375790/57 "2006-10-10T18:21:45Z")
Bowie coasted in the mid-late 1980’s with the albums _Tonight_ and _Never Let Me Down_, but has not coasted since then. ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2006, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-biggest-coasters-in-rock/375790/58 "2006-10-10T18:25:16Z")
[QUOTE=Bearflag70] Bowie coasted in the mid-late 1980’s with the albums _Tonight_ and _Never Let Me Down_, but has not coasted since then. [/QUOTE] I’ll agree that those are his weakest, but Robert Altman makes a bad movie from time to time. That’s not coasting, that’s risk taking; willingness to fail. ---
**Author:** ![Bearflag70](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Bearflag70](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bearflag70)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2006, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-biggest-coasters-in-rock/375790/59 "2006-10-10T18:31:36Z")
[QUOTE=lissener] I’ll agree that those are his weakest, but Robert Altman makes a bad movie from time to time. That’s not coasting, that’s risk taking; willingness to fail. [/QUOTE] Bowie has admitted to coasting on those albums, simply cranking out some pop to take advantage of the success of _Let’s Dance_ ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2006, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-biggest-coasters-in-rock/375790/60 "2006-10-10T18:41:41Z")
[QUOTE=Bearflag70] Bowie has admitted to coasting on those albums, simply cranking out some pop to take advantage of the success of _Let’s Dance_ [/QUOTE] He “admitted” doing those albums specifically to pay the rent. Not the same thing in my book. He said the same thing about _Let’s Dance._ Setting out to achieve a specific goal, achieving it, and moving on, is not the same thing as coasting, which I define as repeating old formulae because you’re dried up creatively and don’t want to get a job selling real estate. In any case, in regards to Bowie, I think we’re splitting hairs. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-biggest-coasters-in-rock/375790.md?page=2)