For a long time, my boyfriend and I have had a long-running debate on the best (most talented, most well-recognized or whatever) bands ever.
I insist the Beatles are the best band ever in most uses of the word ‘best’.
He insists Led Zeppelin has them beat, hands down.
We also have arguments over Pink Floyd vs. Queen vs. The Doors vs. The Guess Who vs. Blue Oyster Cult vs. KISS vs. Black Sabbath vs. almost any other classic rock band you can think of.
We argue about their lead singers, guitarists, other musicians, lyrics, style, versatility, intelligence…almost everything you can think of.
Anyone feel like adding their two cents?
Why, Spinal Tap, of course.
Gilbert O’Sullivan had a whole career with one song. Top that.
Christopher Parkening is a great Classical guitarist.
Kathleen Battle is the best soprano I’ve ever heard.
Can’t beat the L.A. Philharmonic as the best “band”! 
Well, The Ramones and AC/DC had whole careers on three chords! 
Yer pal,
Satan
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[Standard IMHO disclaimer applies here.]
What is your definition of “best,” Nocturne?
Here is your triad: the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, and the Who. They formed the cornerstone in the '60s that influences rock music to this day. Each had its own signature sound, grew tremendously within their music, and made profound inroads into the music we listen to.
The Beatles: Started the British Invasion and broke most boundaries for pop music. Popular most with the mainstream screaming mimis.
The Stones: The “bad-boy alternative” to the Beatles. If you had even a bit of a rebel streak in you, you pooh-poohed the Beatles and listened to Mick Jagger and his boys. Far more SEXUALITY than the Beatles.
The Who: The male listener’s rock band; the girls might have swooned over Roger Daltry, but it’s the incredible talent of Pete Townshend (not to mention his guitar-smashing antics) in both performance and writing that gives this band a medal. While the Beatles were busily meditating with the Rajnish, the Who were creating rock operas in the form of Tommy.
Led Zeppelin, while my personal favorite, would come in a smidgen below them. Of course for most “TOP 1,000 HITS OF ROCK AND ROLL, ALL WEEKEND LONG!” type countdowns, Zep’s never-released-as-a-single Stairway_to_Heaven usually winds up number 1. While you could have a mind-blowing experience with Led Zep though, I don’t think they opened quite the same doors or took down quite as many barriers as did the three I listed above.
Most of the other bands you list, while notable and considered “classic” (GAWD, I NEVER BELIEVED THERE WOULD COME A DAY I WOULD BE CALLING THESE DINOSAUR BANDS “CLASSIC”) – and would even garner their own section in a big rock history book – are not quite in the same league.
…but like I said on the top, the King IS king, darlings. Elvis started it all. Yes yes, there was Jerry Lee Lewis, Bill Haley and all the rest. But it was… the King.
There can be only one.
Led Zeppelin had it all… i would say they are definitley one of the top 3 bands of all time. Personally, they are number one for me though.
For the record, Led Zeppelin is one of my favourites, too.
As for the OP, how long is a piece of string? With so many great artists to choose from, how can you limit yourself to labelling one as the best of all time? And how do you know whether someone you’ve never heard of won’t end up being regarded by future generations as a seminal figure?
An example: JS Bach was chiefly known in his own time as an organist and music director. His genius as a composer has only been truly recognised universally during the 20th century. With the benefit of hindsight, it can be argued that Bach’s place in western music is analogous to Shakespeare’s place in English literature.
My choice of a favourite artist changes almost daily, depending on what is currently in my CD player.
Great Angus Young story:
[paraphrase] Interviewer: You’ve had 12 albums, and they all sound the same.
A.Y.: [begins indignantly] That’s not true… it’s thirteen albums.
picmr
…well, if it isn’t the Beatles, it could only be Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem.
My favorite band pretty much changes with what’s in the CD player too. But it seems Queen is pretty well recognized and since nobody else has supported it (and I’m such a complete and total fan), I’ll have to lend my support to it. Maybe it should be “Best bands for ___ types of moods” - since I wouldn’t generally listen to Queen and Led Zeppelin in the same day.
(and I’m not a huge fan of the Beatles)
Brilliant!
Here’s my 2 cents-
U2 is my all time favorite band and Bono is the coolest musician ever
and other bands that are all extremely great in everything- Flaming Lips, Verve, Doors, Oasis, and Led Zeppelin.
The Cure is also one of the best bands, even though they aren’t considered classic yet. Led Zepplin is good and so are the Beatles, so I’d say its a 3 way tie with them and the Rolling Stones.
In terms of musical innovation? Link Wray, David Bowie for shear longetivetiy and frequent style changes), Hank Williams Sr., Residents, Frank Zappa, David Copeland (classical composer), Parliment Funkadelic, and the Clash are some of them.
Well, the Beatles are amazing, of course. They changed music. I consider Buddy Holly pretty influential in early rock and roll. (And thus Miss American Pie rates so high on my list of favorite songs)
However, as Baglady said, the Stones were the Beatles for bad boys. They rocked, and yet their lyrics could be profound.
Plus, they’re the reason Nocturne’s going to marry me.
There’s so many other bands I feel like I should mention, but I think I’ll just cut it off here.
–John
The Who. Sorry.
ive been in this arguement many a time and im usually dismissed b/c my taste is music dates after the fall of the berlin wall. synicism aside, the beatles are a great band, but why is it that when ever some argues that they’re not the best, they are verbally persecuted? i agree the beatles were a great band but the best? i dont know… you have to look at many factors:
frontman/leadsinger-must be talented and energetic/magnetic
guitar-depends on genre… rock-must crunch/wail/rail
bass-practically a percussion it’s so deep and rhythmic
drums-keep steady rhythm/change up in a split second
albums-moving, good to play at a party, better at a concert, improves as band evolves, and no matter how many times you hear it, it never gets old.
what band fits this? what artists fit this?
i go w/led zeppelin. as far as modern bands are concerned… i think korn fits the bill. metallica as well… the chili peppers…
i must say, im shocked aerosmith hasn’t been mentioned yet. great band, great line up, music has evolved yet maintains the original sound. the band members have not let sucess change them ie they havent ‘gone soft’ or sold out’ and show no signs of slowing down. if modern bands ever join this discussion, look at slipknot. it’s like a cross btwn alice cooper/black sabbath/kiss/the sex pistols. the result is loud, spine breaking music made by 9 brash costumed men w/violent stage antics. i don’t know how great they are, but the kids seem to like them. best of all time goes to zeppelin. no contest.
It’s so difficult to define best. And even if you could come up with a workable definition you’d still need a level of subjectvity. Bearing that in mind I’m going to spare you paragraphs of justification and just go with my instincts.
The band I’d pick would be Queen.
Well, the Beatles didn’t have a frontman/leadsinger, John Lennon and Paul McCartney basically shared the rolls with aid from George. However, John and Paul were both supremely talented, energetic (Ever see footage of Paul at a concert? No, NOT the Sullivan show. A real concert) And both John and Paul were magnetic and charasmatic.
George may not be the best guitar player ever (B.B. King receives that honor) however, he did amazing stuff with his 12-string.
Ok, I know I’m biased, but I think Paul McCartney was the greatest bassist ever. Listen to his work in “I Wanna Hold Your Hand” or “I Want You So Bad”…hell, most of the songs he wrote has a very prominent bass.
Well, one has to admit, “PLease Please Me” is nothing like “With the Beatles”. “With the Beatles” is nothing like “A Hard Day’s Night” and so on and so on. Every album they experimented with something new. The same man who gave us “Please Please Me” also gave us “Strawberry Fields Forever.” And “Revolver” is an amazing album. “Tomorrow Never Knows”, “Eleanor Rigby” and “Yellow Submarine”…completely different styles from each other and everything else previously released.
Obviously, The Beatles.
Now, I love the Stones, but well, they never had any type of progression. What was cool in the 60’s is just OLD 30 years later. I think the only other band that can even come close to the Beatles in terms of creativity etc etc is Queen.
Zep is good, and definitely influential, but I don’t think they touch The Beatles or Queen. So, what we have is:
1: The Beatles
2: Queen
3: Led Zep
(Somewhere in the top Ten, THe Stones)
As has been said, it’s not possible to single out one “best band”. To me personally, it would be Rush. But objectively, I would have to go with the Beatles. I don’t think you can come up with a more influential band or composer(s) without reverting to Mozart and Beethoven. Sure, Zep was influential as well. But not as broadly. They may have defined hard rock, but the Beatles defined Pop. And Pop is still bigger than hard rock.