# What constitutes a "megaband"? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 25, 2007, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-constitutes-a-megaband/401608 "2007-04-25T16:35:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![zyzzyva](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@zyzzyva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zyzzyva)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-constitutes-a-megaband/401608/1 "2007-04-25T16:35:20Z")
Maybe there’s already a word for it, but “megaband” is a word i use to describe a band that’s both really, really popular and really, really influential. We can discuss this, but i’ve put together a basic list of criteria to judge whether or not a band merits “megaband” status: [ol] [li] **Must be a band** - this one’s obvious, but individuals don’t count. We can have the “megastar” list elsewhere. For the sake of argument, i’ll say _must have two or more members that are considered integral to the band_. The Rolling Stones have burned through many drummers, but it’d be a different story if Mick Jagger or Keith Richards went away. Many Pink Floyd fans cried foul when Roger Waters left and Dave Gilmour & company kept using the “Pink Floyd” name. Would the Dave Matthews Band lose any fans if the drummer left, as long as Dave himself was still there?[/li][li] **Popularity** - in order to constitute “megaband” status, a band has to have performed at least a few sold-out stadium shows and had at least 2 or 3 multi-platinum-selling albums.[/li][li] **Mainstream Crossover** - this means at least one or two top-ten singles, and regular radio play on “top 40” stations.[/li][li] **Influence** - other bands have followed in the footsteps of the megaband.[/li][li] **Longevity** - last but not least. The Spice Girls enjoyed all of the above, but faded to almost nothing after a few years, and you’d be hard-pressed to find a Spice Girls fan these days. A megaband enjoys a high level of popularity for at least the better part of a decade, and still has a significant number of fans and radio play decades after their peak.[/li][/ol] A partial list of megabands, by no means complete. Add your own! The Beatles The Rolling Stones Pink Floyd The Who Led Zeppelin KISS Aerosmith U2 Metallica And a few runners up: The Grateful Dead - the most successful life band ever, incredibly popular and influential within a certain subculture, but never really got the mainstream crossover. Only had one top-40 hit. Then there’s the argument that so much of their touring success was due to people following them around. The Cure - fits 2-5 with no trouble, but… are they truly a band? Robert Smith does all the writing and has been the only consistent member (when once asked why he was the only one whose face has ever been on an album cover, he responded, “because i’m the only one that i know will still be in the band!”) Guns N’ Roses - exploded onto the scene with huge success, followed it up with more huge success, but then quickly imploded due to inner conflict. Not enough longevity for a true “megaband”. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Scrappy\_Hero\_Pup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ea5d25/32.png) [@Happy\_Scrappy\_Hero\_Pup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Scrappy_Hero_Pup)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-constitutes-a-megaband/401608/2 "2007-04-25T16:38:20Z")
I just stopped in to say that I can’t believe you think that the Spice Girls somehow influenced somebody. I do plan to follow along, and I may have some to add, but I cannot allow the allegation that someone grew up wanting to be or patterning themselves after the Spice Girls to go unchallenged. > [@](#): > > The Spice Girls enjoyed all of the above, Cite? ---
**Author:** ![zyzzyva](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@zyzzyva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zyzzyva)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-constitutes-a-megaband/401608/3 "2007-04-25T16:50:19Z")
I specifically remember one or two godawful all-female pop bands that sprung up in the wake of the Spice Girls. All Saints was one. Moreover, the Spice Girls to me represented the beginning of the end of “alternative” as the music of the day and the return to dominance of light pop. I remember when their first single debuted on MTV. As soon as the video started, i thought to myself, “woah, MTV is showing a new video by a new artist and they’re not calling it a ‘Buzz Clip’!” Then they started singing and, well, that was that. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-constitutes-a-megaband/401608/4 "2007-04-25T16:54:17Z")
Some more I thought of that fit the letter or at least the spirit of the OP’s rules: The Beach Boys Queen The Kinks The Byrds The Moody Blues Van Halen ---
**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:** [April 25, 2007, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-constitutes-a-megaband/401608/5 "2007-04-25T17:08:53Z")
The Police R.E.M. Blondie The Clash Duran Duran Fleetwood Mac Hall & Oates Jackson 5/The Jacksons Journey Oasis Radiohead Public Enemy Run-DMC Are we using chart success in the US primarily? I think we are. I’m curious how popular KISS are outside of the U.S. I was surprised to see that they have had two Top 10 singles. I would have guessed fewer. ---
**Author:** ![OneCentStamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/13edae/32.png) [@OneCentStamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OneCentStamp)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-constitutes-a-megaband/401608/6 "2007-04-25T17:13:56Z")
[QUOTE=Thudlow Boink] Some more I thought of that fit the letter or at least the spirit of the OP’s rules: The Beach Boys Queen The Kinks The Byrds The Moody Blues Van Halen [/QUOTE] I think of the Beach Boys as a glorified solo project - like The Cure, only more so. Their indisputable masterpiece, Pet Sounds, was Jardine, Love and the Wilsons singing Brian Wilson songs, accompanied by studio musicians. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Scrappy\_Hero\_Pup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ea5d25/32.png) [@Happy\_Scrappy\_Hero\_Pup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Scrappy_Hero_Pup)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-constitutes-a-megaband/401608/7 "2007-04-25T17:17:04Z")
Well, sure, but music history goes back beyond recollection. Before the Spice Girls, there were any number of interchangeable girl acts, going all the way back to the Supremes and before. The Supremes were the ones with the influence. The Mary Jane Girls had more influence than the Spice Girls. Beyonce grew up wanting to be Diana Ross, not Sporty Spice. It is my opinion that the era of the “megaband” is gone, what with the stratification in musical tastes, charting, and the overall separation of audiences. The day when “everybody listens to this band” was literally true is gone. There are dozens of bands, even in my lifetime, that were going to be the next big thing- THE unifying force in music. Oasis, G’n’R, Nirvana, or Pearl Jam for rock, New Edition or Levert for R&B, any of the Native Tongues or Guru for rap. All of them made splashes, all of them spawned imitators, some even spanned genres. But I don’t think that there will be another “megaband,” unless the musical landscape radically changes. I mean, millions of people will vote for Buck Covington on Idol, but then only a few thousand will buy his record. I really don’t think any band of my generation comes near meeting all of your categories. The closest I can think of would be REM. Must be a band - they are/were that. Popularity - got this. Mainstream Crossover - got this. REM made it OK for “college rock” to get mainstream airplay. Influence - this, I dunno. Alhtough plenty of these whiny emo kids do owe a lot to REM, I don’t know if they know that or not. Dashboard certainly wouldn’t be Dashboard without REM. Longevity - got this, too. ---
**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:** [April 25, 2007, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-constitutes-a-megaband/401608/8 "2007-04-25T17:24:02Z")
[QUOTE=Happy Scrappy Hero Pup] I really don’t think any band of my generation comes near meeting all of your categories. The closest I can think of would be REM. Must be a band - they are/were that. Popularity - got this. Mainstream Crossover - got this. REM made it OK for “college rock” to get mainstream airplay. Influence - this, I dunno. Alhtough plenty of these whiny emo kids do owe a lot to REM, I don’t know if they know that or not. Dashboard certainly wouldn’t be Dashboard without REM. Longevity - got this, too. [/QUOTE] I think R.E.M.'s influence is off the chart. Emo bands may not know it, but when _Document_ broke, it became possible to hear non-cock-rock bands on the radio. Not college radio, but top 40 stuff. If your frontman is somewhat androgynous, sings about bizarre topics, and you’re American, your mainsteam success is because of R.E.M. I think Nirvana might qualify as well. Longevity is a question mark, but there was new Nirvana product out as recently as a few years ago. ---
**Author:** ![Electrical\_Storm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ac8455/32.png) [@Electrical\_Storm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Electrical_Storm)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-constitutes-a-megaband/401608/9 "2007-04-25T17:30:03Z")
[QUOTE=zyzzyva] Maybe there’s already a word for it, but “megaband” is a word i use to describe a band that’s both really, really popular and really, really influential. We can discuss this, but i’ve put together a basic list of criteria to judge whether or not a band merits “megaband” status: \ [/QUOTE] The Scorpions and AC/DC? ---
**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-constitutes-a-megaband/401608/10 "2007-04-25T17:42:17Z")
Black Sabbath easily The Eagles ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-constitutes-a-megaband/401608/11 "2007-04-25T17:48:57Z")
[QUOTE=OneCentStamp] I think of the Beach Boys as a glorified solo project - like The Cure, only more so. Their indisputable masterpiece, Pet Sounds, was Jardine, Love and the Wilsons singing Brian Wilson songs, accompanied by studio musicians. [/QUOTE] I kinda see your point, and they may be borderline, but they’re at least more of a band (as defined by the OP) than the Cure: Brian was not the only member to write songs or influence the sound of the group (though he was unarguably the most important and influential), and he was not the only consistent member over the course of the Boys’ career (in fact, some of their 70’s albums were made with minimal involvement from Brian). You can’t judge them just by _Pet Sounds_. ---
**Author:** ![dwc1970](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a183cd/32.png) [@dwc1970](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dwc1970)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-constitutes-a-megaband/401608/12 "2007-04-25T17:50:05Z")
Does Black Sabbath count as a “megaband”? I’d say they do. [ul] [li] **Popularity** : I don’t have album sales or other stats handy, but the name Black Sabbath is certainly universally known amongst most rock fans.[/li][li] **Mainstream crossover:** This one is a tough call. Black Sabbath wasn’t exactly “mainstream” in the top-40 sense, but they were well-known, nonetheless. They are also a staple on “classic rock” stations nowadays.[/li][li] **Influence:** I know a lot of bands have included Black Sabbath as an influence (I don’t have any cites handy, though). Pantera has done at least two covers (“Planet Caravan” and “Hole in the Sky”), and I’m sure other bands have done Black Sabbath covers as well.[/li][li] **Longevity:** They had a steady line-up from 1969 to 1978 and three of the four band members stuck it out through the early 80’s even after Ozzy bailed out. Once Geezer Butler and Bill Ward split the scene, leaving Tony Iommi and three unknowns, the band was no longer Black Sabbath (by my definition).[/li][/ul] ETA: I see Snarky\_Kong gave Black Sabbath a mention upon preview. ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-constitutes-a-megaband/401608/13 "2007-04-25T17:53:47Z")
[QUOTE=zyzzyva] The Rolling Stones have burned through many drummers, [/QUOTE] I bet that comes as news to Charlie Watts. ---
**Author:** ![OneCentStamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/13edae/32.png) [@OneCentStamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OneCentStamp)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-constitutes-a-megaband/401608/14 "2007-04-25T18:28:50Z")
[QUOTE=Biffy the Elephant Shrew] I bet that comes as news to Charlie Watts. [/QUOTE] From the looks of Charlie, I’d say they’ve burned through one drummer, many times. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Ferd\_Burfel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecccb3/32.png) [@Ferd\_Burfel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferd_Burfel)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-constitutes-a-megaband/401608/15 "2007-04-25T19:24:11Z")
Wouldn’t Crosby, Stills, Nash (& sometimes Young) count? Wikipedia classifies them as a “supergroup” ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-constitutes-a-megaband/401608/16 "2007-04-25T19:28:26Z")
[QUOTE=OneCentStamp] From the looks of Charlie, I’d say they’ve burned through one drummer, many times. 😃 [/QUOTE] Oh, it just seems that way because he’s surrounded by all those other young, fresh faces onstage! ---
**Author:** ![kidchameleon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/898d66/32.png) [@kidchameleon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kidchameleon)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-constitutes-a-megaband/401608/17 "2007-04-25T19:51:39Z")
Well, they’re pretty dysfunctional, but **Motley Crue** was influental in the glam band bit (for better or worse) and continued Kiss’s legacy of amazing and shocking live acts. While they had some popular songs their personal lives seemed to penetrate mainstream culture even more than their music did. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2007, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-constitutes-a-megaband/401608/18 "2007-04-26T03:36:24Z")
[QUOTE=OneCentStamp] From the looks of Charlie, I’d say they’ve burned through one drummer, many times. 😃 [/QUOTE] Ditto for Keith. He’s been finely toasted for decades. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2007, 6:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-constitutes-a-megaband/401608/19 "2007-04-26T06:57:35Z")
**Pearl Jam** , maybe? **Fleetwood Mac** **Supertramp** had some huge albums and sold out arenas, but longevity may be their downfall. **Paul McCartney and Wings** - They were _huge_\* in the 70’s. Maybe **Rush**. **Green Day** ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2007, 7:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-constitutes-a-megaband/401608/20 "2007-04-26T07:13:16Z")
[QUOTE=Happy Scrappy Hero Pup] It is my opinion that the era of the “megaband” is gone, what with the stratification in musical tastes, charting, and the overall separation of audiences. The day when “everybody listens to this band” was literally true is gone. [/QUOTE] Whaaa? Tell me a time in the last 50 years when it hasn’t been that there’s the big popular black music and the big popular white music. 00s: Rap - Pop 90s: Rap - Alternative 80s: Rap - Rock 70s: Funk - Disco 60s: Blues (?) - Rock Yeah, there’s more bands per genre now, but I wouldn’t say that much has changed in terms of popular music stratification. 90% of everyone still listens to about the same 10 bands. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-constitutes-a-megaband/401608.md?page=2)