# What is your favorite solo artist from a group? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 6, 2009, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favorite-solo-artist-from-a-group/516608 "2009-11-06T17:39:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![palindromemordnilap](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/db5fbb/32.png) [@palindromemordnilap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/palindromemordnilap)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2009, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favorite-solo-artist-from-a-group/516608/21 "2009-11-06T22:30:42Z")
Peter Gabriel tops this list, along with Paul Simon if S&G counts as a band. Those are the only two who make my all-time favorites list. McCartney, Lennon and Harrison all had some good solo work. I like Townshend’s first couple of solo albums a lot–better than I like any The Who albums, actually. Don Henley, Sting, Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks all had one or two good solo albums. So did Phil Collins and David Gilmour, but both of them were still with their respective bands at the time. Joe Walsh had a great solo album but it was before he joined the Eagles. Neil Young, if you think he was with CSN long enough to count. ---
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2009, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favorite-solo-artist-from-a-group/516608/22 "2009-11-06T22:32:03Z")
I really enjoy Rhett Miller’s solo work. (Old 97s) Also, Jeff Tweedy of Wilco does incredible solo shows but hasn’t released any sort of albums separate from his group. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2009, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favorite-solo-artist-from-a-group/516608/23 "2009-11-07T01:54:25Z")
Phil Collins’ earlier solo work is quite good. I don’t care for too much of it after\*\* No Jacket Required\*\*, but the first three albums are decent. ---
**Author:** ![Lobot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ce7236/32.png) [@Lobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobot)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2009, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favorite-solo-artist-from-a-group/516608/24 "2009-11-07T03:17:56Z")
Peter Gabriel by far. Other strong picks: Lindsey Buckingham, Sting, Phil Collins and Don Henley. Do Alice Cooper and Tom Petty count? ---
**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:** [November 7, 2009, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favorite-solo-artist-from-a-group/516608/25 "2009-11-07T04:48:19Z")
Brian Wilson ---
**Author:** ![Neatness\_Counts](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b19c9b/32.png) [@Neatness\_Counts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neatness_Counts)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2009, 8:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favorite-solo-artist-from-a-group/516608/26 "2009-11-07T08:06:18Z")
I thought Bruce Dickinson’s solo material was really, really good. Some records being better than anything Iron Maiden has done since _Seventh Son_, with _The Chemical Wedding_ being the second best Heavy Metal album of the 90’s IMO. Judas Priest’s _Painkiller_ is the best one of the 90’s, obviously. And speaking of Priest, Halford’s first solo album, _Resurrection_ is fan-effin’-tastic. > [@MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](#): > > Jerry Garcia had a long running solo career aside from his 30 years with the Grateful Dead. > > His work with the Jerry Garcia Band was quite different than his role in the Grateful Dead. The JGB featured Motown covers, several Dylan tunes, some original Garcia compositions and various songs from his favorite influences… > > There are many who did not care for the Grateful Dead’s music that really enjoyed the Jerry Garcia Band. (and probably a few deadheads who were not into the JGB) I’ve always though that Garcia was a really good, tastefull guitarist, but I just couldn’t get with the vibe of the Grateful Dead. Based on your last sentence, I think I’ll check some of his solo stuff out. ---
**Author:** ![MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MPB_in_Salt_Lake)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2009, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favorite-solo-artist-from-a-group/516608/27 "2009-11-07T18:13:02Z")
> [@Neatness\_Counts](#): > > I thought Bruce Dickinson’s solo material was really, really good. Some records being better than anything Iron Maiden has done since _Seventh Son_, with _The Chemical Wedding_ being the second best Heavy Metal album of the 90’s IMO. Judas Priest’s _Painkiller_ is the best one of the 90’s, obviously. > > And speaking of Priest, Halford’s first solo album, _Resurrection_ is fan-effin’-tastic. > > I’ve always though that Garcia was a really good, tastefull guitarist, but I just couldn’t get with the vibe of the Grateful Dead. Based on your last sentence, I think I’ll check some of his solo stuff out. If you do decide to give the Jerry Garcia Band a listen, make sure to get one of their many live concert recordings, not a studio album. The JGB, like the Grateful Dead, was all about live performance, and the studio stuff is not nearly as engaging as his live shows were… ---
**Author:** ![Hazle\_Weatherfield](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Hazle\_Weatherfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hazle_Weatherfield)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2009, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favorite-solo-artist-from-a-group/516608/28 "2009-11-07T19:30:34Z")
Peter Gabriel, David Byrne, Paul Westerberg. ---
**Author:** ![neofishboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/neofishboy/32/444_2.png) [@neofishboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/neofishboy)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2009, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favorite-solo-artist-from-a-group/516608/29 "2009-11-07T19:47:04Z")
Bob Mould and Frank Black. Honorable mentions to the Peters … Gabriel and Townshend. ---
**Author:** ![fubbleskag](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@fubbleskag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fubbleskag)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2009, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favorite-solo-artist-from-a-group/516608/30 "2009-11-08T00:33:31Z")
Frank Black Serj Tankian ---
**Author:** ![BomTek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bomtek/32/21364_2.png) [@BomTek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BomTek)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2009, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favorite-solo-artist-from-a-group/516608/31 "2009-11-08T20:36:44Z")
I liked all of Ace Frehley’s solo stuff. Man, I know I’m on a Kiss kick lately, but I’m expecting the Sonic Boom CD any day now, and I’m actually excited! ---
**Author:** ![Sefton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5daacb/32.png) [@Sefton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sefton)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2009, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favorite-solo-artist-from-a-group/516608/32 "2009-11-08T20:39:40Z")
Freddie Mercury ---
**Author:** ![Trom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/958977/32.png) [@Trom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trom)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2009, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favorite-solo-artist-from-a-group/516608/33 "2009-11-08T21:26:31Z")
Elliott Smith ---
**Author:** ![Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aji_de_gallina/32/260_2.png) [@Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aji_de_Gallina)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2009, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favorite-solo-artist-from-a-group/516608/34 "2009-11-08T21:35:43Z")
Charly García ---
**Author:** ![Wakinyan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wakinyan/32/352_2.png) [@Wakinyan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wakinyan)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2009, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favorite-solo-artist-from-a-group/516608/35 "2009-11-08T21:57:18Z")
Robert Plant. Being the singer of “the greatest rock’n’roll band ever”, and more or less throwing it out the window, doing his own things since the eighties is cool. The music he is making, however, is rather more than cool. He is great, truly awsome. ---
**Author:** ![DigitalC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ebca7d/32.png) [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2009, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favorite-solo-artist-from-a-group/516608/36 "2009-11-08T23:15:31Z")
Justin Timberlake. ---
**Author:** ![Zoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a4c791/32.png) [@Zoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zoe)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2009, 7:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favorite-solo-artist-from-a-group/516608/37 "2009-11-09T07:35:33Z")
From only one recording: **Clare Tory** for “Great Gig in the Sky” from **Dark Side of the Moon** by Pink Floyd ---
**Author:** ![HongKongFooey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c4cdca/32.png) [@HongKongFooey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HongKongFooey)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2009, 12:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favorite-solo-artist-from-a-group/516608/38 "2009-11-09T12:04:43Z")
Frank Black, Greg Dulli ---
**Author:** ![Contrapuntal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e274bd/32.png) [@Contrapuntal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Contrapuntal)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2009, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favorite-solo-artist-from-a-group/516608/39 "2009-11-09T14:37:59Z")
> [@MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](#): > > As much as I love Van Morrison’s music, he has always pretty much been a solo artist, playing with many different backing musicians (in a seemingly ever-changing rotation) throughout his 40+ year career. > > He was with the group Them for a year or two very early on, but he soon left (after writing the hit “Gloria”) to strike out on his own and has never been in a “band” since… So what? The OP didn’t mention any such restrictions. He was in Them. He left to go solo. That was the question I answered. ---
**Author:** ![Translucent\_Daydream](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/translucent_daydream/32/16170_2.png) [@Translucent\_Daydream](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Translucent_Daydream)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2009, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favorite-solo-artist-from-a-group/516608/40 "2009-11-09T14:40:26Z")
> [@MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](#): > > If you do decide to give the Jerry Garcia Band a listen, make sure to get one of their many live concert recordings, not a studio album. The JGB, like the Grateful Dead, was all about live performance, and the studio stuff is not nearly as engaging as his live shows were… Run for the roses is a good song by JGB. Live, of course. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favorite-solo-artist-from-a-group/516608.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favorite-solo-artist-from-a-group/516608.md?page=3)