# Who were some relatively untalented members of otherwise-talented bands? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 14, 2011, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-were-some-relatively-untalented-members-of-otherwise-talented-bands/574681 "2011-03-14T18:16:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2011, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-were-some-relatively-untalented-members-of-otherwise-talented-bands/574681/21 "2011-03-14T23:58:43Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > **The Beatles** are my favorite band and I deeply, deeply respect \*\*George’s \*\*taste (he always had the right chord or lick for the song), songwriter and overall presence as a musician, but he was not that great of a player, as I have commented many times…(but anyone who tries to cite Ringo for this thread is 100% wrong - and I don’t want to hear about it! ;)). I’m basing my opinion on Ringo on each member of the Beatles as a whole, including their post-Beatles records. John and Paul were fantastic. George was very good, also. But poor Ringo couldn’t sing as well as the other three, and his songwriting abilities didn’t strike me as particularly brilliant. For those reasons, I make that statement. Disclaimer: I’m not the world’s biggest Beatles fan, nor do I claim that the above has any statement in fact. It’s just the opinion of a casual observer. ---
**Author:** ![ianzin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/ed655f/32.png) [@ianzin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ianzin)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-were-some-relatively-untalented-members-of-otherwise-talented-bands/574681/22 "2011-03-15T00:26:45Z")
The B-52s, Fred Schneider. Can’t sing, can’t play anything, can ‘talk sing’ in an eccentric manner. But I guess some will suggest his personality and presence were an important part of the group’s appeal. ---
**Author:** ![Sateryn76](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e4f/32.png) [@Sateryn76](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sateryn76)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-were-some-relatively-untalented-members-of-otherwise-talented-bands/574681/23 "2011-03-15T00:48:18Z")
> [@Tom\_Tildrum](#): > > Eddie Van Halen’s brother? > > It’s not exactly on point, but I’ll cite Steven Adler for the proposition that you must be a serious f-ckup if your drug use gets you kicked out of _Guns’n’Roses_. Really? Alex Van Halen is one of the best drummers of that era, IMO. Have you ever heard the drums in _Hot for Teacher_? ---
**Author:** ![Sir\_Prize](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d2c977/32.png) [@Sir\_Prize](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_Prize)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-were-some-relatively-untalented-members-of-otherwise-talented-bands/574681/24 "2011-03-15T01:26:11Z")
> [@Superdude](#): > > Michelle Phillips was (in my opinion) the least talented of the Mamas and the Papas. Tragically, she’s the only one still living (I have a feeling this will be repeated, and that Ringo will be the only Beatle left at some point). The rest of the Beatles knew each other as kids. Ringo is the one that they went out and recruited because he was so good. Not much of a singer or writer but a great drummer. ---
**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:** [March 15, 2011, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-were-some-relatively-untalented-members-of-otherwise-talented-bands/574681/25 "2011-03-15T01:40:29Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > Poor Ringo in the Beatles had some of his tracks replaced by studio musicians on their later albums. This is not true. McCartney plays drums himself on a few tracks, notably the White Album songs recorded when Ringo temporarily walked out on the sessions, but the Beatles never brought in a studio musician to replace Ringo’s parts. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-were-some-relatively-untalented-members-of-otherwise-talented-bands/574681/26 "2011-03-15T02:13:52Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > Michael Anthony of Van Halen was average at best. He was extremely lucky. Beat me to it. David Lee Roth is a pretty shitty singer, too. He’s got charisma and he fits the band, so it works, but really he’s barely adequate as a vocalist. So if you think about it, the original Van Halen lineup is one of the most talent-polarized bands that ever existed; Eddie and Alex Van Halen were and are immensely talented musicians, while David Lee Roth and Michael Anthony were, at best, adequate. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-were-some-relatively-untalented-members-of-otherwise-talented-bands/574681/27 "2011-03-15T02:21:24Z")
No matter what you think of Ringo, he was better than Pete Best. Jim Capaldi from Traffic was good enough in their early days, but they eventually had to replace him as drummer because he just couldn’t keep a beat (though he stayed on as singer and songwriter). ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-were-some-relatively-untalented-members-of-otherwise-talented-bands/574681/28 "2011-03-15T03:14:49Z")
> [@Sateryn76](#): > > Really? Alex Van Halen is one of the best drummers of that era, IMO. Have you ever heard the drums in _Hot for Teacher_? I was misremembering who was the bassist and who was the drummer. ---
**Author:** ![devilsknew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4da419/32.png) [@devilsknew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/devilsknew)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-were-some-relatively-untalented-members-of-otherwise-talented-bands/574681/29 "2011-03-15T03:24:54Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > Beat me to it. > > David Lee Roth is a pretty shitty singer, too. He’s got charisma and he fits the band, so it works, but really he’s barely adequate as a vocalist. > > So if you think about it, the original Van Halen lineup is one of the most talent-polarized bands that ever existed; Eddie and Alex Van Halen were and are immensely talented musicians, while David Lee Roth and Michael Anthony were, at best, adequate. Oh, you’re one of _those_, an Eddie VH revisionist. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-were-some-relatively-untalented-members-of-otherwise-talented-bands/574681/30 "2011-03-15T03:42:02Z")
I never figured out what Donna Godchaux did for the Grateful Dead except shake her boobs and a tambourine. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Second\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@The\_Second\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Second_Stone)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-were-some-relatively-untalented-members-of-otherwise-talented-bands/574681/31 "2011-03-15T04:15:32Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > I never figured out what Donna Godchaux did for the Grateful Dead except shake her boobs and a tambourine. She usually sang off key. When she was in tune she was quite good, but not necessary. ---
**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:** [March 15, 2011, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-were-some-relatively-untalented-members-of-otherwise-talented-bands/574681/32 "2011-03-15T04:33:09Z")
> [@The\_Second\_Stone](#): > > She usually sang off key. When she was in tune she was quite good, but not necessary. I know that many feel that 1977 was a high-water mark for the Grateful Dead, but by in large I can’t listen to ANY GD music that has Donna & Keith in the mix. To my ears, 1968-1969 (Pig) and 1989-1990 (Brent) were when the band was at it’s peak live performance abilities—For the most part, the entire 1970’s held NO appeal for me, with the exception of a handful of random nights that somehow escaped Keith and Donna’s tone-deaf “contributions” to the band’s sound. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-were-some-relatively-untalented-members-of-otherwise-talented-bands/574681/33 "2011-03-15T13:59:08Z")
> [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](#): > > This is not true. McCartney plays drums himself on a few tracks, notably the White Album songs recorded when Ringo temporarily walked out on the sessions, but the Beatles never brought in a studio musician to replace Ringo’s parts. Thanks - when I read the first post, I was like “hunh?” What copy of Lewisohn’s Compleat Abbey Road did I not read. \*\*Argent \*\*- we clearly must agree to disagree. Are you a player? You point out the lack of technical proficiency, but don’t point out that the errors are basic and just about execution, not about reaching for some new idea, which is the kind of slop I love from folks like Hendrix, Page, EVH, etc… \*\*Fiddle Peghead \*\*- yep; George’s solo in Something is sublime, no doubt. I wonder how many times he practiced it before he laid it down - I bet thousands. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-were-some-relatively-untalented-members-of-otherwise-talented-bands/574681/34 "2011-03-15T14:24:44Z")
> [@Argent\_Towers](#): > > I totally, totally disagree. Technically they were kind of sloppy and unrefined, but it fit the style of music very well. I love the guitar on _Summertime_ and _Piece of My Heart._ Jimi Hendrix and Jimmy Page were sloppy good, and (as **Wordman** said) a result of stretching and reaching, pushing themselves. They still had great technical ability. The Holding Company guys just weren’t very good. They were amateurish, garage band guys who really had no business on the same stage with Janis Joplin. I’ve listened to those albums more than once and just cringed, thinking “Jesus, I KNOW I could have done better than those guys.” Go to any building or warehouse that rents out practice spaces to bands, and you’ll hear a dozen guys that are at least as good as those guys. ---
**Author:** ![An\_Arky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/87869e/32.png) [@An\_Arky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Arky)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-were-some-relatively-untalented-members-of-otherwise-talented-bands/574681/35 "2011-03-15T14:41:08Z")
Zia McCabe in the Dandy Warhols, Joel Gion in Brian Jonestown Massacre, Noel Abercrombie in Split Enz, Robert Plant in Led Zeppelin, Paul Simonon in The Clash, Richard Hell in Television (though his Voidoid stuff was good), Bill Wyman, Tom Fogerty in CCR, Andy Hummel in Big Star, Peter Criss in KISS, Mo Tucker in the Velvet Underground, Rick Buckler in The Jam. None of them are _bad_, IMHO, and their other contributions may compensate; just that they seem to be the weak link in their respective groups. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-were-some-relatively-untalented-members-of-otherwise-talented-bands/574681/36 "2011-03-15T14:49:44Z")
How the Door put up with Jim Morrison so long I will never know. He looked the role. Period. ---
**Author:** ![Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e36b37/32.png) [@Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Airman_Doors_USAF)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-were-some-relatively-untalented-members-of-otherwise-talented-bands/574681/37 "2011-03-15T14:51:07Z")
Andy Summers of the Police was pretty ordinary, especially when compared to Sting and Stewart Copeland. It wouldn’t be the Police without him, but he didn’t do much to distinguish himself. ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-were-some-relatively-untalented-members-of-otherwise-talented-bands/574681/38 "2011-03-15T14:53:48Z")
Rush: Even if we stipulate that Geddy isn’t or wasn’t a great singer (matter of taste), it’s not really fair to call him “relatively untalented” beside his bandmates, given that he does play good bass, _and_ plays keys, _and_ cowrites. Beatles: Perhaps **aceplace57** was thinking of session drummer Andy White on the “Love Me Do” single, at the other end of the Beatles’ recording career? Grateful Dead: I like Donna Godchaux more than most, I think, but it’s possibly fair to list both Godchauxs–as well as T.C. and Vince–as _relatively_ “untalented” beside their truly prodigious bandmates. ('70s Dead still largely rules.) Hell, some would put Bobby in there too. :eek: Conversely, Brent Mydland has never gotten full and proper respect. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-were-some-relatively-untalented-members-of-otherwise-talented-bands/574681/39 "2011-03-15T14:56:01Z")
> [@An\_Arky](#): > > Bill Wyman **An Arky** , you’re the second (at least) poster to cite Wyman. Keef would agree - he spends no time on Wyman in his book other than to say that he joined the band 'cuz he had a big amp, and that he made weak-ass tea ;). But…dude - you’re a rhythm guitarist in a rock band. In some bands, the relationship is primarily between the rhythm guitarist and the drummer, right? That is clearly the case with the Stones - in terms of the roles of the instruments, Keef is the “bass player” of the group - he’s the one who sets the groove with the drummer. If Wyman tried to be That Guy, Keef would’ve killed him. And Darryl Jones can be the bass player, but he is getting paid real money to tuck in behind Keith. (as an aside, and I know you know this, An Arky - but that is the relationship between Hetfield and Ulrich in Metallica and The Edge and Larry Mullin in U2). So when I hear Wyman play cool lines like the bass in Sympathy, or hit the groove on other songs, I hear a reasonable talented guy doing what he was told to do. Is he “untalented”? Not for doing what Keith told him to do… Oh, and speaking of U2 - for this thread, gotta go with \*\*Adam Clayton \*\*and **Larry Mullen**. Luckiest rhythm section on the face of the earth. ---
**Author:** ![Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e36b37/32.png) [@Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Airman_Doors_USAF)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-were-some-relatively-untalented-members-of-otherwise-talented-bands/574681/40 "2011-03-15T14:59:08Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > How the Door put up with Jim Morrison so long I will never know. He looked the role. Period. HERESY! He was actually a good singer when he wasn’t acting the fool. He was light years better than lots of other singers, including such contemporaries as Mick Jagger. He wasn’t Burton Cummings or Jack Bruce, but that sort of vocal styling wasn’t appropriate for the Doors’ music. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-were-some-relatively-untalented-members-of-otherwise-talented-bands/574681.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-were-some-relatively-untalented-members-of-otherwise-talented-bands/574681.md?page=3)