Metallica helped to shape the sound of contemporary heavy metal after forming in Talking Heads were one of the celebrated bands who played regularly at the legendary CBGBs club in New York, which helped establish some of the most influential new wave bands of the 70s and 80s. An inspired melding of rap and thrash metal made Rage a pretty unique proposition for rock fans in the early 90s.
As well as producing a string of killer tunes the group also gained reputation as one of the most overtly political bands of the decade too, with revolutionary messages featuring in many of their lyrics. Their politics would play a further role years later, when fans successfully campaigned to make their track Killing in the Name Christmas number one in the UK in a protest against the X Factor in Bon Jovi are one of the most commercially successful US rock bands of all time, with more than a million albums sold and followers all over the world.
American musicians Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks joined the group, taking their sound in a dramatic new direction. The best-selling album Rumours and the impact of tracks like The Chain, Go Your Own Way, Everywhere and Dreams made them one of the most successful groups of the generation with an enduring musical legacy. The group were pioneers of the US punk scene in the mid 70s, proving the perfect antidotes to the overblown and indulgent prog rock movement earlier in that decade.
M combined country, stadium rock and indie to create some of the most compelling music of the 80s and 90s. No-one did stadium rock quite like Aerosmith in their pomp. Essential album: "Deja Vu". After failing to break through as a progressive rock band, this group is credited with originating the more mainstream arena rock sound. Essential album: "Gold". They broke at the height of the British Invasion to become the leading American rock band of the era.
Their songs about war and political corruption resonated with Vietnam-era youth, and they remain powerful symbols of musical protest. Essential album: "Chronicle". They shuffled personnel and musical styles until they became one of the most successful bands on the concert and recording circuit. Many critics consider their heavy, grinding sound to be a major influence on the grunge rock movement.
Essential album: "Very Best Of". This group paid their dues as a backup band before becoming one of the most popular groups of the '70s. Essential album: "Young Hearts". One of Canada's most popular rock bands evolved from playing soft rock to hard rock, starting in the early '60s and through the mid-'70s. Essential album: "Anthology". Beatlemania helped propel this British group to great popularity in America. Essential album: "30 Greatest Hits". This Canadian heavy metal band is credited with creating the bike rock sub-genre thanks to their song "Born to Be Wild," which was featured in the iconic film "Easy Rider.
Essential album: "All Time Greatest Hits". Considered the quintessential progressive rock band, Yes has enjoyed decades of success in spite of more than the usual number of major personnel changes. Essential album: "The Very Best of Yes". They aren't actually brothers, but they have parlayed a distinctive hard rock and southern rock blend into a lengthy plus-year career. Essential album: "Best of the Doobies". Formed in , Chicago became one of the most successful orchestral rock groups in the world.
Their distinctive horn-based sound still attracts audiences today. Essential album: "Only the Beginning". Mix hard rock with over-the-top appearances and stage antics and you get the fathers of glitter punk. Kiss remains a major influence on kids everywhere who dream of rock and roll stardom.
Emerging from the early punk rock scene, Blondie ultimately expanded their stylistic approach to include disco, new wave, and hip-hop. Essential album: "Parallel Lines".
With one of the most recognizable sounds in rock and roll, Rush is also known for their fantastic live shows. With 20 studio albums to date, they remain required listening for fans interested in hearing what uncompromising music sounds like. Essential album: "Permanent Waves". Their short life as a rebellious and proudly controversial punk band was out of proportion to the huge influence they had on pop culture.
Described by All Music Guide as "the definitive Southern rock band," Lynyrd Skynyrd reunited 10 years after the deaths of three original members in a plane crash and still perform today. Essential album: "Skynyrd's Innyrds". The Police distinguished themselves by achieving mainstream success playing experimental rock.
Lead singer Sting went on to become one of the most popular solo artists of all time. Roxy Music are fondly remembered by fans as one of the most eccentric and unusual rock acts of the s and their self-titled first album is widely regarded as one of the best British debuts of all time.
They might be best known by many for proving the CSI themes these days, but the Who are, without doubt, one of the best British rock bands of all time. Pete Townshend proved himself to be one of the most expressive British songwriters of the s and s while Roger Daltrey was one of the most commanding frontmen of the era.
Ozzy Osbourne teamed up with fellow Brummies Geezer Butler, Bill Ward and Tony Iommi in the late s to form the hugely influential Black Sabbath and pretty much invented heavy metal in the process.
The group released era-defining classics like Paranoid, War Pigs and Iron Man, and influenced the outlook of British rock music more than most bands before or since. Damon Albarn would go on to create music with Gorillaz and pursue a number of other intriguing projects, but the real star of the show was Graham Coxon, who remains one of the most criminally underrated British guitarists of the 20th century. No one put on a show quite like Queen. The masters of bombast and excess, Queen created some of the most widely known and popular music of the s and s.
So many bands owe a huge amount to the work and influence of The Kinks. You Really Got Me is one of the greatest rock riffs of all time, and let's not forget that Dave Davis of the band actually invented distortion after slashing the cones in his amplifier with a razor blade; a sound which has been integral to the sound of rock and roll ever since. Their songs and their methods influenced entire generations of musicians and they remain one of the UK's ever rock bands.
Who cares if they only really released one good album, the Stone Roses have carved out a groove in the British zeitgeist unlike anyone else before or after them. In the era of sales-based charts and Top of the Pops, they had eight Top 40 hits. I think it was healthy. Music has been compartmentalised a lot more. Rock and pop now exist in different spheres — even the biggest bands struggle to crack the streaming-driven Top 20 — but bands are on the back foot within alternative music itself.
One theory is that major labels avoid bands because solo artists are cheaper and easier to handle. When I first met the , they were all friends meeting in a room to make noise. Ben Mortimer, co-president of Polydor Records, says that cost is more of an issue for artists than for labels. If you go the band route, you need to find bandmates with a similar vision, you need expensive instruments and equipment, and you need to get out on the road to hone your craft.
On the other hand, you could download Ableton [production software], shut your bedroom door and get creating straight away. Culture is shaped by technology. I spent most of my student loan on rehearsal space. Travelling is expensive. That then impacts on what talented young musicians go on to create.
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