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Re: Geatest Brirish band of all time
For everyone who picked Led Zeppelin. TISM salutes you;
For everyone who picked Led Zeppelin. TISM salutes you;
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They say Burt Lancaster has one, but I don't believe them. -
Re: Geatest Brirish band of all time
and;
They say Burt Lancaster has one, but I don't believe them.Comment
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Re: Geatest Brirish band of all time
Led Zeppelin were the greatest ever ROCK band as far as I am concerned
Here they are in 1969 with an intro to the band with the best guitarist of all time Jimmy Page.
Also ranked number one here
1. Led Zeppelin
Was there really ever any other way this would end? Sure, there are worthy contenders all the way through this list; bands you could credibly argue should be in with a shot at the top spot. But when the chips are down, and push comes to shove, there's really only one way this could've gone: Led Zeppelin are the greatest rock band in history.
Let's take it back to the beginning. At the start of 1968, rock’s original prime movers were flagging, and another generation of bands were ready to step into their shoes and crank their amps way up.
When they’d finished, a whole new genre had been born.
As far back as 1967, the likes of Jimi Hendrix, Cream and The Who had turned rock upside down, redrawing the boundaries of what could be done within music. But by 1968 all three found their creative juices becoming increasingly sapped by the demands of endless touring, especially in America.
Waiting in the wings were two former Yardbirds guitarists with big plans. One was Jeff Beck, whose eponymous Group released their debut album, Truth, in August 1968, laying down the template for what was to come. The other was Beck’s old oppo, Jimmy Page, who was putting together his new band, initially dubbed The New Yardbirds.
By the time Page had joined forces with Robert Plant, John Paul Jones, and John Bonham and settled on a new name – Led Zeppelin, taken from a supposition from Keith Moon that their band was destined to go down like a ‘lead balloon’ – the Zep were already way ahead of the curve compared to other bands.
The revolution really began on 12 January 1969, when Led Zeppelin released their first album. It reached its crescendo on 22 October that year, when they released the follow-up, Led Zeppelin II. Both heavier and more textured than their debut, it far outstripped the success of its predecessor. Their label, Atlantic, received advance orders of 400,000 copies – nearly 10 times as many as Led Zeppelin I. It peaked at No.1 in both the UK and the US. The musical revolution they had started had now officially gone worldwide.
It was a very British revolution, starting in pubs and clubs across the land before going on to conquer the stadiums of the world. By the time the dust had settled, nothing would be the same again.
Zeppelin’s hugeness was preposterous, and as their fame ballooned, their artistic vision expanded to match. Ever more epic live shows were marked by extensive improvisations by four virtuosi whose inspired ensemble interplay seemed almost supernatural in origin. Audiences broke records, albums camped out at the top of charts and during their 12-year existence, Led Zeppelin casually conquered Earth.
Then, in 1980, it all came to an end. Following Bonham's sudden death in September that year, the group decided to disband, confident they "could not continue as we were". There have been reunions since – only four, though – including the ill-fated Phil Collins Live Aid debacle and their triumphant Celebration Day reunion, and a number of solo projects pursued. Still, none of it's come close to matching what those four people were capable of creating together in their prime.
It's only right that they're at the top of this list. Your favourite band most likely wouldn't exist without them.FFC: Established 1883
Premierships: AFL 1954, 2016 VFA - 1898,99,1900, 1908, 1913, 1919-20, 1923-24, VFL: 2014, 2016 . Champions of Victoria 1924. AFLW - 2018.Comment
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Re: Geatest Brirish band of all time
They are pretty intense. Greatest rock band is the Stones for mine. The Who too.They say Burt Lancaster has one, but I don't believe them.Comment
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FFC: Established 1883
Premierships: AFL 1954, 2016 VFA - 1898,99,1900, 1908, 1913, 1919-20, 1923-24, VFL: 2014, 2016 . Champions of Victoria 1924. AFLW - 2018.Comment
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Re: Geatest Brirish band of all time
Stones (saw them do a warm up gig at the Corner hotel (yep I saw them at the Corner hotel-suffer in your jocks!) in the late '80s-awesome), Bowie, Sex Pistols, Buzzcocks, the Cure (they were suprisingly good live-I only went to get my leg over with a girl I'd just met.) New Order, Roxy Music, the Jam were pretty good, the Clash were excellent, X-Ray-Specs (Oh bondage, up yours!) and the Slits were average.They say Burt Lancaster has one, but I don't believe them.Comment
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Re: Geatest Brirish band of all time
So.
I love them. And Jimmy is (obviously) incredible and the bios I have read paint an awesome picture to go alongside the music...but the plagiarism, the repeated plagiarism and passing other peoples work off as their own is a hard one to get past when you are talking about greatest ever.
I have always been a 'Stones' person and the albums from Aftermath through to Goats Head Soup are amazing, but the 1970's and '80s (and beyond) were pretty appalling (though if you dropped "Miss you" from Some Girls that would have been great)...Keef's solo stuff has been better than any band output since GHS though.
The Clash is the right answer to this question and the ONLY answer to this question. Even an old person like me who was too young for them in 'real time' has to acknowledge that they really did try to lead a social revolution in the UK (and around the world).
Don't believe me - listen to this amazing PodCast series (hosted by Chuck D of all people) that goes through the history of the band and how they were more than music...but still made incredible music. Yes - 'Cut the Crap' was a joke, but if you listen to the sprawling sounds of Sandinista they were ahead of their time, trying to push the boundaries from punk to reggae to the early rap scene like no-other-band ever....The Stones are to be admired for their longevity but all the while they were a blues based rock band. Led Zep were a blues based rock band. The Beatles were a pop band. The Clash were a social voice who used music to try to enact change...
What should I tell her? She's going to ask.Comment
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Re: Geatest Brirish band of all time
Great post Mike. Love the Chuck D link mate-thanks.
On that basis then you have to find a spot for Buzzcocks (not the Buzzcocks.) too I reckon. They instituted the Manchester scene, plated a style of music that had never been heard, Pete Shelley was the poet (Excuse the irony) of adolescents everywhere in the World and they were the greatest punk band of all time.
Re The Clash I can remember listening to that three album version of Sandinista at my mate's pace when it first came out. For days afterwards all we would say is I don't wanna heed the call up, I don't wanna die. I don't wanna heed the call up, I don't wanna kill! *!*!*!*!ing brilliant album.
BTW have you seen Westaway to the World? It's one of the best band docos (The Cosmic Pyschos doco Blokes You Can Trust is pretty good too so long as you can withstand the sight of a naked Knighty.) I've seen.
They say Burt Lancaster has one, but I don't believe them.Comment
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Re: Geatest Brirish band of all time
I am firmly in the "lots of overlooked candidates" camp.
Pink Floyd, The Who, The Cure, The Kinks, Led Zeppelin, Oasis, The Verve, The Stone Roses, Queen, New Order, Dire Straits, Pulp are all worth mentioning.
Radiohead and the Beatles would fill at least two of the top three spots. Hands down for mine.
Not that they would force their way onto this list, but I am also quite fond of Gomez, Belle & Sebastian, Muse, Jethro Tull.
People often ask me what the top 5 etc best gigs I have been to are and, whilst it is too impossible to work out, I saw Radiohead at Coachella and it would have to be up there. Amazing.Comment
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Re: Geatest Brirish band of all time
Top five gigs in no particular order
Violent Femmes-the Palace
The Stooges-BDO
The Ramones-the Palace
Henry Rollins-Old Greek Theatre
Any number of Cosmic Psychos gigs all over Victoria
Ditto Painters and Dockers
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds The VenueThey say Burt Lancaster has one, but I don't believe them.Comment
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Re: Geatest Brirish band of all time
Top gig for me was - Lou Reed with an early version of ACDC playing first.
No Bon Scott, and Angus in a Zorro outfit. Lou Reed sensational.
Black Sabbath almost blue up festival Hall, they were so loud - great performanceFFC: Established 1883
Premierships: AFL 1954, 2016 VFA - 1898,99,1900, 1908, 1913, 1919-20, 1923-24, VFL: 2014, 2016 . Champions of Victoria 1924. AFLW - 2018.Comment
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Re: Geatest Brirish band of all time
I have kept my powder dry on this for a long time.
I don't dismiss any of the other opinions for who is the greatest british rock bands, it is after all high subjective. However it's doing the Beatles a great injustice to label them a 'pop band', or a 'hippie band' as TwoDogs wrote.
They were a rock n roll band to begin with as hard rocking as any band could be in the very early 60's before they were signed. They were all working class lads, who did the hard yards playing in the 'Reaperbahn' district in Hamburg Germany, where they honed their chops.
Yes, when their management signed them up they tried to package them as a pop band with the suit and ties, and nice haircuts. Sold as the boys next door.. They were anything but.
Their management tried to dissuade them from writing their own songs, and forced upon them some real treacle sweet tripe.
However their success increasingly allowed them to force their own voice.
Bands writing their own songs, was not a common thing at that time. They really broke the mold and once management saw how lucrative this could be it really changed the game for other bands.
I think it’s because of these early albums and being pushed into being a pop band by management as well as some of the saccharine and twee crap MCcartney liked to throw in eg, When I’m 64, Maxwell’s Silver Hammer, Obladi-Oblada that can cloud judgment with regard to their rock bonafides.
The release of Rubber Soul is acknowldeged by the Stones as a big influencer behind their album Aftermath- their first of material solely written by the band. Lour Reed also stated that this album was something that forced him to acknowledge they were no flash in the pan, and were a force to be reckoned with.
The fact that they had two top shelf songwriters in John Lennon and Paul McCartney in the beginning, and from 1968 increasingly George Harrison was unheard of and I don’t think there is another band that has had the depth of songwriting talent that the Beatles had.
They paved the way for rock bands to come, where diversity in sound was previously not the done thing as management were nervous it may see fans waver.
A brief list of ways they influenced music far beyond the pop genre, and for decades to come:
* First use of recorded guitar feedback - "I Feel Fine"
* Keen adoption of technology to push the boundaries of contemporary sound, eg "Tomorrow Never Knows' - that track could very well have been released as a single in the late 90's on the dance scene.
* Influencing heavy rock "Helter Skelter" as heavy as anything the Who or Black Sabbath were doing in 1968
*They paved the way for all British acts to follow in terms of worldwide domination. They set the blueprint for the big Stadium tours the Stones, Who, and Led Zeppelin did after.
* They pushed their audience into being receptive to a diversity of sound from a band. Use of Sitar on 'Norwegian Wood', backward guitar loops 'Strawberry Fields',
* They were pioneers in the use of video as a meaningful component to the music medium. Strawberry Fields, Penny Lane
Below is a list of songs off the top of my head that demonstrate the Beatles were more than a pop band, or a hippie band. It's not exhaustive, there no doubt with further thought would be others to add to the list.
Most of them come from Revolver and beyond, as in my opinion that is when they really spread their wings and started setting the standard for rock music to come.
In chronological order
1. There's a Place
As much as punk bands in the 70's were often seen as a reaction against the established rock music scene, and to like the Beatles was akin to being seen as part of the old order, they too even must dip their lid to the Beatles.
'There's a place' is a classic piece of punk rock construction, and as much as the group was being heavily managed at the time in terms of what songs they recorded, this is a great early example of their desire and ability to break the mold of contemporary rock n roll. A precursor of things to come.
2. I Wanna Be Your Man, Not necessarily a great song, but the fact that this was written for and sold to the Rolling Stones, highlights Lennon & McCartney as a songwriting force in Rock 'n Roll.
3. Norwegian Wood. Both lyrically and with the addition of Sitar, this really breaks out of the pop music mold. It may not be heavy rock, but even rock bands today feel comfortable to slow things down. The fact that the final verse intimates es that the protagonist in this song, sets fire to the girls house after she'd left him alone after rejecting him, 'So I lit a fire...isn't it good Norwegian wood' and that no one picked this up for a long time..shows Lennon's skill with language, as well as highlighting his mean sense of humour. Probably wouldn't survive scrutiny in today's cancel culture!
4. Paperback Writer. No way to dispute this as anything but rock music. The riff which is actually Paul McCartney playing lead (a very underrated lead guitarist. That is classic 60's rock music
5. Taxman - For me the first time George Harrison really starts to stand out as a writer. Sardonic, and dripping with attitude. Again the riff performed by McCartney. Stevie Ray Vaughan's cover of this is great too.
6. Tomorrow Never Knows. This would not be out of place as an early dance music in the 90's. I think Noel Gallagher performed a song called "Setting Sun' with an electronic group in the 90's that absolutely reeks of a rip off of this.
7. She Said, She Said. This one is a clear pioneer in the start of the psychedelic sounds that came out of San Francisco soon after. Also highlights Ringo's very underrated drumming.
8. Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. Jimi Hendrix immediately saw the funkiness and heaviness of it. He performed a very heavy version of it in front of an audience that included Paul McCartney after the album had only been released a week or so earlier.
9. Good Morning, Good Morning. Another great piece of blistering lead guitar from McCartney
10. Strawberry Fields Forever. For me this is one of the greatest rock songs of all time.
11. A Day in the Life. As above, this is just a brilliant and interesting piece of rock music. Definitely cannot be categorised as throwaway pop. Again Ringo's drumming on this is understated but perfect and the melding of two songs (the bridge sung by McCartney was an incomplete separate song) into one, highlights their mature skills as writers.
11. I am the Walrus. So many modern rock songs owe a lot to this. Trippy, moody and snarling lyrics set to a hard rocking melodic dirge.
12. While my Guitar Gently Weeps. Another progression in Harrison's songwriting skills. Eric Clapton's inclusion on the track is reflective of how pissed off Harrison was becoming with John and Paul not engaging with his material in the studio. As an aside, it was hearing Prince's blistering cover of this recently that forced me to reevaluate just how great a guitarist he was.
13. Back in the USSR - A great mix of using Chuck Berry style rock n roll progression, Little Richard style piano, and an obvious p1sstake lyrical response to the Beachboys California Girls. Harrison's lead break definitely adds a nice modern hard rock edge to the song that belies its early rock'n'roll origins.
14. Helter Skelter - Future heavy metal bands definitely got some inspiration from this one.
15. Revolution (the single-not accoustic album version) Again typical Beatles, mixing hard edge with a sardonic tip of the hat to old school early rock'n'roll
16. Everybody's Got Something to Hide (Except for me and my Monkey) - Really interesting rocker, that doesn't follow normal timings, which made it a beast to record, especially for Ringo who had to do this in stages, due to the changing rhythm and timing.
17. Yer Blues - The White Album produces so many different styles, that initially makes it hard to follow as a listener. There is little coherence in styles. It's got the most heavy music the Beatles ever recorded, against some of the softest and gentle compositions. Yer Blues is John Lennon at his most disconsolate and primal, but still ever-present with his sarcastic humour. Not too many pop songs would titillate teeny boppers with the lines 'I'm so lonely, wanna die' or ' The bird he picks my eyes, the worm he licks my bones' feel so suicidal even hate my rock 'n' roll'
18 Happiness is a Warm Gun - Another of those studio only songs, that would be a nightmare to play live with it's changing tempo. Definitely not a pop song.
19. Dig a Pony - lyrical nonsense, but a real innovative blues twist, with some of Harrion's bluesiest lick
20 I've Got a Feeling. One of McCartney's most soulful, funkiest tunes, channeling some great vocal range. Billy Preston's electric piano adds a nice groove.
21. I Want You -Such a contrasting song. Soulful, bluesy, jazzy, and then the final several minute repeated minor chord based dirge
represents The Beatles at their heaviest.
22. You Never Give Me Your Money - brilliant rock mosaic, and seems like an early precursor to 70's rock to come.
23. Come Together - another rock'n'roll inspired riff, owing heaps musically and lyrically to Chuck Berry, but so much more moodier and heavy in tone. This isn't rock music?
24. The End- although part of the Side 2 Medley it stands alone for the great 3 way lead guitar interplay between McCartney, Lennon and Harrison.Comment
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Re: Geatest Brirish band of all time
Black SabbathBut then again, I'm an Internet poster and Bevo is a premiership coach so draw your own conclusions.Comment
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