Guest Agent of Oblivion Report post Posted March 10, 2003 Well, I suppose they had talent on a technical level and certainly a commercial level, but in my eyes they never really did much with what they had. I'm not a fan of the speedy cheese-metal sound that Van Halen embodies, and I don't think I'd even put them close to being the best American band. I don't even think they'd make it into my top ten The thing is though, Van Halen had catchiness down to a science. They immediately grab my attention, and Eddie's riffs have a tendency to keep me that way. I don't like the Hagar material at all, but the Roth material is full of energy and good musicianship. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
HurriShane 0 Report post Posted March 11, 2003 The Ramones have had a huge influence on American rock music, just look at all of the big names on their tribute album. Everybody from Kiss to Zeke to The Pretenders to Red Hot Chili Peppers. Plus they've influenced so many other rock bands over the years. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest goodhelmet Report post Posted March 11, 2003 personally, i prefer the old Alice Cooper band (up until 'welcome to my nightmare'). From 'love it to death ' to 'muscle of love', i enjoyed every last album. i am also a huge kiss mark, but that is for nostalgia sake more than because of anything they actually put on record (with the exception of 'rock n roll over'). from the last ten years, i think Pearl Jam is leagues ahead of everyone else but that will just start the next worthless pearl jam-nirvana debate. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest spiny norman Report post Posted March 11, 2003 Well, nobody's said them, which suprises me. The Supremes. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest spiny norman Report post Posted March 11, 2003 I'm also going to add Simon & Garfunkel, Everly Brothers, The Temptations, The Four Tops, Bill Haley And The Comets, The Crickets, Jackson Five and The Beach Boys. But I am going to emphasise The Supremes. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Spaceman Spiff Report post Posted March 11, 2003 from the last ten years, i think Pearl Jam is leagues ahead of everyone else but that will just start the next worthless pearl jam-nirvana debate. ::hugs goodhelmet:: I love you. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest godthedog Report post Posted March 11, 2003 Well, nobody's said them, which suprises me. The Supremes. wouldn't the supremes be considered a vocal group? i mean, since they didn't play any instruments it would be kind of weird to call them a band. i think motown stuff often gets overlooked in cases like this also because great albums are so essential to the modern idea of a great band, and it seems that motown didn't get a handle on the art of crafting albums as a whole (as opposed to just crafting sets of songs) until 'what's going on'. this is a hasty judgment since i'm not an authority on 60s motown albums, but there's certainly no supremes albums that are considered canonical. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest WrestlingDeacon Report post Posted March 12, 2003 That's pretty true godthedog. Gordy was very opposed to releasing "What's Going On?" because he didn't feel that it fit Motown's image and goal of just releasing catchy, self-contained 3 minutes singles. Then it hit big and everything was jake. I mentioned throwing a few Motown acts in on my list, like the Temptations and the very underrated Smokey Robinson and the Miracles, but truth is they were all vocal groups. Motown had a platoon of session men that played on these albums and in fact a movie about them was just released recently. In the Shadows of Motown, I think it was called? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Midnight Express83 Report post Posted March 12, 2003 Groups will be for another thread. Greatest Band of all time: FUCKING Earth, Wind, and Fire. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Vern Gagne Report post Posted March 12, 2003 Gene Simmons is from Isreal. So technically KISS doesn't count. Buddy Holly and the Crickets should be included. One of my favorites is Lynard Skynard. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest goodhelmet Report post Posted March 13, 2003 i could have sworn the title said ROCK N ROLL band!!! even then, if someone called the Supremes the greatest American band I would have a problem since they weren't a band so much as they were a vocal group. i mean, who played the strings on "someday, we'll be together"? as for soul groups, well... it's just silly when you have sly and the family stone. no one else comes close.... except for the chi-lites (or possibly the manhattans) if we are including vocal acts. aw fuck, i forgot about earth, wind and fire... they'ree pretty close too. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest saturnmark4life Report post Posted March 13, 2003 Gene Simmons is from Isreal. So technically KISS doesn't count. Awww c'mon, he didn't write the majority of their songs or anything, the rest of them were from the US and that's where they formed and released their catalogue. I'm sure if we trace the family trees of each and every artist mentioned thus far we might find something that ambiguous. And I WANT em to count, dammit!!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
