GTP Top 100 Rock Bands of All TimeMusic
- Thread starter Danoff
- 166 comments
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- 6,546
- matthewjlcoleman
Led Zeppelin for their time were very, very different. They still had the ever-present blues feel that a lot of bands had back then, but they were heavy, without being over the top. Lyrically, a lot of songs were just amazing. Musically, the talent and skill in each of the band members was second-to-none. Jimmy Page was the man. His guitar riffs were catchy and unmatched. He provided a heavier feel to the band that no other band really had. Robert Plant was vocally one of the best singers you could find. His blues-style vocals mixed perfectly with Page's guitars. John Bonham was, and still is, one of the greatest rock drummers to grace the earth. His drum work occasionally went unnoticed, but it was seriously amazing. John Paul Jones still is the forgotten Zeppelin member, but he was the best session bassist of his time, and the only member keeping Zeppelin together.emad
Roughly across the 10 years, Zeppelin were the biggest rock band, and in a way still are. This is why they're still at number 1. Musically, you really have to listen.
- 2,208
emad
The test is how well the music holds up over the years, and how it sounds to each succeeding generation.
I have a 15-year-old son. He, and every one of his friends (without exception), are great fans and admirers of Led Zep and Hendrix. When kids hear their stuff for the first time, its blows them away just like it did to everybody back when those guys first appeared.
Real talent, and real quality, is timeless. People will be loving Led Zep a hundred years from now.
- 1,306
Jimmy Enslashay
If I was 100% sober right now, I could say the same things about Pink Floyd AND actually provide names to back up what I am saying.
But I can hardly type, so you will just have to take my word for it
Pink Floyd has easily the best guitar solos I have ever heard, the best mixing and matching of different instruments (it's like listening to an orchestra or classical music - well, a rock version of it). Innovative lyrics, experimental songs, different styles.
And the more you listen to their songs, the more you get addicted to them. It's not like other bands, that, when you have listened to the same few songs over and over, you just get sick of it and don't listen to them for months, before you play them again. I can listen to their songs (heck, even the SAME one) back to back to back for hours, and still enjoy them like it was the first time...
But I guess that's just me. In my opinion nothing beats Pink Floyd and nothing (expecially looking at how and where the modern music is going) ever will...
The Wizard.
- 6,546
- matthewjlcoleman
Names of what? Please reply sober.The Wizard
I also love Pink Floyd, and I do think they're musical geniouses, but I still take Zeppelin first.The Wizard
I respect what you're saying, and like previously mentioned, it's all on taste and opinion. It's almost futile to try and prove who is the best band in the world, because at the end of the day, there are numerous insanely talented bands. It all comes down to the listener. What they consider the best band. For some, what makes a band or artist the greatest is providing them with the most ear-catching melodies and songs. For some, it's musical ability and talent. For some, it's lyrical masterpieces. In the end, although I may have done it from time to time, it's pointless, and in a way wrong to denote people for choosing one band over another. It's what you consider to be the best band.
- 1,306
Jimmy Enslashay
You know, I completely agree with this 👍
I wasn't trying to fight with you over who's first or who's second. I was just trying to say that all the things you said about Led Zeppelin (which I like a lot too, by the way, it's second on my list) can apply (from my point of view) to Pink Floyd as well.
Sorry if I came across like I was judging you or anything, but I wasn't 100% coherent last night
But anyway, I agree: it's the listener that makes the biggest difference.
Plus Pink Floyd has some emotional value for me too, since it's the first music I have ever listened to, since I was 5 year old or less, when I used to go on trips with my dad. No matter how far we had to drive, Pink Floyd was playing on the cassette player (yeah, they didn't have CD's back then
) for (almost) the whole entire trip. Eventually Simon & Garfunkel or The Beatles would substitute in, but they would make much less of an appearence and we would soon go back to our beloved Pink Floyd.By the way, "Delicate Sound of Thunder" and "A Momentary Lapse of Reason" were the two albums that we used to play back then. Now I have almost all of them, and I learnt to love also their experimental music they did at the beginning of they career, not just the songs that everybody knows (or is supposed to know).
Anyway, I have to leave for university now, so we can continue this conversation later, if you like.
The Wizard.
1. John Lennon
2. Oasis
3. The Beatles
4. The Kinks
5. The Verve
6. The Stone Roses
7. The Libertines
8. Paul McCartney
9. Neil Young
10. The Sex Pistols
11. Richard Ashcroft
12. Coldplay
13. Kasabian
14. George Harrison
15. Pink Floyd
16. The Doors
17. The Strokes
18. The Yardbirds
19. The Who
20. Led Zeppelin
2. Oasis
3. The Beatles
4. The Kinks
5. The Verve
6. The Stone Roses
7. The Libertines
8. Paul McCartney
9. Neil Young
10. The Sex Pistols
11. Richard Ashcroft
12. Coldplay
13. Kasabian
14. George Harrison
15. Pink Floyd
16. The Doors
17. The Strokes
18. The Yardbirds
19. The Who
20. Led Zeppelin
- 40,821
1. Rush
2. Van Halen
3. Foreigner
4. Heart
5. Nirvana
6. The Who
7. Pink Floyd
8. Guns & Roses
9. Boston
10. REO Speedwagon
11. Led Zeppelin
12. Bon Jovi
13. Aerosmith
14. AC/DC
15. Allman Bros. Band
16. Queen
17. Journey
18. Yes
19. Rolling Stones
20. The Beatles
It's nice and in order up to no. 15, and then after that it's like a tie.
2. Van Halen
3. Foreigner
4. Heart
5. Nirvana
6. The Who
7. Pink Floyd
8. Guns & Roses
9. Boston
10. REO Speedwagon
11. Led Zeppelin
12. Bon Jovi
13. Aerosmith
14. AC/DC
15. Allman Bros. Band
16. Queen
17. Journey
18. Yes
19. Rolling Stones
20. The Beatles
It's nice and in order up to no. 15, and then after that it's like a tie.
- 7,271
1. Dream Theater
2. Guns N' Roses
3. Metallica
Just a top 3.
2. Guns N' Roses
3. Metallica
Just a top 3.
- 8,191
- Southern Louisiana
- GTP_Kent
I don't think I can come up with a list.
It would be really hard without a program to set things up for me with an existant list of bands.
However, regarding the first list...
I'm amazed the Dead is on there, I would have never expected that from this site.
👍 
My only contentions with the list are based on personal views.
The bands listed are all great but the order is something I would have to re-work.
Maybe I'm just too old school about my views.
Still, just to make some effort for the sake of seeing my views come across...
My List:
_1) Grateful Dead
_2) Beattles
_3) Led Zep
_4) The Jimi H Experience
_5) Pink Floyd
_6) Cream
_7) Van Halen
_8) Bob Seager & Silver Bullet Band
_9) Metallica
10) Talking Heads
(*Not on top 10... Bob Dylan is a Folk Musician IMO)
Only things I can imagine you guys having beef with on that list are #1 & #10.
#1 is a personal thing.
#10 is a question of considering them rock n roll.
It would be really hard without a program to set things up for me with an existant list of bands.
However, regarding the first list...
I'm amazed the Dead is on there, I would have never expected that from this site.
👍 My only contentions with the list are based on personal views.
The bands listed are all great but the order is something I would have to re-work.
Maybe I'm just too old school about my views.
Still, just to make some effort for the sake of seeing my views come across...
My List:
_1) Grateful Dead
_2) Beattles
_3) Led Zep
_4) The Jimi H Experience
_5) Pink Floyd
_6) Cream
_7) Van Halen
_8) Bob Seager & Silver Bullet Band
_9) Metallica
10) Talking Heads
(*Not on top 10... Bob Dylan is a Folk Musician IMO)
Only things I can imagine you guys having beef with on that list are #1 & #10.
#1 is a personal thing.
#10 is a question of considering them rock n roll.
Roo
Premium
- 7,437
- Hampshire, UK
- GTP_Roo
Coming up with 20 will be difficult, so after the first few it'll be as they come to mind:
1. System of a Down
2. Queen
3. The Red Hot Chili Peppers
4. Guns N' Roses
5. The Offspring
6. Green Day
7. Korn
8. Incubus
9. Motörhead
10. Placebo
11. The Darkness
12. Sack Trick
13. Franz Ferdinand
14. Spineshank
15. Linkin Park
16. Slipknot
17. Lostprophets
18. Spunge
19. Nirvana
20. Rammstein
All very mainstream, well-known stuff. Image, talent, genre and musical ability don't bother me much - so long as I like their songs, I'm not bothered. Led Zepplin, Pink Floyd, Black Sabbeth and so on don't interest me much (I thought they'd be heavier, from the impression I got when I was about, oooh, 11) - just because I like a band doesn't mean they're any good.
1. System of a Down
2. Queen
3. The Red Hot Chili Peppers
4. Guns N' Roses
5. The Offspring
6. Green Day
7. Korn
8. Incubus
9. Motörhead
10. Placebo
11. The Darkness
12. Sack Trick
13. Franz Ferdinand
14. Spineshank
15. Linkin Park
16. Slipknot
17. Lostprophets
18. Spunge
19. Nirvana
20. Rammstein
All very mainstream, well-known stuff. Image, talent, genre and musical ability don't bother me much - so long as I like their songs, I'm not bothered. Led Zepplin, Pink Floyd, Black Sabbeth and so on don't interest me much (I thought they'd be heavier, from the impression I got when I was about, oooh, 11) - just because I like a band doesn't mean they're any good.
.
- 531
WTF why is bob dylan so far down on the list. He needs to be bumped up..
- 208
1) The Grateful Dead
WHY: The Dead are single-handedly responsible for two indespensible parts of modern music: close mic technique, and massive sound systems. Before their 'wall of sound' system in the mid-seventies (only 80 concerts, but WHAT concerts!), bands toured and used whatever PA was in the concert hall at the time. I mean *ALL* bands. This made for really uneven sound quality. You could rarely hear concerts the way they are now. Close mic technique is another of their techniques, and it's a way of placing mics on drums & amplifiers for better sound reproduction live and in live recordings. The difference is one you couldn't imagine if you haven't heard it.
2) The beatles
WHY: Everything that the Dead did for live music, the Beatles did for studio music. Before the Beatles, bands went into the studio at the whim of their record company; the company decided when, what producer, how long, and -- get this-- what songs. The record companies were in complete control.
3) Led Zepplin
WHY: I'll leave the answers in this thread stand.
4) The Ramones
WHY: They broke down corporate rock and roll in the '70s.
5) KISS
WHY: Rock music as theatre.
6) Bob Dylan
WHY: The single most-covered musician in all of rock 'n roll. Somehow, nearly every band can find something that Bobby wrote and turn it into a song of their own. Add in the fact that he was the spokesman for his generation (although he didn't want the attention), and you've got a solid position on this list.
7) The Who:
WHY: Although The Ramones were responsible for popularizing American punk, the Who were in many ways the original punk rock band. Add in their astounding innovations in terms of rock opera and rock film, and you've got something special.
8) Jimi Hendrix
WHY: I doubt if any guitar player has shook up rock like Jimi did. His playing was so crazy, so far beyond anything that anyone else was doing, that you just can't get beyond him.
9) Chuck Berry
WHY: well, he was the first (or at least the first popular) guy to do what he did, and what we know as Rock.
10) Janis Joplin
WHY: she was the first rockchick, although if there's a better example from earlier, I'd be happy to replace her. She was amazing, though, and her live performances are a treat, if you ever get a chance to see a recording. She's so alive. More interestingly, she'd NEVER get a record contract today, given her acne and the fact that she wasn't pencil-thin. Like those things matter when it comes to music.
11) Frank Zappa
WHY: There are a few interesting things that make FZ so interesting. He was aiming for using classical composition techniques in rock music, which is somewhat unique. His use of humor is pretty great. He had an 'open' band-- anyone could come and audition to play for him, and if they were the best, then they were in. This is how we got to meet Steve Vai.
12) Chicago
WHY: This is an emotional favorite for me. My dad went to college with these guys, and was around when they said, 'hey, let's put together a bar band with horns'.
13) Bob Mould
WHY: This is an esoteric one, I'll admit. Bob was the guitar player for Husker Du, an '80s punk band from Minnesota. He was probably the most virtuostic guitar player in all of punk rock. Husker Du was also one of the most musically advanced punk bands ever. They were punk, but they had technique, and they could improvise as much as any jazz group.
14) King Crimson
WHY: King Crimson were the prototypical 'prog rock' group. Between Adrian Belew's crazy "anything goes" guitar (he once played a guitar with a floppy rubber neck, just because he could), and Robert Fripps' almost mechanical precision, they had some really crazy and competent sounds. Bill Bruford was an incredible drummer. Every prog rock band since owes a lot to them.
15) George Clinton and Parliament/Funkadelic
WHY: Although these might belong in R&B/Hip Hop, I think that George and company changed the funky side of music forever. They had amazing live shows, and an unmatched volume of output in the studio. George and his crew had contracts with every record company, and would put out one album after another, switching band names as needed to stay within terms of their contracts.
16) U2
WHY: U2 refined a lot of things that have been mentioned before on this list. I don't really have much to say about them that's interesting; I just feel that they're pretty darn important.
17) The Doors
WHY: Another sentimental favorite, their organ player was an alumnus of my high school. Funny thing about the Doors-- they had no bass player. The organist took care of it. On nights when Morrison was too drunk or high to sing, he would take that over, too.
18) Nirvana
WHY: They burned brightly, and for a very short period of time. They were influential in their own small circle. A million garage bands were born under their influence. I think it's maybe a bit early for me to know if they really belong on this list or not.
19) Eric Clapton & Cream
WHY: I'm almost embarassed to have him this low in the list, but Eric's blues influence has been felt for years in rock music.
20) The Rolling Stones
WHY: They're the rolling stones. Any list would be incomplete without them. They weren't the best at what they did, but they were good enough. Sometimes, that should be all it takes.
Wow, that was long winded.
WHY: The Dead are single-handedly responsible for two indespensible parts of modern music: close mic technique, and massive sound systems. Before their 'wall of sound' system in the mid-seventies (only 80 concerts, but WHAT concerts!), bands toured and used whatever PA was in the concert hall at the time. I mean *ALL* bands. This made for really uneven sound quality. You could rarely hear concerts the way they are now. Close mic technique is another of their techniques, and it's a way of placing mics on drums & amplifiers for better sound reproduction live and in live recordings. The difference is one you couldn't imagine if you haven't heard it.
2) The beatles
WHY: Everything that the Dead did for live music, the Beatles did for studio music. Before the Beatles, bands went into the studio at the whim of their record company; the company decided when, what producer, how long, and -- get this-- what songs. The record companies were in complete control.
3) Led Zepplin
WHY: I'll leave the answers in this thread stand.
4) The Ramones
WHY: They broke down corporate rock and roll in the '70s.
5) KISS
WHY: Rock music as theatre.
6) Bob Dylan
WHY: The single most-covered musician in all of rock 'n roll. Somehow, nearly every band can find something that Bobby wrote and turn it into a song of their own. Add in the fact that he was the spokesman for his generation (although he didn't want the attention), and you've got a solid position on this list.
7) The Who:
WHY: Although The Ramones were responsible for popularizing American punk, the Who were in many ways the original punk rock band. Add in their astounding innovations in terms of rock opera and rock film, and you've got something special.
8) Jimi Hendrix
WHY: I doubt if any guitar player has shook up rock like Jimi did. His playing was so crazy, so far beyond anything that anyone else was doing, that you just can't get beyond him.
9) Chuck Berry
WHY: well, he was the first (or at least the first popular) guy to do what he did, and what we know as Rock.
10) Janis Joplin
WHY: she was the first rockchick, although if there's a better example from earlier, I'd be happy to replace her. She was amazing, though, and her live performances are a treat, if you ever get a chance to see a recording. She's so alive. More interestingly, she'd NEVER get a record contract today, given her acne and the fact that she wasn't pencil-thin. Like those things matter when it comes to music.
11) Frank Zappa
WHY: There are a few interesting things that make FZ so interesting. He was aiming for using classical composition techniques in rock music, which is somewhat unique. His use of humor is pretty great. He had an 'open' band-- anyone could come and audition to play for him, and if they were the best, then they were in. This is how we got to meet Steve Vai.
12) Chicago
WHY: This is an emotional favorite for me. My dad went to college with these guys, and was around when they said, 'hey, let's put together a bar band with horns'.
13) Bob Mould
WHY: This is an esoteric one, I'll admit. Bob was the guitar player for Husker Du, an '80s punk band from Minnesota. He was probably the most virtuostic guitar player in all of punk rock. Husker Du was also one of the most musically advanced punk bands ever. They were punk, but they had technique, and they could improvise as much as any jazz group.
14) King Crimson
WHY: King Crimson were the prototypical 'prog rock' group. Between Adrian Belew's crazy "anything goes" guitar (he once played a guitar with a floppy rubber neck, just because he could), and Robert Fripps' almost mechanical precision, they had some really crazy and competent sounds. Bill Bruford was an incredible drummer. Every prog rock band since owes a lot to them.
15) George Clinton and Parliament/Funkadelic
WHY: Although these might belong in R&B/Hip Hop, I think that George and company changed the funky side of music forever. They had amazing live shows, and an unmatched volume of output in the studio. George and his crew had contracts with every record company, and would put out one album after another, switching band names as needed to stay within terms of their contracts.
16) U2
WHY: U2 refined a lot of things that have been mentioned before on this list. I don't really have much to say about them that's interesting; I just feel that they're pretty darn important.
17) The Doors
WHY: Another sentimental favorite, their organ player was an alumnus of my high school. Funny thing about the Doors-- they had no bass player. The organist took care of it. On nights when Morrison was too drunk or high to sing, he would take that over, too.
18) Nirvana
WHY: They burned brightly, and for a very short period of time. They were influential in their own small circle. A million garage bands were born under their influence. I think it's maybe a bit early for me to know if they really belong on this list or not.
19) Eric Clapton & Cream
WHY: I'm almost embarassed to have him this low in the list, but Eric's blues influence has been felt for years in rock music.
20) The Rolling Stones
WHY: They're the rolling stones. Any list would be incomplete without them. They weren't the best at what they did, but they were good enough. Sometimes, that should be all it takes.
Wow, that was long winded.
Danoff
Premium
- 34,011
- Mile High City
GTRacer4Nope...I've had this name since I joined
You could have used that opportunity to vote twice.
hoss
You've got your reasons for putting Bob so high on the list. But I try not to take bands' political views or outspokeness into account when voting, because otherwise my top 20 wouldn't have much to do with music.
