The Great American Band?

So I heard this question posed on the radio or TV the other day and it was an interesting question. Who is the great American band? When we think of the greatest bands of all time, who comes to mind? The Beatles? The Rolling Stones? The Who? Pink Floyd? Led Zeppelin? But what do all of these bands have in common? They're all British.

So just who is the great American band then? Aerosmith? Metallica? KISS? Who do you think? Who's the first band to come to mind when foreigners think of American bands?

Chicago would be high on my list

The Greatest American Band? Cannibal Corpse.

High on my list would have to be Frankie Valli and the 4 seasons

Chicago, The Black Keys

Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band is tops. Then I'll go with The Doors, The Beach Boys, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, and then the Eagles.

I agree with these and would also add the mighty Dropkick Murphys

Love The Doors and The Beach boys. Great bands.

That's a tough question. I assume we are talking only "bands/groups" as opposed to duos & single artists.

I agree with many posted. In particular for me, The Doors, The Eagles (saw them twice. Great concerts), and of course The Beach Boys, Fleetwood Mac. Also, tho being from the state (MI) I still think Motown bought us some of the greatest like: Four Tops, Temps, Supremes, along with Bob Segar & Silverbullet Band, Mitch Ryder & the Detroit Wheels.

Honorable mentions also to Santana (is Carlos Santana American?), Iron Butterfly, CCR. Oh, and I always liked the "Guess Who" but I think they are from Canada.

I know I am forgetting many other great groups but it's a start.


TIS

Some great bands there klydon. I definitely agree that any of those bands could be it. I'd add Aerosmith and maybe KISS to the list as well.



Great addition with CCR as well TIS!

The Byrds,The Eagles,The Beach Boys,Guns and Roses

I love Simon and Garfunkel but their a duo.

My high school years were in the second half of the 70's so the music i grew up listening to were of course all the big British Bands but also 60's Acid Rock along with what people today call Classic Rock from the 1970's.

You guys have already named a lot of great bands.

The Allman Brothers Band was pretty good. RIP Duane Allman. Live at the Filmore was a really good LP. I saw the original Lynyrd Skynyrd a few times back then....great live shows. RIP Ronnie Van Zant

God there's been so much good music over the years it's hard to just come up with a few. And of course the further back you go to guys like Chuck Berry, and all the original blues guys such as Robert Johnson, Muddy Waters, BB, and the list goes on and on. Those were the guys that influenced alot of the big British Bands like Led Zep, Clapton, Cream, The Stones etc etc.

Of course Jimi Hendrix but he had to go to London before he really became famous. I think it was Chas Chandler who might of originally brought Hendrix to London where he teamed him up with Mitch Mitchell and Noel Redding to form the great "Jimi Hendrix Experience" Band.

Now some of the younger guys here probably have totally different lists of great bands. Most people like the music they grew up listening to.

The Crickets..

A lot of good american bands in the 90s as well. REM, barenaked ladies, collective soul, red hot chili peppers, third eye blind, ect.
I always thought the doors were english

Nicky, tho I don't know ALL their music, I like REM as well. I like their sound. I can see where you'd think the Doors were English. They were out right during the British Invasion hysteria. I thought they were English at first as well.

Couple other names (from my time) that come to mind, The Young Rascals & The Loving Spoonful.

DeNiro I love Simon & Garfunkle too. They have such a sweet soothing sound.


TIS

Come on people we are forgetting Guns N' Roses! Now THEY were a kickass band.

Also we got Aerosmith, Crosby Stills and Nash, the Jimi Hendrix Experience, Nirvana, Soundgarden, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Pearl Jam, Alice in Chains, The Smashing Pumpkins, Green Day, NOFX, the Offspring, Kiss, The Dropkick Murphys, the Foo Fighters, Van Halen, Motley Crue, Stone Temple Pilots, blink-182, Sum 41, and let's not forget all of the American blues artists from which rock and roll stemmed. Ol Chuck Berry, the grandfather of rock and roll

I love Crosby Stills Nash and Young. Also love all the old blues artists, really changed music and influenced so many.

Twisted Sister and New Kids on the Block!!

The Doors are American, through and through. The band formed in California.

However, Barenaked Ladies is Canadian.

Okay, Yogi. We realize that the really great bands are English. You don't have to rub it in.

Yes. One Direction and Slade

I'm happy to say that Slade never hit it big here, but One Direction is stretching its fifteen minutes beyond belief.

One Direction are truly awful. I think 15 minutes of fame has been over generous for these young fellows.....

Crosby Stills Nash and Young "4 Way Street" is still one of my favorite LP's.

I've seen Aerosmith numerous times over the years starting back in the 70's. Great shows. One of the great comebacks in rock too. They were dead in the water for a few years but came back better then ever.

I was never big on the so called Hair Bands of the 80's but really liked alot of the Grunge Rock bands of the 90's, most of whom you've already named.

Of course Guns N Roses but i refuse to call them a Hair Band....great shows....great band....too bad it didn't last longer.

The original Van Halen with Diamond Dave was my favorite lineup of VH. Eddie used to unleash some wicked solo's at their live shows. I have nothing against Sammy but i just loved the original lineup.

The last great and truly legendary rock band before it all went to sh!t.

Someone mentioned Nirvana. I heard on the radio yesterday that the baby on the Nevermind album is now 20 yrs old. I'm guessing this makes even they youngest here feel old. I don't have the album but damn, seems like last year.


TIS


http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2042033/Baby-cover-Nirvanas-Nevermind-album-turns-20.html

I know what you mean....it really doesn't seem like it was that long ago.

I liked when Nirvana did the old Lead Belly song "Where did you sleep last night" on their MTV Unplugged show. I really liked that Nirvana Unplugged show.

Hard to believe Stevie Ray Vaughn has been dead 23 years now too. That guy could play. RIP SRV.

Lets not forget Creedence Clearwater Revival, Epic songs and Riffs. Just about all there songs have been used in Films, especially Vietnam War films.

Interesting question. When this topic comes up, the comparison is always against the British bands. But the British bands are strictly from the British Invasion era and they are basically centered around the same style - with variations like Zepplin. The tough part about picking a USA band is that there were (are) too many styles or genres - Motown, West Coast, East Coast, Southern; then throw in heavy metal, punk, hard rock, soft rock, and on and on. When comparing with the British groups, they were basically limited to the late 60s, early 70s.

But...to answer the question, I think you would have to go with Bruce and the E Street, although I lean heavily on Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young or the Eagles.

Keep on Rockin' in the Free World.

I was never a big Bruce fan. I would vote for the Eagles and the Beach Boys. Brian Wilson was incredibly creative, and never got enough credit for it.

If there's going to be an onstage battle of the bands, I think The Grateful Dead is a candidate.

His own jealousy of the Beatles drove him crazy though. Damn shame

P-Funk

What a great band

I don't think the Beatles caused him to undergo mental and emotional problems. The Beatles were astounded when the Beach Boys came out with Pet Sounds. He and McCartney were good friends and admired each others' work openly and honestly. McCartney has long said that Wilson's God Only Knows is the most beautiful song he's ever heard, and Wilson was moved to tears when McCartney first played a demo of She's Leaving Home for him before Sgt. Pepper was released.

Also, Wilson kind of inspired McCartney to write Back in the USSR as they joked about a Soviet version of Chuck Berry's Living in the USA. The Middle eight of Back in the USSR is McCartney's tip of the hat to the Beach Boys' California Girls.

There was certainly competition between the bands, and as good and innovative as the Beach Boys were, they certainly realized they were not on the same level as the Beatles.

It was the drugs and Murray that drove Brian crazy. Pet sounds is one of the greatest albums ever released and God only knows has got to be the greatest song ever written.

Me neither. But i have to say he put on a real good live show. One time i swear Springsteen and the band played for like 5 hours.