10 most important bands in the history of Rock music

[LudwigVan]

Let's say you're teaching a college course called Rock 101 to a classfull of rock noobs from 3rd-world countries who have no idea what the music is all about.   Which 10 bands do you choose to include in your curriculum? 

1.  The Beatles
2.  The Who
3.  Led Zeppelin
4.  Black Sabbath
5.  Pink Floyd
6.  King Crimson
7.  The Clash
8.  Metallica
9.  Death
10.  Nirvana
     

[Jamesman42]

1. The Beatles
2. Led Zeppelin
3. Black Sabbath
4. Metallica
5. Nirvana
6. Pink Floyd
7. The Doors
8. Dream Theater
9. Iron Maiden
10. Opeth

Off the top of my head and looking at your list.

[Fluffy Lothario]

Beatles
Zeppelin
Sabbath
Dylan
Sex Pistols
Metallica

I'm struggling to think of who else I'd place alongside those. I'll come back later.

[KevShmev]

Assuming we can count solo artists, too...

1. The Beatles
2. Led Zeppelin
3. The Rolling Stones
4. Bob Dylan
5. Pink Floyd
6. The Who
7. Black Sabbath
8. Bruce Springsteen
9. Metallica
10. U2

[73109]

The Beatles
Rolling Stones
The Kinks
The Who
Black Sabbath
Led Zeppelin
Pink Floyd
Metallica
Nirvana
Death

[KevShmev]

Whoops, I forgot Jimi Hendrix.  He is 10 top EASY, probably top 5.

[Cool Chris]

I like Kev's list, but would take out The Who (despite their being my favorite 'British Invasion' band, that history is covered well enough by The Beatles and Stones. Floyd covers the development of 'prog;' Zeppelin and Sabbath cover the transition to harder, heavy metal; U2 covers the transition to 80s MTV-oriented pop; Metallica covers 80s-onward 'popular' metal. Unfortunately, I think a band like Nirvana needs to be included, otherwise the direction rock took in the 90s is largely ignored.

[KevShmev]

I think Nirvana was too much of a flash in the pan, and their importance is largely overstated by the media.  Metallica making hard rock and metal more popular in the early 90s had a much longer and bigger lasting effect than the mainstream's brief infatuation with grunge.

[Cool Chris]

I think Nirvana was too much of a flash in the pan, and their importance is largely overstated by the media.  Metallica making hard rock and metal more popular in the early 90s had a much longer and bigger lasting effect than the mainstream's brief infatuation with grunge.

I agree about Nirvana's importance being overstated, and Metallica's much more far reaching influence, but not that there was a brief infatuation with grunge. I guess it can't be summed up in one band, but the section on grunge in Rock 101 would be important, much more so than any other niche like death metal.

[Mebert78]

No Rush?  Maybe I'm just thinking as a fan.  I think they could be argued as having a spot.  I'd have to think about who to remove to make room for them.

[Jamesman42]

Crap, forgot about The Rolling Stones and Rush.

1. The Beatles
2. Led Zeppelin
3. Black Sabbath
4. Metallica
5. Nirvana
6. Pink Floyd
7. The Doors
8. The Rolling Stones
9. Iron Maiden
10. Rush

[Marvellous G]

The Beatles
Rolling Stones
Bruce Springsteen
Led Zeppelin
Pink Floyd
Black Sabbath
Metallica
Nirvana
U2
Green Day

Although I don't feel that covers the bridge from Nirvana to U2 well enough.

[TAC]

LudwigVan, I'm surprised that YOU didn't have Deep Purple on it.

[skydivingninja]

Well, if I was doing a Rock 101 course, there would be a lot more than ten bands, but if I had to pick one from each big "wave" of rock music...

Elvis Presley
The Beatles
Bob Dylan
Jimi Hendrix
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
Bruce Springsteen
Led Zeppelin
Pink Floyd
Black Sabbath
The Clash
Metallica
U2
Radiohead

Okay, maybe thats thirteen, but I think they're all necessary.

[LudwigVan]

LudwigVan, I'm surprised that YOU didn't have Deep Purple on it.

Well, I did say "most important", not "favorite".   I don't think DP carried the same importance that Zep or Sabbath did. 

Whoops, I forgot Jimi Hendrix.  He is 10 top EASY, probably top 5.

   I might have to replace The Who with Hendrix

[ShadowWalker]

What exactly defines "most important?"

[KevShmev]

No Rush?  Maybe I'm just thinking as a fan.  I think they could be argued as having a spot.  I'd have to think about who to remove to make room for them.

No one is a bigger Rush fan than me , but they are not one of the 10 most important bands ever. 

Whoops, I forgot Jimi Hendrix.  He is 10 top EASY, probably top 5.

   I might have to replace The Who with Hendrix

Ditch Death.  With all due respect, they are not even close to being one of the most important rock bands of all-time, by any stretch of the imagination.

What exactly defines "most important?"

Importance.

But really, I would ask yourself: If you had to write a book on the history of rock music, what artists/bands you could not leave out, under any circumstance?

And I forgot about Elvis, too.  Add him and Hendrix to my original list.

[Cool Chris]

I wouldn't put them in the 101 class, but there probably needs to be a pre-requisite of 'Early Influences' which would include Muddy Waters, Buddy Holly, and other artists who laid the initial groundwork for what would become rock music.

[orcus116]

I'd definitely say Buddy Holly since he was the first artist to really compose atypical chord progressions. Chuck Berry is debatable but he did transform the electric guitar into a prominent instrument which Hendrix then perfected into an art form.

[Zydar]

1. The Beatles
2. Elvis Presley
3. Bob Dylan
4. Jimi Hendrix
5. Led Zeppelin
6. Pink Floyd
7. Sex Pistols
8. Nirvana
9. Metallica
10. Black Sabbath

[zxlkho]

The top 10 bands on my last.fm

[El Barto]

I think the NWoBHM requires inclusion, due to it's huge importance on rock music throughout the 80s.  As much as I dislike them, Def Leopard probably deserves the honor.

I think I'd include Yes.  One of the few very proggish bands to get significant attention and popularity.  

Edit:  Kiss deserves inclusion, as well. 

[King Postwhore]

I'd definitely say Buddy Holly since he was the first artist to really compose atypical chord progressions. Chuck Berry is debatable but he did transform the electric guitar into a prominent instrument which Hendrix then perfected into an art form.

My dad loves you for saying Buddy Holly.

[ScioPath]

Can you make Justin Bieber an antithesis in your curriculum?

[Jakartabassplayer]

1. The Beatles
2. Elvis Presley
3. Bob Dylan
4. Jimi Hendrix
5. Led Zeppelin
6. Pink Floyd
7. Sex Pistols
8. Nirvana
9. Metallica
10. Black Sabbath

this would probably be my list

[Seventh Son]

I don't see why Death is on there at all (I'm assuming you mean the Death Metal act...), I'd say Morbid Angel is FAR more important to death metal than Death is (Controversial opinions up here!). After all, Covenant is the best selling Death Metal album of all time iirc. But even then, as much as I love Death Metal, its by and far and underground genre of music and probably can be passed over.

I'd agree on NWOBHM being included. I'd say Judas Priest and Iron Maiden deserve some mention for what they did for it. As well as Dio's solo career.

The big four of the British Invasion definitely need to be mentioned, even if I don't really care for them at all.

If you're going to include Prog, then King Crimson definitely needs some love, as well as Genesis and Rush. Maybe ELP/Jethro Tull, maybe.

I think there would have to be more than a top 10 though, that's far too constricting.

[orcus116]

I'd definitely say Buddy Holly since he was the first artist to really compose atypical chord progressions. Chuck Berry is debatable but he did transform the electric guitar into a prominent instrument which Hendrix then perfected into an art form.

My dad loves you for saying Buddy Holly.

Ha, I wouldn't have paid much mind to him if it wasn't for my Rock History class. I was shocked at how these 50s guys really turned around music.

[masterthes]

Thirding Zydar's list. That's pretty much spot on, you need an honorable mention for Janis though

[King Postwhore]

I'd definitely say Buddy Holly since he was the first artist to really compose atypical chord progressions. Chuck Berry is debatable but he did transform the electric guitar into a prominent instrument which Hendrix then perfected into an art form.

My dad loves you for saying Buddy Holly.

Ha, I wouldn't have paid much mind to him if it wasn't for my Rock History class. I was shocked at how these 50s guys really turned around music.

Here is a little tidbit.  Buddy's band was that first band ever to have two guitarists.  Very worthy of this thread!

[Ultimetalhead]

I don't see why Death is on there at all (I'm assuming you mean the Death Metal act...), I'd say Morbid Angel is FAR more important to death metal than Death is (Controversial opinions up here!). After all, Covenant is the best selling Death Metal album of all time iirc. But even then, as much as I love Death Metal, its by and far and underground genre of music and probably can be passed over.

Setting aside all the opinions that I have regarding Death and MA, Death are more important to the genre as a whole because they were more or less the innovators along with Possessed. I'd probably lump MA in with them as the early progenitors, but Death and Possessed were definitely the most important to the transition between thrash and death. I'd say Morbid Angel was more important in the early 90s, whereas Death was more important in the late 80s. I have to give Cannibal Corpse some credit as well.

[orcus116]

Honestly, death metal isn't all that important in terms of the history of rock music, especially when limited to 10 bands.

[hefdaddy42]

Ditch Death.  With all due respect, they are not even close to being one of the most important rock bands of all-time, by any stretch of the imagination.

This, for sure.

[skydivingninja]

Looking at my list again, I could take off Bruce and CSNY.  Could be possible to take off Black Sabbath too, since I have Zeppelin and Metallica.  It seems like Chuck Berry or Buddy Holly should be on that list too, but I don't know who to replace after that.

I don't think Death, Dream Theater, Maiden, or Rush should be included in this fictional class.  None of them have been influential on the scale of some of their contemporaries, even though I love the latter three.

[Perpetual Change]

I think Yes need to be there, really. If the world of poetry is divided between Dante and Shakespeare, the world of rock is divided between Zeppelin and Yes.

[skydivingninja]

Are Yes a great prog rock band?  Yes.  Are they really important to the development of rock music as a whole the way Crimson or Floyd are?  I would say no.