12 replies »

1. I’m going to go with X here, mainly because I haven’t been showing my 80s alternative enough love in this contest. They are all worthy however. I’m impressed to see the Indigo Girls.

2. I love Billy Joel, and I love the Indigo Girls. And I like Soundgarden and Cheap Trick both as well. As for influence on R&R, though, I have no clue here. I may have to go with who I like the most instead.

   Off to cogitate.

3. Ugh you BASTARD! I had to do a coin toss mini-tourney with 4 of those listed because I could not decide outright (Joel, CT, X, ‘Garden). Winner: Soundgarden, who, hopefully, will be reuniting soon before Chris Cornell wusses his way out of greatness and Kim Thayil disappears forever.

   By the way, Cheap Trick’s best song, IMHO, is not on any of their studio albums as far as I know. It’s on the soundtrack to ‘Heavy Metal’: “Reach Out.” An awesome rocker that must be played LOUD AS HELL.

4. Cheap Trick and Billy Joel? You are a fiend, Sam Smith. Ended up going with CT.

5. I know no one cares, but I voted for The Faces – and here’s why I think you should too (or should have, if you didn’t):

   From their origins as The Small Faces led by Steve Marriott (who, while they were not well known in America, except for the ethereal “Itchycoo Park” were a brilliant band in their own right), two important acts emerged – Humble Pie, led by the incandescent Marriott, and featuring a gifted young guitarist named Peter Frampton and The Faces, the name the band chose when SF’s remaining members Kenney Jones, Ian MacLagan, and the brilliant Ronnie Lane were joined by Jeff Beck Group alums Ron Wood and Rod Stewart.

   Humble Pie had a fine career in their own right as hard rockers and influenced a generation of rockers, in particular another important group, The Black Crowes. Many younger people would know HP better had a reunion in the early ’90’s not been derailed by Marriott’s untimely death in a fire at his English cottage in 1991.

   The Faces were even more successful and influential (as I hope most readers know, if they’re music savvy). Besides a series of 5 star albums, The Faces also influenced a whole generation of younger rockers including especially The Replacements (who most obviously aped The Faces boozy, rocking style).

   Stewart himself has long been considered a superstar – and his career away from Faces (think what one will of his later solo work) has been impressive. Wood, of course, has long been a Rolling Stone – possibly the only way one of the Faces could go up in prestige in his band membership – no, wait, Kenney Jones joined The Who after Keith Moon’s death. And both Ronnie Lane (until his death) and Ian MacLagan have had successful post-Faces careers.

   This is not to belittle the other members of this pod – Billy Joel is a gifted singer-songwriter, The Indigo Girls are a terrific folk-rock duo, X is an important band (as devalued as that term is, it applies), and Soundgarden is a worthy representative of Seattle’s great contribution to rock history.

   I have avoided talking about Cheap Trick, personal favorites of mine. I love Cheap Trick, but Cheap Trick doesn’t have their career without Van Halen’s breakthrough.

   The band that brings the most to the table here are The Faces/Small Faces….

   • Jim said: “I have avoided talking about Cheap Trick, personal favorites of mine. I love Cheap Trick, but Cheap Trick doesn’t have their career without Van Halen’s breakthrough.”

     What? What does VH have to do with Cheap Trick?

     • The numbers tell me that a lot of people who normally vote took the weekend off from teh Internets. And we also have a tie. So let’s extend voting on this pod through tomorrow morning, shall we?

6. Looks like a three way tie at the moment. Of course perhaps you can see absolute numbers.

7. Sam: I know CT antedates VH as recording artists – but it’s VH’s 1st album that broke out that whole “humor in rock” thing to the mass audience and got attention focused on CT that allowed LIVE AT BUDDOKAN to take off and CT to become major stars.

   Of course what do I know? I think The Faces should win this pod….

   • Jim: Your memory is different from mine. I remember Budokan being the biggest record in the world. VH’s debut was great, no doubt, but by and large nobody really figured out who they were (where I was, anyhow) until the second record. Your view simply doesn’t square with anything I recall. There were Cheap Trick t-shirts all over the places literally three or four years before I heard of VH. Heck, I HAD a Cheap Trick t-shirt in high school, if I remember correctly.

8. Gotta disagree, Jim. Budokan was massive – MASSIVE – well before anybody I knew ever heard of Van Halen.

9. Pingback: Tournament of Rock II: The Legends – Progressive Culture | Scholars & Rogues