The Top 10 Most Influential Bands Of All Time
Just for fun, my list of the 10 most influential bands (not solo artists, so Josh Groban didn’t qualify) of all time, in my humble opinion (and in no particular order):
1. The Beatles
2. U2
3. The Rolling Stones
4. Queen
5. Nirvana
6. The Who
7. Led Zeppelin
8. Metallica
9. The Beach Boys
10. Linkin Park
Others that I’d love to include but don’t quite cut it are Creedence and Toto. Beach Boys may come as a surprise but I really do think they’ve made an enormous impact.
Who have I left out?
Popularity: 7% [?]
It’s a good list.. but you really think Linkin Park are that influential? I’d maybe replace them with The Police
by Chris Dawson
on 23. Jun, 2007
Agree with Chris and how about Red Hot Chili Peppers
by Marius
on 23. Jun, 2007
Hmmm, yes indeed. Was desperately trying to find someone from the modern era who have been influential. Red Hot Chili Peppers indeed. The Police indeed. In fact the could prob replace Beach Boys and Linkin Park respectively.
You live and learn. So ironic in that The Police and RHCP are such huge personal influences
by Mike
on 23. Jun, 2007
Another from the modern era would probably be R.E.M.
None from the punk era? Sex Pistols? Clash?
by Steve Crane
on 23. Jun, 2007
Um, Mike?
People may roll their eyes at this, but if you’re talking about influence – as in influential – you really need to include ABBA on the list.
I also agree with the Police idea. Chilli Peppers – not so much. I think R.E.M. is a better call than them.
by John
on 24. Jun, 2007
I think REM definitely need to be there, as well as the Clash or the Sex Pistols. Police, too, probably. As to who I’d drop to accommodate them- I’d probably say The Who and Linkin Park. I’m tempted to throw the Grateful Dead in, not for their music as such but because of their influence on the jam band and touring scene.
In a way this list is easier as a top 5 (Beatles, Queen, U2, R.E.M, Nirvana) or a top 15 (uh, everything mentioned in all comments).
by Peter
on 24. Jun, 2007
Agree that The Police should definitely be in, and Linkin Park is too early.
But what about Cream instead of The Who?
by Simon G
on 24. Jun, 2007
what about the VELVET UNDERGROUND?
the most influential bands without them there would be no REM OR NIRVANA !
by conor
on 24. Jun, 2007
Not a fan, but since I live in Jersey I’m obliged to throw in Springstein. And I agree some representation of the punk/new wave era is mandatory– Sex Pistols, Patty Smith, The Clash, Blondie, Elvis Costello? Definitely Velvet Underground, Lou Reed. David Bowie? Rod Stewart?
Just too damned hard. Nice try. I can’t believe this is the first comment I’ve posted on your blog…
!
by Susan Scrupski
on 24. Jun, 2007
Good calls all around. Apologies guys for leaving out Velvet Underground, Pink Floyd and Sex Pistols – but largely due to my ignorance and youth they have not yet had the impact on me they probably would if I took the time to discover them.
Springstein didn’t get a place because I consider him, along with Elvis, to be a solo artist. The Who trumps Cream, sorry Simon.
I’m fascinated that nobody has argued Metallica?
by Mike
on 25. Jun, 2007
Well, I would definitely include Black Sabbath before Metallica. Without them there might never have been a Metallica to begin with
by Mike Dowson
on 25. Jun, 2007
my to 10
1 the beatles
2 the beach boys
3 the velvet underground
4 the rolling stones
5 black sabbath
6 the pixies
7 the ramones
8 nirvana
9 r.e.m.
10 the clash
by kevin
on 25. Jun, 2007
Thanks to Kevin for throwing The Pixies in the mix. Prior to The Pixies no other band had really done the ‘quiet verse loud chorus’ formula before. If you think about how many bands since have used this formula, and not only in rock music, but pop music too, their influence is astounding.
by Michel
on 26. Jun, 2007
Thanks Mike!!! Now my mind is rotating through every band I have ever listened to – and will probably continue to do so the whole night if not the whole week…
Sisters of Mercy, Aeorsmith, Bon Jovi (it was a group), Poison,
Nirvana…
K….Stop the World! It’s time to get off musical mayhem…
by Eric Edelstein
on 26. Jun, 2007
ok my idea of what the list should be:
1. beatles
2.beach boys
3.led zeppelin
4.black sabbath
5.pink floyd
6.ac/dc
7.metallica
8.the clash
9.nirvana
10.korn
now those are the most influential bands ever!!! in my opinion.
by riley
on 09. Jul, 2007
Eish you forgot..
The Doors
or Pink Floyd
by Agent C
on 12. Jul, 2007
kudos for including the Beach Boys alot of people dont realize how influential they were on the beatles.yes black sabbath over metalica(those guys are fags) lincoln park how about the spin doctors. the stones top ten great bands but most infuentail? no
by gunnzilla
on 12. Jul, 2007
korn? linkin park?
are you joking?
no elvis? no blues artists, bo diddley, muddy waters, hound dog taylor? who in god’s name has korn ever inspired? meth heads to form awful metal garage bands?
do you know what the word “influence” even remotely means?
by zif
on 23. Jul, 2007
I don’t think that elvis is considred a band.
by RaMoS
on 25. Jul, 2007
Alrite, Jimi Hendrix Experience, The Doors, Bob Marley and the Wailers, Queen, Sex Pistols, and Coldplay all have to be thought about. If i were to make a list it would be..
1. The Beatles
2. The Rolling Stones
3. Queen
4. Jimi Hendrix Experience
5. Bob Marley and the Wailers
6. Led Zeppelin
7. The Doors
8. Grateful Dead
9. Pink Floyd
10. U2
What does everyone think about that list?
by Sean
on 29. Jul, 2007
I would like to share my points of view , for me Journey is included in the list because they are the poineers of arena rock and power ballads so they have they share of influences
by Adrian Arriola aka Journeyman
on 07. Aug, 2007
1.The Beatles
2.U2
3.The Beach Boys
4.The Clash
5.The Rolling Stones
6.Queen
7.Pink Floyd
8.Guns N Roses
9.AC/DC
10.The Who
by Bill
on 08. Aug, 2007
KoRn rule, probably the best band of all time
by James
on 09. Aug, 2007
I think that you need some sort of metal bands or grunge bands like Black Sabbath , Iron Maiden, or Judas Priest, Alice In Chains up there because they were like the first bands to venture into metal and grunge and now metal and grunge are some of the most popular genres. also you need jimi hendrix for SURE because I mean setting amplifiers on fire and smashing guitars was his trademark and he sort of started that..
by Dylan
on 11. Aug, 2007
To correct you Dylan, Jimi lit guitars on fire and did not smash his guitars. He also was known for playing guitar behind his head and for being the pioneer in making psychedelic sounds by manipulating his amplifier. Also Dylan, the only metal band that could be considered is Black Sabbath OR Iron Maiden. I would agree that the beach boys have no place of this list. Those of you who dont know who the GRATEFUL DEAD and RUsh are, download them immediatley.
by Sean
on 24. Aug, 2007
ok if your talking most influential, elvis and the beatles are one and two. than you have to have floyd, led zepplain, and stones, who without, there would be no rock because those 5 bands created rock and roll.
1. elvis
2. the beatles
3. The rolling stones
4. Pink Floyd
5. Led Zepplain
those are the top 5 most influential bands in rock and roll history.
by mike
on 27. Aug, 2007
chuck berry
elvis presley
the beatles
pink floyd
kraftwerk
david bowie
sex pistols
the clash
the cure
by sandro nunes
on 03. Sep, 2007
Elvis
Jerry Lee Lewis
Chuck Berry
The Beatles
Led Zeppelin
Johnny Cash
Queen
Metallica
RUSH
The Who
by Jake
on 07. Sep, 2007
NIRVANA
THE DOORS
THE BEATLES
THE RAMONES
JOY DIVISION
PINK FLOYD
THE QUEEN
THE WHO
IGGY & THE STOOGES
…AND NIRVANA!
SORRY BUT THERE IS A MUSIC WORLD BEFORE AND ONE AFTER THEM!
by darko
on 14. Sep, 2007
Thanks for sharing
by Doodee
on 03. Feb, 2008
This may be a late post, but i had to say i think all of you here forgot one major influential band… Van Halen. Just think about how many poser 80’s rock hair-bands they produced afterwards, like poison, ratt or cinderella. And they brought about a new type of metal/ hard rock guitar sound.
so my list goes:
10. Van Halen
9. Led Zeppelin
8. R.E.M
7. Sex Pistols
6. Elvis Presley
5. Kraftwerk
4. Velvet Underground
3. Jimi Hendrix
2. Rolling Stones
1. The Beatles
by Jose
on 15. Feb, 2008
i reckon RHCP should be in there mayb in top 5 but i think they will be in the near future, i reckon nirvana are probobly one of the biggest, even though i do hate them i have to say they are influential, if you look at alot of bands they take after nirvana or foo fighters with dave grohl coming from nirvana, stones should be higher even though i hate them aswell and linkin park are to new to music. but kool list
by Funky Monks
on 21. Jun, 2008
Well nirvana is most definately a influence for ones who say it is not. And i believe metallica is alot different from black sabbath, which influenced bands that are nu metal like disturbed and korn. Which black sabbath influenced bands like lamb of god and more deeper metal. But also bands like slayer and pantera influenced the metal generation of this day and age. So you have to mention them as well. Gotta put in the white stripes for what jack white has accomplished and changed with his music. You’ve got tool Also to think about too. Them and nirvana were big influcences in the hard rock bands like breaking benjamin and seether. There’s alot fo bands im still forgetting but these are honorable mentions too. But i think the top 10 is legit, except for linkin park they started trends to make what music is today.
by Powell
on 30. Jun, 2008
Not bad, I’d probably replace Linkin with the Eagles or Creedence, but for all you people who think the Clash or the Sex Pistols should be up there, remember that it was The Who that got the punk movement going and created a fanbase for those more punk bands.
by Nate
on 29. Jul, 2008
What a horrible list.
1. Josh Groban isn’t influential at all.
2. Metallica, aren’t the founders of metal or anything, they came pretty late actually, and aren’t that influential to metal acts of today, who would probably cite slayer as a bigger influence then metallica.
3. Linkin park inspired nothing.
by J
on 26. Sep, 2008
Agreed, Terrible list here. Linkin Park? If they were influencial, they’ve only influenced terrible bands. I respect your opinion and not to be an asshole but no real music lover or critic rates Linkin Park as important or influencial. For a start, The Velvet Underground are arguably the most influencial band of all time bar The Beatles. Then there’s the Pixies, who created the loud/quiet modern “alternative rock” dynamic. Another overlooked band but massively influencial band is The Jesus And Mary Chain. Also, Devo and Kraftwerk. There are literally thousands of bands i’d place above Linkin Park, even Korn were doing that stuff before way them, and were miles better (not that i’m a fan).
by James B
on 10. Oct, 2008
Where are Joy Division?
by ummmm
on 10. Oct, 2008
1.METALLICA
2.NIRVANA
3.BEATLES
4.LED ZEPPELIN
5.THE WHO
6.ALICE IN CHAINS
7.BLACK SABBATH
8.VELVET UNDERGROUND
9.MICHAEL JACKSON
10.U2
by panayiotis
on 20. Oct, 2008
On the oiginal list drop linkin add gnr and I’d say its the best propoal for a top 10 yet.
by Don Zimmer
on 03. Feb, 2009
1. The Beatles (influenced most music in general in one way or another)
2. Elvis (Also influenced most music aswell as the Beatles – traditional Rock’n'Roll)
3. Chuck Berry (Same as Elvis as well as blues)
4. The Velvet Underground (Influenced Alternative)
5. Queen (Influenced a lot of rock, pop and even some metal)
6. The Ramones (influenced rock/punk in general since the 70’s)
7. The Rolling Stones (influenced country and rock)
8. Led Zeppelin (influenced modern rock’n'roll as well as rock and metal)
9. Nirvana (influenced grunge – modern rock)
10. The Kinks (INDIE)
by fatty
on 05. Apr, 2009
and incase of a top 15:
11. ABBA (Influenced disco/danced/pop)
12. Sex Pistols (influenced hard authentic punk)
13. Kraftwerk (experimentation and electro)
14. The Human League (modern electro)
15. Sonic Youth (have been influencing grunge/rock/metal/alternative since the 80’s onwards)
by fatty
on 05. Apr, 2009
this list sux, start listen to music
by plm
on 10. Apr, 2009
1- The Beatles
2- Nirvana
3- Velvet Underground
4- The Doors
5- Queen
6- The Who
7- Sonic Youth
8- The Strokes
9- Elvis
10- Iggy Pop and The Stooges
Dont screw with me about Sonic Youth, The Stooges and The Strokes.
Without the Stooges and Sonic Youth, probably it wouldnt be any band of grunge at all, aswell as many punk bands, and some weird bands like Arcade Fire, and some others.
The Strokes are pratically the parents of Indie.
And Christ sake, Nirvana changed the whole music scene. Nirvana headshoted Glam Metal, delayed electronic music, and gave place to bands like Green Day, and some degenerations of punk, gay things, like emocore and shits like that.
by Paulo
on 16. Apr, 2009
here’s mine
1 The Velvet Underground (the beatles get the worldwide fame while lou reed and the VU showed the world that you don’t always have to write for children and teenagers. as Brian Eno said “only 1000 people bought a VU album but all of them started a band. so thats a 1000 bands then!!!)
2 Robert Johnson (an amazing man)
3 Kraftwerk (they created the drum machine, the keyboard,the weird mic sound and the noises that come out of electrical equipment)
4 The Stooges (they helped to create punk and who couldn’t be influenced by iggy)
5 The Beatles (i find them dull and boring but they did influence a lot of bands)
6 Pixies (helped influence nirvana)
7 Nirvana (well everybody knows what they did)
8 Chuck Berry (he created the first great riff)
9 The Smiths (helped influence every 90’s British band)
10 Joy Division (started gothic rock and helped push post punk along)
Others
David Bowie
The New York Dolls
Sonic Youth
The Strokes
Can
Television
Public Enemy
Husker Du
Patti Smith
Sly & The Family Stone
Talking Heads
Wire
by Matt
on 27. May, 2009
Don’t get me wrong, I like very little rap, but I think you need to take that genre into account seeing as it is sadly becoming very popular. I’d have to suggest adding Dr. Dre or someone like that to the list…
by Marilyn
on 30. May, 2009
The Who is very influencial towards bringing blues to rock n roll, and punk bands would start covering songs by The Who. I really dont see how Linkin Park could be up there or the beach boys… People say the police brough a little ragae and ska into more modern music, i would say thats true but so did bob marley. Really its all about opinion, you know? Obviously people will say, The strokes and ill say fuck no, Weezer man. Aahaha……
by Robert
on 18. Jun, 2009
Wow. When I started reading, I thought, okay…bands…so that explains why you didn’t include solo artists, such as all the amazingly influential blues artists. I accept your list, minus Linkin Park. It is also impossible to be unbiased by who you listen to, so for everyone it’s probably different.
And yet, how, through everyone’s comments for this (the ones that have mentioned solo artists), no one has even mentioned Bob Dylan? Bob Dylan had a profound impact on so many; from the Beatles, Clapton, Hendrix, and Bowie, to Jack White. Just because you may not like folk music doesn’t mean you can ignore the incredible impact it has had on everyone.
by Shirley
on 22. Jun, 2009
only #1
rest are not in order
1-Beatles
Black sabbath
Cream
Elvis Presly
Led Zeppelin
Iron Maiden
Jimmi Hendrix Expirience
Metallica
Pink Floyd
U2
Metallica is the most popular and influental metalband
Black Sabbath is the #1 most influental metal band, they created metal
Iron Maiden was the most popualr b4 Metallica and they influenced them
Led Zeppelin is also metal but their metal isn’t the metal we know today, as same as Black Sabbath’s era but mostly Glam Metal influence
Beatles are the most popular band of all time and heavily influental
Elvis is known as king of rock, he is the rock and roll mastermind. influenced Beatles, Led Zepp and Ozzy Osbourne for Sabbath
by julius
on 15. Jul, 2009
Ok seriously anyone who goes against the beatles is fucking retarded they were generations ahead of everyone and I hate to say that cuz Zeppelin is my favorite band but here’s the real top 10
1.The Beatles
2.Led Zeppelin
3.The Doors
4.Jimi Hendrix
5.The Rolling Stones
6.U2
7.Pink Floyd
8.The Yardbirds
9.Guns n’ Roses
10.Cream
by Justin
on 30. Dec, 2009
Queen is the 2nd greatest musical band ever, and 1st is the Beatles. Queen is better than U2 and Queen is the 5 best selling artist of all time
by king
on 08. Feb, 2010