Poll: Who IS Rock and ROll

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  1. #1

    [Music] The "Definitive" Rock 'n Roll Band

    Earlier today I happened upon a commercial for the Rolling Stones, which made a pretty boisterous claim. It said: "A million bands play rock and roll, but only one band IS rock and roll" (obviously insinuating that the Stones were that band). Obviously, the legacy of the Stones is massive, and they were a huge player in the advancement of Rock and Roll to the popular scene. But of all the rock and roll bands to have left their mark on the industry, can the Stones really claim to be king?

    So, let the voice of MMO-Champ be heard! What band do you think of when you hear "Rock and Roll"? Vote for who you believe deserves the crown!

    Obviously, I don't have the poll space to include every band I would like to, so for simplicity's sake I will include bands who I personally feel have a lasting legacy on the industry and I am also leaving out bands who cross over Rock with other genres (sorry to Sabbath, Floyd, and Rush fans, as well as the millions of other fans of rock sub-genres). Obviously, my poll list will be very biased towards the rock music I've experienced, but keep in mind that this is not a poll for your "favorite" rock and roll band, but rather the band you feel has had the biggest impact on or left the biggest legacy in the rock and roll industry. For that reason I've included the bands that I did. But feel free to choose "Other" and leave a reason why you feel a different band deserves the title.

    Also, please remember that music is subjective, and therefore please do not bash other people's opinions. I don't want this to devolve into a flamewar and get locked. This is not a "versus" thread, it is meant to be a tribute to all musicians mentioned in the poll and the subsequent posts, so please treat it as such and be civil and polite.

    Poll INC.
    Last edited by Darnash; 2013-05-13 at 07:43 AM.

  2. #2
    When they say "only one band IS rock and roll", I don't think it's a claim to be the most influential band, just that, if you were going to try to explain "rock and roll" to an alien, or some lost tribal group in the Amazon, or whatever, someone who had no idea what "rock and roll" was, this would be the band you would probably point to.

    And honestly, The Stones can make a pretty good case for it. They've basically NEVER been anything but "pure rock and roll"...they never tried to be arty or progressive, they didn't try to do world music or trippy LSD music, they never focused on being neoclassical virtuosos, they've pretty much always been just straight ahead rock and roll. And not just in the music, either, in their whole image and persona, the swagger and machismo, the whole "sex, drugs, and rock and roll" lifestyle, they've done all that and are known for it as well.

    The Beatles probably had more influence/impact, but they did pop early on, and got a lot more experimental/progressive later in their career(don't mean this as a negative, either), and were never the stereotypical "rock and roll" band. In terms of influence/importance, I would probably rank them higher, but if I was gonna point to one band off this list as "the definition of rock and roll", it would likely be The Stones(The Who could make a decent case for it too, and I prefer them as a band, but even they don't quite scream "rock and roll" like The Stones do)

  3. #3
    Quote Originally Posted by Stormcall View Post
    When they say "only one band IS rock and roll", I don't think it's a claim to be the most influential band, just that, if you were going to try to explain "rock and roll" to an alien, or some lost tribal group in the Amazon, or whatever, someone who had no idea what "rock and roll" was, this would be the band you would probably point to.

    And honestly, The Stones can make a pretty good case for it. They've basically NEVER been anything but "pure rock and roll"...they never tried to be arty or progressive, they didn't try to do world music or trippy LSD music, they never focused on being neoclassical virtuosos, they've pretty much always been just straight ahead rock and roll. And not just in the music, either, in their whole image and persona, the swagger and machismo, the whole "sex, drugs, and rock and roll" lifestyle, they've done all that and are known for it as well.

    The Beatles probably had more influence/impact, but they did pop early on, and got a lot more experimental/progressive later in their career(don't mean this as a negative, either), and were never the stereotypical "rock and roll" band. In terms of influence/importance, I would probably rank them higher, but if I was gonna point to one band off this list as "the definition of rock and roll", it would likely be The Stones(The Who could make a decent case for it too, and I prefer them as a band, but even they don't quite scream "rock and roll" like The Stones do)
    That's actually a pretty well articulated argument. I do think it's fair to say that the Stones have almost always been a thoroughly "rock and roll" band, while the others mentioned have delved into other sub-genres (Beatles to pop, Zeppelin to heavy metal, Queen to stadium/glam rock, and The Who into rock opera). But is it also fair to say that the bands are not necessarily defined by their outliers (I don't think anyone would claim that "The Crunge" is Led Zeppelin's definitive song, nor "Bicycle" Queen's), but rather by the songs that have become part of their legacy?

    Stuff like Helter Skelter and Hey Jude for The Beatles, Rock n' Roll and Heartbreaker for Zeppelin, Don't Stop Me Now or We Will Rock You/We Are the Champions for Queen, and My Generation and Who Are You for the Who... while these aren't arguably the best songs of these artists, they are the songs that you hear on the radio, and these are the songs that are remembered. Therefore, they are also the songs that are the ones that are not only the most influential of modern rock but also most defining of rock history. It's harder, in my opinion, to narrow down the Stone's catalogue to a few defining songs (although Brown Sugar, Sympathy, and Satisfaction are certainly good candidates), but is it better to compare catalogue to catalogue, or to take the songs that really define the band's legacy and go from there?

  4. #4
    Fluffy Kitten Pendulous's Avatar
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    None. All those bands are old, and don't define anything as we know it today. Hell , Led Zeppelin was considered metal at some point, and the Beatles nowadays would be soft rock/pop.

  5. #5
    Stones define old dirty rock n' roll, no question about that.

  6. #6
    Quote Originally Posted by Pendulous View Post
    None. All those bands are old, and don't define anything as we know it today. Hell , Led Zeppelin was considered metal at some point, and the Beatles nowadays would be soft rock/pop.
    Certainly they do define current bands. As do many "older bands." Techniques, influence and inspiration. Sure most people you ask today "what their inspiration is" they'll just cockhand a response that people want to hear. But it still has some shred of truth behind it. Case in point is Black Sabbath and Tony Iommi, the sounds he came up with in the early days of Sabbath, power riffs and all that good shit are still prevalent today. Without Sabbath you wouldn't have had Metallica or Slayer et al. Same can be said for pretty much any of the major players of the 60s and 70s. Even in the so called "modern rock" it is just recycled sounds from that era from a smorgasboard of pioneers and Gods of Rock!
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    You are a legend thats why.

  7. #7
    I'm going with The Beatles even though they did other types of music just simply because they sold more records and I think a lot of bands can be traced back to them somewhere along the line..aka Band 1 is influenced by Band 2 who was influenced by The Beatles.

  8. #8
    Stood in the Fire MissCleo's Avatar
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    The Rolling Stones aren't my favorite of the bands in your poll, BUT...

    When I read this thread title, before I opened the thread, I thought to myself "This must be a thread about The Rolling Stones"

    So I'm going to have to go with that.

  9. #9
    I love all five of those bands, my favorite of those five is without a doubt The Beatles, and they've definitely left the biggest legacy despite all of those bands having left massive ones, it's literally a fact that The Beatles are the most influential band of all time so there is no dispute there. However, if I were to pick just one, I think I'd have to pick the most talented group instrumentally, and that would be Led Zeppelin. They were the most 'complete' rock and roll band, IMO, each member contributed equally. I hear a Beatles song and not to discredit their instrumentals but it's still often either the vocals or the lead guitar that make me go 'I really like that song'. He did his part for the band of course but I don't hear Ringo's drumming and go 'omfg that's amazing I want to be a drummer' like I did when I first heard John Bonham playing. Led Zeppelin is well-rounded, and I still say they were better instrumentalists than any other rock band ever was and at this rate ever will be. Rolling Stones would be next in line, IMO, as far as being the definitive rock and roll band.
    Last edited by PBitt; 2013-05-13 at 08:44 PM.

  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by Pendulous View Post
    None. All those bands are old, and don't define anything as we know it today. Hell , Led Zeppelin was considered metal at some point, and the Beatles nowadays would be soft rock/pop.
    Jethro Tull was the first heavy metal band inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and they are folk rock. Genre is subjective, like most other things in music.

    When it comes to defining rock and roll, the Rolling Stones certainly, they define everything that is great about rock. The sex, the drugs, the music, the ego. They covered the gamut of genres too, which is what really makes rock and roll what it is. R & B, blues, funk, jazz, reggae etc, all can be heard as influencing their music.

  11. #11
    Captain Beefheart, Faust, Neu!, Velvet Underground, I don't know..

  12. #12
    I think the Beatles and Elvis are both the most influential(both listed as Rock and Roll mind you,)but...they are also listed as pop and country respectively. Because of that I would go with a band that is unquestionably rock and say Led Zeppelin(My actual personal choice regardless of genre.) Album sales back this up as well(Although I am aware that was not the criteria.)

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of..._music_artists

  13. #13
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    Quote Originally Posted by Rennadrel View Post
    Jethro Tull was the first heavy metal band inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and they are folk rock. Genre is subjective, like most other things in music.

    When it comes to defining rock and roll, the Rolling Stones certainly, they define everything that is great about rock. The sex, the drugs, the music, the ego. They covered the gamut of genres too, which is what really makes rock and roll what it is. R & B, blues, funk, jazz, reggae etc, all can be heard as influencing their music.
    Uh....Jethro Tull hasn't been inducted into the HoF.

  14. #14
    Quote Originally Posted by Darnash View Post
    That's actually a pretty well articulated argument. I do think it's fair to say that the Stones have almost always been a thoroughly "rock and roll" band, while the others mentioned have delved into other sub-genres (Beatles to pop, Zeppelin to heavy metal, Queen to stadium/glam rock, and The Who into rock opera). But is it also fair to say that the bands are not necessarily defined by their outliers (I don't think anyone would claim that "The Crunge" is Led Zeppelin's definitive song, nor "Bicycle" Queen's), but rather by the songs that have become part of their legacy?

    Stuff like Helter Skelter and Hey Jude for The Beatles, Rock n' Roll and Heartbreaker for Zeppelin, Don't Stop Me Now or We Will Rock You/We Are the Champions for Queen, and My Generation and Who Are You for the Who... while these aren't arguably the best songs of these artists, they are the songs that you hear on the radio, and these are the songs that are remembered. Therefore, they are also the songs that are the ones that are not only the most influential of modern rock but also most defining of rock history. It's harder, in my opinion, to narrow down the Stone's catalogue to a few defining songs (although Brown Sugar, Sympathy, and Satisfaction are certainly good candidates), but is it better to compare catalogue to catalogue, or to take the songs that really define the band's legacy and go from there?
    A lot of the Beatles you hear on the radio is still fairly poppy/light rock(Hey Jude for example, is NOT a song I would play for someone if trying to explain "rock and roll" same with She Loves Me, or Help, or many other Beatles hits), without the "attitude" and swagger that at least for me, defines that particular phrase("rock and roll", as opposed to "rock music"). And even then, we seem to have different opinions on a band's "defining songs" for that matter. When I think of The Who, and the songs I hear the most on the radio...Won't Get Fooled Again, Baba O'Reilly, and Behind Blue Eyes are all songs I hear a lot more often than My Generation. With Zeppelin, I hear Stairway, and for that matter, Ramble On more than I do Heartbreaker. And while these songs are all great songs, they are not all songs I was point out to someone as defining rock and roll(classic rock yes, but rock and roll itself conveys a different meaning IMO). Yet pick pretty much ANY Stones hit(Paint It Black, The Last Time, 19th Nervous Breakdown, Under My Thumb, take your pick) and I wouldn't have a problem pointing to it and telling someone "That's rock and roll right there". If someone wants to know what a "rock and roll singer" looks and acts like, again, I would point to Jagger in his prime without hesitation, John Lennon...not so much.

    As a side note, of the 5 bands there, The Who are actually my favorite.

  15. #15
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    Rock and Roll - Zeppelin or the Stones.

    Rock (with more room for moving away from the primordial 12-bar Blues origins) - Queen.

    Queen were certainly the most bombastic (musically anyway) which is what Rock is all about really. That's my take on it anyway.

  16. #16
    Bloodsail Admiral Melanieshaman's Avatar
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    Queen...probably the most versatile and diverse collection of music, but at it's heart, at least to me is rock and roll personified.

  17. #17
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    The Led, of course.

  18. #18
    I 'm not a big fan of em, but my vote goes to Motorhead, Lemmy alone is more rock & roll then all of the rolling stones together

  19. #19
    I think Rolling Stones are more of a rock band. Beatles were more pop and sometimes experimental with some rock, and the stones were more influential than led zeppelin.

  20. #20
    Stood in the Fire
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    Quote Originally Posted by Rennadrel View Post
    Jethro Tull was the first heavy metal band inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and they are folk rock. Genre is subjective, like most other things in music.
    that was actually the Grammys' mistake, not the RRHoF (though wowisme is incorrect, they were inducted just this year) Tull was given the Grammy for Best Metal Album instead of Metallica, proving for all time that the people in charge of the Grammys know metal better than anyone on the planet...

    I don't know if I could actually decide on one genre-defining rock band, whether one of those on the list or someone else; it's just too broad of a spectrum to pin down like that
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