Pat Metheny (all his stuff, be it the group, jazz trios, solo acoustic, etc.) his musicianship, role as the producer, and just being a visionary in his approach to music and never resting on his laurels. his approach with the group is similar to my favorite progressive rock bands in that they sound so much bigger than the number of musicians in the band and there is really no sound or approach they can't tackle.
Pink Floyd (the collective effect of their songs, lyrics, tone, the PF "mood" is singular)
Rush - their musicianship, integrity, humility, erudition, professionalism, friendship, catalog of great music, etc...
Yes - considering all the great musicians who've been part of that band, including the classic lineup as well as the Trevor Rabin era. All great musicians, and in their heyday they succeeded despite all the different egos and backgrounds of the musicians.
Led Zeppelin - any of the four members could have been the nominal front of a band on their own. the complete open mindedness in the styles, tempos and tones they played. Jimmy's vision for what the band could sound like in the studio, the songs, and more than anything, the mystique. Led Zeppelin has the "thing" that's indefinable and seldom achieved by bands. Regardless of their "plagiarism", they always took those tunes and made them something else. The bulk of their catalog is original material, and their greatest songs were original.
