Greatest band of all time?

What is the greatest band of all time?

  • Total voters
    57
Project Mayhem said:
Over Bonham????

Paice is great for sure....But over Bonham?
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Well, you know, the post I replied to was basically replacing "fronts" of Zep... I feel like Paice is an overlooked component of DP.

In any case, I'm not sure Zep would have flown with Blackmore and Gillain...

Same could be said in reverse... Purple with that classic lineup just kills.
 
The greatest band of all time is the band people were into in their teens. True 95% of the time. That's the age where you develop music taste. While I can appreciate music done prior to my birth like LedZep they're sort of a history book band for me because I didn't live through it.
 
ML SOUND LAB said:
The greatest band of all time is the band people were into in their teens. True 95% of the time. That's the age where you develop music taste. While I can appreciate music done prior to my birth like LedZep they're sort of a history book band for me because I didn't live through it.
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I was a teen in the 80s. Can’t stand most 80’s music. I was listening to Zeppelin and Yes, which does validate your overall point as those are still overall favorites of mine.
 
Interesting how the thread title says "greatest"... yet nearly every answer has been rationalizing the posters "favorite".

You don't have to live through something to objectively appreciate it. Didn't live through Beethoven, Beatles, Hogan, Ruth, Secretariat (ok I did but wasn't paying attention)...saw none of them in real time, despite that, their positions in the respective categories are unassailable.
Just as 100 years from now it will still be Jordan, Brady, Gretzky, Federer, Serena, Possibly Tiger....You may not like any of them... but the question wasn't "like".

Can someone please make a sound fact based argument for a Band "greater" than the Beatles....remember that "greatest' applies to the collective and not the individual.
 
I generally agree with Miko, but it is very interesting to see the reaction of people, from just about any generation, when they hear "When The Levee Breaks" for the first time. Or Black Dog...and who hasn't heard Stairway...Even if you were familiar with the Stones or Beatles way back then, and I was, the first time I heard "Hey hey mama when you walk that way watch ya honey drip cant keep away..", it changed everything for me...and music in general. It truly was a paradigm shift. And, even though they "borrowed", there were completely original. But, in all seriousness, I think Blackmore could've been good as Pages tech. And its really not fair comparing that Ian Gilligan guy with Plant, especially considering he was stuck on that island during his prime. Come on guys.
 
Project Mayhem said:
Can someone please make a sound fact based argument for a Band "greater" than the Beatles....remember that "greatest' applies to the collective and not the individual.
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It is of course subjective, but as an example, here's a "fact based argument", by way of direct evidence, for a band that could be suggested to be, and not unreasonably so, "greater" than the Beatles. Note, I'm not making the claim; just giving an example. Their ensemble playing, their feeding off of each other, their musicianship, improvisation skills, mastery of their instruments, etc, all suggest that they were a pretty amazing band. :)

 
Project Mayhem said:
...Can someone please make a sound fact based argument for a Band "greater" than the Beatles....remember that "greatest' applies to the collective and not the individual.
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By what metric would you measure this greatness?

Music, like any art, is subjective and cannot be measured.
 
TG3K said:
By what metric would you measure this greatness?

Music, like any art, is subjective and cannot be measured.
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I would use the definition of the word "Greatest". Like "outstanding", there can be only one by definition...yet people throw those terms around without consideration all the time.

Has any band had an impact on music of a greater magnitude? Better, preferred, etc, are all debatable as they are indeed subjective...Greatest is not.

Look I get that the spirit of the thread is "actually" favorite, and the Beatles aren't my favorite...but I really really want a V-amp!
 
guitarmike said:
I generally agree with Miko, but it is very interesting to see the reaction of people, from just about any generation, when they hear "When The Levee Breaks" for the first time. Or Black Dog...and who hasn't heard Stairway...Even if you were familiar with the Stones or Beatles way back then, and I was, the first time I heard "Hey hey mama when you walk that way watch ya honey drip cant keep away..", it changed everything for me...and music in general. It truly was a paradigm shift. And, even though they "borrowed", there were completely original. But, in all seriousness, I think Blackmore could've been good as Pages tech. And its really not fair comparing that Ian Gilligan guy with Plant, especially considering he was stuck on that island during his prime. Come on guys.
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My singer framed that Zeppelin had a powerful swagger that few, if any, could match.
 
Floyd, Steely Dan, Yes, Genesis, Dire Straights, Deep Purple, VH, Pat Metheny Group, Miles Davis Quintet, Cream, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, AC/DC, Bill Evans Trio, Weather Report, Buena Vista Social Club, The Electric Band (Chick Corea), Earth, Wind and Fire and a few more are the greatest band of all time! Oh ... and Led Zeppelin!
And the Police!
And supertramp!
And the Beatles ...
 
Project Mayhem said:
I would use the definition of the word "Greatest". Like "outstanding", there can be only one by definition...yet people throw those terms around without consideration all the time.

Has any band had an impact on music of a greater magnitude? Better, preferred, etc, are all debatable as they are indeed subjective...Greatest is not.

Look I get that the spirit of the thread is "actually" favorite, and the Beatles aren't my favorite...but I really really want a V-amp!
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I think you've got some grammatic errors here.

The word "outstanding" literally means "to stand out", there is nothing constraining that to a singular element. Oxford dictionary defines it as "exceptionally good".

The word "greatest" is a measure and as @TG3K says, that has to be measured by a metric... And with art, there is no absolute metric (this is the same to me as "best").

You could say greatest based on album sales, or concert revenue, or largest catalog of songs, etc. Anything that is not actually measurable can not by definition be used to assign the label of "greatest" except subjectively.
 
One band that comes to mind when thinking of bands that "stand out" is of course Spinal Tap; except for that problem with the drummers. Never could keep a steady lineup together.
 
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