What are the most overrated rock bands of all time?
- Thread starter tcudoc
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Eight
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most of the metal hair bands,
jack the weed
Full Member
That's a good start. I'm back and forth on Pink Floyd. As an aside, everyone debates Dark Side or The Wall as the greatest album options. I believe their two best songs, and maybe top 200 or so all time rock n roll songs, are Sheep and Pigs (three different one's) from an otherwise uninspiring Animals album so I'm all over the place there. Also, I'll take Ministry over Metallica all day.
jack the weed
Full Member
Maybe overrated is not the word, more just a lousy band but Starship might be worth a mention. We Built this City is a rock n roll crime.
tcudoc
Full Member
Once they lost the Jefferson moniker, they were done. For me, they peaked with Freedom at Point Zero and Modern Times. Some really good music on those two albums.
We Built This City is terrible. I read a short write up about it where it was deemed the worst song ever in rock music. I believe the record company forced them to do it against their better judgment. It said everyone in the band hated it. Sadly, it may be their biggest hit in the history of all three name iterations of the band.
Interesting fact: Bernie Taupin (wrote most of Elton John’s early lyrics) was one of the four writers for We Built This City.
My all time favorites by Jefferson Starship:
Find Your Way Back
Jane
Save Your Love
Stranger
Stairway to Cleveland (kitschy music critic protest song that is the antithesis of We Built This City)
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jack the weed
Full Member
Hard to believe Bernie would be associated with such a thing.
Kiss (Hotter Than Hell was my first album buy and I still have plenty of songs downloaded but to be honest not a great assembly of musicians, Gene is the worst)
Genesis (expect some argument here)
The Clash
Devo
tcudoc
Full Member
Like but don’t love Genesis. I’m a huge Peter gAbriel fan but his Genesis stuff is a bit too heavy on the prog rock and Peter was pretty strange back then. I like his solo stuff far better.
The Clash seem to get a boost because they were so influential for other bands. Love the spin-off Big Audio Dynamite far better than The Clash, personally. I would list them on my “underrated list.”
Devo is just one of a kind, and that is probably a good thing. They’re okay in small doses but not something I would have on a playlist with the exception of the song “Jerkin’ Back and Forth,” which is super catchy.
KISS-similar to Devo. Gimmicky band that has some appeal for their uniqueness. Detroit Rock City is one that I’ll always stop on for those rare occasions that I hear it in the radio.
tcudoc
Full Member
I’m a big fan of The Police and even more, Sting as a solo artist. He has reinvented his musical style almost as many times as Madonna. He has a bit of an arrogance about him, though. I’ve seen him live and he is a great live act. He’s currently touring and I would love to see him again.
U2 is a band I grew up with and will always be a favorite. They have such a huge catalog of music that it is easy to find many portions that are not favorites but I would classify much of their stuff as part of my all time favorites. I’m not a personal fan of Bono’s arrogant attitude but he seems like a genuinely good person. @Frog-in-law1995 will have something to say about U2. I recall they are a favorite of his.
I was never a Steely Dan fan. I learned not long ago that Chevy Chase played drums in a band as a young man and that the members of that band would eventually become Steely Dan.
Alice Cooper was always a bit too gimmicky for my liking, so I agree on that one as well.
For the brief period that KC and the Sunshine Band were big, I thought they did a nice job of delivering to pretty catchy disco era hits. I don’t ever hear much about them anymore but I think he is still performing as a nostalgia act.
jack the weed
Full Member
Some nice adds. I agree on KISS and as was suggested by Doc, Alice Cooper was less about catalog and more about the shock value. I had a liberal minded German born mother that explained the double-entendre nature of Only Woman Bleed to this 12 year old at the time. I guess U2 was just too large a part of my life for me to consider them overrated. I love Joshua Tree and One Tree Hill is my favorite U2 song. Very dynamic band imo.
While I'm at it I'll add Oasis to overrated bands. I had considered adding Toto. I learned to love Toto IV with Africa and Rosanna as I grew older but nothing else they did came close to that. Not sure if there is any confirmation of the Rosanna Arquette origins story or not.
This will be blasphemous to many, but I'll throw this out there. Led Zeppelin.
A few great songs, but man, I've tried to listen to a few of their entire albums, and they are just filled with weird stuff just that just isn't that great to listen to. Even the "greatest hits" album has about 10 songs on it that I can't wait to get over with. Long drawn out songs that don't really go anywhere.
I'll freely admit I'm no music critic, but for me it's all about the songs. Jimmy Page might be the all-time great for all I know, but if Jimmy Page is playing songs with little melody, no hooks and strange lyrics that make no sense, I don't care to listen to Jimmy Page. All the talk about tone and progressions or whatever the music people call that stuff, meh, I don't really even understand it.
A few great songs, but man, I've tried to listen to a few of their entire albums, and they are just filled with weird stuff just that just isn't that great to listen to. Even the "greatest hits" album has about 10 songs on it that I can't wait to get over with. Long drawn out songs that don't really go anywhere.
I'll freely admit I'm no music critic, but for me it's all about the songs. Jimmy Page might be the all-time great for all I know, but if Jimmy Page is playing songs with little melody, no hooks and strange lyrics that make no sense, I don't care to listen to Jimmy Page. All the talk about tone and progressions or whatever the music people call that stuff, meh, I don't really even understand it.
jack the weed
Full Member
I say up front that I consider Zeppelin the greatest hard rock band of all time and maybe only behind the Beatles and Rolling Stones in terms of influence but that’s the beauty of it all, you get to like what you like. I have a punk and electronic and progressive affinity honed by bands like Iggy Pop and the Stooges, Ultravox and Joy Division to name a few and that’s not for everyone.
Zeppelin intentionally uses a lot of mic bleed from instrument to instrument to build a raw kind of psychedelic sound. Together with Plants voice some consider it shrill and bothersome.
Toad Jones
Active Member
THE Chili Peppers for sure!!
tcudoc
Full Member
One Tree Hill has long been my all time favorite U2 song. The story behind it also lends some extra feeling to it. They only rarely perform it live because it is such an emotional song for them.
I love the idea of Toto and have a great deal of respect for them as some of the best musicians assembled, but their music is not in my wheelhouse. Similarly, I love Yes because of their tremendous talent. Much of their catalog consists of some great songs that are right up my alley but with approximately 50% of their catalog that is just too far above my head musically. Many thought they got much worse when Trevor Rabin joined while I thought they got far better when he joined.
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tcudoc
Full Member
You don’t like songs about Tolkien novels??
I would say I like about 75% of Zeppelin’s catalog. Some of it took a while to grow on me. Physical Graffiti is like that. There are so many songs on that album that, because I listened to it on repeat in high school, I grew to love. But only a few that were instant likes such as Kashmir and Trampled Under Foot.
The top twenty or so truly great Zeppelin songs are so great that it overshadows some of their rougher obscure tracks that are not up to par with the others. Specifically, When the Levee Breaks is one that I had heard for decades and thought it was just ok. Then one day, I heard it in a movie soundtrack and it clicked for me. At that point I was like, “how did I not realize the greatness of this song the first time I heard it?!?!”
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tcudoc
Full Member
I consider them overrated somewhat but still enjoy them. Sgt Peppers is a great album. Most of their stuff that I like was not their biggest hits.
tcudoc
Full Member
I should have added The Beach Boys to my list. Other than Sloop John B, I could never hear the rest of their music and be ok with it. Their music seems like every song was the same song. I have likely just not heard Sloop John B enough to be tired of it also.
Jimmy Buffet was a bit that way as well. Both made a great living with their franchises. My favorite Jimmy Buffet song was from the Fast Times soundtrack (“I Don’t Know”). That is his only song that I could listen to on repeat and still love.
Jimmy Buffet was a bit that way as well. Both made a great living with their franchises. My favorite Jimmy Buffet song was from the Fast Times soundtrack (“I Don’t Know”). That is his only song that I could listen to on repeat and still love.
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Toad Jones
Active Member
Wow, good bit of knowledge there Doc.
