Stones Rock
what would be the definative “american” rock band? the american version of the beatles/stones/zeppelin?
what rock band is from america and typifies a quinessentially “american” style of rock music and is very popular/legendary among americans young and old? what band is as much a part of american culture in this age as apple pie and nascar? in other words, who are the “beatles/rolling stones/zeppelin” of american culture?
It would partly depend on where in the U.S. you ask the question — the U.S. is a pretty big country. Also keep in mind that many acts like the Beatles or U2 eventually had a pretty big impact in the U.S., more than anywhere else even, and thus got “adopted” a bit.
For those with true U.S. roots, you might look at the Grateful Dead, Elvis, Bob Dylan, CSNY, Jimi Hendrix, Bruce Springsteen, the Beach Boys, Simon & Garfunkel, the Doors, Fleetwood Mac (sort of a British/U.S. mix)….
Things have sort of come in waves, so you don’t have quite an exact equivalent to the Beatles and Stones. America had folk rock of its own after their prime period, for example, or was bigger in the psychedelia movement. After 80′s music was again largely a British New Wave thing, 90′s grunge was more U.S.
For better or worse, I think Elvis is probably the most “legendary.” I’d think Simon & Garfunkel (and/or maybe the Beach Boys) some of the more consistent classic songwriters, more comparable to the Beatles or Stones in that sense, however. The Grateful Dead probably had legendary status with their own fans, while remaining virtually unknown to good parts of America–I’m sure a case could be made for them, too (again, for better or worse).
True U.S. “legends” may well be more along the lines of Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong, Miles Davis, John Coltrane…. Yes, they’re not rock, but they were very solid, consistent classics, and certainly legends. While the British were “invading” with rock in the 60′s and 70′s, big band and jazz was still quite strong in the U.S., and it was probably singer-songwriters who were most classic thereafter (Joni Mitchell, Barry Manilow, Neil Diamond, Joan Baez, Leonard Cohen, Bob Dylan…).
THE ROLLING STONES – Rock And A Hard Place (with lyrics)
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