Three Favorite Bands of All Time?

Knight_In_Tunisia

Junior Member
So I was talking to a girl I knew from high school; we never talked much in school but I saw her at a coffee shop a few days ago and we started to chat.

Long story short, I mentioned that I had been working on my drumming/musical theory and she asked me to name my three favorite bands of all time, and to explain why. She was just making polite conversation and probably thought it would be an easy question, but I totally drew a blank.

In the days since, I thought about it and came decided on an answer; here are mine, in no particular order:

Billy Cobham:
My father took me to see Billy Cobham at Blues Alley in DC when I was only a year or two old. My dad is dead now--died when I was 16--but he was the man who made me a drummer and Billy Cobham will always remind me of my dad, so he's gotta be included.

The Beatles:
C'mon, there's not much I gotta say here; one of the greatest musical groups in history.

Charles Mingus:
The first Mingus album I heard was The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady. I almost cried it was so moving. I think Mingus was one of the greatest song-writers ever to live.


What are some of yours?
 
I'll bite..... Santana, J. Giels Band (older stuff), and Humble Pie.....

Can't really say they are my favorites but the first to come to mind as there are SOOOOO many GREAT bands and I like em ALL........jmo
 
Yes, The Funk Brothers Allman Brothers, The Beatles
 
Weather Report, awesome band... so unique.

Soft Machine, superb.

King Crimson, just the best

I love many more
 
Black Sabbath

Deep Purple

Led Zeppelin

A plain answer, each band has its own and unique music bits and sound.

From there.....many more bands!
 
I'm going with only my favorite rock bands

Grateful Dead-greatest jam band ever. I don't know if it is legal to talk about all of the things my friends and I have done at the scores of shows we've attended, but it was great fun.

Doors-They shared a double bill with the Jefferson Airplane at my high school when we dedicated our new football stadium in early 1967. Loved almost everything they did thereafter.

Rolling Stones the greatest pure rock band ever IMO

Mind you, I'm not saying these are the best bands, but they're my favorites
 
Led Zeppelin
Fugazi
Jimi Hendrix Experience

(closely followed by The Who and JJ Cale)


And same as RogerLudwig, these are my favourite bands/artists. There's no such thing as good or bad in music!
 
The Beatles - of course

Led zeppelin - John Bonham is my hero

The Police - Even though we all know Stewart Copeland over-dubbed he is still amazing and so is sting and Andy summers. Besides the fact that Copeland over-dubs just makes us all feel a bit more human.
 
1. The Beatles

2. Air Supply

3. Nirvana
 
My top 3 would be in no particular order

Led Zeppelin

Wilco

Radiohead

This is a pretty tough thing to do once you start.
 
Depart - Awesome jazzdrumming from Jojo
Frank Zappa /w Vinnie
Planet X

Damn, this is hard..
 
Lately?

Pat Metheney Group

Porcupine Tree

Ben Harper

Different answer 10 years ago, different answer 30 years ago.
 
How impossible. I can't split my favourite 30 bands, let alone three, so I'll just look at Aussie bands, which might show northern hemisphere members just how much fun the OzRock live scene was in the 70s and 80s before disco and poker machines ruined it ... great days *sigh*

Midnight Oil
Surfing with a Spoon http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ISKjA22k_m4

Power and the Passion http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T0sJTvKO0Iw

Jo Jo Zep
Security http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xp0TzDQ2oMc

Dexterity http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q5tRAxJNajQ

The Hoodoo Gurus
Miss Freelove 69
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_UCks8O0FA

Like Wow Wipeout
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MoyzhBV-leI

Ed Kuepper
The Way I Made You Feel http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EBHSgNWrINo

Ed had previously led a weird outfit called The Laughing Clowns http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_FJylE2Tr8s

Oop, more than three :)
 
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My itunes contains 769 artists, and you want me to choose just three?

Hurm...

How about...

James Brown - The Godfather of Soul, The King of Funk, The Hardest Working Man in Show Business, Soul Brother Number One, Mr. Dynamite...how many artists have so many titles and actually live up to them? Not to mention one of the most talented, most influential, and funkiest bands to ever walk the earth, the JBs. Nearly all the music I listen to was likely influenced by James Brown in some way.

Smashing Pumpkins - Great songs, original sound, excellent drummer, brimming with musical talent and emotion...and their music just resonates with me.

Groove Armada - Fresh, inventive, groovy, diverse. I like almost everything they come up with.
 
This is a toughie...my top two of all time is easy...but the third rotates based on my mood...

1. The Clash
2. Sonic Youth

and three...

Well, today I will pick Badly Drawn Boy...albums play through like a narrative. I like his voice and I am in quite a mellow mood. Really, though, number three changes constantly...I can do my all time top 2, but three...not so easy!
 
Number one comes easy - Steely Dan.

The Godfather of Soul, James Brown gets the nod at number two if for no other reason than the fact he represents my favorite genre of music during my formative years.

I will go with my current favorite at number three, Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers. I have immersed myself in jazz of the Hard Bop period. I don't think anyone represents the period better.
 
Nine Inch Nails - Crucify me if you wish, but over twenty plus years, Trent has managed to remain both imaginative and true to his musical vision. That and The Fragile album has some of the best composition I've ever heard.

The Offspring - Yet another I might get crucified on. These were the guys I heard on the radio growing up during those angsty years of teenhood. But even now, alot of their music is relevant, and carries some weight. With the Offspring, though, it's less the composition and more the lyrics that make them so engaging. Plus they put on a kickass show live!

Atticus Fault - I'll be surprised if anyone here knows of them. Small alternative rock group, released a CD in 2001/02 with their label, which was subsequently gobbeled up by a larger label. These guys got dropped, unfortunately. A very "lush" sound, so to speak. In alot of ways, they're like an orchestra in that they fill the acoustical spectrum with beautiful sounds most of the time. Very new wave-y/alternative stuff, influenced by Radiohead but nowhere near as... depressing. These are also the guys that give me the most inspiration and hope. I tend to get bored being repetitive and frankly, alot of everything these days is repetition. These guys compose from the heart and break from the norm and it shows.

Note: I'm evaluating favorite bands as a musical whole, not just on their drumming capabilities.
 
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