the two most important bands of the 70s

[Strider]

The key word in the OP's thread is "Important". Not what your "favourite" band was...or "best" or "popular" or "successful".

Important means they changed things in a significant way that would not have happened without them existing. Chuck Berry and Elvis Presley were important in this way in the 50s. In the 60s, the Beatles, Stones, Dylan, Hendrix, Velvet Underground were important figures.

No matter what one thinks of Grand Funk Railroad, Eagles, ELP, and Bad Company, "important" is not a descriptive that can be applied objectively to them. Nothing in music would be significantly different or missing if any of those bands had never existed.

The Eagles? They were already late to the game by the time their first record came out. The country-rock thing had already been birthed by the Byrds, Gram Parsons & the Flying Burrito Brothers, Poco, and others. The singer songwriter culture was already in bloom in Laurel Canyon in the 60s with Joni Mitchell, Jackson Browne, James Taylor, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, and tons of others.

Really, the only ones who would suffer if the Eagles had never existed were the cocaine dealers and ticket agencies. Breaking the $100 and $200 ticket barrier is the Eagles significant contribution to the music industry.

ELP? Without them, there were still King Crimson, Yes, Pink Floyd, Gong, and Hawkwind. Prog rock wouldn't have missed a beat. And even the likes of Deep Purple played with a symphony in the 60s, years before ELP did, so they can't even claim that as an "innovation". Sorry ELP fans...not even close to being important.

Bad Company? One could rightfully argue Free was more important than Bad Company. A blues hard rock band...a dime a dozen in the 70s.

David Bowie. New York Dolls. Ramones. Sex Pistols. Giorgio Mororder. Nile Rodgers & Chic. ABBA. There were plenty of candidates for my #2 slot. But here is how I finally chose Kraftwerk as my #2.

One, their impact and influence on the electronic music scene. Whether you like it or not, electronica or EDM as it is known is a significant genre today, especially among the youth. That's why in some respects, Kraftwerk is more known and popular among music fans today than many bands that were more popular than Kraftwerk in the 70s...bands like Grand Funk Railroad and B.T.O.

Two...thanks to tracks like "Trans Europe Express", Kraftwerk was used in many of the early hiphop records and 12inches, which extended Kraftwerk's influence in the DJ and rap culture. Again, you may not like rap or hiphop, but the kids do and that is another reason Kraftwerk's importance to the music in future decades was more powerful exponentially than their initial 1970s sales figures would suggest.

[osoz]

Nice post Strider, you have put the concept I had originally for the thread into words in a way I never could have.

[chef free]

Well #1 is easy!

But #2 in terms of "important" is much harder. Pink Floyd really capped the whole Progressive Rock movement without surrendering their ROCK credibility, but Queen was huge and really changed the way people thought of rock music. The Grateful Dead is thought of as a sixties band but they really started the whole jam band scene, a movement which is still going strong today. Too bad Duane Allman (and Barry Oakley) died so young, they still managed to invent Southern Rock but we just never got to see what they would have done. Sorry I just can't make the call.

[Nutrocker]

This is one of the reasons I picked the Eagles. If the Beatles were the singer/songwriter band of the Sixties, the Eagles filled that role in the Seventies. Bands with multiple lead singer/songwriters usually don't stay together very long due to clashing egos and artistic differences. The Beatles and Eagles both managed to hold it together for roughly a decade.

If only The Eagles' individual albums were all of the same consistent quality as The Beatles...alas, they were not. Not even close.

The Eagles? They were already late to the game by the time their first record came out. The country-rock thing had already been birthed by the Byrds, Gram Parsons & the Flying Burrito Brothers, Poco, and others. The singer songwriter culture was already in bloom in Laurel Canyon in the 60s with Joni Mitchell, Jackson Browne, James Taylor, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, and tons of others.

Hence why I would give CSNY the edge as far as influence goes over The Eagles. Hell, even The Eagles would admit CSN and Gram Parsons in particular were BIG influences. As far as a societal impact, IMO CSNY were the fucking group following The Beatles...CSN/Y more or less personified the "Woodstock Generation" -for good or ill- and by being as politically outspoken as they were, culminating with "Ohio", well, you never say The Eagles having that kind of an effect, did you? Once The Eagles realized how much money they could make, it was all about the cash...the music and any sort of social conscience they may have had was secondary.

[Walter]

Without derailing this conversation too much, The Eagles have had some social conscience - they were (Don Henley specifically) into bringing attention to conservation and preserving nature/environmental issues. "The Last Resort" on Hotel California is one example and in the 80's he did a lot to preserve Henry David Thoreau's inspirational wilderness, where he wrote much of his famous poetry in/about. I do agree about their wanting to make the cash as their primary goal when they reunited in the 90's.

[Kiwi_Zep_Fan87]

The 1st choice is Led Zeppelin, of course.

The 2nd choice is Queen (focusing on their work from 1973 till late 1976). Albums like "Queen", "Queen II", "Sheer Heart Attack", "A Night At The Opera" and "A Day At The Races" are game changers, IMHO! This is a band who early on in their career, dared to incorporate ballet music, into rock! Has any other band ever done such a thing?!

Honourable mentions include:

Pink Floyd

Deep Purple

ABBA

[Walter]

The 1st choice is Led Zeppelin, of course.

The 2nd choice is Queen (focusing on their work from 1973 till late 1976). Albums like "Queen", "Queen II", "Sheer Heart Attack", "A Night At The Opera" and "A Day At The Races" are game changers, IMHO! This is a band who early on in their career, dared to incorporate ballet music, into rock! Has any other band ever done such a thing?!

After much mental debate, I think I have to agree with you kiwi. Zep and Queen, and I'm not that big of a Queen fan either. They both opened up so many doors for other bands to go through.

[Nutrocker]

Without derailing this conversation too much, The Eagles have had some social conscience - they were (Don Henley specifically) into bringing attention to conservation and preserving nature/environmental issues. "The Last Resort" on Hotel California is one example and in the 80's he did a lot to preserve Henry David Thoreau's inspirational wilderness, where he wrote much of his famous poetry in/about. I do agree about their wanting to make the cash as their primary goal when they reunited in the 90's.

Walter, you should read the book Hotel California by Barney Hoskyns (he of the latest "In their own words" Zeppelin bio). Hotel California covers the whole early 70's California singer/songwriter movement with heavy emphasis on The Eagles and CSNY...ultimately cash was always The Eagles' primary goal, they wanted to become the biggest band in the world from the get-go. Henley's modern-day environmental causes are admirable, but in the old days all those guys cared about was cash, chicks and cocaine...in roughly that order.

[JTM]

The 1st choice is Led Zeppelin, of course.

The 2nd choice is Queen (focusing on their work from 1973 till late 1976). Albums like "Queen", "Queen II", "Sheer Heart Attack", "A Night At The Opera" and "A Day At The Races" are game changers, IMHO! This is a band who early on in their career, dared to incorporate ballet music, into rock! Has any other band ever done such a thing?!

Honourable mentions include:

Pink Floyd

Deep Purple

ABBA

Ballet in rock music ? Try "A Passion Play" Jethro Tull -1973.

[Walter]

Walter, you should read the book Hotel California by Barney Hoskyns (he of the latest "In their own words" Zeppelin bio). Hotel California covers the whole early 70's California singer/songwriter movement with heavy emphasis on The Eagles and CSNY...ultimately cash was always The Eagles' primary goal, they wanted to become the biggest band in the world from the get-go. Henley's modern-day environmental causes are admirable, but in the old days all those guys cared about was cash, chicks and cocaine...in roughly that order.

I'll check that out. His book on Zeppelin is my favorite already. Gracias!

[SteveAJones]

Nominee: The Osmonds

Nominee: KC & The Sunshine Band

[Kiwi_Zep_Fan87]

Ballet in rock music ? Try "A Passion Play" Jethro Tull -1973.

^^^OK. Fair enough. I admit that I am not at all familar with Jetro Tull's discography and when I'm wrong, I have no problems in admitting it. Now, how about some Victorian art?

Such a song may seem campy to some, but to me it is just something so different, which makes it all the more exciting!

By the way, I am very very curious to know which bands are the most influential according to you and the reasons for your choices, since you seem to have an opinion on the choices that I have made.

[Kiwi_Zep_Fan87]

Important in what way, album sales, concert ticket sales, radio plays, personal favourites, genre, locally, nationally, worldwide, opinion in the press, impact over the whole decade.

Impossible to choose just two bands.

C'mon, mate! Give it a shot, will you? I'm just dying to know about your selections, given how knowledgeable you to seem to be! For what it's worth, I really liked that song by Jethro Tull you posted. Very quirky! Thanks for that!

Edited to add: This is that ballet based Queen song, I was referring to:

[JTM]

The more I think about this, the more I struggle. I find it hard relate 'Important' to any particular band. I absolutely love music my vast collection is proof of that. Any choices would only be my opinion, others will differ in their opinion. I have my core favourites but I don't know if I would say they were in anyway important, could I do without them ? absolutely not, but does that make them important, I don't know.

Importance, it varies from person to person, town to town, north to south, east to west, country to country, culture to culture, year to year, different strokes for different folks.

I can't give an answer to the OP's question because I don't think there is an answer.

[Walter]

Of course there's no answer, it's just conjecture - much like most of this site. I viewed the OP's question as to who was most important in developing the musical direction of the 70's and beyond. Obviously Zep has to be one of them, because there were so many clone bands that came out after them - for decades. I picked Queen because they expanded the musical landscape for rock. Am I correct? No way to tell. But they did influence a lot of musicians in many genres of music.

I like Jethro Tull, no question about it. They definitely had their angle in the music world and were blazing their own trail.

[the chase]

Strider is right on the money. Kraftwerk were far more influential than they get credit for. I have also spoken very highly of them here. I went with Pink Floyd because their 70s recorded output was so Strong. Atom Heart Mother Meddle DSOTM WYWH Animals and The Wall.. That is an incredibly good body of work.. As far as influence goes, Kraftwerk is at or very near the top of the list..

[osoz]

The more I think about this, the more I struggle. I find it hard relate 'Important' to any particular band. I absolutely love music my vast collection is proof of that. Any choices would only be my opinion, others will differ in their opinion. I have my core favourites but I don't know if I would say they were in anyway important, could I do without them ? absolutely not, but does that make them important, I don't know.

Importance, it varies from person to person, town to town, north to south, east to west, country to country, culture to culture, year to year, different strokes for different folks.

I can't give an answer to the OP's question because I don't think there is an answer.

Strider put it into perspective well, I'm not looking for a specific answer, but the argument put for Kraftwerk certainly propels them up close to the number 2 spot if not straight into it.

I thought a lot about Queen and Sabbath over the Pistols, so I think we are getting into a ball park with not only defining 'important' but who the 2 most important bands of the 70's may have been.

I swung to the Pistols mainly because I'm a fan of punk, proto-goth and goth. There could have been no post-punk without punk, but LZ were still a strong influence within the goth movement of the 80'/90's. So certainly subjective rather than objective as I chose bands that were important to the music I followed most closely in the decades that followed the 70's.

[Strider]

JTM, I sympathize with your difficulty and it attests to the overabundance of great music in the 1970s that it is so difficult to pick just two bands. That's why there is no shame in just missing the cut...bands that are #3 or #4 are still important in the grand scheme of things.

We haven't even mentioned Bob Marley & the Wailers! Hugely influential...the reggae explosion of the 70s wouldn't have happened without them.

Queen were also gobsmackingly important, no doubt.

When it comes to the Sex Pistols, as tempted as I was to elevate them, in the long run I had to ask the question: Would punk rock have happened without them?

And the answer was that, to a certain extent, punk rock had already happened before they broke on the scene and most definitely would have continued on developing without their existence.

The Stooges and New York Dolls of the early-70s had already set in motion the New York punk scene...the Ramones, Talking Heads, Patti Smith, Blondie, Television were all in full swing by the mid-70s. Cleveland and Los Angeles also had nascent punk scenes happening before anyone had heard of the Sex Pistols.

Since punk had happened without the Sex Pistols. that means post-punk would have happened without the Sex Pistols, too. So I had no choice but to lower the Sex Pistols on my list of important bands of the 70s.

[SteveAJones]

Ok, I was kidding earlier but not now. I'm surprised this band hasn't at least been nominated as "most important":

[Walter]

I was thinking about them, SAJ, but I view them as a sort of offspring of Zeppelin. Obviously they are different, but came about on the heels of Zep's peak and somewhat of their "formula" - blond singer, wizard guitarist, hard hitting drummer.... Just my opinion.

[Strider]

Ok, I was kidding earlier but not now. I'm surprised this band hasn't at least been nominated as "most important":

Because as good as they were, they were just another link in the hard rock/metal scene. Hard rock and metal existed before Van Halen and it continued on after them. In some ways, KISS was more important than Van Halen and I LOVE Van Halen and HATE Kiss.

[IpMan]

Ok, I was kidding earlier but not now. I'm surprised this band hasn't at least been nominated as "most important":

I would not nominate VH for most important anything. Sure, they were a good band but they were not groundbreaking. EVH did nothing new on the guitar that people such as Steve Lukather and Steve Hackett had done before. The only thing IMO VH could be credited with was starting the whole 80's hair band scene (thanks for nothing) and destroying the ozone layer as a result. Still, VH is a great band, but innovative or influential in a positive way...no.

The reason I picked the Floyd for my strong #2 over Kraftwerk is because Floyd kinda started the electronica movement in rock with Richard Wright's contribution to the band. PF could not have been PF without Wright, he was to me the defining member of Floyd outside of Syd Barrett. The other aspect that Floyd created, and did better than anyone in music was the use of space within the compositions. Floyd was important for what they did NOT play for what they did play. Most of the Prog Rock bands like ELP, Yes, King Crimson, and even Rush always and consistently overplayed, filling every measure with instrumentation. Floyd on the other hand would step back, let Wright sustain a single note on the keys for several measures and then Gilmour would add a single harmonic, or Waters a slide bass note and then sustain that for several measures.

This has always been my favorite aspect of Floyd, their use of space in music and picking exactly the perfect note for the perfect time. Gilmour is a brilliant guitarist because he understands this, better to play one great, sustained note than a shred fest that conveys nothing.

Kraftwerk were awesome, but would there have even been a Kraftwerk without there first being a Floyd?

[SteveAJones]

Because as good as they were, they were just another link in the hard rock/metal scene. Hard rock and metal existed before Van Halen and it continued on after them. In some ways, KISS was more important than Van Halen and I LOVE Van Halen and HATE Kiss.

Just another link? EVH revolutionized electric guitar playing!

[Strider]

Just another link? EVH revolutionized electric guitar playing!

Yes...and to what end? Whenever a guitarist starts tapping today most audiences respond with eye rolls and giggles. Eddie's flash and pyrotechnics had a very short shelf-life...people got bored with that approach very quickly.

It is no accident that after a brief period in the 80s when Jimmy's guitar rep sunk way below EVH's, that Jimmy's rep has risen again to the level it was in the 70s.

[SteveAJones]

Yes...and to what end? Whenever a guitarist starts tapping today most audiences respond with eye rolls and giggles. Eddie's flash and pyrotechnics had a very short shelf-life...people got bored with that approach very quickly.

It is no accident that after a brief period in the 80s when Jimmy's guitar rep sunk way below EVH's, that Jimmy's rep has risen again to the level it was in the 70s.

They're not bored with that approach when EVH is the one doing it. A short shelf life?! Van Halen as a band has had it's peaks and valleys but EVH as a guitarist has had a very successful 40 year run. I'm not interested in another Page vs. EVH internet argument, suffice to say Page's impact on rock music is immense (arguably second to none) but EVH revolutionized the art of guitar playing like no one else this side of Jimi Hendrix.