Check out the Digital Gramophone's Top 15: • The 15 Greatest Americ... *And sorry for all of the "uhhh" and "ummm" - I thought I'd gotten better at that - not so much*
Great video, great list! REM, Uncle Tupelo, Wilco and GBV are in my top 5. Saw Tupelo, and also Wilco and Son Volt on their first tours. Replacements and Husker Du are right there, saw both of them in the 80's, amazing and memorable shows
This was an interesting list and it is indeed a fun topic to address with the thread. I've only seen yours, Glen's and Jon's hopefully more people will jump in. The lists can be so different and there is no right or wrong answer. take care, Elliott
Hello, Really enjoyed your commentary here. It’s an impossible list, and regardless of rank those are all seminal bands. Thanks for putting the list together! I remember getting Murmur as a teenager and could not believe what was coming out of the speakers. It was so different and mesmerizing. Sly and the Family Stone is just unstoppable groove. Amazing music.
Great list. I totally agree with #1. Another thing with R.E.M. is they championed so many other bands including others on your list like Big Star and VU when those bands didn’t have the recognition they do today. I probably would have put Uncle Tupelo higher 😊. I was lucky to see them at Tramps you mentioned.
#1 on your list literally changed my life. My only selfish wish about R.E.M. is that the last song on their last album stunk. They shoulda done a great cover.
Nic elist. Beach Boys number one because of how they influenced everything: songwriting, production, arranging, etc. Their influence is still being felt today.
I love Beach Boys, Brian Wilson is probably America's best songwriter and music producer. However, as a band, they didn't play the music on their records - the Wrecking Crew did.
The Eagles are a band that people love to hate. A very interesting list. If you want to know who I included on my list you will have to watch my video.
Great list. Hard to really knock any of those choices, but I would have to find a place for Los Lobos on my list. They’re actually my number one American band on most days.
Here’s a rough top 15 from me, but I’m almost 60 lol;( not in order) Allman Bros Lynyrd Skynyrd ZZ Top Blue Oyster Cult Talking Heads REM Velvet Underground Yo La Tengo Pere Ubu The Doors Los Lobos CCR Grateful Dead Pavement Sonic Youth
Maybe our collab video can be why we didn’t include certain bands. Brace yourself for The Doors Army! 😂 Glad we’re on the same page with #1. Mazzy is up! ✌🏻
Frank Zappa had two or three distinct bands, any one of which is better than all fifteen of these. His other line-ups outside these two or three also were better than most of the fifteen mentioned here.
I'm sure you mean well, but that list flat out sucks. Almost all of it is wrong on so many levels. And REM the greatest? That's absolutely absurd. Top 50 maybe. The Pixies (who I don't even like) as an indie band easily surpass REM or Pavement or Uncle Tupelo or the annoying Wilco. You casually forgot bands like The Doors, The Byrds, Talking Heads, Tool, Blondie, Fleetwood Mac, The Ramones, Aerosmith, Dead Kennedys, Alice in Chains, Jefferson Airplane, Heart, The Stooges, Parliament / Funkadelic, Alice Cooper, The Cars, Lynard Skynyrd, Metallica, Simon & Garfunkel and Van Halen. The only ones who belong on that list for sure are CCR, Velvet Underground, The Eagles and Nirvana. The list I just reeled off at the top of my head easily out flanks your silly indie-o-rama choices. And I don't even listen to half of the bands I named.
@@garylavintman8206 Fleetwood Mac was not an American band - the majority of their members were British (Mick Fleetwood, John McVie, Christine McVie, Peter Green, et al).
Kinda surprising you didn't include Bruce Springsteen And The E Street Band in this list. I'd be curious as to why. Sometimes I think the band name having Bruce Springsteen separated from the band maybe makes people think sub-consciously he's a solo act. Also maybe you saw this maybe you didn't, But a few months back Rolling Stone Magazine said that the biggest selling rock act of this year is Creedence Clearwater Revival. Not a hundred percent that still holds true, but I haven't seen a Rock act that may have topped them "CCR are the most awesomely bizarre case of a classic band that’s bigger than ever right now, without anyone really noticing. But their greatest-hits collection Chronicle is riding high on the Billboard 200 every week, always somewhere in the thirties or forties. It’s currently Number 39, right ahead of the new Ariana Grande album. It’s higher than anything by the Beatles or the Stones or Zeppelin or Queen." That's kinda nuts! Nice list though, even with the Bosses omission!
I can understand why he doesn't include The Boss and E street band, because Bruce is the primary singer, songwriter and star and he is known as a solo artist as much as a band leader. Same situation with Tom Petty & Heartbreakers and Neil Young and Crazy Horse. Great as those band players are, they wouldn't be anywhere near as popular without the sometime solo artist and main talent (to be blunt) up front.
REM would easily be my no.1 fav too. Just a run of perfect albums imo from Murmur to New Adventures. Up and Reveal are damn near perfect too. The rest - Drive by Truckers, Wilco, The National, Replacements, Grateful Dead, Byrds, Pearl Jam, Smashing Pumpkins, Nirvana, Talking Heads, Pixies, Blondie, VU & Nico and CCR. Kills me that I can't include Flaming Lips, Mercury Rev, White Stripes, Big Star, and Yo La Tengo. Stuart
In no particular order: Wilco R.E.M. Grateful Dead Sonic Youth The Velvet Underground Yo La Tengo Uncle Tupelo The Allman Brothers Band Talking Heads Beastie Boys Hüsker Dü CCR Aerosmith Phish
The greatest bands in the USA were from the Detroit or Cleveland area. Hands down. Hell, even The Alice Cooper Band moved to Detroit. I love Uncle Tupelo, loved early Son Volt. Wilco........no thanks.
Great video, great list! REM, Uncle Tupelo, Wilco and GBV are in my top 5. Saw Tupelo, and also Wilco and Son Volt on their first tours. Replacements and Husker Du are right there, saw both of them in the 80's, amazing and memorable shows
Enjoyed this list. Thanks for taking the time.
Very welcome. Thanks for watching!
Great list Chris. I can definitely imagine living in that time 😎🤠.
Hahahah. Thanks, Mazzy
This was an interesting list and it is indeed a fun topic to address with the thread. I've only seen yours, Glen's and Jon's hopefully more people will jump in. The lists can be so different and there is no right or wrong answer. take care, Elliott
WTF. You left a comment on my video but you just admitted you didn’t watch it.
@ I watched this video before I watched yours, I watched your video . 👍✌️
Thanks, Elliott!
Hello,
Really enjoyed your commentary here. It’s an impossible list, and regardless of rank those are all seminal bands. Thanks for putting the list together!
I remember getting Murmur as a teenager and could not believe what was coming out of the speakers. It was so different and mesmerizing.
Sly and the Family Stone is just unstoppable groove. Amazing music.
Thanks for stopping by!
You’re the best on the you tube, you should do more but it’s nice you don’t saturate. you’re the coolest cat in town x
No one on youtube is cooler than Vinyl Richie.
hahahah, I'll take that compliment!
This is a fun topic. A roundtable with Mazzy and DG should be interesting. Maybe debate why each left off a band that is in the others list.
15 great bands! Thanks Chris.
Thanks for stopping by, Ash!
Digital Gramophone👍👍👍awesome list..awesome job..the uhhh’s and ummm’s are very endearing..lol..❤👍glen
Yeah Chris! Love the channel.
Great list. I totally agree with #1. Another thing with R.E.M. is they championed so many other bands including others on your list like Big Star and VU when those bands didn’t have the recognition they do today. I probably would have put Uncle Tupelo higher 😊. I was lucky to see them at Tramps you mentioned.
Good list. As always.
Great list! I'll get to work on mine. There will be some overlap for sure, but spoiler alert-no Eagles.
Looking forward to it!
#1 on your list literally changed my life. My only selfish wish about R.E.M. is that the last song on their last album stunk. They shoulda done a great cover.
You have fine taste in music. Big Star was so influential, I might even put them ahead of REM. Otherwise, I might swap in The Byrds for the Eagles.
great list and agree with REM. I'd have a hard time leaving two southern rock icons, the Allman Bros Band and Lynyrd Skynyrd off my list.
Nic elist. Beach Boys number one because of how they influenced everything: songwriting, production, arranging, etc. Their influence is still being felt today.
Exactly! Couldn’t have said it any better.
I love Beach Boys, Brian Wilson is probably America's best songwriter and music producer. However, as a band, they didn't play the music on their records - the Wrecking Crew did.
Respectable list. ! I'd swap in Television for Pavement. enjoyed it
Anyday. Television smokes Pavement note one.
The Eagles are a band that people love to hate. A very interesting list. If you want to know who I included on my list you will have to watch my video.
Great list. Hard to really knock any of those choices, but I would have to find a place for Los Lobos on my list. They’re actually my number one American band on most days.
Here’s a rough top 15 from me, but I’m almost 60 lol;( not in order)
Allman Bros
Lynyrd Skynyrd
ZZ Top
Blue Oyster Cult
Talking Heads
REM
Velvet Underground
Yo La Tengo
Pere Ubu
The Doors
Los Lobos
CCR
Grateful Dead
Pavement
Sonic Youth
Awesome list. R.E.M. definitely #1. Nice shout out to GbV. They would be on my list along with Cheap Trick and The Flaming Lips.
Both were considered :). Lips just missed.
Maybe our collab video can be why we didn’t include certain bands. Brace yourself for The Doors Army! 😂
Glad we’re on the same page with #1.
Mazzy is up! ✌🏻
The Doors!! They were not in your list, Jon, right? How is that even possible?! ... 15 just aren't enough ...
@ Not on my list, either. I think I might do a response video to all the comments. 😂
I’ve watched a number of these recently. By far the best so far are ones by Digital Gramophone and Vinyl Richie.
What about the Allman Brothers, Lynyrd Skynyrd, the Doors, and the Doobie Brothers?
It's a pretty big Omission to leave the Grateful Dead and Allman Brothers off that list
Frank Zappa had two or three distinct bands, any one of which is better than all fifteen of these. His other line-ups outside these two or three also were better than most of the fifteen mentioned here.
I'm sure you mean well, but that list flat out sucks. Almost all of it is wrong on so many levels. And REM the greatest? That's absolutely absurd. Top 50 maybe. The Pixies (who I don't even like) as an indie band easily surpass REM or Pavement or Uncle Tupelo or the annoying Wilco. You casually forgot bands like The Doors, The Byrds, Talking Heads, Tool, Blondie, Fleetwood Mac, The Ramones, Aerosmith, Dead Kennedys, Alice in Chains, Jefferson Airplane, Heart, The Stooges, Parliament / Funkadelic, Alice Cooper, The Cars, Lynard Skynyrd, Metallica, Simon & Garfunkel and Van Halen. The only ones who belong on that list for sure are CCR, Velvet Underground, The Eagles and Nirvana. The list I just reeled off at the top of my head easily out flanks your silly indie-o-rama choices. And I don't even listen to half of the bands I named.
@@garylavintman8206 Fleetwood Mac was not an American band - the majority of their members were British (Mick Fleetwood, John McVie, Christine McVie, Peter Green, et al).
Kinda surprising you didn't include Bruce Springsteen And The E Street Band in this list. I'd be curious as to why. Sometimes I think the band name having Bruce Springsteen separated from the band maybe makes people think sub-consciously he's a solo act. Also maybe you saw this maybe you didn't, But a few months back Rolling Stone Magazine said that the biggest selling rock act of this year is Creedence Clearwater Revival. Not a hundred percent that still holds true, but I haven't seen a Rock act that may have topped them
"CCR are the most awesomely bizarre case of a classic band that’s bigger than ever right now, without anyone really noticing. But their greatest-hits collection Chronicle is riding high on the Billboard 200 every week, always somewhere in the thirties or forties. It’s currently Number 39, right ahead of the new Ariana Grande album. It’s higher than anything by the Beatles or the Stones or Zeppelin or Queen."
That's kinda nuts!
Nice list though, even with the Bosses omission!
I can understand why he doesn't include The Boss and E street band, because Bruce is the primary singer, songwriter and star and he is known as a solo artist as much as a band leader. Same situation with Tom Petty & Heartbreakers and Neil Young and Crazy Horse. Great as those band players are, they wouldn't be anywhere near as popular without the sometime solo artist and main talent (to be blunt) up front.
Thanks for sharing! Her loss on your b-day.
Like with Tom Petty , he’s more a singular focused artist.
REM would easily be my no.1 fav too. Just a run of perfect albums imo from Murmur to New Adventures. Up and Reveal are damn near perfect too.
The rest - Drive by Truckers, Wilco, The National, Replacements, Grateful Dead, Byrds, Pearl Jam, Smashing Pumpkins, Nirvana, Talking Heads, Pixies, Blondie, VU & Nico and CCR.
Kills me that I can't include Flaming Lips, Mercury Rev, White Stripes, Big Star, and Yo La Tengo.
Stuart
Nirvana has to be in top 5 the doors too
Buffalo Springfield!!!! Stooges
Great List btw
In no particular order:
Wilco
R.E.M.
Grateful Dead
Sonic Youth
The Velvet Underground
Yo La Tengo
Uncle Tupelo
The Allman Brothers Band
Talking Heads
Beastie Boys
Hüsker Dü
CCR
Aerosmith
Phish
Allman Brothers!
The greatest bands in the USA were from the Detroit or Cleveland area. Hands down. Hell, even The Alice Cooper Band moved to Detroit. I love Uncle Tupelo, loved early Son Volt. Wilco........no thanks.
CCR should be #1, and it's not even close.
8am not into the eagles
You forgot savage republic
@@thomasquesada1860 Neither is The Dude.
No Byrds ! dear oh dear.
Did you not watch? The Byrds flew high on this list.
@@mazzysmusic I’ve learned a lot of people don’t actually watch. 😂