Most over rated musicians

I drove from Augusta, GA to Rochester, NY yesterday in one straight shot. Needless to say, 13 hours alone in a car will give you time to think about things

Here's one of the things I was thinking about. Who are the most over rated bands/musicians out there? Now, I'm not talking about people who are really popular but everyone knows they suck. For instance, everyone knows Britney Spears can't sing even though a whole lot of people like her. So she doesn't count as being over rated.

I nominate Metallica to begin. I can't tell you how many MTV specials try to make them out as rock and roll revolutionaries. I just roll my eyes because they haven't done anything remotely original.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying they're no talent clowns. I just think they get too much credit for what they do.

Mark

Metallica? You must not remember them in the 80's. I think they deserve every bit of credit. They were, at one point, very original. Especially in the glam-metal years.

My pick for an overrated band (I'm going to say this, then run like hell) would be Nirvana.

Don't get me wrong. I love Nirvana and their significance with emergence of Grunge. I own everything they put out. I was the first person I know of to own Bleach (original release too). But I think other bands of their time have far more to offer in regards to musical and lyrical prowess.

Metallica now suck. When they released their "Load" album, it was aptly named. I put it in the CD player, and I really did think it was a load (of crap). They used to be great, then they cut off all their hair n' just seemed to go super sucky.

I've seen 'em live a few times.. Monsters of Rock at Donington in '91, I saw 'em in Paris in '92... I was gonna go see 'em with Gn'R too on their co-headlining tour with Guns N' Roses (as well as Faith No More), but Gn'R & Metallica fell out before they hit my area...

Oasis was a stupidly overrated band.. but only cuz of Liam... Without him, if Noel had been singing instead, and all their songs weren't rehashes of othere peoples' songs, they mighta been pretty good (saw them live too, but I was too drunk to remember most of it, so it doesn't count, heh).

That sounds officail Axe, "Metallica now suck."

LOL

metallica really sucks, but one person i think is under-rated would be william hung

Ouch dM, saw Nirvana listed above... OT: I know they get A LOT of credit for doing very little (only four studio albums) but I have one scrap of proof that this band was, and still is, the greatest: "You Know You're Right"

Recorded in 1994, released almost TEN YEARS LATER in 2003 and STILL a huge success... name one band that could do that, record a song now, and wait until 2014 to release it and still make it impact a generation coming up a decade later - now THAT is power!

My most over-rated bands: Rolling Stones and The Beatles. I've listened to every Rolling Stones album, my ex was in love with them, and I just don't get it... I'm missing the magic? and The Beatles? Don't get me wrong, John was a true poet and they had a few good tracks, but they are treated as the second, third, fourth and fifth coming of Christ, and it just isn't there for me. Imagine, While My Guitar Gently Weaps, Happiness Is a Warm Gun... those were great songs, ruined for me by the likes of I Wanna Hold Your Hand.

And see if you can name a band that released a tune in the 70's, got to #1 for weeks, then re-released that song again in the 90's, got to #1 for several more weeks... Queen did it

I'll agree about the beatles being overated... Elvis is HUGELY overrated too...

To a point I even think Hendrix was overrated. Sure, it did 2 or 3 outstanding tunes, but the majority of his stuff I can't even listen to.

Axe, I agree with everything you just said!

Btw, I wasn't saying Queen was overrated... Freddy Mercury was the best singer who ever lived!

Hi there,
here's my short list of most over rated muso's....

I am not saying these guys haven't got talent, I'm not even saying I don;t like their music....
Just that they have been overhyped.

Eric Clapton
Dave Gilmour
Prince
The Beatles - tey have some great songs / lyrics... but they certainly weren't world class musos....

Anyway, there's my 2 cents worth!!!....

I am sure I will get flack for listing this one....Led Zeppelin......Good, but horribly overated

I agree... I'm not a huge Zep fan... there's a coupla "ok" tunes... but I couldn't stick on a Zep CD and listen to the whole thing at once, heh.

Yeah, I guess I'm showing my age here.

To answer the "You know, you're right" challenge: I think if either the Beatles, Elvis or the Stones were to release a track that was previously unrealeased and unheard, it would certainly sell millions of copies. Not at all to the same demographic groups, but certainly just as strong and equally as important to those people who loved THEM...and btw: "You know, you're right." is bought and paid for and sitting in my iTunes playlist.


Let me reiterate what I said before. I love Nirvana. I DO think they are a great band. I also think their music is given a little too much credit. My argument really has nothing to do with commercial success.

Also, that difference you're citing between "I want to hold your hand" and later songs...Yes! You're right. You're missing it.

To understand the differences in those songs and their context to the Beatles is to understand a single band - like NO other - that encapsulates a huge evolution in popular culture. The Beatles picked up something they thought was good, altered it completely, extended its reach beyond what anyone thought possible, and set it back down for all to see, and it was better. It's all very 'open-source', if you ask me.



I think you're right. They weren't world class musicians in the vein of Andres Segovia, or someone like that. They were world class recording artists and producers, however, and the mark they left on HUMANITY is unmistakable.


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Sorry, I don't know any one band but I could give you the general over-rated genre: Pop.

It's way to over-rated.

dM,

I guess I'm too young to understand The Beatles 'evolution', when I started listening to music Lennon was already dead. I'm not saying the Beatles are bad or anything, just think they get much more credit than they deserve. I can think of many of their songs I enjoy (Paperback Writer, Elenore Rigby, Happinass Is A Warm Gun, While My Guitar Gently Weaps... and John's solo stuff, Imagine and heck, I even own a copy of "Two Virgins", the *original print* on vinyl with the brown paper wrapping used to "cover" up the cover... [I am a record collector by hobby]).

I understand what you're saying about Nirvana, they are just in my personal Top Five, so, I had to come to their defense... but I was intrigued by what you said about the Stones and Beatles releasing songs ten years after they were recorded and I agree that they would sell with the people who listened to them growing up, what I found interesting about "You Know Your Right" is that it spoke to a new generation as powerfully as "(Smells Like) Tenn Spirit" and "Come As You Are" spoke to my generation (I'm 20 BTW, I was eleven when Kurt died).

With"You Know Your Right", Nirvana was able to capture the attention of a generation mesmorized by the likes of Britney Spears and other *musicians*. I had my twelve year old niece asking me who Kurt Cobain was, asking me if she could borrow all the import Nirvana CDs I had so she could hear the B-Sides they don't play on the radio, she read thru my "Kurt Cobain: Journals" book that was published recently and we connected on a real cool level that never existed before.

I think you and I, for the most part, would realy get along well musically (and hey, if *my* original music is right next to Cobain's in your iTunes player, then I guess we can't argue at all!)

Thanks for the interesting conversation...