Follow Me:Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/george.brautigamTwitter: https://twitter.com/GeorgeBrautigamDiscogs: https://www.discogs.com/seller/ClingClangRe. Here's the start of my list (Rule # 1: They are NEVER played on "classic rock" radio! 1) Socrates (drunk the conium) Finally, two more British 70s rock bands who, sadly, barely registered: Spring, a highly melodious five-piece whose charming self-titled 1971 album is mostly recognized for copious use of the Mellotron (without sounding remotely like The Moody Blues). Archers of Loaf (reunited 2011) 6. The band is famous for having more than a few members that would go onto greater fame in other bands including Paul Gilbert (Racer X, Mr. Big), Slash (Guns N' Roses), Randy Castillo (Ozzy Osbourne, Lita Ford, Motley Crue) and James Kottak (Kingdom Come, Scorpions). The seventies were a signature decade for Funk, for Disco, for Reggae, for Brazilian music, for African music, Japanese music, for the Electronic Avant garde and for British Folk. One of the decades key events, the oil embargo of the OPEC Arab nations in defiance of states with a perceived bias in favor of Israel, cut to the heart of insatiable demand for the long-player. var xhr = new XMLHttpRequest(); 4 The Archies RCA Records Yes, those Archies. Kaleidoscope In the same way that The Selecter would be unequivocally described as a Rock group, so I think, should Cymande. Musicians? Hard rock bands from the late 70's obscure and not obscure but not the usual suspects? Cool rock band not mentionedQUICKSILVER MESSAGING SERVICE, Curved Air, Zephyr, Matthews Southern Comfort. In the UK, hot on the heels of Enoch Powells inflammatory Rivers of blood speech there was a similar splintering of racial consensus which was exacerbated by the economic malaise afflicting many Western countries. All Rights reserved. They were gone by 1980, but try and find a dance mix without "Rock the Boat Baby.". The band, albeit with a different line-up, recorded a second album before splitting up, but this remains unreleased. Anyone my age in the UK grew up with a rock press that dictated Beefheart good, Zappa bad. ressurection band sweet comfort undercover allies imperials silverwind stryper degarmo and key [Edited on 4-30-2006 by bigheavyq] PuritanCovenanter The Joyful Curmudgeon Staff member Apr 30, 2006 #2 Bride Saint Kerry Livgren and AD The Choir David Zaffiro Mahogany The bass player has been re-releasing the 6 LPs and many EPs, singles, Studio outtakes, and the live recordings plus several recordings of the songs sung at post concert/club in the motel rooms. Tony Joe White said the Donnie McCormick was his favorite performer as drummer,singer,and band leader. Given my market's penchant for rock-40 of the late '70s and early '80s, I'm surprised to see any REO Speedwagon song on the list. 1 - 25 of 781. Their Blowin Free was banned from some guitar shops which grew sick of budding strummers playing its intro. Donna Allen - "Serious". This 20, 30, and sometimes 40-piece orchestra recorded seven studio albums and were conducted by legendary R&B singerthe one and only Barry White. They're an underrated lot, but their first 3 albums are all glorious! Do you remember these '70s sensations of disco, funk, soul and glam rock? Savoy Brown Formed by guitarist Kim Simmonds in 1965, Savoy Brown is a prolific English blues-rock band known for their relentless touring and producing over 32 studio and live albums. The cult of obscure records troubles me more when it overshadows the merely less well known. 20 Rock Albums Rolling Stone Loved in the 1970s That You Never Heard We praised them 40 years ago and you should listen to them today! Both One Size Fits All (1975) and particularly Overnite The BEST live band ever in the Island years. Your email address will not be published. A great program for hearing music from the late 6o's to early 70's (The Woodstock era !) What ought to be more noted, however, are the heartfelt and distinctive vocals of Pat Moran, who went on to produce Iggy Pop, among many others. By Freki. 1 in the final weeks of the 1970s, helping to usher in a new wave of music for a new decade. Billy Thorpe and The Aztecs laid the blueprint for raucous Australian rock n' roll. In the sixties she toured with Albert Ayler AND was a close associate of Tim Learys. The band fell apart while recording the second album, as it became obvious their musical and philosophical aspirations were not going to give them sustainable commercial impact. 3) Manfred Mans Earth Band } else { 1 hit with the protest anthem "War" His influence spanned genres and decades, reaching into the 1990s, when his single "Big Papa" may have caught the ear of a young, but notorious Brooklyn rapper. album. Mike Stuart span. RCA 70. encoding. 2. That, scorned by purists, it was more of a Jazz Funk album with a heavy presence of synthesisers, and that Folk rocker John Martyn played all over it, leads me to conjecture that actually its a rock record not a million miles from Brand Xs territory. No prizes for guessing where theyre from. } xhr.setRequestHeader('Content-Type', 'text/plain;charset=UTF-8'); Blues Magoos - Electric Comic Book. Im going to stop here. Spirit How obscure in USA these bands i dont know, but. Seemingly carrying the torch lit by Jimi Hendrix forward, the first two Mahavishnu Orchestra LPs, Generations and incarnations later, Boney M has sold 100 million albums to date, and shows no signs of slowing down. Released on the Sea Side label, this takes influences from Purple, Sabbath and Thin Lizzy, mixing them together to create a gripping style that dips towards doom, yet also has a strong hard rock structure. LPs such as Everyone Is Everyone Else, Octoberon, and Time Honoured Ghosts are classics of their type, with great songs such as Mocking Bird and the wry Poor Mans Moody Blues undeservedly little heard today. Like a drum solo that just wont stop, Niagara comprises only two tracks of polyrhythmic faux-tribal splendor. No. It sold not at all. At the opposite end of the fame spectrum, British 70s rock band Brinsley Schwarz, named after their guitarist, were famously over-hyped when flown to NYC to open at the Fillmore East in front of a gaggle of music hacks, but settled into a low-key country-rock and roots vibe that was a cornerstone of London pub-rock. Another act who had to earn it, baby, were prog stalwarts Barclay James Harvest, a quartet who got through five albums without pestering the Top 40, finally scoring with Live, a double set that reflected a fanbase built on hard graft. She wrote or co-wrote some of the most memorable hits of the decade, including "Love Is A Battlefield," "Invincible," "Better Be Good To Me," "The Best," "Never," and "Obsession," She released her . Gigging in Grenwich Village she befriended the young Jimi Hendrix and opened for blues greats like Muddy Waters. The 2nd LP was signed in 1971 to Capricorn Records and assigned to Paul Hornsby, his 2nd attempt at producing. "Video Killed The Radio Star" was a hit on the charts in 1979, and, ironically, the first music video aired on MTV in 1981. Mangione, George Benson and the Crusaders, Fusion became vastly, almost unimaginably successful but also neutered. NO! If you want to know where Neil Young and Bowie meet, hear T2s singer-drummer Peter Dunton, and youll also enjoy the tough guitar stylings of Keith Cross. Black Sabbath. ): Journey To the Center of the Mind - Amboy Dukes Jack the Stripper/Fairies Wear Boots - Black Sabbath DOA - Bloodrock Then Came the Last Days of May - BC Maggot Brain - Funkadelic Vanilla Queen - Golden Earring Beck's Bolero - Jeff Beck We see flash-in-the-pan artists come and go with every decade, but one-hit wonders of the '70s ironically always seem to stick around. There's a reason it more or less disappeared around 1980. What about ten wheel drive there song through the eye of a needle. People have even ventured to supplant it with other of Richard and Lindas records like Pour Down Like Silver (1975) or Shoot Out The Lights (1982). When I try to find hard rock bands from the 70s, they are invariably early 70's. I feel like I am missing something. At the opposite end of the fame spectrum, British 70s rock band Brinsley Schwarz, named after their guitarist, were famously over-hyped when flown to NYC to open at the Fillmore East in front. A great '80s sonic precursor, M introduced its signature sound to the world with "Pop Muzik," a catchy, synth-heavy single that went No. Crack The Sky, Rory Gallagher, Audience and Family. Tread carefully. Boris is self-released demos, extremely rare LP, available on YouTube. Heavily influenced by Sabbath and Judas Priest, they have released more than a dozen records in their career. The early '80s aren't typically what comes to mind when listeners or programmers think of "'80s music." We also ran a separate top 65 for the last five years of the decade, 1985-89. . There was Eloy, Omega, Bloodrock, If, Tasavalan Presidenti, Jane, Finch, Fairfield Parlour, Glass Harp, Dando Shaft, Fruup, Greenslade, Groundhogs, Man, Spermall, Aardvark, Starry Eyed and Laughing, Clouds, String Driven Thing, T2, Taste, Trace, Web, Triumvirat, Affinity, Demian a/k/a Bubble Puppy, Fort Mudge Memorial Dump, Hammer, Whalefeathers, Jasper Wrath, Bead Game, Frijid Pink, Cat Mother, Beggars Opera, Julians Treatment, Xhol, Can, Amon Duul II, Atoll, Trettioariga Kriget, De De Lind, Amazing Blondel, Aphrodites Child, Epsilon, A Euphonious Wail, Josephus, May Blitz, Ambergris, Brainbox, Stud, Fortheringay, Gracious, Mother Tuckers Yellow Duck. They only released one album, 1979s All Your Pretty Moves, but this is a gem. The title itself already presents an interesting story: Nantucket Sleigh Ride, by definition, is the experience of being towed along in a ship by a harpooned whale, a reference to the whaling industry of the 1800's where voyages are done to hunt whales in order harvest oil from their blubber. And vocalist Brian Clark had some of those Rob Halford chops. In that sense, they were certainly ahead of their time. However, in the same way that R&B was the unwitting passenger of Punks Trojan horse, so it was with Folk Rock. But listening to the records now, its clear they were ahead of the game. 1. but, a single was released in 1975 on GRC Records of Atlanta released EQT in 1975,and a single of a medley Honky Tonk Man/No Rollin Boogie on the A Side with Chattahoochee Coochie Man all 3 Capricorn rejects reached #44 with a red bullet and high reviews both of the LP and the single but at the six week point of a tour of the Southeast US, GRC Records went bankrupt and in spite of many Studio attempts and live recordings were released for sale to fans in the period of 1975 to 1982, several reunion tours were recorded but no national hits followed. Seemingly only The Stooges, Captain Beefheart, Can and Neu! Yes! A German band who combine psychedelia and heaviness with a confident swagger. Richard and Linda Thompson ended up the end of the decade as Sufi devotees and could hardly be described as your typical Nationalists. I've been getting into searching obscure 70s rock bands (thanks Youtube!). Top 70 Hard Rock + Metal Albums of the 1970s Scroll through the gallery to see the Top 70 Hard Rock + Metal Albums of the 1970s and see which album is No. Stills was valiantly pulling together Americas unfurling strands, perhaps trying to revive the spirit of Woodstock, notable for performances by not just Sly and the Family Stone but also Santana. Ten easy ways to be the safest driver on the road. The Blues, Latin, Bluegrass, Country and Folk vie for centre-stage, with Joe Lalas percussion a particular highlight. Rocks capacity for growth was enabled by the way in which its host form was heterogeneous. Theyre just musicians, FFS. The way I've defined levels of obscurity within a genre is like this: 1st level - bands any general music fan has heard of 2nd level - bands any casual fan of the genre has heard of Scorpions, 'Taken By. How about Sun Treader and Mellow Candle? For other classic '70s styles, check out 25 Things Cool People Wore in the 1970s. Chart appearances include Pop, R&B, Country and Rock. Support tQ's work by becoming a subscriber and enjoy the benefits of bonus essays, podcasts and exclusively-commissioned new music. Like Clapton, Phil Collins card was eternally marked by racist remarks reported in the inkies in the mid seventies. At which point the album and band disappeared. Stay up to date with in depth music reviews, exclusive interviews and widespread coverage of whats happening from your favourite music genre. Perhaps. Hes still playing at around 70 years old. But unlike disco, the band and its music prevailed. This hard-rock classic is definitely a must-hear. When one takes into consideration the budgets and resources available its arguable that recording hasnt been bettered. 4) Kaleidoscope (USA) document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Nick Lowe - So It Goes (Official Music Video), Dave Masons Continuing Endangered Species Tour Includes CMA Theater Stop, Watch Steve Winwoods Solo Recreation Of The Low Spark Of High Heeled Boys, Traffics Classic The Low Spark Of High Heeled Boys Arrives In Dolby Atmos, Take A Tour Of The Beatles Childhood Homes, Creedence Clearwater Revivals Forgotten Woodstock Performance, Woodstock Festival: How We Got To Three Days Of Peace And Music, Come As You Are: The Story Behind The Nirvana Song, Glen Campbell, Shaggy, And Lil Wayne: Currently Trending Songs, Weighty In The Eighties: When Prog Rock Went Pop. From the KING (70's was his best music) B. J. Thomas Babe Ruth The Babys Bachman Turrner Overdrive Bad Company Badfinger Band, The (The Band) Barbara Streisand Barry White Bay City Rollers Beach Boys Beaver Brown Band Bee Gees Belamy Brothers Big Star Bill Haley & His Comets Bill Withers Billy Joel Billy Preston Black Oak . 8) Moby Grape Trower formed his own power trio in 1973, teasing weeping and wailing from his Stratocaster over a series of fine records, and riding high in the album chart with Bridge Of Sighs in 74 and For Earth Below in 75 chiefly in the US, rather than his native UK. a habitat, a structure, [even] an invisible oppression. Yes, ELP, Mike Oldfield and Genesis did prog for educated chaps. 1 single"Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" that is still played in ballparks today, and then broke up on 1970. Artists were frequently able to release ten LPs in as many years, with many famous names only hitting their stride a few discs in. A patient piano introduction leads to a choir-filled chorus. The next year they scored again with Imaginary Lover and the strolling Im Not Going To Let It Bother Me Tonight, both from the platinum-selling Champagne Jam. Great bands, under promoted! However, it is now rightly regarded as a landmark album, because while it definitely had a lot of influences from the progressive and psychedelic worlds of the previous decade, there was definitely a huge step forward, with a style that would become the blueprint for American hard rock later on the 70s. Love White Witch as well as Captain Beyond! Even though they were commercially successful, holding position in the new terrain they had created proved impossible, and the band melted down acrimoniously. They have won multiple awards, including five American Music Awards and six Grammy Awards. Mott The Hoople the Island albums never properly re-issued on CD in the UK shame on you Island Records. Renaissance, Quatermass, Camel, Nektar, Kayak, Shawn Phillips, Lake, Duncan Browne, Lindisfarne, Sandy Denny, Fotheringay. The Enid, Horslips, Its a Beautiful Day, King Crimson,ELP, Foghat, Savoy Brown,Nazareth, Capt. A dirty rotten shame, as Andersons under-exposed vocal talent deserved exposure. I need to do some follow up work on some of those artist that you have listed. Blodwyn Pig Sign up below to get the latest from Classic Rock, plus exclusive special offers, direct to your inbox! Wishbone ash, Hydra, captain Beyond, poco, also exemplified less publicized bands of the time, Since the mention of Hydra which was a Capricorn act l want to mention a South Texas act who was the 3rd band signed by Phil Walden and Associates, Donnie McCormick and his mind blowing crew named Eric Quincy Tate. The bands label, Capitol, capitalised on this, until there was a threat of legal action. Formed in 1970, and taking their name from the chemical formula for phosphorous pentoxide, the four had a progressive bent, plus mystical tendencies. It's a fantastic early Doom Metal monster in its own right. Still play their live album endlessly. Their imaginative eponymous debut (1975) adapted a Kurt Vonnegut poem for the single Nice, Nice, Very Nice, while Holdin On To Yesterday, an orchestrated beauty with the sort of beat now regarded as a downtempo groove, was a big US hit. The second-division 70s rock bands were not remotely generic. They delivered five albums between 1972-76, with little fuss and low sales figures: that changed in 1977 when So Into You, a cool, steady-chugging chunk of soulful Southern rock, went Top 10 in the US, bringing their A Rock And Roll Alternative with it. But you can also hear elements of what would later develop into both the doom and stoner genres. But lack of impact led to them splitting up. These overlooked 70s rock heroes moved audiences, made fantastic albums, then faded, but are still fondly thought of by diehards. navigator.sendBeacon('https://www.google-analytics.com/collect', payload); Try Jackie Blue (1974), the biggest hit by Missouris Ozark Mountain Daredevils. Paul Hornsby said that Donnie McCormick was the Souths next super star in waiting and that the Eric Quincy Tate Group was the best damned live bar band that he has heard in his career. 1 with "Want Ads," and ceased to exist by 1973. As a wholly independent publication, we rely entirely on our ad bookings to keep The Quietus going. Ranker Music. Since Wet Willy was mentioned but as a Phil Walden and Capricorn Records band they did achieve a Top 10 hit fir (?) Copyright 2023 Penske Business Media, LLC. 70s rock fans didnt know how lucky they were. In spite of magnetic tapes growth through the 8-track, Reel-to-Reel and into the Compact Cassette, Vinyl was indubitably the format of the decade. "Old Stone Road" is a great Doors song for people who've heard all the other Doors songs and want more. Forgotten Favorites: More Obscure '70s & '80s hard rock, prog, psych, and metal! Beefheart, Alex Harvey, some of the amazing bands of that era. Label boss, former Cathedral singer and late 60s/early 70s music aficionado Lee Dorrian picks the best forgotten prog-psych albums of the 1960s The past few years have seen a rapid rise in interest in underground British rock music of the late 60s/early 70s. 99. Lord Kitcheners Trinidadian Calypso. Further hits came courtesy of Do It Or Die and a revival of Spooky two members of the band had been in Classics IV, whod first hit with the in 67. The combination of Walter Girchgessners guitar pyrotechnics and Knut Rosslers organ was stylish, capable of veering from outright mania through pomp and sophisticated progression. Holly Knight - "Heart Don't Fail Me Now". face than even the most extreme Prog LP, but swings furiously with wild tonality. Originally and more accurately called The Sweetshop, these unabashed early glam rockers boasted a hit catalogincluding the chart-topping 1973 single "Blockbuster"and bright leather pants. A German band who were formed in Ochsenhausen during 1976, McOil only recorded one album, 1979s All Our Hopes. Your email address will not be published. They sing in their native tongue only, which might explain why Zarpo have remained hidden in the shadows since their inception in 1977. With the launch ofClassic Rockmagazine in 1998 he became involved with that title, sister magazineMetal Hammer, and was a contributor toProgmagazine since its inception in 2009. Honorable mention: Dixon Cocks, Dookie Twinkle, Dr. Bobs Nightmare, Drippy Dick and the Knob Nibblers, Eichmanns Undies, Like a lot of other bands on this list, you tend to forget just how big and amazing their body of work is. 70s, 80s and 90s. West London band Stray, and.. Featuring stand-out moments from overlooked heroes Camel and Gentle Giant, along with a host of other prog acts who deserve far wider recognition, follow the Prog Rocks playlist on Spotify. Karl Wilds guitar work was powerful and surging, complementing the neat keyboard refrains from Doris Tischmann. Larry Marano/Shutterstock. And they would be fine, since they were the vision of a bona fide superstar, Steven Stills, and featured Chris Hillman of The Byrds and Flying Burrito Brothers amid an array of truly great players. Forgotten Favorites-Obscure '70s & '80s hard rock, prog, and metal! A German band who were very much on the heavier end of the prog metal spectrum, Night Sun only got to make a single album, 1972s Mournin. 1. What a fantastic record! Scoring warm soul-styled hits in the 80s, these alluring soft rockers are still touring. Kenny Loggins - "Celebrate Me Home". With huge sales, a slew of hits, and a half-century career, this trusted act may have ushered in 80s rock more than any other more recognizable group, fusing heavy glam with high-energy live shows. EQT was Southern Rock before the journalists came up with the name and that in 1969 those boys played with abandonment. 37,903 116 150 Famous Male Actors. Coven - Witchcraft Destroys Minds & Reaps Souls (1969) Forget Gene Simmons and even Ronnie James Dio, Coven were flicking the Devil's horns sign at live shows as far back as 1968 and can be . The Top Ten. Bread was an easy listening, chart-climbing outfit that could go heavy without going dark, and helped create a new kind of easy listening rock music. This playful British band with a bizarre moniker, led by Ray Dorset, had a fondness for skiffle music and the blues. Skid Row Audience, Gnidrolog, Clarke Hutchinson, Velvett Fogg, Fusion Orchestra, Jan Dukes de Grey to be going on with. Year of release: 1974. After the commercial success of The Beatles there followed a massive surge in R&D. This was the point at which the multi-cultural project first floundered. Folk Rock was, as preoccupied with racial agenda as the civil rights movement, even if its aims were more poetic than political.