I was recently rummaging through my record collection the other day. I realized that they are many great bands that I own on vinyl that I did not include in my top fifty list. Last time I shared the first ten. Here are ten more. Once again, I will note that this list is not in rank order but in alphabetical order.
Great Rock Bands – Journey
Let’s start with a classic American rock band, Journey. I skipped them because I got sick of listening to them. I will admit that we all know the words to their mega-hit “Don’t Stop Believing”. They have a ton of great songs and many excellent albums.
Great Rock Bands – The Kinks
Next is the UK rock band The Kinks. They probably don’t get as much credit as they should for the amount of great they released. If you want to listen to a really good greatest hits album Come Dancing With The Kinks is a double LP and every song is a classic.
Coming in at #8 – Love and Rockets
At #8, Love and Rockets. New Wave band Bauhaus breaks up a few of the members leave and form Love and Rockets. They released several good albums and even had a hit song with “I’m alive”.
Great Rock Bands – Midnight Oil
I included several Australian bands on my original list, but this one did not make my top 50. Midnight Oil was popular on MTV back in the day, especially with their hit “Beds Are Burning”. They have a few albums that are worth owning on vinyl.
Great Rock Bands – Missing Persons
Number six is an obscure New Wave band from Los Angeles, Missing Persons. If you want to know what the 80s were like look at those hairstyles. That’s what it was like. They had some hit songs, and a lot of people liked them. “Walking in LA” is probably their best-known song.
At #5 – Modern English
At number five is one hit-wonder, Modern English. They hit the charts with the song “I Melt With You”. Oddly enough that song is more popular nowadays than it was when it was originally released. I recommend you listen to the album it comes from and sample other songs from this band. There’s more to them than just that one hit.
Great Rock Bands – New Order
At #4, New order is another New Wave UK band. They released several good albums and their music remains popular. It shows up in Stranger Things for anybody that watches that Netflix series.
Great Rock Bands – The Police
This one’s gonna hurt. I should have included this band in my top 50. The Police fronted by Sting is one of the best Trio rock and roll bands of all time. Their debut album is magnificent. They released several other killer albums like Ghost In The Machine and Synchronicity. I feel really bad for forgetting them, especially since I saw a sting in concert just last year.
Coming in at #2 – Simple Minds
Some people consider the Scottish band Simple Minds a one-hit-wonder. But, there’s so much more to this band than the song “Don’t you forget about me” from The Breakfast Club soundtrack. They released a lot of great music. They are an excellent band.
Great Rock bands – The Who
Let’s round out the list with a well-known band, The Who. If you’re a huge fan of this band you may want to plug your ears. The Who was a historic band from the UK. Peter Townsend is a musical genius. They just don’t do it for me. Out of all the huge bands from the UK, I will take Led Zeppelin, The Rolling Stones, or The Beatles any day over The Who. Why do I not like this band that much? I can’t explain.
There you have it – ten great more rock bands that I own on vinyl that did not make the list of my top fifty favorite rock bands. All feedback is welcome. Feel free to post your own list.
I am Doug Keating and this is my letter to my sons.