In the car today, listening to Motörhead, and thinking how they’re still playing real rock and roll 30 years on (rather than playing the nostalgia circuit or selling out). We have Sir Cliff, Sir Mick, Sir Paul, Sir Elton, Sir Bob, but I don’t foresee a Sir Lemmy…
Then I thought about the difference between Keith Richard and Mick Jagger, and what Keef and Lemmy have in common, and, well, it was a long journey so:
Rock and roll being something about the spirit and attitude rather than just the sound, and you can’t have two people from the same band in the line up…
My ultimate rock and roll band:
Charlie Watts: drums
Lemmy: Bass and vocals.
Jerry Lee Lewis: piano and vocals.
Chuck Berry: guitar and vocals, songwriting
Brian Setzer: guitar and vocals, songwriting
That gives plenty of stylistic variety, and I think they’d put on a pretty good show. (I’ve seen 'em all live except Brian Setzer.) Any better line ups out there?
Charlie Watts: drums Rolling Stones - the mnost lucrative rock and roll band of all time, established 1962 - like me.
Lemmy: Bass and vocals. Motörhead, and formerly Hawkwind. Motörhead now in their 30th year, and still packing in new young audiences. Fantastic live act.
Jerry Lee Lewis: piano and vocals. A rock and roll legend, still performing last I heard.
Chuck Berry: guitar and vocals, songwriting. Another rock and roll leggend, writer of many of the standards - Bye Bye Johny, Carol…
Brian Setzer: guitar and vocals, songwriting. Stray Cats (a bit of a niche band, I admit, but very good at what they did) and now The Brian Setzer Orchestra. (plays rock and roll electric guitar at the front of a 40s/50s big band. A bit of a poser, but damn’ good.)
vocals/ songwritng- Stza sturegon- Sing s and play geetar for Leftover Crack and Choking Victim (nihilistic ska/metal/squat rock)
Bass- Matt Freeman- played with Operation Ivy and now rancid (ska punk)
Guitar- Greg Ginn- palyed/wrote songs for Black Flag (experimental, punk, hardcore)
Drums- Mick Harris- drummed for Napalm death and extreme noise terror (crust)
Sid Vicious?
Bass?
He can’t play bass.
But I guess he has the additude thing going for him, and he cool because he had a lazy eye and live with his mother.
haha yeah
lemmy killmeister hes the singer for motorhead… i think
ok revised #1-Soft
Brandon boyd- vocals- incubus
John Frusiante- Guitar-red hot chili peppers
Les Claypool- bass-primus
John Odadjian- drums- system of a down… accually thats not his last name…
#2-heavy
Randy Blythe- vocals-lamb of god
Joey Jordinson- drums-slipknot
Dirk Lance- Bass- the old bassist for incubus… he was fanominal
Mark Morton- lead guitar-lamb of god
Willie Adler- rythym guitar-burn the priest
I might add Bon Scott (the late AC/DC vocalist) as a specialist vocalist/front man.
I did think of Sid Vicious as a possible bassist. He had the rock and roll “thing” but maybe fell short on one or two technical areas. I also thought of Johnny Rotten as a front man, but he’s sold out and now does reality TV, so is no longer qualified.
No. I meant Stevie. If you’ve got Robert Johnson you already have two guitarists and a vocalist. If you’ve got Stevie you’ve got everything else. Bobby would do in a pinch.
Thom Yorke (Radiohead) - Vocals and Lyrics
Jimi Hendrix - Guitar
The drummer from Bloc Party - Drums
The bassist from Ben Harper & the Innocent Criminals - Bass
The person who makes weird electronic noises for The Cooper Temple Clause - Weird electronic noises
Lemmy, Chuck, Jerry Lee et al. were doing it before Johnny Rotten, and they’re still doing it after he sold out and became a second rate mainstream media personality. Ozzy, too, is excluded because he’s become a parody of himself, sold out, and he’s marketing the dysfunctional but lovable family man image for all it’s worth.
Rock and Roll isn’t just about the noise you make. It isn’t just about a 12 bar blues chord structure, electic guitars and a drum kit. It’s about an attitude too. I’m sure Lemmy could retire on the proceeds of Ace of Spades alone, never mind the 20+ albums in circulation, and the spinoffs. Or he could retire to his mansion and tour once every few years, like the Stones. Or maybe hang out with minor royalty and get a knighthood. Instead, he plays as hard today as he did when he started.
Likewise Chuck Berry - his songs have been covered by everyone from the Stones down. He’s been in prison, he’s been bankrupt, he’s lived the life. And when I saw him on his Sweet Little 61 Tour (aged 61) he did his usal thing: he said to the organisers, “Book the hall, book the backing band, and have the money ready in cash. I’ll be there.” He’s notorious for it. 3 minutes before the show, he walks on, plugs in and starts to play - and the band is desperately trying to identify the song and find the key. The adrenaline pumps, and they rock. How rock and roll is that?
Sid Vicious had it in spades - rather too much; Johnny Rotten was a brilliant performer, but his was more of an act, and less of the real thing.
