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Frontmen: Everybody agrees that Mick is #1. Everybody SHOULD agree that #2 is...

Gil Bang

By Gil Bang
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Celery Man

Celery Man 20996

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Frontman is about stage presence and persona. It is not the same thing as band leader or primary creative force or vocalist, even if the frontman in question does happen to be those things or be very good at those things. The vocalist part is complicated in that that can add tremendously to their presence and persona (see Mercury). It is clearly not the big driving thing (see Jagger).

I think it's hard for Jagger to not be the Babe Ruth or Michael Jordan of frontmen. Freddie Mercury is clearly up there. Also pretty clear we're talking about rock, or that "frontman" is specifically a thing that exists for rock bands. We're not talking about MCs, we're not talking about orchestra conductors. I think weirdly it does detract if the group performs as "Joe Frontman" or "Joe Frontman and the Band", etc. Which hurts James Brown a bit but he's on the list.  Bob Wills gets a spot in the hall of fame. Also neither of those are straight rock. Chuck Berry, who owes a lot of Marty McFly.

Jagger and Mercury are the first guys I think of. There have been a lot of great ones. Van Halen makes me think of that era and a bit later.... Henry Rollins, Eddie Vedder, gonna go ahead and mention Anthony Kiedis and shit might as well Mike Patton, although I don't really love either of those guys.

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Sbbruin

Sbbruin 21866

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2 hours ago, Onboard 2.0 said:

I'd put early 80's DLR above early 80's Mick (but for his age Mick was damned strong).

DLR definitely put the crowd in the palm of his hand during a show like few others I've seen.

Me and 2 other friends were dropped off By my friend’s mom at the Forum to see VH in 1981 when we were 14 yrs old.  Saw that show and were picked up afterwards.  Not something that would happen today, but was totally cool back then.  And it was unbelievable.  DLR had the crowd going crazy.

csb- DLR went to my high school, but apparently got booted after a year or so for delinquent behavior.

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Onboard 2.0

Onboard 2.0 9083

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1 hour ago, Sbbruin said:

Me and 2 other friends were dropped off By my friend’s mom at the Forum to see VH in 1981 when we were 14 yrs old.  Saw that show and were picked up afterwards.  Not something that would happen today, but was totally cool back then.  And it was unbelievable.  DLR had the crowd going crazy.

csb- DLR went to my high school, but apparently got booted after a year or so for delinquent behavior.

Saw 'em the summer of 80 in Hampton, Va.  Loudest concert I ever attended (and I saw The Who a couple times). I swear I thought the roof was gonna collapse it was so loud.  They had huge speakers, stepped up @ the front corners of the stage and DLR would run up each side and whip the crowd in to a frenzy.  

You could see the smoking hot chicks with the spandex, and big hair all bunched down at the front row up against the stage. The roadies would signal a couple every once and a while to let 'em back behind the stage for the boys to pick from after the show I guess.

The opening act was this band called the Cats.   They came out on stage acting all badd ass and shit, and within about 5 minutes the crowd was booing the shit out of them, they cut their show short.

I felt bad for 'em, but they kinda brought it on themselves.  We happened to be staying at the same Holiday Inn, and by chance got on the elevator at the end of the night as they were going up to their suite. Had never seen such dejected looking faces.  They looked like they were gonna off themselves.  We tried to give 'em some pats on the back, don't let it get you down pep talk stuff, but I don't think they cared much what a couple drunk, and stoned 17 year olds had to say.   Never heard of them again.

Edited by Onboard 2.0
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Sbbruin

Sbbruin 21866

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Just now, Bozo_Casanova said:

Rob Halford is like Pelle Almqvist. He's kind of in that Julius Irving tier of great frontmen. He's not in the GOAT conversation, but he's pretty fucking spectacular. 

Yeah, like an Alice Cooper or Ozzy.  Awesome.  Not GOATs.

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Paul Wesley

Paul Wesley 3289

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4 hours ago, Onboard 2.0 said:

Saw 'em the summer of 80 in Hampton, Va.  Loudest concert I ever attended (and I saw The Who a couple times). I swear I thought the roof was gonna collapse it was so loud.  They had huge speakers, stepped up @ the front corners of the stage and DLR would run up each side and whip the crowd in to a frenzy.  

You could see the smoking hot chicks with the spandex, and big hair all bunched down at the front row up against the stage. The roadies would signal a couple every once and a while to let 'em back behind the stage for the boys to pick from after the show I guess.

The opening act was this band called the Cats.   They came out on stage acting all badd ass and shit, and within about 5 minutes the crowd was booing the shit out of them, they cut their show short.

I felt bad for 'em, but they kinda brought it on themselves.  We happened to be staying at the same Holiday Inn, and by chance got on the elevator at the end of the night as they were going up to their suite. Had never seen such dejected looking faces.  They looked like they were gonna off themselves.  We tried to give 'em some pats on the back, don't let it get you down pep talk stuff, but I don't think they cared much what a couple drunk, and stoned 17 year olds had to say.   Never heard of them again.

Cool story, but it would have been even cooler if you'd seen them on the elevator looking all dejected and then you and your friends just got in their faces and went "BOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!"

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MC Fresh Breath

MC Fresh Breath 4074

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On 7/12/2020 at 9:49 AM, jimmyjazz said:

Presence & charisma:  Mick Jagger, Robert Plant, Freddie Mercury, Rod Stewart, David Lee Roth

Great voice:  Robert Plant, Freddie Mercury, (Rod Stewart depending on who you ask)

 

Winners:  Freddie Mercury then Robert Plant

 

I don't know about rankings (I just have faves), but thank you for including DLR, who as a young man I thought represented everything there was about "rock god."   He was quite often out of breath from all the jumping/prancing/mugging, but man, that was just freaking rock and roll to me. 

I never saw most of the greats, although I did catch the Page/Plant mostly acoustic thing in Dallas years and years back. 

 

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yoladu

yoladu 4094

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It's all about raw charisma....

All time.

1) Jagger 2) Mercury 3) Plant 4) Rotten 5) Bono

 

Punk (or whatevery you want to call it)

1) Rotten 2) Rollins 3) Biafra 4) Gibby 5) Hanna 

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Rougarou

Rougarou 594

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On 7/13/2020 at 7:07 AM, noharleyyet said:

giphy.gif

We were at a water park  that has a huge video board and played a bunch of great music non-stop and their MTV videos. This came on and I tried to explain to my wife that DLR was just flamboyant and entertaining, but she was convinced-- 100% convinced he was gay. It's hard to argue when you look back now, at his crop top ,midriff shirt and his 80's aerobic world championship moves, but I think he was just a victim of the times. It didn't help that the preceding video was GnR and the succeeding video was CCR-- two very different and less effeminate visions of what a rockstar looks like. Apparently in the 80's this was a ladies man.

93e2f5fd089a86b10c85f808d73f2d0b--david-

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Onboard 2.0

Onboard 2.0 9083

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25 minutes ago, Rougarou said:

We were at a water park  that has a huge video board and played a bunch of great music non-stop and their MTV videos. This came on and I tried to explain to my wife that DLR was just flamboyant and entertaining, but she was convinced-- 100% convinced he was gay. It's hard to argue when you look back now, at his crop top ,midriff shirt and his 80's aerobic world championship moves, but I think he was just a victim of the times. It didn't help that the preceding video was GnR and the succeeding video was CCR-- two very different and less effeminate visions of what a rockstar looks like. Apparently in the 80's this was a ladies man.

93e2f5fd089a86b10c85f808d73f2d0b--david-

She ain't the first person to make that claim.

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Onboard 2.0

Onboard 2.0 9083

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2 minutes ago, Rougarou said:

Gotcha, didn’t realize “it is known”, potentially.

I heard it a few years ago, but didn't put too much stock in it, but not much surprises me today.  Hell, there've been rumors about Mick Jagger,and David Bowie sharing a ............ "microphone".

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jimmyjazz

jimmyjazz 46088

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I don't actually know if DLR is gay, but he's always had a bit of that Broadway showman vibe going on.  There's a definite undercurrent that started to become more obvious once he went solo.

I've always thought he'd have fit in well doing the 1950's summer supper club & revue circuit (the Hamptons, the Poconos).

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Onboard 2.0

Onboard 2.0 9083

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1 minute ago, jimmyjazz said:

I don't actually know if DLR is gay, but he's always had a bit of that Broadway showman vibe going on.  There's a definite undercurrent that started to become more obvious once he went solo.

I've always thought he'd have fit in well doing the 1950's summer supper club & revue circuit (the Hamptons, the Poconos).

Or been the lead act at the Birdcage Club C.   c.1980's

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alincoln

alincoln 2381

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On 7/12/2020 at 9:04 AM, Napoleon said:

’70s- Zeppelin, Bee Gees, Elton John, Fleetwood Mac or KISS depending on taste

Zeppelin and Elton went on a dramatic downhill slide in both the studio and on the road after 1975 and Fleetwood Mac and Kiss didn't become huge bands until 1975.  I won't even comment on the Bee Gees. 

Meanwhile, all 8 Stones albums released between in the 70s and through 81 reached no. 1 on the U.S. chart and they were a massive touring act throughout the decade.

That said, the Grateful Dead clearly ruled the 70s.

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Sbbruin

Sbbruin 21866

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3 minutes ago, Onboard 2.0 said:

I'm simply amazed anyone would admit to paying money to see them. Yep talented, but man I hate their music.

I was in 6th grade.  I went with my friend and his parents.  I didn't pay for shit.  But lest we forget, at the time, the Bee Gees WERE about as big as it got back then.

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SHOOTER12

SHOOTER12 8819

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On 7/13/2020 at 6:22 PM, MC Fresh Breath said:

 

I don't know about rankings (I just have faves), but thank you for including DLR, who as a young man I thought represented everything there was about "rock god."   He was quite often out of breath from all the jumping/prancing/mugging, but man, that was just freaking rock and roll to me. 

I never saw most of the greats, although I did catch the Page/Plant mostly acoustic thing in Dallas years and years back. 

 

Bringing the conversation back around to Steve Perry, how in the hell he could run around, up and down the ramps and platforms while hitting the insane notes he hit was nothing short of miraculous.

I was at the concert in Houston that they recorded live and was totally amazed.  To keep rythym, pitch and flow while running like a madman puts him at or near the top of any list imo.

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Onboard 2.0

Onboard 2.0 9083

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2 minutes ago, Sbbruin said:

I was in 6th grade.  I went with my friend and his parents.  I didn't pay for shit.  But lest we forget, at the time, the Bee Gees WERE about as big as it got back then.

They were big if you liked them for sure, and they were big I can't deny that.. In 6th grade it was the Doobies for me that would have been 75 or so..

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Sbbruin

Sbbruin 21866

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6 minutes ago, Onboard 2.0 said:

They were big if you liked them for sure, and they were big I can't deny that.. In 6th grade it was the Doobies for me that would have been 75 or so..

And yes, it is a mark of shame when the topic comes up about your first concert ever.  But my second was the aforementioned VH concert above, which was the antithesis of the BeeGees concert.

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SHOOTER12

SHOOTER12 8819

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13 minutes ago, Onboard 2.0 said:

They were big if you liked them for sure, and they were big I can't deny that.. In 6th grade it was the Doobies for me that would have been 75 or so..

Doobies were my first in '77.  Still one of the best shows I've seen.

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jimmyjazz

jimmyjazz 46088

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1 hour ago, Sbbruin said:

And yes, it is a mark of shame when the topic comes up about your first concert ever.

Hell, I can top that.  First concert?  KC and The Sunshine Band.

(OK, I saw Jerry Reed at a bluegrass festival when I was about 5 years old, but that doesn't really count.)

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Sbbruin

Sbbruin 21866

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6 minutes ago, jimmyjazz said:

Hell, I can top that.  First concert?  KC and The Sunshine Band.

(OK, I saw Jerry Reed at a bluegrass festival when I was about 5 years old, but that doesn't really count.)

KC and the Sunshine Band kicks all sorts of ass.  Wear that with pride.

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Onboard 2.0

Onboard 2.0 9083

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1 hour ago, Sbbruin said:

That's a good tune.

 

 

2 hours ago, Bozo_Casanova said:

THE bee gees were a good group

I am standing here speechless.  Talented doesn't mean good when you use those talents for evil .

Oy their music is like nails on a chalkboard.  Personal preference and all. Their high pitched voices could make dolphin sterile. 

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jimmyjazz

jimmyjazz 46088

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2 hours ago, Sbbruin said:

That's a good tune.

I loved Keith Urban's Grammy tribute, as did Brother Gibb.  It's an incredibly well-written song.  The crowd reaction was pretty much "fuuuuuuuuuuuck".  If that sawed-off little genius guitar player + singer would ever use his God-given talent at crafting hooks to write something meaningful he'd be a musical titan, instead of his destiny of "oh yeah, I remember that guy, Mr. Kidman":

 

 

 

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Bozo_Casanova

Bozo_Casanova 26522

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1 hour ago, Onboard 2.0 said:

 

 

I am standing here speechless.  Talented doesn't mean good when you use those talents for evil .

Oy their music is like nails on a chalkboard.  Personal preference and all. Their high pitched voices could make dolphin sterile. 

Your opinion is bad and you should feel bad

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