From left: Mike Mogis, M. Ward, Jim James, Conor Oberst
The concept of the supergroup is older than fishing -- literally! Jesus and his Disciples were certainly a supergroup, and we're pretty sure Jesus invented fishing. Yes, bands of preternaturally talented brothers (and sisters) have been joining forces for millennia. With this week's debut from Monsters of Folk -- a supergroup comprised of Mike Mogis, M. Ward, My Morning Jacket's Jim James and Bright Eyes' Conor Oberst -- we thought we'd reflect upon some of our favorite supergroups of years past. Was the whole greater than the sum of the parts? Read on to find out, and don't forget: if you dig supergroups, regular groups or anything in between, Rhapsody has you covered. Take a free spin to see what unlimited, unfettered music access tastes like (surprisingly unlike chicken, we think you'll be pleased to discover).
Monsters of Folk. In recent interviews, the Monsters have downplayed
any notion of their superiority, but fans of these dudes' respective
acts will likely agree on how cool it is to hear them harmonizing
together on tunes like "Slow Down Jo" and "Goodway," among others. And
Mogis adds touches (steel drums!?) you're not likely to encounter in
any of their other tunes. As an added bonus, the collective body odor
of these four crusty indie rockers is no doubt something to experience.
The Traveling Wilburys. It is damn hard to argue with the pedigree of a supergroup featuring Bob Dylan, George Harrison, Roy Orbison, Tom Petty and Jeff "Strange Magic" Lynne, so argue with the milieu of that group instead: the late '80s. It's a credit to the Wilburys that many of their tunes manage to get out from under Lynne's, shall we say, indulgent production, but at the end of the day it's their look that stands out -- that hair, those sunglasses, those sport coats and T-shirts … the Wilburys weren't a supergroup, they were a Miami Vice subplot.
Velvet Revolver. You'd think a band featuring GN'R's Slash, Duff and Matt Sorum plus S.T.P.'s Scott Weiland would result in a string of trashed hotel rooms and paternity suits, but by the time V.R. formed they had ditched Mr. Brownstone for Mr. Coffee and the morning paper. Consequently, they rocked about as hard as Slash's curling iron.
The Highwaymen. This is one supergroup you wouldn't want to get in a bar fight with. As Waylon Jennings and Johnny Cash took turns beatin' on ya, Rhodes Scholar Kris Kristofferson would recite the true meaning of outlaw country as Willie Nelson passed out samples of Maui Wowie. To get a sense for what it'd be like if these guys had your back in such a fight, check out "We're All in Your Corner," a sing-along drinking song if ever there was one.
Damn Yankees. Featuring members of Styx and Night Ranger, plus Ted Nugent (aka Deadly Teadly, Theodocious Atrocious), Damn Yankees were the epitome of an empty threat: we're gonna rock the curls right out of your perm! They made good on it, too, delivering a pair of albums in the early '90s that packed all the testosterone of a wilting chrysanthemum. "High Enough" may actually be the least masculine thing Uncle Tedly Von Nugeberg's ever had a hand in.
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. The quintessential supergroup, C.S.N.Y. played their
second show ever at Woodstock in '69, then released Déjà Vu a year
later. The album became a cornerstone of the folk-rock movement and
included hits like "Teach Your Children" and "Our House," which
themselves became cornerstones of the movement to sell baby boomers
things like cookies and auto insurance in commercials featuring songs
from their salad days, thus making the album's title seem very ironic
indeed.
- Portions of Album Content Provided by All Music Guide © 2008 All Media Guide, LLC.
You left out temple of the dog with members of Pearl Jam and Chriss Cornell from his then band, Sound Garden.
emerson, lake and palmer
Can I add Shotgun Express? Peter Bardens(Them and Camel) Peter Green, Mick Fleetwood, Rod Stewart and Dave Ambrose (I know they weren't super at the time, but they all went on to create something pretty special!
CRABBY APPLETON
A couple of fun 'supergroups' come to mind...The Thorns and Golden Smog. Respectively, Matthew Sweet, Pete Droge, Shawn Mullins, Jeff Tweedy, Gary Louris, Dan Murphy, and Marc Perlman can help make for talented musicians and songwriters that make 'super' music together. peace
CREAM
What about Fleetwood Mac, who were actually made up of Buckingham & Nicks, super in their own right before FM, and Christy McVie who had some success on her own before FM. They even worked with Bob Welch on "Sentimental Lady" on their first album.
AMEN Brother - best band of all time. It is so tragic that heroin took Ginger Baker to a place where the group could not continue.
Cream as mentioned above; Emerson, Lake and Palmer are two that come to mind.
I am stunned beyond consolation...if you asked ANY of the groups mentioned in both your selections and the comments, I bet they would be too. Danko & manuel must be rolling over in their graves...there's only one..THE BAND!!!
Them Crooked Vultures: Dave Grohl, Josh Homme and John Paul Jones!!!
OMG! Are you kidding me? Cheap Trick, Pink Floyd, Traffic, Steely Dan and the greatest of all (in my opinion, of course) Led Zeppelin. There are so many particularly from the 70's and 80's. Jefferson Airplane, Steve Miller Band, KISS...to many to mention
What about 'Wishbone Ash'? Pioneers, of twin lead guitars. Followed by such Iconic bands, like "The Allman Bro's.'. 'Lynard Skynard' 'Thin Lizzy' and many others. Their still at it and doing a fine job,
what about pink floyd
No one remembers that there are many who could have been at Woodstock but chose to go own way, and did not make their name that way but nevertheless earned their tradion on the road, and 30 years is only an appreniceship to a great musician...
please do not forget our forgotten heroes
who toured in 1969, with Blind Faith and Stevie Windwood who one year later played to the recogtion of those who believe was the greatest guitarist...
but no-one knew after TASTE, that Rory Gallagher would go home much too earlier, not finishing his apprenticeship yet run the race and won the prize of
one if the greatest guitarist players ever
rip RoryOn, RoryOn
"Monsters of Folk" -- a supergroup??? You gotta be kiddin' me - they may be this generation's "America", but definitely not supergroup material - harmony shouldn't be monotonic. These guys sound like they just woke up and have no emotion, no drive, no excitement, no social issues ... they couldn't rock at a quaalude party!
I don't think most of these commenters understand the term "supergroup" as used in the article. Its not groups that turned out to be supe; it that were the criteria, we'd all just list our favorite band. Instead, a super group is a collection of artists, already stars in their own right, who came together, usually for an album or two, and then parted ways.
It seems as though some of those making comments here don't understand what a "supergroup" is...
But there are some good observations. ELP, Cream, maybe even Led Zeppelin fit the category.
My contribution to this list would be Audioslave. I like Cornell, and I like Rage, but I really couldn't stand them together... ugggh!
I'd just like to say that several of you need to find out what the term "supergroup" means ... doesn't mean a just a good group - It means a group made up of personnel who were already "stars" in their own right.
Mimi is right about those groups being great groups -but not "supergroups" except for Traffic. Whether "super" groups or not - thank goodness they all gave us such great music to enjoy ...
Rock on .....
whoa ! - gotta have the mama's and the papa's near the top, as super groups go, although low key...as it has been told, time after time, mama cass was the person that introduced david crosby and graham nash to stephen stills, and the rest is history for c.s.n.&y...though neil young seemed to be out of place, except on his solo's...and not just because of that, everything was a very bright spot to the personalities that made the mama's and papa's, who they were...and their very distinct sound and wandering harmonies...actually this could go on forever - is there really one group that could be called super ? imho, no - they were all on equal ground...once you make it, to the top, there is no where to go except downward - with 2 exceptions - that are not super groups, but each wrote tons of songs, for the super groups, and themselves - they are : john fogerty and leon russel...then here, all of a sudden, russel rouses my mind to offer up joe cocker and rita coolridge...
Apparently, some of you don't understand the concept here. Supergroups are bands made up of other bands. How about John Mayall's Blues Breakers? Clapton, Peter Green, John McVie, Mayall...or The Yardbirds. Jeff Beck, Jimmie Page, Eric Clapton...Derek And The Dominoes. Clapton, Duane Allman, Carl Radle, Jim Gordon.
I like that monsters of folk album
i like it a lot.
Uh... The Good, The Bad, and The Queen anybody?....