Some of the best music comes from across the pond! Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the most influential and enduring rock groups from the United Kingdom.
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00:00Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the most influential and
00:10enduring rock groups from the United Kingdom. Solo artists or singer-songwriters will be
00:15reserved for another day.
00:1920. Oasis Anyway, here's Oasis. The recent announcement
00:28of the group's reunion and impending tour has gone a long way of forgiving the Gallagher
00:33siblings' past reputation for bad behaviour. Nostalgia can be a brightly coloured beast
00:42after all. And the time has been kind to Oasis songs like Don't Look Back In Anger and, yes,
00:50The latter in particular has lived beyond meme status to become one of the most fondly
00:53remembered tunes of the 90s. This was no accident either, since that song remains wonderfully
00:58composed and artfully executed. Sure, Oasis have, let's say, borrowed Wholeself from The
01:10Beatles' musical playbook over the years, but it's a darned good trick that bears repeating
01:15for legions of misty-eyed fans.
01:2219. Def Leppard It's unfair to label Britain's Def Leppard
01:28solely as a creative voice for the lighter side of heavy metal from the 1980s. The origins
01:39of this Sheffield group actually date back to the late 70s, and Def Leppard's early material
01:45helped solidify the new wave of British heavy metal. Records like High And Dry were detailed
01:56in textured affairs, while 1983's Pyromania successfully combined heavy metal with a somewhat
02:02more pop sensibility. This was melodic and accessible metal that nevertheless retained
02:12aggression in certain places. Songs like Billy's Got A Gun, Die Hard The Hunter, and
02:17Stage Fright proved that heavy music could break through into the mainstream while also
02:22sounding righteous as hell.
02:2718. The Clash Opinions differ with regards to which group
02:34was first out of the gate to bring punk rock to the masses. What isn't usually up for debate,
02:39however, is the importance of The Clash to this movement. These Londoners brought everything
02:50to the table with regards to influences, ushering in musical moves from reggae, dub, and ska
02:56and making them into a sound that was percolating with aggression. The Clash was one of those
03:07few early punk bands that transcended the musical limitations of that genre to become
03:12a worldwide influence. This was no mean feat, but instead spoke to just how much fans of
03:21The Clash felt that they were the only band that matters.
03:2817. Depeche Mode The world of electronic music can take on
03:35many forms and embody multiple faces. Depeche Mode, from Essex, frankly defies characterisation,
03:46yet varying words often come to mind when describing their sound. Dark is one while
03:51erotic is another. Yes, frontman Dave Gahan always seemed to radiate sexuality whenever
03:57he took the stage with Depeche Mode. Meanwhile, bandmate Martin Gore's songwriting skill
04:08always ensured that a certain, almost transgressive malevolence bubbled just below the surface.
04:13It's honestly remarkable that Depeche Mode's music, as thick and viscous as it is, has
04:18also managed to become so melodic and captivating. It speaks volumes to how the pioneering group
04:29was able to mould electronica to their will.
04:3616. Dire Straits There isn't a lot of bravado when it comes
04:43to the humble yet transfixing music of London's Dire Straits. The group managed to take a
04:53pub rock style that's intrinsically very modest and bring it to arenas all over the world.
04:59This was thanks primarily to the songwriting and guitar playing of frontman Mark Knopfler.
05:10The man's finger-picking style vacillates from bluesy and raw to intimate and free-flowing
05:16like the gentlest of rivers. There's also a lot of emotion to Knopfler's playing that
05:20allowed the music of Dire Straits to touch a lot of different music fans. Their albums
05:30are textured, melodic affairs that also service the song first, while still allowing moments
05:35for Knopfler's guitar to cry and sing.
05:4215. Judas Priest They remain one of the foremost names in
05:48British heavy metal, a rock institution that's still going strong today. Judas Priest emerged
05:59from the halcyon days of classic rock in the 70s to become a pioneering force for riff-laden
06:05metallic might. Their 80s heyday saw Priest embody the twin guitar aesthetic, while the
06:1090s saw their painkiller LP embrace thrash sounds of the day. Priest was also the home
06:20of Rob Halford, a defining voice for heavy metal whose insane range and immense power
06:26served as an inspiration for legions of singers in his wake. The spirit of Birmingham's metallic
06:36pedigree lives on through artists like Judas Priest, and their contributions to musical
06:41heaviness will never be forgotten.
06:4714. Deep Purple There are a number of artists that usually
06:54come up in conversation when it comes to claiming which was the first heavy metal band.
07:02Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, and Judas Priest are chief among these names, together with
07:07the magnificent Deep Purple. These Londoners have endured multiple line-up and stylistic
07:13shifts over the years, from the Mark I era from the 60s, pioneering heavy psychedelia,
07:23Meanwhile, it would be Purple's Mark II and Mark III line-ups that would focus more upon
07:28guitarist Ritchie Blackmore's dizzying riffs, John Lord's heavy organ, and Ian Pace's frenetic
07:34drumming. This musical trinity would play faster and louder than ever before, while
07:45singers like Ian Gillan and David Coverdale brought the howl and the blues to an international
07:51audience.
07:5613. Genesis 2022 may have brought an end to the progressive
08:03rock journey of Genesis, but their legacy remains etched in musical stone. It was back
08:12in the late 60s when Surrey Schoolyard Friendships transitioned into musical experimentation.
08:18Genesis achieved prog rock dominance during the following decade thanks to line-ups that
08:23included legends Peter Gabriel and Phil Collins, alongside guitarist Mike Rutherford and keyboardist
08:29Tony Banks.
08:35Genesis would become more commercially successful upon the departure of Gabriel, but their progressive
08:39spirit remains, with albums like Invisible Touch and their self-titled effort always
08:44retaining compositional complexity. Simply stated, Genesis was one of the best to ever
08:54do it, and helped prove that prog wasn't a dirty word.
09:0012. The Smiths Time has been incredibly kind to the music
09:06of the Smiths. This Manchester group tended to write short songs, yet their focus upon
09:17compelling arrangements and memorable hooks proved that poppy didn't necessarily need
09:21to mean disposable. Guitarist Johnny Marr's licks jingled and jangled atop Andy Rourke's
09:28precision bass work, while Morrissey's inimitable croon was impossible to resist. The latter's
09:37lyrics were also known for their biting wit and almost sartorial manner of dressing up
09:43Smiths songs in coats of elegant malevolence. Then there's How Soon Is Now, the outlier
09:48dance hit that helped underline the group's influence upon the goth post-punk and alternative
09:54rock sub-genres. It was all truly great stuff that stood the test of time.
10:0111. The Cure The story of The Cure is similar to that
10:08of The Smiths, with regards to their wide net of international fandom. This group from
10:17West Sussex also emerged from the 1970s post-punk era, but also developed their own insanely
10:23influential style of darkness. The Cure brought goth rock out of the black and into the light
10:29with some startling commercial appeal. This was a band that wrote deep and marvellously
10:40interesting records, yet each one also had songs that could be played onto the radio.
10:51This ebb and flow could have only been achieved by a group as talented as The Cure, one with
10:55true songwriting chops. Meanwhile, Robert Smith's intense and arresting personal style
11:00helped codify a gothic image that still stands to this day.
11:0810. The Police Some of our younger mojo-holics may not correlate
11:14the recent version of Sting with punk rock, however back in 1978, he and his fellow Londoners
11:20of The Police burst onto the scene with an eclectic debut album. Working both as the
11:32lead vocalist and primary songwriter, Sting touched on his literary influences as the
11:38band proceeded to deliver four more innovative productions, within a five-year span leading
11:43up to their most famous hit, Every Breath You Take. In essence, The Police could rock
11:53out with the best of their fellow post-punk artists, however their cultured aesthetics
11:58ultimately produced a universal appeal.
12:039. Radiohead A staple of the 90s alternative sound, this
12:09band actually formed in the mid-80s while attending a boarding school in Abingdon. Originally
12:21known as On A Friday, The Crew looked at a Talking Heads song for their new name, and
12:26when Creep hit the radio in 1992, Tom York and company solidified themselves as one of
12:31the most promising bands around. Of course, transformative albums like The Bends and OK
12:42Computer would cement Radiohead as international stars, while the lyrical proficiency and melancholic
12:47sound touched a nerve with Generation X. And perhaps to everyone's surprise, they managed
12:59to not only stay together, but deliver another decade of iconic indie albums through the
13:042000s and beyond.
13:098. Iron Maiden Here's a bunch of new-wave Brits, albeit
13:15of a slightly different order, than the pop sounds of the early 80s. Born and bred in
13:25Leyton, England, Iron Maiden took their name from the iconic Alexandre Dumas novel The
13:30Man in the Iron Mask, and rocked their self-titled debut in April of 1980. Decades and dozens
13:42of albums later, Iron Maiden has become the most influential band of the heavy metal genre,
13:47and their mascot remains an unmistakable fixture of the musical culture. They set the
13:56standard for a new era of musicians, and never stopped thrashing.
14:037. Black Sabbath Before there was Maiden, there was Black Sabbath.
14:15Born in Birmingham, England, this group joined forces in the late 60s and fused together
14:19a blend of classic rock with something a bit more heavy. In fact, Ozzy Osbourne and his
14:25bandmates innovated the heavy metal genre and kicked off the 70s with a string of albums
14:30that would provide an alternative to the more pop-friendly sounds of the time. Back in the
14:40day, it wasn't necessarily the cool kids that were listening to Sabbath, but as it
14:44turns out, that's exactly who they were. Independent and anti-establishment, this wrecking crew
14:56changed the game for aspiring metalhead musicians everywhere.
15:026. The Who It's somewhat of a rock cliché to destroy
15:09a guitar on stage, but it was this band that first embraced the form of auto-destructive
15:14art. Undoubtedly one of the most influential rock bands ever formed, The Who emerged during
15:26the British Invasion, and their outlaw antics stood them apart from the other musicians
15:31exhibiting more, um, appropriate behaviour. They closed off the 60s with the ground-breaking
15:42rock opera Tommy, and they later established themselves as one of the quintessential rock
15:46bands with a full decade's worth of personal albums for the more album-orientated rock
15:51fans of the early Rolling Stone era.
15:575. Queen Today, American Idol runner-up Adam Lambert
16:02fronts this operatic fraternity. However, the late Freddie Mercury is the undeniable
16:08face of Queen, and one of the most recognisable faces of rock music. With a plethora of popular
16:18British rock to draw their sound from, this band ultimately found a niche through the
16:23personality exhibited in both their lyrics and the deeply dramatic aesthetics of their
16:27evolving stage shows. Beginning with their self-titled debut in 1973, Queen remained
16:37the grandmasters of musical opera, all the way to 1995's Made in Heaven, the final studio
16:43release upon the untimely death of their legendary frontman.
16:504. Pink Floyd Like many other progressive bands of the
16:57late 60s and 70s, it would be a crime to simply label these Londoners as acid rockers. But
17:02what do you expect when you make albums that make listeners drift away into their dreams?
17:12The average music fan will immediately associate Pink Floyd with The Wall or The Dark Side
17:17of the Moon, and with good reason. But truth be told, the multifaceted band released four
17:27late 60s classics that set the tone for the equally mind-blowing productions of the 70s.
17:39Pink Floyd created an atmospheric experience to be enjoyed with no moderation necessary.
17:44Well, musically speaking, that is.
17:503. The Rolling Stones No one here gets out alive. Except Mick Jagger
17:57and Keith Richards. The American blues originally influenced this band of rockers, and when
18:07the British Invasion occurred during the early 60s, you know they were at the forefront.
18:17As the most enduring British rock band of the last 50 years, The Rolling Stones were
18:21arguably most popular from 1965 to 1980, delivering hard-hitting rock and roll licks that highlighted
18:27the band's personality. And while their musical output has been rather tame since the 1990s,
18:39it doesn't really matter given they continue to inspire by touring the world year after
18:44year.
18:452. Led Zeppelin Yet another classic rock band influenced by
18:54American blues music, this London group applied a heavy dose of psychedelia to their sound
18:59in order to mystify fellow musicians and certainly their fans. In other words, they could wail.
19:11And there wasn't a weak spot in the group. With each member coming from other notable
19:21projects, Led Zeppelin was a fine-tuned machine when they formed in 1968, and within just
19:26three years, they released four explosive albums that firmly took a hold over the younger
19:31demographic. In a time when rock fans pledged their allegiance to one particular band, everybody
19:42loved them some Led Zeppelin, even if they claimed otherwise. Unfortunately, the music
19:47ended with the 1980 death of drummer John Bonham.
20:121. The Beatles Okay, okay, you all expected these guys to
20:16be our number one choice. And there's good reason for that. It's because they're bleeping
20:21awesome. Unless you actually lived through the Beatles music of the 1960s, you could
20:33forget about what pop culture tells you to believe and simply experience the music yourself.
20:44Album by album, track by track. There's no other band that influenced rock and roll like
20:48these lads from Liverpool, and they were already a well-rehearsed act when they first arrived
20:52in America. John, Paul, Ringo, George. For eight momentous
21:01years, the Beatles functioned on a higher level than most and changed the world as we
21:07know it. Did we miss your favorite British rock act? Let us know in the comments.
21:31Transcribed by https://otter.ai