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Greatest Rock Frontman of All Time?

Good call ALX - regarding Tools frontman Maynard Keenan. In fact the last time Tool toured, Maynard sang from behind a lighted screen almost the entire show. The first time I saw them, around 95-96, he was painted entirely in blue, and somewhere in the middle, during Lalapoluza, he was dressed in drag. (sort of)

Most certainly anti-frontmanish. (huh?)

J :dunno:
 
Originally posted by AlphaLimaXray
I dunno about Tool's singer, though I've never seen him in concert. Going by the group's inimitable and haunting videos, the entire band is rather self-effacing, seemingly wishing people to focus entirely on the thier music and the often frightful and depressing visions showcased on the screen.:yikes: He is a darn good singer, though.
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With regard to videos and PR-type work, Tool makes themselves as invisible as possible. But live, the audience is drawn to Maynard as the rest of the band remains in the shadows on stage. It is not like he is doing backflips on stage and shooting fire from his mouth, but he does command your attention with his presentation during their performances. Not one of the "greatest" frontmen of all time, but in the newer metal/rock community he is one IMO. But if one has not seen them live, then I could understand how they'd not think Maynard was a frontman at all.

Others that come to mind - Chris Cornell, the late Layne Staley and Les Claypool. You can tell what genre of music I listen to the most.
 
Originally posted by Johnny
Good call ALX - regarding Tools frontman Maynard Keenan. In fact the last time Tool toured, Maynard sang from behind a lighted screen almost the entire show. The first time I saw them, around 95-96, he was painted entirely in blue, and somewhere in the middle, during Lalapoluza, he was dressed in drag. (sort of)

Most certainly anti-frontmanish. (huh?)

J :dunno:
Click to expand...

The three times I have seen them have been somewhat different than that, but I was also pretty close to the stage and Maynard was the one person everyone watched. So my perspective was probably a little different. The other members were off doing their part, for lack of a better phrase. But Maynard was dancing and girating in a tribal-esque manner whenever he was not singing. Oh well, what do I know.
 
I gotta go with Springsteen. I've seen a million different shows but I've never seen anyone that can work a stage and a crowd like Springsteen.

BDT
 
C'mon, texman, don't put yourself down! You're going by what you've seen of him in concert, which is obviously different from what can be seen in their videos. It helps that the rest of the band really likes to dwell in the shadows, per se, and just do their thing while Maynard keeps the audience going. The average listener, like your's truly, has basically only videos to gauge what the band and their lead singer is like. So, it's more like what do I know!:dunno:;)

TroyD, indeed, The Boss must get his due, if anything, for keeping the crowd going through the usually marathon concerts he puts on.:guitar:
Damn good songwriter, too!

Has anyone mentioned Anthony Keidis of the Red Hot Chili Peppers? Or is he too often upstaged by bandmate Flea?

Cheers.
:beerchug:
-AlphaLima
 
FrontMAN not men Hendrix

Originally posted by AlphaLimaXray [/i
I consider a true "frontman" to be more than just a band's lead singer. He or she must be a true showman and entertainer, with a large, magnetic personality that absolutely demands your attention.
Cheers.
:beerchug:
-AlphaLima [/B]
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Earlier I posted my list of around 10 great frontmen. But if we look at the question through Alpha's idea what would we come up with. I would have to go with:

Jimi Hendrix

I love all the greats both old and new but I have never seen anything or anyone that music seemed to pour from their very existance. Then in death to remain some kind of musical god that is non generational. I know his sound screams the 60s but people of all ages listen.

One must SEE or view Hendrix live onstage to really even remotely get what all the fuss is about. I have met people who arent really into Hendrix because they are typicallly FM radio brainwashed/ruined. They have only heard Purple Haze, Foxy Lady, and Hey Joe. Good songs yes, but overplayed radio hits as well.

Anybody wanting to get a real taste needs to find a DVD of Monterey Pop, Berkely 70, or the extended Woodstock footage and then tell me who the real greatest frontman is:D :zoom: :zoom:
 
Two great frontmen would have to be Lou Reed, especially in the VU days and Michael Stipe of REM. Neither are particularly flashy but command great stage presence.
 
Hey, Toasted Almond, I just realised that Hawkins was sort of a proto-Alice Cooper, though certainly Cooper had a lot more creative freedom in the 70s than Hawkins could even have dreampt of back in the 1950's. I'm sure Hawkins routinely risked getting arrested for onstage antics that are considered mild- or even cute, nowadays.:bat: Marilyn Manson(that cruddy poseur):uzi: and his mostly execrable lot should all pray at the altar of Hawkins for basically trailblaizing their genre. However, the quality of said genre has basically and steadily deteriorated since Hawkins' day.:rolleyes:

Cheers.
:beerchug:
-AlphaLima
 
All Y'all are all wet. Best rock band ever was or ever will be is Spinal Tap. Best front man was their lead singer, Ol' Whatzizname. You rember-ol' Miz Whatzizname's stupider boy..never amounted to much til he started playin rock 'n' roll... <grin> -Sandy G.
 
Earlier I posted my list of around 10 great frontmen. But if we look at the question through Alpha's idea what would we come up with. I would have to go with:
Jimi Hendrix
Click to expand...
I would have mentioned him but he was the entire show really.
The others window dressing really.

A lot of characters and a few good frontmen are mentioned, but I have to stick with Mick in the spirit of Russman's original post.

And I do have The Collectors S/T album as well as Edsel reissue 17th summer. :)

Carl
 
Let me clarify, I consider a "frontman" to front a group. Solo artists, á la Elton John, are in essence frontmen for themselves, and thus don't count.

Jimi Hendrix technically counts as a frontman for his band, the JH Experience. However, Jimi's unparalleled virtuosity all but drowned out the performance of the rest of his band, at least in the popular memory, even though Mitch Mitchell and company were all top-flight musicians.

Carl, in your first post of this thread, what you mentioned about the other members of the Rolling Stones is so true, with Keith Richards being by far the most colorful of the lot. In fact, I consider Charlie Watts to be one of the finest purely accompanist drummers ever- the perfect combination of solidity and subtlety, never too much or too little, just the right kind of beat for each song. Contrast him with, say, Phil Collins, who's an excellent drummer, but too often a bit of a show-off who ends up overwhelming the artists with whom he's supposed to be just collaborating(Eric Clapton's "August" is one example that comes to mind).

Cheers.
:beerchug:
-AlphaLima
 
A bit off topic but what the hell. I was just thinking about how cool it must be to be as quiet, if not melancholy, and laid back in personality as Charlie Watts and be a major, major, rock star. I mean he reaps all the finer aspects of his trade without having ever lived the really hard life that some stars fall victim to. Charlie could walk into a public place without causing a big scene. He may not be noticed at all. But he is still THE MAN because he is the drummer for THe Rolling Stones. If he planned his career this way he is a genious I think...........


Tube
 
From the Merriam Webster Online Dictionary:

Main Entry: front man
Function: noun
1 : a person serving as a front or figurehead
2 : the lead performer in a musical group

From AskOxford.com's Compact Oxford English Dictionary:

frontman
• noun a person who acts as a front, in particular the leader of a band or the representative of an illegal organization.

I've been thinking. These are not gender-specific definitions. So, in fairness to the fairer sex - and using the exact same criteria, here's a few of Rock's great female 'frontmen':
Bonnie Raitt
Deborah Harry of Blondie
Gwen Stefani of No Doubt (oh, Gavin, you lucky dog!)
Shirley Manson of Garbage
I hate to say it, but Hole's Courtney Love fits the bill, too (a major league bitch* though she may be) :bash:

True, some of the above (namely, Harry, Stefani and Manson) are rather easy to notice since they front all-male bands (and have definate sex appeal, to boot! :tongue: ). Still, beyond that, they're all talented, dynamic, and commanding performers, who'd still carry the crowd if their bands were of the same gender.

These are all that come to mind, at the moment, but I know I'm forgetting a ton of others. ;)

*[I'd use stronger language, but we have to keep this forum family-friendly, after all. :D]

:beerchug:
-AlphaLima
 
of course one can't forget...

Janis Joplin. After all, she was supposedly a member of Big Brother and the Holding Company. I was only a child when she was in her heyday, but I've seen some concerts on tape and wow!

I saw Van Halen live during the Roth years and yeah, big Dave really knew how to work the crowd.

And just for pure hilarity, Fred Schneider from the B52s is a hoot on stage. Saw them twice in the 80s. Nothing like doing the Rock Lobster with 8,000 of your closest friends...
 
Frontmen

1. Lou Reed
2. Jerry Garcia
3. Bill Monroe
4. Bob Dylan, may not really count
5. hate to say it but.... Jim Morrison
6. Trey Anastasio
7. Lyle Lovett
8. Pete "the pedo" Townsend
9. Michael Yorke
10. Joe Strummer :banana: :thmbsp: :yikes:
 
What About...

Phil Lynott - Thin Lizzy
Randy California - Spirit
Marc Bolan - T-Rex
Ronnie VanZant - Lynyrd Skynyrd
John Mayall - John Mayall & The Blues Breakers
Randy Bachman - Bachman Turner Overdrive
Jeff Lynn - Electric Light Orchestra

Just a few I thought of... Maybe not the Greatest but need mentioning... At least in my book anyhow...
 
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