How to ruin a concert experience in one easy step.
I had a similar experience seeing Hot Tuna, in a beautiful theater, about 40 years ago. Jorma and Jack were definitely not getting along (and, IMO, shouldn’t have been touring together) and spent the show increasing their volume to drown out the other one. It got unbearably loud and completely ruined the show!
If we want to be really picky, Billy Cox was part of The Experience before the name change to Band of Gypsies. So at that point only 1/3 British.
But I agree... I would not consider The Experience to be an American rock band.
And there are so many better American rock bands than The Eagles and Aerosmith in my opinion: Guns 'n' Roses, The White Stripes, Van Halen, Talking Heads, Rage Against The Machine, REM, Metallica, Red Hot Chili Peppers, et al
Hard at work making beautiful things.
Well, sure, Bruce Springsteen made more important, more innovative, higher-quality music than either Aerosmith or The Eagles, though both of them were damn good in their own right. But Bruce is a solo artist with a backing band.
He is a subject for a different thread.
As for which band rocks harder, it isn’t even a contest.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oEXoSyNRRhM
Play this song as loud as your stereo system will allow. Still gives me chills.
I just have to get this off my chest. I freaking despise Guns and Roses. Oh, and the J Geils band, too.
Gee, as far as I know the J. Geils Band only ever had three songs on the radio — Love Stinks, Freeze-Frame, and Centerfold. They seem too insignificant to despise. 😉
BTW, did you know J. Geils was their guitarist? Yeah, me neither. It makes you wonder what he did that was so special that the other band members agreed to use his name as the name of the band. Weird.
As an aside, their lead vocalist, Peter Wolf, has a solo album “Sleepless” that is #427 on the 2012 Rolling Stone list of 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. Back when the pandemic started I got the idea to listen to every album on that list starting with #500 and going all the way to #1 (The Beatles Sgt.Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band). So each day when I was doing such things as running in the woods, playing tennis, playing fetch with my Parson Jack Russell, doing housework, driving, and showering/shaving I would listen to albums from the list.
I would listen to each album 2-3 times because I felt that just one listen wasn’t enough. Anyway, it was through this quest that I eventually came upon Peter Wolf’s album, and I was pleasantly surprised. It’s an easy listen and actually quite good.
When I was a teen, I hated the Eagles, they just represented everything I found boring with 70s AOR and dad rock at the time. Now, I'm largely indifferent to them, I can appreciate the songs to a better degree, but they're not who I'd first listen to from that era (I'd take Steely Dan over them any day). Still can't deny the groove of Those Shoes, underrated IMO.
70s era Aerosmith is great. Draw the Line, Back in the Saddle, Walk This Way, Sweet Emotion. Great songs. Seasons of Wither rocks harder than anything the Eagles have ever done. 80s era Aerosmith is fine, but 90s era Aerosmith is wretched tripe. I can listen to Livin' on the Edge and thats about it. Anything from the Silverstone trio or the Asteroid Love Song is a no go for me.
J. Geils was a great rock band; the radio junk late in their career is weak.
Peter Wolf’s Midnight Souvenirs album is excellent IMO.
Agree with everything you wrote except for the fact that I like the Eagles a lot more than you do. I think all of their studio albums are good.
When I was a kid we would take long summer car trips in our station wagon to visit relatives in Southern California (Costa Mesa, Van Nuys, Burbank, Hollywood, etc.) and the South (Natchez and Drew in Mississippi as well as Atlanta and Nashville). On these trips we’d listen to music on 8-track tapes, including the Eagles Greatest Hits, Hotel California, One of These Nights, and Desperado. I know every note of every song on these albums. And I later bought their other studio albums on LP and got to know them quite well, also.
And yeah, Steely Dan is better. They’re much more inventive and diverse, and just have better, more interesting songs overall. The albums Countdown to Ecstasy, Pretzel Logic, Aja, Can’t Buy a Thrill, The Royal Scam, and Katy Lied are all very good-to-excellent. If you don’t know all of them thoroughly then I suggest you get busy listening!
I'm all in for Steely Dan...(not a pun)..my desert island music for sure.
I like a lot of Eagles music.
I don't consider them a rock band though.
For those of you who are aware of my anti-classic rock stance, this may surprise you. Big Steely Dan fan. My first exposure was in the early 2000s, when "Deacon Blue" was on one of the tapes at work when I managed an American Eagle Outfitters. Had no idea who they were, but that song was phenomenal and got me interested in them. Musically they are so insanely talented. They don't have the draw of the more successful commercial bands, but Steely Dan was unbelievable. To put this into context that I can understand: Steely Dan is more like The Oak Ridge Boys than Alabama. Alabama had a sound that was marketable and they were extraordinarily popular and very talented. But The Oak Ridge Boys were much more talented and had a much wider repertoire and range.
Everyone who enjoys well done studio recordings needs Aja and a pair of nice headphones. Fun fact, the first two songs I can remember distinctly ever hearing on the radio was 'Hey 19" and Gerry Rafferty's Baker Street.
Bonus: Gerry Rafferty's album City to City is really f'n good. Do not sleep on it.
So glad you mentioned The Doobie Brothers. GREAT band. The albums What Were Once Vices Are Now Habits, Toulouse Street, The Captain and Me, and Takin’ It to The Streets are particular favorites.
And the songs Without You (a rockin’ powerhouse), Jesus is Just Alright With Me, Long Train Runnin’, Listen to the Music, Another Park Another Sunday, Dependin’ on You, Tell Me What You Want, and South City Midnight Lady (my god, what a song) are clear standouts, but they have a whole bunch of other great songs.
These guys are so underrated it’s criminal.