I don’t know about you, but when I am looking for cutting-edge, rock & roll analysis, I go to trusted sources. Like Forbes Magazine. That’s why when Forbes came out with their “30 Greatest Rock & Roll Bands of All Time” earlier this year, I was all over that puppy.
As it turns out, the list is just fine. Fairly standard entries for the most part. One or two oddball choices. Another one or two inexplicable omissions. But mostly typical. For some reason, the thing that jumped out at me most while perusing the Forbes list was the makeup of the selections. By that, I mean the roles of each band member – not the actual makeup worn by said band members (though Kiss is on the list.)
By my count, almost 80 percent of the bands had a traditional front man. (Or, in one case – and only one case – a front woman.) They had a standard issue, high-powered vocalist who handled the vast majority of the lead singing. In some – maybe many – of the bands, another member would take the occasional lead. But there was still one dominant lead singer. From Robert Plant (Led Zeppelin was No. 1 on the list) to Steven Tyler (Aerosmith was No. 30), there was a voice and often a look that announced the band’s presence.
Classic rock bands that featured more than one lead singer
Even in bands that shared vocals, there was typically a rough pattern that emerged. So Mick Jones might sing a few Clash songs, but Joe Strummer still took the lead on most of them. The same applied to classic-era Pink Floyd, with Roger Waters assuming more and more of a lead vocalist posture despite David Gilmour’s occasional vocals. Eric Clapton sang a few Cream songs, but Jack Bruce sang most of them.
The Clash, Pink Floyd, and Cream also turned the mic over to other members for a one-off every so often, but none of those bands boasted three or more vocalists who regularly sang lead.
But there were a few bands that did. That’s what we’re looking at today. Classic rock bands that had at least three singers offered a significant number of leads.
What defines “significant number?” Well, me, ‘cause I’m the one writing this. But here’s a for instance or two to give you some insight into how I made my choices. Roger Taylor and Brian May both sang some leads for Queen. They may have even contributed a “significant” number of songs. But Queen isn’t here. Freddie Mercury’s voice and presence are so overwhelmingly associated with Queen that I consider them a band with one lead vocalist, and a couple of other guys who occasionally sang.
Bands like the Moody Blues and Jefferson Airplane didn’t make my list for a different reason. They each had plenty of members who could – and did – sing leads. Justin Hayward sang most of the Moody Blues' best-known songs, but Ray Thomas, Mike Pinder, and John Lodge all sang leads for the band during their golden years.
Grace Slick and Marty Balin were the primary vocalists for Jefferson Airplane, but Paul Kantner and Jorma Kaukonen took the lead on a few songs. But in both those bands, if one of the primary leads wasn’t singing, the band tended toward harmony. So Paul Kantner sang all the time, but rarely entirely by himself. I consider bands like that to have a lot of good harmonizing singers, as opposed to three or more lead singers.
And I’m not talking here about bands who simply got a new singer when one guy left. So there’s no Deep Purple. No Black Flag. No bands with any colors in their name. (though we do have multiple animals, though not the band The Animals.)
OK – that’s who’s not on the list. Here’s who is. A dozen classic rock bands which featured three (or more) lead singers:
THE ALAN PARSONS PROJECT
The Alan Parsons Project is unique on this list. All of the other bands have various members who share the lead singer role in some manner. But the Alan Parsons Project didn’t have a lead singer. That’s because it wasn’t so much a band as …well, a project.
Engineer/producer Parsons and keyboardist Eric Woolfson assembled assorted musicians to perform their original compositions. Though Woolfson could and did sing, they often engaged other vocalists depending on the requirements of a particular song.
That was a wise move because Woolfson only has an average voice. You can hear it on songs like “Time” and “Eye in the Sky.” It is a pretty voice for pretty songs, but it lacks the power or the nuance that other singers could bring to other APP tracks. Lenny Zakatek was the best and most prolific singer for APP. Chris Rainbow contributed some first-rate tracks on Turn of a Friendly Card. David Paton, who played bass on most of APP’s albums, also sang his share of songs. And those are only the regulars.
Parsons and Woolfson drew on a wide range of singers for their projects. On their second album – I Robot (1977) – they employed different vocalists on almost every track, including Hollies co-founder Allan Clarke, who sang “Breakdown.”
BEST TRACK BY VOCALIST:
Lenny Zakatek: “Wouldn’t Want to Be Like You
Chris Rainbow: “Snake Eyes”
Eric Woolfson: “Eye in the Sky”
David Paton: “What Goes Up”
AMERICA
I should probably start with this admission. I kind of like America, but if my wife is driving and “A Horse With No Name” comes on the radio, I need to change the station immediately or risk an accident. She can’t stand the lifeless, boring gooey pop they put out in the ‘70s. But, I repeat, I kind of like a lot of those songs. Opposites attract.
America was always designed to feature three singers. Dewey Bunnell, Gerry Beckley, and Dan Peek all wrote songs and played guitar, and they figured they could pool their resources and come up with some good pop product. They were right. Together they scored seven top-ten hits, including a couple of number ones, and a whole host of other modest successes throughout the 1970s.
Bunnell wrote more hits than the others, but each band member wrote, and sang, popular songs. Though their voices were slightly different, it is usually easier to tell them apart by the entire song. Their songwriting showed the differences more than their vocals. Peek left after the group’s seventh album in 1977, and Beckley and Bunnell continued as a duo, scoring one final top-ten hit in 1982 with “You Can Do Magic.” Beckley sang lead, with Bunnell harmonizing.
BEST TRACK BY VOCALIST:
Dewey Bunnell: “Ventura Highway”
Gerry Beckley: “Sister Golden Hair”
Dan Peek: “Lonely People”
THE BAND
They began as the Hawks, backing up Ronnie Hawkins in the early ‘60s’ Four Canadiens, and one dude from Arkansas. They played with Bob Dylan for a while before setting out on their own. Since they had spent most of their career backing up others, they kept the name generic. And they never elevated any member to be the new front man.
They all sang, with the exception of Garth Hudson, who just worked his magic from behind his Lowry organ. Guitarist Robbie Robertson, who wrote most of their songs, usually just contributed harmony. That left bass player Rick Danko, drummer Levon Helm, and pianist Richard Manuel to trade off lead vocals.
These three had far more distinct voices than vocalists from the previous two bands. Manuel had the widest range, capable of mid-range rockers and higher-pitched falsetto. He sang the first song on the first album – a cover of Bob Dylan’s “Tears of Rage.”
Helm came to the fore on the second album, and offered that distinctive southern drawl on Americana fare like “Rag Mama Rag” and “Up on Cripple Creek.” Danko filled the gaps. His voice wasn’t as powerful as the others, but they used that to good effect on some of his numbers, as on the standard “Long Black Veil.”
BEST TRACK BY VOCALIST:
Richard Manuel: “The Shape I’m In”
Levon Helm: “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down”
Rick Danko: “Stage Fright”
THE BEACH BOYS
Tell me if this sounds familiar. When you first hear the Beach Boys, you figure it’s all really just one voice. Sometimes it’s a little higher, and sometimes it’s a little lower. There’s always harmony. But you don’t really distinguish voices. Since they’re always singing about surfing, girls, and cars, it all kind of sounds the same.
Then, as you listen a little closer, you begin to realize that certain songs have slightly different vocal attacks. Some are a little rougher, and some are a little more delicate. Some are nasal. OK, pretty much all of them are nasal – but to different degrees. And you come to realize that there are different voices taking the lead on different songs.
You then come to learn that Brian Wilson, who wrote most of the songs, sang most of those high, delicate numbers. Mike Love – high, but not quite as high as Brian – had the tougher voice and sang about cars and schools (being true to them, in particular). Then you start to realize that the best vocals were probably done by someone else, who upon further inspection, turns out to be Brian’s little brother Carl.
And that the other brother Dennis, sang a couple of the numbers too. And finally, you learn that one guy who only sang harmony, Al Jardine, also sang lead on one of the band’s biggest hits, “Help Me Rhonda.” And you go full circle. Realizing that it didn’t really matter much who was singing, because they could all sing.
BEST TRACK BY VOCALIST:
Brian Wilson: “Wouldn’t It Be Nice”
Mike Love: “That’s Not Me”
Carl Wilson: “Good Vibrations”
THE BEATLES
So, do I have to go into this? See, if you’re of a certain age – meaning old like me – you know who sang every Beatles song. But there are a lot of people younger than me out there, and even though the Beatles have maintained a presence more than fifty years after they last recorded anything as a group, maybe this isn’t all common knowledge like I think it is.
For instance, the Beatles were among the first bands (the very first, according to some) who quite literally did not have a front man. The two guitarists and the bass player all stood on the same plane. This was probably the suggestion of manager Brian Epstein, who reshaped the band’s early image, but it fits the ethos of the band quite well. Since Paul McCartney was left-handed, he fit nicely at one mic with George Harrison, while John did get a mic to himself. And that may have identified John as the leader. But he wasn’t in front of the other two.
Lennon and McCartney wrote most of the original songs, especially early on, and they shared leads. At first, they would decide whose voice was better suited to the song, with John taking the harder rock numbers and Paul singing the more melodic ballads. That would change as they began writing more and more on their own.
Though they were still credited as a songwriting team, most later Beatles songs were primarily the work of John or Paul on his own, and as John would say if Paul wrote a song like “Helter Skelter,” he was going to sing it, even if John’s voice was a better match.
In the second half of the 1960s, the “quiet” one, George, began to write prolifically and began singing lead on his numbers. And Ringo still would contribute a lead vocal or two on every album, as he had done since the beginning. They sang rock and roll harmony better than any band in the modern era, and they each contributed multiple iconic lead vocals.
BEST TRACK BY VOCALIST:
John Lennon: “Strawberry Fields Forever”
Paul McCartney: “For No One”
George Harrison: “Something”
Ringo Starr: “Yellow Submarine”
CHICAGO
Robert Lamm was the original singer, with Terry Kath adding his gruff baritone where appropriate. But the band that came to be known as Chicago really took shape when Peter Cetera joined up. Now they had a high tenor to go with Lamm’s mid-range and Kath’s lower baritone. Together, they formed a dynamic vocal counterpoint to the horns that blended with the band’s traditional guitar-based rock orchestrations. Chicago was a band that could go off in a lot of different directions.
The range is most evident on “Dialogue (Part 1 & 2)” from their 1972 album Chicago V. Lamm wrote the song, but Kath and Cetera sang it as a call-and-response duet, with Kath posing questions which Cetera would then answer. That was a wise choice.
Lamm had a very nice voice, capable of singing a wide range of songs. But it was a little bit generic. Cetera and Kath had the voices that stood out. By using all three, the band could vary the types of songs they did, even if they remained firmly rooted in the horns that gave them an immediately identifiable sound.
BEST TRACK BY VOCALIST:
Peter Cetera: “Feeling Stronger Everyday”
Terry Kath: “Make Me Smile”
Robert Lamm: “Beginnings”
THE EAGLES
Like The Band, the Eagles first gained attention by backing up another artist. In this case, it was Linda Ronstadt. Shortly after that, they went out on their own and found almost immediate success. On their first album, all four band members contributed at least two lead vocals.
The band member who would eventually emerge as their most recognizable singer, drummer Don Henley, only sang two of the songs. They maintained a similar approach through their first five albums. By the time of the sixth, 1976’s Hotel California, the scales were beginning to tip. There had been some lineup changes, and Henley was assuming more artistic control and consequently, singing more.
By the end of their initial run throughout the 1970s, even new members like Joe Walsh and Timothy B. Schmidt were taking occasional leads. Walsh, in particular, put his stamp on later Eagles music with “Pretty Maids All in a Row” and “In the City.” Over time, the formula may have shifted, with Henley becoming the primary vocalist and Frey also singing a lot. But the Eagles, regardless of lineup changes, never released an album on which all the principals didn’t take at least one lead vocal.
BEST TRACK BY VOCALIST:
Don Henley: “Hotel California” (or, for you Seinfeld fans, “Desperado”)
Glenn Frey: “James Dean”
Randy Meisner: “Take it to the Limit”
FLEETWOOD MAC
Over seven years and nine albums, Fleetwood Mac featured a rotating cast of lead singers. Most of them also served as the band’s lead guitar player as well, while the non-singing Mick Fleetwood and John McVie hammered away on the bass and drums respectively. Peter Green and Jeremy Spencer got it started and were eventually replaced by Danny Kirwan and Bob Welch, and even for a brief second by itinerant front man Dave Walker.
They all sang, and at some point in the midst of all that turnover, a keyboardist who could also sing joined up. She may not have had a choice. She was married to the bass player.
Christine McVie (maiden name – Perfect) would go on to contribute some of the band’s most beloved songs. When Bob Welch left and the band decided to import a new guitarist and his vocal partner, McVie found herself part of a three-headed songwriting/singing team that elevated the blues rockers to the most popular band in the world.
Lindsay Buckingham’s dynamic guitar helped him write and sing the harder-edged material while Stevie Nicks’ sultry diva persona and low purr of a voice was ideally suited to the mystical love songs she wrote. McVie continued providing expertly written rock songs as well as ballads. The effect, for a few years in the mid-1970s, was undeniably potent.
BEST TRACK BY VOCALIST:
Christine McVie: “Heroes are Hard to Find” for jazz rockers, or “Oh, Daddy” for the sentimentalists
Lindsey Buckingham: “Monday Morning”
Stevie Nicks: “Gold Dust Woman”
KISS
During their classic period in the 1970s, Kiss boasted three guys who could write songs and three guys who could sing. But they weren’t the same three guys. While bassist Gene Simmons and rhythm guitarist Paul Stanley battled it out to see who the alpha was, lead guitarist Ace Frehley was writing some tunes, and drummer Peter Criss was proving he could sing them. Frehley would start singing as well by the end of the decade but admitted he was not nearly as confident as his bandmates were in fronting a song.
Stanley and Simmons pretty much split the singing and songwriting evenly throughout the decade, but they always found a couple of numbers for Criss to perform. He had the most emotive voice of the four, with a little bit of rasp to it, which would pay big dividends on their major surprise hit in 1976.
Stanley probably had the purest voice of the band while Simmons may have had a better rock & roll voice, with more of an edge, which you can hear on their breakout hit “Rock & Roll All Nite.” Frehley had the highest natural voice of the four, which they were able to put to good use once he began singing more than harmony.
Criss got tired of having to fight for songs to sing and left the band at the end of the ‘80s, though he would return several times over the years. Frehley would do the same thing. Simmons and Stanley, who have been the oil and water of the band for more than four decades, never left.
BEST TRACK BY VOCALIST:
Paul Stanley: “I Was Made for Loving You”
Gene Simmons: “God of Thunder”
Peter Criss: “Beth”
Ace Frehley: “Talk to Me”
THE MONKEES
Two of them were actual musicians. Two were musically inclined performers. They were thrown together for an absurdist television show designed to capitalize on the success of another quartet known for its outlandish humor.
Early on, it was the adorable one with the romantic voice – Davy Jones – and the one with musical theater training – Micky Dolenz – who handled most of the singing. But before too long, the guys playing guitar and bass – Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork – began writing and singing leads too. That only came after a protracted battle with their record label to allow the band members to actually be a band, as opposed to merely being wacky figureheads for other artist’s creations.
Though Davy got a lot of the headlines, Micky sang most of the hits, like their first two number-one singles “Last Train to Clarksville” and “I’m a Believer.” Davy did score his own number one with “Daydream Believer.” “Believer” played a big role in early Monkees tunes. I know because I now have misspelled it twice in less than thirty seconds. Michael Nesmith would sing lead on a minor hit or two, and I don’t believe any Peter Tork lead vocal ever charted, but they still sang some great songs, adding dimension to the band’s output.
BEST TRACK BY VOCALIST:
Micky Dolenz: “Goin’ Down”
Davy Jones: “Valleri”
Mike Nesmith: “Listen to the Band”
Peter Tork: “Your Auntie Grizelda”
SONIC YOUTH
OK – so I promised a dozen classic rock bands at the outset, and I will accept complaints that Sonic Youth is not a classic rock band. You certainly won’t hear them on classic rock radio stations. So let’s just say they were a very important rock band at a time when classic rock was growing very stale and needed a shot in the arm. The three singing members of the New York noise band provided a major rush of adrenaline.
Guitar hero Thurston Moore usually sang about half the songs while bass player Kim Gordon took a few less. That left a song or two per album for the other guitarist Lee Ranaldo. Typically, whoever wrote the song would sing the song. But even when she wasn’t taking the lead, Gordon could often be heard contributing to the sonic atmosphere with background vocals, as on the Moore-fronted “Mary-Christ.” Gordon’s often-spoken vocals added a nice contrast to the more typical rock stylings of the two make guitar players.
BEST TRACK BY VOCALIST:
Thurston Moore: “Teen Age Riot”
Kim Gordon: “Tunic”
Lee Ranaldo: “Karen Revisited”
THREE DOG NIGHT
Three Dog Night predated the band America by a few years. They started with same idea. Get three guys together who could both write and sing. Share the frontman job. It worked out pretty well. Danny Hutton, Chuck Negron, and Cory Wells scored more than twenty top-20 hits in less than a decade, making them one of the most successful recording acts of their time.
I’ll admit that though I eventually was able to hear the differences in their voices, for the longest time, I thought there was just one guy singing. I still have to double-check myself when I want to refer to a particular singer and a particular song. Unlike some of the other bands on this list, the three different voices didn’t necessarily expand the group’s sound.
But their differences in taste certainly did. That was most apparent on the band’s biggest hit. Hutton and Wells thought a Hoyt Axton song with a silly opening lyric was nonsense and neither wanted to include it on their upcoming album. But Negron convinced them that it would be a good balance to the more serious numbers they were doing, and he didn’t mind singing “Jeremiah was a bullfrog.” The song – “Joy To the World” became one of the biggest singles of the decade.
BEST TRACK BY VOCALIST:
Danny Hutton: “Liar”
Chuck Negron: “Old Fashioned Love Song” (“Joy to the World” notwithstanding)
Cory Wells: “Never Been to Spain” (also penned by Hoyt Axton)
For the record, Kiss, Fleetwood Mac, the Eagles, and the Beatles are the only bands to make both the Forbes list and this one.