Guns 'n' Roses. The original. Not the new Axl and friends. After that, a 3 way tie with Led Zeppelin, AC/DC, and Pearl Jam.
As far as influence goes... Robert Johnson, Chuck Berry, Elvis, The Beatles, The Beach Boys, The Velvet Underground, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Pink Floyd, The Stooges, Neil Young, Television, Black Sabbath, Pixies, Can, etc. I can't really make a call on the best ever, but it'd include The Beatles, The Beach Boys, The Velvet Underground, Led Zeppelin, or Pink Floyd. All are good candidates.
Led Zeppelin is the greatest rock band ever, and that's not up for debate. btw, how dare anyone put Van Halen on that list. They are one of the most overrated bands in history.
ZZ Top or AC/DC. Ozzie's band with Randy Rhoads didn't have a name, but they were great too. Something about Zeppelin annoys me, though their first album was fabulous.
Take a listen to the 2015 Grammy's Show opening - yea - dead in the water - just send the funeral bouquet's............... https://youtu.be/so_clVaacS8
Surprised no one has mentioned Deep Purple. My personal favorites would be Floyd, Zeppelin and Purple. I am absolutely convinced after chatting to mates at Glastonbury last night that it is not Kayne West!
If by "Best" we are referring to the band that most influenced or changed Rock and Roll.....I have to say the Beatles. If instead we are dealing with the most exceptional according to personal taste, I must go with a singular musician that formed several bands and changed Rock into something sharper and harder. Lets see who can guess his name based on these bands: UFO...Scorpions....MSG
They were sophisticated and changed the music scene, however, they were not R&R. The great "hole" in their music after the early innocent years of "Twist & Shout" - etc., came about due to the musical differences in taste between Paul McCartney and John Lennon. You can't put things like "Yellow Submarine" and "Eleanor Rigby" into the rock category. Lennon was R&R, McCartney was grand production music, and a forerunner for modern New Wave music. Yoko, an artist, inspired the "Number 9" fiasco. "Hey Jude" remains, IMO, their best piece of music. The proof is, however, that today, Beatles music is played by orchestra's, and in elevator's - you won't hear "Dude Lookls Like A Lady" - "Walk This Way" etc. ever in those settings. Nor will you hear "Sympathy For The Devil" - the Stones best piece of work either. Somebody put ZZ Top and Lynyrd Skynyrd in as top rock bands, in fact - they are Southern rockabilly are in fact are generic rock, and never generated the excitement that AC/DC did. Pink Floyd? Case can be made for them, but they get a bit mystical with their music also, Grateful Dead was an acquired taste. You want your fans rocking and going nuts, it's AC/DC, Aerosmith, than about six other bands on down as best rock band ever. Top guitarists - Angus Young bar none, and surprising someone who wasn't mentioned much, Lindsay Buckingham of Fleetwood Mac. Joe Perry; Keith Richards all fall into about the same category.......
Pink Floyd's sound evolved and changed over their career with the addition and subtraction of band members. They were more psychedelic with Syd Barrett, and had a jazz influence in Gilmour's playing; if you listen to Animals, there's a definite jazz influence going on. Their most popular album, "Dark Side of the Moon" shows off a more progressive/electronic influenced sound... You can't pinpoint Pink Floyd to a specific sound...meanwhile AC/DC, can be described as consistently hard rock throughout their careers regardless of the addition and subtraction of band members. Pink Floyd is not a rowdy band, they aren't going to get the girls in the audience to take off their tops, they aren't going to attract guys to their concerts wearing muscle shirts...they (PInk Floyd) are a thinking person's band and though their music has a reputation for being associated with drug use...you can appreciate their music clean and sober.
True. I've been a Jethro Tull fan since about 1969-70 when I first heard Witches Promise. Benefit was the third album I ever bought after Cream- Wheels of Fire and Led Zeppelin II. Benefit is still my favourite Tull album although Dun Rungill is my favourite track. I saw them live at the State Threatre Sydney in 1996. I've never seen so many bald heads at a rock concert.
The Lemon Song off Led Zeppelin II has the best bass riff known to rock. Check it out https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zyhu2ysqKGk
AC/DC is just pub rock. Go to any pub in a working class suburb in Australia on Friday or Saturday night, you'll hear pub rock. Loud, raw and unadulterated. What makes AC/DC unique is its history. A group of Scottish immigrants to Australia growing up in a working class suburb spawned the Easybeats in the early 1960s, Australia's first super group. The Easybeat's member George Young the older brother Angus Young and Malcolm Young. Formed in the early 1970s and still touring.
Talking about Aussie rock, I've reacquainted myself with the Divinyls. Huge in the 1980's and early 90s. You'll probably remember 'I Touch Myself'. Chrissy Amphlett the bad girl of Australian rock passed away from breast cancer and in 2008. She also had MS. I've seen the Divinyls live twice. First time I was coming home from university in Sydney. I used to ride a motorbike 100 kilometres to uni four days afternoons a week. Coming home in the rain one night pulled into a pub on the outskirts of Sydney and the Divinyls were playing. One of the loudest bands I've ever seen. Not as loud as Midnight Oil though. Divinyls Pleasure And Pain https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qj-82dn75bg
Does Blondie count? If not then Arkona. Maybe Blind Guardian. - - - Updated - - - Not a rock band and I've never seen what' so great about them. Just generic love songs so far as I can see. - - - Updated - - - Not a rock band and even if they were, I don't see anything that isn't just generic sentimental music.