Seventies Rock

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(Vocal/instrumental group, 1973–present) A hard-rocking quintet whose no frills approach garnered them a huge following, AC/DC were formed in Sydney in 1973 by expatriate Scottish brothers Angus and Malcolm Young (both guitar). Bon Scott became lead singer in 1974. After two Antipodes-only albums, the band moved to America where their fifth album for Atlantic Records, Highway To Hell (1979), produced by Mutt Lange, established them in the big league, selling over six ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley
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(Vocal/instrumental group, 1970–present) This best-selling American heavy rock band, frequently compared to The Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin, centred on the relationship between principal members Steven Tyler (vocals) and Joe Perry (guitar). The pair came together in Boston, Massachusetts, with Joey Kramer (drums), Brad Whitford (guitar) and Tom Hamilton (bass). Their first album Aerosmith (1973) was an immediate success, paving the way for the multi-platinum Toys In The Attic (1974) and ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley
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(Vocal/instrumental group, 1977–90) Studio engineer Parsons (b. 1948) had been involved with the engineering of The Beatles’ Abbey Road (1969) and Pink Floyd’s The Dark Side Of The Moon (1973) before he became a producer and, briefly, artist in conjunction with songwriter Eric Woolfson. A string of immaculately played and produced concept albums featuring guest singers and musicians, notably 1977’s I Robot and 1982’s Eye In The Sky, charted big in ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley
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(Vocals, b. 1948) Although over time the name Alice Cooper came to attach itself to singer Vincent Furnier, it originally applied to the rock band that he fronted, the classic line-up of which comprised Cooper, Glen Buxton (guitar), Michael Bruce (guitar), Dennis Dunaway (bass) and Neal Smith (drums). After recording two albums for Frank Zappa’s Straight label, the band relocated from California back to Detroit, developing the outrageous stage act for ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley
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‘Resurrection Shuffle’, 1971 Keyboardist/vocalist Tony Ashton and drummer Roy Dyke were seasoned 1960s beat group musicians who had played behind George Harrison on his Wonderwall Music LP. In 1969, they met bassist Kim Gardner to form AG&D, and had a No. 3 hit with ‘Resurrection Shuffle’. Having recorded three LPs by 1972, nothing else matched ‘Shuffle’’s hit appeal, and the trio – augmented by guitarist Mick Liber – finally split that ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley
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(Vocal group, 1969–73, 1980–83) A British progressive rock band founded by ex-Crazy World Of Arthur Brown members Vincent Crane (organ) and Carl Palmer (drums), plus bassist Nick Graham. After one self-titled album in 1970, Palmer and Graham left and were replaced by John Cann (guitar, vocals) and Paul Hammond (drums), scoring two UK hit singles ‘Tomorrow Night’ and ‘Devil’s Answer’ but fragmenting after two albums, Atomic Rooster finally folded after one ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley
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(Vocal group, 1973–84) This hard-driving Canadian rock band were assembled by former Guess Who members Randy Bachman (guitar, vocals) and Chad Allen (keyboards) with Robbie Bachman (drums) and Fred Turner (bass). Third brother Tim Bachman soon replaced Allan and the band’s commercial breakthrough came with Bachman-Turner Overdrive II (1974) and the US hit ‘Takin’ Care Of Business’. In Britain, they are best remembered for the 1975 single ‘You Ain’t Seen Nothing ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley
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(Vocal group, 1979–83, 2005–present) Taking their name from the German architectural movement, Bauhaus were a prototype goth outfit who made their recording debut in 1979 with the nine-minute single ‘Bela Lugosi’s Dead’. Peter Murphy’s brooding voice was accompanied by Daniel Ash (guitar), David J. (bass) and Kevin Haskins (drums) for four albums until the singer left in 1983. Their only Top 20 hit was a faithful cover of David Bowie’s ‘Ziggy ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley
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(Vocal/instrumental group, 1968–present) Pioneers of heavy metal, Sabbath hailed from Birmingham, England and comprised John ‘Ozzy’ Osbourne (vocals), Tony Iommi (guitar), Terence ‘Geezer’ Butler (bass), and Bill Ward (drums). Their second album’s title track ‘Paranoid’ was a rare hit single as Black Sabbath’s reputation was built on a series of 1970s albums, featuring doom-laden lyrics set to downtuned guitar. Osbourne was fired in 1979, finally rejoining his colleagues in 1997. Styles & ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley
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(Vocal/instrumental group, 1974–82, 1997–present) An internationally popular New York outfit emerging from the city’s thriving new wave scene of the mid-to late 1970s, Blondie’s founders were Debbie Harry (vocals) and Chris Stein (guitar), with an eventual supporting cast of Clem Burke (drums), Nigel Harrison (bass), Jimmy Destri (keyboards) and Frank Infante (guitar). More pop-oriented than their contemporaries and influenced by 1960s girl groups like The Shangri-Las, Blondie had a British No. ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley
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(Vocal/instrumental group, 1976–present) A mainstream American rock band whose meticulously layered music was largely the brainchild of songwriter, guitarist and producer Tom Scholz, Boston’s line-up was completed by Brad Delp (vocals), Barry Goudreau (guitar), Sib Hashian (drums) and Fran Sheehan (bass). The all-conquering first album Boston released in 1976 became the biggest-selling debut of all time and yielded the hit single ‘More Than A Feeling’. Ever the perfectionist, Scholz considered the ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley
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(Guitar, vocals, b. 1944) The smooth, sophisticated pop of the enormously successful 1976 album Silk Degrees remains William ‘Boz’ Scaggs’ best-known work. Previously a member of The Steve Miller Band, Scaggs first recorded solo in 1965, but it was his seventh album which brought him widespread acclaim and spawned three hit singles, plus a cover of ‘We’re All Alone’ by Rita Coolidge. His increasingly sporadic output since Silk Degrees has failed ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley
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(Guitar, vocals, b. 1949) Hailed as the new Dylan after two albums, Springsteen fully realized his potential with the widescreen Born To Run (1975). Managerial problems delayed Darkness On The Edge Of Town (1978), a more sombre but no less compelling work. The double album The River appeared in 1980 followed by the stark, pessimistic Nebraska in 1982. 1984’s Born In The USA catapulted Springsteen into the mainstream, selling 14 million copies ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley
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(Vocal group, 1969–79) An experimental German outfit, Can were significantly influential on both rock and dance music. The band was founded by students of avant-garde composer Karlheinz Stockhausen: Holger Czukay (bass) and Irmin Schmidt (keyboards), with Michael Karoli (guitar), Jaki Liebezeit (drums) and, briefly, David Johnson (flute). American singer Malcolm Mooney joined for Can’s debut album Monster Movie (1969), which showcased the band’s lengthy, hypnotic improvisations, underpinned by cyclical, repetitive drumming. Mooney ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley
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(Vocal/instrumental group, 1974–present) Power-pop quartet from Rockford, Illinois, featuring wacky guitarist Rick Nielsen who were weaned on British Invasion bands. Live album Cheap Trick At Budokan translated their Japanese success (they were regarded as the American Beatles) to home sales in 1979 and spawned hit ‘I Want You To Want Me’. Follow-up album Dream Police (1979) also made the Top 10, but their star faded somewhat thereafter as the wackiness faded. ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley
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