The biggest influence in Rock music?

[stankowalski]

Chuck Berry, and there isn't any contest in it.

 

 

 

Also, for those saying Nirvana, the real start of the grunge movement in the 90s was with Mother Love Bone, who influenced Nirvana, Stone Temple Pilots, Soundgarden, and a slew of others from Seattle. Eddie Vedder mentioned them multiple times in interviews, Chris Cornell directly stated they were a huge influence on him, and there's a reason Temple of the Dog came along as a tribute band.

I've heard some of Mother Love Bone's stuff and while I would categorize it as OK, I don't think it's enough that they came before, if they really had nothing of substance.  That may be a harsh way of putting it, what I mean is that they didn't have something that carried through.  I think there are 3 things that make great music...lyric, melody, and emotion.  Mother Love Bone had 2 of the 3, and as Meat Loaf sang, Two out of Three Ain't Bad.  Just not enough.

 

Edit: and I really believe that emotion carries a ton of weight in considering  what is truly great. Whether it be happiness, sadness, jealousy, whatever...you have to have emotion in your songs or the greatest music and/or lyrics won't be as powerful.

[Mol3m4n]

No Elvis Presley? Pretty much a father of rock showmanship.

[Kramerica]

The Pixies

The Smiths

Sex Pistols

Lou Reed

Nick Drake

Iggy Pop

This is pretty much the correct answer. I would add Buddy Holly.

[TANTRIC-NINJA]

The Cure>the Smiths

But I love depressive atomspheric music like on Disintergration.

[carpanfan96]

Chuck Berry, and there isn't any contest in it.

 

 

 

Also, for those saying Nirvana, the real start of the grunge movement in the 90s was with Mother Love Bone, who influenced Nirvana, Stone Temple Pilots, Soundgarden, and a slew of others from Seattle. Eddie Vedder mentioned them multiple times in interviews, Chris Cornell directly stated they were a huge influence on him, and there's a reason Temple of the Dog came along as a tribute band.

 

 

[carpanfan96]

To answer the original question, it's clearly Chuck Berry. 

[CarolinaNCSU]

Those saying Chuck Berry are correct.

 

Or Muddy Waters and other Blues guys before Elvis and then the Beatles/Stones/Zepplin/etc. Blues heavily led to, or at least majorly influenced rock...and obviously race was a big factor so while white/rock artists were being credited, you can't forget the guys doing many of the same songs first. 

[The NFL Shield At Midfield]

Yeah I can agree that Gn'R probably put the first nail in the coffin.  Appetite was so much different than anything else that was out at the time.  

 

this is kind of an under appreciated aspect of it as well

 

the common folk wisdom is that nirvana killed the commercial viability of "hair" metal overnight which isn't entirely true.  mainstream tastes had been changing for a few years by that point anyway and it's not that clear cut.  stephen pearcy from ratt has talked about that - by 87 or 88 they were playing to half empty arenas and there was a sort of feeling in that corner of the music industry that the writing was on the wall.  by the early 90s only the motley crue, guns, and poison types with their big footprints on mainstream radio were still selling a lot of albums.  combine that with bands like megadeth and metallica starting to get exposure and MTV rotation and it was only a matter of time until the b-list and below glam bands got edged out anyway.  there just wasn't enough market share to go around.

[Brooklyn Bully]

Robert Johnson

Big Joe Turner

Cab Calloway

Count Basie

 

You know ... the black guys that inspired all the white guys you've been typing.

 

[Mol3m4n]

Recent influences that are big on rock today (claimed as influences by bands) are:

Alice Cooper

Alice in Chains

Def Leppard

Of course that's the heavy metal scene.

[Harris Aballah]

I really just wanted to post this song

 

 

 

Robert Johnson is Rock n Roll....Would never have been the same without him!!!!!

[Harris Aballah]

Muddy

[Inimicus]

Come on folks.

 

The question wasn't where did Rock start or who deserves credit for it, the question is who had/has the most influence.

 

And while all of (ok most of) the acts listed in this thread deserve their own accolades they don't hold a candle to the Clive Davis', Rick Rubins, Phil Spectors, Nile Rodgers, Brian Eno, and Quincy Jones' when it comes to their influence on the genre.

 

Those men and the many other folks like them have driven the industry to what it is.  I didn't matter how innovative Chuck Berry was, if Leonard Chess didn't sign him we may never have heard of him beyond him backing up other acts.  Hell it could be well argued that Butch Vig had as much to do with Nirvana's success an Cobain did by producing Nevermind. Likewise had Norman Smith done a lesser job producing The Piper at the Gates of Dawn we may well have never heard of Pink Floyd.

[Brooklyn Bully]

Come on folks.

 

The question wasn't where did Rock start or who deserves credit for it, the question is who had/has the most influence.

 

And while all of (ok most of) the acts listed in this thread deserve their own accolades they don't hold a candle to the Clive Davis', Rick Rubins, Phil Spectors, Nile Rodgers, Brian Eno, and Quincy Jones' when it comes to their influence on the genre.

 

Those men and the many other folks like them have driven the industry to what it is.  I didn't matter how innovative Chuck Berry was, if Leonard Chess didn't sign him we may never have heard of him beyond him backing up other acts.  Hell it could be well argued that Butch Vig had as much to do with Nirvana's success an Cobain did by producing Nevermind. Likewise had Norman Smith done a lesser job producing The Piper at the Gates of Dawn we may well have never heard of Pink Floyd.

 

You're defining "influence" differently though. You're listing the rich man who put out the record or found the talent. That's a different thing all together. Yes, some on your list played as well but influence should be about who made a person want to play. Made them choose their genre. Not who game them a shot.

 

Why not list Ed Sullivan, lol?