Top 10 Founders of Metal Music
Black Sabbath were a Heavy Metal band formed in Birmingham, England in 1968 by guitarist and songwriter Tony Iommi, singer John "Ozzy" Osbourne, bassist and main lyricist Geezer Butler and drummer Bill Ward... read more The most important metal bands:
1. Black Sabbath - initial inventor of the dark sound.
2. Deep Purple - gave metal shredding guitar, added classical influence, and speed.
3. Judas Priest - savior of metal from the punk attack in the mid-70s, first with the twin guitar leads, making a standard arrangement style for metal, removing the hippy style and giving a leather style culture to metal.
4. Big 4 Thrash - raised the level to be heavier.
5. Pantera - savior of metal from the grunge attacks in the early 90s, and the gate for subgenre development.
Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in Hertford in 1968. They are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal and modern hard rock, although their musical approach changed over the years. Originally formed as a progressive rock band, the band shifted to a heavier sound in 1970. Deep Purple,... read more Metal is currently defined as an extreme non-bluesy subgenre of rock music, mostly based on classical music. Deep Purple was the first band with such songs, so they solely invented the pattern of metal music as we know it now (credits to Ritchie Blackmore for mingling rock and classical music). For the record, Black Sabbath's early albums (70s with Ozzy) were heavy blues rock, not metal. Even Tony Iommi admitted that.
Deep Purple also had hard rock songs, which made their metal legacy more obscure. However, besides the general pattern of metal music, they defined some other metal elements:
1. They first used double bass drumming on "Fireball" (1971).
2. They were "the globe's loudest band" of the 1970s, officially listed in the 1975 Guinness Book.
3. Ritchie Blackmore first expressed that appetite for speed, complex songwriting, and fast technical solos and riffs (e.g., "Highway Star" - you can also hear the galloping style, made popular later by Iron Maiden and currently found everywhere).
4. Ritchie Blackmore, aka The Man in Black, gave metal its signature color (black).
Rainbow are a British rock band led by guitarist Ritchie Blackmore from 1975 to 1984 and 1993 to 1997. They were originally established with Ronnie James Dio as the lead singer and lyricist. Rainbow were ranked No. 90 on VH1's 100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock. The band has sold over 28 million albums... read more Ritchie Blackmore started it all in Deep Purple (1968-1974) by mixing rock and classical music (now known as heavy metal) and perfected it in Rainbow with Dio (1975-76). Dio confirmed the top-notch metal singing and also introduced the famous horns (one of the metal symbols).
Credits for inventing subgenres like power metal and neo-classical metal go exclusively to Rainbow. They also perfected traditional metal and speed metal, adding a certain epic feel and some proggy nuances.
Check out their genre-defining songs:
From the 1976 album: Stargazer, A Light in the Black, Tarot Woman.
From the 1978 album: Gates of Babylon, Kill the King, L.A. Connection.
Metal instrumentals (neo-classical): Still I'm Sad (1975); Difficult to Cure (1981).
Judas Priest are a British heavy metal band that formed in Birmingham, England, in 1969. They are often referred to as one of the greatest metal bands of all time, and are even commonly called “The Metal Gods”, after one of the songs on their 1980 album “British Steel”... read more In the early 70s, most metal riffs were slow, but Judas Priest played their riffs a little bit faster. Some people claimed them as one of the founders of speed metal.
They revolutionized metal more than everyone else. Black Sabbath may have been the heaviest band of the early 70s, but Priest defined the real metal sound.
Judas Priest should be at #3 because they were the third band after Deep Purple and Rainbow that came up with the pure metal sound, i.e., non-bluesy sound.
Iron Maiden are an English Heavy Metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. The most critically acclaimed period for the band was from 1983-1989. With vocalist Bruce Dickinson, bassist Steve Harris, lead guitarist Dave Murray, rhythm guitarist Adrian... read more While they didn't originally found metal, they heavily (pardon the pun) shaped metal after it was created by the hard rockin' of Sabbath, Blue Cheer, Deep Purple, Rainbow, and Judas Priest.
Maiden wins this list by far. Sure, Sabbath founded it, but Maiden took it to the next level. Also, the reason why metal still lives is because of Maiden.
The greatest and still going strong! Just saw 'em yesterday in Helsinki (too bad the sound quality at the stadium was bad). Up the Irons!
Led Zeppelin was an English hard rock band formed in London in 1968 as the New Yardbirds. The group consisted of Robert Plant (Vocal), Jimmy Page (Guitar), John Paul Jones (Bass, Keyboard) and John Bonham (Drums) and was very much the child of Jimmy Page who even financed their first tour. He had tasted... read more Zeppelin were around before Sabbath and obviously influenced Sabbath. Listen to Dazed and Confused and You Shook Me from their first album. Both songs anticipated Sabbath's doom sound by two years.
Yes, the heavy metal genre started with Black Sabbath, but Led Zeppelin planted the seeds. Without Zeppelin, I think metal would be very different.
Led Zeppelin was the band that coined the term "heavy metal," so they're the best.
Metallica is an American Heavy/Thrash Metal band formed in 1981. The original lineup was James Hetfield (Vocalist and Rhythm guitarist), Dave Mustaine (Lead Guitar), Lars Ulrich (Drums), Ron McGovney (Bassist). The group came into mainstream from their Self-Titled album and the hit single "Enter Sandman"... read more
Uriah Heep are an English rock band formed in London in 1969 that was one of the top rock bands in the early 1970s. Twelve of the band's albums have made it to the UK Albums Chart (Return to Fantasy reached No. 7 in 1975). Uriah Heep's distinctive features include a massive keyboard sound, strong vocal... read more Their sound was a fusion of progressive/art rock/heavy metal. David Byron's quasi-operatic vocals contributed to their metal sound too. The song Bird of Prey (1971) is a metal song, with metal vocals and screams: awesome vox even from today's metal viewpoint.
Their debut album 'Very 'Eavy...Very 'Umble' (1970) was one of the first albums with the word Heavy in the title. It contained progressive rock, hard rock, heavy metal, and blues rock.
Their epic piece Salisbury (1971) is 16:20 minutes long and sounds to me like early symphonic metal with prog elements. Its length can compete with the lengthy stuff of current metal bands. Give it a chance and be convinced. And surprised.
Their metal songs were influenced by Deep Purple but they were cool in their own right. Some other metal songs: Look at Yourself (1971) and Easy Livin' (1972).
Blue Cheer was an American rock band that initially performed and recorded in the late 1960s and early 1970s and was sporadically active until 2009. Based in San Francisco, Blue Cheer played in a psychedelic blues rock style, and are also credited as being some of the earliest pioneers of heavy metal,... read more
Slayer was an American thrash metal band from Huntington Park, California, formed in 1981 by guitarists Jeff Hanneman and Kerry King. They rose to fame with their 1986 album Reign in Blood, and is credited as one of the big four of thrash metal bands, the others being Metallica, Megadeth, and Anthrax... read more
The Newcomers
Motörhead were an English heavy metal band formed in June 1975 by bassist, singer, and songwriter Ian Fraser "Lemmy" Kilmister, who was the sole constant member; guitarist and songwriter Larry Wallis; and drummer Lucas Fox. The band's harsh vocals and fast paced tempos helped inspire speed metal and... read more There was a time I believed Motörhead were metal, but currently I'm not sure at all. They mostly play hard rock, fast rock 'n' roll, and blues rock - all those with some punk air to it. Lemmy himself stated that they were closer to punk rock than to metal.
Overall, Motörhead are not metal or borderline metal at best. Maybe their punk-ish attitude influenced thrash metal somewhat, but it's just my speculation.
UFO are an English rock band that was formed in 1969. They became a transitional group between early hard rock and heavy metal and the new wave of British heavy metal. Formed in 1969, they became a transitional group between early hard rock/heavy metal and the New Wave of British Heavy Metal (NWOBHM).
Their song Doctor Doctor (1974) was covered by Iron Maiden.
Great to see UFO in the top 10. They seem to be the forgotten ones on all other lists.
Iron Butterfly was an American rock band formed in San Diego, California, in 1966. They are best known for their 1968 hit "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida," which featured a dramatic sound that helped pave the way for the development of hard rock and heavy metal music... read more
The Kinks were an English rock band formed in Muswell Hill, North London, in 1964 by brothers Ray and Dave Davies. They are regarded as one of the most important and influential rock bands of the 1960s.
Dio was an American heavy metal band formed in 1982 and led by vocalist Ronnie James Dio, after he left Black Sabbath with intentions to form a new band with fellow former Black Sabbath member, drummer Vinny Appice. Although often listed with Rainbow, Ronnie James Dio's solo career laid some of the major foundations for both metal and the solo singer industry.
Queen are an English rock band formed in London in 1970. The original lineup was Freddie Mercury (lead vocals, piano), Brian May (guitar, vocals), Roger Taylor (drums, vocals), and John Deacon (bass guitar, vocals). Before forming into Queen, Brian May and Roger Taylor had played together in a band... read more Surprise, surprise - Queen was not considered a metal band or metal influence back then, but things changed over time. They actually wrote and performed the first thrash metal song, Stone Cold Crazy. It was written by Freddie in 1968 and recorded a bit later when he joined Queen. Metallica did a cover of it.
Another pretty aggressive and dark song is Dead on Time.
In contemporary metal music, you can hear more Queen than Led Zeppelin, for example. The famous multi-layered/canon vocals from Bohemian Rhapsody became a feature of Blind Guardian, late Savatage, and many other metal bands.
Megadeth is an American thrash metal band from Los Angeles, California. Megadeth was formed in 1983 by guitarist Dave Mustaine and bassist David Ellefson, shortly after Mustaine was fired from Metallica. They have released 15 studio albums to date, and have gone through many lineup changes, with Dave... read more Technically they didn't start heavy metal, but it wouldn't be awesome without them.
Possessed is an American thrash/death metal band, originally formed in 1983 in the San Francisco Bay Area. Noted for their fast style of playing and Jeff Becerra's guttural vocals, they are routinely called the first band in the death metal genre. Possessed is the sometimes credited with being the first... read more
Thin Lizzy are an Irish rock band formed in Dublin in 1969. Their leader Phil Lynott was composer or co-composer of almost all of the band's songs, and the first black Irishman to achieve commercial success in the field of rock music. Thin Lizzy's most successful songs, "Whiskey in the Jar", "Jailbreak"... read more Early metal songs by Thin Lizzy include Massacre and Emerald, released in 1976. Their song Thunder and Lightning came out before Kill 'Em All, and it was a thrash song. Massacre was covered by Iron Maiden, and Emerald was covered by Mastodon (there's a very cool and extended instrumental section in Emerald).
My favorite metal songs: Angel of Death, Thunder and Lightning, Killer on the Loose, Cold Sweat, and Massacre. Their most popular songs/hits were not metal, which is normal - in the 70s and early 80s, metal was far from the mass tastes.
Many metal bands did awesome cover versions, revealing the metal potential of Thin Lizzy songs and Phil Lynott's great songwriting abilities. Most of the covers are in thrash and death metal style, showing the originals had this potential.
I just started a new list on the Top Tens: Top Ten Best Cover Versions of Thin Lizzy Songs.
Alice Cooper is an American singer, songwriter, musician and occasional actor whose career spans over five decades.
The Jimi Hendrix Experience was an English-American rock band that formed in Westminster, London, in September 1966. Composed of singer, songwriter, and guitarist Jimi Hendrix, bassist and backing vocalist Noel Redding, and drummer Mitch Mitchell, the band was active until June 1969. During this time... read more
Scorpions are a German rock band formed in 1965 in Hanover by Rudolf Schenker. Since the band's inception, its musical style has ranged from hard rock to heavy metal. Their style in the 70s was completely different from their 80s mainstream ballad style. Check out at least the song Sails of Charon (1977). There are also cool cover versions by Yngwie and Testament.
Death was an American death metal band formed in 1983 by Chuck Schuldiner. Death is considered to be one of the most influential bands in heavy metal and a pioneering force in death metal. Its debut album, Scream Bloody Gore, has been widely regarded as the first death metal record, while the band's... read more
Obviously should be higher. Mississippi Queen is such a heavy song you'd think it came out in the late 70s, but it was actually 1970! Way ahead of its time.
Venom are an English extreme metal band formed in 1979 in Newcastle upon Tyne. Coming to prominence towards the end of the new wave of British heavy metal, Venom's first two albums—Welcome to Hell and Black Metal—are considered a major influence on thrash metal and extreme metal in general.