Best Rock 'n Roll Band in the World

No, this is not an article about the Rolling Stones.

In fact, I was never a big Stones fan. I mean, I loved "Satisfaction" and a lot of their early blues-based stuff, and I loved Beggar's Banquet and Let It Bleed as much as the next guy. And, yeah, they played with a lot of energy live.

But they were never the best rock 'n roll band in the world. Well, wait, yes, they were the best rock 'n roll band in the world in 1970 and again in 1978.

But, initially there was the Beatles, and I was always a Beatles guy. And in between there--between 1969 and 1978, there was Jethro Tull and Pink Floyd and the Allman Brothers and Led Zeppelin and Steely Dan. I mean, there were a lot of great bands in those days. And the Stones, well, they were good but in a live setting they surely had nothin' on Bruce Springsteen.

Speaking of which, Bruce and the E Street Band is not on this list--they're not a band, they're a guy with backing. Sorry. That's how I see it. Otherwise they would be about #2 or #3.

Top 5 Bands (or thereabouts) Each Year

1963--Beach Boys
1964--Beatles, Beach Boys, Rolling Stones
1965--Beatles, Beach Boys, Byrds, Rolling Stones, Butterfield Blues Band

1966--Beatles, Beach Boys, Byrds, Rolling Stones, Butterfield Blues Band
1967--Beatles, Doors, Byrds, Rolling Stones, Procol Harum
1968--Beatles, Jimi Hendrix Experience, Rolling Stones, Doors, Byrds
1969--Beatles, Rolling Stones, Cream, Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac, The Band
1970--Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, King Crimson, Allman Brothers, Jethro Tull

1971--Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Rolling Stones, Jethro Tull, Youngbloods
1972--Allman Brothers, Pink Floyd, Jethro Tull, Mark-Almond, Rolling Stones
1973--Pink Floyd, Steely Dan, Mark-Almond, Jethro Tull, Allman Brothers
1974--Yes, Steely Dan, Pink Floyd, Rolling Stones, Jethro Tull
1975--Steely Dan, Pink Floyd, Jethro Tull, Doobie Brothers, Rolling Stones

1976--Orleans, Rolling Stones, Eagles, Doobie Brothers, Pink Floyd
1977--Lynyrd Skynyrd, Little Feat, Pink Floyd, Rolling Stones, Fleetwood Mac
1978--Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd, Supertramp, Poco. Passport
1979--Pink Floyd, Talking Heads, Dire Straits, Bad Company, Supertramp
1980--Pink Floyd, Dire Straits, Pat Metheny Group, Talking Heads, Electric Light Orchestra

1981--Talking Heads, Dire Straits, Electric Light Orchestra, Pink Floyd, Pat Metheny Group
1982--Dire Straits, Pat Metheny Group, Talking Heads, Genesis, Jethro Tull
1983--Dire Straits, Los Lobos, Pat Metheny Group, Talking Heads, Pink Floyd
1984--Talking Heads, Los Lobos, Dire Straits
1985--Dire Straits, Talking Heads, Level 42, Los Lobos

1986--Los Lobos, BoDeans, Talking Heads, Dire Straits, UB40
1987--U2, Crowded House, Talking Heads, Dire Straits, Squeeze
1988--REM, Talking Heads, Til Tuesday, Crowded House, New Grass Revival
1989--Los Lobos, Dire Straits, Waterboys, Cowboy Junkies, 10,000 Maniacs
1990--Los Lobos, NRBQ, Gipsy Kings, Cowboy Junkies, Dire Straits

1991--Dire Straits, Los Lobos, Crowded House, Gipsy Kings
1992--Spin Doctors, Little Village, Los Lobos, Jayhawks, Sundays
1993--Los Lobos, Spin Doctors, Asleep at the Wheel, Flim & the BBs, Neville Brothers
1994--Los Lobos, Spin Doctors, Asleep at the Wheel, Freddy Jones Band, Sundays
1995--Wilco, del amitri, Dave Matthews Band, Los Lobos, Chieftans

1996--Wilco, Oasis, Subdudes, Chieftans, Gipsy Kings
1997--Radiohead, Wilco, Whiskeytown, Wallflowers, Chieftans
1998--Wilco, Los Lobos, Chieftans, Ed Palermo Big Band, Asleep at the Wheel
1999--Wilco, Los Lobos, Asleep at the Wheel, Whiskeytown, Wallflowers
2000--Wilco, Jayhawks, Los Lobos, Wallflowers, Radiohead

2001--Travis, Whiskeytown, Wallflowers, Wilco, Los Lobos
2002--Wilco, Los Lobos,  Radiohead, Super Furry Animals
2003--Flaming Lips, Hem, Ween, Wilco, Los Lobos
2004--Arcade Fire, Zero7, Hem, Los Lobos, Black Keys
2005--Bright Eyes, Spoon, Fountains of Wayne, Hem, Wilco

2006--Halloween Alaska, Arcade Fire, Zero7, Bright Eyes, Hem
2007--Arcade Fire, Shins, Spoon, Black Keys, Kings of Leon
2008--Zappa Plays Zappa, Arcade Fire, Radiohead, Zero7, Nomo
2009--Hold Steady, Kings of Leon, Arcade Fire, Zero7, Black Keys
2010--Arcade Fire, The National, Mumford and Son, Black Keys, Hold Steady

2011--Black Keys, Wilco, Arcade Fire, The National, Kings of Leon
2012--Calexico, Black Keys, Lumineers, fun., Los Lobos
2013--Vampire Weekend, Black Keys, Mavericks, Dawes, The National
2014--New Standards, Hold Steady, High 48s, Communist Daughter, The Butanes
2015--Mavericks, Black Keys, New Standards, Calexico, High 48s

Best Rock 'n Roll Bands of All-Time

1. The Beatles

2. Pink Floyd
3. Dire Straits
4. Beach Boys
5. Arcade Fire

6. Jethro Tull
7. Talking Heads
8. Los Lobos
9. Rolling Stones
10. Radiohead

11. Wilco
12. Led Zeppelin
13. Steely Dan
14. The Doors
15. Allman Brothers Band
16. Black Keys
17. Byrds
18. Orleans
19. Pat Metheny Group
20. Jimi Hendrix Experience

21. Yes
22. Asleep at the Wheel
23. Hold Steady
24. Spin Doctors
25. Zero7
26. Hem
27. U2
28. The Mavericks
29. Mark-Almond
30. Crowded House

31. Travis
32. New Standards
33. REM
34. Lynyrd Skynyrd
35. Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac
36. Little Feat
37. Procol Harum
38. Kings of Leon
39. The Band
40. Zappa Plays Zappa

41. Calexico
42. The Shins
43. King Crimson
44. Vampire Weekend
45. Genesis
46. Eagles
47. Cream
48. Doobie Brothers
49. Paul Butterfield Blues Band
50. Youngbloods

51. New Grass Revival
52. ELO
53. The National
54. Waterboys

Among bands listed in the 1960s I saw the Beach Boys, the Stones and The Band live.

1970s--I never saw King Crimson, the Youngbloods, Orleans, Eagles, Poco, Passport, Bad Company and Supertramp. I saw everybody else. The Stones did put on the best show, but Steely Dan was right up there.

1980s--I saw Dire Straits, Pink Floyd, Pat Metheny Group, Tull, Los Lobos, Crowded House, Cowboy Junkies. Jethro Tull put on the best show, even Pink Floyd was not close.

1990s--I saw Los Lobos, Dire Straits, Cowboy Junkies, NRBQ, Crowded House, Little Village, Jayhawks, Asleep at the Wheel, Wilco, Wallflowers. The best show was not Crowded House but rather  Neil and Tim Finn, but it was with the rest of the Crowded House band. Then there was Little Village with Ry Cooder and John Hiatt (and Nick Lowe and Jim Keltner), but no way was that a "working band."

21C-- I saw Wilco, Jayhawks, Wallflowers, Los Lobos, Hem, Bright Eyes, Halloween Alaska, Shins. None of 'em was great live. Then again, take a look at YouTube: Arcade Fire and Radiohead just kick ass. But I haven't seen a really great live rock 'n roll show since, well, Dire Straits back in the late '80s and early '90s.

Best Live Concerts (Rock 'n Roll Bands)

1. Jethro Tull
2. Led Zeppelin
3. Rolling Stones
4. Yes
5. Steely Dan
6. Allman Brothers
7. Dire Straits
8. Pink Floyd
9. Zappa Plays Zappa
10. The Band
11. Mark-Almond
12. Pat Metheny Group