CLASSIC '70 and '80s Bands

Birth Place: Sheffield, England
Years Active: 1977–present
Genres: Hard Rock, Heavy Metal
Def Leppard is an English hard rock band formed in 1977 in Sheffield as part of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal movement. Since 1992, the band has consisted of Joe Elliott (vocals), Rick Savage (bass guitar), Rick Allen (drums), Phil Collen (guitar), and Vivian Campbell (guitar).

Def Leppard was formed in 1977 by vocalist Joe Elliott and later released their only EP to date entitled “The Def Leppard E.P.” in 1979. The band signed with Mercury Records and released their debut full-length album “On Through the Night” in 1980.

Their 1981 sophomore album “High 'n' Dry” was produced by Robert John “Mutt” Lange, who helped them begin to define their style, and the album's stand out track “Bringin' On the Heartbreak” became one of the first metal videos played on MTV in 1982. “High 'n' Dry” reached #26 on the U.K. Albums chart and was certified 2x platinum in the United States.

Birth Place: Sayreville, New Jersey, United States
Years Active: 1983–present
Genres: Hard Rock, Glam Metal, Heavy Metal
Bon Jovi is an American hard rock band from Sayreville, New Jersey. Formed in 1983, Bon Jovi consists of lead singer and namesake Jon Bon Jovi, guitarist Richie Sambora, keyboardist David Bryan, drummer Tico Torres as well as current bassist Hugh McDonald. The band's line-up has remained mostly static during their history, the only exception being the departure of Alec John Such in 1994, who was unofficially replaced by Hugh McDonald.

Bon Jovi's first commercial release was the single "Runaway" in 1983. It was taken from their 1984 self-titled debut album “Bon Jovi” which made a small impact in the U.S. Their second album, “7800° Fahrenheit,” achieved even less success than its predecessor, except in Japan where it reached the Tp 5 on the album chart.

Birth Place: San Francisco, California
Years Active: 1973–1987, 1995–present
Genres: Rock, Hard Rock, Progressive Rock
Journey is an American rock band formed in 1973 in San Francisco, California, with former members of Santana. The band has gone through several phases, but its strongest commercial success came in the late 1970s to the early 1980s. The original members of Journey came together in San Francisco in 1973 under the auspices of former Santana manager Herbie Herbert. Originally called the Golden Gate Rhythm Section and intended to serve as a backup group for established Bay Area artists, the band included recent Santana alumni Neal Schon on lead guitar and Gregg Rolie on keyboards and lead vocals. Bassist Ross Valory and rhythm guitarist George Tickner, both of Frumious Bandersnatch, and drummer Prairie Prince of The Tubes rounded out the group. The band quickly abandoned the original "backup group" concept and developed a distinctive jazz fusion style. After an unsuccessful radio contest to name the group, roadie John Villaneuva suggested the name "Journey."

Birth Place: Birmingham, England, United Kingdom
Years Active: 1978-present
Genres: New Wave, Pop Rock, Synthpop, Electropop, Alternative Rock
Duran Duran are an English New Wave band that formed in Birmingham, England in 1978. They were one of the most successful bands of the 1980s and a leading band in the MTV-driven "Second British Invasion" of the United States.

The group was formed by Nick Rhodes, John Taylor and Stephen Duffy, with the later addition of Roger Taylor and, after numerous personnel changes, Andy Taylor and Simon Le Bon. (None of the Taylors are related.) The group has never disbanded, but the lineup has changed to include guitarist Warren Cuccurullo from 1989 to 2000 and drummer Sterling Campbell from 1989 to 1991. The reunion of the original five members in the early 2000s created a stir among the band's fans and music media. Andy Taylor left the band in mid-2006, and London guitarist Dom Brown has since been working with the band as a session player and touring member.

Birth Place: London, England
Years Active: 1968–1980, (Reunions: 1985, 1988, 1995, 2007)
Genres: Hard Rock, Heavy Metal, Blues-rock, Folk Rock
Led Zeppelin was an English rock band formed in 1968, consisting of Jimmy Page (guitar), Robert Plant (vocals, harmonica), John Paul Jones (bass guitar, keyboards, mandolin), and John Bonham (drums). With their heavy, guitar-driven blues-rock sound, Led Zeppelin is regularly cited as one of the progenitors of heavy metal and hard rock. However, the band's individualistic style drew from many sources and transcends any one music genre. Led Zeppelin did not release songs from their albums as singles in the U.K., as they preferred to develop the concept of album-oriented rock.

Birth Place: London, England
Years Active: 1965–1996, Reunion: 2005
Genres: Progressive Rock, Psychedelic Rock
Pink Floyd was an English rock band that earned recognition for their psychedelic music in the late 1960s, and as they evolved in the 1970s, for their progressive rock music. Pink Floyd's work is marked by the use of philosophical lyrics, sonic experimentation, innovative album cover art, and elaborate live shows. One of rock music's most critically acclaimed and commercially successful acts, the group have sold over 200 million albums worldwide, including 74.5 million certified units in the United States, making them one of the best-selling music artists of all time.

Aerosmith was formed in 1970, when vocalist Steven Tyler met guitarist Joe Perry while working at an ice cream parlor. Bassist Tom Hamilton and guitarist Ray Tabano, joined the group, but Ray was replaced by Brad Whitford and they added drummer Joey Kramer.

In 1972 they landed a record contract with Columbia Records. As a result, Aerosmith's self-titled debut album was released in the fall of 1973.

Areosmith spent time touring the U.S. and working on their secound album Get Your Wings, it spent a total of 86 weeks on the charts.

Queen are a British rock band formed in London in 1970, originally consisting of Freddie Mercury (lead vocals, piano), Brian May (guitar, vocals), John Deacon (bass guitar), and Roger Taylor (drums, vocals). Queen's earliest works were influenced by progressive rock, hard rock and heavy metal, but the band gradually ventured into more conventional and radio-friendly works, incorporating more diverse and innovative styles in their music.
Before joining Queen, Brian May and Roger Taylor had been playing together in a band named Smile with bassist Tim Staffell. Freddie Mercury (then known as Farrokh/Freddie Bulsara) was a fan of Smile, and encouraged them to experiment with more elaborate stage and recording techniques after Staffell's departure in 1970. Mercury himself joined the band shortly thereafter, changed the name of the band to "Queen", and adopted his familiar stage name. John Deacon was recruited prior to recording their eponymous debut album (1973). Queen enjoyed success in the UK with their debut and its follow-up, Queen II (1974), but it was the release of Sheer Heart Attack (1974) and A Night at the Opera (1975) that gained the band international success. The latter featured "Bohemian Rhapsody", which stayed at number one in the UK Singles Chart for nine weeks; it charted at number one in several other territories, and gave the band their first top ten hit on the US Billboard Hot 100. Their 1977 album, News of the World, contained two of rock's most recognisable anthems, "We Will Rock You" and "We Are the Champions". By the early 1980s, Queen were one of the biggest stadium rock bands in the world, and their performance at 1985's Live Aid is regarded as one of the greatest in rock history. In 1991, Mercury died of bronchopneumonia, a complication of AIDS, and Deacon retired in 1997. Since then, May and Taylor have infrequently performed together, including a collaboration with Paul Rodgers under the name Queen + Paul Rodgers which ended in May 2009.