The 20 greatest backing bands of all time
It’s easy to focus on the face we recognise. David Bowie, Bob Dylan, Elvis Costello, Bob Marley – are all iconic figures whose names we can immediately attach to their body of work. But what about the musicians behind the scenes, the drummers peaking out from behind a rack of toms, or the guitarist bathed in a wash of impenetrable dry ice? What about the musicians who, even with their astonishing virtuosity, felt content to sit back and let somebody else take all the glory? Well, let me tell you, their time has come.
It’s easy to underestimate the role of backing bands. Still, music history is littered with examples in which the talent of backing musicians has allowed an artist to reach new heights in their career and in their creative output.
Without acts like The Band, Bob Dylan wouldn’t have had the courage to go electric in the latter half of the 1960s. Nor would Elvis Costello have had the freedom to write new-wave hits you could actually dance to.
It’s hard to define what makes the perfect backing band but, it would seem to be something along the lines of: excellent musicianship, a lack of arrogance, and that indescribable quality known only as “chemistry.” Without chemistry, a backing band merely fades into, well, the background.
It’s essential that the musicians behind a solo act are able to elevate the soloist’s performance somehow. One way to do that is to imbue their performance with a sense of theatre – something that convinces the audience that the group of musicians on stage must have been born from the self-same seed.
All of the bands on this list do that in some way, so join us as we look at the 20 greatest backing bands of all time.
The 20 greatest backing bands of all time:
20. The Commotions
When Lloyd cole set about forming his incredible backing band The Commotions, few would have suspected that the group would become a cultural touchpoint for a generation of music lovers. Formed in the tenement buildings of Glasgow in the 1980s, the group provided a perfect run of pop-rock singles, including their debut ‘Perfect Skin’, which announced the act back in 1984.
Featuring ‘Perfect Skin’ on the debut LP, Rattlesnakes would go on to become a defining album of the decade. The band would continue to back Cole for the majority of his career.
19. Blue Caps
Gene Vincent is, without a doubt, one of the pivotal figures in the world of music. A bonafide pin-up and arguably the man who gave a whole host of stars their first dose of testosterone-fuelled rock — Paul McCartney and David Bowie, to name but two — Vincent wouldn’t have been half the landmark performer he was without his powerful backing band, The Blue Caps.
Vincent was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1998, and it is a crying shame that it took 14 years to retroactively add his backing band to the ballot. However, they now rightly have their spot in history, not only for being a high-quality group but for providing the world with ‘Be-Bop-A-Lula’, one of the defining songs of the century.
18. Double Trouble
Standing up to the spotlight is a rugged mountain to master when you have a rock icon as a frontman. This was the notion that faced Stevie Ray Vaughan and his band, Double Trouble. SRV was quickly touted as “the next Jimi Hendrix” as soon as his string-bending blues came to the fore via David Bowie. But Double Trouble became a hugely respected blues band years before that moment.
However, with Vaughan as the frontman, the group were destined to spend some time in the shadows. Somehow, the group managed to do that while still shining bright enough to illuminate Blackpool on a misty Monday morning. The members of the band were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2015.
17. The Blockheads
A certain set of music lovers will happily stand in front of you and proclaim Ian Dury as one of the foremost poets of his day. An unafraid and uncharacteristically eloquent anarchist, Dury brought a sense of punk to pop that invigorated an audience bored with both in the late 1970s. While Dury would act as the rather large, mouthpiece of the group, behind him was one of the funkiest incarnations of the British spirit the decade had ever known.
The Blockheads, who continued with their own journey following Dury’s tragic passing in 2000, are still thankfully thought of as a pivotal group. Featuring Chaz Jankel, Norman Watt-Roy, John Turnbull, Mick Gallagher, John Roberts, and Gilad Atzmon, among many others, the group is bristling with energy as soon as the needle drops, never relenting or allowing the dancing feet of its audience to stop.
16. The Voidoids
The Voidoids are the archetypal punk band. Refreshingly unbothered by your or our opinion, the band provided the perfect backing to the sardonic genius of Richard Hell while only existing for a comparatively short time. Initially only together for three years, the band resume their anarchic sound every decade to ensure they don’t run out of leathers and remind the world of just how fantastic the song ‘Blank Generation’ is.
Featuring Ivan Julian, Robert Quine and Marc Bell alongside Hell, the group became the definition of New York cool. They cemented their representation as a foundational punk outfit when they became the first rock band to play the infamous CBGB club.
15. The Banshees
When Siouxsie Sioux sat around the SEX shop on King’s Road, surrounded by a catalogue of eccentric characters all trying to make it in their respective fields of fashion, art and music, she must have quickly realised that, without a band by her side, she was going nowhere fast. Thankfully, with the help of a few accommodating punks, she would get herself a group together (featuring Sid Vicious on drums) and take a ragged and ruthless performance to the stage of The 100 Club.
While Steve Severin would be Sioux; steadfast partner, the group would also welcome a whole set of important faces from the post-punk movement, including Budgie, John McGeoch and future-Cure frontman Robert Smith. Their dark and unusual sound would make The Banshees one of the more unique entries on our list and while their sonic output may not be traditional, they backed Siouxsie Sioux — a born star — efficiently enough to become cultural revolutionaries.
14. The Family Stone
Never given anywhere near the credit, their soul-flecked sounds deserved Sly and The Family Stone deserve to be buried under such high-quality praise. The band, born in the trendy suburbs of San Francisco and buoyed by the enigmatic leadership of frontman Sly Stone, are a foundational brick in so many of our favourite genres, including soul, funk, rock and psychedelia.
Active from 1966 through to 1983, the group were as able to blend the many genres of their favourite performers as they provided a show-stopping performance. The band championed a sincere blurring of genre boundaries and began creating music specifically aimed at Black culture, providing a watermark moment in the process.
13. Bluesbreakers
When perusing the tomes of rock and roll history, you’ll be hard-pressed to find a band as influential as The Bluesbreakers. Without them, the world would likely have never seen the full potential of artists such as The Yardbirds, Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page and Led Zeppelin. the fulcrum of the British scene in the 1960s, the group, has featured some of the greatest rock and rollers this small island has ever produced.
Eric Clapton, Peter Green, Mick Fleetwood, Mick Taylor and Jack Bruce, among many others, can all be regarded as pivotal members of the band, and that’s without truly acknowledging their huge influence. For pure, raw and unadulterated talent, it’s hard to look too far past the Bluesbreakers and their most famous leader John Mayall.
12. The Heartbreakers
Tom Petty’s contribution to music is rightly considered some of the largest made by a single performer. The beating heart of American rock, Petty’s long and storied career was littered with hits and landmark moments. While Petty would enjoy a sterling solo career, looking back, you’ll find that the majority of his major successes were built with the help of his noble band, The Heartbreakers.
Not to be confused with Johnny Thunders’ backing band, the group a proficient in providing a rock sound that both pays homage to the greats of yonder and delivers a fresh new take. Featuring musical maestro Mike Campbell, the group was a behemoth in the booth and helped Petty gain the largest slice of the pop music pie.
11. The Bad Seeds
If you’ve been paying attention, you’ll find that we have a special spot of affection saved for pretty much anything Nick Cave does. Aside from making the odd, strange “favourite movie” call, the suited figure has long been an arbitrator of taste we will always listen to. And, when it comes to backing bands, we’re all ears once more, as The Bad Seeds rightfully take one of our more coveted spots.
Started by Cave with former bandmate from The Birthday Party, Mick Harvey, and the experimental musician Blixa Bargeld, The Bad Seeds would operate as an extension of Cave’s former group. However, with the addition, most notably of Warren Ellis, the group would begin to function at a high standard, allowing the nuanced ideas of Cave and Ellis to unfurl across the airwaves with a previously unheard dexterity.
10. The Mothers Of Invention
Frank Zappa’s legendary backing band kick off the list. With his superhuman musical virtuosity, Zappa could well have got by without a backing band at all. Instead, he decided to use The Mothers Of Invention to create some of the most pioneering avant-rock of the 1960s and ’70s.
Formed in 1964, the group was originally an R&B outfit known as The Soul Giants. The Mothers Of Invention went through many incarnations before becoming the band that would help Zappa achieve critical and commercial success with the 1966 album Freak Out!
9. The Blackhearts
Joan Jett’s The Blackhearts represented a new gender dynamic within rock music. Alongside Blondie, Joan Jett and The Blackhearts demonstrated that women could own the stage with as much fuck-you vigour as any man.
Although Jett had been signed to perform independently, she didn’t want to go anywhere without The Blackhearts and continued to perform with them throughout her incendiary career. Featuring Ricky Byrd, Gary Ryan, Thommy Price, Lee Crystal, The Blackhearts helped Joan Jett craft some of rock’s most recognisable anthems.
8. Crazy Horse
Neil Young’s discography is filled to the brim with phenomenal tracks, but the most formative were those he performed with the help of Crazy Horse. Born from the ashes of the Rockets, Crazy Horse gave energy and vitality to Young’s studio recordings, allowing them to endure to this day.
Their work on Niel Young’s early recordings filled in all the necessary sonic detailing without overdoing it. As Young would later say: “Crazy Horse was so good with the two guitars, bass and drums it didn’t need anything else.” Crazy Horse continued to work with Young on and off throughout the subsequent decades, but their best work remains an integral part of the 1960s and ‘70s.
7. The Wailers
Not many backing bands can claim such legendary status as The Wailers. With their work supporting Bob Markey, the reggae band occupy an essential part in musical history.
The original group was made up of Bob Marley, Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer. But when The original Wailers broke up, Marley decided to form a new version that would go on to back one of reggae’s greatest pioneers throughout his career.
6. The Spiders From Mars
People underestimate the importance of Bowie’s backing band The Spiders From Mars. Bowie’s charismatic ‘Ziggy Stardust’ persona was understandably all-consuming, and, as a result, The Spiders are often not given the recognition they deserve.
As well as imbuing Bowie’s live performances with a mesmerising theatricality, the guitarist, Mick Ronson, was a classically trained musician who wrote many of the orchestral arrangements speckled throughout Bowie’s discography. The group would excel in their role and provide the alien life form with a penchant for rock and roll the ample backing he needed to complete his vision.
5. The Attractions
Elvis Costello’s gang of angsty nerds, The Attractions, helped the singer achieve critical acclaim with his sophomore album This Year’s Model. Whilst His debut, My Aim Is True, contains iconic tracks such as ‘Alison’, his second record took things to the next level.
The musicianship of Steve Nieve, Bruce Thomas and Peter Thomas allowed Costello to write songs steeped in the new-wave tradition whilst capturing the infectious grooves of Motown, two-tone and reggae. Highlights of The Attractions’ work with Costello include ‘Everyday I Write The Book’ and ‘(I Don’t Want To) Go To Chelsea’.
4. The Revolution
You need only watch Prince’s performance of ‘Purple Rain’ at the 1985 American Music Awards to understand why The Revolution deserve a place on this list. The backing group gained recognition after starring alongside Prince in the movie of Purple Rain and developed an intoxicating mythos.
As well as helping Prince to write some of his biggest hits, The Revolution added a theatrical flair to the musician’s live performances, solidifying themselves as one of the most watchable live acts of all time. They’ve rightly gone down as pivotal members of pop surge in the 1980s and their legacy has rarely dimmed since.
3. The J.B’s
Acting as James Brown’s backing band throughout the 1970s and ‘80s, The J.B’s played an essential role in producing some of the most influential funk records of the era. It’s impossible to imagine the existence of hip-hop, disco, or drum ‘n’ bass without the polyphonic grooves created by The J.B’s twin drummers Jabo Starks and Clyde Stubblefield.
The group backed James Brown on some of his most legendary records, including ‘Get Up (I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine’ and ‘Soul Power’. The lineup of the J.B’s has featured such names as Fred Wesley, Maceo Parker, Bootsy Collins, and St. Clair Pinckney.
2. E Street Band
To call the E Streets “Bruce Springsteen’s backing band” would be an incredible understatement. Arguably, they were the key to Springsteen’s success, imbuing his tracks with energy and stunning virtuosity. The subsequent solo careers of the E Street Band’s members is a testament to their musical talent.
As well as embarking on solo careers, they have backed countless other acts, including David Bowie, Aretha Franklin, Emmylou Harris, Lou Reed, and Paul McCartney, just to name a few.
1. The Band
The Band top this list because they are the only backing group able to successfully redefine themselves as an act in their own right. The Band’s career was born out of Bob Dylan’s controversial 1966 world tour, in which he put down the acoustic guitar and picked up the electric. During this tour, at a concert in Manchester, Dylan would be called “Judas!” by a particularly disgruntled member of the audience.
It was a baptism of fire for The Band, and from that point onward, Dylan returned to the musicians time and time again. The group played (officially) on three of Dylan’s albums before making a name for themselves with tracks like ‘The Night They Drive Old Dixie Down’ and ‘The Weight’. With their debut album Music From The Big Pink, The Band redefined the meaning of Americana music, which, considering they hailed from Canada, is pretty ironic.
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