Who were the "Beatles & Stones" of New Wave?

[korova1]

Finally, Echo and the Bunnymen were the Doors.... and the Doors were always my favorite band of the 60's anyway.

That's a pretty spot-on observation! Or do we both think that just because they covered People Are Strange?

No, I just see a bunch of similarities there between the Doors and EATB. Ian has definitely listened to a few Doors albums... especially on earlier tracks like "Ocean Rain", "My Kingdom", "Over the Wall", "Bedbugs", etc... Their cover of "People Are Strange" is fantastic though. But I loved anything the Bunnymen did, even covers, even their version of "All You Need Is Love."

I agree with all the Clash comments, I just never thought of them as "New Wave". That is why I didn't include 'em. To me they were punk pioneers... so I always think of them that way. They are probably the band I listen to the most nowadays (God, Sandinista gets better and better to me these days).... next to EATB and da Cure.

[Nakedprey]

Depeche Mode and U2 are clearly the winners. U2 basically quintuples Depeche Mode's record sales, but DM still manage to pull an impressive live crowd. In fact, Martin Gore acknowledged that as their record sales decline, their concert attendance seems to go up.

Of course, New Order, R.E.M. and Duran Duran aren't that far behind.

[BuckNaked]

SMITHS!

then...Depeche Mode/Cure

[jumpshift]

XTC - The Beatles
Talking Heads - The Stones

[newwavepopman]

Because of who they were and because of their fantastic songwriting skills I am going to say both Talking Heads and Devo were The Beatles and Rolling Stones from the New Wave era. Devo formed at a time when no other band or artist from the New Wave era got looked upon,and even got the very first exposure on Saturday Night Live,and when you can get on SNL that early way before New Wave actualy caught on worldwide, you really have something then.It's called talent and skills.Mark Mothersbaugh is a genius when it comes to songwriting,and the only other New Wave artist who has the same kind of talent to match him,I feel would be David Byrne.

So to me they would be the Stones and Beatles of New Wave.U2 doesn't even come close to Byrne or to Mark Mothersbaugh.They may have drawn bigger audiences,at the gate,but who really cares about that in the long run,when you have the talent of songwriting skills,and just pure genius like both Byrne and Mothersbaugh have? I can't see anyone touching them as far as talent goes.Maybe Danny Elfman would be a close shoe-in coming in third because of his many talents as well.Heck for that matter I would have to say that The Boomtown Rats because of Bob Geldof's genius,and thought of even starting Band Aid and Live Aid.

It wasn't the talent and idea of U2 to start up both Live Aid and Band Aid.It was Geldof who thought of the idea,along with Midge Ure,so they should really be looked upon as the Beatles and Rolling Stones maybe as well,for even coming up with both ideas.

[dcs84]

I do recall, about 1988, MTV that had this promo clip that asked people in the street what was their favorite band and the answer kept coming back either U2 or INXS. It was also lazily talked up that they were the two 'super groups', and that you either fell into one camp or the other, that's not me saying this MTV said it.

Also I remember a quote....actually I'll go get it *DCS84 gets up from computer, looks in on a rerun of 'JAG' goes to his bookcase and slides out a dogearred copy of a chartbusting mini book from the 80's, cradles it and returns to the computer* ahhh here it is.

"We'd cleaned up on all these awards, especially in Britain last year, and the album had sold hundreds of thousands and we still hadn't had a number one. I'd never thought of us as a singles band particularly, because in an album I think you can explain yourself a lot better, but at the same time it was slightly niggling, and when 'Too Shy' got to number one we said, Right! We'd better write one then hadn't we? That's why 'Something I Should Know' isn't on the third album, because it was a single venture. It was 'Let's write a number one single." - John Taylor.

I'm not at all sure now why I wrote that all down on this thread I guess it demonstrates to a greater or lesser extent that there was rivalry in this case between Kajagoogoo and Duran Duran.

[avcool4u]

If you went to just about any city in the US in the height of the new wave era (which to me, the height would be the time of most common awareness, let's say 1984-1988), which bands would have sold out the biggest shows, everywhere?
I'd have to say U2, Depeche Mode are front runners, with Duran Duran and the Cure hot on their heels. New Order are definitely pioneers of new wave, but they don't compare in popularity to the beatles or the stones. The bands that can still sell out big arenas today are U2 #1, Depeche Mode #2. And I'd have to say that Mode isn't nearly as big anymore, although I've personally been to see Mode 10 times more than I've seen U2.

defining awareness:
If you asked 1000 people on the streets of any big city in 1982 what New Wave was, you'd get a different answer than you'd get in 1984-1988. The Clash, The Smiths, The Ramones, The Cars, The Police, the Sex Pistols, and so many others were hugely instrumental in defining the entirety of New Wave. They don't carry the same common awareness that Depeche Mode and U2 do.

I love it all.
The Beatles and U2 = timeless songwriting.
The Stones are to Rock and Roll as what Depeche Mode are to synthpop/new wave.

-Tobes
Check out my new wave cover band in Western New York:
www.roar84.com

[wontjeffries]

i'd go with duran duran and the police

www.m30.ca/contest/eighties

[Dave]

[quote][i]Originally posted by deethelurker[/i]
<br>Dave: The question should be "Are the Beatles and the Rolling Stones as legendary as people make them out to be?" I mean, if those two bands' primary demographics weren't baby boomers, the most self-centered generation in American history, would the Beatles or the Rolling Stones be viewed as being as mythic and large as they have been? I don't believe so. I think their reach would have been undeniable, but I also think neither of them would have been lionized as frequently or harped on as much. I know that if I see another Beatles or Rolling Stones book published (even though I was a Stones fan in my early youth) I will tear all my hair out and scream and someone will have to put me in a mental institution. And why should the New Wave scene be measured up with the same yardstick as those baby boomer-friendly groups anyway? Part of the allure for New Wave to me is that it's (supposed to be) a genre that's about inventiveness and breaking the rules, drawing from its punk forebearers in its ability to not be that which had previously existed. I suppose that's why I favor New Wave music with synthesizers, really; synths were a NEW thing, a NEW domain, and a part of the New Wave's legendary "break the tradition, break the mold, create new rules" status among those of us of the post-Generation X era. I'm not stating this to make the thread originator feel bad, I'm just asking because this is something I've wondered about for awhile.
[/quote]

Hi Dee,
I'm with you regarding gagging when people raved on and on about the Beatles, the Stones, the Who, Led Zepp and that led me to NW too. (I do like the Beatles, LIKE!) Radio station WLIR adopted the tagline "Dare to be Different" which totally captured the NW spirit. Yet while some people seem to hate it when a band becomes a cross-over hit, I view it as vindication. The same people with smart-ass comments back in the day like 'Who the f--- is U2, the Cure, New Order, etc.?' or 'Why do you listen to that crap?' are the same people spending $200 for a ticket to see Bono et al. Ahhh, sweet vindication [:)]

BTW, I also like synthpop.... LIKE. I love guitar, bass, drums, so put me squarly in the punk/postpunk/powerpop camp. But our camp was just as new and innovative as yours [:p]

[newwavepopman]

The problem I have always had with U2 is that they were never New Wave or Punky enough in their music and songs.I also found them overall to be highly overated like The Police,Men At Work and Inxs.Just my opinion,but I have found quite a few people over the years who have agreed with me that U2 isn't as good as some make them out to be.You can give me The Boomtown Rats,Devo,and Talking Heads over them any day of the week.I also tend not to like or listen to very much alot of commercial top 40 New Wave,very much.


It also depends on who the artist is to me as well.Some bands like Devo,and the Talking Heads,although slightly commercial,they were never ever that top 40 all that much,and their hits were very few and far between.And the hits that Devo had were still in the weird department,when you compare them to a group like Inxs or U2.Still in my mind Devo were the very first ones to have crossed over and were the first ones to be on Saturday Night Live,way before U2 or Inxs made it big.

Devo were experimenters.Not very many New Wave artists were willing to experiment with their music like Devo were.I can recall after and during their very first Saturday Night Live show,people were saying and making comments like who in the heck is this group,or who in the f are these weirdos.I also remember hearing someone say,Mick Jagger must love these guys right now because they are ruining Satisfaction.I too at that time had no idea what Devo were trying to say.

Plus I didn't know anything yet about Devolution and them spreading the word.We are talking 1978 when New Wave wasn't even talked about much,well at least here in the states it wasn't.A year later more and more New Wave songs were getting airplay,and I found myself getting hooked in,and becoming a total New Waver.But before Devo's appearance on SNL nobody in New Wave really got that big push yet before that time.They were innovators.

[Images In Vogue]

I would have to say David Bowie and Roxy Music I believe they were not only two of the pioneers of this genre but were also among the best... As the eighties kicked in I would say it was Depeche Mode and New Order.[:)]

"Saigon...still in Saigon..., Been here a week now, waiting for a mission, getting softer. Every minute I stay in this room, I get weaker, and every minute Charlie squats in the bush, he gets stronger."

[dcappe]

I would go with Duran Duran and The Jesus and Mary Chain
or
World Party and World Party

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