The Latin-American rock band Santana was formed in San Francisco in 1966 by Mexican-American guitarist and songwriter Carlos Santana. The group is one of the best-selling bands of all time, with roughly 100 million albums sold. With 25 released albums to date, the group’s success continues even today, with Carlos Santana at the lead from the very beginning.
Santana helped revolutionize the breadth and scope of Chicano rock with elements of blues, Latin, jazz, and even psychedelics for the last five decades and shows no signs of stopping.
Recommended Listening: Santana became a superstar at the 1969 Woodstock music festival when they played the iconic “Soul Sacrifice,” a combination of amazing organ beats with the lead’s piercing guitar solos. Sacrifice the time; it will be worth it to enjoy this one.
Boston
The hard rock band from Boston was founded by multi-instrumentalist Tom Scholz and became a staple of classic rock over the years. Tom Scholz, who played most of the instruments in the band's debut album, helped create some of the band's most well-known songs, which include "Rock and Roll Band," "Smokin'," "Amanda," "Peace of Mind," and many more.
Boston went on to sell over 75 million albums worldwide, which makes it one of the world's best-selling musical groups. A common theme in their album covers is a guitar-shaped spaceship with the band's name on it. The band still tours and performs after over 40 years of rocking and was ranked the 63rd-best rock artist by VH1.
Recommended Listening: “More Than a Feeling,” the band’s most iconic song, is also considered one of their best. The song contains one of rock's most popular riffs and choruses and also discusses one of the band's favorite topics, which is the transcendental effects of music.
The White Stripes
The American duo from Detroit, Michigan, The White Stripes, was formed in 1997 and consisted of Jack White as the songwriter, vocalist, guitarist, pianist, and on the mandolin, as well as Meg White as the drummer and singer. The band gained its fame in 2002, at a time when garage rock was experiencing its revival. The band's successful and critically acclaimed single "Seven Nation Army" became the band's signature song, with its iconic opening riff being recognized just about anywhere in the world.
The duo disbanded in 2011 after a lengthy hiatus and has not been active since. What made the White Stripes so unique was their mix of garage rock and blues with very simple composition, arrangements, and performance. Visually they were quite a sight to be seen because of their artistic fashion decision to only wear the colors of red, white, and black in accordance with the band's style. These colors appear in every album cover and fashion choices for the duo while performing live. Their last three albums all won a Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album.
Recommended Listening: Probably our shortest favorite song of all time, The White Stripes' "Fell In Love With A Girl" manages to capture the energy and sound of a late '60s rock song while remaining modern enough to make us feel like teenagers all over again. This is the band at its best.
Fleetwood Mac
American-British rock band, Fleetwood Mac, is one of the world's best-selling bands of all time. The band created a massive international following and a unique musical style that combines rock, pop, and blues. Originally founded by guitarist Peter Green, drummer Mick Fleetwood, and guitarist Jeremy Spencer, the band went on to capture the hearts of both UK and US music fans.
The band continues to be active today and has won several Grammys and British awards for its sensational music. Their relaxed musical style helped bridge the gap between American and British music. After a recent concert, musical host Heather Keats said: "(listening to the show) was like one big party." Heather further described the experience saying: "The audience was singing along to most of the songs; everyone was enjoying themselves, including the band."
Recommended Listening: Our favorite Fleetwood Mac song is the angry yet uplifting "Go Your Own Way," which was released in 1977. The song is an amazing showcase of Lindsey's guitar skills and is probably the best song to hear after a tough breakup.
The Stooges
The Stooges, also known as Iggy and the Stooges, were one of the more raw and primitive types of rock and roll bands of the '60s and '70s. Known for their confrontational shows and acts of on-stage self-mutilation by lead singer Iggy Pop, the band gained a reputation for their punk rock style and intense proto-punk acts.
The band was highly influential and inspired many other rock and metal bands (such as Rage Against the Machine and Slayer) with their music.
Recommended Listening: The band's top song is, in our opinion, "Search and Destroy," a vicious song that perfectly showcases the band's aggressive style and performance. Next time you listen to it, remember it was released in the early '70s. Yikes!