re: Best southern rock band of all time?

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Not the GOAT but I love me some Molly Hatchet

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Me too but probably only the first 2 albums; their sound changed a bit after Danny Joe left.

LS with Ronnie is my #1 choice.

ABB in the mix.

No love for the Charlie Daniels Band?

Took Half The Cops in Dallas County Just to Put One Coonass Boy in Jail

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I don't know if they count but Mule rocks

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I don't know either but Mule does rock. In my mp3 collection, I have them listed as Southern Rock. They're Southern and they're rock; I just don't know if they are Southern rock. I suppose some of their songs are but a lot of them are more straight ahead rock.

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Later Charlie Daniels can be classified as Southern rock, but not the earlier shite

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Early CDB was jazzy, bluesy, and rocked out.

Texas has its own thing going. I don't consider Texas bands part of Southern rock.

ABB was the break through band for southern rock. There is just not a question about it.

Are they more diverse than the fine groups that followed their lead, sure.

Is Synyrd more talented than ABB, don't make me laugh.

Don't get me wrong, I love Synyrd although many of their songs are overplayed and I don't want to hear them anymore. I do think their music is aging very, very well. Their best album IMO is Street Survivors. They were truly growing as a band at the point. If the crash didn't happen and they had continued the path they were on for say three more releases, then we could talk.

But if you are a band you have to play. I went to see them in a southern rock concert in J'ville, they were the headliner and Van Zant was so fricked up he couldn't sing, so they didn't play. The place damn near rioted. Tucker, CDB, Wet Willie and others came out and essentially said frick LS, we are going to rock your arse off and they did. Same thing happened in Phillie but no back up there and the place did riot. So, I tried to see them twice and got fricked twice.

CDB always, always plays their arse off in concert. Fire On The Mountain, Night Ride and Saddle Tramp are classics in my opinion. Do they, as ABB does have elements of different styles of music - jazz, rock, blues, country - absolutely - and that is great. Doesn't mean they are not a southern rock band.

Much respect for MTB as well, they play their hearts out.

A band that I really like and hasn't been mentioned is Wet Willie, they played their asses off as well.

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is it even a competition?

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Not really.

Allman Brothers

Little Feat

Don't care anymore.

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Commercial popularity does not mean "Best." Nothing against LS, but the fact that they are more popular at a NASCAR tailgate doesn't mean they are better.

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I'll grant you that. In most cases I am inclined to believe that album sales and chart positions are not necessarily indicative of talent or musical achievement, but Skynyrd's fan support on a less mainstream and more intimate fan base level still surpasses The Allman Brothers.

Also, if you are going to crucify for bringing up commercial success, then you may want to address the elephant in the room when it comes to the arbitrariness of the title/label "best". "Best" what? Musicians? Entertainers? Innovators? Icons? Songwriters?

The Allman Brothers may have been comprised of better individual positions, though I wouldn't sneeze at classically-trained Billy Powell, guitar prodigy Steve Gaines, or the phenomenal tandem of Gary Rossington and Allen Collins.

And don't compare Lynyrd Skynyrd to the banality of NASCAR. Lynyrd Skynyrd doesn't necessarily appeal to the lowest common denominator of music fans just because it has become ingrained in what you might deem to be "redneck/white trash" culture.

There are some songs in Skynyrd's catalog which are about as good as any in the history of rock, not Southern Rock, rock 'n' roll in its entirety.

Skynard is head and shoulders above any southern rock bands. The songs and live performances by the band in their heyday were unmatched. I think the current jokers touring as Skynyrd are an embarrassment. The best current southern rock band is Blackberry Smoke. If you haven't heard them do yourself a favor and spread the smoke.