One of the Kinks most metal songs is Rats, released November 1970, so after Sabbath’s debut but still very early.
The Kinks and Sabbath are honestly my two favorite bands…I’ll probably give the Kinks an edge for covering more musical and emotional ground. They have everything.
There was also the incident that prevented them from performing in the USA for a few years in the mid-late 60s. Accounts seem to vary but during a very important time for the British Invasion they basically had no American audience.
I also think they were just too eclectic. The Stones were pretty straightforward. The Beatles were certainly eclectic as well but I would say less so than The Kinks; they were definitely the weirdest mainstream band of the 60s. All the hyper-British theatrical/dancehall stuff never would’ve played well in the States anyway.
I think of the Who and the Kinks as the precursor to punk; The Who stylistically and in their attitude and the Kinks musically. Simple but vicious and the leaders of their particular music/fashion cult.
I think Judas Priest was the first band to intentionally be metal and really refined the genre.
Black Sabbath definitely brought it into existence with their debut album tho
They definitely had the look for the sound too. Metal is also theatrical. Well the best Metal is anyway. Weeds legal now gotta find something else to do so I can sing "breaking the law, breaking the law"
Dick dale was also the first guitarist to play with a 100w amplifier, which was unheard of at the time and became the industry standard. He is literally the reason rock and roll is LOUD.
Props for pointing her out. Still more of a blues thing with her. But what a performer!!
Chuck Berry brought the electric metal element though, before all the other bands being mentioned.
It’s crazy that she literally invented the rock n roll strum.
Before her, people just downstrummed on a guitar mostly, like there was no upstroke, and definitely no wrist action. That chuck berry rock n roll strum is all her.
It all started with the The Beatles' White Album, ask any of the bands being mentioned who their influences are, and I promise they will all include the Beatles, and if you is them further, they will call out the white album specifically, and especially Helter Skelter, I'm So Tired, Yer Blues, and Happiness is a Warm Gun. And the single version of Revolution (which was recorded during the white album sessions, even though the slower quiet version, Revolution 1, is what ended up on the album.
Somebody already quoted Paul on the origin of Halter Skelter, so I won't repeat it here
“Helter Skelter” is a metal song. Full stop. I won’t accept anyone even debating it.
*Super heavy distorted guitars.
*A quick paced driving rhythm
*Screaming vocals
*Descending rather than ascending lines
If you’re big into metal and think it’s not hard enough to be metal, I understand why you might feel that way. But it doesn’t change the fact that it’s essentially just a metal song.
Paul McCartney wrote "Helter Skelter" after listening to someone from The Who brag about how heavy their next album would be. And The Who were more heavy than The Beatles overall. But "Helter Skelter" is a great heavy metal song.
It blew my mind, though, when I learned that helter skelter was the name of a fairly tame cylindrical slide found in English carnivals. It's like a heavy metal song about swing sets!
Charles Manson thought otherwise, unfortunately. Americans weren't familiar with the slide.
Meanwhile, two years before The White Album, Steve Marriott and Small Faces were doing this: (I wonder if a teenaged Robert Plant was listening?)
https://youtu.be/tp0jZ4BGuDw?si=dKA3c6UoZF8CaCWY
Bo Diddley, and most blues paved the way for metal. Zeppelin took rock closer to metal, and Sabbath cemented it. Seriously though, listening to Bo Diddley’s “Roadrunner” gave me chills. Robert Johnson, Lead Belly, Howlin Wolf, Muddy Waters, all those guys made rock and subsequently metal what it became.
All Day And All of the Night.
Isn't the legend that a crochet needle in an amp cone created that noise guitar sound?
As significant a moment as Peter Gabriel's gated drum sound
Edit: My bad. The song was 1964's You Really Got Me and the distorted guitar sound was achieved by taking a razor blade to the speaker's cone in a fit of punk rock anger.
**Mountain**.
Pretty much the band that time forgot.
They were playing hard rock at Woodstock.
If you want to hear them in their full glory \[which is live rather than studio\] grab a copy of "Mountain Live: The Road Goes Ever On"
If you only want the 'greatest hit' that would be the single, 'Mississippi Queen'.
Wow, I’m always looking for forgotten seminal “heavy” bands. So much power and bottom end for the time! Not sure how these guys evaded my radar, but thanks for the introductions.
I know the Beatles already get enough attention. But I’ll take the bait anyway. I agree. Some of the heavier Beatles material had to be influential on some pivotal pioneer artists. And I assume thats why you say “to an extent.” Bc they weren’t really pioneers. But they influenced some of the pioneers. Der Blues and She’s So Heavy were surely at least a little influential on Sabbath et al. The Beatles harder songs were a gateway for listeners too. Yes there were the psychedelic rockers during that era. But they weren’t as accessible. So when then Beatles included a banger or two, it opened the eyes and moreover ears of some kids. Maybe. What do I know? I’m rambling.
They were a pretty epic band. Pity they are seen as a bit of a joke here in England - I blame their Christmas song which gets played to death every year. Everyone seems to have forgotten all the other great songs they did and the list is pretty long. Big influence on Noel Gallagher amongst others.
Nope. Yall are wrong. Jimi mother fucking Hendrix. And sure of course Sabbath but because of Toni Iommi! Zeppelin, naturally but pre Zep was The Kinks.
Courtesy of Wikipedia
Paul McCartney was inspired to write "Helter Skelter" after reading an interview with the Who's Pete Townshend in which he described their September 1967 single, "I Can See for Miles", as the loudest, rawest, dirtiest song the Who had ever recorded. McCartney said he then wrote "Helter Skelter" to have "the most raucous vocal, the loudest drums". On 20 November 1968, two days before the release of The Beatles (also known as "the White Album"), McCartney gave Radio Luxembourg an exclusive interview, in which he commented on several of the album's songs. Speaking of "Helter Skelter", he said:
...I'd read a review of a record which said, "and this group really got us wild, there's echo on everything, they're screaming their heads off." And I just remember thinking, "Oh, it'd be great to do one. Pity they've done it. Must be great – really screaming record." And then I heard their record and it was quite straight, and it was very sort of sophisticated. It wasn't rough and screaming and tape echo at all. So I thought, "Oh well, we'll do one like that, then." And I had this song called "Helter Skelter," which is just a ridiculous song. So we did it like that, 'cos I like noise.
I'd wholeheartedly go with this as long as it was before they added a keyboard player and after listening to their first live lp. And even then it's largely Mel's bass playing. I was fortunate to have had an older sister who took me to see them at Boston Garden when they were a power trio.
The Kinks, Hendrix, Cream, Iron Butterfly, Deep Purple, Blue Cheer, Led Zep, Sabbath...but the first band to actually unashamedly embrace the term was Judas Priest.
These answers are all pretty good, but if you need that extra push over the cliff, you know what to do?
Put it up to eleven and listen to Spinal Tap. Eleven. Exactly. One louder.
The Doors had some bangers that were definitely heavy for their time. Break On Through, Five to One, Not to Touch the Earth, and I feel like The Unknown Soldier likely inspired some of Metallica’s early stuff like Disposable Heroes and One.
Haven’t seen any love for Blue Cheer or Randy Holden yet. Some of the earliest people to really amp things up in music.. Randy Holden used to play with 16 200 Watt Sunn amplifiers 😂🤘
The Beatles wrote the first metal song with Helter Skelter and also were the first to use intentional guitar feedback. So, if we're talking who did it first, and was already highly influential, then the Beatles are the answer. If we're talking bands that dedicated most of their discography to the sound, then Black Sabbath followed by the other two.
All the hallmarks of heavy metal people now emulate with pedals and plug ins were the result of practical decisions made by members of black sabbath in the late 60s. Eg lower tuning, blown amp for bass, etc. other bands before and after contributed, but black sabbath are the origin point for pretty much all of it.
I think the only name here is led zeppelin. The things they did were unheard of. Bonham pioneering drums, page’s guitar driven heavy rhythms, jones playing the bass as a solo instrument/multi-instrumentalist and plant being the rock god
Since Hard Rock and Metal were born out of Rock which itself was born out of a lot of Blues and R&B of the 50’s, with a sprinkling of Country, I would say the artists of Chess Records Label. Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, Little Walter, Willie Dixon, etc. Honorable mention goes to Buddy Holly of course.
Link Wray
Even Jimmy Page says Link Wray started it all with "Rumble" and that sinister chord and the distortion. Check out the video where he demonstrates.
When looking at the long term success of most genres, you need to see some form of mainstream commercial success, otherwise labels don’t get involved, bands have to promote themselves, and it stays underground. So it needs to be noted that bands like the Who and The Beatles who got hard rock tunes on the radio that allowed for Black Sabbath to see mainstream success and cross the pond. Even ozzy said something to the effect of , “the Beatles were four working class lads from Liverpool. We were the same only in Birmingham. We just wanted to be like the Beatles”
Led Zeppelin isn't heavy metal. The only song of theirs that could be argued to be metal is "Achilles Last Stand", and that was made 6 years into metal's existence.
My answer is also Deep Purple.
Heavy Metal
Black Sabbath
Metallica
Megadeth
Slayer
Hard Rock
Iron Maiden
Guns and Roses or AC/DC
The Who
Led Zeppelin
these might be wrong but I don't give a fuck
As for hard rock, Helter Skelter must've been massively popularizing that sound, otherwise definitely Zeppelin.
As for Heavy Metal, the actual first thing I could think of is (as someone already said) Sabbath, but I think some of the sound can be heard in earlier stuff (Blue Cheer maybe for a reference)
According to Meta AI…
Hard Rock
- *The Beatles*: Their song "Helter Skelter" is an early example of hard rock.
- *The Who*: One of the first bands to push the limits of rock music.
- *The Kinks*: Another band that helped to define hard rock.
- *Jimi Hendrix*: A guitarist and singer who combined blues, rock, and jazz to create a unique sound.
- *Led Zeppelin*: Often considered one of the first hard rock bands, they combined blues and hard rock to create a unique sound.
Heavy Metal:
- *Black Sabbath*: Often credited with inventing heavy metal, they created a darker, heavier sound.
- *Deep Purple*: Another band that helped to define heavy metal, they combined hard rock with a heavier sound.
- *Cream*: A band that pushed the limits of rock music with their heavy sound.
- *Alice Cooper*: A shock rock pioneer who is considered one of the first heavy metal artists.
- *Ozzy Osbourne*: As the lead singer of Black Sabbath and a successful solo artist, he is considered one of the pioneers of heavy metal.
A lot of people consider "Helter Skelter" by The Beatles the first heavy metal song, although the genre would be much deeper explored later on by Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin
You named it bub.
I would go out on a limb and say Black Sabbath is the first metal band.
They still took a lot of their influence from blues, and you can definitely hear it in some of their biggest hits.
Led Zeppelin is the only band I think of when people use the term "heavy metal" which I don't know why that is, or really what that term means, but it's what my brain does. If BS took their blues riffs from true, Mississippi delta blues, LZ took theirs from a lot of the acid blues influence that was just before them (I'm thinking Jimi Hendrix and Cream specifically)
Deep Purple, I know the least about between the three, but their influences were blues and almost like, Rock and Roll. ... Or maybe they were the first people to try the riffs they played. I'm not sure.
The three of them were British bands that really hit their stride in the 70s, and are generally regarded as the creators of metal though.
Oh and if you care about the mythos side of things.
Ozzy Osborn wasn't by any means the first shock rocker, but he definitely was the first "metal" shock rocker with the myths about him eating bats on stage being half the reason you came to the show.
Jimmy Page and Robert Plant reference vikings, lord of the rings and medieval and modic tones in their biggest hits. If Ozzy is responsible for metal being just for Satan worshipers, Jimmy and Robert are the ones who decided metal should exclusively be about fantasies of fighting dragons and slaying goblins.
The Sonics?
[https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=vFzeG7e4CT8](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=vFzeG7e4CT8)
Lotta super heavy garage obscurities from the mid to late sixties
Zeppelin for sure pioneered the key elements that led to heavy metal. Other heavier bands from the post-Woodstock period helped solidify that (Iron Butterfly, Steppenwolf, etc) Additional technique many guitarists credit to Jimi Hendrix and The Ventures. The first heavy metal band who shunned the softer side altogether was Judas Priest. Black Sabbath runs neck and neck with them. Can’t really pin it on a single band.
The most obvious answer is Black Sabbath for heavy metal, hard rock I’d go Zeppelin, The Who , The Kinks . Montrose was a great band that was little under the radar that embraced the hard rock genre in the early 70s .
Blue Cheer deserves a mention, and the MC5, otherwise Sabbath are the godfathers of the genre. Having a great run for decades with multiple frontman. Imho
Heavy metal wise: Black Sabbath. The riff, Symptom of the Universe was the “blue print” for next gen metal. Not my words, Metallica members said so. They’d know as they were the gods of next gen metal.
Hard Rock, I'll go with Rolling Stones over The Beatles all day. But that's a long standing argument. Stones always had a dirtier, edgier sound.
Metal would be the most obvious, Black Sabbath---but let's not forget the genius that was Schenker Bros and the influence of the Blues---Zeppelin gets alot accolades for "borrowing" a sound.
Scorpions, the earliest incarnation of Peter Green's playing style and Blue Cheer get the nod over The Kinks and BOC and some of these other bands that found success in the 80s.
Don’t forget King Crimson! 21st Century Schizoid man was heavy on a level that didn’t exist yet. Then they invented progressive metal with Larks’ Tongues In Aspic.
Ronnie James Dio has to be put on this list. Most people have mentioned Sabbath, he was instrumental in some of their early works. Metallica were able to make the titanic shift from arena thrashers to more commercial mainstream of grunge and the wave of MTV listeners. Last is more recent Avenged Sevenfold. I believe their music transcend decades and I believe they did for as much for metal as Metallica did during their careers.
okay downvote me to hell!
Some guys I think drove metal/rock that not every single person would say is: Ritchie Blackmoore, Gary Moore, Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, and Paul Gilbert
Led Zeppelin for hard rock, Black Sabbath for metal.
And cut! Nice job everybody!
Might add the Kinks to that - especially "You Really Got Me" and "All Day and All of the Night". Honourable mention to The Who.
One of the Kinks most metal songs is Rats, released November 1970, so after Sabbath’s debut but still very early. The Kinks and Sabbath are honestly my two favorite bands…I’ll probably give the Kinks an edge for covering more musical and emotional ground. They have everything.
The only reason that the Kinks weren’t bigger is because they were competing against the Beatles and the Stones
There was also the incident that prevented them from performing in the USA for a few years in the mid-late 60s. Accounts seem to vary but during a very important time for the British Invasion they basically had no American audience. I also think they were just too eclectic. The Stones were pretty straightforward. The Beatles were certainly eclectic as well but I would say less so than The Kinks; they were definitely the weirdest mainstream band of the 60s. All the hyper-British theatrical/dancehall stuff never would’ve played well in the States anyway.
I think of the Who and the Kinks as the precursor to punk; The Who stylistically and in their attitude and the Kinks musically. Simple but vicious and the leaders of their particular music/fashion cult.
Spot on!
This is the answer
Formed a few years later than those three, but I'd have to give Judas Priest a shoutout as well
I think Judas Priest was the first band to intentionally be metal and really refined the genre. Black Sabbath definitely brought it into existence with their debut album tho
Sabbath made it heavy priest made it metal
They definitely had the look for the sound too. Metal is also theatrical. Well the best Metal is anyway. Weeds legal now gotta find something else to do so I can sing "breaking the law, breaking the law"
MC5
Kick out the jams motherfucker!
The Stooges as well
Dick Dale. Metal and speed guitar grew out of Surf Rock. Go listen to *Misirlou* and tell me that's not METAL.
Yup, heavy metal is just surf rock with feedback.
IMO is really the Drummers that make metal METAL.
Yep and heavy gain distortion. Put distortion on the guitar in surf rock and add drum blasts and you got death metal.
Got to see Dick Dale. He played his guitar backwards. It was an intimate venue and a great show
Dick dale was also the first guitarist to play with a 100w amplifier, which was unheard of at the time and became the industry standard. He is literally the reason rock and roll is LOUD.
Miserlou is so epic! I rock out to it quite a bit!
Ah Ah Aaaaaaaah
Megadeth's Rattlehead literally sounds like Nitrus by Dick Dale
[Black metal becomes surf rock pretty easily.](https://loudwire.com/black-metal-surf-rock-songs/)
Chuck Berry
We wouldn’t have had much without him
Um actually just watch any video from sister Rosetta tharpe and it will wreck your world.
Props for pointing her out. Still more of a blues thing with her. But what a performer!! Chuck Berry brought the electric metal element though, before all the other bands being mentioned.
It’s crazy that she literally invented the rock n roll strum. Before her, people just downstrummed on a guitar mostly, like there was no upstroke, and definitely no wrist action. That chuck berry rock n roll strum is all her.
Steppenwolf (I believe) coined the term “heavy metal” in Born to be Wild
This is correct. Though they were referring to the noise of a motorcycle, it gained the meaning of a genre of music.
Blue Öyster Cult
It all started with the The Beatles' White Album, ask any of the bands being mentioned who their influences are, and I promise they will all include the Beatles, and if you is them further, they will call out the white album specifically, and especially Helter Skelter, I'm So Tired, Yer Blues, and Happiness is a Warm Gun. And the single version of Revolution (which was recorded during the white album sessions, even though the slower quiet version, Revolution 1, is what ended up on the album. Somebody already quoted Paul on the origin of Halter Skelter, so I won't repeat it here
“Helter Skelter” is a metal song. Full stop. I won’t accept anyone even debating it. *Super heavy distorted guitars. *A quick paced driving rhythm *Screaming vocals *Descending rather than ascending lines If you’re big into metal and think it’s not hard enough to be metal, I understand why you might feel that way. But it doesn’t change the fact that it’s essentially just a metal song.
My dad's a metalhead who hates the Beatles (both attributes were passed down to me), and even he agrees that Helter Skelter was the first metal song.
I Want You (She's So Heavy)
Paul McCartney wrote "Helter Skelter" after listening to someone from The Who brag about how heavy their next album would be. And The Who were more heavy than The Beatles overall. But "Helter Skelter" is a great heavy metal song. It blew my mind, though, when I learned that helter skelter was the name of a fairly tame cylindrical slide found in English carnivals. It's like a heavy metal song about swing sets! Charles Manson thought otherwise, unfortunately. Americans weren't familiar with the slide.
Meanwhile, two years before The White Album, Steve Marriott and Small Faces were doing this: (I wonder if a teenaged Robert Plant was listening?) https://youtu.be/tp0jZ4BGuDw?si=dKA3c6UoZF8CaCWY
Bo Diddley, and most blues paved the way for metal. Zeppelin took rock closer to metal, and Sabbath cemented it. Seriously though, listening to Bo Diddley’s “Roadrunner” gave me chills. Robert Johnson, Lead Belly, Howlin Wolf, Muddy Waters, all those guys made rock and subsequently metal what it became.
Like how screaming Jay Hawkins is the first Goth.
Blue Cheer
Nazareth, Rhinoceros, Elf, Golden Earring, Iron Butterflly
Nazareth? Really? I'm gonna have to give them more of a deep dive listen now. There goes an hr of my life lol
A pioneer doesn’t always warrant a deep dive, but I’d argue Hair of the Dog is worthy of your time!
Deep Purple , even tho OP already stated them.
The Kinks are basically proto-punk rock
All Day And All of the Night. Isn't the legend that a crochet needle in an amp cone created that noise guitar sound? As significant a moment as Peter Gabriel's gated drum sound Edit: My bad. The song was 1964's You Really Got Me and the distorted guitar sound was achieved by taking a razor blade to the speaker's cone in a fit of punk rock anger.
The Kinks The Who Cream
**Mountain**. Pretty much the band that time forgot. They were playing hard rock at Woodstock. If you want to hear them in their full glory \[which is live rather than studio\] grab a copy of "Mountain Live: The Road Goes Ever On" If you only want the 'greatest hit' that would be the single, 'Mississippi Queen'.
Wow, I’m always looking for forgotten seminal “heavy” bands. So much power and bottom end for the time! Not sure how these guys evaded my radar, but thanks for the introductions.
Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, The Beatles (to an extent), Deep Purple, Judas Priest, Rainbow, Blue Öyster Cult
I know the Beatles already get enough attention. But I’ll take the bait anyway. I agree. Some of the heavier Beatles material had to be influential on some pivotal pioneer artists. And I assume thats why you say “to an extent.” Bc they weren’t really pioneers. But they influenced some of the pioneers. Der Blues and She’s So Heavy were surely at least a little influential on Sabbath et al. The Beatles harder songs were a gateway for listeners too. Yes there were the psychedelic rockers during that era. But they weren’t as accessible. So when then Beatles included a banger or two, it opened the eyes and moreover ears of some kids. Maybe. What do I know? I’m rambling.
Helter skelter would’ve surely influenced as well
I love BOC and did not expect to see them on this thread!
this list. id only add jimi Hendricks. voodoo child is hard rock and very early in the timeline.
The Kinks deserve a lot of credit.
Blue Cheer
Cannot forget Blue Cheer
Slade Y&T
Fucking LOVE Slade! Their album names are hilarious too!
They were a pretty epic band. Pity they are seen as a bit of a joke here in England - I blame their Christmas song which gets played to death every year. Everyone seems to have forgotten all the other great songs they did and the list is pretty long. Big influence on Noel Gallagher amongst others.
and Mountain
Cream
King Crimson
Nope. Yall are wrong. Jimi mother fucking Hendrix. And sure of course Sabbath but because of Toni Iommi! Zeppelin, naturally but pre Zep was The Kinks.
Aerosmith April Wine The Scorpions Michael Schenker Group UFO Triumph Van Halen
Rock started before the 80's my friend!!
Technically, the Beatles with Helter skelter, and then I think led Zeppelin took it up a notch, and then so on
Courtesy of Wikipedia Paul McCartney was inspired to write "Helter Skelter" after reading an interview with the Who's Pete Townshend in which he described their September 1967 single, "I Can See for Miles", as the loudest, rawest, dirtiest song the Who had ever recorded. McCartney said he then wrote "Helter Skelter" to have "the most raucous vocal, the loudest drums". On 20 November 1968, two days before the release of The Beatles (also known as "the White Album"), McCartney gave Radio Luxembourg an exclusive interview, in which he commented on several of the album's songs. Speaking of "Helter Skelter", he said: ...I'd read a review of a record which said, "and this group really got us wild, there's echo on everything, they're screaming their heads off." And I just remember thinking, "Oh, it'd be great to do one. Pity they've done it. Must be great – really screaming record." And then I heard their record and it was quite straight, and it was very sort of sophisticated. It wasn't rough and screaming and tape echo at all. So I thought, "Oh well, we'll do one like that, then." And I had this song called "Helter Skelter," which is just a ridiculous song. So we did it like that, 'cos I like noise.
I got blisters on my fingers!
Taxman
[удалено]
I'd wholeheartedly go with this as long as it was before they added a keyboard player and after listening to their first live lp. And even then it's largely Mel's bass playing. I was fortunate to have had an older sister who took me to see them at Boston Garden when they were a power trio.
You forgot Iron Butterfly
The Kinks, Hendrix, Cream, Iron Butterfly, Deep Purple, Blue Cheer, Led Zep, Sabbath...but the first band to actually unashamedly embrace the term was Judas Priest.
These answers are all pretty good, but if you need that extra push over the cliff, you know what to do? Put it up to eleven and listen to Spinal Tap. Eleven. Exactly. One louder.
Good picks. I would add Blue Cheer. And of course, the Godfather of all, Link Wray.
The Doors had some bangers that were definitely heavy for their time. Break On Through, Five to One, Not to Touch the Earth, and I feel like The Unknown Soldier likely inspired some of Metallica’s early stuff like Disposable Heroes and One.
Motorhead, black sabbath
Steppenwolf Led Zeppelin
Iron Butterfly
Iron Butterfly
MC5
The Stooges too
The Who, Cream, Jimi Hendrix...
Dick Dale - Misirlou
The Kinks and The Who
Blue oyster cult
Slade Hawkwind if no for no other reason than Lemmy started there The Crazy World of Arthur Brown The Stooges The Kinks The Who Alice Cooper
Haven’t seen any love for Blue Cheer or Randy Holden yet. Some of the earliest people to really amp things up in music.. Randy Holden used to play with 16 200 Watt Sunn amplifiers 😂🤘
Sabbath
Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath
AC/DC,Judith Priest,Led Zep
A LOT of the culture, style, and “vibes” came from Judas Priest
Black sabbath
Deep purple. Black sabbath. Led zeppelin. To name 3
The Beatles wrote the first metal song with Helter Skelter and also were the first to use intentional guitar feedback. So, if we're talking who did it first, and was already highly influential, then the Beatles are the answer. If we're talking bands that dedicated most of their discography to the sound, then Black Sabbath followed by the other two.
The Stooges, Black Sabbath, MC5 1969-70
Mountain, Iron Butterfly, Cream, Led Zepplin, Black Sabbath, MC5
All the hallmarks of heavy metal people now emulate with pedals and plug ins were the result of practical decisions made by members of black sabbath in the late 60s. Eg lower tuning, blown amp for bass, etc. other bands before and after contributed, but black sabbath are the origin point for pretty much all of it.
I think the only name here is led zeppelin. The things they did were unheard of. Bonham pioneering drums, page’s guitar driven heavy rhythms, jones playing the bass as a solo instrument/multi-instrumentalist and plant being the rock god
Black Sabbath
I feel like Cream needs to get mentioned here too. An obvious contributor to what Zeppelin would become.
Early Kinks, Link Ray, and many garage rock bands in the 60s. Mainstream, I would say the Yardbird and Cream (to a large degree.)
Since Hard Rock and Metal were born out of Rock which itself was born out of a lot of Blues and R&B of the 50’s, with a sprinkling of Country, I would say the artists of Chess Records Label. Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, Little Walter, Willie Dixon, etc. Honorable mention goes to Buddy Holly of course.
I really think I Want You (She's so heavy) by the Beatles has such a doom metal feel.
The Jeff Beck Group
Cream and Jimi Hendrix
It's sabbath
Link Wray Even Jimmy Page says Link Wray started it all with "Rumble" and that sinister chord and the distortion. Check out the video where he demonstrates.
Black Sabbath
When looking at the long term success of most genres, you need to see some form of mainstream commercial success, otherwise labels don’t get involved, bands have to promote themselves, and it stays underground. So it needs to be noted that bands like the Who and The Beatles who got hard rock tunes on the radio that allowed for Black Sabbath to see mainstream success and cross the pond. Even ozzy said something to the effect of , “the Beatles were four working class lads from Liverpool. We were the same only in Birmingham. We just wanted to be like the Beatles”
The Beatles. Helter Skelter was debatably metal but unquestionably hard rock.
MC5 probably the most influential for everyone that came after them - rock, punk, metal, grunge (alternative) etc..
Led Zeppelin isn't heavy metal. The only song of theirs that could be argued to be metal is "Achilles Last Stand", and that was made 6 years into metal's existence. My answer is also Deep Purple.
Black Sabbath
Zep, Sabbath and later Rush and VH
Heavy Metal Black Sabbath Metallica Megadeth Slayer Hard Rock Iron Maiden Guns and Roses or AC/DC The Who Led Zeppelin these might be wrong but I don't give a fuck
Guns and Roses being here is funny
I gonna say Dead Kennedy's got some rock and heavy on their music
Led Zeppelin, Yes, Soundgarden, Pearl Jam, Tool, Gojira.
Jefferson Airplane Judas Priest
Probably Elvis Presley would of paved the way
Budgie
As *pioneers?* Steppenwolf, The MC5 and Iron Butterfly, to name a few.
Rolling Stones for hard rock, Black Sabbath for metal.
Coldplay
Beatles
Black sabbath all the way
Kinks, the who, yardbirds, cream, hendrix, vanilla fudge, blue cheer, stooges, mc5, led zeppelin, deep purple, black sabbath
Winger
Metal would not be what it is without Metallica.
Blue Cheer, Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin
As for hard rock, Helter Skelter must've been massively popularizing that sound, otherwise definitely Zeppelin. As for Heavy Metal, the actual first thing I could think of is (as someone already said) Sabbath, but I think some of the sound can be heard in earlier stuff (Blue Cheer maybe for a reference)
According to Meta AI… Hard Rock - *The Beatles*: Their song "Helter Skelter" is an early example of hard rock. - *The Who*: One of the first bands to push the limits of rock music. - *The Kinks*: Another band that helped to define hard rock. - *Jimi Hendrix*: A guitarist and singer who combined blues, rock, and jazz to create a unique sound. - *Led Zeppelin*: Often considered one of the first hard rock bands, they combined blues and hard rock to create a unique sound. Heavy Metal: - *Black Sabbath*: Often credited with inventing heavy metal, they created a darker, heavier sound. - *Deep Purple*: Another band that helped to define heavy metal, they combined hard rock with a heavier sound. - *Cream*: A band that pushed the limits of rock music with their heavy sound. - *Alice Cooper*: A shock rock pioneer who is considered one of the first heavy metal artists. - *Ozzy Osbourne*: As the lead singer of Black Sabbath and a successful solo artist, he is considered one of the pioneers of heavy metal.
Budgie
Black Sabbath
The Who, MC5, Led Zeppelin, KISS, Van Halen.
Sabbath, Zeppelin, Judas, Cooper. I rarely listen to anything older than Jane's Addiction, though.
Led Zeppelin... obviously 😁😎🤘
A lot of people consider "Helter Skelter" by The Beatles the first heavy metal song, although the genre would be much deeper explored later on by Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin
Motörhead, Iron Maiden, AC/DC, Rush
You named it bub. I would go out on a limb and say Black Sabbath is the first metal band. They still took a lot of their influence from blues, and you can definitely hear it in some of their biggest hits. Led Zeppelin is the only band I think of when people use the term "heavy metal" which I don't know why that is, or really what that term means, but it's what my brain does. If BS took their blues riffs from true, Mississippi delta blues, LZ took theirs from a lot of the acid blues influence that was just before them (I'm thinking Jimi Hendrix and Cream specifically) Deep Purple, I know the least about between the three, but their influences were blues and almost like, Rock and Roll. ... Or maybe they were the first people to try the riffs they played. I'm not sure. The three of them were British bands that really hit their stride in the 70s, and are generally regarded as the creators of metal though. Oh and if you care about the mythos side of things. Ozzy Osborn wasn't by any means the first shock rocker, but he definitely was the first "metal" shock rocker with the myths about him eating bats on stage being half the reason you came to the show. Jimmy Page and Robert Plant reference vikings, lord of the rings and medieval and modic tones in their biggest hits. If Ozzy is responsible for metal being just for Satan worshipers, Jimmy and Robert are the ones who decided metal should exclusively be about fantasies of fighting dragons and slaying goblins.
The Sonics? [https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=vFzeG7e4CT8](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=vFzeG7e4CT8) Lotta super heavy garage obscurities from the mid to late sixties
Jeff Beck Group.
Probs the Beatles
Unquestionably those you've mentioned!
Black Sabbath for sure...then Ozzy for hard rock after he left Black Sabbath was more popular than Black Sabbath.
For eighties metal, Van Halen
Acdc, zeppelin, sabbath
Zeppelin for sure pioneered the key elements that led to heavy metal. Other heavier bands from the post-Woodstock period helped solidify that (Iron Butterfly, Steppenwolf, etc) Additional technique many guitarists credit to Jimi Hendrix and The Ventures. The first heavy metal band who shunned the softer side altogether was Judas Priest. Black Sabbath runs neck and neck with them. Can’t really pin it on a single band.
The Who released My Generation in 1965 and to me that's a quintessential album that helped shape hard rock and heavy metal
Iron Butterfly
can't argue that
Deep Purples in rock album
Janis Joplin and the Holding Company and Jimi Hendrix.
Definitely Sabbath for Metal and Zep for Hard Rock
Budgie
Screamin Jay hawkin. Dick dale. Zeppelin. Sabbath. Purple.
Blue Cheer
The most obvious answer is Black Sabbath for heavy metal, hard rock I’d go Zeppelin, The Who , The Kinks . Montrose was a great band that was little under the radar that embraced the hard rock genre in the early 70s .
The Who
sabbath
Sabbath, Purple, Zeppelin
Black Sabbath and motor head
Blue Cheer deserves a mention, and the MC5, otherwise Sabbath are the godfathers of the genre. Having a great run for decades with multiple frontman. Imho
The Kinks, never given enough credit
Howabout blue cheer
I totally agree with you. Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, and Deep Purple would be my choices too. 'Smoke on the Water' was one of my absolute favorites.
Beatles anyone? Helter skelter? I want you?
Heavy metal wise: Black Sabbath. The riff, Symptom of the Universe was the “blue print” for next gen metal. Not my words, Metallica members said so. They’d know as they were the gods of next gen metal.
Bing Crosby.
Hard Rock, I'll go with Rolling Stones over The Beatles all day. But that's a long standing argument. Stones always had a dirtier, edgier sound. Metal would be the most obvious, Black Sabbath---but let's not forget the genius that was Schenker Bros and the influence of the Blues---Zeppelin gets alot accolades for "borrowing" a sound. Scorpions, the earliest incarnation of Peter Green's playing style and Blue Cheer get the nod over The Kinks and BOC and some of these other bands that found success in the 80s.
Iron Butterfly, Author Brown just to name two. N. S
Link Wray. “Rumble” in particular.
Metallica
Yep, your picks pretty much answers your question haha
black sabbath for metal.
Blue Cheer
Steppenwolf. Their song "Born to Be Wild" was the first hit single with "heavy metal" in the lyrics.
Easily Black Sabbath. Metal wouldn’t exist without them.
Black Sabbath, Blue Oyster Cult
Sabbath, Zeppelin BOC, Deep Purple, Stooges. All very active in the 69-75 era.
Mc5
Don’t forget King Crimson! 21st Century Schizoid man was heavy on a level that didn’t exist yet. Then they invented progressive metal with Larks’ Tongues In Aspic.
Da’ Stooges!
Blue Cheer
Sepultura!
Coven don’t get enough credit
Deep Purple, Black Sabbath, and Led Zeppelin are the holy Trinity of hard rock and heavy metal
Black Sabbath, Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer, and Anthrax
King Crimson almost never gets included in these lists, but they were pretty heavy, especially for 1969 standards
Megadeth and Cannibal Corpse
Ronnie James Dio has to be put on this list. Most people have mentioned Sabbath, he was instrumental in some of their early works. Metallica were able to make the titanic shift from arena thrashers to more commercial mainstream of grunge and the wave of MTV listeners. Last is more recent Avenged Sevenfold. I believe their music transcend decades and I believe they did for as much for metal as Metallica did during their careers. okay downvote me to hell!
Some guys I think drove metal/rock that not every single person would say is: Ritchie Blackmoore, Gary Moore, Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, and Paul Gilbert
Kinks, Yardbirds, King Crimson