and as for Springsteen, I've had lots of friends over the years who just are nuts over Springsteen, but I didn't get it until I saw him live. I think people get hooked on him when they see him live...with the East Street Band, that is. I've never seen him without them.

and maybe the same is applicable for the Grateful Dead. Seeing them live is a whole different experience than hearing them live, or hearing their studio work.

Springsteen got a magnificent charisma on stage, that's true.
I don't get RHCP either, and I never got some artists friends of mine listen too...ZZ Top, Led Zeppelin and Motorhead.
The are dead boring to me, even if I try to "give them my good ear". The only band I've learned to like through that gang is AC/DC...years ago.

Bruce Springsteen, Rush, Neil Young

I felt the same about Bob Dylan for a long time but then I listened to Nashville Skyline and some boots from the mid-70s and started to him in a whole new light.

I remember looking into Bowie right after the Serious Moonlight Tour because I saw that so many people liked him and thought that there must be "something" there. I think I was lucky, there was something there.

the beach boys

In the 80'ies I used to like Van Halen (Lee Roth's time) and AC/DC - like them still a lot, but never got into Led Zeppelin or KISS... or Rainbow, Iron Maiden, Purple... Maybe it's the final edge missing in those bands. Ok- Led Zep was earlier, but it can be compared to VH in a way. I think VH took a lot from LZ, made an entertaining version of it and it worked (for me) better that way.

Hurriganes Wrote:
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> In the 80'ies I used to like Van Halen (Lee Roth's
> time) and AC/DC - like them still a lot, but never
> got into Led Zeppelin or KISS... or Rainbow, Iron
> Maiden, Purple... Maybe it's the final edge
> missing in those bands. Ok- Led Zep was earlier,
> but it can be compared to VH in a way. I think VH
> took a lot from LZ, made an entertaining version
> of it and it worked (for me) better that way.

Oh MAN! How could you possibly not be into AC/DC? Well I guess with the departure of Bon Scott, they haven't quite been the same. Iron Maiden is one of the Godfathers of Heavy Metal Music. No way were they ever missing their final edge, they had an edge that not many can emulate! Truly inspirational and it's very interesting to know how many bands today and in the past that they heavily influenced. Much like Black Sabbath in the days of Ozzy.

Another band that I wanted to get into was U2. For a while I enjoyed The Joshua Tree, but all of the records since then have left me cold. Bono does have a great voice and The Edge can play some excellent riffs...but it ain't the Stones baby!

Rock'NRollAngel Wrote:
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> I guess with the departure of Bon Scott, they haven't quite been the same.

Exactly: Bon Scott was much more versatile.

> Iron Maiden is one of the Godfathers of Heavy Metal Music. No
> way were they ever missing their final edge,

Sorry but for me it sounds a bit "porridge" and that way misses the edge. Some great melodies. And lyrics might be? (English is not my mother tongue - so...)

PS: And Big Al! Yes, I'd like to patient enough to "convert" to Led Zeppelin, but somehow it just doesn't work...

Seeing the White Stripes live crystalized for me why I have trouble getting into them on an emotional/visceral level. Talented, smart, critically acclaimed these past few years...But after a (short) 45 minute headlining set in Boston, "Loving Cup" blasted out of the speakers right after the encore, and at that moment hearing it made me realize it wasn't that I was in a bad mood or unable to loosen up (I suddenly wanted to dance & sing along). The WS are too arch, too post-modern, too minimal - they'd start off with a great minute of bluesbreakrock, then perversely stop, change gears in a jarring way, do an 'ironically' self-indulgent unaccompanied guitar solo a la Page in the 70s, or Jack's voice would settle into either parody or screechy monotony. And Meg, who I dig on record, seemed limited in a way other so called primitivists (Mo Tucker, Asheton on the reunited Stooges) do not, maybe deliberately. So you start to get into an interesting passage, and SPLAT they pull the rug out from under you. Like an arty Berklee minimalist 'jazz' group.
As for some of the others mentioned here, I like Bowie, or many of his albums such as "Hunky Dory" and the Eno trilogy, but still prefer many of those less famous artists he's been associated with: Roxy Music, Eno, Iggy, Lou Reed.
And it took a long time for me to get into the Beach Boys. As a kid they were unhip, & I couldn't relate to Brian's California dreams. The seemed cornball. But in my late 20s - when 'relating to' the music in a way that has to do do with my sense of identity (as it does in adolescence) was no longer an issue, I got into some good books & essays about their work, & then the more experimental stuff - "Til I Die", "Cool Cool Water", "Surf's Up" "Cabinessence", and even lesser known earlier songs like "Girl Don't Tell Me", and this is the stuff that first drew me in, and I realized how brilliant they really were and came to love much of their work, tho not the schlocky Mike Love-led stage show they've been peddling since the mid 70s or so. They made some amazing recordings through around '77 ("Love You"). And finally,back to the present, another group I respect but am still working on liking: Radiohead.

Honestly, I find AC/DC a little bit embarassing.
The vocals are too dominant, the songwriting is not very creative.
I also never got what's so great about Grateful Dead, Neil Young, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Velvet Underground and The Kinks though I own some of their albums.
I like U2, Led Zep, Bowie, Springsteen and others, but The Stones and Dylan are my all time favourites.
I like Led Zeppelin, but can't get the fascination out of 30 min of Whole Lotta Love, the Stones are the only band in the world who can attract me with nearly every song.

john r Wrote:
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> another group I respect but am still working on liking:
> Radiohead.


Me too. I think The Bends is easily the most enjoyable to the masses. Everything on that record is very much straightforward and the weirdness is kept to a minimum. Things get a little more difficult on Ok Computer and with Kid A, I just gave up.

ac dc is one of the greatest rock and roll bands ever..

the loss of bon scott was a great loss but they can still shred live....

its impossible for me to understand how any rolling stones fan could not be into ac dc.. after all ac dc and the stones are both about rechanneling chuck berry rock'n'roll..they go about it in a different way but fundamentally they are doing the same thing..

incidentally i loved alexi lalas on espn the other day saying

"as the great philospher bon scott said 'if you want blood you've got it'!" before playing the clip of the italian defender elbowing mcbride in the face.

No Bon Scott...No AC/DC.

I've been trying to convince others who are Stones fans of that same Chuck Berry comparison. AC/DC is so blues influenced and so many people just complete miss that. The are the classic Bar Room Band only on the BIG STAGE and the intimate way they interacted and played for their fans has yet to be duplicated. Someone mentioned their lyrics aren't clever? I appreciate other's opinions, but you've got to be kidding me!!! Live Wire for starters, dirty, raw, raunchy guitar compounded by naughty and clever lyrics makes this a very sexy sexy song. The guitars and those lyrics make for some serious dirty sensuality. Nothing gets me in the mood for a concert like "It's a Long Way to the Top (If You Wanna Rock N Roll)" or "Rock N Roll Damnation". I'd rather be a sinner than a saint. Hallelujah praise the lord for AC/DC (Bon Scott era)!

Another thing about AC/DC....they're such a funny gang. Especially Bon Scott. There's lots of gems in boot-videos I've seen.

Good arguments, RNRA. In "my prime" I wasn't much of an AC/DC fan (liked the AC, not so much the DC)...but it eventually dawned on me that this band was driven from the same basic roots as our heroes. The interview done with the Youngs in Sydney (on IORR) clearly indicates that, too.