70s-80s Post-Punk Era

ABBA — Swedish pop group whose melodic sophistication and studio craft produced some of the most enduring recordings of the twentieth century.

Bad Brains — D.C. hardcore legends whose superhuman speed and reggae-punk fusion shattered every boundary punk had set.

Bauhaus artist profile — gothic rock pioneers known for Daniel Ash's angular, effects-laden guitar and theatrical post-punk.

Billy Gibbons — ZZ Top's blues-rock titan whose Pearly Gates Les Paul and tiny-pick technique forged an unmistakable tone.

Black Flag — hardcore punk's founding band whose DIY ethic, SST Records label, and Greg Ginn's abrasive guitar built the American underground.

Blondie band page — CBGB legends and new wave icons. Discography, similar artists, and Spotify player.

Boz Scaggs — Silk Degrees, Lowdown, and the session band that became Toto.

Bruce Springsteen artist profile — working-class rock anthems, marathon live shows, and the Boss's five-decade American songbook.

Christopher Cross — the first artist to win all four major Grammys in a single year.

Cinderella — Philadelphia hair metal band whose blues-rock roots set them apart, with Tom Keifer's powerful vocals driving Night Songs and Long Cold Winter.

Cocteau Twins artist profile — dream pop pioneers known for Elizabeth Fraser's ethereal vocals and Robin Guthrie's processed guitar textures.

David Bowie artist profile — glam rock pioneer whose restless gear experiments and Mick Ronson's Les Paul defined an era of theatricality and sonic reinvention.

David Gilmour — Pink Floyd's guitar voice whose soaring bends and atmospheric tone on Comfortably Numb defined emotional guitar playing.

Dead Kennedys — politically razor-sharp punk whose East Bay Ray's surf-inflected guitar and Jello Biafra's satirical fury redefined the genre.

Devo band page — Akron's de-evolution pioneers. Discography, similar artists, and Spotify player.

Dokken — Los Angeles hard rock act whose George Lynch guitar wizardry and Don Dokken's vocals made them one of the most musically accomplished hair metal bands.

Doobie Brothers — from country rock to blue-eyed soul, with What a Fool Believes at the peak.

Echo & the Bunnymen — Liverpool's atmospheric post-punk masters whose Ocean Rain and Porcupine are among the greatest albums of the 1980s.

Elton John artist profile — piano-driven pop-rock, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, and five decades of flamboyant, hit-making brilliance.

Eric Johnson's obsessive tone quest, Virginia Stratocaster, and Grammy-winning guitar mastery. The definitive Stratocaster virtuoso.

Gang of Four band page — post-punk agitators from Leeds. Discography, similar artists, and Spotify player.

George Thorogood's Gibson ES-125, White Fang, and the Destroyers' 8,000-show blues-rock legacy.

Gerry Rafferty — Baker Street, City to City, and Scottish melancholy wrapped in smooth rock.

Hall and Oates — the best-selling duo in music history, from Sara Smile to Maneater.

Iggy Pop artist profile — proto-punk godfather whose Stooges weaponized Les Paul distortion, Marshall volume, and raw fuzz into the blueprint for punk rock.

Iron Maiden — NWOBHM legends whose galloping rhythms, twin-guitar harmonies, and epic songwriting defined modern heavy metal.

Joe Walsh — inventive rock guitarist whose talk box wizardry and Hotel California solo defined classic rock's golden era.

Joy Division artist profile — post-punk originators known for sparse, chorus-laden guitar, melodic bass, and Martin Hannett's cavernous production.

Judas Priest — the architects of heavy metal whose twin-guitar attack and Rob Halford's operatic vocals defined the genre.

Kenny Loggins — from yacht rock sophistication to Footloose and Danger Zone.

Little River Band — Australian smooth rock with the tightest harmonies in the genre.

Marc Bolan artist profile — the architect of glam rock, from acoustic folk origins to Les Paul-driven electric swagger through Orange amplification.

Mark Knopfler's fingerstyle Stratocaster tone, Dire Straits legacy, and clean-amp philosophy. No pick, no effects, all fingers.

Marshall Tucker Band — Southern rock with flute, country, and soul. Discography, gear, similar artists, and Spotify player.

Michael McDonald — the voice of yacht rock, from the Doobie Brothers to solo greatness.

Mötley Crüe — Los Angeles hair metal icons whose Sunset Strip debauchery and arena rock anthems defined the 1980s hard rock scene.

Mott the Hoople artist profile — glam rock with hard-rock muscle, blending Les Paul riffs, piano, and Bowie-penned anthems.

My Bloody Valentine artist profile — shoegaze pioneers known for Loveless and dense, pitch-bent guitar textures.

New Order — Manchester band who rose from Joy Division's ashes to bridge post-punk and electronic dance music, creating Blue Monday and a string of landmark records.

New York Dolls artist profile — proto-punk glam from the Lower East Side, built on raw Gibson SG grit and Marshall overdrive.

OMD — Wirral synth-pop pioneers whose Enola Gay and Architecture & Morality helped define the electronic pop sound of the early 1980s.

Ozzy Osbourne — the Prince of Darkness whose solo career with Randy Rhoads and Zakk Wylde defined metal guitar virtuosity.

Poison — Harrisburg-to-Hollywood hair metal hitmakers whose Every Rose Has Its Thorn and party anthems sold over 45 million records worldwide.

Ratt — Sunset Strip hard rock band whose twin-guitar attack and Out of the Cellar made them one of the defining acts of 1980s hair metal.

Roxy Music artist profile — art-glam pioneers pairing EMS VCS3 synthesis with angular guitar to create sophisticated, experimental rock.

Sex Pistols — punk's most incendiary band whose brief, explosive career rewrote the rules of rock music and British culture.

Simple Minds — Glasgow's post-punk-to-stadium evolution, from atmospheric early albums to the Breakfast Club anthem "Don't You (Forget About Me)."

Skid Row — New Jersey hard rock band fronted by Sebastian Bach, whose explosive debut and Slave to the Grind made them one of the heaviest hair metal acts.

Slade artist profile — glam rock's loudest band, powered by Marshall-driven Les Paul riffs, Telecaster grit, and anthemic stomp.

Sonic Youth artist profile — noise rock innovators known for alternate tunings, prepared guitars, and the bridge between avant-garde and indie rock.

Sparks artist profile — eccentric art-glam built on Oberheim synths, Les Paul muscle, and Ron and Russell Mael's restless invention.

Squeeze band page — Difford and Tilbrook's pop songwriting genius. Discography, gear, similar artists, and Spotify player.

Stevie Ray Vaughan — Texas blues virtuoso who reignited electric blues with staggering Stratocaster tone and raw emotional power.

Suzi Quatro artist profile — glam rock's bass-driving force, powering hits with Fender Precision punch through a Marshall stack.

Sweet artist profile — heavy glam built on ES-335 crunch, Marshall power, and multi-part harmonies that belied their pop appeal.

T. Rex artist profile — Marc Bolan's glam rock machine, built on doubled Les Paul riffs, Leslie-swirled guitar, and irresistible boogie grooves.

Talking Heads — New York new wave pioneers who blended art rock, funk, and African rhythms into some of the most innovative records of the late 1970s and 1980s.

Tears for Fears — Bath duo Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith whose emotionally intense synth-pop produced some of the biggest hits of the 1980s.

Television band page — Marquee Moon architects and CBGB legends. Discography, gear, similar artists, and Spotify player.

The Cars — Boston new wave band led by Ric Ocasek, merging pop architecture with synthesizer-driven precision across a decade of hits.

The Clash — punk's most ambitious band, fusing raw energy with reggae, ska, and rock into politically charged anthems that transcended genre.

The Cure artist profile — Robert Smith's chorus-drenched guitar, flanger textures, and atmospheric post-punk that shaped dream pop and shoegaze.

The Damned — punk pioneers who released the genre's first UK single and album, then helped invent gothic rock.

The Human League — Sheffield synth-pop pioneers whose album Dare and hit "Don't You Want Me" defined the electronic pop era of the early 1980s.

The Jam band page — Paul Weller's mod-punk icons. Discography, gear, similar artists, and Spotify player.

The Knack — Los Angeles power-pop band behind "My Sharona," the best-selling single of 1979.

The Misfits — the horror punk band from Lodi, New Jersey whose Crimson Ghost skull, melodic aggression, and six-year career influenced everyone from Metallica to My Chemical Romance.

The Psychedelic Furs — London post-punk band whose melodic new wave sound and "Pretty in Pink" made them one of the defining acts of the 1980s.

Toto — the LA session musicians who formed a band, won six Grammys, and gave the world Africa and Rosanna.

Warrant — Sunset Strip hair metal act whose Cherry Pie became one of the genre's most recognizable anthems despite vocalist Jani Lane's ambivalence toward it.

Whitesnake — David Coverdale's blues-rock-to-hair-metal juggernaut, whose 1987 self-titled album produced Here I Go Again and sold eight million copies in the US.

Winger — musically sophisticated hair metal act whose classical-influenced approach and hits Seventeen and Headed for a Heartbreak earned them platinum success.

Wire — minimalist punk pioneers whose three rapid-fire albums invented post-punk and influenced generations of guitar music.