The Greatest American Rock Band Bracket!
First Round, Classic Rock Division
The E Street Band (4) vs. Cheap Trick (13)
Anthemic Jersey rockers versus the pop-rock hit machine
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Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band:
"When Bruce Springsteen finally broke through to national recognition in the fall of 1975 after a decade of trying, critics hailed him as the savior of rock & roll... He rocked as hard as Jerry Lee Lewis, his lyrics were as complicated as Bob Dylan's, and his concerts were near-religious celebrations of all that was best in music... [Forty years] later... Springsteen remains an established star who can look back on a career that produced one of the best-selling albums of all time, sold-out stadium shows, Grammy awards, an Oscar, and a group of imitators who constituted their own subgenre of popular music." --AllMusic.com Popularity
Influence:
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Cheap Trick:
"Combining a love for British guitar pop songcraft with crunching power chords and a flair for the absurd, Cheap Trick provided the necessary links between '60s pop, heavy metal, and punk. Led by guitarist Rick Nielsen, the band's early albums were filled with highly melodic... songs that drew equally from the crafted pop of the Beatles [and] the sonic assault of the Who. After developing a cult following and [undergoing] relentless touring, Cheap Trick scored an unexpected hit with 1978's At Budokan, a live album originally issued only in Japan that became their international breakthrough." --AllMusic.com Popularity
Influence:
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