By "they" i mean the ridiculously large groups that made really really good music. The groups that had all 80 member featured on the album cover, with no discernable way of recognizing the lead singer. Yep, I miss those groups. And because of that I give you the best groups of all time...in order(kind of).
I've long grappled with this...but no.1 and no. 2 are a toss up. enjoy
1. The Isley Bros.- Aside from the longevity, every song they touched was a hit and they are possibly the most sampled group of all time
2. Earth Wind and Fire- Limitless hits. I have yet to hear a better live performance of a song than EWF's overseas rendition of "Reasons". Michael Philip Bailey sang WITH the horns. Classic.
3. Prince and the Revolution-Purple rain. Purple Rain. Purple Rain. Purple Rain...I mean the movie not the album, although that was pretty good too.
4. Frankie Beverly and Maze- Might be the best live band out there
5. The Jackson 5- Young Michael was a beast and then the neck whip on the victory tour was amazing
6. L.T.D- Jeffrey Osbourne was a bad dude, and Love Ballad might be the realest love song ever
7. New Edition-Choreography is one thing, but the moves to "If It Isn't Love" was art
8. Jodeci- Because floppy boots and beggin weren't supposed to go together
9. The Temptations- Not a huge fan of motown groups because they followed a formula, but the made for tv movie was amazing. Also they have the best christmas songs
10. Steely Dan- Because I knew the words to Black Cow when I was 6
11. Glady's Knight and the Pips-Have you heard the Claudine soundtrack? Enough said.
12. Hall and Oates- the illest white dudes known to the 80's
13. Harold Melvin and the Bluenotes-Word is people thought Teddy P was Harold Melvin for years. That's what I call a group.
14. The OJay's-Cause Backstabbers still makes you question your friends
15. Tony Toni Tone- "Anniversary" will forever be the official anniversary jam
16. Boys II Men- They dressed the same and gave us baritone interludes. Old school.
17. Switch/Debarge- Never a huge fan of light skinned fasletto, but they mastered it
18. Heatwave- Always and Forever
19. The Spinners - Just because everybody knows how sweet Sadie was
20. Parliment Funkadelic- They still skate to "My Name Is Bootsy" at Markam
21. Chaka Kahn and Rufus- They told us something good
22. The Stylistics- Probably deserve to be higher on the list based on "Break Up To Make Up" alone.
23. The Begees-"More Than A Woman" was more than a disco song
24. Love Unlimited- Barry White. orchestra. Enough said.
25. The Chi-Lites- I still haven't seen her, but i wish i had
26. S.O.S Band- Thank you Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. Thank you.
27. Kool and the Gang- "Jungle Boogie" and "Too hot" were polar opposite songs. And equally as good.
28. The Commodores- "Zoom" was undeniable.
29. Rolls Royce- When they said Love don't live here anymore, I believed them
30. After 7- ready or not
Best of the Rest
The Manhattans- "Wish That You Were Mine" is one of my favorite songs
Silk- They made alot of 90's basement parties end on a good note
The Miracles- Had the ventured beyond cookie cutter mode they would have been great
Blue Magic- Sideshow was that deal
Blackstreet- Teddy Riley was a beast
Zapp and Roger- Built a career around the vocoder before t-pain
Change- Luther Vandross' roots
Shalamar- Charlie Murphy can laugh if he wants but Shalamar was dope
The Whispers- Olivia
