The Return of the Supergroup

Posted on 11. Aug, 2009 by refe in ARTISTS, NEWS

The rock ‘supergroup’ has been around since the 60′s with band’s like Cream, Blind Faith and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. The concept has seen something of a revival recently with members of bands as diverse as the Smashing Pumpkins, Cheap Trick, Foo Fighters, Led Zepplin and even Hanson teaming up to form powerhouse lineups - and maybe even prolong their careers.

Them Crooked Vultures is the latest supergroup to get the media’s attention with Dave Grohl of the Foo Fighters on drums, Queens of the Stone Age’s Josh Homme on guitar and Led Zeppelin’s John Paul Jones on bass and keys. Before that it was Tinted Windows, and before that Chickenfoot. Tinted Windows was more of a curiosity than anything, with the strange mix of lead singer Taylor Hanson, guitarist James Iha of the Smashing Pumpkins and drummer Bun E. Carlos of Cheap Trick. They received their fair share of buzz, but fell largely flat after their debut at SXSW this year. I can’t speak much to Chickenfoot because frankly, it’s really not my thing.

So, is the so-called ‘Supergroup’ more than just a gimmick? Maybe in some cases. I will say that these collaborations do not usually last long. Look at another recent example - Billy Corgan’s Zwan. When Zwan hit the scene Corgan was still riding high on his near-legendary status as front-man of grunge heroes Smashing Pumpkins. He stocked the roster with name-brand talent and put out a big self-titled debut. And then… nothing. I remember hearing Zwan for the first time. It was good, but did it live up to the hype? That’s another super pitfall – put four or five high profile musicians in one place and you’re sure to create unrealistically high expectations.

The Supergroup concept itself was never expected to last very long. Check out this snippet from an article TIME Magazine ran in the summer of 1974:

A potent but short-lived rock phenomenon was the supergroup—an amalgam formed by the talented malcontents of other bands. While they lasted, groups like Cream and Blind Faith—both starring Guitarist Eric Clapton and Drummer Ginger Baker—played enormous arenas and made megabucks, and sometimes megamusic. Their performances were fueled by dueling egos. Musical infighting built up the excitement they generated, but it also made breakups inevitable.

Sounds like not all that much has changed.

One likely explanation for resurgence of these groups lies in the continued decline of record sales. When there is there’s less money to go around it makes sense to consolidate forces. Hanson not bringing in the dough? (Note: tongue planted firmly in cheek.) Find a few other high profile musicians and pool resources. If all goes well, each musician brings along his own fans to add to the pot and the new group is able to launch with a bang. If only more of these supergroups were able to translate that initial bang into real momentum.

As for Them Crooked Vultures, Dave Grohl has made it clear that he intends the group to be more than the usual super flash in the pan. They debuted 12 new songs at the Metro here in Chicago in the midst of Lolapalooza, and early reports have been very positive. It’s a talented bunch, no question about it. Only time will tell if they’re able to what so few supergroups have been able to do in the past – get past the novelty and the high expectations and actually make worthwhile music.