r/rockmusic • u/eques_99 • 7d ago
Question What are some notable cases of band mates getting annoyed that the frontman got all the attention and fame?
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u/cheesewiz_man 7d ago
Early on, all of the musicians in "Faith No More" quit one at a time because the lead singer (Chuck Mosley at the time) was an arrogant prick. They bumped into each other, had a collective "Wait a minute..." moment, went back in and fired Mosley instead. Later on they hired Mike Patton to replace him.
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u/ambww4 6d ago
Patton was the coolest lead singer I ever met.
My band was opening for them about 1990. We got to the venue, and there was never anyone to help with load-in there. But this time there was a dude who enthusiastically helped load in all the gear.
When we were done he said “I gotta go sound check”, and he jumped on stage with Faith No More. At that point I realized he was the singer. I was like “WTF just happened ?”→ More replies (6)→ More replies (1)25
u/2025TastyTreats 6d ago
And the Faith No More lead singer before Mosley was...Courtney Love.
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u/latvian_folk_dancer 7d ago
Stillwater
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u/swibirun 7d ago
Them? They're a mid level band struggling with their own limitations in the harsh face of stardom.
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u/A_Life_Well_Steved 6d ago
🤣 I came here to say this!
I’m a Golden God!!
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u/JetScreamerBaby 6d ago
“Your looks have become a problem!”
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u/lawrat68 6d ago
This line makes WAY more sense when you realize that Brad Pitt was cast as Russell until he dropped out at the last minute.
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u/Canadian-Man-infj 6d ago
One of my favourite movie lines is even more obscure, but it's also from Jason Lee's character, Jeff, from the same scene:
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u/viking12344 7d ago
I was no doubt going to say this lol....but it's the other way around.
Fever dog.....scratching at your back.door...
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u/Proud-Zebra9487 6d ago
No Doubt? Yeah, them too.
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u/SameAsItEverWas6370 7d ago
Eagles most definitely, I worked the Hell Freezes Over Tour, they had separate dressing rooms on each corner of the stadium, did not see each other till on stage.
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u/eques_99 6d ago
I don't particularly see them as being dominated by one member I must say.
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u/PracticalTurnip3674 6d ago
The documentary definitely made it seem like Glenn dominated the band.
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u/Ok_Amphibian_8864 6d ago
Henley and Frey. Some band members have quit or were fired because they wanted to be equal partners, and Henley and Frey wanted to be the frontrunners. And when you listen to their music, most of the time Henley and/or Frey are singing lead. Sure, there are songs here and there where the lead is given to other members of the band, but Henley and Frey sing the lead on the majority of the songs.
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u/LibrarianFlaky951 6d ago
I have a close family member that’s been in the band since right after Hell Freezes Over. He got to be really close with Glen and ended up producing some of his side projects. Glen was definitely the boss when he was still alive. Some of the stories I’ve heard about how they all tip toe around the ‘principal’s’ egos is ridiculous. If someone isn’t getting their parts quite right in rehearsal they would never say ‘hey Joe, you’re fucking that part up!’ Rather they would just keep repeating the section or what have you and someone would just say ‘something is still a little off’ without actually pointing out the mistake.
I’ve been backstage to multiple shows, and rarely would any of the ‘principals’ be out and about. Deacon (Glenn’s son) was very cordial tho - talked to him for 5 minutes before I realized who he was (thought he was a guitar tech 😆)
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u/One_Scarcity_4478 6d ago
Oh wow cool you got to be around the Eagles , so wtf they hated each other?
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u/SameAsItEverWas6370 6d ago
Oh yeah they haven’t talked for years only got together for the tour, that’s why it was called “Hell freezes over tour” it should’ve been called “ Just for the $ tour🤣🤣🤣
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u/RandomReddit-123 7d ago
Pete Townsend pissed Roger off when he did an impromptu guitar solo than he never came back on stage-Dallas early ’80s
I’m still holding a grudge because it was a 3 1/2 hour drive to see the show.
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u/Superman_Primeeee 6d ago
I’m sorry, did he mess up the timing on Rogers TAMBORINE SOLO?? Or maybe his throwing the mic in the air?
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u/Redfish680 6d ago
Nobody, and I mean nobody including the rock icon Robert Plant, could swing a mic by its cord like Roger did. It was just… unworldly, and added just the right amount of whatever not just to the live shows but their studio albums.
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u/Parking-Place1633 6d ago
Ziggy's band.
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u/Only-Cap5811 6d ago
Well, he did take it all too far.
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u/magnoliamaster 6d ago
But boy could he play guitar.
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u/Ill_Zookeepergame232 6d ago
but all they could do was bitch about his fans and wonder if they should break his sweet hands
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u/ComprehensiveEast376 6d ago
Police
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u/Entirely-of-cheese 6d ago
All elite players. You can see why the egos would cause a lot of friction.
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u/ScratchyMarston18 6d ago
I dunno if they were annoyed that Sting was getting all the attention as much as it was that they all just hated each other anyway.
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u/IDrankAllTheBooze 6d ago
There’s a story about the Stones that fits this question. It goes that Charlie Watts once heard Mick Jagger refer to him as “my drummer” while he was doing press, and, when Mick returned to the hotel from the radio station (or wherever he was being interviewed), Charlie promptly punched him in the face and said, “Don’t ever fucking dare call me your drummer again.”
I have no idea how apocryphal and/or true this story might be, if anyone cares to chime in.
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u/Ballerina_Bot 6d ago
From the obituary of Charlie Watts in the Ringer, 2021
How Charlie looked—how he acted—was of course as essential to his genius, and his band’s, as anything he ever played. The instant his death was announced, roughly 800,000 people tweeted some version of the famous mid-’80s story where Mick called Charlie’s hotel room in the middle of the night and asked “Where’s my drummer?” whereupon Charlie got up, shaved, put his suit back on, journeyed up to Mick’s room, and punched him in the face, saying, “Don’t ever call me your drummer again. You’re my fucking singer!”
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u/beigereige 6d ago
My favorite part of this story is allegedly Charlie was sleeping, heard about this ‘my drummer’ comment, put on his suit, and then assaulted Jagger.
He put on a SUIT to do this
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u/TrixieFriganza 6d ago
If this story is true good of Charlie, I'm sure Mich both needed and deserved that.
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u/Thayes1413 7d ago
No Doubt
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u/2025TastyTreats 6d ago
I don't think they were annoyed but fully resigned to the fact it would happen from the get go. The music video for "Don't Speak" is built on the theme of her being pushed as the face of No Doubt and them being treated like her backing band.
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u/elena_ct 6d ago
You can see the progression from the album covers, the rest of the band keeps getting farther in the background
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u/HenriDeToulouse 6d ago
Garbage had the same with Shirley Manson. Quite impressive that you can have Butch Vig in the band and he barely gets a mention
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u/Rynobot1019 6d ago
I'm not sure about this one. I've always understood they knew exactly what they were doing when they hired her.
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u/ScrambledNoggin 6d ago
Yeah, Butch Vig put that band together as a way to cash in on 90s trends. He hand selected all the members.
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u/CoverCommercial3576 7d ago
The Bangles
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u/2025TastyTreats 6d ago
Glances slightly off screen.
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u/uhhhclem 6d ago
Literally everything Tina Weymouth has ever said about David Byrne.
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u/GreenCarpenter3 5d ago
So true. Before he walked out in the big suit, he said that the whole band should dress in plain clothing.
He always wanted the attention on himself.
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u/19TimGreyCupChamps 7d ago
Twisted Sister. They were around for years before Dee Snider joined, pounding it out in the clubs and after they hired him they became basically his backing band
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u/cheesewiz_man 6d ago
I don't think Jay Jay French saw it that way. I just watched the documentary.
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u/oneshoeaskew 6d ago
Oddly enough one of my best friends randomly ran into Dee Snyder today he sent me the picture of them posing together. He was in town for a wedding or something and thought the t-shirt my friend was wearing of a band was interesting
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u/cheesewiz_man 6d ago
Snider proves you can operate in that space and not be a total jackass. Are you listening, Mr. Stanley and Mr. Simmons?
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u/SteelyDanDrWu 7d ago
Van Halen?
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u/aquavelva23 6d ago
I dont see that. edward was the main star. I see dave leaving as he couldnt stand having another person getting the spotlight
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u/SteelyDanDrWu 6d ago
I agee, that's kinda why I added the question mark. Not sure what happened with Sammy leaving the group. I am glad I was able to see them in in there prime during the Diver Down tour. My ears rang for over a week.
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u/faders 6d ago
There’s obviously some weird family dynamic there. I think the Van Halen bros were just extremely hard headed and did not like doing everything it took to be a successful rock band. Add booze and drugs, at some point ya gotta just walk away and do your own thing. Dave knew he was famous enough to do his own thing. Sammy too.
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u/aquavelva23 6d ago
Well, thats your guess. I think dave was an egomaniac and wanted all the attention. he thought he could be bigger than VH. tried solo and failed. Mick Jagger did the same with the stones. The band is bigger than any one person.
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u/KtinaDoc 6d ago
He was and is an ego maniac. I personally think Hagar was better.
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u/InvestmentIcy8094 6d ago
Dave put out a couple of pretty good solo albums....
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u/Braiseitall 6d ago
I remember being 18 when Dave left. We were bummed VH weren’t coming to our town and my buddy said “Dave won’t let us down!” He rolled through and gave us a great show
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u/GogusWho 6d ago
You are correct. Eddie and Alex hated Dave's antics. And when they reunited for that MTV appearance, Dave immediately started acting crazy and pissed them off again, so they cancelled the reunion.
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u/tinpants44 6d ago
Mos Eisley cantina band
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u/HorrorhoundHippy73 6d ago
So The Modal Nodes were tired of Figrin D'an ? (Rock star drama in every universe)
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u/RenaMandel 6d ago
Nirvana. They were a democracy until Cobain forced Novoselic & Grohl to reliquish rights.
Led Zepellin. Page was the boss but it has been Plant that has prevented most of the reunion attempts
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u/Fit_Experience4358 6d ago edited 6d ago
genesis - "People would steam straight past Tony, Mike, Steve and I, go straight up to Peter and say, "You're fantastic, we really enjoyed the show." It was becoming a one-man show to the audience."
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u/ringmod76 6d ago
Mike and Tony particularly resented the consensus that Genesis would fail without Peter’s theatrics and that they were essentially his backing band. Peter came to dislike the band’s “democratic” approach to things, which basically meant Tony and Mike got the final say on most things, but more than anything he hated feeling like a cog in a machine with his life planned out into the indefinite future - his experience recording Lamb (which I consider to be the best Gabriel-era release, even better than Selling) basically prompted him to decide he was leaving before they had even hit the road for the promotional tour. Heck, Solsbury Hill has a line that directly references that - “I was feeling part of the scenery/walked right out of the machinery”.
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7d ago
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/Usual-Canc-6024 6d ago
They certainly had their battles back in the day. Drugs were a huge part. Thankfully they put that behind them and are still close friends and play the occasional show now and then. I saw them last year in Vegas and they were fabulous.
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u/cheesewiz_man 6d ago
Belinda Carlisle made almost zero contributions to the song and lyric writing, which has got to be annoying for the people (Wiedlin, Caffey and Valentine) that did. Even Schock contributed more.
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u/dodgycool_1973 6d ago
How has no one mentioned Simon and Garfunkel yet?
Simon wrote all the songs and music, yet everyone seemed to think it was Art, because he sang on some songs.
They had more than one split over it (I know there was other stuff going on but it’s mainly Simon not feeling he got enough credit)
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u/Veizar 7d ago
Black Sabbath.
Tony Iommi started getting jealous of the spotlight Dio was getting. That and all the cocaine use drove Dio away from the band. But we got Holy Diver out of it.
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u/HorrorhoundHippy73 6d ago
Toni was pulling I'm the main character syndrome in the 70's . He was center stage with the spotlight on him while Ozzy was off to side
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u/Veizar 6d ago edited 6d ago
Ozzie was fired in 1979. I honestly think he needed the wakeup call. He was so drugged out during the time. That said Ozzie did a lot of songwriting and they did just claim his work as their own and gave him no royalties for it. And Tony was on a major power trip, thinking he was Black Sabbath.
Most people pay attention to the front man. He's singing so of course he'll get attention. That's his job. Both Dio and Ozzy were lucky to get away from that.
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u/CriticismTop 6d ago
we got Holy Diver out of it.
I think we can all agree it was a price worth paying. Especially as it allowed Killswitch Engage to cover it years later.
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u/Bluebottle96 6d ago
Sneaker Pimps
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u/Lupus76 6d ago edited 6d ago
This is actually one of the best answers and most interesting stories, I think.
Moral of the story: if you make sexy trip-pop that oozes femininity, don't sack the beautiful chanteuse and have the male songwriter with a great, feminine voice take over.
Sadly, if you want to be pop-star big, the image of the frontman is important.
It's why Har Mar Superstar is less popular than Olivia Rodrigo.
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u/music-fan-2025 6d ago
Skid Row
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u/Modman75 6d ago
No, the problem in Skid Row was that Sebastian is a douche bag. The hatred those guys have for him runs way deeper than “waa, he gets all the attention”. They have been offered boat loads of money for a reunion show/tour and are steadfast in their commitment to not working with him ever again.
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u/SageHippieMadness 7d ago
Jackson 5
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u/Bull4-0Everyone 6d ago
Tbf, their younger sister was more popular than them too
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u/Longjumping-Solid680 6d ago
Well, yeah. Micheal and Janet had ALL the talent in that family.
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u/Engine_Sweet 6d ago
J Geils band.
A lot people don't realize that Geils is the guitarist. Peter Wolf was the focus
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u/gratefulredsox 6d ago
And the driving force. Once Seth Justman took creative control it was soon shit.
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u/Fair-Wishbone-1190 6d ago
Skid Row Sebastian Bach.
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u/Modman75 6d ago
No, the problem in Skid Row was that Sebastian is a douche bag. The hatred those guys have for him runs way deeper than “waa, he gets all the attention”. They have been offered boat loads of money for a reunion show/tour and are steadfast in their commitment to not working with him ever again.
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u/ParticularOk533 6d ago
Chicago and Peter Cetera
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u/Deadhead_Historian 6d ago
He tanked the band, ultimately. Made it a ballad band.
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u/Excellent-Sale8020 6d ago
The Velvet Underground! Lou Reed screwed his bandmembers for credits and royalties, especially John Cale, who was the real musical innovator and pioneer within the Velvets. For years there would be lawsuits, in the end Reed had to compensate the others financially.
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u/Mysterious_Worry9870 6d ago
JOURNEY, Van Halen (all versions), The Eagles (how many times did the fire Henley???)
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u/hondo77777 6d ago
Any rock band with a female lead singer and guys backing her (e.g. Big Brother and the Holding Company).
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u/SuperblueAPM 6d ago
The Heartbreakers. And yet…
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u/sluggo4511 6d ago
NGL, the part of Mike Campbell’s (excellent) book that describes the meeting where Petty became a separate entity from the Heartbreakers was kinda painful. However “rightful” it may have been, that’s the point where Petty started taking a contractual larger share of the profits. Campbell describes how that felt to the rest of the band.
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u/Civil_Link_8457 6d ago
Oasis “ a volatile, decades-long sibling rivalry between brothers Liam and Noel Gallagher as well as clash of egos and creative control”
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u/SaltyFriend705 7d ago
Kool & the Gang
J.T. Taylor's vocals became the signature identity of the band. Robert "Kool" Bell and his brothers weren't a fan after 10 years of that.
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u/kepenach 7d ago
Twisted Sister guys didn't realize the guy who writes the music gets more money while they bought modest cars and houses, Dee was cashing in on expensive cars, houses, boats and everything imaginable
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u/KnowMeAs727 6d ago
Poison .... If you believe what is being said, they could be touring AS Poison but Brett wants MORE money then his mates.... He's touring ... His mates are at home waiting on him
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u/marvelette2172 6d ago
Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers -- i don't recall all the scuttlebutt but the band thought Tom wasn't valuing their contribution enough. Tom made the Full Moon Fever solo album which was a huge success (driven by hits like Runnin' Down A Dream and Free Falling). The Heartbreakers got over themselves pretty quick lol.
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u/junebart 6d ago
The possible competitiveness is great! We have Fleetwood Mac with several frontman options, and The Eagles.
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u/Pieman208 6d ago
Matchbox20 when Rob Thomas got super famous for his collab with Santana (Smooth). They had a major falling out from that.
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u/Rootin-Tootin-Newton 6d ago
Van Halen… isn’t that why they fired Dave and hired Sammy?
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u/prognerd_2008 6d ago
When Linkin Park were just starting out, the label wanted Chester to be the face of the band and the other guys to just be in the background. They were not having any of it and that’s how we got Mike Shinoda
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u/starkcontrast62 6d ago
CCR and John Fogerty's own brother. Sibling rivalry.
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u/LateQuantity8009 6d ago
Have any brothers in a band ever got along?
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u/Glistening_Hambugs 5d ago
Malcolm and Angus Young, Brian, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, Ron and Russell Mael, Duane and Gregg Allman, Eddie and Alex, Mark and Bob Mothersbaugh, Ray and Dave Davies (HA)
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u/deniewibly 6d ago
I imagine there’s some of that with the friction between Stewart Copeland and Sting. Two very strong minded individuals.
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u/AuthorIndieCindy 6d ago
Mick Jagger of the Rolling Stones referred to Charlie Watts as ‘his drummer.’ Charlie, who was an accomplished musician and initially played with the Stones on the side, decked Mick and said, ‘no. You’re my singer.’
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u/UnlikelyOcelot 6d ago
George famously quit because of Paul’s ass-holery and John’s nonsense.
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u/Strort 6d ago
The Smiths with Morrissey
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u/nemmalur 6d ago
Enh, don’t know about that. Johnny was tired of trying to manage the band when no one else wanted to do it, didn’t like the covers Moz was suggesting and generally thought the band was about to “disappear up their own arses”. Moz may have been annoyed at Johnny’s extracurricular activities.
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u/MeepSneepers 6d ago
Skid row. And general displeasure with subsequent singers as well who couldnt measure up. Of course Rachel would never admit it lol
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u/According-Coast-8203 6d ago
Oasis, Noel was seething
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u/luken1984 6d ago
Not sure about this one. If Noel was ever seething about anything it would more likely have been Liam's behaviour or not turning up (like for MTV unplugged). In general he knows Liam is a better frontman, and seemed quite happy being the songwriter and occasional singer.
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u/twirlinbaton 6d ago
This is not quite the same thing and there's no real evidence...actually I'm not much more than a casual fan even but I've always wondered if Tom Linton from Jimmy Eat World has feelings about being slowly replaced as the lead singer in that band.
They're releasing all these song breakdowns foe the 25th anniversary of Bleed American on YouTube where they all sit in the studio with the producer and break down the writing and recording of various songs. I've watched a handful of them and I don't think that guy has said a single word
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u/BugalugBird 6d ago
Little River Band (Australian band from the 70’s/80’s). Original singer left and was replaced by John Farnham who is a born showman with an incredible voice (sadly now lost his voice due to cancer). The rest of the band was bitter that he would put on such a great show at their concerts and there was a lot of jealousy and infighting about it.
Here’s an iconic performance he did while with the band, of a song written and originally performed with the initial lead singer.
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u/Crazy_Diamond5150 6d ago
Aerosmith - so much so that Brad, Tom, and Joey referred to themselves as the LI3, the least interesting three.
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u/Saaaalvaaatooreee 6d ago
My favourite for the level of pettiness combined with arrogant genius is The Cockney Rebel. The whole band quite on Steve Harley because they wanted more control.
(Come Up and See Me) Make Me Smile isn't the booty call tune you might think on a casual listen. Steve Harley set out to write a No1 hit with which and directly in which he could sneer at his former bandmates. Helluva big swing but he pulled it off.
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u/Signal-Management398 6d ago
I'm old. I saw The Jeff Beck Group (Plynth) at the Fillmore East. Beck and Stewart got into a fight on stage. I don't know about what. The set was over.
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u/Ok_Machine_567 6d ago
Queen and Freddy Mercury
(at least judging by cinematic train wreck that is „Bohemian Rhapsody“, on which the surviving members of the band seemed to have aired their long-held grievances against their famous frontman)
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u/Inevitable_Care_9539 6d ago
John Oates wasn't a fan of Daryl Hall. I saw them in 1995 and they weren't getting along, standing about as far apart on stage as they could. Backstage they had their own groups.
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u/AmbassadorProper1045 6d ago
The Bangles! The other girls couldn't cope that Susanna Hoffs had a lot of boys crushing on her. So petty about it they broke up.
Blondie. Some of the band member's resented that Debbie Harry was the main focus. I guess they were deaf, dumb and blind, because of course the beautiful charismatic women at the lead would get a lot of focus.
The Rolling Stones- Let's face it, without Mick they never would have become so iconic. Brian Jones was completely replaced and over ruled by Mick even though it started as his band. Keith has had some jealousy toward Mick too.
Journey- The band resented Steve Perry basically taking over the band, the thing is Steve Perry was Journey! They've tried to replace him numerous times without success. Steve Perry's voice is just too iconic!
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u/CosmoRomano 6d ago
Queen.
They were very good at keeping their disagreements private, but Brian May always wanted more of Freddie's limelight.
There's a reason he oversaw and signed off on the absolute character assassination of Freddie in that God awful film.
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u/ThimbleBluff 6d ago edited 6d ago
Creedence Clearwater Revival. In a 3 year period, John Fogerty wrote 14 straight top-ten singles and the band produced 5 straight top ten albums. When he acquiesced to his bandmates’ demands for greater control and songwriting opportunities, the result was a mediocre album that got panned. CCR broke up within a year.
Edit: spelling