Supergroup (music)
A supergroup is a music group whose members have successful solo careers or are part of other groups or well known in other musical professions. Usually used in the context of rock and pop music, the term has been applied to other musical genres such as opera (The Three Tenors).[1]
Supergroups are sometimes formed as side projects and thus not intended to be permanent, while other times can become the primary project of the members' careers. It became popular in late 1960s rock music for members of already successful groups to record albums together, after which they normally split up.[2]Charity supergroups, where prominent musicians perform or record together in support of a particular cause, have been common since the 1980s.
Contents
1 History
2 Criticism
3 See also
4 References
History
Rolling Stone editor Jann Wenner credited Cream, which came together in 1966, as the first supergroup.[3]Eric Clapton formerly of The Yardbirds and John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers, along with Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker, ex of the Graham Bond Organization, formed the band in 1966, recorded four albums, and split up in 1968.[4][5] Guitarist Clapton and drummer Baker went on to form Blind Faith, another blues rock supergroup which recruited former Spencer Davis Group and Traffic singer Steve Winwood and Family bassist Ric Grech. The group recorded one studio album before dissipating less than a year after formation.[6]
The term may have come from the 1968 album Super Session with Al Kooper, Mike Bloomfield, and Stephen Stills.[7] The coalition of Crosby, Stills & Nash (later Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young) in 1969 is another early example, given the success of their prior bands (The Byrds, Buffalo Springfield, and The Hollies respectively).
Criticism
In 1974, a Time magazine article titled "Return of a Supergroup" quipped that the supergroup was a "potent but short-lived rock phenomenon" which was an "amalgam formed by the talented malcontents of other bands." The article acknowledged that groups such as Cream and Blind Faith "played enormous arenas and made megabucks, and sometimes megamusic", with the performances "fueled by dueling egos." However, while this "musical infighting built up the excitement ... it also made breakups inevitable."[8]
See also
- List of musical supergroups
- All-star
References
^ Alexander Hopkins McDannald, ed. (2000). The Americana annual: an encyclopedia of current events. Americana corporation..mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit}.mw-parser-output q{quotes:"""""""'""'"}.mw-parser-output code.cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:inherit;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Lock-green.svg/9px-Lock-green.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-gray-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-red-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration{color:#555}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription span,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration span{border-bottom:1px dotted;cursor:help}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration,.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-right{padding-right:0.2em}
^ Rosenberg, Stuart (2009). Rock and Roll and the American Landscape. iUniverse. ISBN 978-1-4401-6458-3.
^ "Show 53 - String Man. : UNT Digital Library". Pop Chronicles. Digital.library.unt.edu. 1969. Retrieved 2011-03-04.
^ "Cream Bio," Rolling Stone.com
^ "Strange Brew," John McDermott, Guitar World Magazine, November 1997
^ Thompson, Dave (2005). Cream: The World's First Supergroup. Virgin. ISBN 1-85227-286-4.
^ Ward, Ed (2016). Michael Bloomfield: The Rise and Fall of an American Guitar Hero. Chicago: Chicago Review Press. ISBN 9781613733318 – via https://books.google.com/books?id=43WADAAAQBAJ&lpg=PT150&ots=BVA_eeKzaj&dq=supergroup%20%22super%20session%22&pg=PT150#v=onepage&q=supergroup%20%22super%20session%22&f=false.
^ "Music: Return of a Supergroup". Time. 1974-08-05. Retrieved 2010-05-24.
