The Doors

The Doors were an American rock band formed in 1965 by UCLA film students in Los Angeles, California, with vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, drummer John Densmore, and guitarist Robby Krieger. The band took its name from Aldous Huxley's book The Doors of Perception. They were among the most controversial rock acts of the 1960s, due mostly to Morrison's wild, poetic lyrics and charismatic but unpredictable stage persona.

The Doors signed to Elektra Records in 1966 and released their first album, The Doors, featuring the hit "Light My Fire," in 1967.  The debut album was a massive hit, and endures as one of the most exciting, groundbreaking recordings of the psychedelic era. Blending blues,  rock 'n roll, classical, eastern music, and pop into sinister but beguiling melodies, the band sounded like no other. With his rich, chilling vocals and somber poetic visions, Morrison explored the depths of the darkest and most thrilling aspects of the psychedelic experience.

The Doors spent several weeks in Los Angeles' Sunset Studios recording their second album, Strange Days, experimenting with the new technology they now had available. The commercial success of Strange Days was middling, peaking at number three on the Billboard album chart but quickly dropping, along with a series of underperforming singles. Strange Days would be the first album to use a bass player for its recording, and every studio album following it would as well. Manzarek explained that his keyboard bass was well-suited for live situations but that it lacked the "articulation" needed for studio recording.

Recording of the group's third album in April 1968 was marred by tension as a result of Morrison's increasing dependence on alcohol and drugs, and the rejection of his new epic, "Celebration of the Lizard", by band producer Paul Rothchild, who deemed the work not commercial enough. Approaching the height of their popularity, The Doors played a series of outdoor shows that led to frenzied scenes between fans and police. The band began to branch out from their initial form for this third LP. Because they had exhausted their original repertoire, they began writing new material. Waiting for the Sun became their first #1 LP. In concert, Morrison was occasionally dismissive of the song, leaving the vocal chores to Manzarek, as can be seen in the documentary The Doors are Open.

The Doors' fourth album, The Soft Parade, released in July 1969, contained pop-oriented arrangements and horn sections. The lead single "Touch Me" featured saxophonist Curtis Amy. 

The Doors staged a return to form with their their fifth album, Morrison Hotel, featuring a consistent hard rock sound. The album also saw Jim Morrison returning as main songwriter, writing or co-writing all of the album's tracks. On July 1970 The Doors released their first live album, Absolutely Live.

The Doors set to reclaim their status as a premier act with L.A. Woman in 1971. The album contained two top-20 hits and has gone on to be their second best-selling studio album, surpassed in sales only by their debut. The album explored their R&B roots.

On March 13, 1971, following the recording of L.A. Woman, Morrison took a leave of absence from the Doors and moved to Paris with Pamela Courson. While in Paris, he was again drinking heavily and using other drugs. On June 16, the last known recording of Morrison was made when he befriended two street musicians at a bar and invited them to a studio. This recording was finally released in 1994 on a bootleg CD entitled The Lost Paris Tapes.

Jim Morrison died on July 3, 1971. In the official account of his death, he was found in a Paris apartment bathtub by Courson. Morrison died at age 27, the same age as several other famous rock stars, including Jimi Hendrix, Kurt Cobain, Janis Joplin, Brian Jones of The Rolling Stones, Ron "Pigpen" McKernan of the Grateful Dead, Alan Wilson of Canned Heat, and Gary Thain of Uriah Heep. 

After Morrison's death in 1971, the remaining members continued as a trio until finally disbanding in 1973. [source : The Doors]

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The Rolling Stones

The Rolling Stones are an English rock band, formed in April 1962 in London when guitarist and harmonica player Brian Jones and pianist Ian Stewart joined vocalist Mick Jagger and guitarist Keith Richards. Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early lineup. After signing to Decca Records in 1963, the band changed their name from "The Rollin' Stones" to "The Rolling Stones". Band members and others often refer to the band as "The Stones".

In 1963 Jagger and Richards formed a songwriting partnership and eventually took over leadership of the band as Jones became increasingly troubled and erratic. After recording mainly covers of American blues and R&B songs, every studio record since the 1966 album Aftermath has featured mainly Jagger/Richards songs. Mick Taylor replaced Jones shortly before Jones' death in 1969. Stewart was removed from the official lineup in 1963 to continue as the band's road manager and occasional keyboardist until his death in 1985. Taylor quit in 1974, and was replaced in 1975 by Faces guitarist Ronnie Wood, who has remained with the band since. Wyman left in 1992 and was replaced by Darryl Jones, who is not an official band member but has been the primary bassist since 1994.

First popular in the UK, The Rolling Stones toured the US repeatedly during the early 1960s "British Invasion". The Rolling Stones have released 22 studio albums in the UK (24 in the US), eight concert albums (nine in the US) and numerous compilations; and have album sales estimated at more than 200 million worldwide. Sticky Fingers (1971) began a string of eight consecutive studio albums reaching number one in the United States. Their latest album, A Bigger Bang, was released in 2005.

In 1989 The Rolling Stones were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and in 2004 they ranked number 4 in Rolling Stone magazine's 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. In 2008, Billboard magazine ranked The Rolling Stones at number ten on "The Billboard Hot 100 Top All-Time Artists", making them the second most successful group in the history of Billboard Hot 100 chart. In 2010, the re-issue of Exile on Main St. stormed at No. 1 in the UK charts, almost 38 years to the week after it first occupied that position. The Rolling Stones are the first act to ever see a classic work return to Number One decades after it was first released. [source : The Rolling Stones]

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Guns 'N Roses

Guns N' Roses (sometimes abbreviated as GN'R or GNR) is an American hard rock band. The band formed in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California in early 1985 by Hollywood Rose members Axl Rose -born William Bruce Rose, Jr.- (vocals) and Izzy Stradlin (rhythm guitar), and L.A. Guns members Tracii Guns (lead guitar), Ole Beich (bass) and Rob Gardner (drums). The new band created its name by combining two of the group members' names. A short time later, bassist Ole Beich was fired and replaced by Duff McKagan. After a short time, Tracii Guns was replaced by Slash because Guns did not want to show up to rehearsal. Slash had played with McKagan in Road Crew and with Stradlin during a short stint in Hollywood Rose.

The new line-up came together quickly, but after deciding to go on a "tour" from Sacramento, California, to Duff's home town of Seattle, Washington, drummer Rob Gardner quit and was replaced by Slash's close friend Steven Adler. The band, which continued to be called Guns N' Roses even after the departure of Tracii Guns, established its first stable line up on the so-called "Hell Tour". In an interview, Slash stated, "That [trip to Seattle] is really what cemented the band" and established its chemistry.

The music of Guns N' Roses is a fusion of punk rock, blues-rock, heavy metal and classic rock and roll. In the 1990s, the band integrated keyed instruments (played by either Rose or Reed, and accompanied on tour by Teddy Andreadis) into the band, and for roughly half of the Use Your Illusion tour, added a horn section to the stage. While Reed has remained on some of the Chinese Democracy demos, tours since 2000 have not included wind instruments, though the band has employed synthesized horns on some of their new songs.

A heavy influence on both the image and sound of the band was Finnish band Hanoi Rocks (singer Michael Monroe and Rose have collaborated on various occasions). Rose has stated that the band was massively inspired by groups like Queen, AC/DC, The Rolling Stones, and Rose Tattoo and that the sound of Appetite for Destruction was influenced by AC/DC, Led Zeppelin, Aerosmith, the New York Dolls and Hanoi Rocks.

Guns N' Roses has sold more than 110 million albums worldwide, including over 46 million in the United States. The band's 1987 major label debut album, Appetite for Destruction, has sold in excess of 38 million copies worldwide and reached No. 1 on the United States Billboard 200. In addition, the album charted three Top 10 hits on the Billboard Hot 100, including "Sweet Child o' Mine" which reached No. 1. The 1991 albums Use Your Illusion I and Use Your Illusion II debuted on the two highest spots on the Billboard 200 and have sold a combined 14 million copies in the United States alone and 35 million worldwide. After over a decade of work, the band released their follow-up album, Chinese Democracy. A greatest hits album was released in 2004.

The current lineup comprises lead vocalist Axl Rose, lead guitarists Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal and DJ Ashba, rhythm guitarist Richard Fortus, bassist Tommy Stinson, keyboardists Dizzy Reed and Chris Pitman and drummer Frank Ferrer.

Guns N' Roses' mid-to-late 1980s and early 1990s years have been described by individuals in the music industry as the period in which "they brought forth a hedonistic rebelliousness and revived the punk attitude-driven hard rock scene, reminiscent of the early Rolling Stones."

 source : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guns_N'_Roses

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AC/DC

AC/DC are an Australian rock band formed in 1973 by brothers Malcolm and Angus Young. Although the band are commonly classified as hard rock and are considered a pioneer of heavy metal, they have always classified their music as rock and roll.

AC/DC underwent several line-up changes before releasing their first album, High Voltage, in 1975. Membership remained stable until bassist Mark Evans was replaced by Cliff Williams in 1977 for the album Powerage. Within months of recording the album Highway to Hell, lead singer and co-songwriter Bon Scott died on 19 February 1980, after a night of heavy alcohol consumption. The group briefly considered disbanding, but soon ex-Geordie singer Brian Johnson was selected to replace Scott. Later that year, the band released their highest selling album, Back in Black.

The band's next album, For Those About to Rock We Salute You, was their first album to reach number one in the United States. AC/DC declined in popularity soon after drummer Phil Rudd was fired in 1983 and was replaced by future Dio drummer Simon Wright, though the band resurged in the early 1990s with the release of The Razor's Edge. Phil Rudd returned in 1994 (after Chris Slade, who was with the band from 1990–1994, was asked to leave in favour of him) and contributed to the band's 1995 album Ballbreaker. The following album Stiff Upper Lip was released in 2000 and was well received by critics. Since then, the band has stayed the same with the 1980-1983 lineup. The band's most recent album, Black Ice, was released on 20 October 2008. It was their biggest hit on the charts since "For Those About to Rock, reaching #1 on all the charts eventually. AC/DC's newest studio album, AC/DC: Iron Man 2 is set to release on April 19, 2010.

As of 2008, AC/DC have sold more than 200 million albums worldwide, including 71 million albums in the United States. Back in Black has sold an estimated 49 million units worldwide, making it the highest-selling album by any band and the 2nd highest-selling album in history, behind Thriller by Michael Jackson. The album has sold 22 million in the US alone, where it is the fifth-highest-selling album. AC/DC ranked fourth on VH1's list of the "100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock" and was named the seventh "Greatest Heavy Metal Band of All Time" by MTV. In 2004, the band was ranked number 72 in the Rolling Stone list of the "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". [source : AC/DC]

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