3 Classic Rock Solo Artists From the 60s Who Were Better in Bands

It’s a difficult question, whether or not for an artist to go solo or stay in a band. Sometimes it works out—think of George Michael leaving Wham! The pop duo with his childhood friend was great, but Michael needed to spread his wings and put his name out there. But sometimes it’s not as fluid, sometimes an artist really does need some people around to bounce around a few ideas.

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That’s exactly what we wanted to explore here today. We wanted to examine three classic rock solo artists from the 1960s—that beautiful decade of music—who were actually better off in bands than they were solo. Indeed, these are three classic rock solo artists from the 60s who were better off in bands.

Brian Wilson

There is nothing quite like a family band. You can get very close with friends and people in your life, but there is nothing like the closeness of DNA. Family bands intuit. They know one another beyond language or years of friendship. That’s one of the reasons why The Beach Boys wrote some of the greatest songs of all time, tunes that featured blissful harmony and sonic precision. Of course, the engine of the band was Brian Wilson. And while he and others from the group, like Mike Love, enjoyed some solo success, it was together in their family band that The Beach Boys became eternal.

Cher

This one may anger a few people! And Cher, of course, has had an incredible career as a solo artist—not only that, but as a figure in modern culture, from acting to fashion and beyond. But there was something particularly special about her duo with Sonny Bono. Interpersonal relationship aside (the former married couple divorced officially in 1975), their harmonies and playful back and forth were captivating. Perhaps it’s not something two people can carry on into the later decades of their lives, even as friends, but can we just say—we miss Sonny & Cher! Their song “I Got You Babe” is one of the indelible American hits.

Paul Simon

Just like Cher, Paul Simon has gone on to have a Hall of Fame career as a solo artist—but can’t we all just admit that there was something even more incredible about his time in a duo with Art Garfunkel? The former childhood friends were as close as family, and their voices blended like butter and sugar. Again, it’s hard to stay in a group with other people—to be that close for that long. But there was something about the two working together that just brought the best out of both.

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