A legendary rock band will often be known for their frontman or maybe another core member. Rarely are they ever seen for what they are: the whole sum of their parts. We think these four rock band members are criminally underrated in the context of their (current or former) bands and fame. Let’s take a look!
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1. Charlie Watts (The Rolling Stones)
It’s not exactly right to say that any member of one of the biggest rock bands of all time is underrated. However, you can’t argue that The Rolling Stones’ image has historically revolved around Mick Jagger and Keith Richards.
The late great Charlie Watts was one member that deserves his flowers, in our opinion. He was a killer drummer with some insanely good drum tracks under his belt, from “Paint It Black” to “Gimme Shelter”.
2. Richard Wright (Pink Floyd)
Everybody knows Syd Barrett, Roger Waters, and David Gilmour of Pink Floyd. But what about the iconic keyboardist of the prog-rock outfit? Richard Wright was, for lack of a better word, a genius musician.
However, like many quiet types, his enigmatic light was overshadowed by the bigger personalities of Pink Floyd. He didn’t write as much music for the band as Waters or Gilmour, but his contributions were pretty incredible.
3. Krist Novoselic (Nirvana)
Out of all the underrated rock band members on this list, this entry is hard to argue. Kurt Cobain was the face of grunge outfit Nirvana. Dave Grohl has gone on to make a massive name for himself in Foo Fighters. Krist Novoselic, the iconic bassist of Nirvana, has historically stayed under the radar.
Maybe it’s because he has focused less on music in the post-Nirvana years. Either way, he deserves some credit for being a stellar musician.
4. Kim Deal (Pixies)
Alright, this one might be hard to agree with. Kim Deal was one of the most beloved members of Pixies, as well as The Breeders. However, her work with Pixies tends to get overlooked in favor of the band’s main creative mind, Black Francis.
Deal is still an incredible musician today, but her pummeling basslines and easily identifiable vocals carried quite a bit of Pixies’ music. Honestly, the band was never the same after she dipped out.
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