3 Famous Rock Bands That Were Saved From Implosion Thanks to One Member

Rock bands face implosion often. Whether it’s member drama or sudden departures or a lack of commercial success, even the most talented outfits face the possibility of crumbling under pressure. That was certainly the case for the following three legendary bands, each of which was saved by one core member. Everybody say, “Thank you!”

Videos by American Songwriter

Fleetwood Mac

If it weren’t for this folk-rock band’s namesake, who knows what would have happened? Mick Fleetwood can be credited with saving Fleetwood Mac back in 1974. The band had lost Jeremy Spencer, Danny Kirwan, and Bob Welch, who departed the band and left them without a lead singer and a guitarist. Fleetwood was tasked with scouting for talent to keep the band from falling apart. And he was the one to discover Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks. In December of 1974, he asked Buckingham to join, and he accepted, assuming Nicks could also join. The result was a tenure of late-70s albums that are still legendary today, from Fleetwood Mac to Rumours to Tusk.

HEADING

We could say that Eddie Van Halen is the hero who saved the band in the instance. But just as much credit could be given to his car mechanic. In 1985, legendary Van Halen lead singer David Lee Roth decided to quit the band. Even though the band was quite literally named after the Van Halen brothers and was known for Eddie Van Halen’s electrifying guitar talents, Roth really did have the perfect rock star persona as a lead singer. Finding a replacement proved difficult; singers like Patty Smyth and Daryl Hall both turned Van Halen down.

Then, by chance, Sammy Hagar was introduced to Eddie Van Halen via the two musicians’ car mechanic. Van Halen convinced Hagar to join the band, a decision that would lead to four No. 1 hit records through the 1990s.

Genesis

When famed Genesis frontman Peter Gabriel left the band in 1975, Phil Collins was mainly the band’s talented drummer. Without a lead vocalist of Gabriel’s caliber, though, they could have crumbled fairly quickly. Fortunately, that didn’t happen. This entry on our list of rock bands that were saved from implosion was buoyed by Collins taking over frontman duties. After taking over, Genesis scored numerous No. 1 hits through the 1990s, becoming one of the biggest prog-rock bands of all time.

Photo by Michael Putland/Getty Images