Do you think UFO has gotten the credit they deserve? If you ask me, no. I think that the way they have been treated by the music world is cruel, and they deserve much more. They have done the same amount of influencing as many other bands in rock, but Led Zeppelin and other bands still throw them into the deep. If you ask me, these bands can't even compete to UFO. They are all great, but none of them can have the energy that UFO, and none of them can even come close to their live performances. I think that the guys in UFO are some of the best musicians ever, and they definitely are underrated. The band is also so consistent. They have much better bodies of work than most bands from the era, and even when they have a disappointment, it isn't even that bad.
UFO is not a familiar name to most people. Most people probably just think of the space ships, and they just breeze over the band. But like many other bands, their name is not nearly as good as the band. Think of Pink Floyd or Led Zeppelin, they aren't great band names, but people still love them. I don't understand why this didn't happen for UFO. They have the same if not more chops than both of these bands. They are never on countdowns though. It surprises me so much that more people don't have Strangers Of The Night as one of the greatest live albums of all time. It is my favorite, but I understand that others have different opinions. I just can get past the fact that Bette Midler could get on this list, but not UFO. When I see the album on countdowns, it is so relieving because I see that other people understand. I think the greatest compliment I've seen UFO get was that they made it on VH1's list of the greatest hard rock bands of all time. Even if they did get 84th place(they deserve to be higher), it is still nice to see that they are being recognized. How UFO is not in the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame blows my mind. If you saw my earlier article about this, you know that I got much more in depth about this. I just find it hard to believe that Madonna and Donna Summer got in when they aren't even rock. It is just messed up in a way, and I could also find about twenty plus other bands that should be in there.
My whole point with this article is that UFO has put in more than enough work to get some credit from the public. They still put out great music now, and we have Pitbull topping the charts. I hope that others understand what I am trying to say, because it is something that bothers me in a way. Please give me your thoughts on this, because I would love to hear that other people agreeing with me. If you don't agree, than I would be happy to hear that too, because I respect opinions.
I totally agree, Ryan. UFO along with Nazareth are in my humble opinion one of the pioneering hard rock bands of the 70s and like Nazareth and later Iron Maiden, made their impact by touring their brains out up to this very day. Their record sales and profile should have been much higher, and this band has been the launching point for some great guitarists such as Tonka Chapman, Atomic Tommy M., and of course, The Teutonic Terror Michael Schenker, all of whom have also, unfairly not achieved the superstardom of a Clapton or Page. It would have helped if UFO had a super-agressive (some say cut-throat) manager such as Zeppelin's Peter Grant. All in all UFO certainly deserve better.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree. Nazareth is also very neat. That song Love Hurts has always been a favorite of mine. I agree that they might have had better fame if they had a bigger manager. The only thing I could say that is positive is that their manager has helped them make some of the best music of all time. Thanks for commenting. The late great Peter Grant would've been amazing with them though.
DeleteRyan, all of what you said here is true and I really can relate to your sense of frustration; but you know this is all part of being a UFO Fan - that band is REAL. It wouldn't be the same if the whole world knew all about them, would it? And you have to remember it was their own personalities that wrote the story - massive substance abuse, living for the moment, beating up your lead guitarist and biggest asset, all very cool and streetwise but not much of a long term career plan! In reality UFO were something of a Greek Tragedy (they did actually have a tragedy in Greece but that's another story) a bit like a Heavy Rock version of Fleetwood Mac. Thank God there weren't any women in the band as well... still they self destructed at all the wrong times and did everything the hard way.
ReplyDeleteIronically, Phil's lyrics have such a rare insight into the human condition partly because of that fact. I once saw he and Pete so messed up on stage at the Hammersmith Odeon that they could hardly move! There wasn't much "on-stage energy" on those sort of evenings! In fact it's a wonder that Mr. Mogg is still alive right now; that he's in such great shape and still rocking is just fantastic. It seems Pete hasn't been so lucky, sadly. And the brilliant legacy of work (the music) exists in spite of all this, you understand.
I really hope you get the chance to see them while they're still around: they do still tour in the US but possibly only in selected cities, anyway it's well worth your traveling of course! By the way I have to cringe when I see the word "underrated" associated with UFO, usually it's lazy music journalists that wheel it out every single time and it's not really a helpful label. For a start Strangers in the Night IS on most lists of the greatest Live Albums ever and you can't say that about Led Zeppelin or Black Sabbath can you?. And anyway isn't it better to be Under Rated than Over Rated like so many other bands we could mention?
You're so right with everything you said. Thanks
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