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Even the greatest bands aren't always built to last. That special, ineffable magic that brings certain individuals together to create a sum greater than its parts is just that, ineffable, fickle, and prone to dissolution. There are plenty of bands who at the peak of their fame broke up, unable to reconcile internal disputes with external fame and glory.
Artists are often mercurial; prone to shifting moods, sensibilities, and sentiments. It doesn't matter how much fame they've found or how many records they've sold, even the most connected bands can grow apart amidst the cheers of ardent fans. Be it a clashing of egos, royalty disputes, or one member getting too big for their britches, several great bands couldn't weather the storms of fame and fortune. Let's explore 10 bands who broke up at the peak of their fame. Some of these splits are mutual, while others drag on for years with petty, ugly feuds and lawsuits.
Creedence Clearwater Revival
Though Creedence Clearwater Revival formed in 1959, the band didn't release an album until 1968. Inertia seemed to guide it from there, as CCR delivered seven classic albums in a span of four years. However, trouble brewed internally. Lead singer John Fogerty was not a benevolent king. Fellow members considered him too controlling and temperamental, steering the band's sound in a disagreeable direction.
Once Fogerty's older brother and the band's rhythm guitarist, Tom left CCR in 1971, the rest of the members quickly followed. Six months after CCR's final album release, John Fogerty announced the group's dissolution. The original members never shared a stage again.
Guns N' Roses
It's as if romantic chaos manifested in musical form when Guns N' Roses started in Los Angeles in 1985. Fronted by falsetto-producing Axl Rose and anchored by virtuoso guitarist Slash, Guns N' Roses took the musical world by storm. The band sold tens of millions of albums and generated enough hedonistic controversy to be called 'the most dangerous band in the world' by Rolling Stone magazine.
By the mid-90s, however, that debauched lifestyle caught up to them. Axl Rose became increasingly erratic and drug addiction consumed the band's other members. Once Izzy Stradlin abruptly left Gun N' Roses in 1991, the group descended into a hot mess of addiction, feuds, and lawsuits. The band continued in increasingly desperate iterations, but it just wasn't the same after Duff and Slash left in the mid-90s.
The Beatles
By the start of the 1970s, the Beatles were bigger than Jesus; so said John Lennon to considerable controversy. Yet, the fact remains: the Beatles were the biggest band on earth, but that fame reached such stratospheric heights that it was bound to fall. Be it clashing egos, sensibilities drifting apart, or just a natural expiration date, the Beatles called it quits.
This was prompted by a press release from Paul McCartney in April 1970 announcing he was no longer working with the group. It took another four years for the breakup to be formalized, but McCartney's announcement marked the end of an era. The Beatles broke up and the '60s, for all intents and purposes, ended.
Fleetwood Mac
Fleetwood Mac started as a conventional blues band, which scored them several hit singles like "Albatross" and "Man of the World." By 1974, the group's cachet had dried up, so Mick Fleetwood and John McVie enlisted folk singers Lindsay Buckingham and his partner Stevie Nicks. This brought the group critical acclaim, notable sales, and a whole lot of drama.
While the number one album "Rumours" reached number one in 1977, it also illustrated relationships falling apart between Buckingham and Nicks, and John McVie and his wife Christine. The band continued in different forms, but the lineup that made it world-famous couldn't survive the various divorces and addictions that plagued its star members.
Rage Against the Machine
No band courted controversy and took a political stand quite like Rage Against the Machine. Formed in Los Angeles in 1991, the group made its name with blowout live performances. After a seminal show at the 1993 Lollapalooza Festival, Rage Against the Machine released a string of increasingly successful albums, culminating with 1999's "The Battle of Los Angeles."
As its live shows became increasingly chaotic, so did the band's internal rhythm. A year after "The Battle of Los Angeles," lead singer Zach de la Rocha left the band citing a "failed decision-making process." While de la Rocha eventually reunited the band decades later, in the interim its remaining members reformed as "Audioslave" and found further success.
Van Halen
For a little over a decade, Van Halen embarked on an unparalleled run in modern music. It released five seminal albums, selling tens of millions of records, and earning a legion of fans thanks to incredible live performances. Van Halen's success came from its immensely talented, larger-than-life members like guitarist Eddie Van Halen and singer David Lee Roth. Eventually, those egos clashed.
Eddie exerted increasing creative control over the band's compositions, and Roth felt his star power deserved its own lane. The band broke up in 1985. A quick handshake and the Roth went a separate way. Publically, however, Roth and Eddie Van Halen traded heated insults for several more years. Van Halen eventually added Sammy Hagar as its new lead singer, but the band never found the same magic again.
Alice in Chains
The early 90s Seattle Grunge scene produced a laundry list of incredible bands, but none were more compelling and tragic than Alice in Chains. Formed by guitarist Jerry Cantrell and singer Layne Staley in 1987, Alice in Chains rode the Grunge gold rush with albums like "Dirt" and "Alice in Chains." The music was heavy, poignant, and full of refreshing harmonies.
The band fell off the map by 1994, only to resurface for a seminal, showstopping performance on MTV Unplugged in 1996. One look at lead singer Layne Staley, however, suggested darkness. The band never officially broke up, but Staley's hopeless heroin addiction rendered him a recluse and eventually killed him. This effectively ended the Alice in Chains people knew and loved.
Sex Pistols
In a funny sort of way, groundbreaking punk rockers the Sex Pistols seemed destined for a spectacular crash. It practically made its name on chaos and rebellion by keeping a wild energy going even as it fell apart at the seams. The Sex Pistols only released one album, "Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols," which influenced a generation of music that followed. As for the band itself, however, its various stars burned too bright to last long.
Within a year of the first and only album release, singer Johnny Rotten practically declared his departure during a tragic show at San Francisco's Winterland Ballroom. After that, things went from bad to worse. Bassist and enfant terrible Sid Vicious was arrested for killing his girlfriend Nancy Spungen. Before his day in court, Vicious died of a heroin overdose. The band reformed at certain times under different lineups, but it never dared to attempt the wild streak that brought their initial fame and ultimate demise.
Pink Floyd
By the end of the 1970s, British psychedelic rockers Pink Floyd were on top of the world. They had released a string of commercially successful, critically acclaimed albums, culminating in a musical film based on an album with the same name, "The Wall." There was a long-held tension between members Roger Waters and David Gilmour, however, which boiled up until it spilled over in the 1980s.
After Richard Wright and Roger Waters left the band citing political tensions and creative differences, Pink Floyd effectively broke up. David Gilmour kept the band going with measurable success, but the original lineup, once reunited, never reached the type of peak they did in the 1970s.
The Smiths
The Smiths only lasted five years, but that brief window of time produced several classic albums, hit songs, and a legacy that's informed large parts of modern music. Lead singer Morrissey was never a stranger to controversy, but tensions brewed within the band all the while.
By 1987, guitarist Johhny Marr grew exhausted and took a sabbatical from the Smiths. Not long after, the band broke up at the height of its fame. Morrissey expressed unhappiness with Marr's extracurricular musical collaborations. As for Marr, he grew dissatisfied with Morrissey's increasing control, political controversy, and musical inflexibility.