Q Magazine's 50 biggest Bands of All Time

[achtung y'all]

The new issue of Q Magazine (with U2 adorning the cover) have listed the 50 biggest bands ever based on:
a) US sales + UK sales
b) the bands biggest gig (no festivals)
c) weeks spent on the UK album chart

Key: BA (biggest album) BG (biggest gig) WoC (weeks on album chart)

50) Van Halen BA - Van Halen, 10.1m BG - 35,000 1993 WoC - 101
49) Boys II Men BA - II, 12m BG - 21,149 1995 WoC - 46
48) The Shadows BA - Golden Greats, 0.3m BG - not recorded WoC - 691
47) Erasure BA - The Innocents, 1.6m BG - 60,000 1990 WoC - 323
46) Duran Duran BA - Arena, 2.3m BG - 50,000 1983 WoC - 401
45) Eurythmics BA - Greatist Hits, 4.8m BG - 15,224 1989 WoC - 476
44) N Sync BA - No Strings, 11.1m BG - 60,000 2001 WoC - 32
43) Wet Wet Wet BA - Popped In, Souled Out, 1.5m BG - 75,000 WoC - 278
42) Simple Minds BA - Once Upon A Time, 1.4m BG - 72,000 1989 WoC - 354
41) Status Quo BA - Rockin All Over...., 0.6m BG - 60,000 1984 WoC - 464
40) Hootie & the Blowfish BA - Cracked Rear View, 16m BG - 23,000 Woc-30
39) Pearl Jam BA - Ten, 12.1m BG - 50,000 1995 WoC - 119
38) Wham! BA - Make It Big, 7.2m BG - 72,000 1986 WoC - 259
37) Aerosmith BA - Greatist Hits, 10m BG - 72,000 1999 WoC - 134
36) UB40 BA - Promises & Lies, 1.6m BG - 60,000 1994 WoC - 610
35) Deep Purple BA - Machine Head, 2.1m BG - 80,000 1985 WoC - 278
34) Def Leppard BA - Hysteria, 12.6m BG - 38,200 1993 WoC - 190
33) Spice Girls BA - Spice, 10m BG - 72,000 1998 WoC - 135
32) Journey BA - Greatest Hits, 10m BG - 83,214 1982 WoC - 30
31) The Carpenters BA - The Singles, 7.3m BG - 16,000 1971 WoC - 603
30) Supertramp BA - Breakfast In America, 4.3m BG - 100,000 '88 WoC - 181
29) Simply Red BA - Stars, 4.1m BG - 60,000 1992 WoC - 597
28) Snatana BA - Supernatural, 15.6m BG - 34,402 2002 WoC - 298
27) Abba BA - Gold: Greatest Hits, 9.6m BG - 20,000 1977 WoC - 867
26) Steve Miller Band BA - Greatest Hits, 13m BG - 78,000 1978 WoC - 51
25) The Police BA - Synchronicity, 8.3m BG - 75,000 1983 WoC - 405
24) AC/DC BA - Back In Black, 19.1m BG - 60,000 2001 WoC - 255
23) Red Hot C Peppers BA-BloodSugarSex...., 7.3m BG-120,000 '04 WoC-293
22) Backstreet Boys BA - Backstreet's Back, 14.6m BG - 80,000 '01 WoC-146
21) REM BA - Automatic For the People, 5.8m BG - 75,000 1995 WoC - 561
20) Boston BA - Boston, 17.1m BG - 80,900 1987 WoC - 44
19) Metallica BA - Metallica, 14.3m BA - 90,000 1999 WoC - 129
18) The Bee Gees BA - Saturday Night Fever, 15.3m BG-64,200 '99 WoC-406
17) Genesis BA - Invisible Touch, 7.2m BG - 90,000 1992 WoC - 491
16) Nirvana BA - Nevermind, 10.6m BG - 110,000 1993 WoC - 310
15) Guns N Roses BA-Appetite For Destruction, 15.6m BG-75,000 '92 WoC-379
14) Bon Jovi BA - Slippery When Wet, 12.9m BG - 80,000 2003 WoC - 427
13) Oasis BA - ...Morning Glory, 7.9m BG - 125,000 1996 WoC - 483
12) The Beach Boys BA - Endless Summer, 3m BG - 1m 1985 WoC - 563
11) The Eagles BA - Greatest Hits, 28.3m BG - 65,035 1995 WoC - 437
10) Fleetwood Mac BA - Rumours, 22m BG - 48,956 1982 WoC - 879
9) Bob Marley & Wailers BA - Legend, 11.8m BG - 100,000 '80 WoC - 536
8) The Beatles BA - The White Album, 19m BG - 55,000 1965 WoC - 1284
7) Bruce Springsteen & ESB BA - Born In USA, 15.9m BG - 100k '85 WoC - 412
6) Dire Straits BA - Brothers In Arms, 12.9m BG - 89,600 WoC - 1133
5) Queen BA - Greatest Hits, 10.3m BG - 131,000 1980 WoC - 1271
4) U2 BA - The Joshua Tree, 11.8m BG - 150,000 1997 WoC - 1110
3) The Rolling Stones BA - Hot Rocks, 12.6m BG - 500,000 1969 WoC - 799
2) Led Zeppelin BA - IV, 22m BG - 125,000 1979 WoC - 495
1) Pink Floyd BA - The Wall, 23.3m BG - 125,000 1975 WoC - 911

Phew!

 

[Dr_Macphisto]

That's fuckin' awesome! I am even more surprised (and relieved) that U2 blasted the Beatles. I was almost certain as soon as I saw this list they would be guarenteed #1... nice to see more worthy bands get up there.

 

[achtung y'all]

Yeah, I was pretty impressed too. Quite an eclectic list really. Here's the snippet they say about U2:

"One of the few truly monstrous bands still a going concern, U2 always refused to turn into dinosaurs. A U2 album is still a major event and they remain a formidable live draw; they trousered a record-breaking $143 million for 2001's Elevation Tour, shifting all 80,000 tickets for the Slane Castle leg in just 45 minutes. In this year's Irish Rich List, the band's fortune was put at £426m."

And the 150,000 attendance in 1997 was at Aeroporto di Reggio Emilia, Italy. U2 have the 2nd biggest gig out of the 50, only beaten by the Stones' 550k.

Go boys!

 

[Lo-Fi]

It says that The Joshua Tree sold 11.8 million, I thought it was nearer 16 million now? ATYCLB has sold 11.5 million as far as I read from the last offical count.

 

[achtung y'all]

The 11.8m Joshua Tree has sold is from US sales and UK sales only. This does not count any other countries sales.

 

[digsy]

I'm pretty chuffed about that
if U2 are gonna have 3 people above them at least its guys as worthy as the stones, led and pink floyd

 

[Judah]

The Beatles do not badly considering most of their musical output was seven years ('63-'70) compared to U2's 25, live concerts back then were limited in size due to the limitations of the sound sytems, the instruments and supporting technologies, and that the Beatles quit touring mid-way through '66.

 

[ponkine]

Wow, that´s amazing

I knew U2 has been one of the truly best bands from all times !!

Where the hell is Radiohead ?
There´re such a great bands here...but....
SPICE GIRLS ???
BACKSTREET BOYS ???
N´SYNC ???

Joshua tree sold 15 millions just in UK, as I know

 

[mr mc sarcasm]

euhm....it's not GOOD at all!!!!!!......

They're not nr.1!!!!!!!!! on the list....

That sucks, they're number one on my list...but no-one cares about my opinion!!

 

[carrieluvv]

um....... can anyone tell me who is the band named
wet wet wet
has anyone ever heard of them?

 

[TC2290]

Joshua tree sold 15 millions just in UK, as I know

No, I know it was popular but it sold 15 million in total worldwide! 1 in 4, man woman and child would have to buy the JT for it to sell 15 million!

 

[starsgoblue]

It's nice to see U2 up there with Pink....

 

[Lancemc]

nice list, well the top 10 anyway

 

[tiger_luver64]

Backstreet Boys!!!!

 

[biff]

No, I know it was popular but it sold 15 million in total worldwide! 1 in 4, man woman and child would have to buy the JT for it to sell 15 million!

According to our resident experts in Peeling Off Those Dollar Bills, Joshua Tree has sold, for certain, 20 million at last count, and they believe it is now closer to 25 million, worldwide.

 

[TC2290]

According to our resident experts in Peeling Off Those Dollar Bills, Joshua Tree has sold, for certain, 20 million at last count, and they believe it is now closer to 25 million, worldwide.

I think 15 million were sold by the end of 1988

 

[OzAurora]

Anyone know where and what year the 150 000 gig was???

 

[u2ulysses]

I think 15 million were sold by the end of 1988

There is also some disagreement in that forum (Peeling Off the Dollar Bills). Sting2 estimates 25M, while others, like Doctor Who, estimate 18M (U2.com also reported this number during the ATYCLB era).

What's for certain is that JT is "Diamond" in the U.S. (10 million shipped) and 6x Platinum in the U.K. (1.8 million shipped). This gives a total of 11.8M, which is basically the number reported. However, those certifications are rather old, so it is possible JT has sold more than that, but it simply hasn't been re-certified. I recall that JT had quite a run during the hey-day of ATYCLB.

 

[STING2]

The new issue of Q Magazine (with U2 adorning the cover) have listed the 50 biggest bands ever based on:
a) US sales + UK sales
b) the bands biggest gig (no festivals)
c) weeks spent on the UK album chart

Key: BA (biggest album) BG (biggest gig) WoC (weeks on album chart)

50) Van Halen BA - Van Halen, 10.1m BG - 35,000 1993 WoC - 101
49) Boys II Men BA - II, 12m BG - 21,149 1995 WoC - 46
48) The Shadows BA - Golden Greats, 0.3m BG - not recorded WoC - 691
47) Erasure BA - The Innocents, 1.6m BG - 60,000 1990 WoC - 323
46) Duran Duran BA - Arena, 2.3m BG - 50,000 1983 WoC - 401
45) Eurythmics BA - Greatist Hits, 4.8m BG - 15,224 1989 WoC - 476
44) N Sync BA - No Strings, 11.1m BG - 60,000 2001 WoC - 32
43) Wet Wet Wet BA - Popped In, Souled Out, 1.5m BG - 75,000 WoC - 278
42) Simple Minds BA - Once Upon A Time, 1.4m BG - 72,000 1989 WoC - 354
41) Status Quo BA - Rockin All Over...., 0.6m BG - 60,000 1984 WoC - 464
40) Hootie & the Blowfish BA - Cracked Rear View, 16m BG - 23,000 Woc-30
39) Pearl Jam BA - Ten, 12.1m BG - 50,000 1995 WoC - 119
38) Wham! BA - Make It Big, 7.2m BG - 72,000 1986 WoC - 259
37) Aerosmith BA - Greatist Hits, 10m BG - 72,000 1999 WoC - 134
36) UB40 BA - Promises & Lies, 1.6m BG - 60,000 1994 WoC - 610
35) Deep Purple BA - Machine Head, 2.1m BG - 80,000 1985 WoC - 278
34) Def Leppard BA - Hysteria, 12.6m BG - 38,200 1993 WoC - 190
33) Spice Girls BA - Spice, 10m BG - 72,000 1998 WoC - 135
32) Journey BA - Greatest Hits, 10m BG - 83,214 1982 WoC - 30
31) The Carpenters BA - The Singles, 7.3m BG - 16,000 1971 WoC - 603
30) Supertramp BA - Breakfast In America, 4.3m BG - 100,000 '88 WoC - 181
29) Simply Red BA - Stars, 4.1m BG - 60,000 1992 WoC - 597
28) Snatana BA - Supernatural, 15.6m BG - 34,402 2002 WoC - 298
27) Abba BA - Gold: Greatest Hits, 9.6m BG - 20,000 1977 WoC - 867
26) Steve Miller Band BA - Greatest Hits, 13m BG - 78,000 1978 WoC - 51
25) The Police BA - Synchronicity, 8.3m BG - 75,000 1983 WoC - 405
24) AC/DC BA - Back In Black, 19.1m BG - 60,000 2001 WoC - 255
23) Red Hot C Peppers BA-BloodSugarSex...., 7.3m BG-120,000 '04 WoC-293
22) Backstreet Boys BA - Backstreet's Back, 14.6m BG - 80,000 '01 WoC-146
21) REM BA - Automatic For the People, 5.8m BG - 75,000 1995 WoC - 561
20) Boston BA - Boston, 17.1m BG - 80,900 1987 WoC - 44
19) Metallica BA - Metallica, 14.3m BA - 90,000 1999 WoC - 129
18) The Bee Gees BA - Saturday Night Fever, 15.3m BG-64,200 '99 WoC-406
17) Genesis BA - Invisible Touch, 7.2m BG - 90,000 1992 WoC - 491
16) Nirvana BA - Nevermind, 10.6m BG - 110,000 1993 WoC - 310
15) Guns N Roses BA-Appetite For Destruction, 15.6m BG-75,000 '92 WoC-379
14) Bon Jovi BA - Slippery When Wet, 12.9m BG - 80,000 2003 WoC - 427
13) Oasis BA - ...Morning Glory, 7.9m BG - 125,000 1996 WoC - 483
12) The Beach Boys BA - Endless Summer, 3m BG - 1m 1985 WoC - 563
11) The Eagles BA - Greatest Hits, 28.3m BG - 65,035 1995 WoC - 437
10) Fleetwood Mac BA - Rumours, 22m BG - 48,956 1982 WoC - 879
9) Bob Marley & Wailers BA - Legend, 11.8m BG - 100,000 '80 WoC - 536
8) The Beatles BA - The White Album, 19m BG - 55,000 1965 WoC - 1284
7) Bruce Springsteen & ESB BA - Born In USA, 15.9m BG - 100k '85 WoC - 412
6) Dire Straits BA - Brothers In Arms, 12.9m BG - 89,600 WoC - 1133
5) Queen BA - Greatest Hits, 10.3m BG - 131,000 1980 WoC - 1271
4) U2 BA - The Joshua Tree, 11.8m BG - 150,000 1997 WoC - 1110
3) The Rolling Stones BA - Hot Rocks, 12.6m BG - 500,000 1969 WoC - 799
2) Led Zeppelin BA - IV, 22m BG - 125,000 1979 WoC - 495
1) Pink Floyd BA - The Wall, 23.3m BG - 125,000 1975 WoC - 911

Phew!

Interesting list, unfortunately it is filled with errors.

#1 Pink Floyd The Wall- this album has sold 11.5 million copies in the USA and is platinum (300,000) in the UK. Because RIAA counts both disc in the WALL album package, it is certified as 23 million in sales. RIAA began counting each disc in double albums and multi-album box sets to determine what platinum or multi-platinum award to give.

The Wall has been purchased 11.5 million times in the USA. Add in the UK certification and you get 11.8 million. Dark Side of the Moon should be represented up there for biggest selling album. Its combined figure would be 17.1 million.

Rollling Stones "HOT Rocks" is also another album with two disc that had sold 6 million copies and then was certified for 12 million when the rules changed and you could count each disc.

The biggest Gig list is filled with errors and questionable figures. The Rolling Stones show in 1969 was I believe a sort of festival and was a free concert. U2's show at reggio was a concert on the POPMART tour where fans payed a hefty price.

The Beach Boys played a concert to 1 million people in 1985? Where? It would have to be a free concert!

ABBA has played to more than 20,000 people before.

I suspect many of the above numbers for the gigs were in fact festivals or free concerts. Several of the artist have played to more people.

Just one note, U2's show on the POPMART tour in Reggio Italy still stands as the highest attended concert, for a single band, in which people had to pay for tickets. 150,000 people. U2's GROSS for that two hour show was over 5,000,000!

 

[STING2]

There is also some disagreement in that forum (Peeling Off the Dollar Bills). Sting2 estimates 25M, while others, like Doctor Who, estimate 18M (U2.com also reported this number during the ATYCLB era).

What's for certain is that JT is "Diamond" in the U.S. (10 million shipped) and 6x Platinum in the U.K. (1.8 million shipped). This gives a total of 11.8M, which is basically the number reported. However, those certifications are rather old, so it is possible JT has sold more than that, but it simply hasn't been re-certified. I recall that JT had quite a run during the hey-day of ATYCLB.

By the end of 1987, the Joshua Tree had sold over 14 million copies worldwide! Only 4 million of that figure was in the USA. By 1995 Joshua Tree was up to 10 million in the USA and 1.8 million in the United Kingdom. With just sales from the USA and UK from 1988 to 1995, you have to add 6.6 million to the 14 million figure. That gives you a minimum of 20.6 million without even adding in sales from the rest of the world outside the USA and UK, from 1988-1995.

 

[biff]

So, STING2, if you had to re-compile that list (just the top 10, say), what would your figures indicate? I'd love to see your numbers!

 

[madonna's child]

that's sweet. good for U2.

 

[STING2]

So, STING2, if you had to re-compile that list (just the top 10, say), what would your figures indicate? I'd love to see your numbers!

Based on their criteria or my own? I'm confused as whether in the "sales" area they go by US + UK album sales total or just the biggest selling album total. If its total US and UK album sales, why not list that instead of just the biggest album? I don't think listing the largest single gig should be a factor in the criteria. Overall demand to see the band live all over the world would be better. One thing not considered is critical acclaim. Listing just the weeks on chart in the UK is a little redundent when the first criteria already considers UK album sales.

 

[faithingrace]

um....... can anyone tell me who is the band named
wet wet wet
has anyone ever heard of them?

Wet Wet Wet were the late 1980's, English version of Backstreet Boys, N'SYNC, etc. Basically a fluff boy band. Now, before you make judgements on me because I know this...when I was 17 I went to England, in 1988, and I wanted to buy some real English/European music, but they were hot and I didn't really care for them, I ended up with some Hot House Flowers and a few others which I really can't remember. I basically stuck to my likes of INXS and U2 and ended up combing through record stores for remixes and early editions. Ah, to be young and carefree again!

 

[carrieluvv]

thanks faith in grace. after I posted I did my own little research and it said they were scottish..but its interesting to hear someones "expirience" of them..
i guess they are still together?

I like hot house flowers too..
What got me into them was the song "be good"
that song makes my heart swell up a bit...its so gospel ish.....
I may go an try to dig it up

I know what ya mean by " ah to be young and carefree again"
I was 18 in 88

 

[Earnie Shavers]

They may only be counting what is known as 'current release' sales in those stats. For example, the counting for the Joshua Tree stopped the day Rattle & Hum hit the stands. It's a way of keeping it fair, considering some of those albums have had 40 years of sales, compared to some who have had less than 10.

 

[saltwaterkiss26]

#4! Wouldn't have guessed those numbers. I mean, I guess it has to be a combination of length of popularity and degree of popularity... which is why the Beatles are so far down. But yeah, Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, Rolling Stones, U2. I can't really think up any complaints over here, even if I don't particularly care for PF...