Top 10 Legendary Rock Couples

[WildHearted]

http://www.gibson.com/en-us/Lifestyl...-us-0711-2011/

Oftentimes it seems rock and roll couples fall into one of two categories. On the one hand, there’s the tempestuous relationship that produces music reflective of that turbulence. On the other, there’s the subdued partnership that yields batches of sublime music and love songs, while offering up little fodder for the press. Both sides of that spectrum are represented among the 10 couples below. Please tell us who we missed, but keep in mind that we’ve limited our choices to couples in which both partners make music. Hence, no Sid and Nancy, and no Ozzy and Sharon.

10. Lindsey Buckingham / Stevie Nicks

It’s not often that an imploding relationship serves as the spark behind a landmark album. But that’s exactly what happened with Fleetwood Mac’s 1977 classic, Rumours. Having revitalized Fleetwood Mac two years earlier, Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks put forth their romantic difficulties for all to hear in songs such as “Go Your Own Way.” Speaking recently to MTV.com, Nicks said of Buckingham, “… the love is always there, but we’ll never be together. That’s romantic.”

9. Thurston Moore / Kim Gordon (Sonic Youth)

Is there any rock couple that exudes more “cool” than Thurston Moore and Kim Gordon. Married for 27 years, the Sonic Youth co-founders have been called the King and Queen of noise rock. In a 2007 interview with Spin, Moore described their marriage in glowing terms. “I can't think of how or where I'd be without Kim's influence,” he said. “We're like any couple that's been together for close to 30 years. There's a genuine psychophysical connection.”

8. Win Butler / Regine Chassagne (Arcade Fire)

Arcade Fire frontman Win Butler was instantly smitten when he saw Regine Chassagne singing jazz standards at a Montreal art exhibit in 2003. The couple’s subsequent romance and songwriting partnership paved the way for Arcade Fire to emerge as one of indie rock’s most critically-acclaimed bands. A multi-instrumentalist, Chassagne is known for the intensity she brings to the group’s live shows. “When I was really young, I saw Jimi Hendrix on television,” she told Popmatters in 2007. “His whole body seemed to be taken over by something. I wanted to know what that feeling was like.”

7. Debbie Harry / Chris Stein (Blondie)

In the early ’70s, Debbie Harry was a member of a girl group trio called The Stilettos. Chris Stein played guitar in their backing band. Together, the two founded Blondie in the mid-’70s, and though they never married, their devotion to one another remained profound for two decades. In the ’80s, Harry put her career aside for several years as Stein recovered from a life-threatening illness.


6. Jack White / Meg White

Perhaps the strangest aspect of the relationship between Jack White and Meg White was the prolonged ruse they pulled upon forming White Stripes in 1997. Although they had married the year before, Jack insisted until 2001 that the couple were siblings. Making matters more confusing was the fact that they had divorced in 2000, just prior to gaining widespread notoriety. In a 2005 interview with Rolling Stone, Jack explained: “When [it’s] brother and sister, you go ‘Oh, that’s interesting,’” he said. “You care more about the music, not the relationship—whether the couple is trying to save their relationship by being in a band.”

5. Ray Davies / Chrissie Hynde

Sometimes relationships that seem meant to be, aren’t. During a 1980 Pretenders tour, Chrissie Hynde met her longtime idol, Ray Davies, and the two fell in love. Later, the couple was set to be married, but the registrar turned them away when they began arguing just prior to the nuptials. On a more positive front, the union produced a daughter, Natalie Ray Hynde. The Pretenders’ frontwoman later married Simple Mind’s Jim Kerr, but the marriage didn’t last.


4. Ike Turner / Tina Turner

No musical couple ever staged a more potent live act than Ike and Tina Turner. With Ike anchoring the proceedings and leading the band like a well-oiled machine, Tina offered up some of the most raw and suggestive R&B music audiences had ever seen. The couple’s personal relationship was fraught with turmoil, but hits like “Proud Mary,” along with lots of provocative concert film footage, assure their legacy is secure.


3. Paul McCartney / Linda McCartney

From the time they were first married, Paul McCartney made it clear he wanted his wife, Linda, involved in his band, so that she would have a role to play when he was on tour. Her contributions to Wings were sometimes maligned by the press, but Ms. Macca was a real trooper, and carried on with unassuming dignity alongside her beloved mate. More importantly, she was the muse behind such McCartney classics as “Maybe I’m Amazed” and “My Love.”

2. Kurt Cobain / Courtney Love

With the exception of John Lennon and Yoko Ono, no rock couple elicited more attention than Kurt Cobain and Courtney Love. Cobain found the celebrity machine repugnant, and indeed his personal demons were tied in part to that repulsion. Conversely, Love embraced the limelight and seemed to revel in stoking controversy. Both created music that, at its best, reflected sublime artistry.

1. John Lennon / Yoko Ono

John Lennon’s solo career, and perhaps new wave music as well, would have charted a far different course were it not for Yoko Ono’s profound influence. From the searing introspection of Plastic Ono Band to the romantic fare on Double Fantasy, Lennon’s work reflected Ono’s muse-like sway. Furthermore, as a musician in her own right, Ono is revered to this day by legions of rockers who possess an avant-garde slant.

They should have been higher on the list, tbh. Some of these people (Arcade Fire, I'm looking at you) shouldn't have even been on there. Also, where are Sonny & Cher?

[MacShadowsBall]

I never heard of several of these couples! So of course(for me, anyway) Lindsey and Stevie should have been higher on the list. At least they made the list, though.

[mezzoforte]

Originally Posted by WildHearted

They should have been higher on the list, tbh. Some of these people (Arcade Fire, I'm looking at you) shouldn't have even been on there. Also, where are Sonny & Cher?

Seconded. And what about Pat Benatar and Neil Giraldo? They're still touring together--they should be in the top five at least, in my opinion.

[HejiraNYC]

Originally Posted by mezzoforte

Seconded. And what about Pat Benatar and Neil Giraldo? They're still touring together--they should be in the top five at least, in my opinion.

Uh... James Taylor and Carly Simon. Hullo? Perhaps the one relationship most documented in song. Evah.

[mezzoforte]

Originally Posted by HejiraNYC

Uh... James Taylor and Carly Simon. Hullo? Perhaps the one relationship most documented in song. Evah.

Ooh--yes. Throw in Goffin and King as well.

[chiliD]

Hmmmm...

Where's Delaney & Bonnie Bramlett? They should be #2 right behind John & Yoko.

& "DUH!" Christine McVie & John McVie (were married longer than Ray Davies & Chrissie Hynde)

& where's Derek Trucks & Susan Tedeschi??

[TrueFaith77]

Where's the Mamas and the Papas!? X?!


...and did Ray Davies and Chrissie Hynde ever work together? If not, that leaves open a whole 'nother batch of rock couples not on the list (like Morrissey and Billy Mackenzie: "William, It Was Really Nothing").

[chiliD]

And, Ritchie Blackmore & Candace Night (Blackmore's Night)

Chrissie Hynde (Pretenders) & Jim Kerr (Simple Minds) (they were together longer than Chrissie with Ray D. as well)

[caroline79]

Originally Posted by WildHearted

They should have been higher on the list, tbh. Some of these people (Arcade Fire, I'm looking at you) shouldn't have even been on there. Also, where are Sonny & Cher?

I don't even know who those people are...
I agree. Glad they are on but should have been higher.

[Nico]

I am in full agreement with #1 on this list. Absolutely no question about it.

But there's some missing, LB/SN should have been HIGHER than that Arcade Fire couple (why are they on a LEGENDARY list anyway? They are not legends by any stretch of the imagination...)

Meh, can't win them all. But John and Yoko at number 1? Beautiful.

[Nico]

Originally Posted by HejiraNYC

Uh... James Taylor and Carly Simon. Hullo? Perhaps the one relationship most documented in song. Evah.

Ummm, number 1 and number 3 could get it with the "one relationship most documented in song."

And if we were to believe the assumption, LB and SN are no slouches.

[mezzoforte]

Originally Posted by TrueFaith77

Where's the Mamas and the Papas!? X?!


...and did Ray Davies and Chrissie Hynde ever work together? If not, that leaves open a whole 'nother batch of rock couples not on the list (like Morrissey and Billy Mackenzie: "William, It Was Really Nothing").

Much as I am utterly devoted to the music and believe it can stand on its own, I can't hold their absence against the writer. "Michelle recently defended John's memory from Mackenzie's allegations of incest" may show loyalty, but it brings in a heaping pile of creepy.

I'm not sure whether Ray Davies and Chrissie Hynde collaborated, but I would have limited the list to couples who not only worked together, but are generally thought to have brought out each other's best music.
That's certainly true of Lindsey and Stevie to a much higher degree than John and Yoko or Paul and Linda, in my eyes. There's a trend in music blogging of putting the Beatles first on any list, regardless of criteria. Here it seems a bit of a stretch...

[SteveMacD]

Originally Posted by mezzoforte

That's certainly true of Lindsey and Stevie to a much higher degree than John and Yoko or Paul and Linda, in my eyes. There's a trend in music blogging of putting the Beatles first on any list, regardless of criteria. Here it seems a bit of a stretch...

Paul & Linda only spent one night apart prior to her death, and that's because he was in the clink. There's was what everyone else wishes they could be. It's something to aspire to. Screw Stevie and Lindsey on this one.

[TrueFaith77]

Apparently Ray Davies was gay, so I guess that makes them a very interesting couple after all.

[mezzoforte]

Originally Posted by SteveMacD

Paul & Linda only spent one night apart prior to her death, and that's because he was in the clink. There's was what everyone else wishes they could be. It's something to aspire to. Screw Stevie and Lindsey on this one.

I agree that they had a great love story, absolutely. Maybe the greatest on the list. I'm just not sure that that should make them the #3 rock couple.
Yes, she was his muse, but I would think couples in which both halves contributed to actively making great music, rather than inspiring it, would be more fitting.

Believe me--I don't think Stevie and Lindsey are the greater couple. But as Stevie oft reminds us, they remain musical soul mates. I would think John Lennon and Paul McCartney were more each others' soul mates than Yoko or Linda. In fact, had they put John/Paul as #1 I wouldn't have objected.