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Asupergroup is amusical group formed of members who are already successful as solo artists or as members of other successful groups. The term became popular in the late 1960s when members of already successful rock groupsrecorded albums together, after which they normally disbanded.[1][self-published source?]Charity supergroups, in which prominent musicians perform or record together in support of a particular cause, have been common since the 1980s. The term is most common in the context ofrock andpop music, but it has occasionally been applied to othermusical genres. For example,opera starsthe Three Tenors (José Carreras,Plácido Domingo, andLuciano Pavarotti) andhip hop duosKids See Ghosts (Kanye West andKid Cudi) andBad Meets Evil (Eminem andRoyce da 5'9") all have been called supergroups.[2]
A supergroup sometimes forms as aside project for a single recording project or otherad hoc purposes, with no intention that the group will remain together afterwards. In other instances, the group may become the primary focus of the members' career.
Rolling Stone editorJann Wenner credited Britishrock bandCream, which came together in 1966, as the first supergroup.[3]Eric Clapton, formerly of rock bandThe Yardbirds andblues rock bandJohn Mayall & the Bluesbreakers;Jack Bruce, formerly ofjazz/rhythm and blues bandthe Graham Bond Organisation (GBO) and John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers; andGinger Baker, formerly of the GBO, formed the band in 1966, recorded four albums, and disbanded in 1968.[4][5] Guitarist Clapton and drummer Baker went on to formBlind Faith, another blues rock supergroup which recruited formerSpencer Davis Group andTraffic singer, keyboardist, and guitaristSteve Winwood andFamily bassistRic Grech. The group recordedone studio album before disbanding less than a year after formation.[6] And in 1970 bassist and vocalist Jack Bruce joinedthe Tony Williams Lifetime (formed the previous year), composed of three famous Miles Davis alumni: drummerTony Williams, guitaristJohn McLaughlin and keyboardist Khalid Yasin (néLarry Young).
The term may have come from the 1968 albumSuper Session withAl Kooper,Mike Bloomfield, andStephen Stills.[7] The coalition ofCrosby, Stills, Nash & Young (formerly Crosby, Stills & Nash) in 1969 is another early example, given the success of their prior bands (the Byrds,Buffalo Springfield, andthe Hollies respectively).
While the practice had declined by the 80s, in 1985 country superstarsJohnny Cash,Willie Nelson,Kris Kristofferson andWaylon Jennings formed the first country supergroup,Highwaymen, going on to achieve three chart singles. Perhaps the most decorated line-up, the supergroupTraveling Wilburys was formed in 1988, consisting ofBob Dylan,George Harrison,Jeff Lynne,Roy Orbison andTom Petty.[8][9]
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, supergroups such asA perfect circle,Audioslave andVelvet Revolver made their mark. A perfect circle was created in 1999 byBilly Howerdel andTool vocalistMaynard James Keenan. Audioslave was created in 2001, composed of ex-members ofRage Against the Machine andChris Cornell fromSoundgarden. The members ofGuns N’ Roses andScott Weiland fromStone Temple Pilots came together to form Velvet Revolver in 2002. This is a time when supergroups were experiencing a revival; established musicians looked for new platforms to express themselves.[10][11]
In 2013,pop rock bandsMcFly andBusted combined to formMcBusted, before splitting in 2015. A 2015 example of a supergroup isFFS, a collaboration between Scottishindie rock bandFranz Ferdinand and Americanart rock bandSparks.[12] Other prominent examples includeAtoms for Peace[13],SuperHeavy, andBoygenius.[14]
The very definition of asupergroup hinges on the members already having been "successful". This itself is a subjective term, though metrics such as career earnings, records sold, number of commercial hit songs written and musician longevity can all be used to establish the objective success of a musical band and its individual members.[15][16]
Tyler Golsen inFar Out writes that "Today, the term 'supergroup' has something of a negative connotation. It usually signifies a short-term vanity project that attempts to profit off members' reputations with their past works".[17]
In 1974, aTime magazine article titled "Return of a Supergroup" quipped that the supergroup was a "potent but short-lived rock phenomenon" which was an "amalgam formed by the talented malcontents of other bands". The article acknowledged that groups such as Cream and Blind Faith "played enormous arenas and made megabucks, and sometimes megamusic", with the performances "fueled by dueling egos". However, while this "musical infighting built up the excitement ... it also made breakups inevitable."[18]