White Stripes Rock Influences

September 5, 2007 6:48 PM

I'm interested in the influences of The White Stripes

I've loved the White Stripes for a long time. But lately it's becoming a borderline obsession. I'm very bummed I missed their Portland, Maine concert.

Anyway. I get all the blues influences, and the straight ahead rock influences (I think Meg sounds like I think John Bonham should have sounded).

But I hear, I think, things that sound like punk and detroit rock and really, a lot of stuff I don't know anything about. Maybe The Stooges or MC5? These are bands that I sort of blew by. Garage Rock? That's good?

So I'm looking for recordings I could check out that would fill in that background for me. I think it's angry 3 chord rock but I'm not really sure.

Any record tips?

posted by sully75 to Media & Arts (24 answers total)

Maybe The Stooges or MC5?

Definitely.

Garage Rock? That's good?

Start will the Nuggets and Back From The Grave comps. Also, listen to some Yardbirds. That influence is all over the Stripes.
posted by jonmc at 6:50 PM on September 5, 2007

Response by poster: @jonmc, any stooges or MC5 albums to recomend? I know nothing at all.
posted by sully75 at 6:54 PM on September 5, 2007

Response by poster: Is this the nuggets album?
http://www.emusic.com/album/Iggy-Pop-Nuggets-MP3-Download/10980047.html
posted by sully75 at 6:55 PM on September 5, 2007

Greg Cartwright (Compulsive Gamblers, Oblivians), Billy Childish (Thee Headcoats, Thee Mighty Caesars, &c.), and solo Holly Golightly.
posted by Bigfoot Mandala at 7:03 PM on September 5, 2007

(I think Meg sounds like I think John Bonham should>/i> have sounded).

i'll cut you, man.

Hound Dog Taylor and Hasil Adkins come to mind.
posted by tremspeed at 7:07 PM on September 5, 2007

The Gories.

I Know You Fine...But How you Doin'? and Houserockin' are both awesome albums. And also Mick Collins' newer band, The Dirtbombs. But I like the Gories better.

And also The Makers. But only their first four albums (Howl, All Night Riot, The Makers, Hunger). They went in a shitty direction after that. But they did re-record some of their old songs on an album called Stripped.

Hrm...also: The Oblivions, The Mummies, The Revelators, Billy Childish, The Bellrays. Lots of new and old stuff from Crypt Records.
posted by mullacc at 7:08 PM on September 5, 2007 [1 favorite]

On preview, I misspelled Oblivians and Bigfoot beat me to it anyway. And the Revelators that I refer to are these guys, not the band that shows up when you google "The Revelators."
posted by mullacc at 7:14 PM on September 5, 2007

Jack White did this interview on NPR this summer, touching on this topic of influences. Mountain Music is the term he used for bluegrass/hillbilly music.
posted by planetkyoto at 7:16 PM on September 5, 2007

If Jack white never listened to a John Spencer Blues Explosion album I will eat my hat.
posted by gergtreble at 7:18 PM on September 5, 2007

Kick Out The Jams(MC5) and Raw Power (Stooges).
posted by jonmc at 7:28 PM on September 5, 2007

nthing Raw Power and the Back From the Crypt series (Crypt Records RIP!). Hell, nthing all the stuff recommended thus far!

I'd add: Stooges (Fun House), Bon Scott-era AC/DC, Bo Diddley, First 2 New Bomb Turks (Destroy-oh-Boy, Information Superhighway Revisited), obscure 60s Motown/soul, Richard Hell, Television, Velvet Underground, Violent Femmes.

Also, definitely go out tomorrow and buy a double CD compilation called Root Damage. It's on Sympathy for the Record Industry label. It sums it all up pretty well, IMO.

You might want to explore this question in terms of record labels. Lots of these bands are labelmates with other bands who share their sensibilities. I'd recommend Crypt, In the Red, Sympathy, Get Hip, Hell Yeah, Lookout, Am/Rep.
posted by Rykey at 8:12 PM on September 5, 2007

I liked Sound Opinion's review of Icky Thump for a succinct description of what makes the White Stripes good. It was something along the lines of "they take all the forgotten american music, and mix it up and modernize it and make it accessible for their audience."

Its show #82, here: http://www.soundopinions.com/archive/2007/june.html.
posted by rsanheim at 8:24 PM on September 5, 2007

I really do know html.

That show is here.
posted by rsanheim at 8:32 PM on September 5, 2007

I'm pretty sure that this is the Nuggets comp jonmc was referring to, and I will second its awesomeness.
posted by freem at 8:44 PM on September 5, 2007

I'd also be surprised if they weren't fans of Flat Duo Jets.

And what jonmc said, obviously.
posted by padraigin at 10:07 PM on September 5, 2007

Jack White was a furniture upholsterer while he started out the band with his then-wife. You might ask the guy he apprenticed with.
posted by parmanparman at 12:31 AM on September 6, 2007

Kick Out The Jams(MC5) and Raw Power (Stooges).

Oh yeah, these albums ROCK. If you like Jack White you will likely dig these albums.
posted by caddis at 1:31 AM on September 6, 2007

Check out the AMG page, good links to similar artists although the influences section is severely lacking. Definitely early blues a la Robert Johnson and Blind Willie, Mick Collins, Jon Spencer and the Detroit rock revival, taking the blues and ripping it up, putting it back together again. Also The Black Keys, The Detroit Kobras, The Paybacks. And everyone that has already been mentioned.
posted by sophist at 6:06 AM on September 6, 2007

Most definitely early Who.
posted by jasonspaceman at 7:06 AM on September 6, 2007

For Detroit garage/punk rock, the Dirtbombs are an obvious influence. As is Mick's earlier band, the Gories. Altough they are a bass heavy band, the rock, blues, and soul aspects are right in line with the Stripes
posted by swizzlepants at 7:27 AM on September 6, 2007

Sorry, both bands were already suggested by mullacc.
posted by swizzlepants at 7:30 AM on September 6, 2007

On their recent Canadian tour, the "waiting around while the roadies set stuff up" music was AC/DC shuffled in with some bluesman or another. It sounded remarkably like their new album. There's definitely a lot of Led Zeppelin influence on that album too.
posted by Reggie Digest at 8:24 AM on September 6, 2007

Son House, Blind Willie Mctell.
posted by Dr.Pill at 4:24 PM on September 6, 2007

I'm not a big listener, but to me the arrangements, vocals and general approach sound like Marc Bolan and T-Rex.
posted by TiredStarling at 1:36 AM on September 8, 2007