Greatest British rock band(s) that didn't meet success across the Atlantic

The Smiths, only because they remained a cult act in the U.S. while they were together.

The Jam definitely.

 

We're quick enough to claim Mark Cavendish, mind!

 

I've been listening to BeBop Deluxe for the past two days and left them off my list. Duh.

 

So you conveniently ignored my link and previous post. You are right politically and in common use!

 

Fields Of The Nephilim.

 

Whitesnake (pre-'Slide It In' version)

 

Pretty much any Britpop band other than Oasis.

 

Yes, I had quite enough of it on another thread.

 

I dunno... Maybe Johnny Kidd and the Pirates?

 

Similar situation for Leather Tuscadero. I mean Suzy Quatro.

 

Both the Edge and Clayton were toddlers when they moved to Ireland.

 

Nevertheless, the minimal stateside success was dwarfed by their UK success. T-Rex had one American hit. Slade's two hits came in the 1980s, way late in their careers. Mainstream/Modern Rock charts don't mean much of anything. Big Country still qualifies as a one hit wonder in America.

 

Their 1st album was a huge hit, Lots of MTV exposure.

 

The Crossing was quite popular up here in 1983. "In A Big Country" and "Fields Of Fire" were big hits on top 40 radio. I remember "Chance" getting some airplay as well. After that, things tapered off. I heard "Wonderland" here and there in the summer of 1984 then Big Country's visibility declined over here.

 

The Kinks started big with "Should I Stay or Should I Go", fell off due to being banned from touring, then came back strong with Lola and were also very popular in the late 70s and early 80s.

 

Believe it or not, Lonnie Donegan did manage two top 10 hits in the US! Rock Island Line and Does Your Chewing Gum Lose It's Flavor.

 

You can only be a Manx if you ain't got a tail.

 

?

1st Q is very clear.
2nd Q, "or" really throws it to the wind.
"And" makes it totally subjective.
"OASIS" indeed had success in the US; yet the 2nd part of your threads premise, makes them a prime candidate. "OASIS" is beloved, even worshipped in the UK, in the US not as much. Perfectly fitting your:
"Or, didn't meet with the public acclaim that they experienced in Britain".

All three of the bands you mentioned were popular in my Bay Area circle back-in-the-day. "Pretty Things" are gods in some Americans eyes!
[check out "Ugly Things" magazine]

So, is it, "GREAT" bands that never had a US Top Ten single? Or, never had an album in the year's US Top 200?? Never filled a US "3000" seat arena???

Because, trying to match the UK's excitement over a "GREAT" UK band w/US excitement over the same band is...

Like the idea; just attempting to grasp the parameters.

UK "Kaleidoscope"; well thought of now in the US, yet didn't match the interest the UK had from the get go.
Close?!?!
[twice previously mentioned]

 

They could if it was based around the British Isles.

 

Yep, only top 40 hit in the US was "Run run away" from way after their UK peak. OTOH they must have made lots of money from Quiet Riot and the Runaways covering their songs in the US.

 

That puts paid to any biographies then...

 

Thank you. Sometimes thread starters here may well have a clear idea what they are asking or positing, but their OP is unclear what is actually being said or asked.

Anyway on the first question I would say The Jam, since I thought they were a great band. I lived in NYC at the time they came out, so I heard about them and became a fan as especially The Clash found great US success. But it was somewhat unsettling to realize The Jam had very little impact, certainly by comparison to The Clash. Even The Sex Pistols were much better known than The Jam. Somewhat better known but still less than they should have been, imo, were The Buzzcocks. Great band. Successful in the US? Not so much.

I would also agree with the general point that the genre of Britpop was basically ignored in the US, except for Oasis, but yeah their success here did not come anywhere near what it was in the UK.

As for some others...

I would NOT say bands mentioned above like Mott the Hoople, Fairport Convention, would be great choices answering the OP, although their success here was somewhat less than in the UK. Same for Small Faces/Faces. People in the US definitely knew who they were. I remember Mott being on TV, that sort of thing. On the other hand I would agree The Move had very little success in the US.

 

Was The Sweet very popular over here? A couple of songs, sure, but not really. What about Nazareth? Were they big in the U.K.? Status Quo is good example. They were nothing here. What about New Model Army?

 

Sure

 

+

Got to see "The Jam", headlining, here in the Bay Area. The 'Old' Waldorf didn't hold "3000" tho; Winterland did, however "The Jam" didn't headline:
The Jam | rocktourdatabase.com
"Be Bop Deluxe" did! Who've been mentioned in this thread!!
hahaha
[was into "BBD" in '76]