Which band has lasted the longest with their original lineup?

U2 have now been together, with the original 4 members, for 43 years!

How do they do it? Mutual respect? Friendship? Religion? Money?

Are there other bands that have lasted longer with the original lineup?

 

yes all those things and they know that they are better together than alone. U2 have Always been more than the sum of it's parts.

 

Let's head this off at the pass: the answer is ZZ Top.

 

Madness has got to be up there.

 

if they are considered still together:

CSN

 

The line up of ZZ Top we know so well is not the original line up.

 

True and usually noted in threads of this ilk,, to which someone replies by noting that the formative lineup was at best a minor footnote in ZZ history.

 

Phish has to be up there (though obviously not as many years as U2).

(Yeah, technically the "original lineup" wouldn't include Page and would include Jeff, but let's be serious.)

 

Aerosmith..... 49 years

even if you remove the years with lineup changes it still might be the most

 

I know this is cheating on a couple of levels…

But The Oak Ridge Boys lineup that ultimately became a secular group three years later rather than exclusively gospel solidified in 1973. They have had the same lineup since then, with the exception of a few years in between when William Lee Golden departed.

He subsequently returned, so with that gap noted, the lineup today is the same as it was 46 years ago.

 

Golden Earring?

 

Changed drummers.

 

Ahh.

U2 had other members didn't they?

 

Good point. It’s amazing that none of the members of U2 have ever been tempted to do a solo album.

Also, to my knowledge, they have not even guested as a solo artist on someone else’s album (I might be wrong with that statement!)

 

Not to my knowledge.

 

Bah! Arguing this is like arguing that Rob Halford is not original singer of Judas Priest. Yes, perhaps in the distant past there was some version of the band gigging and possibly even cutting tracks in a studio at some point but it was Frank and Dusty on the first LP just as it's Rob on Rocka Rolla.

ZZ Top 100% counts, IMO.

 

No

 

None of them ever seemed like solo artists waiting to spread their wings. They know their roles.
And like Metallica, being in such a large band is quite a high paying job that employs many of your friends and relatives and keeps you in multiple homes while dining at the finest restaurants in the most scenic of spots. It's gonna go on for as long as it can.

 

Almost certain I remember seeing a behind the scenes video of Bono singing on somebody's song......and he was truly awful sounding.......although I cant remember what it was........and I could easily have made it up in my head

 

And singer also!

 

U2 (Bono & The Edge) guest appearances on other artist's albums

 

Bono sang a couple of "Ooohs" on a Johnny Cash song, but that appeared on a U2 album with the rest of the band backing so I don't know if that counts or is what you're thinking of.

 

Band Aid!

 

U2 --as someone a few posts above said --"know their roles." I also think they know their limitations. They rely on each other, they respect each other and they know each other very well. It's a "compact" as much as it is a band and they excel in a controlled environment.
I think each member is wise enough to know that none of them is anything without the other three.

 

I know that The Edge did a movie soundtrack in the '80's--the name escapes me.

edit --the movie was called Captive. Wikipedia also says he played on albums by several artists--including Jay Z and Rhianna.