Bands with no original members left

[Mister Triscuits]

There are a lot of bands still active these days where there is an original member on the roster but they don't tour or only tour occasionally with the group. Foreigner is mentioned above. The Guess Who and Iron Butterfly right now are like that.

It's not clear whether Iron Butterfly still exists since the passing of Ron Bushy, who owned the name, in 2021. The touring band has been inactive since then. And with the recent death of Doug Ingle, everyone from the classic lineup is gone (two members of the early, pre-In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida lineup are still alive). Band business and social media are now handled by Bushy's daughter, Nancy Bushy.

[bRETT]

Canned Heat

Technically no originals, but drummer Fito de la Parra (joined on the second album) has been the leader over the long haul. The band is calling it quits when he retires next year.


Dr, Feelgood has had no originals since 1994 (Lee Brilleaux's death) but has never split up.

Fairport Convention had no originals by 1972, only five years after forming, ,but Simon Nicol has since returned and is still there.

[bRETT]

Another category would be bands that made albums with completely different lineups. Only 2 spring to mind at the moment: Nektar and Crack The Sky.

Steeleye Span. "Please to See the King" and "Bedlam Born" had no overlap. (They've always had an original member, with Gay Woods there when Maddy Prior wasn't).

[Dave (in MA)]

Tangerine Dream and Gong are interesting ones to me. Seems like they should have ended with the deaths of E Froese and D Allen but were passed on like a corporation to new workers.

Can't really comment much on Gong , but the current TD is vastly more interesting than what EF presided over for most of the 15 or so years leading up to his passing.

[SteveSly]

Another category would be bands that made albums with completely different lineups. Only 2 spring to mind at the moment: Nektar and Crack The Sky.

Little River Band and Molly Hatchet have both done albums of new music with no original members.

[GuitarGeek]

Good one... True since 1976!

There are a lot of bands still active these days where there is an original member on the roster but they don't tour or only tour occasionally with the group. Foreigner is mentioned above. The Guess Who and Iron Butterfly right now are like that. I understand Kansas has done some shows with no original members recently.

Who from the original Iron Butterfly is still involved with them? Bushy and Ingle have both gone home, as have both Erik Braun and Lee Dorman (in other words, the entire Inna-Gada-Da-Vida lineup is gone). That leaves, I think guitarist Danny Weiss and bassist Jerry Penrod, who played on the first single and album. Is that who you're talking about?

[bRETT]

Who from the original Iron Butterfly is still involved with them? Bushy and Ingle have both gone home, as have both Erik Braun and Lee Dorman (in other words, the entire Inna-Gada-Da-Vida lineup is gone). That leaves, I think guitarist Danny Weiss and bassist Jerry Penrod, who played on the first single and album. Is that who you're talking about?

They are alive but not connected to the current band, if there even is one.

[Czyszy]

Emerson Lake & Powell

[JKL2000]

Another category would be bands that made albums with completely different lineups. Only 2 spring to mind at the moment: Nektar and Crack The Sky.

Tangerine Dream fits that category, right? And maybe Renaissance?

[containedpace]

The Temptations

[Interstellar]

French band Ange only have one original member left, singer/ instrumentalist Christian Décamps. He will retire from touring next February, so the live band won't have any original member left. (I plan to attend his last concert.) He has always said he wants the band to carry on without him when he's gone.

[Mister Triscuits]

French band Ange only have one original member left, singer/ instrumentalist Christian Décamps. He will retire from touring next February, so the live band won't have any original member left. (I plan to attend his last concert.) He has always said he wants the band to carry on without him when he's gone.

Will Tristan take over lead vocals, or will they get a new singer?

[arturs]

Who from the original Iron Butterfly is still involved with them? Bushy and Ingle have both gone home, as have both Erik Braun and Lee Dorman (in other words, the entire Inna-Gada-Da-Vida lineup is gone). That leaves, I think guitarist Danny Weiss and bassist Jerry Penrod, who played on the first single and album. Is that who you're talking about?

Triscuits in post #26 updated the IB situation. Basically Bushy was running a live IB outfit with no original members on tour. He himself (maybe?) played with them sometimes. There was an original member of Spock's Beard in the group though... But as per Triscuits it seems the venture has died along with him.

[pb2015]

There are a lot of bands still active these days where there is an original member on the roster but they don't tour or only tour occasionally with the group. Foreigner is mentioned above. The Guess Who and Iron Butterfly right now are like that. I understand Kansas has done some shows with no original members recently.

In the case of Blood, Sweat and Tears, original drummer Bobby Colomby hasn't played with them since 1976 but remains the manager.

[Mr.Krautman]

Tangerine Dream fits that category, right? And maybe Renaissance?

For Renaissance, only if you consider the first (McCarty/Relf) version as the original band.
Annie Haslam is still active and in the current version of the band.

[Interstellar]

Will Tristan take over lead vocals, or will they get a new singer?

I think Tristan will take over most of the lead vocals. On the current tour they have brought in a new keyboard player, who I guess will cover most of the keyboard work on stage once Tristan becomes the lead singer (although Tristan will probably play keyboards as well, as Christian has always done).

[vmartell]

Technically, Yes

Not that it matters, but always thought of Yes as a thoroughly English band... which now only has 2 English members...

Whoever, in my mind and being realistic... Howe and Downes' presence is good enough for me to still call the band Yes... Although I know and would agree that any band with all the rights to be called Yes would have to have Squire and Anderson in it... again, just being realistic...

[rdclark]

Howe and Downes' presence is good enough for me to still call the band Yes...

And yet Yes's second guitarist and fourth keyboardist are actual founding members of an entirely different band.

[Digital_Man]

Emerson Lake & Powell

They aren't currently active so why should they count? All are dead anyway.

[Progtastic]

For Renaissance, only if you consider the first (McCarty/Relf) version as the original band.

Well it clearly was. The change the "classic" lineup wasn't sudden, both Dunford and Camp played during the transition before Annie joined.

[Steve F.]

Can't really comment much on Gong , but the current TD is vastly more interesting than what EF presided over for most of the 15 or so years leading up to his passing.

I totally agree; might even go to 25 years

[starless and bible black]

The Temptations

Nope; The Temptations still have one original member, Otis Williams, who is still in the lineup of the Group.

[Czyszy]

They aren't currently active so why should they count? All are dead anyway.

The OP didn't mention that the bands listed here had to be still active. ;)

[calyx]

Well it clearly was. The change the "classic" lineup wasn't sudden, both Dunford and Camp played during the transition before Annie joined.

You mean John Tout. Tout joined in late 1970, replacing John Hawken. The bass player at this point was still Neil Korner, with Terry Crowe handling the main vocals (Annie Haslam, who joined in early 1971, initially had a role akin to Jane Relf's, i.e. secondary to the male vocalist). I don't think Camp joined until 1972, though Sullivan was the last of the classic line-up to join (by which time Dunford had been relegated to a composer role and was no longer in the live band).

[Brad 2 the Bone]

YES being one.How many others are there?

Embryo