The origin of the rock and roll band goes back to the 1950s. Although rock and roll has a hazy history as far who gets credit for inventing it, there are only a handful of bands that generally received notice for being the first rock and roll band as the term is generally recognized. These bands include Gene Vincent and the Blue Caps, Bill Haley and the Comets, Buddy Holly and the Crickets and the Everly Brothers as the first rock band in duo form.
The most significant rock and roll band, historically as well as artistically speaking, was the Beatles. It was this group from Liverpool, England that is generally credited with saving rock music from the bland teen idols of the early 1960s. The Beatles are significant both re-establishing the four piece quarter dominated by guitars as well as for pushing the boundaries of what a rock and roll band could do by introducing exotic instruments like the sitar and experimenting in diverse musical styles ranging from psychedelia to British musical hall compositions.
Although the traditional idea of a rock and roll band consists of a drummer, guitarist, bassist and singer, the truth is that a band can consist of as few as one person and as many as a dozen and more. Although impossible to perform live as a solo band, many multi-talented musicians like Prince, Brian Wilson and Bill Nelson have put out albums under the name of a band despite having literally played every instrument on the album. Likewise, there have been rock bands like Electric Light Orchestra and Foreigner that have at times consisted of ten musicians or more both in inside the studio and live on stage.
Traditionally, a rock and roll band has featured a singer, usually the member the band who exudes the most sex appeal and not necessarily the one who sings the best. A few successful rock and roll bands have eschewed singing and put their faith in music alone. Among the most successful instrumental rock and roll bands were the Ventures and Booker T. and MG's in the 1960s, King Crimson in the 1970s, and Love Tractor in the 1980s.
There have been a wide variety of rock and roll bands since the music began. Rockabilly bands were hugely successful in the 1950s and made a brief comeback in the 1980s. Classic rock is the name given to the music produced by some of the biggest names of the 1960s and 1970s. Punk rock was a reaction against the overblown sound of some classic rock bands who appeared to have lost the common touch that made them accessible to their fans. From punk came the New Wave bands of the early 1980s and in contrast to this movement were the abundance of hair bands that rose to prominence in the latter part of the decade, so-called because there seemed to be a requisite hair length and style for any member of these harder rocking acts.
Punk rock was a reaction against what was termed dinosaur bands. Sometime around the early 1970s many rock bands had become some isolated from their fans and so self-consciously "arty" that many newer bands felt they had completely lost all touch. Dinosaur bands performed in large arenas and even stadiums and the result was an actual physical distance from the bands as well. Interestingly, many of these dinosaur bands are now finding new life among new fans by licensing their music for use in video games like Rock Star and Rock Band.
Corporate rock was the pejorative name given to bands that arose during the mid to late 1970s that seemed to be unable to differentiate either their look or sound from other bands. Among those bands that are included under the corporate rock umbrella are Styx, Journey, Toto, Loverboy and REO Speedwagon. The basic problem with corporate rock bands was that they seemed unwilling or unable to make music that ever stretched the boundaries they had defined for themselves in pursuit of Top 40 glory; they had neither the influence of classic rock bands nor the ability to shake things up like punk rock bands.