Some of the greatest power trios in the history of rock & roll never needed traditional band assignments.

The quartet dynamic might’ve worked for the Who, Led Zeppelin, and the Beatles. However, the three-man formula has produced its fair share of legends.

Whether it was a trailblazing group like Cream or some of the most influential bands of the alternative rock scene during the 1990s, power trios have populated all corners of the rock universe for decades.

Many of them have simplified rock music in a way that some of their contemporaries couldn’t. Most featured just an electric guitarist, a bass guitarist, and a drummer/percussionist. The dynamic allows for one (or in Cream’s case two) singer(s) to take control.

• 20. ZZ Top

  Original Band Members: Billy Gibbons, Frank Beard, Dusty Hill

  Top Hits: Gimme’ All Your Lovin’, La Grange, Sharp Dressed Man

• 19. Grand Funk Railroad

  Original Band Members: Mark Farner, Don Brewer, and Mel Schacher

  Top Hits: I’m Your Captain, Are You Ready, We’re an American Band

• 18. Highly Suspect

  Original Band Members: Johnny Stevens, Ryan Meyer, Rich Meyer

  Top Hits: Lydia, My Name Is Human, Natural Born Killer

• 17. Everclear

  Original Band Members: Art Alexakis, Craig Montoya, Greg Eklund

  Top Hits: Wonderful, Santa Monica, Father of Mine

• 16. Semisonic

  Original Band Members: Dan Wilson, John Munson, Jacob Slichter

  Top Hits: Closing Time, Never You Sleep, Singing In My Sleep

• 15. James Gang

  Original Band Members: Joe Walsh, Tom Kriss, Jim Fox

  Top Hits: Standing in the Rain, Walk Away, Funk 48/49

• 14. The Outfield

  Original Band Members: John Spinks, Tony Lewis, Alan Jackman

  Top Hits: Your Love, All the Love in the World, Voices of Babylon

• 13. Alkaline Trio

  Original Band Members: Matt Skiba, Rob Doran, Glenn Porter

  Top Hits: Radio, We’ve Had Enough, Private Eye

• 12. Emerson, Lake, and Palmer

  Original Band Members: Keith Emerson, Greg Lake, Carl Palmer

  Top Hits: Lucky Man, From the Beginning, The Barbarian

• 11. Primus

  Original Band Members: Les Claypool, Todd Huth, Jay Lane

  Top Hits: Jerry Was a Racecar Driver, My Name Is Mud, John the Fisherman

• 10. Violent Femmes

  Original Band Members: Brian Ritchie, Blaise Garza, John Sparrow

  Top Hits: Blister in the Sun, Gone Daddy Gone, Please Do Not Go

• 9. Sublime

  Original Band Members: Bradley Nowell, Eric Wilson, Bud Gaugh

  Top Hits: Santeria, Wrong Way, What I Got

• 8. Motörhead

  Trio Band Members: Ian “Lemmy” Kilmister, Larry Wallis, Lucas Fox

  Top Hits: Ace of Spades, Overkill, Killed by Death

• 7. The Police

  Original Band Members: Gordon “Sting” Sumner, Stewart Copeland, Andy Summers

  Top Hits: Every Breath You Take, Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic, Roxanne

• 6. Rush

  Original Band Members: Alex Lifeson, Geddy Lee, John Rutsey

  Top Hits: Limelight, Tom Sawyer, Caravan

• 5. Green Day

  Trio Band Members: Billie Joe Armstrong, Mike Dirnt, Tré Cool Bearne

  Top Hits: American Idiot, Good Riddance, Basket Case

• 4. The Jimi Hendrix Experience

  Original Band Members: Jimi Hendrix, Noel Redding, Mitch Mitchell

  Top Hits: Purple Haze, Voo Doo Child, All Along the Watchtower

• 3. blink-182

  Trio Band Members: Travis Barker, Mark Hoppus, Tom DeLonge

  Top Hits: All the Small Things, She’s Out of Her Mind, Adam’s Song

• 2. Nirvana

  Original Band Members: Kurt Cobain, Krist Novoselic, Dave Grohl

  Top Hits: Smells Like Teen Spirit, Come As You Are, Lithium

• 1. Cream

  Original Band Members: Eric Clapton, Jack Bruce, Ginger Parker

  Top Hits: White Room, Sunshine Of Your Love, Crossroads

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