Top 5 Best Selling Artists of All Time

Top+5+Best+Selling+Artists+of+All+Time

Matthew Mcdonald, Writer

Throughout the years, there have been some incredible musical artists producing incredible albums. These include extremely well-known bands, like The Beatles and Led Zeppelin, to solo artists, like Michael Jackson and Madonna. Does your favorite band or artist make the list of the top 5 most popular of all time?

 

  1. The Eagles-101 million records sold

 

This Los Angeles band dominated the 70’s with famous songs like “Hotel California”, “Fast Lane”, and “Take it Easy”. They have also produced great albums like Hotel California, Desperado, and The Long Run. They have become famous for their easygoing folk-rock image, and their album Hotel California has often ranked as one of the greatest albums of all time. They broke up in 1980 over numerous inner disputes, but continue to reunite (at least partially, as some of these arguments were very bitter) and do tours to this day.

 

  1. Led Zeppelin-111.5 million records sold

 

This famous English rock group lead the Heavy Rock charge of the early and mid 70’s, destroying the charts with their famous albums: Led Zeppelin IV, Physical Graffiti, and Houses of the Holy. They have become extremely popular for their album art, heavily influenced by The Lord of the Rings, and their song “Stairway to Heaven”, regarded as the greatest rock and roll song ever written. Like The Eagles, they were plagued by internal disputes. After the death of their drummer (the incredibly fast playing John Bonham died in 1980) the band broke up. Their 13 years of critically acclaimed music continues to influence us today.

 

  1. Elvis Presley-136 million records sold

 

Elvis Presley has become the embodiment of 50’s America with his slow Tennessee drawl and controversial dance moves. The King of Rock’s family was hard hit by the Great Depression of the 30’s, and Elvis became very popular for his image as a self-made man. Popular songs of his include “Hound Dog”, “Heartbreak Hotel”, and “Jailhouse Rock”. Although he supposedly died in 1976, there have been many conspiracies surrounding his death, including Elvis escaping to Buenos Aires, Argentina and him being the caretaker at his old mansion, Graceland.

 

  1. Garth Brooks-148 million records sold

 

Popular country singer Garth Brooks has amassed a large following of supporters throughout the years. Brooks was heavily influenced by famous country singer Hank Williams and famous piano man Billy Joel. Garth’s songs have been accepted as great songs, pursuing topics of feeling blue and sadness. He has been putting out music since 1989 and has become popular in the US for his incorporation of rock into country and folk songs like “Friends in Low Places” and “The Thunder Rolls” on his popular album No Fences. He was also the first country singer to go multi-platinum (platinum is the number of millions an album has sold. For example double platinum equals 2 million copies sold.) He continues to tour and put out new material to this day.

 

  1. The Beatles-178 million records sold

 

Most everyone has heard of The Beatles (unless you’ve lived under a rock since 1963). The Beatles are often referred to as the greatest rock and roll band of all time. Inspired by Elvis and another American musician named Buddy Holly, they quickly became popular for their mop-top hairstyle and gooey love songs. However, they became extremely famous as faces of the late 60’s Hippie movement which stood against racism and the infamous conflict in Vietnam. Their incredibly well known and influential albums Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (which had its 50th anniversary this year), The Beatles (also known as the White Album), and Abbey Road have become icons today. They have had so many songs reach number 1 on the US and UK singles chart that an entire double-sided album titled 1 was released containing all of their number one singles. However, they, like all great bands, came to an end with lawsuits, fighting, and copyright issues. It was so bad that after they broke up in 1970, the lead singers Paul McCartney and John Lennon barely talked to each other for 2 years. Lennon himself died in 1980, victim to a crazed shooter. In 1996, The Beatles released a John Lennon demo tape, which they recorded music over titled Free as a Bird. It went straight to number 1. They have since become one of the most famous symbols of peace in history.

 

Did your favorite band make the cut? Were you surprised when not even Michael Jackson made the top 5? Or that Garth Brooks sold more than Elvis? Or even that The Beatles sold 30 million more albums then the next biggest seller?

 

Resources:

 

Lynch, John. “The 50 Best-Selling Music Artists of All Time.” Business Insider, Business Insider, 13 Sept. 2017, www.businessinsider.com/best-selling-music-artists-of-all-time-2016-9.

Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. “Garth Brooks | Biography, Albums, Streaming Links.” AllMusic, www.allmusic.com/artist/garth-brooks-mn0000798248.