When did heavy metal begin? It's hard to say. According to most metal annals, the first outbursts came from the Kinks with "You Really Got Me" and the Who with "My Generation" around 1964. As for the first heavy metal artist, that position arguably belongs to Alice Cooper, whose band was founded in 1965 under the name The Spiders. Heavy metal, however, was not to truly flourish until the year of 1967, and Alice Cooper was to become embedded in the collective mind of the world until 1971 with the classic Love It To Death.

During 1967, the rock world was still absorbed by the Summer of Love, but it was about to witness one of its most important revolutions. Bands like Golden Earring (formed in 1965), Cream, the Jimi Hendrix Experience, Led Zeppelin, Vanilla Fudge, Iron Butterfly, Steppenwolf, Blue Cheer, Deep Purple, Grand Funk Railroad, Free, Uriah Heep, Mountain, Humble Pie, Bloodrock, MC5, Black Widow, Atomic Rooster, Cactus, and Black Sabbath came to being between 1966 and 1970, and struck the world with what both Iron Butterfly and Steppenwolf would first baptize "heavy metal;" the first through reviews of its Heavy album and the second due to the phrase "heavy metal thunder," found in the motorcycling classic "Born to Be Wild." A new type of music, which borrowed heavily from rock and roll and the blues, was gaining influence on the youth of those times, which was slowly getting tired of the stagnant Summer of Love scene.

Out of the explosion of new bands, it was Cream and the Jimi Hendrix Experience that were to be the first bands to give heavy metal a high commercial profile. The legendary guitarist Eric Clapton was part of the first; a band that remains a seminal power trio and heavy metal act that released such memorable songs as "Sunshine Of Your Love" and "White Room." During the course of four albums and two years, Cream became a prominently successful band that influenced the likes of Rush and Van Halen, and would later spawn the also legendary Blind Faith. Meanwhile, the Jimi Hendrix Experience was another musical trio, based around the guitar histrionics of the legendary Jimi Hendrix. Albums such as Are You Experienced? and Electric Ladyland drew thousands of ravenous fans, which feasted on the music provided by a band that is often mentioned along with Janis Joplin and the Doors as one of the world's all-time premiere rock units.
Several new bands, including the bluesy Savoy Brown, Foghat, and Bad Company, the ferocious Budgie, and the legendary UFO, were spawned by the growing heavy metal explosion, while others like Status Quo hardened their sound; but until 1973 the kings of heavy metal were undoubtedly Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, and Black Sabbath. The three were bands with a technical prowess and a compositional inventiveness and passion unseen before, which coalesced into the hardest music existing during those times. Moreover, the era also marked the beginning of Satanic imagery and of spectacular, energetic live shows in heavy metal.

The Satanic imagery came courtesy of two English bands: Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin. Led Zeppelin's guitarist Jimmy Page (formerly of The Yardbirds, a band that was critical in influencing heavy metal with its psychedelic distortion and in spawning legendary guitar players Page, Clapton, and Jeff Beck) had a strong personal fascination with the occult, while many of Sabbath's lyrics within their ample range of themes dealt with it as well. The Sabs, however, did not claim to be Satanic, unlike many future metal bands; in fact, Ozzy Osbourne, vocalist of the band during those times, claims to have been scared off by fans wearing black robes and carrying candles with themselves.

As for the live shows, they were carried out by every band, most notably by Led Zeppelin's "rock till you drop" concerts that lasted about two hours and by Alice Cooper's colossal shows, known to feature boa constrictors, mutilated female mannequins, and Alice Cooper himself in a beheading spectacle. Bands moved onstage, introduced bigger-than-life special effects into their shows and recreated their music in front of fiery crowds of fans.

The first few years of heavy metal (the music being called classic metal at times because of its pioneering status) are considered by most as the best era of the genre ever. Without a doubt, it is quite a memorable segment of this music's history. It was back then that Led Zeppelin, unquestionably the most popular heavy metal band ever, created classics such as "Black Dog" and the Arabian "Kashmir;" but also had the brilliance of experimenting with forms of music such as reggae and folk. In fact, the latter was an essential part of the most widely known heavy metal song ever: "Stairway to Heaven." The masterfully created masterpiece was crafted by Page and vocalist Robert Plant to perfection and even today remains a constant radio staple.

It was, however, until 1970 that Black Sabbath inaugurated what many consider the "true" spirit and essence of heavy metal. Gloomy, crunching, and foreboding, albums like Black Sabbath, Paranoid, and Master of Reality demonstrated the wicked musical direction of guitarist Tony Iommi and band members Ozzy Osbourne, Bill Ward, and Geezer Butler through classic songs like "N.I.B.," "Paranoid," and "Children of the Grave." Bands such as Corrosion of Conformity, Metallica, and Nirvana were all influenced by the metal anthems provided by one of the genre's most memorable bands ever, and the face of modern music has hardly ever been the same since the Birmingham act exploded unto the scene. Meanwhile, Deep Purple, after going through a progressive rock stint with vocalist Rod Evans and bassist Nick Simper, developed a solid slab of rock on its classic Deep Purple In Rock, and would for a long time be heralded as a true innovator of music. In fact, Ritchie Blackmore's classical guitar training, along with Jon Lord's synthesizers and Ian Gillan's piercing shrieks, was crucial in the development of heavy metal as it is known today.

During the mid-Seventies, six new bands were to also walk into the spotlight: the Blue Oyster Cult, Thin Lizzy, Judas Priest, Queen, Aerosmith, and Kiss. Judas Priest would be responsible for popularizing the concept of two guitarists in a heavy metal band; Aerosmith for bringing back the blues, sex, and drugs; Thin Lizzy for breaking through with aesthetical and musical flash and style; Queen for introducing perhaps the greatest degree of experimentation within music and the renewal of majestic melodies and harmonies with a progressive rock edge; and Kiss for revolutionizing the art of live shows, at times presenting slightly macabre theatrics strongly reminiscent of Alice Cooper's. And the Blue Oyster Cult? They disappeared into oblivion after a series of forgettable albums released in the 80's. But during their halcyon days in the 70's, they were an important part of the hard rock arena circuit, combining beautiful 60's harmonies with searing guitars.
While a number of heavy metal bands cemented their reputation as rock giants for years to come, certain bands would begin taking another highly popular form of music, progressive rock, into a heavier direction. Bands like Pink Floyd and Genesis had remained most of the time outside the heavy metal realms, while others like Jethro Tull, Yes, and King Crimson flirted with it more often on songs like "Aqualung," "Heart of the Sunrise," and "21st Century Schizoid Man," respectively. Characterized by complex song structures, odd time signature arrangements, and a highly technical and virtuous use of instruments, progressive metal would nevertheless not come truly into being until the creation of Rush. On its debut album, Rush, the band had not yet acquired a tendency for the progressive; but by the time of Fly By Night and the acquisition of drummer Neil Peart, the band had changed its approach and become more ambitious lyrically and musically, driving its progressive outings to their furthermost limits on albums like A Farewell to Kings and Hemispheres. Most other progressive bands throughout history, such as Emerson, Lake, and Palmer, Focus, Asia, IQ, and Marillion, only flirted with metal through their years of existence.

Unfortunately, metal was to stagnate completely in the late Seventies. Aerosmith, Thin Lizzy, and Black Sabbath were digging their own graves due to their drug-consuming habits, Kiss had lost its charm because of over-commercialization, Deep Purple faded out through its never-ending personnel changes, and Led Zeppelin ended with the death of drummer John Bonham; only Judas Priest and Queen remained almost intact during these times. And not only were the greatest bands dying slowly, but every new band was just ripping off the old glory; metal was on its dying bed. Only a few bands were still thriving among the ruins, among them AC/DC and Rush; the former taking over the world with its three-chord attack, guitarist Angus Young's lunatic careening on stage, and Bon Scott's hell-raising screams; the latter inspiring new generations of musicians with its progressive brand of music. Ted Nugent, formerly of the Amboy Dukes, also released hyperactive gems like Cat Scratch Fever and Double Live Gonzo to much acclaim during the last half of the Seventies, and would be another of the few surviving musical groups. Blackmore's Rainbow was the last of the great rock giants to die or metamorphose by the end of the Eighties, after Ronnie James Dio left the band amidst a flurry of clashing egos which had earlier produced melodic epics on albums like Rainbow Rising and Long Live Rock n' Roll.

Then came metal's sister music, punk, to save the rock scene from an untimely demise. A slew of new bands that could barely play their instruments and protested about fascism, their governments, and basically everyday life, were to take the spotlight with their raucous stage antics and their three-chord songs imbued with righteous fury. Influenced by the first punk outings of Iggy and the Stooges, the MC5, and the glittery New York Dolls during the 60's and early 70's, the Sex Pistols, the Ramones, the Clash, the Damned, Siouxsie and the Banshees; and relatively more obscure bands, such as Pagans, the Dead Boys, the UK Subs, the Misfits, Crass, the Exploited, the gloomy Amebix, and the Plasmatics were to storm upon the world. Punk's greatest contributions to the punk/heavy metal scene were probably the widespread practice of slamdancing, the renaissance of energetic music, and the wide propagation of protests against the wrongdoings of society (an echo of Black Sabbath themes, included in songs such as "Children of the Grave" and "War Pigs").

Perhaps the three most important bands of punk were Iggy and the Stooges, the Ramones, and the Sex Pistols. The first was Iggy Pop's band. The band members were nothing short of amazing in their live shows, which were so energetic, that according to Iggy Pop himself, they would only last ten to fifteen minutes, consisting basically of Iggy's wild antics and screaming over a power trio's furious songs. Then was the Ramones, the New York band with songs that were amazingly reckless for their time and laid the foundations on which bands such as The Red Hot Chili Peppers and Nirvana would grow. Finally was the greatest (in popularity) punk rock band of all times: The Sex Pistols. Its origin was rather curious: An art project by Malcom McClaren that sought to destroy everything that had come before in rock n' roll. The band managed to create some good punk rock in the process, with everything from political protest ("God Save the Queen") to hooky songs ("Sub-Mission"). However, the band destroyed itself during its American tour, with bassist Sid Vicious killing his girlfriend Nancy Spunge and then committing suicide while drugged; this turned Vicious into punk's infamous martyr and began the end for punk rock, which would remain underground for the most part until the Nineties.

While punk was taking over strongly among the youth, another raw and aggressive band would begin making an impact: Motorhead. Motorhead would signify the beginning of what is known today as thrash/speed/power metal, which would in turn originate death metal. The band's first release, On Parole (1976) would only hint at the power unleashed in later albums released during the late 70's and early 80's, such as Overkill, Bomber, Ace of Spades, and No Sleep 'Til Hammersmith, which offered some truly pedal-to-the-metal songs. Furthermore, Motorhead surprisingly attracted not only the metal crowd, but also many fiery punk fans, therefore marking the beginning of a union that would eventually result in the creation of hardcore.

While punk was shaking the foundations of rock n' roll, heavy metal came back with Judas Priest, the Scorpions, Accept, and the short-lived New Wave of British Heavy Metal (NWOBHM). The highly important British invasion brought with itself bands like the acclaimed Diamond Head, Def Leppard, Holocaust, Iron Maiden, Saxon, Samson, Tygers of Pan Tang, Venom, Raven, and Sweet Savage, of which only Iron Maiden, Saxon and Def Leppard were to survive. Judas Priest would popularize the leather, studs, and spikes apparel that would characterize metal for years to come; the veteran Scorpions would increase its string of brilliant releases, such as Virgin Killer, Lovedrive, and Blackout, which featured the band's taste for both ballads and heavy songs; and Accept would demonstrate its solid musicianship and proto-power metal drive through classic albums like Breaker and Restless and Wild.

Meanwhile, Iron Maiden brought back the mystic imagery of heavy metal while pounding out some of the heaviest riffs of its time in albums like Killers, Piece of Mind and Powerslave. The band was to remain the heaviest to rule the arena hard-rock circuit for years until the advent of Metallica. And while Maiden pounded out harmonized and majestic guitar riffs backed by a thunderous bass (a combination commonly known as classic metal, not to be confused with the pioneering genre), Venom would truly begin the thrash metal genre with classic albums like Welcome to Hell and Black Metal, in which it also laid the grounds for what would turn out to be death and black metal later on. Originally a band meant as a tongue-in-cheek project named Oberon, Venom was to become the most intense band of its time and would inspire, along with Motorhead, Judas Priest's Stained Class and Riot's distinguishable and energetic musical outbursts, young bands such as Metallica, Exodus, Slayer, and Mantas (which would later become Death) to start making their own brand of fast, aggressive music.

The NWOBHM, however, was to be more than just a short-lived movement of exciting heavy metal revival in Great Britain. It became a revitalized hotbed of youthful exuberance, unbridled creativity, and a point of inspiration and reference for the way heavy metal was to evolve throughout much of the Eighties. With the driving riff-based metal of bands like Jaguar set up against the quirkiness of Witchfynde, the originality of Legend, the timeless quality of Diamond Head, the energy of Angel Witch, or the doom-laden crunch of Witchfinder General, it signified what heavy metal stood for, and guaranteed its continual evolution.

As in the past, the United States decided to bite back with a vengeance, which was embodied in the pop/glam metal explosion of the 80's. Van Halen was already there since 1978 and had become an arena band, hitting the world hard with Eddie Van Halen's guitar wizardry and David Lee Roth's wild show antics. The prototypical Journey had sold millions of records since its inception in 1972 with its keyboard-oriented metal, and later on Angel and Foreigner would begin breaking through to the masses while Montrose released legendary music. But the real vengeance came in the early Eighties with Motley Crue and Ratt, two bands from Los Angeles that wrote relatively accessible songs big on hooks and strongly influenced by the likes of veterans Sweet and T-Rex. Not only that, but both bands also took the glam images from bands such as Alice Cooper, David Bowie, the New York Dolls, Kiss, and Gary Glitter. Taking them to the extreme, glam metal bands began wearing women's makeup, leather outfits, fishnets, headbands, spikes, and whatever they could basically get their hands on. Motley Crue, perhaps the most important pop metal band of the 80's, began the LA metal explosion in 1983 with Shout At the Devil, an album that was solely responsible for bringing heavy metal fully back into commercial circles; at the same time helping propel Ratt and the older Twisted Sister and Quiet Riot into stardom. "Round and Round," "We're Not Gonna Take It," and "Cum On Feel the Noize," respectively, broke each band over to mainstream audiences worldwide; a success that in turn paved the way for Bon Jovi.

Bon Jovi was the second most successful metal band ever, right after Def Leppard; selling millions upon millions of albums and releasing hit ballad after hit ballad. Slippery When Wet and New Jersey took the world by storm, as would Def Leppard's Pyromania and Hysteria. These two bands perfectly learned how to take metal's harshness and mix it with pop's accessibility, therefore producing a perfect blend for the MTV-influenced youth of those days (although many would contend that Bon Jovi isn't really metal). Meanwhile, Motley Crue and Ratt innovated their own music with every album and remained successes for a long time, reflecting the darker side of pop metal. However, these bands obscured others that had as much to offer. Groups such as Kix, Faster Pussycat, and LA Guns, despite their strong material, never truly obtained the success some felt they deserved, while bands like Kiss adapted to the ruling pop metal scene on songs like "Heaven's On Fire." Later on, the pop metal explosion would also obscure bands with harder or more classic styles, such as the acclaimed Thunder, G.U.N., and Junkyard; although others like the Cult and Jackyl did manage to surface.
However, pop metal eventually became too accessible and flashy and needed revitalizing. Whitesnake, which epitomized the common successful glam metal band, was already dying out despite its existence since the Seventies, and only the strongest and best bands were surviving: Bon Jovi, Def Leppard, and Motley Crue. The scene needed a new type of band; a band that was not as polished and accessible, a band that came from the sleazy and edgy streets. Enter Guns n' Roses.

Guns n' Roses was what the pop metal scene needed. Appetite for Destruction was a searing, raw, and aggressive affair, featuring Slash's bluesy guitar licks and Axl Rose's hanging-on-to-dear-life vocals. Guns n' Roses took the spotlight with its mix of the Hanoi Rocks, the Rolling Stones, Aerosmith, and previous pop metal acts with songs like "Welcome to the Jungle," "Night Train," and "My Michelle," while showing its softer side on "Sweet Child O' Mine." With the band invading the media massively after what had seemed to be an initial failure, Guns n' Roses had saved pop metal from commercial extinction and would eventually reign the scene along with Motley Crue, while Def Leppard and Bon Jovi enjoyed long breaks.

The coming of Guns n' Roses, however, would not prevent new accessible bands from appearing. Poison and Warrant were probably the best and most noticeable of these; although they weren't something completely new, their songs were original and catchy, but their extreme use of makeup and glamorous clothing would incite critics everywhere to attack them as throwaway bands. White Lion was also an important pop metal offering; although some of the band's songs were rather trite, much of its material was also quite impressive; especially songs like "Lights and Thunder," "If My Mind Is Evil," and "Leave Me Alone." Meanwhile, the bluesier Cinderella offered a string of honest and straightforward rock albums, and Tesla did likewise, shunning the glam image in the process. The far more experienced outfit Dokken was yet another historical feature of pop metal, displaying George Lynch's blazing fretwork and a heavier influence of technical musicianship (as well as the epitome of what would eventually become all of glam metal's cliche's), while Europe blasted through the charts with the melodic masterpiece "The Final Countdown." Others like the Christian Stryper, the often criticized Winger and Great White, Mr. Big, Bad English, Damn Yankees, and Slaughter made up an important part of the scene. There was also the rather memorable Skid Row, but its line-up would eventually venture into much heavier grounds, despite the heavy success of its debut album: Skid Row.
The pop metal scene would also be responsible for bringing about the most popular and widely known female heavy metal musicians ever, who continued with the advances of the Runaways and the New Wave of British Heavy Metal Girlschool; the two bands most responsible for making rock a viable musical avenue for women. Joan Jett & the Blackhearts enticed admiration with the heartfelt "I Love Rock n' Roll," while Lita Ford would air on the music media through her single "Kiss Me Deadly." The two ex-Runaways members eventually lost their popularity, but they, along with Warlock's Doro Pesch, were responsible for influencing the creation of young new female bands like the velvety soft Vixen, the alternative L7, the obscure Phantom Blue, and the heavy and gloomy Drain S.T.H.

Meanwhile, a somewhat heavier and more classic approach to the genre was provided by several heavy metal legends during the Eighties. Black Sabbath, along with singer Ronnie James Dio, came back with Heaven and Hell and Mob Rules to much acclaim; both albums marking a stylistic change in which a more melodic approach was utilized. Meanwhile, Ozzy Osbourne, away from the Black Sabbath front, provided ardent fans with releases such as Blizzard of Ozz and Diary of a Madman, which featured prodigious guitarist Randy Rhoads and along with Dio's later solo releases would keep his type of melodic metal alive through the Eighties. This was also due to efforts of newer melodic bands that stuck to heavy metal, such as the constantly evolving Savatage, the "Kings of Metal" Manowar, Cirith Ungol, and Armored Saint, each with its own style. Several of the Seventies' legendary bands would make comebacks throughout the Eighties with different degrees of success, but there was no synchronized revival of the pioneering metal of old, partly because many bands had lost either their originality or the passion that had characterized their early impact.

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