One Death Ended the Band Trivia Quiz

Answer: Led Zeppelin

Led Zeppelin are arguably the most popular and influential rock band of all time other than the Beatles. They were also some of the most skilled musicians ever in rock, a genre that doesn't necessarily require the skills of a virtuoso. The most revered member of Led Zeppelin was John Bonham, who is considered by many people to be the greatest drummer of all-time in rock music. His usage of drugs may have been the reason his drumming skills were so great. It was also the reason for his early death.

After he died, Led Zeppelin broke up and have repeatedly refused to reunite, despite getting many offers of tons of cash to do so. They reunited for one show in 2007 with John's son Jason on the drums. But for the most part, singer Robert Plant has not wanted to continue Led Zeppelin without John Bonham.

Answer: Kurt Cobain

Nirvana are considered the biggest and most influential rock band of the 1990s. They caused the decline in popularity of hair metal and the rise in popularity of grunge, a style of rock music with a dark sound. Nirvana were the leaders of the grunge movement with their album "Nevermind" becoming one of the highest-selling albums of all-time and "Smells Like Teen Spirit" becoming possibly the most popular song of the 1990s.

Then, Kurt Cobain died. Nirvana died with them. They reunited in 2018 for a show with singer John McCauley (normally of Deer Tick). McCauley has a voice that sounds a lot like Cobain's used to sound, so this went over pretty well.

However, it didn't last. Mostly, Nirvana stopped existing after Cobain's death.

Answer: The Beastie Boys

There was a time when it was believed that hip hop music was only for black people. Then one day in 1981, Adam Yauch, Michael Diamond, and Adam Horovitz decided to change that perception. They formed a hip hop trio of all white men. The result was over 50 million albums sold worldwide, seven albums that went platinum or better, the album "Licensed to Ill" which has sold over ten million copies worldwide, and classic songs such as "Fight For Your Right," "Sabotage," "Brass Monkey," "Girls," and "No Sleep 'Til Brooklyn."

In 2012, Adam Yauch died, and so did the Beastie Boys as a band.

Answer: Motorhead

Motorhead were a heavy metal band that were popular in their home country, the U.K. They were less popular in the United States, but they influenced many metal bands including Metallica. Kilmister used a lot of drugs during his life, but somehow lived to be 70. He died in 2016, and so did Motorhead.

Answer: The Grateful Dead

The Grateful Dead were a rock band that began in 1965. They recorded popular songs such as "Touch of Gray" and "Truckin'." They sold over 35 million albums worldwide and developed a cult fanbase.

In 1987, Ben and Jerry's named an ice cream flavor "Cherry Garcia" after the Grateful Dead's lead singer Jerry Garcia. Cherry Garcia was Ben and Jerry's best-selling ice cream flavor for over 20 years, though in the 2010s their flavor "Half Baked" took that honor.

Jerry Garcia died in 1995 and the Grateful Dead broke up. The surviving members have reunited a few times since then.

Answer: Linkin Park

Linkin Park are arguably the most successful rock band of the 2000s. They have sold over 70 million albums worldwide. Their album "Hybrid Theory" has sold over 30 million copies worldwide thanks to hits such as "In The End," "Runaway," "Crawling," and "One Step Closer." Their album "Meteora" has sold over 27 million copies worldwide thanks to hits such as "Faint," "Numb," "Somewhere I Belong," and "Breaking The Habit." "Minutes to Midnight" sold over 20 million copies worldwide thanks to hits such as "What I've Done" and "Bleed it Out." Linkin Park's new releases got less and less popular, with each new album of theirs selling less than all its predecessors. However, three albums that have sold over 20 million copies is nothing to be ashamed of.

In 2017, Bennington killed himself. This could possibly be because his hero Chris Cornell killed himself. After Cornell died, Bennington tweeted that he didn't want to live in a world without Cornell. Furthermore, Bennington killed himself the same way Cornell did (by hanging himself). After he died, Linkin Park broke up.

Answer: Soundgarden

Soundgarden were one of the major bands of the grunge movement of the 1990's, in which happy-sounding hair metals bands were becoming unpopular while bands that make music that's dark and gloomy, yet still rockin', were becoming popular. While Nirvana and Pearl Jam were the most popular bands of this movement, many people believe that Chris Cornell was the best rock singer of this era.

Soundgarden's albums "Badmotorfinger" and "Superunknown" are regarded as some of the best rock albums of the early 1990s. Popular songs include "Black Hole Sun," "Outshined," "Jesus Christ Pose," and "Fell on Black Days."

Soundgarden broke up in 1997 but reunited in 2010 and made one final album, "King Animal." In 2017, Chris Cornell hanged himself and Soundgarden broke up.

Answer: T. Rex

T. Rex were a very popular band in the U.K. They had 11 top ten singles in the U.K. from 1970 to 1973. In the U.S. they are known for their hit "Bang a Gong (Get it On)," which was covered by a band called Power Station. Both versions of the song were top ten hits on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100.

Bolan died in 1977 and so did T. Rex, but their influence lived on. Bands that cited T. Rex as an influence include the Ramones, the New York Dolls, R.E.M., and the Pixies.

Answer: Dimebag Darrell

In the 1980s, the Abbott brothers, Dimebag Darrell and Vinnie Paul, formed a metal band called Pantera. Pantera were popular in the metal community from the 1980s through the 1990s. Their 1994 album "Far Beyond Driven" debuted at number one on the Billboard 200. Shortly after that, lead singer Phil Anselmo became addicted to heroin. This caused tensions within the band. Eventually in 2003, the Abbott brothers disbanded Pantera because of this.

In 2004, Anselmo said that Dimebag Darrell deserved to be severely beaten. He later said that he meant that as a joke. However, one person did not take it as a joke.

After Pantera broke up, the Abbott brothers formed a new band called Damageplan. However, a longtime Pantera fan named Nathan Gale attended a Damageplan concert, somehow got past security with a gun, somehow got onstage, and shot Dimebag, supposedly because he broke up Pantera. Damageplan ceased after this.

Answer: Brown Bird

Brown Bird were a folk duo of musicians that consisted of husband David Lamb and wife MorganEve Swain. They began in 2003 and released albums from 2007 until 2014, when Lamb died of leukemia. Swain put out one final album called "Axis Mundi" in 2015 that was full of material that Brown Bird never released during Lamb's life. After this, Brown Bird was over, but Swain continued making music. She formed a new band. Her husband continued to influence her music after her death. The name of the band's debut album was named after the title of the final song on "Axis Mundi" ("Avalon"), the name of the band comes from a lyric in that song, "The Huntress and Holder of Hands," and many of the songs are about Lamb and what life is like without him. They even re-recorded the Brown Bird song "Severed Soul," in a slower, more somber fashion than the original. The Huntress and Holder of Hands often played Brown Bird songs live such as "Severed Soul" and "Bilgewater."

Brown Bird have toured with the Devil Makes Three, and they have been praised by the Devil Makes Three. I believe Brown Bird deserve a lot more fame than they have.