3 Classic Rock Bands That Changed Lead Singers at the Height of Their Popularity

At the height of classic rock in the 1970s and 1980s, the role of lead singer carried significant weight. A lead singer directly drives a band’s image and overall sound. Changing lead singers was a huge risk in those days, but one that many bands had to see through. Whether it was creative differences or the untimely death of a bandmate, here are 3 classic rock bands that survived changing lead singers at the height of their popularity.

Van Halen

In the late 1970s, Van Halen hit the rock scene in California like a bomb. With Eddie Van Halen’s masterful and innovative guitar playing and charismatic frontman David Lee Roth, Van Halen changed the course of rock music after their debut self-titled album. The band released six studio albums with David Lee Roth. Their sixth studio album, 1984, was their most commercially successful release, peaking at No. 2 on the Billboard 200. The album featured Van Halen’s only No. 1 hit “Jump.” Shortly after the 1984 tour, David Lee Roth left Van Halen seeking a solo career, which soon became a successful attempt with the release of his 1985 EP Crazy From The Heat.

Fans were shocked and questioned the future of Van Halen until Sammy Hagar joined Eddie Van Halen on stage at Farm Aid in 1985. The collaboration worked so well that Hagar soon joined Van Halen. With Sammy Hagar, Van Halen released four No. 1 albums in eleven years. For decades, fans have debated which version of the band was better, and it continues to divide Van Halen fans.

AC/DC

When you had a lead singer as signature-sounding as Bon Scott in AC/DC, it was hard to imagine a replacement. AC/DC had a reputation for a raw but straightforward rock sound in the 1970s. After five studio albums and a live album, singer Bon Scott died from alcohol poisoning in early 1980. The band was in the process of writing a new album, and rather than hang it up, they decided to pursue a replacement. This was a huge risk as Bon Scott’s vocals were a huge part of the band’s identity. Fortunately, they couldn’t have found a better replacement than Brian Johnson.

Brian Johnson provided the vocals on the Back in Black album in 1980, a tribute to the late singer Bon Scott. Back in Black became one of the best-selling albums in history and set the band up for further success heading into the 1980s and eventually, the 1990s. Johnson has been with AC/DC for over 40 years, singing on some of the band’s biggest hits.

Survivor

After two studio albums, Survivor’s third album, Eye Of The Tiger, became their biggest release. It peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard 200. The album’s title track was featured on the Rocky III soundtrack and hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. What most people don’t realize is that after one more studio album, lead singer Dave Bickler left the group due to developing polyps on his vocal cords. Bickler required surgery and would be out for a year and a half.

He was replaced by Jimi Jamison in 1984, and the group released their next album, Vital Signs. The album generated four hit singles: “I Can’t Hold Back,” “High On You,” “The Search Is Over,” and “First Night.” The band then contributed the song “The Moment Of Truth” to The Karate Kid soundtrack in 1984 and “Burning Heart” to the Rocky IV soundtrack the following year.