People who have been in 3 or more great bands - not counting session dudes or as solo artists

eg
Kid Congo Powers - Gun Club, Bad Seeds, Cramps

Brian Baker - Minor Threat, The Meatmen, Samhain, Dag Nasty

Jeff Tweedy

(Wilco, Loose Fur, Uncle Tupelo)

Kawabata Makoto: Acid Mothers Temple, Mainliner, Tsurubami, Toho Sara, others...

David Pajo: Slint, Palace Bros, Stereolab, Royal Trux (also: The For Carnation, Tortoise, King Kong and lol zwan).

oh he toured as lead guitarist for Yeah Yeah Yeahs last year...

lu edmonds-the damned, public image, the mekons, 3 mustaphas 3, shriekback, billy bragg (and the spizzles, yat-kha, kirsty macall, although that may be more session work... hard to tell...) and many, many others, including some he fronted. man works for a living.

Bill Bruford - Yes, King Crimson, UK

I'm sure we'll get some debate on the "greatness" of these three bands, but Pat Smear: The Germs, Nirvana, Foo Fighters.

everybody in P-Funk

Nick Sanderson: Clock DVA, Gun Club, World of Twist, Earl Brutus

I guess Clapton but I hate all the bands he's been in

Janet Weiss: Sleater-Kinney, Quasi, the Jicks.

Ron Wood: the Birds, Faces, Rolling Stones

Greg Cartwright - Compulsive Gamblers, Oblivians, Reigning Sound, Deadly Snakes, 68 Comeback

Mike Watt: The Minutemen, Firehose, The Stooges

Billy Childish - Milkshakes, Del Monas, Headcoats, Mighty Caesars, etc

Mike Watt: Minutemen, Firehose, Dos

... Stooges!

another one where greatness is debatable but: Jack White - The Go, The White Stripes, Racounteurs, Dead Weather

Chris Cutler - Henry Cow, Art Bears, Pere Ubu.

I'll wait for Geir to tell us about Jeff Lynne.

barney sumner

i don't think electronic are "great" exactly, but as good as/better than the foo fighters etc

Steve Roback: Rain Parade, Clay Allison, Opal

ooh speaking of which Roy Wood - the Move, ELO, Wizzard

xp

Lawrence Hayward-Felt, Denim, Go-Kart Mozart.

Damon Albarn-Blur, Gorillaz, The Good, The Bad & The Queen

Eric Drew Feldman - Capt. Beefheart, Pere Ubu, PJ Harvey (if that one isn't sessioneering)

Eye Yamataka - Boredoms, UFO Or Die, Hanatarash, probably more

Hah! [sitting in for geir] Yeah, Jeff Lynne: Idle Race, the Move, ELO, Traveling Wilburys. Did I miss any? lol

Yes, Yamataka has also worked with Naked City & Musica Transonic. Come to think of it Kawabata Makoto was also in Musica Transonic [see above]

steve winwood

maybe a stretch but... Josh Homme - Kyuss, Queens of the Stone Age, Eagles of Death Metal, Them Crooked Vultures

Yoshida Tatsuya - Koenjihyakkei, Ruins, Korekyojinn, the list goes on

Fred Frith - Henry Cow, Art Bears, Naked City

Bob Drake - Thinking Plague, 5uus, himself solo!

tons of prog/jazz/improv musicians basically

johnny marr : the smiths, electronic, the the, modest mouse, the cribs

or does he cross the boundary as a session muso now (not including his guest appearanes on various one off tracks) ?

as far as i know, he was officially a member of three of these bands at least.

Eric Drew Feldman - Capt. Beefheart, Pere Ubu, PJ Harvey (if that one isn't sessioneering)

― Matt #2, Tuesday, May 4, 2010 12:15 PM (7 minutes ago) Bookmark

i'd say his work on the first couple frank black solo albums is a step above "sessioneering" too

Marc Bell/Marky Ramone - Dust, The Voidoids, The Ramones

Kenney Jones: the Small Faces, the Faces, the Who

Ronnie James Dio - Rainbow, Black Sabbath, Dio. Um, Elf too?

Peter "Sleazy" Christopheren - Throbbing Gristle, Coil, Psychic TV

Bill Rieflin - Ministry, KMFDM, Lard, Pigface, Revolting Cocks, R.E.M.

Mick Harris - Napalm Death, Scorn, Painkiller

Scott Weinrich

Mick Harris - Napalm Death, Scorn, Painkiller

+ Lull, his best project.

Matthew Bower:

Skullflower
Total
Sunroof!
Hototogisu

Brian Baker - Minor Threat, The Meatmen, Samhain, Dag Nasty

― Brio, Tuesday, May 4, 2010 4:45 PM (1 hour ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

let's say 3 1/2 in light of dag nasty

Ronnie James Dio - Rainbow, Black Sabbath, Dio. Um, Elf too?

― Matt #2, Tuesday, May 4, 2010 5:30 PM (17 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

elf hell yeah!!

this is way, way harder for women than it is for men

Eric Drew Feldman - Capt. Beefheart, Pere Ubu, PJ Harvey (if that one isn't sessioneering)

― Matt #2, Tuesday, May 4, 2010 10:15 AM (37 minutes ago)

he's on Trompe Le Monde no? He toured with Pixies on keyboards in 91-92 when I saw them.

Xpost. Well, there's Patricia Morrison (Sisters of Mercy, Damned, Gun Club) if you're not too fussy about whether they were truly "great" or not when she was in them.

Ronnie James Dio - Rainbow, Black Sabbath, Dio. Um, Elf too?

― Matt #2, Tuesday, May 4, 2010 1:30 PM (22 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

He wins.

Carmine Appice and Tim Bogert: Cactus, Vanilla Fudge and Beck Bogert and Appice.

my girl kimmy deal

(Missed the Wetton namecheck because ILM is hiding parts of the thread - plus I forgot Uriah Heep)

Does Miles Davis count? :)

That's actually a really good point Geir, I mean he did assemble quite a few distinct bands over the years that all definitely had their own thing going on. But I suppose others may feel that opens a can of worms with jazz dudes.

Mike Saunders: Vom, Angry Samoans, and Metal Mike, Alison, & Julia.

Richard Hell: Television, Heartbreakers, Voidoids.

+ Dim Stars!

drummers shouldn't even really count, i guess.

I know some can't, but the rest ought to at least try, I feel.

― sonofstan, Tuesday, 4 May 2010 22:56 (Yesterday)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bcYppAs6ZdI

August Darnell - Dr. Buzzard's Original Savannah Band, Machine, Kid Creole & the Coconuts

Erik Rutan: Ripping Corpse, Morbid Angel, Hate Eternal

John Dwyer - Pink And Brown, Coachwhips, the Hospitals, Thee Oh Sees,

Chuck Biscuits - D.O.A. , Black Flag, Circle Jerks, Danzig, Samhain, (Run-D.M.C. & Social Distortion as session guy)

Keith Relf-Yardbirds, Armageddon, Renaissance

Does Miles Davis count? :)

― Tied Up In Geir (Geir Hongro), Tuesday, May 4, 2010 8:55 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

Doing jazz would kill this, like I said above. One day in the '50s you would have Miles play with Charlie Parker at some club, and they would be billed as "Miles Davis". Next night they would play together with some other dudes billed as "Charlie Parker". Everybody was in everybody's band back then.

Joe Preston - The Melvins, Earth, Sunn O))), High on Fire, Men's Recovery Project, Harvey Milk, Superconductor, Godheadsilo

Thats a good one right there.

Also: Warren Ellis -- Dirty Three, Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds and, um, Grinderman?

― Lostandfound, Tuesday, May 4, 2010 9:49 PM (7 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

DIRTY THREE!!

― the Rob Based god (M@tt He1ges0n), Tuesday, 4 May 2010 21:57 (Yesterday) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

Wasn't he in the Dirty Three as well?

lol Warren Ellis; every time I see that name I reflexively think "Transmetropolitan, Stormwatch, The Authority, Excalibur, Thunderbolts"

Joe Preston - The Melvins, Earth, Sunn O))), High on Fire, Men's Recovery Project, Harvey Milk, Superconductor, Godheadsilo

^^^^^^^^^^ winner, lock thread.

not so fast

Kramer - Bongwater, Shockabilly, Half Japanese, Ween, B.A.L.L., The Fugs, G.G. Allin & the Superscum and finally a 6-month stint with the Butthole Surfers

plus Gong, & Zorn groups

Mick Jones! Foreigner, The Clash, Spooky Tooth!

John McGeoch: Magazine, Siouxsie and the Banshees, PiL

Melanie Clarin: The Donner Party, SF Seals, The Catheads

Sam Coomes: The Donner Party, Heatmiser, Quasi

Barbara Manning: 28th Day, World of Pooh, SF Seals

David Immerglück: The Ophelias, Monks of Doom, Camper Van Beethoven

John Langford, Mekons, The Three Johns, Waco Brothers

Dave Stewart (no not the Eurythmics one) - Egg, National Health, Hatfield & The North, Khan, Arzachel, Bruford, AND he produced "Neil's Heavy Concept Album"

Paul Carrack: Ace (not a great band, but they had a great single), Roxy Music (full-blown band member around the time of Manifesto), Squeeze, Mike + the Mechanics

Dusty Watson: Agent Orange, Dick Dale & The Del-Tones, Slacktone, Jon and the Nightriders, The Queers, Davie Allan and the Arrows, The Surfaris

varg vikernes: burzum, mayhem, darkthrone.

whooo.

Lobby Loyde: Billy Thorpe & the Aztecs, Coloured Balls, Rose Tattoo

Larry Wallis: Pink Fairies, Motorhead, UFO, Larry Wallis's Psychedelic Rowdies. (Was also in Blodwyn Pig, who I don't think I've ever actually heard.)

Paul Marotta: Electric Eels, Mirrors, Styrenes

Jacques Petrus and Mauro Malavasi: Change, Macho, BB&Q Band, Zinc, Revanche

Michael Des Barres: Silverhead, Detective, Chequered Past (okay, Chequered Past might be pushing it as far as greatness goes. Same reason I'm not nominating Stiv Bators for Rocket From The Tombs/Dead Boys/Lords Of The New Church.)

James Burton: Rick Nelson, Elvis Presley, Emmylou Harris (I believe he was a bit more than a session dude with these acts))
Bob Weston: Shellac, Mission of Burma, Volcano Suns (maybe not great?)

James Burton: Rick Nelson, Elvis Presley, Emmylou Harris (I believe he was a bit more than a session dude with these acts))

― asthmatic american, Friday, May 7, 2010 1:32 PM (27 minutes ago)

was Elvis' guitarist in Vegas for 7+ years iirc! that's a bit of a commitment imo.

Twink: Tomorrow, the Pretty Things, The Pink Fairies

Aynsley Dunbar: Journey, Aynsley Dunbar's Retaliation, Mothers/Zappa, Mayall's Bluesbreakers, Blue Whale, UFO. But it could be argued that he was more of a session guy for some of those. And he missed being in the Jimi Hendrix Experience by a coin toss.

Love Twink!! ...and wasn't Steve Howe also in Tomorrow?

Mark Sultan/BBQ: Spaceshits, Sexareenos, Mind Controls, King Khan and BBQ Show, The Ding Dongs

Twink was mentioned upthread but it bears repeating

Jim White: Dirty Three, Cat Power, Smog, Nina Nastasia

Dave Stewart (no not the Eurythmics one)

David Alan Stewart was also in The Tourists and The Spiritual Cowboys, although I guess you could argue whether they were actually great....

Mick Jones! Foreigner, The Clash, Spooky Tooth!

Trouble is, the Mick Jones who was in The Clash (and also in Big Audio Dynamite), is another Mick Jones than the other one...

Casino Steel: The Hollywood Brats, The Boys, Gary Holton & Casino Steel, CCCP

Kramer - Bongwater, Shockabilly, Half Japanese, Ween, B.A.L.L., The Fugs, G.G. Allin & the Superscum and finally a 6-month stint with the Butthole Surfers

And also this (from Wikipedia):

"Kramer worked for the James Randi Educational Foundation (JREF) from 2004 until February, 2006. His main job was to manage the JREF One Million Dollar Paranormal Challenge, which offered a million dollar prize to anyone who could demonstrate paranormal ability; the money remains unawarded. Additional duties included the investigation of paranormal phenomena, exposing "psychic" frauds and "faith healers", debunking modern new-age fallacies such as homeopathy and feng-shui, and teaching critical thinking... He insists that the work he performed under James Randi during these two years was the most important work of his life."

James Baker - the Victims, the Scientists, the Hoodoo Gurus
Ronnie Wood - the Birds (Say Those Magic Words alone makes them great), the Creation, the Faces, the Rolling Stones (and the Jeff Beck Group if you like that)

Pete Wylie - Wah! Heat, The Mighty Wah!, J.F. Wah!, Wah!, Wah! The Mongrel

Isn't that a birrova cheat?!???!? Pete Wiley renamed his band into ninteen-canteen variations of "WAH!!!!!!!!!!" every blimmin' time he changed his underwear, never mind every time he released a gramophone!!!!! In fact was a kind of "rockist" (To use the early 80s hip-priest venacular!!!!!!) version of Splodgenessabounds!!!!(!!!)

Erm, anyway!!!!! Back on topic!!!!!!!! My nomination is of course the mighty Bjorn Ulvaeus!!!! He's been in The Hootenany Singers, Bjorn and Benny, and Abba!!!!!!!

Did we really miss Tom Warrior? His ego will be crushed.

Hellhammer, Celtic Frost & Triptykon.

Jim White: Dirty Three, Cat Power, Smog, Nina Nastasia

That's a seriously great resumé.

Glen Danzig - Misfits, Samhain, Danzig

I suppose I may be stretching it a bit if I mention Tony Banks because of Genesis, Bankstatement and Strictly Inc. The latter two were both supposed to be bands, but were still seem as Banks solo projects...