I've been thinking about this for awhile. If you could make a band out of dead musicians, what would your lineup be? Preference for musicians that died young.

Here's one I've been kicking around for awhile, merely based on musical talent.
Drums: Keith Moon
Bass: Cliff Burton
Guitar: Randy Rhodes
Vocals: Layne Staley

You're a chipper guy, aren't you?

Vocalist: Jim Morrison
Lead Guitar: Stevie Ray Vaughan
Rhythm Guitar: Jimi Hendrix
Bass Guitar: Cliff Burton (I bet you are rolling over in your grave right now)
Drums: John Bonham

Speaking of dead musicians ... Muddy Waters - April 4, 1914 – April 30, 1983.

I thought about Jim Morrison for vocalist, but I really don't like The Doors much. Too much Hammond organ, I suspect.

Ooh, I forgot about John Bonham. Good one!

for a mellow kind of sound...

vocals: Freddie Mercury
keys/guitar/lyricist/vocals: John Lennon
guitar: Maury Muehleisen
bass: Ray Brown
drums: Max Roach

For a piano quintet:

Piano-Rachmaninoff

Violins-Heifetz and Oistrakh

Viola-Primrose

Cello-Feuermann

For some reason Achmed the dead terrorist keeps popping into my head whenever I see this thread.

Good call on Freddie Mercury!

Hmmm, there's so many to choose from, I'd have to go with:


Vocals: can't argue with Freddie Merc

Bass: John Entwisle

Lead: Jimmy Hendrix or SRV

Drums: tossup between Moon and Bonham

Rhythm: can we include Keith Richards?

You know, I just don't think dead musicians would play their instruments all that well. Maybe I'm biased towards the living.

Bigot.

I remember that Kurt Cobain killed himself when I was a first year medical student. He died at the age of 27, which, interestingly, was also the age at death of several other notable musicians: Brian Jones, Jim Morrison, Janis Joplin, and Jimi Hendrix. I think that Cobain may have been aware of this fact, and I remember reading an interview with his mother where she had urged him "not to join that stupid club." Pity.

For my hard rock band: Cobain, Hendrix, Entwhistle, Moon.

Yeah, I was concerned the whole time Regina was 27. I'm glad the peer pressure didn't kill her.

BTW, I'm digging the return of your original avatar.

Oh, yeah, you're the one who clued me in on the term "mutual assured destruction."

You kids, growing up after the Cold War ended.

and to rock out...

vocals: Freddie Mercury
Guitar: SRV
Guitar: Randy Rhodes
Bass: Cliff Burton
Drums: Jon Bonham

Band name...One Eyed Monster

As much as I think they were both awesome, I really have a hard time picturing Randy Rhodes and SRV playing together.

On the other hand, if they could collaborate, the resulting new hybrid music style might be the best original thing to come along in a long time.

This thread needs more pictures

Wait, is that actually a member of Metallica smiling?! That's unpossible!

G: Mick Ronson
G/V: Marc Bolan
B/V: Phil Lynott
P: Nicky Hopkins
D: Spinal Tap was correct. You really can do "plug 'n' play" with 'em. Especially the really good ones.

That's why I put them together. I know their styles are very different...it'd be fun to hear what they would come up with together.

Haha

I know you're a fan but in the last six or eight years I think James and Kirk are really enjoying life, and it shows in their shows (saw them twice in 2009). Hard to imagine having hundreds of millions in the bank and touring the world could not make a guy happy in the first place, but it seems pretty commonplace in the music world.

Upon the success of Van Halen, Davy Lee was asked if money bought him happiness. "No it can't," he replied, "but you can use it to buy a big yacht to sail up next to it."

Since when do yachts sail?

Apparently, only the ones in David Lee Roth's head?

Diamond Dave woulda' made my list had he been dead.

Where's my Spiffnlee Roth picture when you need it?

EDIT: Found it!

I tried to put together a band that might be able to fit together well:

Drums: Moon
Vocals: Lennon
Lead Guitar: Hendrix
Bass: Cliff Burton

I may take abuse about Lennon fitting in, but with his raspy voice I think he'd work.