The Clash without Mick Jones
Just when they were on the verge of becoming the biggest rock band in the world, these Combat Rockers decided theyíd be better off without Mick Jones in the group. Oh well, so much for career opportunities. If you need any proof that Strummer and company made a bad choice, just listen to "Cut The Crap," the only album The Clash made without Jones and the one that lived up to its title when Epic decided to remaster and reissue the bandís back catalog.

Creedence Clearwater Revisited
John Fogerty wrote, sang, produced and played lead guitar on the songs that made Creedence famous, so why are Stu Cook and Doug Clifford out on the road performing the CCR hit history without him? Well, Fogerty burned that bridge long ago, so I guess his former drummer and bass player have no other choice but to keep on choogliní with his songs or hope someone shouts out an obscure request from "Mardi Gras." Just for the record, Stu and Doug got someone else to handle the vocal chores for the band and hired Elliot Easton of The Cars to recreate Fogertyís swamp rock sound on lead guitar. Just what we needed.

The Doors and Other Voices
When your lead singer is a sex oozing, wiener exposing poet called the Lizard King, people are going to notice heís missing and pointing out the obvious doesnít help. Sure, Ray Manzarekís keyboard playing was an essential element to the bandís unique sound, but this is one group that should have listened to itís own lyrics before trying to soldier on as a trio. "When the musicís over, turn out the lights." And donít forget to lock up. The Morrison Hotel is closed.

The Beach Boys without the Brothers Wilson
Brian was the mind, Dennis was the spirit and Carl was the heart of the Beach Boys. Mike Love, on the other hand, is the lucky bastard who should thank God everyday for being related to a musical genius. Without one Wilson Brother, the band carried on. Without two, it got very shaky. And with none, you get three different traveling oldies shows - one fronted by Love, one by Al Jardine (with Brianís daughters Carnie & Wendy) and one with Alís one time replacement David Marks. The big question is, who gets custody of John Stamos?

Fleetwood Mac without Lindsey Buckingham
Yes, there are some diehard fans of the blues incarnation of Fleetwood Mac that think this group should have called it quits when Peter Green left the band to find God. But itís hard to argue with success and once Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks joined up, the sales took off and the rest is rock and roll history. When Buckingham decided to go his own way at the end of the 80ís, Fleetwood and McVie replaced him with two L.A. pups named Rick Vito and Billy Burnette. That produced the instant cutout "Behind The Mask" and led to an era of the Mac Attack that is best forgotten.

Torn Between Two Monkees
Maybe because they sang lead on the hit singles, Micky Dolenz and Davy Jones thought they could keep The Monkees going as a duo and no one would care that the two musicians of the group were long gone. But even with help from such bubble gum all-stars as Boyce & Hart, Jeff Barry, Andy Kim and Bobby Bloom, it was obvious that the dream was over for The Monkees and they woke up to that fact after only one album as a twosome. "Changes" was the name of that album, but they should have called it "What Are We Doing Hanginí ëRound?"

J. Geils Band without Peter Wolf
After years of struggling to make it to the top, the J. Geils Band finally did just that with the help of MTV and a video featuring young women prancing around in their nighties to the beat of the groupís number one single, "Centerfold." That came from the album "Freeze Frame," which also topped the charts, but before the band could record a follow-up, lead singer Peter Wolf musta got lost because heís no where to be found on the bandís next album. Instead he recorded a solo album that only reached #24, but still did better than the one his ex-band mates released. It went nowhere and when the critics said "it blows" they werenít talking about Magic Dickís harmonica playing.

Van Halen III
They sucked with David Lee Roth and they sucked with Sammy Hagar - but at least they sucked and made a lot of money. However, when they dumped the Red Rocker and replaced him with Gary Cherone, the fan base suddenly evaporated and the new album bombed big time. Now the only thing that can save Eddie, Alex and the other guy from themselves would be the triumphant return of Diamond Dave, but after a brief reunion they decided nothing was worth stooping that low and told Roth he might as well jump all over again.

The Heads (No Talking, Just Sucking)
This is what happens when three musicians really stop making sense. It must have been an act of desperation that motivated the lesser three quarters of Talking Heads to get back together and record an album without David Bryne, the true creative force behind the group. Or maybe they were just plain bored. Either way, the Dumb Dumb Club couldnít do it on their own and recruited no less than eleven guest artists to fill the big suit of Mr. Bryne. Yeah, like Debbie Harry, Richard Hell or Gavin "My Career Was Over By" Friday had anything better to do. And it mustíve been one tough choice for Michael Hutchence - "Kill myself today or go record with Tina Weymouth."