10 Most Influential American Acts On British Rock

10. The Velvet Underground

If there was any group who were ahead of their time, it was the Velvet Underground. Their debut, The Velvet Underground & Nico (1967) was all but ignored by the general public, and critics barely wasted a word on it: an almost unthinkable injustice, given the high regard ascribed to it today.

But, the sordid underbelly of bohemian New York just didn't jive with an audience. This was during the height of the hippie movement. Free love was all the range, sexual liberation was celebrated, and drug use was seen as a way of breaking through to the other side. It was a hopeful, if not somewhat naive sentiment that swept the Western world. But when the Velvet Underground started exploring the darker sides of these ideas - referencing sadomasochism, and the depraved nature of heroin addiction - it didn't fit with the hippie ideal.

But their music wasn't lost on everyone... Notably a young David Bowie was captivated by the work of the Underground. He saw the coupling of their visceral music, with the creative vision of Andy Warhol, as the epitome of artistic expression. It was the Velvet Underground, who impart, inspired Bowie to craft his Ziggy Stardust character, leading to the rise of glam and art rock.