5 Bands Who Improved After Replacing Their Singer (And 5 Who Didn't)

10. Became Worse - The Cars

The Cars were a Boston-based band that emerged from the New Wave scene of the late 1970s. When MTV and synth-pop took off in the early 1980s, The Cars became more of a household name. The Cars' classic line-up remained from the band's formation in 1976 until 1988. During that twelve-year span, the band produced four top 10 hits and won MTV's "Video of the Year" in 1984 for their hit single You Might Think.

The real creative force of The Cars was driven (pun intended) by the long-time collaboration of bassist Benjamin Orr and guitarist Ric Ocasek. The two men shared lead vocal duties-something many fans didn't realize based on how similar both voices sounded. Orr and Ocasek were also the primary songwriters. Despite the creative partnership, much of the public saw Ric Ocasek and the Cars as being one in the same.

A growing divide between Ocasek and the others led to the band dissolving in 1988. The surviving members of the band reunited as The New Cars, with classic rocker Todd Rundgren on vocals and guitar. Rundren is no slouch, but with the Cars he was also no Ric Ocasek. The New Cars performed until 2009 (without Orr, who died in 2000). The Cars enjoyed one last album with Ocasek before he too died in 2019.