The Ancient Greek philosopher Pythagoras held a theory that the universe itself is musical - break the word down and it even suggests that all existence is singing in a single verse. Music certainly possesses a strange and ineffable power to change our mood at the drop of a note, and while tracing how any particular genre or style of music has emerged over the years is always a tricky task - influences come thick and fast and are as often subliminal as well as conscious - there are some artists who have left their mark on future generations more than most. When looking at the birth of rock and roll it's impossible to separate it from what had come before, notably the huge influence from music of black origin such a rhythm and blues and jazz. From the 1950s onwards an increasing number of musicians got their hands on the newly introduced electric guitar and took the instrument in new and exciting directions, creating sounds which had never been heard before. The following list takes a look at ten of the most influential rock bands and artists of all time, examining the impact they had both on other musicians and the various sub-genres of rock which have emerged over the last few decades.
