5 Times Band Members Left And Did Better

Entertainers jump ship like crazy and the new band doesn't always do as well as the original. Sometimes though, lightning strikes twice. 

There are too many of these stories for one blog so, here are my top 5 bands who did better the second (or even 3rd ) time around:

• The Yardbirds. The band split up with some unfinished business so Jimmy Page put together a "pick up" band to settle things. Led Zeppelin was born.
• David Lee Roth, fresh out of Van Halen, put together an incredible band, and ... for a minute ... it looked like he would eclipse Van Halen. They only recorded a couple of albums though so, while I do think DLR had the stronger record, band and tour, he reined in too soon. Meanwhile ....
• Sammy Hagar quit Montrose and joined Van Halen, taking them all to much bigger things. I still say Roth's band was better but, in the long run, "Van Hagar" stomped them in terms of overall success.
• Iron Maiden - Singer Bruce Dickinson left the band in '93 and his solo work with  Janick Gers was great.  He and Janick returned to Maiden in '99 though and that's when things really started kicking ass for everyone involved. True, it's still Maiden but, this "reunited" lineup has taken the band to it's greatest heights.
• Foo Fighters. It wasn't by choice but, Dave Grohl has gone infinitely farther than Nirvana ever dreamed possible.

There are too many "spin-off" band stories to list here so, if you have a favorite; log on to Facebook and put it in the comments!!  Finally, a "maybe" and an "honorable mention":

• The Maybe: Pantera vs. Damageplan. The Abbott brothers came out of Panteras ashes strong but Dimebag's murder brought things to a tragic halt. We'll never know how much bigger and/or better they might have been. Vinnie did great with Hellyeah but, that ended unexpectedly when he died in June.
• The Honorable Mention: Maynard James Keening. He's killed it with  Puscifer  and A Perfect Circle. However, Tool remains the big dog and the money maker so, his side projects have NOT topped the original band. "A" for effort though!!