5. Brian Johnson
After the untimely death of ACDC's legendary front man Bon Scott, the band weighed their options carefully. It was either they decide not to replace Bon Scott and call it a career, or try to find a new singer and carry on. They chose to carry on and they were fortunate to find Brian Johnson. As far as his vocals, you could not find a closer sounding voice to Bon Scott then this guy. Brian Johnson's true test was learning all the songs in a short time span before the band went on tour. He only had a week to get ready for a tour after he joined the band and he rose to the challenge and delivered an amazing performance. His first single Back In Black, a tribute to Bon Scott, would go down as one of ACDC's best songs in their catalog. Along with that, he would go on to help deliver many other big hits for the band such as Thunderstruck, You Shook Me All Night Long, and Moneytalks. I had the fortune of seeing ACDC back in 2009 during their Black Ice Tour at the Honda Center in Anaheim California and I will say that it will go down as one the best concerts I have ever attended and I consider myself very fortunate to have seen ACDC before Brian Johnson's departure. It is sad that he is no longer in the band but he will surely go down in history as one of the best rock vocalists of all time.
4. Ronny James Dio
Due to Ozzy Osbourne going through a downward spiral with drugs and alcohol Black Sabbath decided that they needed to fire him. Instead of trying to find a singer that sounded like Ozzy Osbourne, they decided to take a different musical direction. They decided to take a more fantasy driven direction musically and for that they brought in ex Rainbow singer Ronny James Dio in 1980. He would debut on the album Heaven and Hell. True to the fantasy direction, Dio really delivered a good fantasy vocal style that was a welcomed change for the band. While he did not sound like Ozzy Osbourne, he brought a good sound to Black Sabbath that fans welcomed and it didn't rely on their past music which is very hard to pull off, but he did it. His time with Black Sabbath would be short, as he would go on to have a successful solo career. However, he would reunite with the members of Black Sabbath in 2006 to form Heaven and Hell. They would tour together and perform Heaven and Hell era songs until Dio's death in 2010. Even though he may be gone, he has left a long legacy of fantastic music that is worth checking out.
3. Phil Collins
After Peter Gabriel left Genesis in 1975, Genesis tried recruiting a new singer. After going through a number of tryouts and none of them working out they turned to their drummer, Phil Collins. Phil Collins is yet another replacement that did not sound like the original but still took the band to greater success. He doesn't bring the same vocal style as Peter Gabriel did, but his own style more then made up for it. He would go on to deliver some of the bands biggest hits such as Land of Confusion, Invisible Touch, and I Can't Dance. He would also go on to have a very successful solo career, going on to win an Oscar for the 1998 Disney Tarzan Soundtrack, one of my favorite Disney soundtracks of all time. Phil Collins has great catalog of music, both in and outside of Genesis and it is something worth adding to your music collection for sure.
2. Sammy Hagar
Sammy Hagar was already an established musician before he joined Van Halen. Having been in the 70's band Montrose,and then having a huge solo hit, Can't Drive 55, Sammy Hagar had already proven he had talent. After David Lee Roth Departed Van Halen in 1985, Sammy Hagar would join Van Halen and would debut on the band's 5150 album. Through this album Sammy Hagar proved that he not only could sing, but he could build on the momentum the band had going. He would go on sing on many Van Halen hits such as Love Walks In, Why Can't This Be Love, Runaround, and Right Now. Unfortunately, tensions between Eddie Van Halen and Sammy Hagar would come to light in 1994 and by 1996 it reached a boiling point and Sammy Hagar left Van Halen, creating one of the biggest rock feuds in history. After leaving Van Halen, Sammy Hagar would do a million things, from his solo career, running his club, Cabo Wabo, starting other bands like Chickenfoot and The Circle, and making his own liquor. Many people tend not to give Sammy Hagar credit for his time in Van Halen and I think that's a mistake. While he wasn't the showman that David Lee Roth was, he was still a good front man and he was a much better singer then David Lee Roth. Don't pass Sammy Hagar, the albums he did with memorable as well as his solo records and all the other bands he's been in, check out his music.
1. Ripper Owens
Filling in for the legendary Rob Halford from Judas Priest was not only a big, but bold task as well. Luckily for Judas Priest, they found a voice just as powerful as Rob Halford in Ripper Owens in 1996. He would sing on the bands Jugulator album in which he would get nominated for a Grammy. He would go down as one of the best replacements in metal history. Some would even go as far to say that his voice might actually be more powerful then Rob Halford's. His time with Judas Priest would end in 2004 when they decided to bring Rob Halford back in the band. Since then hey has been in many bands ranging from Iced Earth, to Yngwie Malmsteen. He also has a solo band that is very good as well. Ripper Owens is not a singer to pass up. He did an amazing job in Judas Priest and has done very well in all the other bands he has been apart of. Look him up and check out his music.
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