In the past two months, both Oasis and Rush have shocked fans by announcing previously unthinkable reunion tours. Which begs the question… who’s next?
With apologies to Aerosmith, who seem to be heading towards at least an Ozzy Osbourne-style farewell show, here are the four biggest classic rock reunions that are still technically possible, if still very unlikely:
Journey and Steve Perry
Steve Perry hasn’t completed an album and touring cycle as Journey‘s lead singer since 1987. While the band remains among the biggest touring attractions in the genre, fans still go into overdrive upon hearing any hint or rumor that the original voice behind “Don’t Stop Believin'” or “Faithfully” could one day return.
Perry has been very consistent about his lack of interest in doing so, declining the chance to perform with the band during their 2017 Rock Hall of Fame induction, praising the work done by current Journey frontman Arnel Pineda and stating just a few months ago that he “enjoy(s) the solitude and privacy that my life has right now.“
In a 2012 interview with UCR, guitarist Neal Schon stated that he was simply hoping to re-establish personal communication with Perry: “I hope that someday, that we can get to the point to where I can pick up the telephone and I can talk to him without talking through management and attorneys,”
Earlier this month, Schon told Sirius XM’s Eddie Trunk he had tried inviting Perry to a baseball game, but did not hear back. He now seems resigned to that fact that the duo have indeed gone their (sorry) separate ways: “I mean, you can’t keep chasing something that’s just not interested in, you know, correlating with you.”
Fleetwood Mac
The 2022 death of Christine McVie means a full reunion of Fleetwood Mac‘s classic Rumours-era five-piece lineup is now sadly impossible. In 2023 Stevie Nicks declared the loss to be the end of the group. “Without her, what is it?,” she asked. “When [Christine] died, I figured we can’t really go any further with this. There’s no reason to.”
Here’s where you say, “But wait, didn’t Fleetwood Mac tour and even record as a four-piece band without McVie from 1998 to 2014?” True! But remember there’s also the Lindsey Buckingham matter to sort out.
The guitarist and singer was forced out of the group in 2018 after apparently enraging Nicks by mocking her during an award ceremony. “I dealt with Lindsey for as long as I could,” she declared in 2024. “You could not say that I did not give him more than 300 million chances.”
However, a glimmer of hope has emerged in recent months, as the former bandmates and ex-lovers teamed up at least long enough to promote the reissue of their long out-of-print 1973 Buckingham Nicks album. Earlier this month Nicks even wished Buckingham “the best birthday ever,” concluding her Instagram post with “Love’s ya!”
Read More: Why 38 of Rock’s Biggest Reunions Haven’t Happened
Pink Floyd
As with Fleetwood Mac, a full classic-lineup Pink Floyd reunion is now impossible, in this case due to the 2008 death of keyboardist Richard Wright.
Also, to borrow a line from the Eagles, hell hasn’t frozen over yet. If anything, the feuding between David Gilmour and Roger Waters, who departed the group in 1985, has gotten worse in recent years.
While both musicians have maintained successful recording and touring careers, Gilmour has made it perfectly clear he has no interest in a reunion.
In 2023, Gilmour’s wife and collaborator Polly Samson tweeted that Waters was a “Putin apologist and a lying, thieving, hypocritical, tax-avoiding, lip-synching, misogynistic, sick-with-envy megalomaniac.” “Every word demonstrably true,” Gilmour said while sharing his wife’s message.
The following year Gilmour expressed relief after selling the rights to Pink Floyd’s recorded music, name and likeness for $400 million. “I’ve spent the last 40-odd years trying to fight the good fight against the forces of indolence and greed to do the best with our stuff that you can do. And I’ve given up that fight now… It’s lovely to say goodbye to.”
Led Zeppelin
Soon after the 1980 death of drummer John Bonham, the surviving members of Led Zeppelin declared they could not imagine going on without him.
With the exception of a handful of charity show appearances – most notably the fantastic 2007 full-length concert that was chronicled on the Celebration Day live album and home video – they have held true to that promise, although two of the three surviving members were apparently tempted.
After the Celebration Day show, Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones were eager to extend their reunion, with John’s son Jason on drums. However, Robert Plant remained doggedly determined to leave the past in the past, and to keep moving forward with his creatively fruitful solo career.
“You’re going back to the same old s—,” the singer declared in 2014. “A tour would have been an absolute menagerie of vested interests and the very essence of everything that’s shitty about about big-time stadium rock. We were surrounded by a circus of people that would have had our souls on the fire. I’m not part of a jukebox!”
After jamming with Aerosmith‘s Steven Tyler – who says he ultimately turned them down – and Myles Kennedy – Page and Jones abandoned the project, which Kennedy said wasn’t going to use the band’s famous and sacred moniker. “They weren’t sure what it was, but it was never going to be Led Zeppelin with another singer, I mean, obviously.”
These Are The Only 24 Classic Rock Lineups That Can Still Reunite
Only two bands – U2 and Poison – are currently using their most famous lineups. These 24 acts could join them, but don’t hold your breath.
Gallery Credit: Matthew Wilkening
