Here's a list of some of the people who define the term "rock star". In my opinion the top 10 are these. Share yours and, please, follow that criteria:
charisma,
showmanship,
influence,
sex appeal (
drugs are bonus).
Note: The musicianship isn't a criteria.
10. Prince - Although he doesn't fit exactly in the "rock star" prototype, he is here because he is amazingly stylish, sex icon, ultra-controversial, and with extreme stage presence.
9. Robert Plant - The face of the 70s rock. Super-charismatic, influential and genuinely handsome.
8. Lemmy - The only real rock star among the metal musicians. Although not very handsome, he is a sex icon. A heavily-drinking and smoking tough S.O.B, he is a goddamn legend.
7. Steven Tyler - A greatly charismatic master of the stage, hugely influential, with heavy drug and alcohol addictions. And, of course, a big sex icon.
6. Axl Rose & Slash - The most charismatic duo in the last 30 years. Both of them fit exactly in the term "rock star". Super-scandalous, they've deserved the title "The most dangerous band in the world". With the electricity between them, Axl and Slash are one of the greatest live performers ever.
5. Jimi Hendrix - Heavily drug-related, the second black man to become a sex icon, immortally influential, one of the greatest and most charismatic showmans in the history, Hendrix is maybe the most electrifying live performer ever.
4. James Brown - The baddest man to walk on the Earth. Although he doesn't fit exactly in the "rock star" prototype and what is more he is "the hardest working man in show-bussiness" which isn't that "cool", he still is the coolest man of all time. With his charisma and showmanship that can't be described with words, this man was heavily influential with his stage performances.
3. Jim Morrison - His unmatched charisma and sex appeal were only insignificant details around his persona. The Lizard King was a clown and a philosopher combined in one. Maybe the greatest frontman ever, the influence that this man had on the public was hardly comparable to anyone else's. His huge use of drugs and alcohol complete him as the "perfect rock star".
2. Elvis Presley - The most influential man of XX century, besides Hitler, was the original rock star. Everything that this man did was so cool and influential that everybody on the planet followed him. Like John Lennon said "Before Elvis there was nothing". The most charismatic man of all time, for sure, The King was and still is the biggest icon in American history. With a sex appeal comparable only to Mick Jagger's and his great drug addiction in his later years, he forms the prototype of a rock star.
1. Mick Jagger & Keith Richards - The greatest duo of all time, the immortal legends of rock n' roll are and will ever be the greatest rock stars. Their charisma, showmanship and influence are as great as those of the people above, but what makes them 1st is their longevity (an ingredient that almost none of the above-mentioned can be proud of). The grandiosity of these both men is due to the chemistry between them. Their sex appeal and drug addictions make them the most memorable rock stars of all time.
