Best and Worst Reunions of the 2000s

Posted by Lonny Knapp
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Pigs can't fly and by all reports hell remains hotter than, well, hell. Yet during the past decade we witnessed many an unlikely reunion as fans rejoiced and critics scoffed.

While some groups emerged from a lengthy sabbatical in top form and with renewed passion, others half-heartedly dusted off the machine to cash in on fading celebrity and nostalgia.

So with that in mind, let's begin with the five worst band reunions of the 2000s:

5. Stone Temple Pilots (2009)

Rehab junkie Scott Weiland quit Velvet Revolver to join his old bandmates for an ongoing reunion tour. Lacklustre live shows teeming with '90s rock radio hits established Stone Temple Pilots as little more than the world's best bar band.

4. Van Halen (2007)

A balding David Lee Roth returned to the fold for a much-hyped arena tour, but fans felt ripped off when they discovered that Eddie Van Halen's 16-year-old son, Wolfgang, had supplanted original bassist Michael Anthony.

3. INXS (2005)

Michael Hutchence rolled over in his grave when the Aussie band replaced the deceased lead singer with J.D. Fortune, a Newfoundland-bred winner of a reality show.

2. Creed (2009)

Fans that missed Creed's recent reunion tour can witness the spectacle in glorious HD and 5.1 surround sound in theatres this December. The big-budget production garnered four Guinness world records, including "the most amount of cameras used to film a concert." Apparently, it takes a lot of lenses to capture that much suck.

1. New Kids on the Block (2008)

Reformed '90s boy band NKOTB filled stadiums with hordes of squealing soccer moms, proving once and for all that good taste doesn't always come with age.

Of course, not every reunion has to be tragic and there were many glorious returns to the spotlight. So here are the five best reunions of the last decade:

5. Led Zeppelin (2007)

Led Zeppelin's hyped performance at London's O2 arena set rumour mills ablaze with talk of a full-scale reunion tour, but band members chose cooler collaborations -- singer Robert Plant toured in support of his Grammy-winning duet album with Allison Krauss, while John Paul Jones formed Them Crooked Vultures with Josh Homme and Dave Grohl. Despite Jimmy Page's best efforts the band's legacy went untarnished.

4. The Police (2007)

Fans couldn't wait to shell out hundreds of dollars to watch as the three aging rivals took the stage to perform classics such as 'Roxanne,' 'Message in a Bottle' and 'Every Breath You Take' for the first time in 25 years. Sting, Andy Summers and Stewart Copeland buried the hatchet long enough to become the world's highest-earning musicians of 2008.

3. Dinosaur Jr (2005)

After a string of dates, guitarist J Mascis, bassist Lou Barlow and drummer Murph made the reunion official with the release of 'Beyond,' the first album of new material as a trio since 1988. Festival crowds, rock critics and balding guys that still live in their parents' basements all agreed that the alt-rock pioneers still rocked.

2. My Bloody Valentine (2007)

The gone-before-their-time shoegazer icons My Bloody Valentine regrouped for a series of ear-drum shattering festival gigs and a brief tour, but despite repeated promises from reclusive frontman Kevin Shields, the band has yet to release a follow up to its 1991 epic 'Loveless.'

1. The Pixies (2004)

The much-revered and influential Boston quartet reformed for a celebrated -- and still going strong -- reunion tour. While tensions between bassist Kim Deal and singer Black Francis still apparently run high, the band's spot-on performances reinforced their status as alt-rock royalty.