Cameron Crowe’s Almost Famous tracks a teen-aged reporter as he follows Stillwater, a pitch-perfect composite of ’70s rock bands from The Eagles to the Allman Brothers to Led Zeppelin as they embark on an ill-starred nationwide tour. Stillwater — whose members included Billy Crudup and Jason Lee — haven’t quite hit it big yet musically, but they had the rock-star part down pat. And with good reason: Crowe based the screenplay on his experiences as a young music writer for Rolling Stone. Stillwater’s saga comes complete with groupies, drug binges and a rickety tour bus to ferry them around the country. Unlike most entrants on this list, their tunes weren’t bad, either.
Top 10 Fake Bands
Anvil! The Story of Anvil, the buzzed-about documentary out now, follows an aging metal band trying to reclaim former rock glory. And if that sounds like the plot to the influential (and ironically more popular) '80s mockumentary This is Spinal Tap, well, it's because it is. So while Anvil may hold the distinction of actually existing, here are ten fictional bands that didn't hesitate to turn the volume to 11.
