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Sat 20 December 2025 17:00, UK
Compared to every other rock and roll fan, Jack Black seems to occupy his own space as the resident mascot for the genre.
He may be one of the greatest comedic actors of his generation, but that’s only half the battle when talking about his career, if you look at what he’s done with Tenacious D and having Dave Grohl work with him on a few of his records. He was a disciple of all things hard rock, and he wouldn’t have even thought about becoming a convert if it weren’t for the right bands setting his world on fire.
If we’re talking purely on the basis of heaviness, though, Black was far more attuned to what was coming out of the metal world when he was a kid. Like all music fans, he had already been taught the ways of bands like The Beatles, but something in his DNA seemed to change the first time he listened to Ozzy Osbourne sing on Blizzard of Ozz and when Robert Plant started bellowing to the rafters when working with Led Zeppelin.
This was no longer a fascination; this was a higher calling, and Black was going to do everything he could to live out whatever rock and roll fantasies he had. Some of them may have manifested in School of Rock, but considering he has shared the stage with everyone from Foo Fighters to James Hetfield of Metallica, it’s safe to say that he has checked a few legends off of his musical bucket list when he stepped out onstage.
But despite calling Zeppelin one of the greatest rock and roll bands of all time, even Jimmy Page needed inspiration to become a guitar legend. He had already been cutting his teeth in The Yardbirds up to that point, but long before he had the idea to break free and do something different, Pete Townshend was taking the basis of what rock and roll could be and twisting it on its head with The Who.
The genre had been considered a decent form of musical rebellion for a long time, but Townshend was the one showing the world it could be taken seriously. Tommy and Quadrophenia were kaleidoscopic looks at rock and roll grandeur, and while the storyline may not have been the most linear from one song to the next, there was no doubt in Black’s mind that there was some sort of divine intervention going on to get them to the top of the charts every single time they made a record.
Compared to other rock and roll heavyweights, Black felt that The Who had been blessed with their skills half the time, saying, “No other band had the courage or sensitivity to write those kinds of emotionally raw songs. Achingly beautiful melodies touched by the hand of God, or the devil, or both. A collection of ass-kicking songs the likes of which will never be seen again. On the battlefield, they went toe-to-toe with the likes of Hendrix and came out unscathed.”
And it’s not like spirituality didn’t play a small part in them reaching the top of the charts. Townshend was always outspoken about music reaching a higher spiritual plateau, and when listening to a song like ‘Baba O’Riley’, you can feel him taking every ounce of emotion that he can muster and throwing it over to the gods every single time he hits one of those roaring power chords.
So while Black does have his fair share of over-the-top moments, there is zero hyperbole in his assessment of The Who. They were the true rock and roll stars of their time, and while other people may have taken music in their own direction, Townshend opened up the playing field for people daring to ask whether rock and roll could mean a bit more than a couple of power chords and the truth.
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