Rock Bands That Have Been Together 40+ Years and Never Broke Up

Here are rock bands that have been together for over 40 years and never broke up.

Band breakups are a pretty common phenomena in rock ‘n’ roll. There have been some really dramatic fights and internal disputes between members, some groups called it quits after one of their bandmates died and others just decided to move on and pursue other endeavors.

If there’s one thing that we’ve learned from studying the history of rock’s greatest acts, keeping a band together for over 40 years without breaking up is not an easy task. Few have been able to do it.

Led Zeppelin disbanded after the death of John Bonham in 1980 because they didn’t feel they could carry on without him. Pink Floyd have had a notoriously tumultuous history, mainly due to conflicts between Roger Waters and remaining members David Gilmour and Nick Mason.

Those are a few prime examples that show that a band’s existence is not always black and white. Even in our list below, some situations muddied the waters a bit but we did our best to explain that retirements, breaks from touring and lineup changes don’t necessarily mean that a group actually split up.

Some of the bands listed below have been together for over six decades without formally breaking up, even if they underwent numerous lineup departures and replacements.

It’s always said that a band is like a marriage and, according to Wilkinson & Finkbeiner, the average length of a marriage that ends in divorce in the U.S. only lasts eight years. The Rolling Stones have lasted over seven times that!

READ MORE: The 12 Longest-Running Metal Bands That Never Broke Up

Keep scrolling to see some legendary rock bands that have been together for over 40 years without ever breaking up or going on a long enough hiatus to count as a break up.

Check out our picks for the best hard rock album of each year since 1970 below.