10 Bands and Artists Influenced by Them: How a Belfast Band Changed Rock Forever
When music fans talk about influential 1960s bands, names like The Beatles, The Rolling Stones and The Kinks usually dominate the conversation. Yet one of the most important groups of the era came from Belfast. Them, fronted by a young Van Morrison, blended rhythm and blues, garage rock and raw attitude into a sound that inspired generations of musicians.
With classics such as Gloria Here Comes the Night,
and Mystic Eyes,
Them created a blueprint for countless rock bands that followed. Their combination of garage-rock energy, improvisation and street-level authenticity resonated deeply with artists across genres.
Here are ten bands and artists whose music was shaped by the influence of Them.
The Doors
Few bands were more openly connected to Them than The Doors. Jim Morrison was a huge admirer of Van Morrison's vocal style and stage presence. The influence is especially obvious in the way Jim delivered long, improvisational performances and transformed simple songs into hypnotic journeys.
The Doors frequently performed Gloria live, eventually recording their own version. Guitarist Robby Krieger and keyboardist Ray Manzarek both acknowledged the band's admiration for Them. Jim Morrison's dramatic vocal phrasing and poetic swagger often drew comparisons to Van Morrison's performances with the Belfast group. For many fans, The Doors' interpretation of Gloria
helped introduce a new generation to Them's music.
The Patti Smith Group
Patti Smith turned Gloria into one of punk rock's defining statements. Opening her 1975 debut album Horses with the famous line, Jesus died for somebody's sins but not mine,
Smith transformed Them's garage-rock clasic into a bold declaration of artistic independence.
Smith often spoke about the song's importance in her development as a songwriter and performer. Her version retained the rebellious spirit of the original while pushing it into entirely new territory. The fact that one of punk rock's foundational recordings was built around a Them song speaks volumes about the band's lasting influence.
David Bowie
David Bowie admired artists who blurred musical boundaries, and Them's combination of R&B, rock and improvisation left a lasting impression on him. During his early years on the London music scene, Bowie was exposed to the British R&B explosion that Them helped fuel.
Bowie later covered Van Morrison's Here Comes the Night
in concert and often cited influential 1960s R&B artists as key inspirations. The theatrical confidence and willingness to experiment that characterized Them's performances can also be found throughout Bowie's constantly evolving career. Like Van Morrison, Bowie refused to be limited by genre expectations.
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
Tom Petty's approach to rock and roll was built on simplicity, authenticity and memorable songwriting - qualities that Them embodied from the start. Petty often praised the raw energy of 1960s garage bands, and Them ranked among the most influential of those groups.
The driving rhythms, straightforward arrangements and emotional directness heard in songs like Gloria
can be traced through much of the Heartbreakers' catalog. Petty's admiration for classic British Invasion and R&B-inspired bands helped keep the spirit of Them alive in American rock music for decades.
Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band
Bruce Springsteen has frequently acknowledged the importance of Van Morrison's work in shaping his own musical development. While much of Springsteen's admiration focuses on Morrison's solo career, the roots of that influence can be heard in the raw power and storytelling that first emerged with Them.
Springsteen and the E Street Band have performed Gloria
numerous times in concert, often turning it into a crowd-pleasing singalong. The song's communal energy, emotional intensity and rock-and-roll freedom fit perfectly within Springsteen's live-show philosophy. The Belfast band's influence can be heard throughout the E Street Band's blend of rock, soul and improvisation.
The Shadows of Knight
No American garage-rock band embraced Them's music more enthusiastically than The Shadows of Knight. Their 1966 version of Gloria
became a major hit in the United States and remains one of the definitive garage-rock recordings of the era.
The band openly admired Them's rough-edged sound and rebellious attitude. By bringing Gloria
to American radio audiences, The Shadows of Knight helped cement the song's place in rock history while spreading Them's influence across the emerging garage-rock scene.
The Jimi Hendrix Experience
Jimi Hendrix absorbed inspiration from countless musical sources, but the improvisational spirit of Them resonated strongly with him. Hendrix appreciated artists who stretched songs beyond their original structures, something Van Morrison and Them frequently did during live performances.
The raw energy, blues foundation and fearless experimentation that characterized Them's music paralleled Hendrix's own approach. Critics have often noted that both artists shared a commitment to spontaneous creativity and emotional intensity on stage, helping redefine what rock performance could be.
The Stooges
Iggy Pop and The Stooges helped create proto-punk, but many of the ingredients were already present in Them's music. The repetitive riffs, aggressive energy and primal simplicity of songs like Gloria
became foundational elements for punk and garage rock.
Iggy Pop has frequently cited 1960s garage bands as major influences, and the direct lineage from Them to The Stooges is easy to hear. The rawness that made The Stooges revolutionary can be traced back to the Belfast band's stripped-down, no-frills approach to rock and roll.
Status Quo
Before becoming one of Britain's most successful boogie-rock bands, Status Quo emerged from the same vibrant 1960s scene that celebrated rhythm and blues-inspired groups like Them. The band's early sound reflected many of the garage-rock and R&B influences that Them helped popularize.
Status Quo's emphasis on driving rhythms, catchy hooks and energetic live performances mirrored qualities that had made Them stand out. Their straightforward approach to rock owed much to the template established by Van Morrison's group.
Rory Gallagher & Taste
Few Irish musicians held Van Morrison and Them in higher regard than Rory Gallagher. Growing up in Ireland during the band's rise, Gallagher witnessed firsthand the impact they had on aspiring musicians.
The blues-based rock sound of Rory Gallagher and Taste shared much in common with Them's fusion of R&B and rock. Gallagher often praised musicians who brought authenticity and passion to their performances, qualities that defined Them from the beginning. Their success also demonstrated that Irish artists could compete on the international stage, helping pave the way for Gallagher's own career.
The Lasting Legacy of Them
Although Them's original recording career was relatively brief, their influence continues to echo throughout rock music. From punk pioneers and classic rock legends to garage bands and singer-songwriters, generations of artists have drawn inspiration from the Belfast group's raw energy and fearless creativity.
Songs like Gloria,
Mystic Eyes
and Here Comes the Night
remain essential listening for anyone interested in the roots of modern rock. More than sixty years after they first emerged from Belfast, Them's impact can still be heard in some of the greatest bands and artists ever recorded.
For a group that never achieved the commercial success of some of their contemporaries, their musical legacy is remarkably powerful. The story of Them proves that influence isn't measured by chart positions alone - sometimes it's measured by the artists who follow in your footsteps.
