Was Nirvana really a "legendary" rock band?

— Ryan (@Ham0nRy) July 23, 2015

Ryan Hamner got me thinking: What makes a band legendary beyond just “knowing” they are legendary.  I believe it to be a mix of talent, influence, popularity, moment definement, and are themselves a story that transcends music.

Example of metrics would be:

• “Was this band ever the BIGGEST band in the world?”
• “Did they define a moment in time?
• “Did something happen to them (a death, a huge story, etc) that makes them stand out in memory?
• “Did they start or popularize a movement?”
• “Did they have staying power?”

Here is my (incomplete) list of legendary bands.

1st Tier:

• The Beatles
• Rolling Stones
• The Who
• Led Zeppelin
• Black Sabbath
• Pink Floyd
• Queen
• Ramones
• Michael Jackson
• Madonna
• U2
• Nirvana

2nd Tier:

• Metallica
• The Doors
• Jimi Hendrix
• Pearl Jam
• Soundgarden
• Van Halen
• Guns ‘n’ Roses
• Fleetwood Mac
• Grateful Dead
• N.W.A.
• Dr. Dre
• Snoop Dogg
• Eminem

I’m sure there are more, so let me know in the comments who you would add.