If commercial success were a measure of a band's future influence than Rush and Peaches & Herb would be the prevailing inspirations for pop music today.

Instead, lurking in the background of Beck and Bjork are a whole array of sales flops. The Velvet Underground's lyrical noise pop, Scott Walker's lush orchestrations and Neu's ponderous prog rock were spectacularly unsuccessful when first released.

Only with the benefit of hindsight have they become significant. In Rolling Stone interviews and MTV profiles, these are the names that today's critical and commercial darlings cite as influences.