Do you like songs like She's Come Undun, American Woman and Signs ('And the sign said long-haired freaky people need not apply/so I tucked up my hair up under my hat and went in to ask him why)
Might I suggest the two incredble Canadian bands responsible for those songs- the Guess Who and Five Man Electrical Band. I think they are as great as anyone in rock, especially if you like eclectic, natural, undefinable, 'underground'-sounding but melodic, harmonious and fun music with good guitar and keyboards, great eclectic drumming, great group play, great songwriting and great singing (lead AND harmony)!
Great harmony and lead vocals, warmth and passion, great guitar and keyboard-based group play, great naturalness and a range of undefinable styles somewhere between jazzy soul and roots rock with a touch of hard-rock energy in many songs.
The Guess Who were led by Burton Cummings and Randy Bachmann, then Burton Cummings and Kurt Winter. They created such recordings as These Eyes, Laughing, Undun, No Time, No Sugar Tonight/New Mother Nature and American Woman, and , in the Kurt Winter era, Hand Me Down World (if they still play it anywhere), Share the Land and Rain Dance. There's much more brilliance, especially from the Kurt Winter era, and if you love this kind of music I suggest at least a 2-disc set- you won't regret it.
Five Man Electrical Band, led by Les Emmerson and with a unique two-drummer lineup (the Belanger brothers), one often (usually? always?) on percussion (such as bongos), is outside of Canada mostly known for the legendary (in these parts) anthem Signs, and the other songs I have heard by them (my best of disc has not arrived yet) are just as brilliant and original. One especially brilliant song called I'm A Stranger Here, is about an alien visiting Earth and telling us that we 'had paradise' in the natural world, with the hope that it's not too late. Just brilliant, and completely natural, not preachy (except in the good way of course!), like Signs and Share The Land, but, like all their songs, highly original. I hope this song is on the 15 (or 16) song collection I got!
-Early August 2014, a week later... it is, and the music has exceeded my expectations!!! Two of the greatest bands ever (with The Guess Who)!!!-
If you only know The Guess Who, don't underestimate Five Man Electrical Band and their range of eclectic brilliance! (They are even more underground and anti-establishment in their sound than The Guess Who in the Kurt Winter era!)
There are other great rock artists from Canada- Neil Young, Joni Mitchell and Leonard Cohen, for three (three GIANTS!!!)- but these two bands are my favorites. If you're from Canada you've probably heard of them already (if you've been into classic rock for some time), but for us in the states... well, that's why I'm spreading the word. I know many others will love these bands.