As to the reason the British bands looked last night to be "better" than their American counterparts is simple. Most of them are. These groups took raw R&R and banged out hard driving songs based on the simple structure. Add the fashion and the first wave of media hype and there you go.
I really think the GooGooDolls are on of the best bands in the USA today. I know them on a personnal basis and can tell you they are great guys. They made it past the one hit wonder stage and now have a future. How many bands can do that today in this "marketplace" There will never be another WHO or Stones, Zepp, Grand Funk, again. The Music Biz bites! We all know that. Acts are treated like movies, they are released, they play out and then go to video.
Could you say that they are 'real' musicians who, although older, can still draw on their talent when performing live, while the newer groups - even Janet Jackson - rely too much on studio 'effects' and can't perform very well when unscripted.