The Great Al***s

while favourite music choices seem obvious at first, it gets a bit harder to actually list them! here are a few that spring to mind:

Leftield - Leftism
Arena - The Cry
Rammstein - Rosenrot and Mutter
Pink Floyd - Animals
Hans Zimmer - The Thin Red Line soundtrack
Radiohead - OK Computer
Loscil - Plume
...

while being different in styles and sound, these few albums tend to put me in the same contemplative mood that I enjoy while listening to great music

The Dance Of The Lemmings

1. Syntelman's March of the Roaring Seventies: Pull Down Your Mask/Prayer to the Silence/Telephonecomplex
2. Restless Skylight-Transistor-Child: Landing in a Ditch/Dehypnotized Toothpaste/A Short Stop at the Transsylvanian Brain Surgery
3. Restless Skylight-Transistor-Child: Race from Here to Your Ears/Riding on a Cloud/Paralized Paradise/H.G. Well's Take Off
4. Chamsin Soundtrack: The Marilyn Monroe-Memorial-Church/Chewinggum Telegram/Stumbling Over Melted Moonlight/
Cal Whispering

This album is just immense: Amon Düül and Tanz Der Lemminge. The dance of the lemmings is a great diverse work that combines powerful, emotional songs with some folk accents next to long free space-rock jamming. If you only buy one Amon Düül II album then it has to be Tanz Der Lemminge. If you only buy one album from this genre then it has to be Tanz Der Lemminge. Some albums of this era sounded dated, good but dated - of their time, to put it politely. Tanz Der Lemminge is different. It sounds as good now as it did 35 years ago; it is one of the great albums. The musicianship is beyond reproach, the songs are equisite and the sense of humour is there throughout.

The players

John Weinzierl, guitars, vocals; Chris Karrer, acoustic guitar, e-guitar, violin, vocals; Lothar Meid, bass, double-bass, vocals; Peter Leopold, drums, percussion; Falk Rogner, organ, electronics; K.H. Hausmann, electronics, sound engineer; with Jimy Jackson, organ, choir-organ, piano; Al Gromer, sitar; Henriette Kroetenschwanz, vocals; Rolf Zacher, vocals

Little Feat – Feats Don’t Fail Me Now

Eight great tracks.
Five of these tracks are outstanding.
One of these tracks (The Fan) is awesome.

Superb musicians.

Studio album, recorded live in the studio, and it shows.

I think there's a crucial difference between a list of one's favorite albums and a list of the greatest albums of all time. The lists may or may not align; it's hubris to say that simply because I love album x, y, or z that therefore it's one of the greatest albums of all time. There has to be an element of nearly universal acclaim for any album to be truly one of the greatest ever; some of those listed in this thread are not. That isn't to say that they aren't really good, or that someone doesn't really love it, but that it hasn't garnered that timeless, universal cultural acclaim.

I'd like to see a thread in which the participants try to come to a consensus as to identifying the truly timelessly great albums, regardless of their own tastes.

All best,
Fred

Okay, I think I get your drift.



1. Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, The Beatles

2. Pet Sounds, The Beach Boys

3. Revolver, The Beatles

4. Highway 61 Revisited, Bob Dylan

5. Rubber Soul, The Beatles

6. What's Going On, Marvin Gaye

7. Exile on Main Street, The Rolling Stones

8. London Calling, The Clash

9. Blonde on Blonde, Bob Dylan

10. The Beatles ("The White Album"), The Beatles

11. The Sun Sessions, Elvis Presley

12. Kind of Blue, Miles Davis

13. Velvet Underground and Nico, The Velvet Underground

14. Abbey Road, The Beatles

15. Are You Experienced?, The Jimi Hendrix Experience

16. Blood on the Tracks, Bob Dylan

17. Nevermind, Nirvana

18. Born to Run, Bruce Springsteen

19. Astral Weeks, Van Morrison

20. Thriller, Michael Jackson

21. The Great Twenty-Eight, Chuck Berry

22. Plastic Ono Band, John Lennon

23. Innervisions, Stevie Wonder

24. Live at the Apollo (1963), James Brown

25. Rumours, Fleetwood Mac

26. The Joshua Tree, U2

27. King of the Delta Blues Singers, Vol. 1, Robert Johnson

28. Who's Next, The Who

29. Led Zeppelin, Led Zeppelin

30. Blue, Joni Mitchell

31. Bringing It All Back Home, Bob Dylan

32. Let It Bleed, The Rolling Stones

33. Ramones, Ramones

34. Music From Big Pink, The Band

35. The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars, David Bowie

36. Tapestry, Carole King

37. Hotel California, The Eagles

38. The Anthology, 1947 - 1972, Muddy Waters

39. Please Please Me, The Beatles

40. Forever Changes, Love

41. Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols, The Sex Pistols

42. The Doors, The Doors

43. The Dark Side of the Moon, Pink Floyd

44. Horses, Patti Smith

45. The Band, The Band

46. Legend, Bob Marley and the Wailers

47. A Love Supreme, John Coltrane

48. It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back, Public Enemy

49. At Fillmore East, The Allman Brothers Band

50. Here's Little Richard, Little Richard

51. Bridge Over Troubled Water, Simon and Garfunkel

52. Greatest Hits, Al Green

53. The Birth of Soul: The Complete Atlantic Rhythm and Blues Recordings, 1952 - 1959, Ray Charles

54. Electric Ladyland, The Jimi Hendrix Experience

55. Elvis Presley, Elvis Presley

56. Songs in the Key of Life, Stevie Wonder

57. Beggars Banquet, The Rolling Stones

58. Trout Mask Replica, Captain Beefheart and His Magic Band

59. Meet the Beatles, The Beatles

60. Greatest Hits, Sly and the Family Stone

61. Appetite for Destruction, Guns n' Roses

62. Achtung Baby, U2

63. Sticky Fingers, The Rolling Stones

64. Phil Spector, Back to Mono (1958 - 1969), Various Artists

65. Moondance, Van Morrison

66. Led Zeppelin IV, Led Zeppelin

67. The Stranger, Billy Joel

68. Off the Wall, Michael Jackson

69. Superfly, Curtis Mayfield

70. Physical Graffiti, Led Zeppelin

71. After the Gold Rush, Neil Young

72. Purple Rain, Prince

73. Back in Black, AC/DC

74. Otis Blue, Otis Redding

75. Led Zeppelin II, Led Zeppelin

76. Imagine, John Lennon

77. The Clash, The Clash

78. Harvest, Neil Young

79. Star Time, James Brown

80. Odessey and Oracle, The Zombies

81. Graceland, Paul Simon

82. Axis: Bold as Love, The Jimi Hendrix Experience

83. I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You, Aretha Franklin

84. Lady Soul, Aretha Franklin

85. Born in the U.S.A., Bruce Springsteen

86. Let It Be, The Beatles

87. The Wall, Pink Floyd

88. At Folsom Prison, Johnny Cash

89. Dusty in Memphis, Dusty Springfield

90. Talking Book, Stevie Wonder

91. Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, Elton John

92. 20 Golden Greats, Buddy Holly

93. Sign 'o' the Times, Prince

94. Bitches Brew, Miles Davis

95. Green River, Creedence Clearwater Revival

96. Tommy, The Who

97. The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan, Bob Dylan

98. This Year's Model, Elvis Costello

99. There's a Riot Goin' On, Sly and the Family Stone

100. In the Wee Small Hours, Frank Sinatra


Thanks to Rolling Stone for their input. (basically I just cut and pasted the whole thing)

Except for AC/DC and Carole King I actually like most of these albums and those posted by others in this thread. Not all are my favorites though. Too many Beatles and Dylan and I positively hate Revolver and most of the White Album. Fancy putting four Beatles in the top ten and knocking Chuck Berry all the way back at 21. If John Lennon were alive today he'd never stop puking.




BB

Not a bad list at all, order aside. I'd have a few quibbles, and my personal taste wouldn't always align, but there are very few, if any, on that list that aren't justifiably timelessly great albums.

Some might argue that many of them are decades-old. I think this is as it should be ... one of the crucial factors in an artistic work being considered great for the ages is enough distance in time.

All best,
Fred

quote:

Originally posted by ROTF:
Does everybody remember Ripping Yarns and in particular the Golden Gordon episode about the football team, well, IIRC. then the forward line of Barnstoneworth United were McIntyre, Treadmore and Davitt.

Which, coincidentally, was the title of the classic 1991 HMHB album. And whilst I could have picked all the HMHB albums in any list of great albums: I’ll go with McIntyre, Treadmore and Davitt this time - it was a landmark album because after Back In The DHSS and Back Again In The DHSS, it looked as if the lads had split because rock n' roll success was interfering with Nigel’s daytime TV viewing. However, they must have secretly rehearsing because this album is more tuneful than the previous two.

Strangely enough, this is the only HMHB album I don't own. I ordered it from Amazon yonks ago but it never turned up. My elder daughter has just informed me that a local record shop has HMHB albums on special offer, so I might finally get my hands on a copy!

Joe

Drop geoff@probeplus.co.uk a line and he'll supply direct - I think he has copies available on CD (£10), vinyl (£9) and cassette. You may want to ask about the 12" Let's Not (PP26T) single too, as it is the only way to get Ordinary To Enschede.



I could have picked any HMHB for a Great Albums list, but I chose McIntyre, Treadmore And Davitt because of it confirming that the band were alive and well and set to continue and because it contained Everything's AOR: one of my very favourite tracks.

All the best, Rotf

quote:

Originally posted by ROTF:
Joe

Drop geoff@probeplus.co.uk a line and he'll supply direct - I think he has copies available on CD (£10), vinyl (£9) and cassette. You may want to ask about the 12" Let's Not (PP26T) single too, as it is the only way to get Ordinary To Enschede.



I could have picked any HMHB for a Great Albums list, but I chose McIntyre, Treadmore And Davitt because of it confirming that the band were alive and well and set to continue and because it contained Everything's AOR: one of my very favourite tracks.

All the best, Rotf

Thanks for the tip.

My own favourite is 'This Leaden Pall'; I think it has the strongest selection of tracks, and I love the very downbeat cover. The best track is 'Improv Workshop Mimeshow Gobshite'

'Never trust a crown green bowler under thirty
The future's so dim
I gotta sing torch songs'

difficult putting a top 100 list together. While it's easy to see which older albums stand the test of time it's more difficult with newer ones... 10 newer ones which for me might end up in my top 100..

Blur - 13 or Think Tank or both
Tanya Donelly - This Hungry Life
The Magic Numbers - The Magic Numbers
Bjork - Homogenic
Springsteen - The Rising
Kirsty MacColl - Kite
Morrissey - You Are The Quarry
Pulp - This is Hardcore
Razorlight - Razorlight
The Cardigans - Super Extra Gravity

Thin Lizzy- Jailbreak
Neil Young- Harvest
Johnny Winter- live
Blue Rodeo- 5 days in may
Roy Buchanan- Hot Wires
Willie Nelson- Red headed Stranger
Dave Alvin- Public Domain
Drive by truckers- Southern rock opera
Peter Wolf- Sleepless
Beck- Sea of change
Alejandro Escovedo- 13 Years
Tom Russell- Love&Fear
Uncle tupelo- live
Lyle Lovett-Pontiac
Whiskeytown- Faithless Street
Los Lobos- How will the Wolf survive

quote:

Originally posted by fred simon:


I think there's a crucial difference between a list of one's favorite albums and a list of the greatest albums of all time. The lists may or may not align; it's hubris to say that simply because I love album x, y, or z that therefore it's one of the greatest albums of all time. There has to be an element of nearly universal acclaim for any album to be truly one of the greatest ever; some of those listed in this thread are not. That isn't to say that they aren't really good, or that someone doesn't really love it, but that it hasn't garnered that timeless, universal cultural acclaim.

I'd like to see a thread in which the participants try to come to a consensus as to identifying the truly timelessly great albums, regardless of their own tastes.

All best,
Fred

I agree with Fred. I would add Don McClean's American Pie, Stevie Wonder's 'Songs in the key of Life' and Mike Oldfield's 'Tubular Bells' without being especially attached to any of these works.

quote:

Originally posted by Big Brother:
Except for AC/DC and Carole King I actually like most of these albums and those posted by others in this thread. Not all are my favorites though. Too many Beatles and Dylan and I positively hate Revolver and most of the White Album. Fancy putting four Beatles in the top ten and knocking Chuck Berry all the way back at 21. If John Lennon were alive today he'd never stop puking.

BB

A top 100 from Rolling Stone that neglects Half Man Half Biscuit, Shirley Collins, Amon Duul II, Nick Drake, ELP, Hawkwind, ISB, Kinks, Kraftwerk, Pretty Things, Soft Machine, Syd Barrett, Scott Walker, Alice Cooper, Frank Zappa - oh well, it takes all sorts, but I wonder what criteria they used - I wouldn't include Rumours or Hotel California in my top 100,000, but then maybe that's just me. Is it just opinion or is there any objective measures.

What I'm really interested in is what albums do forum members think are great and why - what do you think makes them great?

I've already learned that I must buy a Van Morrison album - still haven't got around to it and I should.

quote:

Originally posted by acad tsunami:

quote:

Originally posted by fred simon:


I think there's a crucial difference between a list of one's favorite albums and a list of the greatest albums of all time. The lists may or may not align; it's hubris to say that simply because I love album x, y, or z that therefore it's one of the greatest albums of all time. There has to be an element of nearly universal acclaim for any album to be truly one of the greatest ever; some of those listed in this thread are not. That isn't to say that they aren't really good, or that someone doesn't really love it, but that it hasn't garnered that timeless, universal cultural acclaim.

I'd like to see a thread in which the participants try to come to a consensus as to identifying the truly timelessly great albums, regardless of their own tastes.

All best,
Fred

I agree with Fred.

I'm not sure if I agree - I usually agree with Fred, but I'm not sure this time - do we need a consensus because I'd never put a Stevie Wonder record in any list of great albums, but I respect Acad's right to do so, if he thinks 'Songs in the key of Life' is great then that's fair enough.

Acad - BTW I agree about Tubular Bells and American Pie and 2 out of 3 ain't bad.

All the best, Rotf

Rotf,

I would be hard pressed to think of a single track from Songs in the key of Life - I have never owned it - but I do remember half watching a tv series on influential albums which featured it and I was surprised by how many top musicians were interviewed who said they were influenced by it. Stevie Wonder is not my cup of tea but in a world of 'here today, gone tomorrow' sensations surprisingly few have lasted as long. It is the best work of these 'old timers' which are the truly great recordings perhaps and they still sell. I did not list my favourite albums or I would have added Al Stewart's Year of the Cat and a whole bunch of classical and Jazz too numerous to list. I find Tubular Bells tedious and pretentious but it is undeniably a 'great'. I do not think OK Computer will be remembered in 30 years - I heard a couple of tracks and thought it odious unrelenting dross but what do I know? There really is no accounting for taste, mine or anyone elses. Hey a vote organised by CNN had Charles Aznavour winning the accolade of The Greatest Entertainer - EVER! If I were washed up on a desert island with a crate of the best Naim kit and a solar powered generator and all I had to listen to was a CD of 'Never Mind the Bollocks, here's the sex pistols' I would throw it away in a second and never regret it. I find it incomprehensible that anyone would like it but I accept that they do - people are weird - me and thee also.

Regards,

quote:

Originally posted by ROTF:
do we need a consensus because I'd never put a Stevie Wonder record in any list of great albums, but I respect Acad's right to do so, if he thinks 'Songs in the key of Life' is great then that's fair enough.

This illustrates my point ... Stevie Wonder is not your cup of tea (nor Acad's), although he is definitely mine. But regardless of which tea we prefer, I think the overwhelming cultural consensus, developed over a sufficient interval of time, would demand that there be some Stevie Wonder album on such a list. My own preference would be the groundbreaking Music of My Mind, but I wouldn't argue too strenuously with Songs in the Key of Life. Either way, Stevie Wonder absolutely belongs on the list, just as James Brown, Aretha Franklin, Jimi Hendrix, The Beatles, The Stones, Joni Mitchell, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Keith Jarrett ... which specific albums of theirs may vary, but they've gotta be on the list.

All best,
Fred

quote:

Originally posted by acad tsunami:
Rotf,

I would be hard pressed to think of a single track from Songs in the key of Life - I have never owned it -

There's some really good songs on that album. It also was packaged with a 45 which was pretty cool. A song I really like that I heard recently from that album is "As".

My favorite Stevie Wonder album is probably "Innervisions", but I haven't heard them all.

I agree with Fred, though, I don't rate a lot of the albums listed as "Great". There's quite a few that I have never even heard of before. In addition, an album can't be great if it hasn't been released on vinyl.

quote:

Originally posted by John G.:

A song I really like that I heard recently from that album is "As".

That's a great song, one of Stevie's best.

quote:

Originally posted by John G.:

In addition, an album can't be great if it hasn't been released on vinyl.

Huh?! Why?

All best,
Fred

I'm just not aware of any great albums that haven't been released on vinyl. I do think it takes time for an album to be considered great.

quote:

Originally posted by John G.:

I do think it takes time for an album to be considered great.

Well, we agree on that. But CDs have been in the marketplace for 27+ years ... that's plenty of time for a record to be considered great for the ages. Surely there's been a great album not released on vinyl in that 27 years.

All best,
Fred

Just thought of one:


A Few Small Repairs - Shawn Colvin





All best,
Fred

quote:

Originally posted by fred simon:


I think there's a crucial difference between a list of one's favorite albums and a list of the greatest albums of all time. The lists may or may not align; it's hubris to say that simply because I love album x, y, or z that therefore it's one of the greatest albums of all time. There has to be an element of nearly universal acclaim for any album to be truly one of the greatest ever; some of those listed in this thread are not. That isn't to say that they aren't really good, or that someone doesn't really love it, but that it hasn't garnered that timeless, universal cultural acclaim.

I'd like to see a thread in which the participants try to come to a consensus as to identifying the truly timelessly great albums, regardless of their own tastes.

All best,
Fred

mmmm.... aclaimed by who exactly... if it's pupularity through sales then welcome Robbie Williams, Spice Girls et al to the list... Let's face it, lists of great albums can only be, by their very nature, personal. One man's great album (eg Stevie Wonder's Songs in the Key of Life.. as discussed above), is another man's pile of kak

'Greatness' in any artistic genre is critical acclaim plus time; as someone once said, a great work may be unfairly forgotten, but a mediocre work is rarely unfairly remembered. That's why 'top 100' lists compiled on the basis of public opinion are usually flawed; they contain too much 'recent' stuff that just happens to be fresh in the mind of respondents.

But, of course, all artistic judgements are entirely subjective, as art appreciation is an entirely subjective experience.