Payn's Ponderings... Top 10 Essential Albums

[Jacob Lewis]

Most pineapple lovers suck?

Too soon. But yes.

 

[payn]

Most pineapple lovers suck?

There is a thread for this non-sense please head over there.

 

[Snarf Zagyg]

There is a thread for this non-sense please head over there.

Oh, I did.

 

[Older Beholder]

Another 10...

Belle and Sebastian - If you're feeling sinister
Nirvana - Nevermind
Cat Power - Moon pix
The Flaming Lips - Yoshimi battles the pink robots
TV on the Radio - Return to cookie mountain
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - Let love in
King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard - I'm in your mind fuzz
Modest Mouse - The Moon and Antarctica
Faith No More - Angel Dust
Tropical F*** Storm - A laughing death in meatspace

 

[payn]

Another 10...

Belle and Sebastian - If you're feeling sinister
Nirvana - Nevermind
Cat Power - Moon pix
The Flaming Lips - Yoshimi battles the pink robots
TV on the Radio - Return to cookie mountain
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - Let love in
King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard - I'm in your mind fuzz
Modest Mouse - The Moon and Antarctica
Faith No More - Angel Dust
Tropical F*** Storm - A laughing death in meatspace

I scold you for going over your ten, but your picks are so damn good!

 

[Older Beholder]

I scold you for going over your ten, but your picks are so damn good!

There were a few albums I couldn't believe I forgot about in the first 10.

 

[Jacob Lewis]

I'm gonna need to give this another go. The category of "essential albums" is too broad for my tastes. Even though my initial picks showed a particular bias towards the hard and heavy stuff, I do listen to other music. So allow me to diversify with <drum roll>...

Jacob's 10 Essential 80s Pop Albums

1. Tears for Fears - Songs From the Big Chair
2. Howard Jones - Dream Into Action
3. Thompson Twins - Into the Gap
4. Huey Lewis & the News - Sports
5. Genesis - Invisible Touch
6. Michael Jackson - Thriller
7. Cyndi Lauper - She's So Unusual
8. INXS - Listen Like Thieves
9. Men at Work - Business as Usual
10. Culture Club - Colour By Numbers

Bonus Picks:
Since soundtracks and greatist hits seemed to go against the spirit of picking original albums for their entirety, I thought we could include one of each as bonus picks. One for each, to be precise.

• Greatest Hits - Duran Duran
• Soundtrack - Ghostbusters (I was gonna pick something else but its more rock than pop)

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Thing about soundtracks is that some of them DO have some or even ALL original songs. And some of that music is, IMHO, important for the artists or even music history.

Some I can think of:
Heavy Metal
Heavy Metal FAKK
The Crow
Judgement Night
1984
Strange Days
Legend
Dead Man
Rush Hour
Godzilla (1998)

Some of the songs on these soundtrack appear only on those soundtracks or artist’s song collections. Some of them are reworked versions of the artists’ music done specifically for the soundtracks.

 

[Jacob Lewis]

Thing about soundtracks is that some of them DO have some or even ALL original songs. And some of that music is, IMHO, important for the artists or even music history.

Some I can think of:
Heavy Metal
Heavy Metal FAKK
The Crow
Judgement Night
1984
Strange Days
Legend
Dead Man
Rush Hour
Godzilla (1998)

Some of the songs on these soundtrack appear only on those soundtracks or artist’s song collections. Some of them are reworked versions of the artists’ music done specifically for the soundtracks.

That's a fair point. It would be easy to categorize them in their own sub-genre. Some soundtracks are just collections of previously recorded songs from pre-existing albums, like Dazed and Confused, or Guardians of the Galaxy. Still, they're great collections on their own.

Miami Vice, on the other hand, had a great collection of songs from various contemporary artists capturing the feel and the lifestyle perpetuated by the popular series at the time. Less Than Zero, however, had an interesting mix of rock, rap, r&b, and metal covers. Perhaps the most notable track was Slayer doing an abridged cover of Iron Butterfly's In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida. But the most iconic track, IMO, was the surprising hit from the Bangles, A Hazy Shade of Winter.

But that leads into the category of original scores. You might not think of this as regular music the majority of us would listen to casually on a regular basis. But you can't deny the power and emotion of some of the best known and iconic scores, especially when they're tied into a beloved movie or scene. George Lucas has said that the music was the only thing that exceeded his expectations for the original Star Wars movie.

Conan the Barbarian was another standout of original scores that helped define the movie picture. When I hear the opening drums and horns of The Anvil of Crom, I am instantly transported to the days of high adventure. And let me tell you, there is no better way to wake up feeling ready to take on the world than setting your morning alarm to this. Try it. (Just make sure the volume isn't so loud you wake up with heart palpitations! I am speaking from personal experience on that one.)

Edit: I need to throw in one more--Last Action Hero. I love this movie, and the soundtrack is one of my favorites ever. Most were original songs that were hits in their own right (like Big Guns by AC/DC, Angry Again by Megadeth). But it also featured two new songs from Alice In Chains (What the Hell Have I? and A Little Bitter), which I think was among their best songs ever. And if that ain't enough, let's throw in some killer tracks by Anthrax (Poison My Eyes), Tesla (Last Action Hero), and Queensryche (The Real World).

 

[Mannahnin]

Edit: I need to throw in one more--Last Action Hero. I love this movie, and the soundtrack is one of my favorites ever. Most were original songs that were hits in their own right (like Big Guns by AC/DC, Angry Again by Megadeth). But it also featured two new songs from Alice In Chains (What the Hell Have I? and A Little Bitter), which I think was among their best songs ever.

You know, I'm not sure if I've ever listened to that soundtrack straight through, and I totally didn't remember that there are two original AiC songs on there. This was in the period between Dirt and Jar of Flies, too (arguably the band's peak), so I'm kicking myself right now for not knowing those songs. Similar to how the Singles soundtrack has two great Pearl Jam songs on it from after Ten but before Vs., making it absolutely essential for fans of that band.

(Great post overall, btw)