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Thread: Your Top 100 Albums

  1. #11
    Stuck on the Border Jonny Come Lately's Avatar
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    Default Re: Your Top 100 Albums

    This is really annoying me now! Every time I try to upload my files via the Manage Attachments option, whether in .png or .jpg format, I only get a tiny thumbnail which even I can barely read. Please tell me what trick I'm missing, I'd love to have my list(s) appear larger like yours, I've loved looking through them so far.

  2. #12
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    Default Re: Your Top 100 Albums

    You need to put it into photobucket or another photo sharing site. If you don't use those you could PM me & attach the photo & then I could post it.

    I just want to make a couple of comments on my list - sadly I forgot to include the Beatles' Abbey Road, which should be near the top of the second tier, but I'm not revising it.

    The artist who was most unlucky to miss out was Stevie Nicks, who probably should have at least had Bella Donna, if not The Other Side Of The Mirror or In Your Dreams. However it was her or Kate Bush. The other big omission was Warren Zevon who probably deserved Sentimental Hygiene.

    You will see a couple of nods to my old country rock passion with Gram Parsons' Grievous Angel & the Byrds' Fifth Dimension but that's all. I also have to say that On The Border was very lucky to make it - perhaps it should have been The Long Run,

    Of artist with multiple entries that may be surprising I went with instinct particularly with Van Morrison who has so many great albums that it was hard to pick only a couple. Astral Weeks was unlucky as were Irish Heartbeat & Into The Music. I included all the Dire Straits albums although both Love Over Gold & On Every Street were lucky.

    Of Mark Knopfler's albums I could have included them all. The two closest to the top are the best. For the others I reasoned that the new album Tracker is better than its predecessor Privateering, and Get Lucky is better than its predecessor Kill To Get Crimson. This left The Ragpicker's Dream unlucky to miss out, Golden Heart less so.

    I had to be ruthless with Glenn's albums. You can see that only three of them made it; the three I like the most.

    The list obviously favours my current love affair with Genesis/Collins/Gabriel.

    Part of me would like to do another collage of the albums that almost made it, and still another one of favourite albums of mine that people may be surprised I like, but that may be getting away from the topic.

  3. #13
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    Default Re: Your Top 100 Albums

    Thanks for offering to help me with this, I've sent you a PM with my list. I should start by stating that my main list is actually a top 50. My album collection is simply not big enough to do a top 100, if I did attempt 100 now then I would be including albums I barely know, or albums that I like nowhere near enough to justify describing as favourites.

    I will do a proper analysis of my list once it goes up - I have to say there aren't any major omissions that really should be in the list as I was quite systematic, although there's albums that could swap positions without rancour. Having fewer albums admittedly makes this somewhat easier! I didn't include live albums, I don't feel they are directly comparable to studio releases unless they consist entirely of new material (an album like Neil Young's Time Fades Away is quite different from a compilation-like live album such as his own Live Rust).

  4. #14
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    Default Re: Your Top 100 Albums

    Here is JCL's list as requested!


  5. #15
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    Default Re: Your Top 100 Albums

    Thanks for posting my list, FP. That is a huge improvement on the previous thumbnails!

    My list as previously stated is a top 50 rather than a top 100 – hopefully in future I will be able to do a good top 100 list, but I’d rather do a shorter list full of albums I’m genuinely very fond of rather than scraping the barrel with albums I’m much less keen on to fill in spaces. In my collection of about 80 albums (excluding live albums and compilations), there are probably just over 60 that can be genuinely be considered favourites, and another five I like but I am not sufficiently familiar with to feel comfortable rating. The rest I either like moderately, or can take or leave. I'll now discuss my list in more detail.

    When it came to my list, my top six picked themselves - these are firm favourites of mine, and interestingly are all albums that I loved for at least two years (this is quite a significant chunk of my time as a music lover. Jonny Come Lately indeed!) There is not much between the top two, although I tend to think of Wish You Were Here as my favourite album of all time. Led Zeppelin IV is, I feel, the strongest candidate for third place (seven of its eight tracks are outstanding). Positions four through to six were also close and are probably interchangeable. All of these albums mean a lot to me although Hotel ultimately got the nod for fourth place.

    As for the rest of my top ten, I also felt that Bob Dylan's Highway 61 Revisited and Neil Young's Rust Never Sleeps, both of which are superb from start to finish, had to be in there. The former is the only album in the top 10 recorded outside the 1970s. Highway 61 edges it because I think the songs on it, are, on average, just that bit better. They could go on to gatecrash the top six although I have not known either for long enough to quite put them up there yet. Deep Purple's Machine Head is a more recent addition, but is far too strong to ignore, while Lynyrd Skynyrd's Pronounced… takes tenth spot as my favourite debut album of all time (as an aside, I was quite pleased to see Austin put Street Survivors in his top ten. I am hoping to receive this album come 25th December).

    Love Over Gold stands as my favourite Dire Straits album in 11th place, although I should probably say that Making Movies only places just outside the top 20 due to Les Boys, the closing track which I find by far the weakest on the album. The rest of that record is essentially perfect and those six tracks on their own would probably stand as my favourite Dire Straits record. The debut album is third in 25th place, not far behind Movies, while both Brothers In Arms and Communique make the top 50. I have to admit I am not that great a fan of On Every Street - it has its moments of greatness, but there are some tracks which I find skippable, and it wasn't close to making the top 50. Of the Knopfler solo albums I own, Sailing To Philadelphia is an excellent album and I felt fourth in the Dire Straits/Knopfler rankings was about right. Shangri-La missed out, although it is newer to me – Sailing To Philadelphia grew on me with time so I would not be surprised if Shangri-La did too.

    Six of the seven Eagles albums make my top 50. The one that misses out is One Of These Nights, although it only narrowly failed to make the cut (in fact, I had it in 51st place). Although Hotel is my overall favourite, I absolutely love Desperado, which takes 12th place. On The Border and The Long Run are my third and fourth favourites and were secure in the top 50 – the latter deserves a particular mention as it has grown on me hugely. This left the remaining three albums, and it was quite tricky deciding the order as I really don’t think one Eagles album stands out as the weakest. In the end, the debut came fifth as although some songs are clearly stronger than others I enjoy almost everything, whereas LROOE and OOTN have a couple of tracks I’m not so keen on. Both, though, also feature some real highlights. Ultimately, I think I haven’t the heart to put LROOE last – it surpassed my initial expectations and even more surprisingly has actually grown on me with time. Of the few solo works I own, Joe’s But Seriously, Folks… takes 40th place and shades Don H’s The End of the Innocence, while Cass County is too new to me to be able to rate it properly.

    Anyone who has read my posts in the Fleetwood Mac thread will probably know that Rumours is my hands down favourite album by them. The self-titled 1975 album joins it in the top 50 in 31st place. Tusk was considered, but missed out – don’t get me wrong, there is much that I love on that album, but none of my top 50 albums have as many songs I don’t like or don’t care for. I don’t actually own Mirage or Tango In The Night (the songs I do have from these albums are mostly from compilations), although I’m afraid to say I don’t rate either of these especially highly aside from a few high points.

    My beloved Pink Floyd take five spots in the top 20, this could be seen as excessive although I would point out that their sixth highest album, Atom Heart Mother, is 41st - the top five are the five major records of Pink Floyd's golden era and stand as by far their best. The Wall is, in my opinion, a masterpiece, but Animals is just that little bit better so is two places ahead. Meddle has a weaker moment or two, but the bulk of the record is great, including the seminal side-long Echoes, which I feel is enough to earn a place in the top 20. I was quite harsh on The Division Bell, which I really do like a lot and I could probably have placed higher – it took 50th place, five places behind A Saucerful of Secrets. I am fond of Obscured By Clouds, but it missed out, as did the debut album The Piper at the Gates of Dawn (which I don’t rate as highly as some, but is still a fine record).

    Led Zeppelin have four albums in the top 20, and six in the top forty, reflecting their exceptional run of albums from 1969-75. IV is my established favourite although 2015 has seen Physical Graffiti overtake both II and I. These albums take positions 14, 17 and 20 respectively. I love both III and Houses of the Holy, which are two place apart in 32nd and 34th. There isn’t much between them although I gave the edge to III as I think it is slightly more consistent. In my opinion there is a big drop off after this – Presence or In Through The Out Door did not trouble my top 50, while Coda is among the weakest albums in my collection.

    Neil Young has four albums in the top 25 – I consider Rust Never Sleeps to be the pinnacle of his career, with After The Gold Rush ahead of Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere and On The Beach all in the lower reaches of the top 25. He has another three in my top 50 – Harvest and Zuma are two other favourites which rank in the mid-thirties (33rd and 36th, respectively), while Freedom, another record that has grown on me, is 43rd. Bob Dylan is the only artist other than Pink Floyd with two albums in my top 10, while Blonde On Blonde edges out Bringing It All Back Home, coming home in 26th place, three ahead of the latter and Desire is also in the top 40.

    Of the omissions not previously mentioned, the biggest is probably Coldplay’s A Rush of Blood To The Head. I used to be a big fan of this band – the album would have been in my top 20 not all that long ago – but their appeal to me has faded. However, I am still quite fond of this album, which I think stands as their finest achievement, and on one side it probably deserves a place in the top 50 on the grounds that it’s an important part of the soundtrack of my life. On the other hand I don’t find it as strong now as the albums in places 41-50, so ultimately I left it out. Wishbone Ash’s Pilgrimage was also seriously considered for inclusion, but was also left out. If there is one wildcard in my top 50, it is Foxtrot by Genesis, which is the most recent addition to make my list – its position could yet change substantially but I felt 48th place was a reasonable assessment at this stage.

    If there’s anything that surprised you in my list or comments, please say so – I’d be very happy to discuss this further.
    Last edited by Jonny Come Lately; 12-22-2015 at 07:24 AM.

  6. #16
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    Default Re: Your Top 100 Albums

    Comments on this type of topic are a bit strange because everyone is entitled to their choices & their choices are very personal to them. I already told Austin on FB how pleased I was to see the mighty Revolver in his top 10, no less.

    Well, JCL, I will comment on your choices if you will comment on mine (unless you find them so utterly predictable that there is nothing to say, which is fair enough). I was surprised by your Lynyrd Skynyrd inclusions. The only song I have ever heard by them is Sweet Home Alabama - that is not a joke (is it from the Pronounced album)? The Deep Purple inclusions also surprise me. My husband is a massive fan but his favourite album by them is Made In Japan, which is of course live. He would also be pleased that you like Moving Pictures - I like it too, it includes Tom Sawyer for heaven's sake.

    Perhaps you need to find the Bob Dylan thread (Yes there is one)! so you & I can indulge ourselves. We both put Highway & Blood at the top where he is concerned - Blood is my favourite because it is more personal, more about Dylan himself. We both have Blonde On Blonde, of course. In addition I have Desire, while I perhaps also should have Bringing It All Back Home as you do.

    I am pretty much with you on Neil Young. I didn't include Harvest because I don't like Words (Between The Lines Of Age) much as you don't like Les Boys much. I like Zuma but I don't know it well enough yet.

    No Beatles or Rolling Stones for you though.

    NB: I understand why you wanted to keep it to 50 albums. If I had tried to do that a lot of great albums would have gone unmentioned. It's pretty accurate though if you only wish to look at the Top 50 except for the inexcusable absence of Abbey Road.
    Last edited by Freypower; 12-22-2015 at 05:44 PM.

  7. #17
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    Default Re: Your Top 100 Albums

    Quote Originally Posted by Freypower View Post
    I agree that these lists are personal, we all have our reasons for our choices although it is interesting to discuss them so I'm happy to oblige. I'll try and cover some of the things that most caught my interest (I've reposted your list for reference purposes as it's on the previous page).

    It was a very pleasant surprise for me to see Wish You Were Here in your top twenty, as is the appearance of Dark Side on all three other lists so far. All of my top ten have appeared on at least one other list, in many cases in high positions - I think Animals is the highest placed album I have that is unique to my list.

    FP, the first thing I noticed is that we both place Led Zeppelin IV third on our lists. We also agree on Physical Graffiti, although we diverge after that. I marginally prefer III to Houses as the only song on the former that I don't think is great is Hats Off To Harper, whereas as much as I love the likes of Over The Hills and Far Away and No Quarter, I can't honestly say I think D'yer Mak'er or The Crunge are great songs, although they don't deserve the slating they often get.

    I knew your order of preference for the Dire Straits albums so they didn't surprise me, and I also knew Sailing and Shangri-La were your favourite solo albums. However, your placing of Tracker as your third favourite Mark Knopfler has got me intrigued, I must admit I've not listened to the full album but I certainly intend to now when I get a chance. The biggest surprise to me though was the exclusion of The Ragpicker's Dream as I know you love Why Aye Man. The most relevant example I can think of from my albums is Neil Young's American Stars 'n Bars, where Like A Hurricane is one of his greatest songs but I don't rate the rest of the album as highly. I also own Golden Heart as well as your top two (bought it a couple of months ago), I do like it but agree it isn't one of his stronger solo efforts, and it is unlikely to break into my top 50.

    One big difference between our lists, apart from the number of albums included, is that you have a couple albums by artists who are definitely not rock (I'm thinking of Stevie Wonder here in particular). I am pretty young and will probably want to explore other musical avenues more as I get older.

    I have to say that Genesis as a band were actually less prominent than I was expecting, although there are plenty of Collins and Gabriel solo works. Another one I should probably comment on is R.E.M., who I did not consider myself and this is because both Out Of Time and Automatic For The People have songs I love but also some that I really don't like. My ideal R.E.M. album would probably consist of a combination of the best songs on these two records.

    I will only mention the Eagles briefly, but I was quite surprised to see Desperado rank third in your list, and also to see that The Long Run missed out.

    With Neil Young, I have a certain fondness for Zuma as he played two tracks from it when I saw him in summer 2014 (Don't Cry No Tears and Barstool Blues). I absolutely love Cortez The Killer and Pardon My Heart. It took few listens for me to warm to Freedom as a full album, but I really like it now - it's a strong, balanced record. I like all of the songs on Harvest, but I concur in preferring Gold Rush, which I feel is a more cohesive album.

    As for Bob, I agree that Blood probably slightly edges Highway 61, although the latter's song-for-song strength is extremely impressive. Bringing It All Back Home's position is through its balance of excellent acoustic and electric material, quite like Rust Never Sleeps if not quite as strong, there's several very memorable and classic songs on there. I love the sound and songs of Desire, especially Scarlet Rivera's electric violin parts, and my only real criticism is that Joey is a bit long and it has a hard case presenting Joe Gallo as a principled man, everything else is very good. I also own Freewheelin', but I need to listen it again before I can truly evaluate it.

    Sweet Home Alabama is actually from Second Helping - that album is comparable to the Dire Straits debut album in that has one big hit that gets extensive airplay (for Sweet Home, read Sultans of Swing), the other tracks are nowhere near as well known, even more so in Britain. Many of Skynyrd's US classic rock radio staples, such as Gimme Three Steps and Simple Man, are from Pronounced, as is Free Bird, the only other widely recognised song in the UK. The debut album I feel is an exceptional effort for a first release and of the ones I know well only the Led Zeppelin and Dire Straits debuts come close. My Dad was a big fan of them and went to see them live twice in the 1970s.

    Deep Purple's Machine Head makes my top ten as it is my favourite hard rock album (a significant chunk of Led Zeppelin IV is acoustic). I find the whole record very strong, but side two stands out with Smoke On The Water, Lazy and Space Truckin'. I am also a huge fan of Jon Lord's keyboard playing, highlighted on my favourite song Highway Star. Deep Purple In Rock also rates highly in my book, with more great hard rock songs like Speed King, Flight of the Rat and Into The Fire along with Child In Time, an epic in every sense of the word. It just edges out Selling England By The Pound, which I love although More Fool Me is weaker than the other songs and The Battle of Epping Forest, while still very good and extremely inventive, could have ben even better with fewer lyrics, or a longer instrumental break between the lyric sections to give the listener time to process the words.

    I don't actually own any Beatles or Rolling Stones albums. In the case of the Beatles, while I admire their legacy and talent, I'm afraid the early records don't particularly appeal to me and even in the later years, which I prefer, they lose me with some of the music-hall and/or child-friendly numbers. To be honest I don't know The Stones catalogue as well as I should do, though I do like a few of their songs, such as Gimme Shelter and Brown Sugar.

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    Default Re: Your Top 100 Albums

    RIght. Why are there no more Genesis albums? I haven't heard them yet, that's why. I just ordered all seven of them (well.. not From Genesis to Revelation) because I'm tired of waiting. The albums I didn't have are Trespass, Nursery Cryme, Foxtrot, Selling England, Lamb, Wind & Three (I'm writing like a real fan here)! With Collins & Gabriel there are a couple by them both which I haven't had as long as the others so they weren't considreed (PG 2 & 4, Both Sides & Testify).

    Yes, Ragpickers was unlucky & Tracker was lucky. Tracker deserves it though. It has a quiet strength that was missing from Privateering which tried too hard to be bluesy.

    I also like Stars & Bars but I couldn't put it in a list of this type. I love Comes A Time as well but he isn't what he used to be.

    Desperado is the Eagles album which has grown on me the most & The Long Run the one which has fallen from favour the most. I suppose I was too harsh on it. The reality is that I don't listen to the Eagles with the intensity I used to. I'm sorry to say that, but it's true.

    Innervisions is not an album I talk about on this board very much but it is an absolute masterpiece from start to fiinish. My favourite Stevie Wonder song, however, is Superstiion, which is from Talking Book, which I don't own.

    Out Of Time was important to me during the early 90s before the Eagles reformed. The same goes for (What's The Story) Morning Glory? which has stood the test of time extremely well. I saw both bands live. REM put on the worst show I have ever seen while Oasis weren't quite as good as I had hoped.

    There are only two Australian albums - both by Midnight Oil, Diesel & Dust & Blue Sky Mine. East by Cold Chisel was unlucky to miss out.

    This is the sort of thing I really enjoy writing about but I must stop or I will be here all day.

  9. #19
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    Default Re: Your Top 100 Albums

    I have a Top 10 but a Top 100 may take me too long to decide!

    Always in our hearts, Never forgotten

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    Default Re: Your Top 100 Albums

    Always feels good to see a couple of Randy Newman albums on someone's list. I'm sure Little Criminals would have been on that list even if Glenn Frey hadn't been heavily involved.

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