Best Ever Albums

Re: Artists whose best album isn't among their first 5 albums

Komorebi-D — Sat, 29 Jul 2017 20:59:26 GMT

Author: Komorebi-D

Posted: 07/30/2017 00:59

babyBlueSedan wrote:

Songs: Ohia - Magnolia Electric Co (9)

Damn! You beat me!

(I want to say Will Oldham now but I realize that might not work because of his various monikers)

Smog - Knock Knock (7th)
Cat Power - You Are Free (6th)
Yo La Tengo - Painful (6th) & I Can Feel The Heart Beating As One (8th)

Re: Artists whose best album isn't among their first 5 albums

hazeld — Sat, 29 Jul 2017 17:58:48 GMT

Author: hazeld

Posted: 07/29/2017 21:58

David Bowie (Station to Station was 10th, Low was 11th)
Stevie Wonder (Innervisions was 16th)
Beach Boys (Pet Sounds was 11th, Surf's Up was 17th)
Miles Davis (Bitches Brew, In a Silent Way, and On the Corner were god knows what LP)
John Coltrane (Ascension was close to his 20th I believe)
Kraftwerk (TEE was 6th)
Brian Eno (Ambient 1 was 6th)
King Crimson (Red was 7th)

might update later

Re: Artists whose best album isn't among their first 5 albums

saltysurprise — Sat, 29 Jul 2017 16:57:40 GMT

Author: saltysurprise

Posted: 07/29/2017 20:57

Michael Jackson (Bad)
The Beatles (Sgt Pepper)
The Rolling Stones (Exile On Main St)
Fleetwood Mac (Rumours)
The Cure (Disintegration)
Radiohead (In Rainbows -arguably)
Green Day (American Idiot)
The Flaming Lips (The Soft Bulletin)
Paul Simon (Graceland)
Pink Floyd (Dark Side of the Moon)
RHCP (Between Californication and Stadium Arcadium)

Re: Artists whose best album isn't among their first 5 albums

SquishypuffDave — Sat, 29 Jul 2017 12:31:08 GMT

Author: SquishypuffDave

Posted: 07/29/2017 16:31

If I'm in that mood, Scott Walker.

Porcupine Tree fits too. The Gavin Harrison era was some next-level freshness.

Also, since In Rainbows and Hail To The Thief are my favourite Radiohead albums, I technically should include them, even though that feels wrong for some reason. I suppose I'm more thinking of artists "hitting their stride" late in the game.

Re: Artists whose best album isn't among their first 5 albums

revolver94 — Sat, 29 Jul 2017 02:09:57 GMT

Author: revolver94

Posted: 07/29/2017 06:09

beach boys (pet sounds) [does this really count?]
sufjan (carrie & lowell)
bowie (low)
anco (feels)
guided by voices (alien lanes)
beatles (revolver) [see beach boys]
dirty projectors (bitte orca)
dylan (highway 61)
spoon (ga ga ga ga ga)

this is an interesting q -- wish i had more interesting answers

Additions

O.T. — Fri, 28 Jul 2017 09:43:21 GMT

Author: O.T.

Posted: 07/28/2017 13:43

Interestingly there seems to be dispute about the best album of those artists that were already mentioned, so several artists and bands were maybe in their best phase after album five.
My picks:
Elvis - The NBC TV Special
Beatles - Revolver
Grateful Dead - Blues for Allah
Joni Mitchell - Hejira
Steely Dan - Gaucho
Prince - Sign o' the times
Bob Dylan - Modern times
Caetano Veloso - Joia
Elis Regina - Falso Brilhante
Dorival Caymmi - Caymmi (His last one!)
So we might agree about the artists, but not necessarily about the albums.

Re: Artists whose best album isn't among their first 5 albums

babyBlueSedan — Fri, 28 Jul 2017 09:01:32 GMT

Author: babyBlueSedan

Posted: 07/28/2017 13:01

Some who haven't been mentioned:

Guided by Voices - both Bee Thousand (7) and Alien Lanes (8 )
Scarface - The Fix (7), though the Diary is nearly as good
Songs: Ohia - Magnolia Electric Co (9)

Almost:
Dinosaur Jr - Bug is probably still my favorite, but there are days I think Beyond (8, and after a 10 year hiatus) is better

Also want to shout out Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds even though they've already been mentioned. I've been listening to them nonstop the last couple days and I would argue their best 9 or 10 albums aren't among their first five.

Re: Artists whose best album isn't among their first 5 albums

Purplepash — Fri, 28 Jul 2017 06:42:33 GMT

Author: Purplepash

Posted: 07/28/2017 10:42

Late to the party but here is some that haven't been mentioned yet

Ty Segall - Manipulator (7th)
Thee Oh Sees - anything from Carrion Crawler/The Dream (their 12th album) onwards...personally A Weird Exits is my favourite - they just keep getting better with every album
King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard - Nonagon Infinity (8th)
Pond - Man It Feels Like Space Again (6th)
The Fall - This Nation's Saving Grace (8th) - this is debatable with Hex Enduction Hour (4th) possibly being their best.

Re: Artists whose best album isn't among their first 5 albums

Fischman — Thu, 27 Jul 2017 12:51:14 GMT

Author: Fischman

Posted: 07/27/2017 16:51

Asia - XXX (yes, I think it's significantly superior to their debut)
Beatles - Revolver
Black Sabbath - Heaven and Hell (although it's the first with Dio behind the mike)
Glen Campbell - Ghost on the Canvas
Deep Purple - Machine Head
Electric Light Orchestra - A New World Record
Fates Warning - Parallels
Fleetwood Mac - Rumours (although it was only the second with Buckingham/Nicks)
Genesis - The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway
Kinks - Village Green Preservation Society
Gary Moore - Still Got the Blues
Pink Floyd - Dark Side of the Moon or Wish You Were Here (Impossible to choose)
Rush - Moving Pictures
Rolling Stones - Sticky Fingers
Joe Walsh - Analog Man
The Who - Who's Next
Within Temptation - The Unforgiving

Re: Artists whose best album isn't among their first 5 albums

hereforashortime — Thu, 27 Jul 2017 03:48:51 GMT

Author: hereforashortime

Posted: 07/27/2017 07:48

American Idiot - Green Day
Abby Road - Beatles
Beach Boys - Pet Sounds
The Wall - Pink Floyd
Who's Next - The Who
Time - ELO
Highway 61 Revisited - Bob Dylan
Rumours - Fleetwood Mac
The Joshua Tree - U2
Document - R.E.M.

Re: Artists whose best album isn't among their first 5 albums

AAL2014 — Thu, 27 Jul 2017 01:18:34 GMT

Author: AAL2014

Posted: 07/27/2017 05:18

For most of these artists I love a lot of their early work, but the records here are just my favorite from each artist.

Bob Dylan- Blood On The Tracks (15)
Beatles- Abbey Road (11)
Iron Maiden- Seventh Son (7)
Stevie Wonder- Innervisions (13) Songs In The Key Of Life (15)
U2- Achtung Baby (6)
John Coltrane- A Love Supreme (34)
Miles Davis- In A Silent Way (40ish?)
Foo Fighters- Wasting Light (7)

5th Records:

RHCP- Blood Sugar Sex Majik (5)
Dream Theater- Metropolis Part 2: Scenes From a Memory (5)

Re: Artists whose best album isn't among their first 5 albums

RoundTheBend — Thu, 27 Jul 2017 00:31:13 GMT

Author: RoundTheBend

Posted: 07/27/2017 04:31

50 Helen's Agree.

Re: Artists whose best album isn't among their first 5 albums

JOSweetHeart — Wed, 26 Jul 2017 23:57:59 GMT

Author: JOSweetHeart

Posted: 07/27/2017 03:57

Alison Krauss-So Long So Wrong
LeAnn Rimes-Family
Tanya Tucker-Can't Run From Yourself
Trace Adkins-Songs About Me
Billy Joe Royal-The Royal Treatment
Oak Ridge Boys-Monongahela

God bless you and Alison and LeAnn and Tanya and Trace always!!! 😄 😄 😄

Holly

Re: Artists whose best album isn't among their first 5 albums

dmercado — Wed, 26 Jul 2017 23:25:37 GMT

Author: dmercado

Posted: 07/27/2017 03:25

Arguably - Green Day's American Idiot (7th studio)
Jay-Z's Blueprint was his 7th
Depending on how you count - MF Doom in Madvillainy
Common's Be was his 6th
Paul Simon's Graceland was his 8th
XTC's Skylarking was #9
Did someone mention Stevie Wonder? Key of Life at 15
Peter Gabriel squeezes in with 6
so does INXS with Kick
and Steely Dan's Aja
Rush's Moving Pictures was their 8th
Bee Gee's peaked on Saturday Night Fever (15)
Elton John's Yellow Brick Road was 7th
as was ELO's Out of the Blue

Re: Artists whose best album isn't among their first 5 albums

Luigii — Wed, 26 Jul 2017 20:01:50 GMT

Author: Luigii

Posted: 07/27/2017 00:01

Damn. Even though these records are some of my personal all time favorite records recently, I still think some of there earlier work is better.
My choices would be:
Bjork-Vulnicura
Jamiroquai-Automaton
Radiohead-In Rainbows
The Orb-Moonbuilding 2703 A.D.
Autechre-Exai

Re: Artists whose best album isn't among their first 5 albums

Daydreamer — Wed, 26 Jul 2017 19:58:17 GMT

Author: Daydreamer

Posted: 07/26/2017 23:58

Glad this turned out so well. �'�

Here are some of my thoughts on the subject:

Bob Dylan - most people would say his peak was 1965-1966 when he released his 5th, 6th and 7th album. However he was still very young and didn't have a late peak in a true sense of the word. But he did release the magnificent Blood On The Tracks as his 15th!!!! album it's my favourite Dylan album. Amazing stuff.

David Bowie - even though Ziggy was his 5th, deserves a mention because of Low (11th) and Blackstar (25th) album which are along with mentioned Ziggy and Hunky Dory (4th) the high points of his amazing career.

Edguy - one of my favourite metal bands, peaked with Mandrake (6th) and especially Hellfire Club (7th), however they declined heavily after those.

Gary Moore - Still Got The Blues (10th) and other blues albums from the 90's are what I enjoy the most

Iron Maiden - Seventh Son of The Seveth Son (7th album hehehe)

Judas Priest - Painkiller (12th)

Neil Young probably peaked early but remained strong and I know people who consider Rust Never Sleeps his best. It's his 11th album

Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds - Amazingly created his best album in 2016 as his 16th studio album. And even before that one my favourite was The Boatman's Call (his 10th). Just incredible consistency.

Pink Floyd - Again Dark Side is their 8th album and they were still full of ideas. Incredible thing is that it wasn't just a fluke since their golden period began with it and continued all over to their 11th album. However they were still very young since they released a lot of half-shitty albums before Dark Side.

Prince - Purple Rain just narrowly qualified as his 6th album

RHCP - By The Way (8th)

Sufjan Stevens - Carrie & Lowell is his 7th album but both his 5th and 6th were incredible so we can say he has a slightly late peak.

The Beatles - I can't believe no one mentioned them since they just entered their peak with their 6th album and made incredible albums one after another afterwards

The Black Keys - The Brothers and El Camino are their 6th and 7th album

The Cure - Disintegration - 8th album

The Flaming Lips - A real late peak with their 9th and 10th album (SB and Yoshimi of course)

The Rolling Stones - Albums 7-10, with my favourite being their 9th release, Sticky Fingers

Tom Waits - Possibly the best example of a true late peak. Not only is his best album Rain Dogs his 7th but most of the albums from his 6th onwards are better than his first five (which aren't that bad to begin with). Amazing progress

Re: Artists whose best album isn't among their first 5 albums

Infinity183 — Wed, 26 Jul 2017 19:55:23 GMT

Author: Infinity183

Posted: 07/26/2017 23:55

Prince - Purple Rain (#6)
Steely Dan - Aja (#6)
Bob Dylan - Blonde on Blonde (#7)

Re: Artists whose best album isn't among their first 5 albums

LittleM1971 — Wed, 26 Jul 2017 19:28:21 GMT

Author: LittleM1971

Posted: 07/26/2017 23:28

craola wrote:

U2: War or Unforgettable Fire (albums #3 & #4)

Depeche Mode: Black Celebration (album #5)

Personally I'd go for Boy...anyhow looking at it the JT was their 5th so doesn't count anyway. Black Celebration (love it btw) might be your favourite but I don't think it's seen as their career high point which Violator was.

Re: Artists whose best album isn't among their first 5 albums

craola — Wed, 26 Jul 2017 19:19:13 GMT

Author: craola

Posted: 07/26/2017 23:19

LittleM1971 wrote:

U2 with The Joshua Tree.

U2: War or Unforgettable Fire (albums #3 & #4)

LittleM1971 wrote:

Depeche Mode - Violator

Depeche Mode: Black Celebration (album #5)

Re: Artists whose best album isn't among their first 5 albums

Onater — Wed, 26 Jul 2017 19:02:48 GMT

Author: Onater

Posted: 07/26/2017 23:02

A lot of jazz musicians:
Kind of Blue was Miles' 33rd studio album
A Love Supreme was Coltrane's 34th
The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady was Mingus' 28th
Time Out was Brubeck's 24th
Moanin' was The Jazz Messengers' 10th
Somethin' Else was Cannonball's 8th
Saxophone Colossus was Sonny Rollin's 6th
Head Hunters was Herbie Hancock's 12th.

Also, just from quickly going the the top 100:
Dark Side of the Moon was Pink Floyd's 8th
Revolver was The Beatle's 7th, Abbey Road was their 11th
Pet Sounds was The Beach Boys' 11th
Highway 61 Revisited was Bob Dylan's 6th
Exile On Main St. is The Stones' 10th
Rumours was Fleetwood Mac's 11th
Disintegration is The Cure's 8th
Automatic For The People is R.E.M.'s 8th
What's Going On is Marvin Gaye's 11th
Thriller is Michael Jackson's 6th
The Soft Bulletin is The Flaming Lips' 9th
Back In Black was AC/DC's 7th
Merriweather Post Pavilion is Animal Collective's 8th (except their best album is actually Spirit They're Gone which is their 1st and this site is wrong)

Edit: almost everything I said was posted by somebody else in the time it took to write this. Oh well.