The Flowers Of Romance
by Public Image Ltd.

The Flowers Of Romance by Public Image Ltd.
Year: 1981
Overall rank: 2,833rd   Overall chart history
Average Rating: 
74/100 (from 131 votes)
  Ratings distribution   Average rating history
Accolades:
Award Top albums of 1981 (49th)
Award Top albums of the 1980s (424th)
Award Best albums of all time (2,833rd)

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Public Image Ltd. bestography

The Flowers Of Romance is ranked 2nd best out of 18 albums by Public Image Ltd. on BestEverAlbums.com.

The best album by Public Image Ltd. is Metal Box which is ranked number 848 in the list of all-time albums with a total rank score of 2,025.

Public Image Ltd. album bestography « Higher ranked (848th)
Metal Box
This album (2,833rd)
The Flowers Of Romance
Lower ranked (3,070th) »
Public Image

(N.B. Bestographies include all albums by an artist (and their variations), but do not include albums ranked outside the top 100,000).

Upcoming concerts

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The Flowers Of Romance rankings

Rankings summary
Overall rank: 2,833rd | 1980s rank: 424th | 1981 rank: 49th

The Flowers Of Romance collection

The Flowers Of Romance ratings

Average Rating: 
74/100 (from 131 votes)
  Ratings distribution Help Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AV
where:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
m = minimum number of ratings required for an item to appear in a 'top-rated' chart (currently 10).
AV = the site mean average rating.

Showing latest 5 ratings for this album. | Show all 131 ratings for this album.

Sort Sort by
RatingDate updatedMemberAlbum ratingsAvg. album rating
 
80/100
 
02/21/2026 11:32 markl73  Ratings distribution  55979/100
 
80/100
 
11/26/2025 02:48 imacgill  Ratings distribution  2,64579/100
 
55/100
 
10/22/2025 22:53 EyeKanFly  Ratings distribution  8,42765/100
 
70/100
 
08/20/2025 00:46 Ilovesuicide  Ratings distribution  34168/100
 
90/100
 
03/19/2025 07:47 mash  Ratings distribution  1,44388/100

Rating metrics: Help Outliers can be removed when calculating a mean average to dampen the effects of ratings outside the normal distribution. This figure is provided as the trimmed mean. A high standard deviation can be legitimate, but can sometimes indicate 'gaming' is occurring. Consider a simplified example* of an item receiving ratings of 100, 50, & 0. The mean average rating would be 50. However, ratings of 55, 50 & 45 could also result in the same average. The second average might be more trusted because there is more consensus around a particular rating (a lower deviation).
(*In practice, some albums can have several thousand ratings)

This album is rated in the top 16% of all albums on BestEverAlbums.com. This album has a Bayesian average rating of 74.0/100, a mean average of 73.3/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 74.2/100. The standard deviation for this album is 16.2.

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The Flowers Of Romance comments

Showing all 7 comments |
Most Helpful First | Newest First | Positive Sentiment First | Longest Comments First
(Only showing comments with -2 votes or higher. You can alter this threshold from your profile page. Manage Profile)

Rating:  
55/100
From 02/18/2024 08:47 | #302056
Not music
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
85/100
From 09/08/2017 15:43 | #197530
best tracks: under the house, banging the door
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
45/100
From 07/12/2015 20:08 | #145612
Not bad
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 10/11/2014 12:16 | #124003
Not as good as Metal Box/Second Edition, but a good release to Public Image Ltd's discography. I like Four Enclosed Walls quite a lot.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
30/100
From 03/28/2014 15:59 | #107901
This comment is beneath your viewing threshold.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -3 votes (0 helpful | 3 unhelpful)
Rating:  
50/100
From 07/11/2012 22:19 | #46267
I'm reviewing this album because honestly I kind of hate it and want to add a dissenting opinion to all the praise it has gotten.

I think most people are of the opinion that PIL were at the top of their game on Metal Box and I can understand that. Personally I think that Album with Bill Laswell is the best thing Lydon's ever done, and that First Issue was as good a manifesto as this band ever gave. Other people have said though that The Flowers of Romance is their best album and I don't understand this opinion at all. I think I read Jah Wobble as having said once that, looking back, he thought PIL didn't live up to their potential. Basically, I'd say that The Flowers of Romance encapsulates the wasted potential of this band.

What the hell is this album about? You've got two smart guys with good taste in music and what do they create when left to their own devices? A collection of unlistenable, anaemic, metallic-sounding songs with bad lyrics. The only listenable songs on this album are "Banging the Door" and "Home is Where the Heart is". Yes I know that the percussive element in this music shows the influence of african/middle-eastern music and german bands that are more interesting than PIL. I don't care. This album gives me a goddamn headache.

Lydon definitely has a unique vision but he needs other people around to create the actual music. Levene was already beginning to show signs of being washed up and mentally disorganized. Yes it is moderately interesting. Is it good? No.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +4 votes (5 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
Rating:  
70/100
From 08/10/2011 06:19 | #26044
By the time of 'Flowers Of Romance', Lydon had added Martin Atkins on drums at the expense of Jah Wobble on bass. Thus, unlike 'Metal Box' the former rather than the latter play a prominent role. There is an overriding "ethnic" Arabian atmosphere in the sound of the instrumentation, while the backdrop is one of funk syncopation set against Lydon's dark lyrics and chilling voice. The overall effect is a kind of Freudian study that is at the same time nihilistic and harrowing. Key track: Banging The Door.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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Best Albums of 1981
1. Moving Pictures by Rush
2. Computerwelt by Kraftwerk
3. Discipline by King Crimson
4. Juju by Siouxsie And The Banshees
5. My Life In The Bush Of Ghosts by Brian Eno & David Byrne
6. Time by Electric Light Orchestra
7. Faith by The Cure
8. Dare by The Human League
9. Damaged by Black Flag
10. Deceit by This Heat
11. Tattoo You by The Rolling Stones
12. Youth Of America by Wipers
13. Ghost In The Machine by The Police
14. Fire Of Love by The Gun Club
15. The Ascension by Glenn Branca
16. Heaven Up Here by Echo & The Bunnymen
17. Face Value by Phil Collins
18. Killers by Iron Maiden
19. Nightclubbing by Grace Jones
20. Movement by New Order
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