Let’s skip politics and you-know-what to debate something really critical.
With all due respect to Little Steven, I’m gonna have to go with Pet Sounds here. And you?
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Get The Picture · Bloviation for the Dawgnation
Get The Picture 
Gotta go with Pink Floyd – The Wall
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Seconded. Nothing even touches the wall.
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Absofucknlutely!
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Yup
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The Who – Tommy
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Sgt. Pepper
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Amen.
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Flaming Lips – Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots
That or Dark Side of the Moon
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I prefer DSOTM to The Wall as well, though both are great. The story of Syd Barrett is really really sad, but man did he inspire some fine music.
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The Wall was the first concept album I was introduced to where someone explained to me the appropriate way to listen to it, and so it all always have a special place in my heart. But I agree, DSOTM is the better album.
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“Appropriate way to listen to it”? Yikes
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I just meant from beginning to end. And high. lol
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Ok. The first part is fair.
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And the second part? That’s cool right? We’re in the tree of trust, right? RIGHT?!
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(Circle of trust) -you-
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Is this the fuzz? Son of a…
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Wall is awesome and perhaps more ambitious, but Dark Side just flows perfectly and has no low points whatsoever. It just soars from start to finish.
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good calls. However, my personal favorite Flaming Lips concept album was Zaireeka, at least for me. Comments at bottom of thread if interested. Cheers.
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Pet Sounds get my vote also.
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“Pet Sounds” for me, too, though most people probably wouldn’t think to include it. My favorite album, period.
“What’s Going On” is one I come back to over and over.
“Quadrophenia” a bit over “Tommy”…and just as a personal favorite, I’m also a huge fan of “The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway”.
And “Village Green Preservation Society”.
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Love Village Green!
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Indeed, yes!
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I walked to the record store for it when I was fifteen, because the Rolling Stone guide gave it the coveted five stars. Thanks, RS- a lifetime of joy from that one- and many Kinks live shows. Every track is my favorite, while it’s playing.
The Zombies’ “Odyssey [However they misspelled it] and Oracle”, too. Major love.
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I was lucky enough to catch the Zombies’ 50th Anniversary Tour for O & O. Sheer bliss.
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My pal Darien was on the keys!
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Great show! I saw them also at Variety Playhouse around 2007 on the Little Steven Underground Garage tour (to bring the topic back around to him). It’s very moving to hear those songs live, just as it is with You Still Believe in Me and I Just Wasn’t Made For These Times.
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The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars
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Great call- that one (moon)ages very, very well.
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2112
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Came here to say that. Or Clockwork Angels honestly.
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Clockwork Angels was in heavy rotation for me this spring after Neil passed away, and while I have always liked 2112, I think CA is the overall better album. Also, I think “The Wreckers” may be the best song Rush had written in the last 20 years of their careers, and there were a lot of good songs in there.
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Great post. I’m a Rush nut myself, and I agree about The Wreckers (but I’ll Take Hedlong Flight as #1)
Can’t go with 2112 because it’s only one side, not a whole album. People don’t believe it because of their reputation, but Clockwork Angels really was their only true concept album, ironically their last as a band.
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Totally agree about Headlong Flight
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The Black Crowes- Before the Frost…Until the Freeze
Willie- The Red Headed Stranger
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I don’t know about best, but my favorite is Red Headed Stranger.
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I reckon I’ll play – Operation Mindcrime
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Styx- Kilroy was here
(I keed, I keed)
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Ha! We were on the same page
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How could you leave out Paradise Theater?
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Ha ha! My choice at age 16 or whatever it was
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SMiLE
Is “In the Aeroplane Over The Sea” a concept album?
I agree about Pet Sounds being superior to Tommy (and though I think Tommy was more important to The Who, I prefer Quadrophenia), but I’m not sure that PS is thought of as a ‘concept’ album by many people. It absolutely is musically a concept album, but not as obviously one lyrically.
As an aside, I sure do love a lot of those listed already, and those I’m sure are going to be (2112, Yoshimi, Hemispheres, The Wall, Clockwork Angels, The Delivery Man, Sgt. Pepper, Tales from Topographic Oceans, The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway, Songs From the Wee Small Hours. Kilroy Was Here… not so much.
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The main reason I listed Kilroy was I went to a Styx concert when they were touring for that album. The curtain went up and it was like 20 minutes or so before they played a note or uttered a sound. I really like a lot of their earlier harder rock stuff but Mr. Roboto did me in. I always thought James Young was underrated as a guitarist.
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Yep on all that. I think Dennis isn’t in the band anymore because of lingering resentments, and Kilroy has to be at the center of those (along with the way Tommy let Ted Nugent mock “Babe” on Damn Yankees tours). Also, Todd Sucherman (sp?) is an amazing drummer and adds a lot to their live show for the past 25 years
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Yep, agreed. It’s the standard go-to joke for concept albums that a) broke up a band and 2) were just plain silly as far as the ‘concept’ goes.
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Green Day: American Idiot
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The Who – Tommy
The Beatles – Sgt. Pepper
ELO – Eldorado
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Dark Side of the Moon and Close to the Edge are the benchmarks imo. Lots of others like Genesis’ The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway. A more obscure album that was great for very late night listening is Nektar’s Remember the Future.
Nice thread.
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Nektar’s Remember the Future! Loved it. Saw Nektar at the old Civic Auditorium downtown.
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Never saw them but can imagine live would be an experience… jealous.
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Volunteers, Airplane
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DBT – Southern Rock Opera
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Came here to make sure this was listed. What an album.
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Ditto Southern Rock Opera. I can understand why some aren’t a fan, but man did the Truckers hit me at the perfect time in my life… the few years they had Jason Isbell are one of my favorite Live bands of all time. They were just the right size in that there was always a familiar face in the crowd, big enough that they played cool venues, and small enough that you could always make your way up close to the stage. Them calling Athens home didn’t hurt either..
Not the same band today but their music ages well.
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They suck.
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I never got it. But I never got other, even bigger bands, like the dead as a starter.
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Never “got” The Grateful Dead. It all comes clear now. God bless.
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This and Steve Earle’s “The Revolution Starts Now”
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I totally understand wanting to avoid politics after that shit show yesterday.
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Yet, there you go.
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Are you referring to the press conference where Trump was wondering out loud asking why no one likes him? That was pretty funny.
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They practiced “I would like to reclaim my time”…I bet it took them weeks to get it down pat.
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Frank Zappa – Joe’s Garage
Sgt. Pepper
The Wall (the G.O.A.T.)
Dream Theater – Metropolis Pt 2
Marillion – Brave
Radiohead – OK Computer
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Good calls on Brave and Joe’s Garage
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Was wondering when someone would get to Radiohead. I was thinking Kid A though. First few listens of that I thought they were playing a joke on everyone. Somewhere along the way I started to really like it.
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Munson’s greatest calls.
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check out my website http://www.munsonvault.com
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I was browsing through the HBO Max library yesterday and came across a documentary titled Student Athlete which supposedly delves into many of the issues that get discussed regularly on this blog. I wasn’t in the mood to watch it last night but I was wondering if any of you guys had seen it. Apparently it’s a couple of years old. If it’s been mentioned here on the blog before, I must have missed it.
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Many thanks to you fine folks who gave me excellent advice on fishing here at Gulf Shores. Rain and wind has presented some challenges. I tried Alabama Point yesterday morning even though it was raining sideways at 0530. Got sand in my vagina and went back to the house to wash it out with rum punch. Took all day and I’m paying for that this morning.
Got here late Sunday afternoon. Netted a fist size blue crab and tossed it into some tailing Reds. It was either too big or most likely I green-horned it. Wind is too rough to cast this morning.
Monday we went South on a 10 hour charter. Waves beat us unmercifully. Rained hard and cool enough that we were warming up between drops in the air conditioned cabin. Not one bit of sniveling from anyone. I’m proud to be associated with these gator trash maggots for a brief period of time. Limited out on Red Snapper and large beeliners. Wife caught a 17 lb Red Snapper.
I’ll be going home with a cooler full of filets. I-65 sucks.
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Hard to beat red snapper for eating. Sorry about the conditions. Weather is always best right before the fishing trip. Personally I can’t wait for the summer heat to end so I can start chasing the fish around the marshes again.
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Weve had 2 weeks of rain. Very different this year than last 4.
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What’s your favorite preperation?
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I’m all about simple. Brush with olive oil, sprinkle s&p hit it on a hot grill, turn and eat. Redfish on the half shell is my real fav,
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I’ve been watching the live webcam at Venice Marina and they are killing the snapper and getting a good many tuna. They are either fairly big blackfin or smaller yellowfin.
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I think red snapper season ended here last week or so. But I’m not the voice of authority.
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The Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission announced the 2020 recreational red snapper season will begin on Friday, May 22 in both state and federal waters. The season will run weekends only (Friday, Saturday, and Sunday including the Monday of Memorial Day and the Monday of Labor Day, July 4th falls on a Saturday and will be part of the season as designated) with a daily bag limit of two fish per person and a 16-inch total length minimum size limit.
The season will remain open until recreational landings approach or reach Louisiana’s annual private recreational allocation of 784,332 pounds. This is 19.1 percent of the gulf-wide red snapper private angling quota and adjusted for last year’s overage.
Louisiana is operating under its first year of state delegated management, which allows the department to manage the private recreational red snapper season in state and federal waters.
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Yowza. I’m not in LA though. Lol
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That’s what I was thinkin. They have some pretty wide open reg in Louisiana. I think it five slot reds and one over slot!
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Here’s a screen cap from the Venice webcam just now.
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Kewl
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Tru’ dat….atlantic was 2 weeks ago and the gulf is 1st of august
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Ok. I’m in bay county. I saw in a PCB Facebook group people saying snapper season was over commenting on a picture of a recent catch. So I’m confused. Lol. 1 august all of the gulf?
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Then there is “recreational” and charter. A couple of years ago they had this headboat project where some boats could keep snapper all year round. THAT was a big hit among the captains!
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I was talking to a DNR officer on St Simons a couple of years ago and I was whining about the gulf regs, she said “hello, on the East Coast you’ll get 2 days and never know when they will be until the week before”. It’s our own damn fault though. I’ve seen pics of headboats at PCB in the 70’s almost sinking from the mountain of red snapper on the deck.
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Part of why I quit fishing. It’s all fished out everywhere, fresh or salt
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I did Thanksgiving with a friend who lives over on the Lagoon and there were a bunch of old timers there who essentially had stopped fishing for just that reason. I’ve seen it change a lot in 35 years but I still love to do it. I only started surf fishing for redfish about 13 years ago and I can spend days from dawn til dusk and just be happy when I get something.
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Oh I hit send too early. I would really like to catch some tuna! It’s our fish of choice for sushi or Pan seared.
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Were you on a headboat or a six pack?
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Just us 6. I posted a longer answer but my dumb ass can’t find it.
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Another thing I’m proud of which the first mate remarked upon was we had no backlashes. Even more remarkable considering the banging we took from rough seas, driving rain and four of six are detestable FU grads. The mate astutely omitted that three were ladies. Two of the ladies are real senior citizens. Nary a whimper. Of course, catching fish on most drops has a tendency to alleviate the whine factor.
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Years ago I went out on the Swoop out of Destin. It was blowing pretty hard and the captain stood on the boat and said “It’s going to be rough and you can have your money back right now. There was a group of Korean’s from the KIA plant and they didn’t know what the hell was said. We cleared the break wall and it started slammin pretty good. We go out and dropped and some folks tried to get in the head but the door was locked for a good while. Finally a mate got the key and opened it and one of the poor Koreans’ was wrapped around the commode. The first thing his buddies did was to whip out their cameras!
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BWAHAHAHAHAHA!!
I used to get sick. Puke my guts out but I’d keep fishing. Now with a patch behind my ear I don’t even get nauseous. Gives me a weird buzz and makes my mouth dry forcing me to consume a lot Of fluids. Gatorade and water mostly. A couple beers. Getting drunk on a boat is a bad idea.
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I’ve been sober for 27 years so the drinkin ship sailed! I used to go down to Lake Oconee, put in at Swords and chug up to the I-20 bridge and fish/drink all night. One time the bearing went on my trailer and, somehow, I was able to get my 14 ft alumacraft in the back of my truck and drag the trailer back to Athens with the wheel floppin.
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When I caught my big (130lb) yellowfin on Maui I was on the “Die Hard” Extreme Sport Fishing. The captain was a Marine and the only native captain on the island. There were 6 of us an 4 never fished, they threw up and stayed in the cabin for TWELVE hours! I got sick but I kept fishing and it payed off. The interesting thing about the islands is that the fish belongs to the boat! Two hundred for the trip and $600 for the replica staring down at me on the wall! It tool 2 guys to unload it! https://live.staticflickr.com/7127/7592368168_f2e409333a_b.jpg
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For me it’s Eat a Peach by the Allman Brothers Band…the song Mountain Jam was the single best purchase on the juke box at the local bowling alley…never ran out of music while we rolled
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Oh snap…concept albums…I withdraw my submission…just thought we were going favorite…my bad
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What constitutes a concept album?
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I think it’s one that you have to be on massive amounts of mind altering substances in order to listen to and appreciate the meaning of.
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Nailed it.
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I’ve always thought of a concept album as one where – as opposed to a collection of songs, which may or may not have anything to do with each other – the album is one continuous song, or narrative with multiple acts. There is usually a narrative thread that is consistent throughout. That may be an actual narrative, like a story, a la, The Wall, or a narrative that relates more to the evolution of the melodies and harmonies and the kinds of instruments used. Either way, the albums are intended to be heard from beginning to end.
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Exactly. And that’s why they were so popular with the counterculture of the late sixties and early seventies. Kind of a fuck you to corporate FM radio.
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I’d say that’s more a rock opera, which is also a concept album. But a concept album isn’t necessarily a rock opera. OK Computer doesn’t have continuous story, like Tommy, but all the songs line up with the themes.
And if it was a 70s prog band that put the album out, it was probably a concept album.
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Planet P Project – Pink World
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A Night At The Opera.
Also, a recent documentary tells of a chance meeting of the Beatles and Brian Wilson soon after Pet Sounds was recorded. John told Brian that God Only Knows was the best song he had ever heard to that point.
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I’ve always thought Queensryche’s Operation Mindcrime was particularly well done. I recall playing the cassette for that one (it came out around my freshman year at UGA) until the lettering wore off. Great vocals.
Dream Theater’s Scenes of a Memory (Metropolis Pt. 2) is another good one, although I remember at the time it was released I wasn’t too thrilled with it; it got better with age I suppose. DT toured this past year for the 25th anniversary of this album and I kick myself for not going to see them. Once Mike Portnoy left I haven’t really enjoyed their stuff as much.
I like Between the Buried and Me’s The Parallax II: Future Sequence a lot, although I could do with a little less of the cookie monster vocals.
Not sure it qualifies as a concept album or not, but Lamb of God’s Ashes of the Wake, which mostly describes the experiences & themes around the 2nd Gulf War, is a good one if you like that sort of thing.
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Ashes of the Wake is a good one. Along the same lines, you can just pick your favorite Mastodon record. I’d go with Leviathan or Crack the Skye. If you like proggy metal and you want to hear some local boys done good, check out the album The Beast of Left and Right by a band called Lazer/Wulf; they went to UGA and are based out of Atlanta.
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Yeah, I’m a sucker for prog metal. Thanks for the recs on the local music – will have to check those out.
Mastodon is great – Crack the Skye problem is the album I return to the most, but Leviathan – which oddly enough iirc is a concept album around Moby Dick – was what really turned me to them. Brann Dailor (sp?) is an amazing drummer and actually quite good on vocals, too.
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I really like Ashes of the Wake. My personal favorite, but understandably not a band or sound for everybody…each of Coheed and Cambria’s studio albums (with the exception of one) is a separate chapter from a series of comic books written by the lead singer. The band’s name are the two lead characters in the comic books.
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Queensryche has always been underrated to me. I think to some extent they were unfairly lumped in with the crappy hair-metal bands of the day.
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I think several of BtBaM’s albums would count, though like Coheed I haven’t bothered reading up what the hell they’re on about (I just dig how talented they are.)
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Ziggy Stardust, maybe?
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It’s Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, which is roundly considered by most as the first concept album in rock history.
As with most everything in rock history, The Beatles did it first and The Beatles did it best.
Senator, I’ve never heard of Pet Sounds referred to as a concept album before.
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Or not:
https://www.wers.org/the-evolution-of-the-concept-album/
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That’s interesting! I would not have considered Zappa, but it makes sense!
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Per Wikipedia,
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So it bears asking, what was ranked #1 by RS Senator? On the off chance that you know. Tommy?
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Always “Pepper”. (The RS list isn’t just concept albums). “Pet Sounds” made big news when it topped “Pepper” for MOJO’s list. British critics (and audiences) have nearly always placed Brian Wilson even higher than we do here, though they took a few years to get traction at all there.
The Beach Boys also topped the Beatles on NME’s major artist of the year poll for 1966.
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{should have said “MOJO’s list in the 90s”}.
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I would also completely agree that it’s a concept album, even without an obvious lyrical theme, though that’s there, if you look closely.
It was conceived as such (in response to “Rubber Soul”). It had subtle themes of introspection, loss, and identity crisis compared to his earlier work; a new lyricist (Tony Asher) brought in for that purpose, a new and consistent focus on using unusual instrumentation (electro-theremin, accordion, banjo, baritone harmonica, even a Sparkletts bottle) as well as a much bigger orchestration. The pun in the title: Brian’s “pet sounds”.
And it was conceived with a working title: “Remember the Zoo”. A theme of childhood and growing up. The bicycle horn on “You Still Believe in Me” dates back to when it was tracked as “In My Childhood”.
Concept album.
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Well said.
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Uh-oh, conflicting reports with Derek!
(see, this is why I love music… no one can agree and everyone is almost always right)
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Brian Wilson is one of the few topics I’ll (consciously) turn into a pompous know-it-all on…though it’s all opinion in the end.
“PS” was definitely received as a concept album in England, at the time, though- although they didn’t use the term. It was a big event there. Eric Clapton and “Cream” took out trade ads endorsing it. Lennon and McCartney made an appointment with Beach Boy Bruce Johnston for two private listenings.
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I’m with you on BW, which is why I listed SMiLE. Along with Lifehouse, it topped the list of great lost/incomplete albums for decades. It was such a tease to hear individual songs on later releases, but I did enjoy the various bootlegs and homemade versions over the years, with their speculative running orders and demos.
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When the Dawgs were lost/incomplete in the 90s (orange hell) SMiLE is where my head was. I was a total obsessive living in LA; maybe fifty bootlegs on CD and vinyl. I love what they did with it in ’04, and the ’12 box set, but a few original things known to have been recorded like “Friday Night/I Ran” vocals and “Surf’s Up Pt. II” (strings) might still be floating around the cosmos somewhere. I’d love to hear ’em.
The Who were an obsession at one point too, though I’ve never delved too deeply into “Lifehouse”. I think “Who’s Next” was probably the right outcome.
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Agreed on Who’s Next.
Seeing the SMiLE tour was dumbfounding. Stuff I never thought I’d hear live, especially with Brian singing… it was almost overwhelming. The middle cycle of Wonderful/Song for Children/CiFotM/Surf’s Up was especially breathtaking. His band was SO great at reproducing the right instrumental sounds and harmonies, with a perfect mix.
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I wanna say that show was on a Saturday night after a day game…I sat next to two cute Kentucky coeds who had come down, had just gotten into it…loved it. Yeah, that stretch in the middle is religious.
One of the string players that night was lost in the tsunami a few months later.
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I think you’re right about it being a Saturday night, and it was either in October or November, very late in the year for Chastain and not part of any series.
The weird coincidence with your experience is that my (then) wife and I also sat by a couple from Kentucky. They were in their early 20s, and I thought it was very cool that people so young would appreciate that album and travel so far to hear it performed live. What a great night! If I recall correctly, they played Marcella in the first set. I didn’t expect to hear that gem!
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That’s an incredibly wild coincidence… we sat towards the left side (audience’s left) of the stage, down front, just a few rows beyond the arc of the picnic area. These two girl UK students had heard a radio show or a podcast and gotten hooked on the story, and came down without hearing the album! They bought a copy at the stand, at Chastain. I looked at them between segments to see how they liked it, and they were almost in tears. Something I’ll never forget.
Brian’s set lists have been fantastic. My first show was the one at the Roxy that was recorded in 2000, and they did stuff like “Back Home” and the bootleg mix of ” ‘Til I Die”. I was just blown out.
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I just commented something similar
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Pet Sounds a primary influence on Sgt. Pepper as acknowledged by McCartney himself. So much for that theory re: the Beatles…
https://www.beatlesstory.com/blog/2017/07/10/interview-brian-wilson-and-pet-sounds/
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Also, Bedtime Stories.
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I don’t know about “best,” but viewed through a certain lens Bob Welch’s “French Kiss” is a helluva concept album about hooking up with exes. Either that, or it’s an extremely specific how-to guide.
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Interesting – never thought of that. I still prefer the Fleetwood Mac version of Sentimental Lady.
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Queens of the Stone Age – Songs for the Deaf
OutKast – Speakerboxxx/The Love Below
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Yes to both of these, but Songs for the Deaf is the right answer here.
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I remember listening to Roger Waters’ Radio KAOS my freshman year. A lot. Not sure it was my favorite, but the sound was pretty amazing. Great production. Need to revisit that on Spotify, and a few of the suggestions above…
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“A Prince Among Thieves”- Prince Paul
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“The Legend of Jesse James”
Written by Paul Kennerly
Including Levon Helm, Johnny Cash, Emmylou Harris, Charlie Daniels
The vinyl album release did not include “A Train Robbery” as did later CD releases.
Levon is perfect playing the role of Jesse James
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Whoa… That’s a blast from the past. I got that on vinyl was a gift when I was a kid. I still remember most of the lyrics.
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I will note that the Beatles album “Rubber Soul” was highly influential in Pet Sounds which became Brian Wilson’s magnum opus. I believe it was Paul McCartney who called “God Only Knows” the perfect love song.
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Brian cited “Rubber Soul” at the time and said “I couldn’t believe it! A whole album of all good stuff!” Albums were considered secondary until then, to the younger market. Singles repackaged around filler.
He was probably hearing the American/Capitol/ Dave Dexter-ized “Rubber Soul”, a very, very different animal with most of John’s songs deleted.
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Pet Sounds was written because Brian Wilson took Rubber Soul as a challenge to do better.
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Exactly, and “Pepper” was in response to “Pet Sounds”…including using animal noises and a baritone harmonica.
(I doubt that’s where Quincy Jones got the idea to use one for the “Sanford and Son” Theme though!)
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Well, maybe not quite a direct response. Revolver was released first. And Sgt Pepper’s had more to do with their time in India than anything else.
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They’ve all cited Pepper repeatedly as a direct response to PS, especially McCartney, who came up with it. “Revolver” was just about in the can, I think, when PS came out in late May ’66 (though I think “Here, There, and Everywhere” was written in response).
McCartney actually said once that he had second thoughts about releasing “Revolver” in the wake of “Pet Sounds”, incredible as that seems. PS was an event in England, not so much here.
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See, the way Lennon and McCartney wrote, and the way bands would release 2 to 3 albums a year back in the day, I would assume some songs were written before May when Pet Sounds came out, but Revolver came out three months later with many songs being written and recorded in late May, June, and July, like Good Day Sunshine, Yellow Submarine, and Hear There and Everywhere.
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“Pet Sounds” was something like May 24, so it’s a push to have influenced much of “Revolver”, other than “H,T&E” which has always been cited. The weird thing about “Revolver” is that they toured immediately after releasing it- and did nothing from it.
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Ergo, no Rubber Soul, no Pet Sounds.
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Oddly enough, “Rubber Soul” became a sort of back door concept album in America- Dave Dexter, the hated Capitol exec who chopped up and repackaged the Beatles’ albums for the US market, trimmed a bunch of songs like “Drive My Car”, and added a few from elsewhere like “I’ve Just Seen a Face” to give it a more acoustic feel- in response to Bob Dylan and folk rock. It’s the one US/Capitol records Beatles bastardization that’s sort of admired for what it is.
I misspoke above, I’m remembering now that it was the US “Revolver” that cut out most of Lennon’s songs.
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I’ll go with Sgt. Pepper since, to the best of my limited knowledge, it pretty much invented the concept of the concept album as we know it today. And the music still sounds fresh. I don’t think most listeners perceived Pet Sounds as advancing a single theme or thought process the way Sgt. Pepper did.
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So you made me Google… most folks site sergeant pepper, but Internets gave Frank Sinatra 1946 credit…a continuous mood and harmony. I found that interesting.
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Pet Sounds is the most important.
Sgt. Pepper is overrated.
Ok Computer is the best concept album of all time.
Frank Sinatra’s In the Wee Small Hours is a fascinating early concept album focusing on the grief and pain resulting from lost love.
The Party by Andy Shauf is an interesting concept album that y’all should check out if you haven’t heard it.
I really like Destroyer’s Streethawk: A Seduction.
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Yeah, “Wee Small Hours” is a big candidate for the first…and there were a lot of “late night” albums in that mode like Sam Cooke’s “Nightbeat”. Heck, “Kind of Blue” is a concept album.
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June Christy’s “Something Cool” is another early one.
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Always love it when people declare something definitively about art.
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Can’t disagree with yalls mainstream picks. Love ziggy and yoshimi, and the obvious Zappa, Beatles, and Floyd picks. But I’m a phish head so I’ll throw out…
“The man who stepped into yesterday” and “rift” as my favorites.
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Well, as a prog rock fan from way back, I always took a pretty strict definition of “concept album” and took it to mean lyrically as well as musically. And I can’t say the best – has to be “Tommy”, but it could easily be “Quadrophenia”. Or “The Wall”. And “Red Headed Stranger” is a classic as well.
But I always hunted out strange concept albums and a couple of my favorites were “Spartacus” by Triumvirat (a German ELP clone) and “Marscape”, a jazz rock fusion instrumental by Jack Lancaster and Robin Lumley. I literally bought that one because of the cool album cover (it was a cutout like many of my favorite records).
Never really considered “Pet Sounds” a concept album, though it’s great. I guess I can see it being considered one, but as mentioned earlier, I took a more strict definition.
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While “Sgt. Pepper” sits atop my list, Jethro Tull’s “Thick As a Brick” occupies a prominent place in my rankings.
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I will admit to listening to Thick As A Brick from beginning to end hundreds of times. It’s one of those albums that seems to demand it. Sgt. Pepper, I can listen to individual songs, enjoy them and stop. Not Thick As A Brick it’s all or nothing. Quadrophenia was like that for me as well. Start to finish or not at all. Although on rare occasions I can listen to 5:15 or the Real Me without sitting down to listen to all four sides.
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The album contains a continuous piece of music, split over two sides of an LP record, and is a parody of the concept album genre.
At least that’s what Wiki thinks…
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Oooh, another good one. TAAB is great. Saw Ian Anderson with his band (not Tull) perform it along with his Part 2 a couple of years ago.
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Since folks were kind enough to send me well wishes a week ago with laid up knee pain, I did a week of steroids that knocked it down some and have pursued further care. Ideally , a shot would be best…one funny thing, The VA is mostly notseeing anyone in person, But talking with my doctor got labs ordered and discussed this a that and the next day the VA scheduler called me and said …..would I be available on January 15th! Lol. Sure!
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One more: “Skylarking” by XTC. It didn’t start that way, but Todd Rundgren’s suggestion/insistence on the track order, the day-into-night theme, and the seamless transitions puts it in the ‘concept’ category in my opinion.
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XTC is one of those bands I always thought deserved far more attention than they received.
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They lost me with this. Atheism is another evidence-free belief system IMHO. The other side of the “the Bible is the literal truth” insanity coin. The atheists might add a bit more arrogance in tho. Which is remarkable given who they are competing with.
What’s wrong with admitting that we just don’t know… anything really? Why we’re here? The existence or nature of God? We just don’t know. We never will.
Anyway this track annoyed me because the main bitch was that people suck but it didn’t say so. I suppose that’s because once you deny God, that’s who you’re stuck with. Each other.
To that I say God help us all. If you’re out there.
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There isn’t actually a contradiction between the two. At all.
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This might be my favorite post of yours ever, Derek.
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I never minded the song’s old-hat questions, but I hate kid singers.
Hate ’em.
“Grass” is my favorite XTC song.
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Well, I think beyond the atheism of the lyrics of Dear God, there’s something to be said about directing his message to God rather than humans. It lets in the idea that there is still some belief or faith buried in there, much to his annoyance. Otherwise, why address someone you don’t believe in? It reminds me of a teenager going out of their way to tell a parent they hate them, when clearly they don’t and are crying out for help, understanding, and connection.
Still, I have the original vinyl of Skylarking that does not include Dear God, and it’s the one I listen to most. DG is not in my top 50 or 100 XTC songs. It’s a little annoying, and I also don’t like the child singing, and the lyrics aren’t really very deep. I understand why they wanted to leave it off the album (and were later overruled)
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Definitely one of the best albums of the 80s.
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White Album
If you’re looking for the best concept album, look no further. Its got everything. Jump in and join the dance party where you’ll see a complete lack of color, strobe lights, screaming babies in Mozart wigs, sunburned drifters with soapsuds beards and a song about travel
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LOL. Okay, Stefon. 😂
But does it have a human suitcase?
It’s that thing where a midget is wearing roller skates and you pull him through the airport.
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Thanks Stephon!
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Hands down, Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds “Murder Ballads”.
Nine songs (including a polka!) describing various fictional murders in comically gory detail, and the 10th song a cover of Dylan’s “Death is not the End”.
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Oops, meant to link to the full playlist. Let’s try that again:
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Bat Out Of Hell
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Another Rundgren production!
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Find “Questlove Supreme” it’s a great music podcast. They had Rundgen on last week and it’s an excellent interview about his career both as a musician and producer.
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How could I have forgotten?
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Floyd… Dark Side of the Moon
Concept album G.O.A.T
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I’ve already thrown one out there, but could we shoe-horn Fables of the Reconstruction into the concept album genre?
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Love Fables. I always go back and forth between that & Life’s Rich Pageant for my favorite REM album.
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Mike Mills’ bass work on those 2 albums, in particular, is amazing. Old Man Kinsey and Cuyahoga make me play “air bass” instead of “air guitar”
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Yes!!
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White Mansions
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Rebar has your winner – White Mansions. Just a fantastic album. Songs cycle of The Civil War.
Features Waylon, Clapton, etc.
It is sometimes packaged with a Jesse James concept album featuring the late Charlie Daniels, among others.
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Every time the subject comes up you see the usual suspects. But after a little more thought honestly, Ride the Lightning is pretty amazing. Continual themes, and the songs are in a specific order to ride the sound. They put in a tremendous amount of work for that I’ll month. Brought in other producers…sound/tech folks. It’s just metal, and at that time, heavy metal, so it’s always overlooked. It’s a complete album
And I mentioned it above but I’m dead serious, bedtime stories by Madonna. It’s literally called bedtime stories because it’s a story. Her most underrated album because it’s not pop dance music..
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I have a strongly held position that if Metallica stopped making albums after …And Justice For All (which still had contributions from Cliff Burton), they’d be the greatest American rock band ever.
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I’ll throw in “Illinois” by Sufjan Stevens. Worthy as a more recent entry – Sufjan apparently never had any goal of doing all 50 states, but definitely a concept.
“The Man of Metropolis steals our hearts” and so many of the tracks carry the influences of the concept albums mentioned above.
Bonus points for
1) “John Wayne Gacy, Jr.”
2) Perhaps the most descriptive title ever for a song with no lyrics: “The Black Hawk War, or, How to Demolish an Entire Civilization and Still Feel Good About Yourself in the Morning, or, We Apologize for the Inconvenience but You’re Going to Have to Leave Now, or, ‘I Have Fought the Big Knives and Will Continue to Fight Them Until They Are Off Our Lands!”
3) Mixed meter fun with timely lyrics: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rmJwraC4p5A&list=PL1x1z5LTzxlWEKXwh12gQdzlJ2HRUxun9&index=3
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Good call.
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The Coolies – “dig..?” and their even better follow up classic “Doug”
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Ah! I forgot about the Coolies!
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I used to live 4 or 5 doors down from Clay Harper. Really cool guy.
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Tremonti – A Dying Machine (2018)
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A Sailors Guide to Earth by Sturgill Simpson
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Strong.
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Now sure I would call each of Sturgil’s albums a concept, but his mastery is evolution.. country>acid country>jazz country>rock. Each album so different from the prior, he is really unique and special talent.
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Beastie Boys – To the 5 Boroughs is one that was under my radar when released but have come to love it once I “discovered” it.
The Beastie Boys documentary on Apple+ is one of the best things I’ve watched during quarantine. Their story is mind blowing
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Harvest (admittedly I’m not sure it qualifies as a concept album).
Also Goose Creeks “Symphony” is about as unique as it gets. Mixes bluegrass, blues, rock and yes, animal sounds. Sometimes the long instrumental part feels like it’s falling apart.
I still have the Pet Sounds LP somewhere in this house. Brian Wilson was a tortured genius.
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Sort of related: anyone else take History of Rock and Roll at UGA? And if you didn’t have a good ear, did you drop it like 40% of the class I took it with?
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You dropped History of Rock’n’Roll with Dr. Valdez??? That was my favorite class, and I was a History major!
I don’t think you really needed an “ear” to take the class, more just the ability to digest the voluminous amount of information he threw at you. I guess it helps if you’re a History major, because you’re already used to being in a class like that. Tons of notes. Late nights studying. Essay question tests. I had a blast!
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This made me laugh. I had a few buddies that took the class with me and just got high before every class the first 2 weeks, thinking we would listen to music while I was taking notes. They dropped the class. I recently found my textbook too.
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Outkast Aquemini. Bunch of Boomers!
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For the indie rockers out there…The Crane Wife by The Decemberists is pretty close to a concept album. Great stuff for literary nerds.
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Rick Wakeman has to be the undisputed king of concept albums. Change my mind.
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His story about putting together King Arthur on ice is hilarious. Of course, pretty much all his stories are hilarious.
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His RRHOF acceptance speech is the gold standard
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I’ve got a soft spot for Wings, so I’ll say “Band on the Run.” Agree that “Village Green Preservation Society” is a great concept album–as are all the best Kinks albums: “Muswell Hillbillies,” “Arthur (Or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire),” “The Kink Kontroversy,” and “Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround, Part One”. Apparently some critics call “Face to Face” rock’s first concept album (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Face_to_Face_(The_Kinks_album)).
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For What it’s Worth:
1) Pet Sounds
2) The Dark Side of the Moon
3) Thick as a Brick
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“Recently”: Arcade Fire – Funeral. Honorable mention to Brian Jonestown Massacre – Their Satanic Majesties’ Second Request
GOAT: Floyd – DSOTM
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Uh… It’s obviously Back in Black. And it’s not even close.
And don’t tell me it’s not a concept album.
Also, Sgt. Pepper and Pet Sounds are barf-worthy.
End transmission.
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Vivaldi: Four Seasons
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Ooooh, going old school…I like it!
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It should be said that neither the beatles nor the beach boys of do anything but “love me do” and surf songs but for Bob Dylan.
It was Dylan who encouraged the Beatles to stop singing sappy love songs. The beatles challenged Brian Wilson with their creativity and the rest is history.
It all starts and ends with Bob.
And he’s still going….
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You heard the new album? 17 minute Kennedy assassination song.
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UVA cancelled.
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This was a great thread, Senator. Just what the doctor ordered. Thank you.
There’s plenty of time for us to screw it up. But until then, let’s all bask in the warming glow of the glowing warmth of togetherness.
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Guys! Guys! GUYS!!!
If the SEC goes to a 10-game conference season (with hopefully a plus-1 for our ACC crossovers) do you know who we add and who Floriduh adds?
We add Arkansas and Mississippi State.
Floriduh adds ALABAMA and TEXAS A&M!!!
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!
Looking like a 7-4 season at best for Sideshow Dan the Clown. I tell y’all… it couldn’t have happened to a bigger douchebag!
#FTMF
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May their beatings resemble my imaginary johnson: Glorious.
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The Floriduh-TAMU game would also give us a definitive answer as to which mediocre SEC QB the CFB media has spent all year telling everyone is good is actually the better of the two, relatively speaking.
My money is on Mond over Trask.
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No question #2 is Zaireeka by The Flaming Lips (maybe even #1 for me). I was fortunate enough to be on a ship with the band where we played it as it was to be heard. All 4 discs are fine in their own right, but played simultaneously creates a truly magical musical experience. The record company was not happy they did it, and it worked anyhow.
Check it:
“Zaireeka is the eighth studio album by American rock band The Flaming Lips, released on October 28, 1997 by Warner Bros. Records. The album consists of four Compact Discs designed so that when played simultaneously on four separate audio systems, they would produce a harmonic or juxtaposed sound; the discs could also be played in different combinations, omitting one, two or three discs. Each of its eight songs consists of four stereo tracks, one from each CD. The album’s title is a portmanteau of two words: Zaire, chosen as a symbol of anarchy after Wayne Coyne heard a radio news story about the political instability of the African nation, and Eureka (literally: “I have found it”), an expression of joyous discovery.”
The precursor:
During 1996 and 1997, The Flaming Lips ran a series of events known as “The Parking Lot Experiments”. The concept was inspired by an incident in Coyne’s youth, where he noticed that car radios in the parking lot at a concert were playing the same songs at the same time,[6] Wayne Coyne created 40 cassette tapes to be played in synchronization. The band invited people to bring their cars to parking lots, where they would be given one of the tapes and then instructed when to start them. The music was “a strange, fluid 20 minute sound composition
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Tommy – The Who
What’s Going On – Marvin Gaye
The Wall – Pink Floyd
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