Originally Posted by
Eddy Munny
I think you're kinda missing the point here. You just listed a bunch of bands and their respective albums for 1971 as if it's a sheer numbers game. I could have done the same thing with the '90's but I didn't want to write an encyclopedic thesis on the period..... The collection of albums I cited was done with minimal effort, just stuff I thought sort of represented the cream of the crop. But in no way is it comprehensive. To the contrary, I believe this list is like an introduction to the '90's......tip of the iceberg.
Jimmy Proffet pretty much hit the nail on the head when he pointed out that these albums you listed are by seminal artists, but not necessarily peak work. The spirit of The Doors, for example, was never better captured than the first two albums. By LA Woman, Morrison was fat, bearded, and erratic in the studio. The muse had departed. It was a perfunctory record, not the stuff of cosmic inspiration like "Crystal Ship" or "Moonlight Drive." I love the Doors, but for me, the band's mystique sagged after Waiting for the Sun (3rd album).
Pink Floyd needs no introduction, but c'mon, Meddle? Nobody remembers that band for that album. Diehards will soak up anything, but that's not quintessential Floyd. Jimi Hendrix set the world alight, but not with The Cry of Love....... Are You Experienced? or Axis is another story. On my list, I didn't cite albums like Nirvana's Incesticide ........I went with the bona fide classics, Nevermind and In Utero. That's the distinction.
I'll give you Led Zeppelin IV. That album is rock par excellence. Sticky Fingers is a good album also. But I would argue much of the list is garden-variety rock, not the kind of albums that cement legacies. When I referred to 1991 as a banner year, I provided examples of albums that were game changers:
Nevermind.............Every song is memorable. Heavy/soft dynamics with killer hooks. Vocals were insane, drumming brutal.
Ten..................... Vedder offered baritone vocals with astonishing range. Part of the Seattle scene, but the twin guitar attack evoked a touch of classic rock era. Songs all over the FM dial.
BloodSugarSexMagik...... The album that made RHCP stars. Funk drenched energy in spades, but songwriting took a major step forward from previous efforts.
Black Album.........Metallica was already big when this album came out, but mostly with metalheads. This vaulted them into the stratosphere and put them on the path to legendary status.
Use Your Illusion........ Technically, there were two separate albums, but I considerit to be a double-disc release. At the time, Guns were probablythe biggest band on the planet and UYI's didn't disappoint.
So yeah, I'd give albums like these the nod over stuff like T-Rex and Cat Stevens. I didn't even mention other bands with quality albums from the '90's such as:
U2
Tool
The Black Crowes
Jeff Buckley
Liz Phair
Blur
Sonic Youth
Jane's Addiction
Veruca Salt
Pantera
Candlebox
The Verve
Sponge
The Flaming Lips
Faith No More
Pavement
Queensryche
The Offspring
Megadeth
Sublime
Collective Soul
Dream Theater
Echobelly
The Cranberries
Etc............
If I had to pick a second 5 year block, it would probably be somewhere in late sixties as you have late era Beatles coinciding with early Doors and Zep albums. That was a very exciting period for music, but overall the early nineties get my vote for have both quantity and quality.
If someone told me I could only listen to only a five year period of music for the rest of my life, it would be 1991-1995 (although, admittedly, it would suck to be limited to any specific 5 years). Don't forget, it was also a landmark period for hip hop with albums like The Chronic, Doggystyle, Me Against the World, Illmatic, Ready to Die, Enter the **-Tang, and so forth.
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1991-1995 Has to Be the Best 5 Year Block in the History of Rock Music....Hands Down!
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