Which 3 albums define a decade?

[irocfan]

I'm curious as per the title - which 3 albums define a decade? Would the 70's include the seismic shift that the Sex Pistols brought? Would Made in Japan usher in the era of live albums being desirable - or is that really only a factoid for music beardy types?

Would Elvis' first album be a defining album as the start of 'teen culture'?

[boxedin]

irocfan said:

I'm curious as per the title - which 3 albums define a decade? Would the 70's include the seismic shift that the Sex Pistols brought? Would Made in Japan usher in the era of live albums being desirable - or is that really only a factoid for music beardy types?

Would Elvis' first album be a defining album as the start of 'teen culture'?

Bill Haley and the Comets' Live album for the 1950s.

[singlecoil]

Sixties

Beatles - Revolver
Hendrix - Are You Experienced
John Barry - You Only Live Twice soundtrack.

[P5BNij]

Seventies :

Bowie - Ziggy Stardust & The Spiders From Mars

Pink Floyd - Dark Side Of The Moon

Sex Pistols - Nevermind The bks

[anonymous-user]

P5BNij said:

Seventies :

Bowie - Ziggy Stardust & The Spiders From Mars

Pink Floyd - Dark Side Of The Moon

Sex Pistols - Nevermind The bks

Steely Dan - Aja

Fixed that for you

[jontykint]

90s in a nutshell

Primal Scream - Screamadelica
Pulp - Different Class
Blur - Blur

[Cantaloupe]

Why would Revolver define the 1960s better than the Best Of Lulu ?

Pointless and excrutiating example of PH threads that just encourage people who love listing things to, list things

Stop it now, and clean your room.

[singlecoil]

Cantaloupe said:

Why would Revolver define the 1960s better than the Best Of Lulu ?

Because Revolver was the single best example of innovation in music, something which defined the 60s, something that Lulu, even at her best, did not do.

HTH

Edited by singlecoil on Monday 28th October 17:41

[irocfan]

swiveleyedgit said:

P5BNij said:

Seventies :

Bowie - Ziggy Stardust & The Spiders From Mars

Pink Floyd - Dark Side Of The Moon

Sex Pistols - Nevermind The bks

Steely Dan - Aja

Fixed that for you

can't agree with that TBH - whilst the Pistols may not be your style of music (or arguably even good music) I would argue that they probably had one of the defining albums of the decade and social relevance.

[cherryowen]

I'll have a go at the 80's........



For initiating the use of synthesised sounds into the mainstream Top 40



For re-igniting rock music after the punk era



For starting an era of mainstream hard rock

[anonymous-user]

irocfan said:

swiveleyedgit said:

P5BNij said:

Seventies :

Bowie - Ziggy Stardust & The Spiders From Mars

Pink Floyd - Dark Side Of The Moon

Sex Pistols - Nevermind The bks

Steely Dan - Aja

Fixed that for you

can't agree with that TBH - whilst the Pistols may not be your style of music (or arguably even good music) I would argue that they probably had one of the defining albums of the decade and social relevance.

I prefer the social relevance of Deacon Blues myself, but each to their own

[Fittster]

jontykint said:

90s in a nutshell

Primal Scream - Screamadelica
Pulp - Different Class
Blur - Blur

There was rather more to the 90s than Brit pop. The idea you can summaries a decade in 3 albums is a bit silly.

[anonymous-user]

cherryowen said:

I'll have a go at the 80's........



For initiating the use of synthesised sounds into the mainstream Top 40

Sorry that 'wig wearing wker' brought nothing to the music table imho.

[anonymous-user]

swiveleyedgit said:

irocfan said:

swiveleyedgit said:

P5BNij said:

Seventies :

Bowie - Ziggy Stardust & The Spiders From Mars

Pink Floyd - Dark Side Of The Moon

Sex Pistols - Nevermind The bks

Steely Dan - Aja

Fixed that for you

can't agree with that TBH - whilst the Pistols may not be your style of music (or arguably even good music) I would argue that they probably had one of the defining albums of the decade and social relevance.

I prefer the social relevance of Deacon Blues myself, but each to their own

Aja to music fans, NMTB might define the late 70s but musically it was inept.

[RobM77]

Fittster said:

jontykint said:

90s in a nutshell

Primal Scream - Screamadelica
Pulp - Different Class
Blur - Blur

There was rather more to the 90s than Brit pop. The idea you can summaries a decade in 3 albums is a bit silly.

Primal Scream's biggest selling album, Screamadelica, sold 707,000 copies. Different Class sold 1.3 million copies, and Blur sold 3 million.

Let's compare that with Nirvana's Nevermind... 30 million copies. Even in the UK alone, Nevermind sold 1.8 million. Metallica's self titled 'Black' album sold 16.4 million copies and Pearl Jam's Ten sold 10 million copies.... So Grunge and rock had a rather good decade.

The 90s also saw dance music gain huge momentum, and by the end of the decade big DJs like Paul Oakenfold, Paul van Dyk, Norman Cook etc were flying all over the world in private jets earning millions playing in superclubs, whereas at the start of the decade the dance music scene was a lot more underground. Our graduate at work isn't really into dance music, he loves rock, but when he found out I was clubbing the 90s he wanted to hear all about it because what happened in the 90s is apparently absolutely legendary.

Sales and footfall at gigs and clubs aren't everything of course, but personally I would say that grunge and dance music defined the 90s in every way - not just album sales, but influence as well. Britpop was a UK-based flash in the pan in comparison.

[Ultuous]

I think Screamadelica's an absolutely perfect choice as it was a defining record of the early 90s and how the influence dance music and all that went with it had on a (our) generation... wouldn't pick the other two personally (and agree that something like Nevermind should be in there) but they both have some relevance in terms of being the time 'indie' went truly commercial (and I mean that with some affection, as I like both records a lot!)

[PurpleTurtle]

For me, obsessed with Britpop, the 90's is defined by:

The Stone Roses - The Stone Roses
Oasis - Definitely Maybe
Pulp - Different Class.

Now, PH trainspotters will be along shortly to tell me that the Stone Roses debut was released in May 1989.

I know. I just didn't get into them at the outset (my girlfriend at the time raved about them, I thought they were a bunch of Manc chancers).

It was only when that record was everywhere in 1990 that I got on board with it. I played it to death throughout the 90's (still do) so it's representative of the decade for me.

[wal 45]

Raygun said:

Sorry that 'wig wearing wker' brought nothing to the music table imho.

I'd suggest that Trent Reznor and lots of the bands of the industrial genre would argue otherwise....

[anonymous-user]

Raygun said:

swiveleyedgit said:

irocfan said:

swiveleyedgit said:

P5BNij said:

Seventies :

Bowie - Ziggy Stardust & The Spiders From Mars

Pink Floyd - Dark Side Of The Moon

Sex Pistols - Nevermind The bks

Steely Dan - Aja

Fixed that for you

can't agree with that TBH - whilst the Pistols may not be your style of music (or arguably even good music) I would argue that they probably had one of the defining albums of the decade and social relevance.

I prefer the social relevance of Deacon Blues myself, but each to their own

Aja to music fans, NMTB might define the late 70s but musically it was inept.

Sorry Raygun, I was singling out that track as my prefered take on what defined the decade for me, as a response to Irocfan's take on what did it for him. Fagen's sax playing miserable git in Deacon Blues resonates far more with me than the spittle flecked nihilism of Malcolm Mclaren's boy band

[RobM77]

I'm a bit confused how any 70s list can get away without including Led Zeppelin or The Who Surely they were the two biggest bands in the world at the time? I'm not a particular fan of either, but they were both huge, sold millions of albums, and influenced lots of bands from that point onwards.

Or are we just listing albums we like in each decade? (which is surely a different question).