Greatest 200 Albums of All Time: Artists Beginning with B (part II)

This is the second of three posts with "B" artists.

Slippery When Wet: Bon Jovi (1986)


Slippery When Wet transformed Bon Jovi from just another pop hair band into international superstars. The record differentiated Bon Jovi from its contemporaries with its level of musicianship and crossover ability. It sold over 12 million copies and is an album that helps explain the mid-to-late 80s to listeners. It transitions from arena rock to pop metal and even foresees the unplugged phenomenon of the early 90s. As most of their contemporaries disappeared in the early 90s, Bon Jovi proved adaptable and has continued to score hit records nearly 25 years later.

Key Tracks:

You Give Love A Bad Name
Livin’ On A Prayer
Wanted Dead or Alive
Never Say Goodbye

Boston: Boston (1976)

Boston’s debut album sold 17 million copies. Only Guns n Roses sold more debut records. The band went from unknown to stars literally overnight. They became a curiosity for their meteoric rise and began opening for Black Sabbath and Blue Oyster Cult. The album became a soundtrack for 1976 and various tracks still receive extensive radio play to this day. The record became one of several released during the period which convinced corporations to get involved in the music business. The end result being so-called “Corporate Rock.”

Key Tracks:

More Than A Feeling
Peace of Mind
Foreplay/Long Time

Space Oddity: David Bowie (1969)

Bowie mixes folk and prog rock together to create Space Oddity. More than one critic has commented that the album represents where Bowie had been and where he was going. The album was inspired in part by the burgeoning space program and 2001: A Space Odyssey. At the same time, the album incorporates Bob Dylan, the Beatles, and Eastern religions and philosophy. The album may confuse less sophisticated listeners, but is well worth a twirl.

Key Tracks:

Space Oddity
Wild Eyed Boy From Freecloud
Cygnet Committee

Hunky Dory: David Bowie (1971)

Once again, Bowie mixes and combines musical styles to create a masterpiece. Bowie defines himself as well as the youth of his time and the music industry with “Changes.” In addition to this introspection, he borrows from Dylan, Nietzsche, and the Velvet Underground. Once again, he gives some insight into what would come with his future work.

Key Tracks:

Changes
Life on Mars?
Quicksand
Oh! You Pretty Things

Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars: David Bowie (1972)

David Bowie decided to create his own imaginary rock star. The character Ziggy Stardust is an alien that comes to Earth to present the planet with a message of peace and love. Ziggy falls to all the temptations including sex and drugs and is destroyed by rock excess. This album is the most creative and innovative of the period between the end of the sixties and the rise of disco.

Key Tracks:

Ziggy Stardust
Suffragette City
Starman
Rock n Roll Suicide

Heroes: David Bowie (1977)

The second, and best, of Bowie’s Berlin Trilogy (Low and Lodger) is the only one actually recorded there in its entirety. Bowie’s trilogy is influenced by Cold War Berlin and "Heroes" reflects the grit of the period. In fact, the studio sat 1500 feet from the Berlin Wall and Communist troops watched Bowie through binoculars. The album contains some dark and brooding pieces, but is downright cheerful compared to Low.

Key Tracks:

Heroes
Beauty and the Beast
Joe the Lion

Let’s Dance: David Bowie (1983)

David Bowie spent a decade as an artistic chameleon. By the early 80s, he decided to move into a pop direction and created an album to appeal to the masses. The end result was a monster album filled with catchy radio tunes. Let’s Dance also featured an up and coming guitar hero in Stevie Ray Vaughan.

Key Tracks:

Modern Love
China Girl
Let’s Dance
Cat People

Live at the Apollo: James Brown (1963)

James Brown recorded Live at the Apollo on October 24, 1962. Brown’s record label initially opposed releasing a live album. They felt an album lacking new material would not make money. However, Brown convinced them and the album was a smash. Stores could not keep the record on the shelves. The album represents a transition of old school R&B into soul.

Key Tracks:

I’ll Go Crazy
I Don’t Mind
Lost Someone

Buffalo Springfield Again: Buffalo Springfield (1967)

Personal problems surrounding Neil Young and Bruce Palmer created problems during the recording of Buffalo Springfield Again. However, those problems may have helped the songwriting along. As a result, the band’s sophomore effort surpasses its debut effort.

Key Tracks:

Mr. Soul
Broken Arrow
Expecting to Fly
Rock n Roll Woman

Mr. Tambourine Man: The Byrds (1965)

The album Mr. Tambourine Man, along with the title track, provided an American alternative to the British Invasion. The Byrds combined the Beatles sound with American folk to create a new genre. The album contained both originals and reworked folk songs. Hence, the band helped pioneer the folk rock genre. The Byrd’s influence is heard in Simon and Garfunkel, The Mamas and the Papas, Jefferson Airplane, Tom Petty, Big Star, R.E.M., The Gin Blossoms, The Smiths, and many other artists.

Key Tracks:

Mr. Tambourine Man
All I Really Want To Do
The Bells of St. Rhymney

#35 Neil Young

Neil Young is the ultimate singer-songwriter. He’s got the most unique voice to go along with his distinctive guitar style and deeply personal lyrics. Young broke in the 1960s and has remained the folk hippy curmudgeon. His music ranges from acoustic to electric; from swing to rockabilly; and from jazz to grunge.

Young was a member of the super group Buffalo Springfield. “For What It’s Worth” is one of the defining songs of the 60s. The band quickly fell apart as a result of tensions between members and with their management. Young moved onto a solo career and immediately recorded “Cinnamon Girl” and “Down by the River.” Then, he joined Crosby, Stills, and Nash. The highpoint of CSNY was “Ohio” about the Kent State Massacre in 1970.

Outside CSNY, Young recorded classics such as “Southern Man” and “The Needle and the Damage Done.” Young’s biggest hit (and only #1) was “Heart of Gold.” He quickly moved to the “Ditch Trilogy” before returning to spotlight in the mid-70s. His last great 70s song, “Hey Hey My My” would have been a grunge classic had it come out in 1992.

In the 80s, Young experimented with his music. After some time off the beaten path, 1988 brought Young back. He lampooned Eric Clapton and Michael Jackson for selling out in “This Note’s For You.” The next year, “Keep on Rockin’ in the Free World” provided a transition between 1980s and 1990s music. The song had the big 80s sound with early 1990s social consciousness. The feedback used on his Freedom album hearkened back to the 1970s and served as a precursor to the 1990s.

Neil Young was dubbed “The Godfather of Grunge” in the early 90s as Pearl Jam and Nirvana borrowed from his work. In fact, Kurt Cobain’s suicide note quoted Neil Young. At the same time, Young went folk with his Harvest Moon album. He continued to tour and record into the 2000s. In 2006, he stirred controversy with an anti-Bush album, Living With War.

Young has always been an activist. He protested Vietnam, co-founded Farm Aid, campaigns for the environment, and also directs films. He continues to tour and record.

Rock n Roll Moment: Neil Young performed anti-war songs during the Iraq War which resulted in his audience walking out on him. This did not dissuade him from continuing at the next show.

Essential Neil Young:

Everyone Knows This Is Nowhere (1969)
After the Gold Rush (1970)
Harvest (1972)
On The Beach (1974)
Tonight’s The Night (1975)
Rust Never Sleeps (1979)
Freedom (1989)
Prairie Wind (2005)

Neil Young’s Top 10:

Cinnamon Girl
Heart of Gold
Hey Hey My My
Old Man
Rockin’ In The Free World
Down By The River
Like a Hurricane
The Needle and the Damage Done
Four Strong Winds
Southern Man