I know, Time magazine’s list of the "All-TIME" 100 Albums has been out since Monday, but I’ve been dreading writing about it. The whole point of these lists, of course, is to generate arguments (and pageviews), but this list is just too depressing. It’s not even a bad list; most of what should be there is there, but the omissions are so forehead-smacking stupid and obvious that I won’t even mention them. (Instead, PopWatchers, I’ll let you look at the list and discuss amongst yourselves).
Fortunately, there’s an antidote, in Blender’s list of The Most Disastrous Albums of All Time (which I found via Stereogum), a set recounting the career-killing discs that felled such former megastars as Peter Frampton, MC Hammer, and Chris Gaines Garth Brooks. The list is far from comprehensive, and I’m not sure it’s even accurate (to call Fleetwood Mac’s Tusk a disaster because it didn’t sell quite as well as the group’s landmark Rumours is like saying Michael Jackson’s Bad was a catastrophe because it didn’t sell as well as Thriller). Still, it’s a refreshing reminder that sometimes its as much fun to snicker at mediocrity and poor judgment as it is to argue over merit.
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There is no excuse for leaving ‘The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill’ off the list.
Did Blender include K-Fed’s?
Ed, why would they include K-Fed when he never had a career to actually kill?
Dan is right but there are some that are missing on the list:
2000’s
Hot Fuss- Killers
The Cosmic Game- Thievery Corporation
90’s- Morning View- Incubus
Odelay- Beck
Metalica (Black Album)-Metalica
Version 2.0- Garbage
80’s-
Appetite for Distruction- GNR
Learning to Crawl- The Pretenders
Tim- The Replacements
Double Fantasy- John Lennon
70’s
All Things Must Pass- George Harrison
Wings Over Amercia- Paul McCartney and Wings
Band On the Run- P.M. and Wings
Live in Budokan- Cheap Trick
Frampton Comes Alive- Peter Frampton
The Joker- Steve Miller and the Steve Miller Band
Aja- Steely Dan
No Smiths? tsk tsk
And David Bowie’s “Hunky Dory” makes the cut, but not “Low,” “Lodger,” or “Scary Monsters?”
Idol is right, Low should have been there, and Duran Duran’s Rio too.
Why does “Free To Be You & Me” never make any of these lists….?
2000’s
Coldplay “Parachutes”
90’s
Alanis Morissette “Jagged Little Pill”
80’s
Aerosmith “Pump”
Bon Jovi “Slippery When Wet”
And I’m not even a major rock-n-roll fan, but all these albums made a significant impact on me growing up.
I’m so glad they recognized the greatness that is Master of Puppets.
Metalica, The Black Album
Alanis Morissette,Jagged Little Pill
System of a Down, Mezmerize
All of the U2 albums, okay maybe not Pop!
Where is The Fugees “The Score”? Are you kidding me. Every radio station in the country was playing Killing Me Softly!
Not to sound all Kanye, but lists like this that don’t include Queen just completely lose any credibility at all for me.
Im actually a little dissapointed that Hysteria isnt on there….I mean COME ON!
5 picks (20% if my math’s correct) are Beatles albums??? Come on…….
Not even going to touch the 100 best, don’t have TIME for it. On the other hand, the disastrous album list missed a few of my personal favorite disasters:
Billy Idol’s “Cyberpunk”- Expected to revive Billy’s career, this cd came with a computer viewable video, which was pretty high tech and far fetched in 1991. Despite the rising popularity of “Cyberpunk” themed movies, tv shows and even bands (KMFDM, Ministry, Nine Inch Nails, Skinny Puppy), Billy Idol couldn’t seem to sell a single copy.
Digable Planets “Blowout Comb”- Their first album spawned the hit “rebirth of the cool” and garnered this Philly quartet (three singers and DJ King Britt) some grammys and millions of fans. Their second album, an anti-pop afrocentric album that delved into the band’s consciousness, failed miserably on commercial and critical fronts. The album was so bad that it broke up the band.
Pearl Jam’s “Vitalogy”- Their first two albums were mega hits and ruled over the early 90’s grunge scene. However, during the same summer that the band sued ticketmaster (they were upset at the fees charged and wanted to do their own ticketing for their tour), they released this disaster of an album. They won the ticketmaster case but decided to use ticketmaster anyway, then sales of Vitalogy tanked. The band took a hiatus without new albums until 2002, and has not had a major hit since Vs.
Vanilla Ice’s follow up to his hit 1991 album “to the Extreme” found the white rapper with dread locks and a newfound love of marijuana. Album tracks off “Mind Blowin” had such innuendo laden names as “roll ‘em up” and “blowin’ my mind”. Apparently, stoners don’t buy records because this fella could not find an audience the second time around. Compounding the abysmal failure of this album, Vanilla Ice got sued for “ice Ice baby” and was almost tossed out a hotel window by Suge Knight. By 2000, the guy had tried to kill himself and was busy with his new motorcross career. go whiteboy go whiteboy go!
I forgot one last one. Lauren Hill and the Fugees both had some of the most disapointing follow up albums ever!
After rocking the house with the Fugees, she released her “Miseducation of Lauren Hill” to rave reviews, grammy awards and millions of copies sold. It seemed like hits “doo wop” and her cover of “your just to good to be true” were everywhere.
Then came her second album, a collection of three chord melodies and awful one liners. No hits, no music or beats, just Lauren with an acoustic guitar and all us fans suffering.
Meanwhile Pras was busy stinking up the place with his album before he decided to go homeless for publicity, leaving Wyclef the only Fugee with a still respectable solo career.
The band then got back together and made a second album, which I seem to recall the whole popwatch crew giving the big dis to less than a year ago.
In the TIME list, 4 out of the 9 albums selected for the 2000s are POSTHUMOUS compilations. Let me repeat that in other words. 4 of the 9 artists WEREN’T EVEN ALIVE in the 2000s.
This is beyond mockery and parody. I’m all for the Baby Boomers loading their lists with Dylan, The Beatles, and The Stones (ie. Rolling Stone Magazine). But this? This is laughable.
5 Beatles albums of 100 albums total = 5%
Percentages should be easy when the number is 100. *Involuntary cringe at your math skills*
80’s
Avalon Roxy Music
Voted one of the top albums to have on a deserted island!
The worst albums are a handful. I agree with EP on Vitology, but Yield was also a dud. Cyberpunk was pretty bad too.
Right now I will choose three:
Earthling- David Bowie
Without Feathers- The Stills
Bad for Good-Jim Steinman
“Earthling” was an album that Bowie put together with Trent Reznor. Does “I’m Afraid of Amercians sound familiar? Industrial did not seem to fit for Bowie or maybe it was just that album.
After the indie success of “Logic Will Break Your Heart”, and the constant college air play of “Lola Stars and Stripes”, The Stills had become one of the top indie rock bands from Montreal next to The Dears. Music journalists called thier second album “Without Feathers” a bad tribute to the 80’s Scottish band Big Country. Hopefully thier next album will be better.
“Bad for Good” was supposed to be Meatloaf’s second album. As the story goes, he had paralyzed his vocal chords and could not complete the album. Steinman took over the project, but it shows you that sometimes composers should just stick to the music and leave the singing to the singer.
Ep – You saddened me! You’re posts are usually very well written and informed! The bonus track on the Lauryn Hill “Miseducation” album was titled “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You”, not “You’re Just too Good to Be True”. And that 2nd disc she released was in all fairness, completely terrible, but it was also an Mtv Unplugged disc. And finally that follow-up disc you claim the Fugees released to “The Score”, never saw the light of day. They did release the tepid single “Take It Easy” that was used continuously in Verizon commercials for V Cast this past year, but no full album ever saw even a fictional release date…
Two Radiohead albums? Seriously? I can’t be the only person in the world who just doesn’t find them all that great….right?
Wow, the SINGLE flopped? Phil’s right, I totally dropped the ball on the Fugees post. I thought for some reason the Fugees had done a follow up album.
I appreciate being corrected though, as everyone should be taken to task when they get it totally wrong, as I did. So, I take back the post about the Fugees. As was pointed out, it omits some pretty key details and makes incorrect conclussions about others. My boss must have put something in the Kool Aid this morning.
Or, Insert line b: In today’s news, EP Sato reveals he is a graduate of the Dan Rather school of getting the facts wrong.
who wrote this list?!?! i guess to each his or her own, but i disagree with most of the choices.
Dave, Radiohead is just brilliant over all. I’m not so sure about Thom Yorke’s solo project but over all they sre a great band. The Bends is one of my personal favorites.
More that I forgot to add in for the best:
90’s Violator- Depeche Mode
80’s a)Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me
b) Disitergration
c) Pornography- The Cure
70’s Paranoid- Black Sabbath
OOOOH, Stephanie, your comments normally kick azz, but that was gold star territory! Whatever words I say, I will always love you(r awesome posts).
Guns N’ Roses Appetite For Destruction and Van Halen’s debut album should be on the Top 100 list.
I can’t believe that there are only 2 Radiohead albums. They seemed to forget about Amnesiac, Hail to the Thief, and The Bends. There’s no excuse. Radiohead is the best band of all time.
Thanks EP. Who ever left Robert Smith off the list is loser!
*Is a loser*. My bad. Damn, my lights suck in my house. I am begining to type like Borat.