#20. Defenders of The Faith - Judas Priest (1984)
Most people will pick Painkiller, Screaming For Vengeance or British Steel over this one, but whilst all of those are great albums, this one is the most consistent for me. It's the heaviest album that Priest had done at this time and it was the last good album of the 1980s for them as well. I also like the extra mean-ness and gothicism.
Best songs: The Sentinel, Love Bites, and Night Comes Down.
#19. Queen II - Queen (1974)
This was one of the first complete Queen albums I ever heard, probably back when I was 8 or 9. It doesn't really have any hits on it, but then again my favorite Queen songs tend to be album cuts. Why is this better than most other Queen albums? It has a flow to it, which is one of Queen's biggest problems. The songs usually just don't fit together well. On this, the songs flow together so well that it's like there's only 2 songs on the whole album!
Best songs: Father To Son, White Queen (As It Began), and The March of The Black Queen.
#18. Led Zeppelin III - Led Zeppelin (1970)
Yes, Led Zeppelin finally makes the list. I'm one of the few that loves the different sound of III as opposed to other Zeppelin albums. It's more jam based and acoustic. Not that the other albums aren't great, but for once there seems to be actual feeling in a Zeppelin album here.
Best songs: Immigrant Song, Tangerine, and Bron-Y-Aur Stomp.
#17. The Yes Album - Yes (1971)
This is the album where Yes really got their sound. Perhaps it's due to Steve Howe joining. Some folks point to the follow up album, Fragile, as the quintessential Yes album. That has some filler in my opinion, whereas this whole album is well thought out. Still missing Rick Wakeman though...
Best songs: Starship Trooper, I've Seen All Good People, and Perpetual Change.
#16. Jailbreak - Thin Lizzy (1976)
Another recent addition to my ears, I first heard this album about four years ago for the first time. Since then, I probably listen to this in it's entirety at least once a month. It's very short, but it's got nothing I'd want to skip. It also includes their biggest hit, The Boys Are Back In Town.
Best songs: Romeo and The Lonely Girl, Cowboy Song, and Emerald.
#15. Hemispheres - Rush (1978)
This is the album that got me into Rush. Before this one, I didn't really like them. Oddly enough, this is the hardest album to get into for most people. It's their most progressive album, and even the band themselves think they may have gone to far in that direction. I mean, it only has 4 songs on it, one of them being about 20 minutes, and that one happens to be my favorite song on the album! Go figure!
Best songs: As there are only 4... all of them.
#14. Boston - Boston (1976)
You all knew that this would be on here. It's regularly considered one of the best rock albums of all time. It's short, it's catchy, and very very accessible. It's also one of the best produced albums of all time. I mean the guitar solos are multitracked to heaven, complete with a holy gloss. First heard it when I was about 9, and still one of my favorites.
Best songs: More Than A Feeling, Peace of Mind, Smokin'.
#13. Misplaced Childhood - Marillion (1985)
I had not even heard of Marillion until 2007. I came across a music video for one of the songs on this album, and I quickly got it. The album sounds like if Pink Floyd had gotten Peter Gabriel for their lead singer. It's odd, but it works. It's a very bipolar album though, going from sad to happy sometimes 2 or 3 times per song. It's also the reason we have so many girls born in '85-'86 named Kaleigh.
Best songs: Lavender, Heart of Lothian, and Blind Curve.
#12. Abbey Road - The Beatles (1969)
Yeah, I had to go with another obvious choice. Everyone loves Abbey Road. I mean it's sort of the last Beatles album, especially if you consider the fact that the Let It Be album was actually recorded first, even if it was released afterwards. My favorite George Harrison song, Here Comes The Sun is on here, and I do have a soft spot for Carry That Weight. It was also my first Beatles album I owned.
Best songs: I Want You (She's So Heavy), Here Comes The Sun, and Something.
#11. Revolver - The Beatles (1966)
Another gimmie. This was the cut-off point for the Beatles being interesting for me back when I started collecting when I was fourteen. Back then I liked from Revolver up to their end of career stuff. I gotta say, I'm still not a fan of Yellow Submarine though. The only negative to a great album. George Harrison's contributions, (Taxman, Love You To, and I Want To Tell You), are especially good.
Best songs: I'm Only Sleeping, I Want To Tell You, and Tomorrow Never Knows.
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