Knowing you, you'll probably have Fair Warning up there, and Diary Of A Madman. You didn't include Permanent Waves, so I'm not sure how you view Moving Pictures, but I'd definitely put that in the 1981 Top 3.
Oh, and Thin Lizzy released Renegade on this day in 1981! Damn..33 years!
Good guess on VH and Ozzy - I'm not half predictable huh? - couldn't separate them for No 1. As far as Rush goes I find it hard to explain why I react to them so differently to all you guys when otherwise our tastes are often so close. I made myself listen to Moving Pictures for the sake of this exercise and I had the same response I always have with Rush. I found it listenable for the most part (although Geddy's voice does zero for me) but there was nothing I felt like playing again. I enjoy the chord progressions in Tom Sawyer and Red Barchetta etc....but the passages I enjoy - and there certainly are some - are too few and far between. Aside from very limited moments like say the start of The Camera Eye I also don't tend to get the feeling I'm "rocking" at all when I listen to Rush. But I'm the same with bands like Yes and the whole 70's prog rock scene too so maybe that's no surprise. I dunno.
My favourite track on Moving Pictures was YYZ 'cos Geddy kept quiet
Some very cool bass playing in there.
Anyway........I've tried hard to get on board with Rush and there's just no connection there at all for the most part. And yet Images and Words (which is supposedly one of DT's most heavily Rush influenced albums) is close enough to my favourite album of all time.
Not sure if I'll keep doing it but for 1981 I have done a short intro and listed those that were actively considered but didn't quite make it........
1981Well off we venture into what (for me) is the beginning of the golden decade of rock and metal and 1981 had more than its fair share of classics in all types of rock. Even though not up for selection here I'd like to mention Journey's Escape and Foreigner's 4 - two all time classics from two all time classic bands/vocalists. WTF moment goes to Queen with Flash Gordon and perhaps KISS with The Elder . Back to the harder stuff .........
1981 saw a few bands produce good albums that still managed to drop off the pace they set in 1980 (AC/DC ,Judas Priest , Saxon , Black Sabbath, Whitesnake among others) , the arrival of a new force to be reckoned with (Motley Crue) and a couple of bands setting the foundations for upcoming legend status (Def Leppard and Iron Maiden).
Looking at the list of albums I considered was very imposing but giving them a good listen made things a lot clearer in terms of what appeals to me. Motley's Too Fast For Love is often touted as THE classic of 1981.........not for me though.
TOP 10 ALBUMS OF 19811. Ozzy Osbourne: Diary Of A Madman (TIE)
1. Van Halen: Fair Warning (TIE)
3. Def Leppard: High'n'Dry
4. Triumph: Allied Forces
5. Demon : Night Of The Demon
6. Tygers Of Pan Tang : Spellbound
7. Rainbow: Difficult To Cure
8. Frank Marino: The Power of Rock and Roll
9. Michael Schenker Group: MSG
10. Sammy Hagar : Standing Hampton(TIE)
10. Viva: What The Hell Is Going On(TIE)
MADE THE SQUAD BUT MISSED THE TEAM (no particular order)Thin Lizzy: Renegade - was headed for Top 6 based on the first half but the last few songs are a snooze.
Riot: Fire Down Under - juuuuust missed out.
Saxon : Denim and Leather
Whitesnake : Come And Get It
Iron Maiden : Killers
Black Sabbath: Mob Rules
Accept : Breaker
Blue Oyster Cult: Fire Of Unknown Origin
Judas Priest: Point Of Entry
Praying Mantis : Time Tells No Lies
AC/DC: For Those About To Rock..
Rush : Moving Pictures (only through peer pressure
)
Motley Crue: Too Fast For love - aside from Livewire....meh!
For those wondering "Who the fuck is Viva?" they were a fairly obscure German metal band - main songwriter and keyboardist is Barbara Schenker , Michael's little sis'.