KirksNoseHair's Top 50 v. And the #1 album is........

[Scorpion]

Wow. You seem to bust out one kick-as album after the other, do you? Killers is, while nowhere near my favourite, a great album, Dokken are awesome (though Don Dokken's voice takes a bit to get used to, imo) and Skid Row just plain out rock (though I prefer Slave to the Grind over the debut, because that's bit harder and edgier; plus, it includes Wasted Time ).

Yeah, the gist is that I'm very impressed by your list so far. Keep 'em coming! 

[King Postwhore]

I only saw Triumph once, on the Thunder Seven tour, the night they filmed the video.

I was there also.  Follow Your Heart as the video.

[Jirpo]

Killers is my least fave Maiden album.

[King Postwhore]

Tooth and Nail is a killer album.  Great melodic rock there.

[Kwyjibo]

While I appreciate the first two maiden albums for me they became relevant when Dickinson joined with Number Of The Beast.

Dokken was great, Tooth and Nail, Under Lock and Key and Back For The Attack were killer records. And George Lynch was on fire back then (and probably still is?). I even liked some of their 90s output (Shadowlife and Dysfunctional) but after that lost track of them. And since the 90s you could hear Don Dokken's voice degenerate rapidly.

18 and Life is such a great song, the reason why I bought the Skid Row record. They were good but what made them great was clearly Bach's voice.

[TAC]

Killers

[Zydar]

Killers is a great album, but I prefer the debut over it. Actually it's my least favourite of the "classic" period (1980-1988), but it's still a great one.

[ZirconBlue]

3 great albums, there!  Tooth and Nail is probably my favorite Dokken album.  The cassette release had different cover art for some reason.  Killers is definately one of my favorite IM albums.  Bruce is a much better singer, but the songs on this album just resonated with me for some reason.  And Skid Row became an instant favorite when I saw them open for Bon Jovi on the New Jersey tour.  I think I like Slave to the Grind better than the s/t, but it's close.

[jingle.boy]

Definitely 3 great albums.  Skid Row made my top list.  Probably my favorite hair/glam album of the late 80s.  Bach was a vocal beast.  Still pretty damn good to this day as well, but definitely a egomaniac.

[kirksnosehair]

Glad everyone's digging the list so far.  Obviously, not every album would be on everyone's list, but it's cool to reminisce about these things. 


BRB with the next installment. 

[DebraKadabra]

Tooth And Nail and Killers

Skid Row?! (sorry, JMO )

[kirksnosehair]

35. Thin Lizzy - "Jailbreak"





Tracklist:


Side one:
01 - Jailbreak
02 - Angel from the Coast
03 - Running Back
04 - Romeo and the Lonely Girl
05 - Warriors


Side two:
01 - The Boys Are Back in Town
02 - Fight or Fall
03 - Cowboy Song
04 - Emerald


Thin Lizzy were the brainchild of Dublin, Irland drummer Brian Downey and guitarist/vocalist Phil Lynott and formed in 1969.  They are best known for three songs, "Whiskey In The Jar" (later covered - "whiskey in the jarooooo", by Metallica) "Jailbreak" and "The Boys Are Back In Town" of which the former two tracks appear on this album.  To this day, "The Boys Are Back In Town" is a mainstay of FM Classic Rock radio and contains one of the most famous and iconic harmony guitar solos ever written in rock and roll history.   Key tracks from this album have already been mentioned, but "Running Back" "Warriors" and "Cowboy Song" are also worth a listen.  (here's my band Free Dirt - a rock covers band - doing "The Boys Are Back in Town" at a sound check for a gig in 1992 - I am the guitar player on the right side of the screen)




34. Foreigner - "Double Vision"





Tracklist:


01 - Hot Blooded
02 - Blue Morning, Blue Day
03 - You're All I Am
04 - Back Where You Belong
05 - Love Has Taken It's Toll
06 - Double Vision
07 - Tramontane
08 - I Have Waited So Long
09 - Lonely Children
10 - Spellbinder


In 1978, on the heels of their extremely successful self-titled debut album, British/Americal rock band Foreigner released their second album, "Double Vision." The 10-track, 38:02 album ended up producing several huge FM Rock Radio hits, including "Hot Blooded" "Blue Morning, Blue Day" and the title track "Double Vision."  This album also contains the only instrmental ever released on a studio album by Foreigner, "Tramontane" - other notable tracks are "Love Has Taken its Toll" and "Spellbinder" - this is, in my opinion, Foreigner's best album.  They're still together today although with only one original member, Mick Jones.  Interesting side note about them - not too many people know that former King Crimson multi-instrumentalist Ian McDonald was also a founding member of Foreigner.




33. Def Leppard - "High -n- Dry"





Tracklist:
Side one:


01 - Let It Go
02 - Another Hit and Run
03 - High 'n' Dry (Saturday Night)
04 - Bringin' On the Heartbreak
05 - Switch 625


Side two:
01 - You Got Me Runnin
02 - Lady Strange
03 - On Through the Night
04 - Mirror, Mirror (Look into My Eyes)
05 - No No No


Originally released in July 1981, "High -n- Dry" is, in my opinion, Def Leppard's masterpiece.  Demonstrating an incredible knack for riffs, hooks and melodies, and flexing some serious songwriting chops for a group of very young musicians, this album is packed with gems.  Side one is nothing short of brilliant, from the opening riff of "Let It Go" to the closing moments of the powerful instrumental "Switch 625" this album delivers non stop pounding, relentless hard rock that is full of memorable lyrics and killer melodies that will stick with you long after you've put it down.  The 4 part vocal harmonies in the arena anthems like "Bringin' On The Hearbreak" also gave us a glimpse into the band's more mainstream/popular future.  I'll be the first to admit that they kind of lost me after "Pyromania" but huge respect to the band for sticking with drummer Rick Allen after an unfortunate car accident claimed his left arm on December 31, 1984.  And of course, huge props to Rick himself for hanging in there and finding a way to play drums with only one arm.

[Scorpion]

Haven't listened to Def Leppard yet, but the other albums are pretty cool. Hot Blooded is one of Foreigner's best songs, imho.

[Jaq]

While the previous lot was a bit light on things I liked-really only Killers, and I do rate that below the debut on my Iron Maiden list- this bunch now, this bunch is GOLD. Even though Jailbreak's a top 20 for me, maybe even top 15. And I love seeing Foreigner get some props; they were the first band I ever got into as a kid, listening to my sister's copies of the debut and Double Vision to death.

[Lowdz]

Killers

My favourite IM album.
Love 80s Dokken but UL&K and BFTA beat T&N hands down for me.
The Skid Row is essential for 80 US Metal and Lep's H&D is a great album too.
Love Lizzy but all their albums were patchy. Jailbreak has some awesome songs.

Not a bad batch at all Kirk.

Spent a couple of hours on YT last night listening to Mercyful Fate and King Diamond and have to say I preferred the King solo.

[Zydar]

Jailbreak

I recently got into Def Leppard, and I would rank Pyromania just a notch above High N Dry, but High N Dry is awesome too.

[TAC]

High n Dry!!!!
You WILL see that in the TAC Top 50 too!

And there will be plenty of Thin Lizzy as well, but not Jailbreak. Still you can't argue with the pick, though!

[kirksnosehair]

Haven't listened to Def Leppard yet, but the other albums are pretty cool. Hot Blooded is one of Foreigner's best songs, imho.

You should really check out High -n- Dry, it's a top-notch hard rock album.  Don't let their modern sugary-sweet pop-metal output sway you.  High -n- Dry is pretty close to AC/DC's "Black In Black" in terms of songwriting quality and Mutt Lange actually produced it.

[TAC]

Haven't listened to Def Leppard yet, but the other albums are pretty cool. Hot Blooded is one of Foreigner's best songs, imho.

You should really check out High -n- Dry, it's a top-notch hard rock album.  Don't let their modern sugary-sweet pop-metal output sway you.  High -n- Dry is pretty close to AC/DC's "Black In Black" in terms of songwriting quality and Mutt Lange actually produced it.

Absolutely. It's one of the 10 most influential albums of my musical life.
Do NOT let what Def Leppard became keep you from this album.

[jjrock88]

Great list Kirk!  Killers, while not my favorite IM disc, is still an outstanding album. I think the first 4 Dokken albums are pretty much the definition of 80s hair metal. Big fan of them all so tooth and nail is a great choice.  Bach is one of my favorite vocalists and Skid Row is super underated IMO. I think the two releases after the debut only showed the potential of where this band could go. Too bad they couldn't continue as is. And Thin Lizzy is one of the best pure rock bands in history.

[kirksnosehair]

32. Styx - "The Grand Illusion"





Tracklist:


01 - The Grand Illusion
02 - Fooling Yourself (The Angry Young Man)
03 - Superstars
04 - Come Sail Away
05 - Miss America
06 - Man In The Wilderness
07 - Castle Walls
08 - The Grand Finale


I rarely use the word "masterpiece" when describing any musical work.  I avoid it in an effort to not cheapen it.  It should be reserved for truly remarkable work.  "The Grand Illusion" is a masterpiece.  This 38:59 slice of melodic progressive hard rock was released to world-wide acclaim on July 7, 1977 and was an instant classic.  To this day "Fooling Yourself" and "Come Sail Away" are staples on FM Classic Rock radio, but those are the more commercial songs and there are some hidden progressive gems here like "Man In The Wilderness" (which still brings a tear to my eye) and "Castle Walls" that showcase some incredibly gifted songwriting.  It is truly a shame that infighting eventually led to the breakup of this remarkable group.  This was among the first albums I ever owned as a kid and to this day I still spin it once in a while.  Even though the original lineup has either broken up or died, I had a chance to see the new version of Styx with Lawrence Gowan taking the place of Dennis and they are still quite worthy and Lawrence is a fine showman and actually sounds very similar, so if you have a chance to see them, don't miss out, they put on a fantastic live show.


31. Judas Priest - "Sad Wings of Destiny"





Tracklist:


Side One:
01 - Victim of Changes
02 - The Ripper
03 - Dreamer Deceiver
04 - Deceiver


Side Two:
01 - Prelude
02 - Tyrant
03 - Genocide
04 - Epitaphy
05 - Island of Domination


This is Judas Priest's second album and it features more of guitarist Glenn Tipton's piano playing than any other album they ever released.  Released on March 23, 1976, it may also be Judas Priest's most progressive album with tracks like "Victim of Changes" and the related "Dreamer Deceiver" and "Deceiver" tracks making their way into many a live performance in the early years to swirling lights and heavy use of the fog machine.  Known as one of the greatest metal vocalists ever, Rob Halford is credited with possessing a 4 octave vocal range which is on display here in its full glory.  Interesting side note, the band lost the rights to the recording royalties but eventually obtained copyright ownership of the songs themselves.  The cover of the Joan Baez penned "Diamonds and Rust" was orginally recorded for this album but omitted and eventually released on "Sin After Sin" and later on the live album "Unleashed in the East" - widely considered one of the greatest live metal albums of all time.




30. Iron Maiden - "The Number of The Beast"





Tracklist:
01 - Invaders
02 - Children of the Damned
03 - The Prisoner
04 - 22 Acacia Avenue
05 - The Number of the Beast
06 - Run To The Hills
07 - Gangland
08 - Hallowed Be Thy Name


In March of 1982 the British invasion was well under way.  Iron Maiden were one of the bands that were leading the charge and "The Number of The Beast" would set the stage for an amazing run of quality albums the likes of which has rarely been seen throughout the history of heavy metal.  With their signature galloping riffs and dual harmony guitar attack, this was the first Iron Maiden album to feature writing by guitarist Adrian Smith.  Vocalist Bruce Dickinson joined the band and was an immediate smashing success with his signature operatic style and gritty edge he gave Iron Maiden the ability to stretch out in directions they never could have gone with Di'Anno on vocals.  Laughably, social conservatives, particularly in America, rained criticism on the album and the band accusing them of "Satanism."  To this day, this remains among my favorite Iron Maiden albums and I could probably listen to "Children of the Damned" "The Prisoner" "22 Acacia Avenue" and "Hallowed Be Thy Name" endlessly and never grow tired of hearing them.  UP THE IRONS!!

[Scorpion]

I never got into Styx, but you'll get a huge  from me for the other two albums. Two classics of metal.

[TAC]

3 stunning albums. I have 3 Styx CDs and The Grand Illusion is definitely one of them.

[kirksnosehair]

Review:



50. Judas Priest - Stained Class
49. Foreigner - Foreigner
48. Led Zeppelin - II
47. The Edgar Winter Group - They Only Come Out at Night
46. Stevie Ray Vaughn - Texas Flood
45. Megadeth - Peace Sells but Who's Buying
44. Yes - Fragile
43. Black Sabbath - Sabbath Bloody Sabbath
42. Kansas - Leftoverture
41. Mercyful Fate - Into The Unknown
40. Triumph - Allied Forces
39. Savatage - Poets and Madmen
38. Dokken - Tooth and Nail
37. Iron Maiden - Killers
36. Skid Row - Skid Row
35. Thin Lizzy - Jailbreak
34. Foreigner - Double Vision
33. Def Leppard - High -n- Dry
32. Styx - The Grand Illusion
31. Judas Priest - Sad Wings of Destiny
30. Iron Maiden - The Number of The Beast




Stay tuned for a metric shit-ton of updates tomorrow 

[TAC]

Kirk, a lot more classic heavy metal than I expected. Our lists are quite similar, not in albums, but in flavor.

[Lowdz]

The great albums keep coming. The great Styx album. TNOTB is one track (the awful Gangland- DT's version is excellent though) away from awesome, and Sad Wings is a great album. Got that on vinyl picture disc. Sounds like shit I seem to remember, but a great album.

[King Postwhore]

Those last 3 are just plain awesome.

Kirk, you see the new Blu -Ray of Styx doing the Grand Illusion and Pieces Of Eight in full?  Worth every penny.

[lonestar]

Two more that are in my top 25 at least, and mad respect for High n Dry too.

[TAC]

The great albums keep coming. The great Styx album. TNOTB is one track (the awful Gangland- DT's version is excellent though) away from awesome, and Sad Wings is a great album. Got that on vinyl picture disc. Sounds like shit I seem to remember, but a great album.

I happen to love Gangland.

[johnnysuperfan]

32. Styx - "The Grand Illusion"

Miss America is my favorite track on The Grand Illusion, Kirk 

[DebraKadabra]

3 stellar albums!  Sad Wings of Destiny is one of my favorite Priest albums, so I'd probably rank it AND The Grand Illusion a bit higher.  There's also not much more to say about The Number of the Beast except

[Jaq]

Oh yeah, you totally own most of my music collection. Great choices, all three.

[kirksnosehair]

Those last 3 are just plain awesome.

Kirk, you see the new Blu -Ray of Styx doing the Grand Illusion and Pieces Of Eight in full?  Worth every penny.

Better yet, I saw it live, from 10th row center 

[King Postwhore]

I wanted to so bad.  I can't remember why but I had somewhere to go and didn't buy the tickets.  JEALOUS!!

[jjrock88]

more great picks!!