80s Classic Albums (Featuring: King Crimson)

[Lowdz]

Great album. Almost flawless (I'm not too fond of Vital Signs).

[bosk1]

I have never been a fan of Rush.  But I cannot argue in the slightest.  Good choice. 

[jjrock88]

5 star classic

[Dublagent66]

Greatest band of all time and one of the greatest albums of all time. 

[Big Hath]

my #1 album of all time with a bullet.  Once I discovered it, it completely changed how I listened to music.


From my Top 50 Albums list:

Prior to 2001, I had no real musical (listening) direction.  Before Rush, I really can't even remember what I valued when listening to music.  It was primarily popular stuff I guess, with some country mixed in.  I did like Metallica, but that was about it as far as metal or anything remotely progressive went.  And Chicago was (and still is) a favorite of mine, from their early jazz-rock all the way through their sappy 80's love ballads.  I had discovered Tower of Power, Jaco, and Weather Report a few years earlier, so they were in the mix - but as far as world class musicianship, that was it.

That all changed in 2001, when my brother made a CD-R for me that had a whole bunch of different music on it.  Three tracks right in the middle of the disc happened to be "Tom Sawyer", "Red Barchetta", and "YYZ".  As soon as I heard them, I was like "holy crap, this drummer is awesome."  Then I was like "holy crap, this is ALL awesome!"  Those three songs were my musical awakening.  Then "Limelight" became one of my favorite songs from Retrospective II (I mentioned in a previous entry that the two Retrospective compilations were my first Rush albums), and I noticed it was from the same album as the other three songs.  Are you kidding me!?  This album has four of the greatest things I've ever heard!  Then I got the album and after I heard those four, a song that would go on to surpass even those came on - "The Camera Eye" - a top 5 Rush song for me.

The songs are awesome, the playing superb, the production is excellent.  The intros and outros are simply stunning.  "Tom Sawyer", "Limelight", and "YYZ" have instantly recognizable opening moments.  The intro to "The Camera Eye" is possible my favorite 3 and a half minutes in music.  The outros to "Red Barchetta" and "Tom Sawyer" are gems as well.  Ok, so "Vital Signs" is fairly pedestrian amongst the Rush song catalog, but even that track gave me a mind-blowing experience.  Not long after I had purchased the album, I was listening through it late one night lying on the floor with my headphones on.  As I was drifting in and out of sleep during the closing moments of the final song, the famous "everybody got to 'evelate' from the norm" line came on and provided me with quite the surreal experience.

Discovering Rush led me to Dream Theater and Symphony X, which led me to Porcupine Tree and Opeth.  Discovering Neal Peart led me to Dave Weckl, Chick Corea, etc. and a renewed interest in jazz, both modern and traditional.  All told, approximately 33 of the 50 albums on this list are here because Moving Pictures opened my eyes to a music world beyond what was directly in front of me and I am forever grateful.  So in a way, you could say that the album title even has another meaning in that it moved me to another stage in my music listening experience.

[jjrock88]

great write-up for the album Big Hath!

[Jaq]

Yep, it's not always accurate to look at sales and the charts to gauge how popular and influential an album or song is.

Hell, just staying in the 80s, Physical by Olivia Newton-John was number 1 on the pop charts for 10 weeks (!!!), yet I doubt anybody considers that one of the best pop hits of the 80s anymore.

Meanwhile, Don't Stop Believin' was a minor hit, getting to number 9 on the pop charts, yet most people acknowledge now that it is one of THE defining rock songs of the 80s.

Actually, another generation decided it was. If it hadn't been in that episode of the Sopranos, Journey's most enduring song would have been the one everyone thought it was back then: Anyway You Want It. 

I've said enough about Rush in various threads here but yeah, there probably isn't a better choice for someone trying to get a person into Rush than Moving Pictures.

[TAC]

I've never seen The Sopranos and I would've never rated Any Way You Want It over Don't Stop Believin' in terms of popularity and influence.


Moving Pictures is great. What else can you say?

[bosk1]

I would've never rated Any Way You Want It over Don't Stop Believin' in terms of popularity and influence.

Few would.  But that being said, Any Way You Want It is still pretty iconic. 

[KevShmev]

Thanks to Caddyshack...

[TAC]

I would've never rated Any Way You Want It over Don't Stop Believin' in terms of popularity and influence.

Few would.  But that being said, Any Way You Want It is still pretty iconic.

Yeah, sure. They had a ton of hits. My point was that I'm not sure how anyone could think that The Sopranos could have anything to do with lifting DSB's ..um..not sure what word I'm looking for here.

[KevShmev]

I think The Sopranos definitely helped Don't Stop Believin' iconic-ness (we'll go with that word ).  Maybe not to the degree Jaq implied, but it still had a huge helping hand.

[bosk1]

Thanks to Caddyshack...

I was going to specifically mention that in my post, but then figured I did not need to. 

[TAC]

I think The Sopranos definitely helped Don't Stop Believin' iconic-ness (we'll go with that word ).  Maybe not to the degree Jaq implied, but it still had a huge helping hand.

I guess someone who had never heard it before might have taken notice. No surprise, it's a great song.
It's just that I have personally never seen The Sopranos, and have never heard any reference to that song being played on it.

[Anguyen92]

I would've never rated Any Way You Want It over Don't Stop Believin' in terms of popularity and influence.

Few would.  But that being said, Any Way You Want It is still pretty iconic.

The first time I heard Any Way You Want It was that it was played at the end of a The Simpsons episode (It was during the earlier seasons.  Somewhere before the 10th season, for sure, I think).  It was probably another one of those songs where I heard it, liked the sound of it, didn't know who played it and forgot about it.  Thankfully, the magic of Google and lyric sites helped me know the band and song name, so yeah.

Anywho, regarding Moving Pictures.  A great album indeed, though I'm not that keen on The Camera Eye, Witch Hunt is just all right, and I do like Vital Signs a great amount, moreso than the general consensus here.  That said, the 1st four songs of the album are the essentials and are the songs that helped shaped Rush's legacy.

[TAC]

I would've never rated Any Way You Want It over Don't Stop Believin' in terms of popularity and influence.

Few would.  But that being said, Any Way You Want It is still pretty iconic.

The first time I heard Any Way You Want It was that it was played at the end of a The Simpsons episode (It was during the earlier seasons.  Somewhere before the 10th season, for sure, I think).  It was probably another one of those songs where I heard it, liked the sound of it, didn't know who played it and forgot about it.  Thankfully, the magic of Google and lyric sites helped me know the band and song name, so yeah.

I'm just getting old.

[Jaq]

I would've never rated Any Way You Want It over Don't Stop Believin' in terms of popularity and influence.

Few would.  But that being said, Any Way You Want It is still pretty iconic.

Yeah, sure. They had a ton of hits. My point was that I'm not sure how anyone could think that The Sopranos could have anything to do with lifting DSB's ..um..not sure what word I'm looking for here.

Because the day after it appeared in the series finale of the Sopranos the song blew the hell up on itunes, getting downloaded pretty massively, and then starting to appear everywhere else, to the point it became considered The Iconic Journey 80s Song.  It's been downloaded over six million times as a paid download since 2007 when it appeared in the last episode of the Sopranos. Until late 2014 it was the most downloaded song on paid download services, in fact and no other song from the pre-digital era has been downloaded more.  It didn't make the top 40 in the UK upon its initial release but once it blew up it charted. It's charted as high as number 2 in Canada since it blew up.

And it all started when it was in the last episode of the Sopranos. So yeah, I think it's fair to say the notion that this generation made it the most iconic Journey song ain't too fucking far fetched 

[bl5150]

I have never been a fan of Rush. 

............and I've tried so hard.  Yyz is good    I'm pretty sure I've never heard Rush on radio either .

When I was growing up the vast majority of rock on radio in Australia was either Australian (AC/DC, Jimmy Barnes, Rose Tattoo, Dragon, Little River Band), mega huge international (The Eagles/Led Zep/Foreigner) or pop rock (Hall&Oates, Huey Lewis).   Outside of music tragics like myself, most of the bands in this thread would be largely unknown in these parts.

 

[hefdaddy42]

I would've never rated Any Way You Want It over Don't Stop Believin' in terms of popularity and influence.

Few would.  But that being said, Any Way You Want It is still pretty iconic.

Yeah, sure. They had a ton of hits. My point was that I'm not sure how anyone could think that The Sopranos could have anything to do with lifting DSB's ..um..not sure what word I'm looking for here.

Because the day after it appeared in the series finale of the Sopranos the song blew the hell up on itunes, getting downloaded pretty massively, and then starting to appear everywhere else, to the point it became considered The Iconic Journey 80s Song.  It's been downloaded over six million times as a paid download since 2007 when it appeared in the last episode of the Sopranos. Until late 2014 it was the most downloaded song on paid download services, in fact and no other song from the pre-digital era has been downloaded more.  It didn't make the top 40 in the UK upon its initial release but once it blew up it charted. It's charted as high as number 2 in Canada since it blew up.

And it all started when it was in the last episode of the Sopranos. So yeah, I think it's fair to say the notion that this generation made it the most iconic Journey song ain't too fucking far fetched 

All of this.  It's always been a big song among Journey fans, and even general classic rock fans.  But its appearance on The Sopranos is what made it iconic to everyday people who wouldn't otherwise be Journey fans.

[TempusVox]

I have never been a fan of Rush. 

............and I've tried so hard.  Yyz is good    I'm pretty sure I've never heard Rush on radio either .

When I was growing up the vast majority of rock on radio in Australia was either Australian (AC/DC, Jimmy Barnes, Rose Tattoo, Dragon, Little River Band), mega huge international (The Eagles/Led Zep/Foreigner) or pop rock (Hall&Oates, Huey Lewis).   Outside of music tragics like myself, most of the bands in this thread would be largely unknown in these parts.

And you were forced to eat Vegamite! You poor bastard! And all this time I never realized Australia was still a prison colony! 

[bl5150]

Vegemite .  I had it given to me on my pacifier to toughen me up and as far as I know the only Aussie who can't hack it is Blob 

And why are we still a prison colony ?   Cos we imprisoned some arrogant US film star's pooch rat ? 

If you're referring to my description of the radio here then yeah...........I'd rather be in prison than listen to it. It's even worse these days.

[BlobVanDam]

Vegemite - get it right .  I had it given to me on my pacifier to toughen me up and as far as I know the only Aussie who can't hack it is Blob 

Then you don't know many Aussies. It's always been a love/hate thing at best.

And I've also never known of Rush being played on radio here, at least in the past 25 years when I've been aware of it. There are many NA bands that have largely slipped under the radar here, or only known for a track or two, like Skynyrd. Music can be very regional.

[bl5150]

Maybe it's a Sydney thing 

[BlobVanDam]

Maybe it's a Sydney thing 

Or maybe it's a Melbourne thing.

[jammindude]

But it's not allowed in my bush....   

[TempusVox]

No Jammin,  that's VAGamite, and you need a gynecologist to treat it. It's become an epidemic "down under" I'm told. 

[erwinrafael]

Because the day after it appeared in the series finale of the Sopranos the song blew the hell up on itunes, getting downloaded pretty massively, and then starting to appear everywhere else, to the point it became considered The Iconic Journey 80s Song.  It's been downloaded over six million times as a paid download since 2007 when it appeared in the last episode of the Sopranos. Until late 2014 it was the most downloaded song on paid download services, in fact and no other song from the pre-digital era has been downloaded more.  It didn't make the top 40 in the UK upon its initial release but once it blew up it charted. It's charted as high as number 2 in Canada since it blew up.

And it all started when it was in the last episode of the Sopranos. So yeah, I think it's fair to say the notion that this generation made it the most iconic Journey song ain't too fucking far fetched 

All of this.  It's always been a big song among Journey fans, and even general classic rock fans.  But its appearance on The Sopranos is what made it iconic to everyday people who wouldn't otherwise be Journey fans.

The Sopranos AND the TV show Glee are what lifted DSB to iconic status for this generation.

[KevShmev]

I would have featured this at at some point anyway, but am going with it a bit earlier thanks to the recommendation by Tempus Vox...



I have to admit that blues rock is not something I hardly ever want to listen to, but on those rare occasions, it doesn't get much better than Texas Flood.  I did go through a spell back when I first got into SRV, and this, a few others, got a lot of play in my CD player for a while.  Songs like "Pride and Joy" and the title track are too great for words, while "Rude Mood" and "Testify" are some of the most bad ass instrumentals the 80s saw.  This classic album is just chock full of great tunes.  And I cannot forget "Lenny," which I have actually heard played at more than one wedding reception.  SRV dying suddenly at 35 in 1990 was a major tragedy, but dang, did he give us some great stuff in the short time he was around.

[hefdaddy42]

Easily one of the greatest, most impactful albums of the decade.

[Jaq]

Despite my immense love for all things heavy metal, hard rock, and prog rock, my favorite guitarist of all time is SRV. Texas Flood was number 11 on my top 50 list and it frequently jumps into the top ten depending on my mood. Fantastic album.

[hefdaddy42]

SRV did more communicating of emotion through his guitar playing than the vast majority of vocalists do with their singing. 

Also, he was an influence on JP, although not one that you see cited very often.  But it's there, for sure, and I've seen him mention it before.

I know we are talking about just this album, but I must say that one of the most awesome recorded tracks of music I've ever heard from anyone EVER is SRV & DT's instrumental version of Jimi Hendrix's "Little Wing".  Just jaw-dropping.  During some of the quiet sections, you can hear the tubes from the amp.  Gives me shivers.

[King Postwhore]

I was hooked on how powerful his solos were.  It was even bigger live.  I was lucky enough to see him once, touring for his live album.  My favorite song from him was on the album after.  Life Without You.

This album, Texas Flood, solidified his rise to greatness.

[Lolzeez]

I'm not huge on Blues Rock. But when I was like 4 all my music was either The Beatles or just a bunch of Blues Rock records that my dad liked. Texas Flood was one of those,along with some Bluesbreakers records and BB King's couple live albums. (REST IN FUCKING PEACE) I still love SRV's guitar playing even though I'm not huge on blues anymore. He literally gives the emotion of a whole song in just a single note and it all feels just so fucking powerful. Nobody probably would expect me to like this man's work but this is probably one of the couple Blues Rock albums that I can always listen to and just love. Fucking legend.

[Lowdz]

A classic all right.
I am partial to some fiery blues and SRV is as good as it gets.

[El Barto]

I didn't get into him until well after his demise, but I certainly dig his music and his talent is undeniable. The problem was that with him being a local boy (his house would have been a ten minute bike ride from mine) he was just played to death down here. Moreover, when he croaked it was treated as the worlds greatest tragedy. All of that was something of a turnoff for my young, metal-head ass.