Okay, I'll be the first to admit that I do not know much about music. My interests are quite limited, and my taste is rather conventional, depending on what perspective you discern it from. Nevertheless, I thought I would share my top five music albums of all time, if only to engender some discourse about these incredible works (and, hopefully, yours, too). I'm sure everybody has heard of these, and it's certainly no coincidence they all come from the same country, decade, and musical genre, but I thought I'd share anyway. Here they be:
1. Close to the Edge (1972, Yes)
In my opinion, the most accomplished, complete, artistically impeccable album I have ever had the pleasure in listening to. This was released at the very height of the progressive rock movement, and at the very creative peak of Yes. Containing only three tracks, I've never heard a more concise, instrumentally sophisticated and lyrically intricate album. I am constantly in awe of this work, whether it be the 18-minute long, spiritual-like journey of Close to the Edge, the beautiful romanticism of And You And I or the upbeat, distinctive rhythm of Siberian Khatru. It's truly incredible.
2. Wish You Were Here (1975, Pink Floyd)
No other work has had more of a consistently emotional impact on me than Pink Floyd's Wish You Were Here. Dealing with the themes of absence, mental illness, the cupidity of the music industry, and the mental deterioration of former band and conceptual leader Syd Barrett, this is a truly beautiful, poignant, and heartbreaking piece. The track, Wish You Were Here, is arguably in my top three songs of all time. It has brought me to tears on numerous occasions, thanks in large part to Waters' profound lyrics and Gilmour's tremendously painful vocals. It's a song about being emotionally detached and empty, not being able to discern the difference between 'heaven from hell', 'blue skies from pain'. The album also features one of the greatest tribute songs a band could ever form, Shine On You Crazy Diamond, not to mention two other thematically forceful tracks, Have A Cigar and Welcome to the Machine. This is a masterful work.
3. The Dark Side of the Moon (1973, Pink Floyd)
Need I say more? This album is the epitome of psychedelic rock, as we all know. With complex instrumentation and poetic lyrics, it has to be one of the most absorbing, endlessly listenable works produced. Each track conceptually and thematically builds on the next, all the way to climax of Eclipse which, in my opinion, is perhaps the greatest under-2-minute song ever composed. How Pink Floyd managed to embed so much notional depth without coming across as indulgent or repetitious is beyond me. It's just fantastic.
4. Selling England by the Pound (1973, Genesis)
Like most artistically revered works, this was shamefully overlooked upon its release. It's a phenomenal album about the loss of national culture and identity. It's sardonic at times, poignant at others, but always tonally consistent and never musically sporadic. Despite belonging to the movement of progressive rock, it maintains its own 'style' throughout and doesn't feel the need to succumb to prog-rock conventions. It is really beautiful.
5. Fragile (1971, Yes)
This list started with Yes and it will end with Yes. There is nothing else out there like Fragile. It has no real conceptual theme or subject, but rather, spawns a collection of some wonderfully experimental music. Its closing track, Heart of the Sunrise, is absolutely incredible, not to mention other seminal greats like Roundabout, We Have Heaven and Mood For A Day. This work is the product of a band who were well ahead of their time. The somewhat complex experimentation of this album gives it great density, making it better and better upon every listening.
In my opinion, the most accomplished, complete, artistically impeccable album I have ever had the pleasure in listening to. This was released at the very height of the progressive rock movement, and at the very creative peak of Yes. Containing only three tracks, I've never heard a more concise, instrumentally sophisticated and lyrically intricate album. I am constantly in awe of this work, whether it be the 18-minute long, spiritual-like journey of Close to the Edge, the beautiful romanticism of And You And I or the upbeat, distinctive rhythm of Siberian Khatru. It's truly incredible.
2. Wish You Were Here (1975, Pink Floyd)
No other work has had more of a consistently emotional impact on me than Pink Floyd's Wish You Were Here. Dealing with the themes of absence, mental illness, the cupidity of the music industry, and the mental deterioration of former band and conceptual leader Syd Barrett, this is a truly beautiful, poignant, and heartbreaking piece. The track, Wish You Were Here, is arguably in my top three songs of all time. It has brought me to tears on numerous occasions, thanks in large part to Waters' profound lyrics and Gilmour's tremendously painful vocals. It's a song about being emotionally detached and empty, not being able to discern the difference between 'heaven from hell', 'blue skies from pain'. The album also features one of the greatest tribute songs a band could ever form, Shine On You Crazy Diamond, not to mention two other thematically forceful tracks, Have A Cigar and Welcome to the Machine. This is a masterful work.
3. The Dark Side of the Moon (1973, Pink Floyd)
Need I say more? This album is the epitome of psychedelic rock, as we all know. With complex instrumentation and poetic lyrics, it has to be one of the most absorbing, endlessly listenable works produced. Each track conceptually and thematically builds on the next, all the way to climax of Eclipse which, in my opinion, is perhaps the greatest under-2-minute song ever composed. How Pink Floyd managed to embed so much notional depth without coming across as indulgent or repetitious is beyond me. It's just fantastic.
4. Selling England by the Pound (1973, Genesis)
Like most artistically revered works, this was shamefully overlooked upon its release. It's a phenomenal album about the loss of national culture and identity. It's sardonic at times, poignant at others, but always tonally consistent and never musically sporadic. Despite belonging to the movement of progressive rock, it maintains its own 'style' throughout and doesn't feel the need to succumb to prog-rock conventions. It is really beautiful.
5. Fragile (1971, Yes)
This list started with Yes and it will end with Yes. There is nothing else out there like Fragile. It has no real conceptual theme or subject, but rather, spawns a collection of some wonderfully experimental music. Its closing track, Heart of the Sunrise, is absolutely incredible, not to mention other seminal greats like Roundabout, We Have Heaven and Mood For A Day. This work is the product of a band who were well ahead of their time. The somewhat complex experimentation of this album gives it great density, making it better and better upon every listening.
