Albums that preceeded the Magnum Opus...

IMO, "Say" is easily the best of the 3 PM/MJ songs. I like "The Man" more than "Girl", if just because it has a good guitar part.

For me, "Girl" has NOTHING going for it. Lazy song, lame lyrics, embarrassing spoken word part, wimpy sound - it's just as blah as blah can be...

 

It seems currently fashionable to attempt to remove Sgt. Pepper off of its customary perch. Seems almost reactionary in response to the decades worth of universal praise and critical acclaim.

 

Agree. I feel a bit guilty of this myself, as I think all those years of "'SPLHCB' is the greatest thing ever!" wore on me to the point where I felt turned off by the album.


I listened to it again the other day and tried to do so without all that bias and you know what? It's a pretty darned good little album!

 

"Little" album? It's the biggest thing ever!!

 

I agree that part of the problem with the current standing of Sgt. Pepper, is an (over) reaction to "decades worth of universal acclaim...", but I think that unlike Revolver or Rubber Soul, Pepper demands to be listened to as a whole, and let's face it, that's hard to do with the one two-punch of "Within You, Without You" and "When I'm Sixty-Four"--both extremely dated in their own way. Revolver, on the other hand, is a collection of diverse songs that touch on pop, Motown, rock and experimental styles and can be enjoyed individually or as a whole. Let's face it, Sgt. Pepper---like The Who's Tommy--- just doesn't speak across the generations the way Revolver and Who's Next still do....

 

I suppose that is part of it. And I'll agree that Pepper the album is better than Pepper the collection of songs - the whole being greater than the sum of its parts, in a way.

Though I must disagree with many people's assessment of When I'm 64 - I love that tune. Never understood the scorn.

 

I don't think there's a truly bad song on the album. I've even come to appreciate "Within You" over the years - I used to unilaterally dismiss GH's Indian songs but now kinda like 'em.

"64" is probably my least-favorite song on the album, but I still think it's enjoyable - it's the best of PM's "granny songs".

But hey, I like "Good Morning" more than any other song on the album, so what do I know?

 

I'm having more trouble coming up with an answer to this than I thought I would...

So, just some random thoughts:

I think I am probably in the minority, but I always thought The Who Sell Out is a much more fun and enjoyable listen than Tommy.

There are days when I think Led Zeppelin III is better than IV.

I would never call The Wall a magnum opus, but insofar as some people do, Animals is infinitely better.

I think I like Da Capo better than Forever Changes, although I want to play the side-long "Revelation" again, before I'm willing to commit to this opinion.

The Bangles' All Over the Place is much fresher than their breakthrough Different Light

I still like Sinead O'Connor's The Lion and the Cobra better than I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got.

If Tim is the magnum opus, then Let It Be is better.

 

That would make Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!) their magnum opus then? (And then Party! came in between Today and Pet Sounds as well!)

 

Pink Floyd - The Division Bell



The magnum opus is yet to come.

 

Picky, picky...

 

I often forget that Party! is Pet Sounds predecessor. Imagine how puzzled people were going from Party to Pet Sounds. lol

 

It was a holding action by Brian to get Capitol off his back for 1965 holiday product so he could finish Pet Sounds.

 

With a single like Barbara Ann I'm sure many people bought that album. I dislike that song and album but do find the whole party singalong concept interesting.
They pretty much did unplugged before Mtv. lol

 

That may be a minority, but it's a pretty vocal minority - there are a lot of "Sell Out" supporters here!

 

Elton's next album (Madman) is great but IMO it isn't The Big One. I'd vote for 'Don't Shoot Me' leading into GBYBR.

A few others....

The Band: Big Pink--->Self titled
Eagles: One of these Nights--->Hotel California
Cheap Trick: In Color--->Heaven Tonight
Elvis Costello: This Year's Model--->Armed Forces
The Clash: Give 'em Enough Rope--->London Calling
Mott The Hoople: All The Young Dudes--->Mott
Billy Joel: Turnstiles--->The Stranger

 

Does this mean you're saying you prefer "Rope" to "London Calling"? Because that's like crazy talk!

 

"When I'm Sixty-Four" is a terrific song. It's well-produced and has a great vocal arrangement, but done up in a faux-music hall style that sounded like something from 1930, it just doesn't work for everyone.

 

No...if I understand the thread directly the idea is to list the album preceding the masterpiece, so all the titles in my post are in chronological order of predecessor--->masterpiece.

The potential for trafficking in crazy talk still exists, just not with this thread.

 

More Than a New Discovery - Laura Nyro
Song to a Seagull - Joni Mitchell

 

I like it just as much, anyways.