Albums where One Side is Classic, But the Other Side Isn't

Absolutely agree on your point even though stateside i can't see the B side being reached for as often as the better recorded & hit laden A side that has so many career touchstones.

 

Side two may not be as obviously full of classic songs as Side 1, but I'd hate to claim that side 1 is a classic and side 2 is not. The album is a whole and hard to say that side 2 is in any way under par. I think the album repays listening to as a whole. I think a CD version would come to the rescue, because there is no way I ever pull the album after the title track (i.e. last song of side 1) when I play my CD copy.

Somehow I warm more to the looser experiments on side 2 than the masterwork on side 1 these days. I like the fact that it feels more like the pre-android music of the first 3 K-Werk LPs. And Autobahn at times feels like one idea that lasts for just a bit too long.

 

Radiohead - The King Of Limbs was the first one I thought of,Side B is amazing with Lotus Flower - Codex - Give Up The Ghost - Separator but the first half is the weakest side of music they've ever released.

 

Abbey Road

Side One - No Likey
Side Two - Classic

 

This is another one I'm gonna have to disagree with. Side B is also great to me, a darker and slightly more psychedelic/paranoid side of the B-52s (Devil in My Car, Quiche Lorraine, Strobe Light, 53 Miles West of Venus). Never again would they venture into that territory.

Again, I don't agree. Side 1 isn't as great as side 2, but it's still great. I don't mind Maxwell and Octopus.

 

won't scan the 12 pages, but i nominate as a classic on Side One

 

Surprised I didn't post this myself. Love the A-side of that LP, which has the best conclusion of any Steely Dan album side ever -- that Steve Khan solo trailing off into the infinitely cool distance is just magical.

But the B-side totally derails things with the title track, which I don't like at all, and the side as a whole feels like it really needed "The Second Arrangement".

 

Prefab Sprout "Steve McQueen"

 

This thread was built for Love’s Da Capo - because I’m sure that anyone who doesn’t like one side will probably be absolutely gaga for the other.

 

I like the whole of Dog and Butterfly but yes, side 2 has Mistral Wind which is one of their greatest tracks. I will agree that High Time and Hijinx are not the best Heart tracks ever but I’d rather listen to them than anything on say Passionworks.


“Save for the song "Straight On" side 1 is a dog” Nice pun, joke by the way

 

Although I like both sides, there's a big disparity between the tree monster hits/anthemic cuts of side 1 of Boston's debut and the less impressive, less consistent side 2

Ozzy's debut also qualifies

 

I scanned them for you. And it has been said. But I wonder. To declare side 1 as classic to the detriment of side 2, is to ignore the tracks 1970 (i feel alright) and the title track fun house. All we need to do is to lift up the record player arm right after 'fun house' side 2 ends, and we have yet another album with two classic sides!

 

fair enough

fair enough.... but it's still in decline starting with 1970 (at least to me) after the first 4 tracks

 

I love both sides of this album, but I agree that Side 1 is the classic side.

 

The Bossa Nova side is the better side.

 

van morrison - moondance

 

Although I love both sides of Moondance by Van Morrison, side 1 and side 2 oddly work as a "greatest hits side" and a "deep cuts side", respectively.

 

This is exactly what I'm afraid of when I don't read previous comments

 

2112

 

Rolling Stones: Tattoo You (side 2 every day of the week for me)
Echo and the Bunnymen: Ocean Rain (again, side 2)

Close, but for a side 2 gem and a duff side 1 track:

Pretenders: Learning to Crawl
Feelies: Only Life
R.E.M.: Lifes Rich Pageant

and I agree with an earlier comment about the Joshua Tree

 

But Side 2 has Mr. Crowley though.

 

And After the Ball / Million Miles and Baby’s Request!

 

I think it’s all good apart from No Bones Movies, that said I’ve always preferred Diary.

 

I actually did check all 12 pages to see if it had been said (wouldn't it be nice if there were an easier way to do that?) and it hasn't, so I'll nominate the best example I can think of: Neu! 2, where the first side is motorik at its most sublime and the second side is them playing a single of theirs at 78 and 16 and off-centre, and other rubbish 'experiments' because they ran out of money to record a proper side two.

 

What immediately comes to mind are 2 albums:

1) John Lennon - Live Peace. I can only listen to side 1 due to Yoko’s drivel ruining side 2. This seems to be a popular opinion because every copy of it I have ever seen, side 2 is MINT lol

2) George Harrison - Concert For Bangladesh. I can’t say I have ever listened to the “Indian” part, and likely never will. But boy oh boy, Dylan’s set was phenomenal