I don't know how many groups like this are out there, but I like a good thought exercise as much as anybody. This is inspired by this thread: Procol Harum fans? I love Procol Harum, but I think their best album is Grand Hotel, which they made after Robin Trower left. I know this is heresy, but I never thought Trower was the right fit for them. He's a great guitar player, and obviously, his solo stuff speaks for itself. I certainly don't think the music suffered for having him in the mix. But Grand Hotel, for me, is the way Procol Harum should sound, and so is Live: In Concert with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra. I also have to say that the Roxy Music albums I listen to the most often are all post-Eno albums. I'm sorry!
New Adventures in Hi-Fi is my favourite R.E.M. album. Their classic period tends to be considered either the I.R.S. years or the early 90s when they sold millions of copies of Out Of Time & Automatic. Don’t know if this counts??
Monster is one of my favorite R.E.M. albums, the record store dollar bins of the nation notwithstanding. Some might consider it a piece of the band's second classic era, though. It's debatable.
I consider it the whole period from Reckoning through Automatic. They killed the momentum with Monster, one of the worst releases ever by a major band. It's Van Halen III-like it its awfulness. Then they almost but not quite rebounded with the next two, and then it was a slide. They may have been at their most beautiful, but they they weren't at their most good.
R.E.M. Atomatic For the People up (but not counting the last couple of albums.) I don't hate earlier years but not my favorite. Monster just a sharp curve to do something a little different.
Something like 90% of my all-time favorite David Bowie is all from the 90’s and AFTER. #1 Blackstar + “No Plan” EP + “Sue” (w/ the Maria Schneider Jazz Orchestra) #2 The Next Day + Next Day Extra #3 Reality + Heathen (tie) #5 Earthling #6 Outside …and after that, it all gets a little more murky, but the rest of my top-10 does probably also include Black Tie White Noise (if I can include the second disc of the BTWN 10th anniversary expanded edition). And I pretty much ignore most pre-1975 Bowie. Yes, on CD, I own 95% of EVERYTHING Bowie released AFTER Tin Machine (including damn near every NON-ALBUM track too, all on CD)… …and I’ve never even owned a physical copy of Ziggy Stardust. Just turned 55, and only got into Bowie in college as both Tin Machine albums came out — which were my first two Bowie albums I ever owned physical copies of… …and then slowly, and very casually I picked up most of Bowie’s 90’s and 00’s output for about $5-$6 a pop in the used bins, each a few years after each one came out (all purchased with a “sure, why not? — it’s cheap” attitude). I made no effort to specifically get into Bowie’s later output — it just happened. And then only after I’d bought nearly everything he ever recorded in the 90’s and 00’s — only then did I go back and buy some of his late 70’s and early 80’s output. But Young Americans is really only about as far back as I’ve ever gone — and I expect I’ll never break down and finally buy a physical copy of Ziggy either.
I never really think about bands like this, but I will say that my favourite three Duran Duran songs are Skin Trade, American Science and Seventh Stranger, none from their earlier heyday up to Rio
I suppose there are probably King Crimson fans and maybe Iron Maiden fans who prefer later era albums over "classic" period stuff.
And Spirit of Eden. It depends on which era of the band a fan considers classic - the earlier commercial records, or the two non-commercial masterpieces.
The Kinks! I certainly like everything up through Muswell Hillbillies, but really, really love nearly everything that came after. Schoolboys, Low Budget, State of Confusion, Give the People, Sleepwalker, Word of Mouth are some of my favorite albums of all time by any artist. I get so frustrated that it's only the first half a dozen years that gets any reissue attention.
I guess it depends. There are just some people you talk to who won't even discuss anything the band did after Eno left. They're kind of like people who only like the first Pink Floyd album.
color of spring is probably considered the classic, and is a great record, but the masterpieces as you stated come after it, with laughing stock being the masterpiece of masterpieces
I can't wait till someone argues that only the first two Steely Dan albums are classic era and their favorite Dan album is Aja...
I much prefer E.L.O's 1981 album Time than their earlier stuff. Lately, 1983's Secret Messages is being played more often (The full double album version), The same with 1986's Balance Of Power.
Classic era Roxy Music is generally the first five albums, three of which were after Eno, so to a certain extent, yes
Quite right. For me, and many, many other fans of Talk Talk, I very much consider Spirit & Laughing Stock as their classic period.
Black Sabbath - Heaven and Hell over the Ozzy years Lou Reed - Legendary Hearts over the 70s classics
