Tribute Albums That Don't Suck

The tracks vary in quality, but overall this album is a worthwhile listen:



Red Hot + Blue: A Tribute To Cole Porter - Various Artists | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic

 

And then there's ours...

 

Mysterious Voyages: A Tribute To Weather Report...

 

"Rock And Roll Doctor" - A Tribute to Lowell George.

 

Sunday Nights: The Songs Of Junior Kimbrough

 

Vindictaed!: Fleshtones Tribute

 

From 2000: the cream of the power-metal crop pays tribute to RJD.

 

One of the best from start to finish:

 

Remove the Beach Boys' Godawful cover of Crocodile Rock and this would be a masterpiece:

 

From 1999:
Deadline/Cleopatra Records farted out a ton of assembly line hard rock "tribute" albums like this in the late 90s/early 2000s, most of them drawing from the same talent pool of out-of-work hair metal dudes. The bulk of them were terrible, but this one is the exception. It's worth the album price just to hear Bruce Dickinson's take on "Black Widow."

 

Their remake of Radiohead's OK Computer is especially fantastic -- light years better than it really could have easily been.

There have been a handful of years(!) where I've played the Easy Stars version of the album more times than Radiohead's version, it's THAT good.

 

I'll have to seek this one out. Thx!!

 

Our Band Could Be Your Life

 

A little uneven like most but I'm very fond of this along with the Doc Pomus one already mentioned. Of course I'd buy anything with a Tom Verlaine track.

 

This Hal Wilner project (reimagined Fellini film music, including my favorite Carla Bley performance and v. early Bill Frisell) started the VA tribute revival, it's exquisite (IMHO, YMMV).

 

One of my favorite one on one tributes; Merle's tribute to JR (Same Train, Different Time) works as a multilevel tribute to Rodgers & Lefty.

 

Supposedly the first full length tribute to Bob Wills, not to be confused with the later Ray Price/Willie Nelson duets album of the same name which is also quite lovely.

 

My favorite album of the 90's

 

Iced Earth - Tribute to the Gods

Tracklisting:

1. Creatures of the Night (KISS)
2. The Number of the Beast (Iron Maiden)
3. Highway to Hell (AC/DC)
4. Burnin’ for You (Blue Oyster Cult)
5. God of Thunder (KISS)
6. Screaming for Vengeance (Judas Priest)
7. Dead Babies (Alice Cooper)
8. Cities on Flame (Blue Oyster Cult)
9. It’s a Long Way to the Top (AC/DC)
10. Black Sabbath (Black Sabbath)
11. Hallowed Be Thy Name (Iron Maiden)

 

One of the most heartfelt and from someone who certainly knew the subject and his work about as well as possible.

 

Los Lobos should get a special shout out for their many fine contributions to these sorts of projects and other fine cameos - they never seem to just phone it in.

 

With Los Lobos, I'd put Willie Nelson, Tom Waits and Norah Jones as real real frequent contributers who seem to do interesting stuff, i think.