What has been your biggest album disappointment?

For me, it's Bowie's Hours.... I grew up knowing the hits, but had only gotten "bit" by the Bowie bug in 1993, when I was in college and Black Tie White Noise was the new LP. My fan-dom built to a peak over the next few years, but was really setback by Hours..., which never clicked for me (not even to this day, despite revisiting it at least annually). I got back on-board with Heathen and enjoyed everything that followed, but the impact of Hours... was that there were a few years in there (1999-2002) when I passed-up a number of opportunities to see DB live, as I was living in NYC at the time. Foolish me, in retrospect!

 

The Kinks - Village Green Preservation Society. I can maybe get through 2 songs.

 

Todd Rundgren A Wizard a True Star...I have the new SACD. I couldn't get through it once. The recording itself sounds terrible and was produced poorly. The music was "interesting", but it didn't pull me in. I doubt I will ever listen to it again.

 

The Killers - Battleborn

Was onboard with the first three songs (Flesh and Bone, Runaways and The Way It Was) which are pretty good - Runaways in particular is a corker.

Then it hit me that the rest of the album sounds all the same and I got totally sick of it before it's (overlong) runtime was over

In late years I have gained some appreciation for it but more just cause I love the band. As it is there are five songs that I am a fan of - the three previously mentioned, Ms Atomic Bomb and Battleborn

 

Chicago - VIII
Beach Boys - 15 Big Ones
Beach Boys - Smiley Smile
George Harrison - Dark Horse
Paul McCartney - Wings Wild Life
Elton John - Leather Jackets
Elton John - Victim Of Love
U2 - Pop

 

Morbid Angel - Illud Divinum Insanus
Cryptopsy - The Unspoken King
Metallica - St. Anger, Death Magnetic (absolutely terrible sound), and that Lulu album
Celtic Frost - Cold Lake
Machine Head - The Burning Red/Supercharger
Pitchshifter - Deviant and PSI

 

OK this is going back almost 50 years but when Jethro Tull released Stand Up I was very disappointed. I loved their first album "This Was" and thought that "jazz-rock" was going to be a big new thing and they were unbelievable at it with Mick Abrahams on guitar. When I first played the album "Stand Up" (bought it on 8 track) even though some of the tunes on it reminded me of the first album for ex. "Nothing is Easy", I really hated the British folk stuff on it and and realized they were headed in a different direction that i hoped. I also bought Benefit which confirmed for me they were heading off in another direction. I did like Stand Up and Benefit though but I was very disappointed they had changed directions and changed their guitar player. that first album had a verve and swing that they never approached again. It was all downhill for me after "This Was" Listening to it today I realize it was uneven and some of the stuff on that album also wasn't wonderful, the stuff that was more than made up for the less exciting stuff. This was definitely my biggest album disappointment in my life. I still feel let down to this day.

 

Sam's Town has become my favorite Killers album after the initial "Huh?" I think retrospective reviews are much kinder to it and it's considered a very unerrappreciated album. That said, "Horses for courses"......we all bring a unique ear to the conversation.

 

Ryan Adams - Ashes & Fire (or anything post Cardinals)

Blur - Magic Whip (underwhelming but not without its charms)

Radiohead - King of Limbs (Codex aside a turd of an album)

Arcade Fire - Reflector (the moment they disappeared up their own asses)

Pink Floyd - Endless River (a damp squib)

Kings of Leon - Because of the Times (KOL sellout)

 

Planet waves dylan
American dream csny
The byrds 1973

 

Coldplay - A Rush of Blood to the Head. Loved 'Parachutes', hated this at a cellular level. Never bothered with them since.

The Killers - Sam's Town. Floored by the brilliance of their first album and floored by how awful this was in comparison.

 

Extreme - Waiting for the Punchline
Talking Heads - True Stories
Supertramp - Some Things never Change
Bowie - Tonight / Lever Let me Down / Hours
Iggy Pop - Avenue B
Pink Floyd - The Division Bell (90% of it)
The Clash - Cut the Crap
Yes - Union / Heaven & Earth
Django Django - Marble Skies (not a disaster but much less ambitious I think)
Neil Young - Broken Arrow
Boston - Don't look Back / Third stage
Blue Oyster Cult - Mirrors / Curse of the Hidden Mirror (not disastrous, just not great for me)

 

George Harrison's SOMEWHERE IN ENGLAND. I loved the GEORGE HARRISON album and liked the first single (All Those Years Ago) from SOMEWHERE IN ENGLAND, but the rest of the album was a major disappointment.

Led Zeppelin IN THROUGH THE OUT DOOR. I loved "In The Evening" but the rest of it I thought was boring, hokey, or just overly long overblown noise. Quite a disappointment.

Paul McCartney's PRESS TO PLAY. I actually liked the single "Press" (which I know many don't) and I wanted so badly to love the rest of the album, but only the ballad "Only Love Remains" ranks as anything more than average McCartney (and much of it is sub-par failed experimental McCartney)

BIG STAR THIRD/SISTER LOVERS. I had the first two Big Star albums and loved them and had read some reviews calling the 3rd one their best. Boy were those reviews wrong! That album isn't close to as good as the first two. "Jesus Christ" is a great song and "Nighttime" is hauntingly beautiful, but much of it is frankly somewhat incoherent.

 

REMs 1st LP after Bill. Reveal? Up? either way, it's blandness upsets me still.

 

Isn't Anything by My Bloody Valentine qualifies. I thought they might be to my taste as I love feedback guitars and all that. Absolutely awful and terrible production and songs; ditched it the day after.

 

Exile On Main Street......

 

Grateful Dead "Mars Hotel" sounded like the band was sleepwalking to me and the production seemed boring. The songs I had previously heard in concert just seemed dull in their studio versions.

 

Tonight’s the Night, neil young. I am a huge fan. But when this album came out, it seemed such a downer and his voice to me had a rougher edge than normal. I knew it was the first album after his band member, david briggs?, died of an over dose. But this my answer.

 

Creedence- Mardi Gras

Loved Sweet Hitchhiker and bought the album with high expectations. A true WTF moment for me.

 

It wasn't Briggs, it was Danny Whitten. But I get where you're at

 

Queen - Hot Space

 

My biggest album disappointment was for 10cc’s Look Hear. The writing just wasn’t as strong as I hoped and the production wasn’t quite as good as previous albums.

 

I think at the time the “junkie shiek” label elevated the album sometimes beyond what it deserved. I feel it’s a terrific album just very different compared to the first two

I’m a big fan of In Through The Out Door as it experimented with the Lz sound.

I’m there with you re: Somewhere in England and Press To Play. The former is just underwhelming. The latter had a couple of good songs mired in bad productions. Footsteps, Angry and one or two other songs were promising
But under delivered

 

almost as great as loveless imho... and the production on both albums is not quite perfect

 

Possibly... Arnold Grove Yodels Your Holiday Favorites


@Arnold Grove