I'm of the opinion that everything in life should be set to music. It is often said that music eases the soul, soothes the savage beast, and whatnot. I think that a lot of people say that they love music, but it never fails that most of them seem to fall way short of a nonexistent standard that I believe in. Not to sound like some kind of musical aristocrat, but this writer truly is an audiophile.
It is in this spirit that I have decided there should be some kind of list that people should gauge all music by, some sort of guidance so that future generations, and this generation, for that matter, don't swallow everything that studio bands put out without at least questioning why they're on the top 40.
Mind you that this list is compiled of albums I believe to be the most influential to music as a whole, not individuals, and it's not a list of my favorite albums. And in honor of my wife's upcoming 2nd anniversary of her 29th birthday, I have decided to go back three decades.
So, without further ado, I hereby present to you the ten albums I believe have influenced music in the last 30 years.
10. Nine Inch Nails/Pretty Hate Machine (1989)
Released in 1989, and re-released in 2005 after struggles with the original publishing label, "Pretty Hate Machine" has influenced several genres of music including goth-rock, industrial, techno, and grunge. "Head like a hole" became an anthem for angst-ridden teenagers everywhere, and, in a close tie with "Closer", is the most recognizable Nine Inch Nails single to be released to date. Trent Reznor has fought for musicians' rights and the rights of his listeners, and his new album series "Ghosts" has been made available for free download on the internet, a slap in the face to bands like Metallica that have lobbied to tear down internet download sites like Napster, Limewire, and a myriad of bit torrent clients.
9. Metallica/Self-titled (aka "The Black Album") 1991
Despite the fact that I am NOT a Metallica fan, I must admit the influence this self-titled album held, if only to broaden their listener base. It's the 25th highest selling album in the United States, selling well over 15 million copies (hmmm…I wonder how many copies have been downloaded illegally?). When they went mainstream, Metallica cleaned up their act by getting haircuts and going clean and sober. Personally, I think they made better music when they were drunk, but that's just me.
8. Grateful Dead/In The Dark (1987)
Featuring the single "Touch of gray", the Grateful Dead made a resurgence in the late 80's, inspiring many to get back to the folk sounds of earlier rock and roll with their 12th studio album. The breakthrough video for "Touch of gray", featuring the band transforming from skeletal marionettes to their living selves, garnered much airplay on MTV, and it soared to a top ten hit on the Billboard charts, the highest ever for the band. Countless 'new hippies' were spawned by this album when a whole new generation was exposed to their music, adding to the great legacy frontman and guitarist, Jerry Garcia, left behind.
7. Guns 'N Roses/Appetite For Destruction (1987)
The first studio album (everyone knows of the 'bootleg' EP of "Live ?!*@ Like a Suicide") for Guns N' Roses, they managed to create a sound combining heavy metal, rock, punk, and blues, a recipe that is still being used today and can be seen in bands like Offspring, Rage Against The Machine, and, of course, Velvet Revolver.
6. They Might Be Giants/Flood (1989)
Their third studio album, and their first with Elektra (their first major label), They Might Be Giants transformed the future of experimental and alternative music. Using seldom-heard instruments, like the accordion and the glockenspiel, the two Johns of TMBG put out an album that could reach everyone. With more upbeat rhythm and semi-silly lyrics, most people credit their first Giants experience with the two music videos from Tiny Toon Adventures. Forging forward with a sound that had never been heard before by most people, They Might Be Giants experienced a number 3 hit with "Birdhouse in your soul."
5. Dr. Dre/The Chronic (1992)
Dr Dre's first solo project after he left N.W.A, "The Chronic" was many people's first taste of so-called 'gangster rap'. In fact, most people that previously refused to buy rap albums ran out and snatched up copies of the single "Nuttin' but a G thang". Co-starring on the album was a young, up and coming rapper by the name of Snoop Doggy Dogg. The Chronic opened the door for more and more (often copycat) gangster rappers to release their albums into the mainstream media.
3. It's a tie!
Sex Pistols/Nevermind the Bollocks…Here's the Sex Pistols! (1977)
&
Ramones/Road To Ruin (1978)
Okay, yes, I did say the last 30 years, but it's my list so I'm entitled to a little creative license. "Nevermind the Bollocks…Here's the Sex Pistols!", featuring the well known single "Anarchy in the UK", did, in fact, come out one year outside of my 30 year window, but I would be remiss if I didn't include one of the most influential punk albums of all time. Furthermore, I decided to forego the ever-present argument about who started punk, Sex Pistols or The Ramones, by letting them tie. "Road To Ruin" was the fourth album by The Ramones, but it contained the single "I wanna be sedated", which has become the band's (arguably) most popular song. The album also displayed the heavy influence 1960's surf music played on the band. Now, did punk start in England with Sex Pistols, or did it start in New York with The Ramones? Just like the eternal Tootsie Roll Pop question, the world may never know. Who cares, though? We've been blessed by some of the most influential music of all time, not just this or a past generation.
2. Beastie Boys/Licensed To Ill (1986)
In the mid-80's, three Jewish punk rockers from New York decided to change up their style and name. Boys Entering Anarchistic States Towards Internal Excellence (or 'Beastie Boys', for short) released an album with Def Jam entitled "Licensed To Ill". The first rap album to make it onto Billboard's Pop Albums chart, it also made number 2 on their Hip Hop/R&B Albums chart. Not only that, but white rappers were unheard of at the time. Vanilla Ice and Eminem, you can thank the Beastie Boys.
And finally…(drum roll, please)
1. Nirvana/Nevermind (1991)
All modern rock artists owe a special homage to what is quite possibly the most influential album to be released since the 1960's. Though grunge music had been around before its advent, and even though it wasn't Nirvana's first album (Bleach was the first, just in case you didn't know), "Nevermind" revolutionized music in the early Nineties. Overnight almost, we went from wearing tight jeans and idolizing bands like Poison, Warrant, and Motley Crue to wearing flannel and hearing the sounds of bands like Mudhoney, Pearl Jam, and Cracker. The album has gone platinum ten times over and remains a popular seller even today, more than 15 years after its release.
So there you have it, the official "Top Ten Most Influential Albums of the Last 30 Years" list. Well, to be honest, I'm not sure how official it is, but this is the way I see it.
Okay, yes, I did say the last 30 years, but it's my list so I'm entitled to a little creative license. "Nevermind the Bollocks…Here's the Sex Pistols!", featuring the well known single "Anarchy in the UK", did, in fact, come out one year outside of my 30 year window, but I would be remiss if I didn't include one of the most influential punk albums of all time. Furthermore, I decided to forego the ever-present argument about who started punk, Sex Pistols or The Ramones, by letting them tie. "Road To Ruin" was the fourth album by The Ramones, but it contained the single "I wanna be sedated", which has become the band's (arguably) most popular song. The album also displayed the heavy influence 1960's surf music played on the band. Now, did punk start in England with Sex Pistols, or did it start in New York with The Ramones? Just like the eternal Tootsie Roll Pop question, the world may never know. Who cares, though? We've been blessed by some of the most influential music of all time, not just this or a past generation.
2. Beastie Boys/Licensed To Ill (1986)
In the mid-80's, three Jewish punk rockers from New York decided to change up their style and name. Boys Entering Anarchistic States Towards Internal Excellence (or 'Beastie Boys', for short) released an album with Def Jam entitled "Licensed To Ill". The first rap album to make it onto Billboard's Pop Albums chart, it also made number 2 on their Hip Hop/R&B Albums chart. Not only that, but white rappers were unheard of at the time. Vanilla Ice and Eminem, you can thank the Beastie Boys.
And finally…(drum roll, please)
1. Nirvana/Nevermind (1991)
All modern rock artists owe a special homage to what is quite possibly the most influential album to be released since the 1960's. Though grunge music had been around before its advent, and even though it wasn't Nirvana's first album (Bleach was the first, just in case you didn't know), "Nevermind" revolutionized music in the early Nineties. Overnight almost, we went from wearing tight jeans and idolizing bands like Poison, Warrant, and Motley Crue to wearing flannel and hearing the sounds of bands like Mudhoney, Pearl Jam, and Cracker. The album has gone platinum ten times over and remains a popular seller even today, more than 15 years after its release.
So there you have it, the official "Top Ten Most Influential Albums of the Last 30 Years" list. Well, to be honest, I'm not sure how official it is, but this is the way I see it.
