The 60's & 70's - What essentials am I missing?

[Zoots]

I was browsing my iTunes library sorted by year, which is always fun, and realized that I have a lot more albums from recent years and decades than say 30 or 40 years back. I thought I had a lot of essentials from the 60s and 70s but when I list it out, it looks skeletal.

1960-62
none

1963
The Beatles - Please Please Me
The Beatles - With The Beatles

1964
The Beatles - Beatles For Sale
The Beatles - A Hard Day's Night

1965
The Beatles - Help!
The Beatles - Rubber Soul

1966
The Beach Boys - Pet Sounds
The Beatles - Revolver

1967
The Beatles - Magical Mystery Tour
The Beatles - Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band
The Doors - The Doors
Pink Floyd - Piper At The Gates Of Dawn

1968
The Beatles - White Album
Jimi Hendrix - Electric Ladyland
Pink Floyd - A Saucerful Of Secrets

1969
The Beatles - Abbey Road
The Beatles - Yellow Submarine
Led Zeppelin - I
Led Zeppelin - II
Pink Floyd - More
Pink Floyd - Ummagumma

1970
The Beatles - Let It Be
The Doors - Morrison Hotel
Led Zeppelin - III

1971
Led Zeppelin - IV
Pink Floyd - Meddle
Pink Floyd - Relics

1972
David Bowie - The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars
Pink Floyd - Obscured By Clouds

1973
Led Zeppelin - Houses Of The Holy
Pink Floyd - Dark Side Of The Moon
The Who - Quadrophenia

1974
none

1975
Aerosmith - Toys In The Attic
Led Zeppelin - Physical Graffiti
Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here
Queen - A Night At The Opera

1976
Led Zeppelin - Presence

1977
David Bowie - Low
Pink Floyd - Animals

1978
Kraftwerk - The Man Machine
Led Zeppelin - In Through The Out Door

1979
The Clash - London Calling
Gary Numan - The Pleasure Principle
Michael Jackson - Off The Wall
Pink Floyd - The Wall
(lol I just realized that Off The Wall and Wall were released the same year!)

That's it. I'm talking about complete albums btw. I do have scattered songs and hits from Bob Dylan, The Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen, CCR and others but I'm not a huge fan of those artists anyway. I like specific songs of theirs.

Anyway, what essentials am I missing from that period, 1960 - 1979? The stress here is on "essentials" because I know one could recommend pages and pages of albums but please suggest only the best of the best because I cannot spend all my money on music lol. Thanks.

 

[Screwtape2]

60's and 70's? The obvious question is how do you feel about prog rock?

 

[Zoots]

60's and 70's? The obvious question is how do you feel about prog rock?

Other than Floyd, I'm not a huge fan of the genre. I do like a select few songs by Genesis, Yes, Nektar, Camel etc. but I never bothered to try those albums out.

 

[bono_212]

Well I was going to mention various Rolling Stones albums...but if you don't like them, then I'm kind of lost

Wait for LemonMelon to post in here, he'll have some good advice...I think XD

 

[Zoots]

Yeah I know I'm missing Let It Bleed and Beggar's Banquet especially but I have mixed feelings about the Stones. For example: I love Gimme Shelter and Street Fighting Man but You Can't Always Get What You Want and Sympathy For The Devil bore me.

 

[financeguy]

No Byrds?

No Dylan?

No Procul Harem?

Back to the drawing board for you, my son.

 

[bono_212]

Get on MSN and I'll tell you what I have, if you want any of it

 

[No spoken words]

The rest of The Who's catalogue, I'd say, especially Who's Next.

London Calling by the Clash

Elton John's work, especially Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy Don't Shoot Me I'm Only the Piano Player and Madman across the Water.

Pet Sounds by the Beach Boys.

What's Going On by Marvin Gaye

Talking Book, Songs in the Key of Life, Innervisions and Music of my Mind by Stevie Wonder

.....and I'll stop there, and let others chime in.....Bob Dylan should pop up soon, I'd think, at the very least......

 

[Zoots]

No Byrds?

I have like 2 songs, lol.

No Dylan?

I have pretty much all the hits. But like I said I'm not a super huge fan although I do like his music.

No Procul Harem?

I know Whiter Shade Of Pale but would you consider them essential?

 

[If you shout...]

Ummmmmm...The Velvet Underground, maybe...? Only the most important non-Beatles rock band of the last 50 years. Start with Loaded, the band's last record, and work backwards. The best band ever, in terms of a ratio of good songs to bad ones. In fact, there were no bad ones, now that I think about it. Awesome!

 

[LemonMelon]

You're missing...many. Yeah, that's not a great collection.

I'll make a list later on tonight, and help you out if I can find some links.

 

[Zoots]

The rest of The Who's catalogue, I'd say, especially Who's Next.

Yeah I've been wanting to get Who's Next and Tommy for so long but not getting around to it. There are way too many albums on my wish list as it is.

London Calling by the Clash
Pet Sounds by the Beach Boys.

I have those.

Talking Book, Songs in the Key of Life, Innervisions and Music of my Mind by Stevie Wonder

Yeah I've been curious about Stevie too. I have virtually nothing from him.

 

[No spoken words]

Sorry, Zoots, did not see them on the list, my bad!

 

[Zoots]

You're missing...many. Yeah, that's not a great collection.

I know!

I'll make a list later on tonight, and help you out if I can find some links.

Cool!

 

[Zoots]

Ummmmmm...The Velvet Underground, maybe...? Only the most important non-Beatles rock band of the last 50 years. Start with Loaded, the band's last record, and work backwards. The best band ever, in terms of a ratio of good songs to bad ones. In fact, there were no bad ones, now that I think about it. Awesome!

Just checked my itunes and I have 2 songs from Loaded... Sweet Jane and Rock & Roll. And I have 4 songs from their self titled and 1 each from White Light/White Heat and VU & Nico. I'll look into the rest of Loaded. Thanks!

 

[U2isthebest]

Fleetwood Mac-Rumours
The Stranger-Billy Joel
What's Going On?-Marvin Gaye
the Elton John albums NSW mentioned.
Transit Authority, Chicago II-XI-Chicago

Normally, I'd suggest all The Beatles, The Doors (which you already have), The Rolling Stones, The Who, Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan, etc...

 

[Zoots]

Fleetwood Mac-Rumours

What little I've heard of them on the radio, I'm not a big fan.

The Stranger-Billy Joel

Here's another artist I like a large number of songs by but don't have even a single album! Actually just yesterday I heard Ballad of Billy the kid on the radio and was thinking what a great song, I should get some of his albums.

 

[The Sad Punk]

It's such a vast era of music full of rapidly changing genres, you can't really expect to get all the classic albums just in a snap.

But for me, other than a few already mentioned here, I think you need Forever Changes by Love the most.

 

[No spoken words]

Fleetwood Mac-Rumours
The Stranger-Billy Joel
What's Going On?-Marvin Gaye
the Elton John albums NSW mentioned.
Transit Authority, Chicago II-XI-Chicago

Normally, I'd suggest all The Beatles, The Doors (which you already have), The Rolling Stones, The Who, Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan, etc...

Don't you mention my name.

 

[U2isthebest]

What little I've heard of them on the radio, I'm not a big fan.

EPIC FAIL.

 

[U2isthebest]

Don't you mention my name.

Sorry, I meant to say "the albums Ho' bag slutface mentioned."

 

[No spoken words]

Sorry, I meant to say "the albums Ho' bag slutface mentioned."

If you're going to go that route, get it right:

Ho' face slutbag = me. Fuck.

 

[U2isthebest]

If you're going to go that route, get it right:

Ho' face slutbag = me. Fuck.

I make the rules around here, pal.

 

[Zoots]

But for me, other than a few already mentioned here, I think you need Forever Changes by Love the most.

Hmm I see I do have Alone Again Or thanks to El Mel's DI list!

 

[financeguy]

I have like 2 songs, lol.



I have pretty much all the hits. But like I said I'm not a super huge fan although I do like his music.

Musical taste is so individual ultimately, when I think of the '60s, I think of all those great Beatles albums you mentioned, but I also think of people like the Byrds, Gram Parsons, etc: for me anyway, Gram Parsons is essential.

I know Whiter Shade Of Pale but would you consider them essential?

Yes, I absolutely would. And the Kinks as well, that's a band I forgot to mention.

 

[financeguy]

Gary Numan - The Pleasure Principle

That is a very good choice. I only got into Numan's stuff quite recently.

I associate Numan more with the 80's than the 70's. He presaged an entire era.

Numan's sound is a world away from everything else mentioned here. It's hard to consider the likes of Numan in the same thread as the Byrds or even the Beatles - they inhabit a different universe.

 

[Zoots]

Kraftwerk doesn't fit the typical image of the 60's and 70's either. I fucking love Man Machine. But to be totally honest, I haven't given the Pleasure Principle enough listens. Right now I only remember Cars and Metal from it. I don't know, I felt the whole album sounded too mechanized and similar from beginning to end. There seem to be too many songs too. But I'm gonna give it another chance one of these days.

 

[toscano]

Bon Scott era AC/DC, Sex Pistols, Machine Head, Black Sabbath, Aerosmith, The Jam, The Stranglers

 

[Zoots]

Oh btw, I know I'm also missing CSNY and Neil Young. Been wanting to get those too!

 

[financeguy]

Kraftwerk doesn't fit the typical image of the 60's and 70's either. I fucking love Man Machine. But to be totally honest, I haven't given the Pleasure Principle enough listens. Right now I only remember Cars and Metal from it. I don't know, I felt the whole album sounded too mechanized and similar from beginning to end. There seem to be too many songs too. But I'm gonna give it another chance one of these days.