Your 5 Favourite albums

[mackemlad]

I once had an interesting conversation with friends a few years ago. It went on for hours and was great fun and showed how much a group of people who are very close friends can have such wide musical tastes.

It was desert Island disks sort of thing.But instead of indivdiaual songs,I asked my friends that if they were only ever allowed to listen to five albums again what would those albums be.

So lets see your 5 albums. The ones you cant do without,
The ones that if you had to sell your entire music collection to keep the balifs away from your door you would hide away in that secret place.

Give me an explanation why you chose them! Not just a list.
Give me 5 proper albums not bootlegs of obscure concerts, as brilliant as they may be.

Now this being a U2 site I expect to see a lot of U2 albums, but would you really choose five U2 albums, I love U2 with a passion but I wouldnt. Would you really choose there new album? I think the new album is awesome! but its too new to sacrifice any of my other albums.

For what its worth here is my list, In no particular order

1) A night at the Opera:-Queen
First heard this as an 8 yr old christmas 1975 I think. Its been with me all my life.I loved it then I love it now.
2) Back in Black :- AC/DC
My teenage band, Angus was my hero (till I discovered Edge).
Rip Bon Scott! long live Brian Johnson
3) Live & Dangerous :- Thin Lizzy
Best live album ever bar none. Check the guitar/rock magazines they all say it too!
4) The Joshua tree
Not my fave U2 album,I cant pick one cos I move from one to the other.But this has Streets! and I couldnt go without hearing this song ever again. So JT has to be in.
5) Stanley Roadaul Weller
For you Americans out there.Paul was singer in 70's punk/mod band The Jam.I dont think they ever dented the american charts.This is a great solo album released in the mid 90's full of great melodies and lyrics.


So there you go, thats my five I hope to see some replies and I hope it makes you think.

 

[Aardvark747]

1 - Achtung Baby (U2)
Just love the album. It was the 1st U2 one I bought, and ive never tired of it. Every song is a gem. Amazing music
My Top 3:- One/Acrobat/Love Is Blindness

2 - Joshua Tree (U2)
2nd album of theirs I bought - and even tho there's a couple of songs I do skip occasionally, it still flows beautifully and has some great lyrics.
My Top 3:- WOWY/RTSS/MOTD

3 - Dark Side Of The Moon (Pink Floyd)
I know everyone is supposed to love this one - but I dont just love it cos it's popular. The tunes are just so goddamn brilliant! I mean, you have Time/Great Gig In The Sky/Money/Eclipse/Breathe, some amazing music, and lyrically fantastic. It's one of the biggest selling albums of all time, and I understand exactly why.
My Top 3:- Time/GGITS/Brain Damage

4 - S&M (Metallica)
This album is amazing. The older songs from Puppets sound fantastic with the Symphony behind them. And the new songs sound superb too. No Leaf Clover is just sublime
I never tire of this one, and doubt I ever will. Michael Kamen was a genius, and knew exactly how to take Metallica's music, and make it work with the strings and all behind it.
They could've included Fade To Black and/or The Unforgiven - but maybe that would've been too easy!
My Top 3:- The Thing That Should Not Be/No Leaf Clover/Call Of Ktulu

5 - The Final Cut (Pink Floyd)
This album gets slagged by many people, not to mention Floyd fans themselves. It's a Roger Waters masterpiece. He's never quite done it for me with his solo stuff, but this album is just amazing. It takes you places, in the same way that DSOTM does - but just to a different place! The muddy trenches on the battlefields of WW1 for one.
For me, it's a superb concept album, 2nd only to DSOTM and just ahead of THE WALL.
My Top 3:- Gunnars Dream/Southampton Dock/Final Cut

 

[jcool]

1. Automatic With The People - REM

2. Wish You were Here - Pink Floyd

3. Talking Book - Stevie Wonder

4. Rubber Soul - Beatles

5. The Bends /Zooropa - Radiohead / U2

I love them all.

 

[tennispunk]

ohhh this is tough

in no particular order....

U2 - Zooropa
Sonic Youth - Daydream Nation
The Tossers - Long Dim Road
The Slackers - Wasted Days
Kid606 - Kill Sound Before Sound Kills You

 

[Bonochick]

U2 - Achtung Baby
Ryan Adams - Gold
Whiskeytown - Pneumonia
Bright Eyes - Fevers and Mirrors
Jesse Malin - The Heat

 

[LarryMullen's POPAngel]

Let It Bleed - Stones
Achtung Baby - U2
Nirvana - In Utero
Abbey Road - Beatles
The Blue Album - Weezer

 

[Muggsy]

*Achtung baby - U2
* MetallicA - MetallicA
* Nevermind - Nirvana
* Skull & Bones - Cypress Hill
* Zooropa - U2

 

[SkeeK]

U2 - Achtung Baby
Outkast - ATLiens
Massive Attack - Mezzanine
Underworld - Dubnobasswithmyheadman
Radiohead - The Bends

 

[SeattleVertigo]

OK, I don't listen to albums much anymore (Musicmatch Jukebox, baby!) but I'll give it a shot:

U2 - HTDAAB
Peter Gabriel - Secret World Live
R.E.M. - Automatic For The People
Paul Simon - Concert for Central Park
U2 - Achtung Baby

 

[bw in dc]

This is fluid, but right now (no order):

"Girlfriend" - Matthew Sweet
"The Wild, Innocent, & the E-Street Shuffle - Springsteen
"Night & Day" - Joe Jackson
"Murmur" - REM
"Unforgettable Fire" - U2

 

[TheBrazilianFly]

U2 - Achtung Baby
Metallica - Master Of Puppets
The Rolling Stones - Let It Bleed
Bruce Springsteen - Born To Run
AC/DC - Back In Black

 

[Acrobat_Al]

U2 - Achtung Baby
Pink Floyd - Dark Side of the Moon
The Verve - Urban Hymns
Vinnie Moore - Time Odyssey
The Beatles - Rubber Soul
Blur - 13
Robbie Williams - The Ego Has Landed
Radiohead - Ok Computer
Oasis - Standing on the Shoulder of Giants
The Beatles - Abbey Road
Pink Floyd - Animals
U2 - Joshua Tree
Radiohead - The Bends
Blur - Parklife
Radiohead - Kid A
Coldplay - Parachutes
Franz Ferdinand - Franz Ferdinand
AC Jobim - Best Of




Who am I kidding...??

I cant do it, i cant pick only five...

 

[ZeroDude]

1. Achtung Baby -U2
2.Oasis -Whats The Story Morning Glory
3.Station to Station- David Bowie
4.OutKast- Stankonia
5.The Stone Roses-The Stone Roses

 

[elevatedmole]

This is gonna be difficult.

1: Beck - Midnite Vultures. Completely opened me to a whole new side of music. The sheer variety and deftness in the lyrics and music makes it my absolute favourite album. I heard it for the first time almost 2 years ago and I never tire of it. It gets constant play.

2: Beck - Odelay. Incredible album. Big milestone for me, in my musical life. I can't imagine life without being able to hear Hotwax.

3: U2 - Pop. I think this is now my favourite U2 album. It took me a while to get into, like all the best albums do.

4: The Flaming Lips - Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots. Wayne Coyne, besides being a wonderfully innovative and unique lyricist, has such a lovely, plaintive voice that is just incomparable. He has something about his voice that just brings a smile to my face everytime I hear him sing. And I don't smile much

5: Ted Leo and the Pharmacists - Hearts of Oak. Ted Leo has wonderful singing-along type songs, great lyrics, good music. I wish Timorous Me was on this, because it's a really, really good song. But it's not.

Honorable mentions: Rufus Wainwright - Want One, U2 - Achtung Baby, The Shins - Chutes Too Narrow, and Air - Talkie Walkie.

 

[korczykp]

1) U2 - Achtung Baby

2) Metallica - ...And Justice for All

3) Pilate - Caught By the Window

4) U2 - Pop

5) tie: 311 - Blue Album/ Beatles - White Album

 

[If you shout...]

In order...

1) Achtung Baby--U2

2) White Light/White Heat--The Velvet Underground

3) Stop Making Sense--Talking Heads

4) Kid A--Radiohead

5) Midnite Vultures--Beck

 

[Elvis Presley]

Wayyyy too difficult, but I cant resist a good list..

U2- Achtung
REM- Automatic for the people
Wilco- Yankee Hotel Foxtrot
Ryan Adams- Heartbreaker
Radiohead- The Bends

 

[djerdap]

U2 - Achtung Baby
The Cure - Disintegration
Radiohead - The Bends
Pearl Jam - No Code
Pixies - Doolittle

 

[tennispunk]

oh man, Massive Attack.
fantastic shit.
"Safe From Harm," the first cut on Blue Lines is one of my all-time favorite songs.
Nicolette is amazing.

good call on that one, SkeeK

U2 - Achtung Baby
Outkast - ATLiens
Massive Attack - Mezzanine
Underworld - Dubnobasswithmyheadman
Radiohead - The Bends

 

[Lancemc]

3) Stop Making Sense--Talking Heads

Love the Talking Heads so much!

 

[Saracene]

I'm not including U2 because I'd go insane trying to decide between three or four albums.

1) PJ Harvey - To Bring You My Love. My favourite album by anyone, period. Dark, sexy, scary and emotionally charged to the max.

2) Pixies - Trompe le Monde. It's a hard task deciding between Pixies albums, but this one wins narrowly in the end.

3) Tori Amos - From the Choirgirl Hotel. I love the spooky fairytale atmosphere of this album, and Tori's voice just breaks my heart.

4) Howard Shore - the soundtrack to "Lord of the Rings - Return of the King". I'm a huge LoTR junkie,

5) Pink Floyd - The Wall. Mother of all concept albums.

Hmm, looking at my list it's a whole load of depressing music I'm taking with me on an island,

 

[Siren]

Achtung Baby- U2
The Downward Spiral- Nine Inch Nails
Facelift- Alice In Chains
Ten- Pearl Jam
The Joshua Tree- U2/Pretty Hate Machine-Nine Inch Nails: tie

 

[bayernfc]

If you're talking about all-time favourites, then (changes frequently though):

1. The Clash - London Calling (actually their entire catalogue)
(Do I really need to explain this one?)
2. Joe Strummer and The Mescaleros - Streetcore
(Last great album by possibly the best lyricist of all time IMO, just listen to Get Down Moses or Ramshackle Day Parade)
3. The Smiths - The Queen Is Dead
(Very Cliche for a Smiths fan to name this one but except for the last song on there, it's a great collection)
4. U2 - Achtung Baby/JT (This has already been beaten to death)
5. REM - Automatic For The People

(I need more than 5 so honorable mentions to Springsteen, Morrissey, The Ramones, Radiohead...etc)

Edited - oh you wanted explanations!!

 

[jkayet]

This is hard...umm...ok, I'm resisting and not putting more than 5...maybe...

Achtung Baby - u2:
I like unorgettable fire better, but the tone of this one fits in with my other options better. I also just love it.

Asleep in the Back - Elbow
I love this album. I can listen to it repeatedly. Happy and sad. Cathartic.

Set List - The Frames
Great album altogether. Upbeat, entertaining...

Bryter Layter - Nick Drake
I love Nick Drake. This album has a lot of my favorites on it. Definitely soothing and the guitar is amazing.

Love is Here - Starsailor
I couldn't be without starsailor. This album reminds me of great times and I just love it.

I need more than 5.

 

[Bono's shades]

1. U2 - The Joshua Tree. Without this album, life is meaningless.
2. U2 - Achtung Baby. When U2 released this album it was like I had a new favorite band that was somehow one and the same with my old favorite band.
3. Marvin Gaye - What's Going On. Everything great about soul music in one beautiful package.
4. Jeff Buckley - Grace. One of the most perfect albums ever made by anyone, ever.
5. Bruce Springsteen - Born to Run. It's the Springsteen "Bible," so it's coming to the desert island with me.

 

[Cute Irish Bono]

1. U2-Actung Baby
2. Everclear-So Much For the Afterglow
3. Oleander-Feburay Son
4. Tears For Fears-(Tears Roll Down) The Greatest Hits
5. U2-Zooropa

 

[Zoomerang96]

radiohead - ok computer (why has this not been mentioned yet?)
wilco - a ghost is born
broken social scene - you forgot it in people
the verve - urban hymns
u2 - pop

 

[Jack In The Box]

U2 - Achtung Baby
Wilco - Yankee Hotel Foxtrot
Interpol - Turn On The Bright Lights
Super Furry Animals - Fuzzy Logic
Elbow - Asleep In The Back

extra:
Beatles - Revolver

 

[pub crawler]

Sweet jebus, hell if i know. I hate all albums right now.

No, actually i don't but I often list achtung baby as my favorite u2 album and yet i hardly ever listen to it. I've listened to the Dropkick Murphy's Live On St. Patrick's Day more in the last year than any u2 album...

In the last couple years i've gone back to Led Zeppelin's first album quite a bit.

I was hooked on Franz Ferdinand's for a while. Then the Killers' disc for a day or two.

Okay, how 'bout this..

Soundgarden - Superunknown
Fugees - The Score
Sneaker Pimps - Becoming X
Wilco - Being There
Johnny Cash - 16 Biggest Hits

 

[HeartlandGirl]

I'm guessing we can't take greatest hits compilations.

Radiohead - Kid A
Placebo - Without You I'm Nothing
Tori Amos - Scarlet's Walk
U2 - Zooropa
AFI - Sing the Sorrow

I wanna take Manic Street Preachers and Bubba Sparxxx too! And tons of others!