I know we've had this topic before in the past, but I've been immersed in the Stones this weekend and it really struck me again how massively amazing the Beggars Banquet/Let It Bleed/Sticky Fingers/Exile on Mainstreet sequence really is.

There are only a couple sequences that I think might compare:

Beatles: Revolver/Sgt. Peppers/MMT/White Album

or if you count MMT out as an EP, then add Rubber Soul to the beginning, or - maybe better - Abbey Road to the end.

Then there's Bowie's magical run: Station to Station/Low/Heroes/Lodger

Prince, of course: 1999/PR/ATWIAD/Parade - - or do you start with PR and go to SOTT? Debatable. ATWIAD is the weak link either way.

I gotta think that the Stones classic foursome is the best of them all.

Thoughts?

Some of my favourites:

Michael Jackson - Thriller/Bad/Dangerous/HIStory

Tori Amos - Little Earthquakes/Under The Pink/Boys For Pele/From The Choirgirl Hotel

Guns N Roses - Appetite For Destruction/GNR Lies/Use Your Illusions I/Use Your Illusions II

Aerosmith - Get Your Wings/Toys In The Attic/Rocks/Draw The Line

Madonna - Madonna Ray Of Light/Music/American Life/ Confessions

I know mostof her fans aren't big fans off all of those albums, but they are her finest work to me, besides LAP.

Bruce Springsteen - Darkness At The Edge Of Town/Nebraska/The River/Born In The USA

MJ- Off the wall, thriller, Bad, Dangerous

Janet- Control-RN-Janet-Velvet Rope

David Bowie: The Man Who Sold The World/Hunky Dory/Ziggy Stardust/Aladdin Sane

Bjork: Post/Homogenic/Vespertine/Medulla

Beck: Odelay/Mutations/Midnute Vultures/Sea Change

Janet Jackson: Control/Rhythm Nation/janet/The Velvet Rope

Shakira: Laundry Service/Fijacion Oral Vol 1/Oral Fixation Vol. 2/She Wolf Fijacion Oral Vol 1

Badu - Live-Mamas Gun-WWU-NA pt 1

Sade - Promise-Stronger than Pride-Love Delux-Lovers Rock

MJ - off the wall-thriller-bad-dangerous

P - dirty mind-controversy-1999-purple rain

Janet - control-RN-janet-tvr

madonna - like a prayer-im breathless-erotica-bedtime stories

missy - supa dupa fly-da real world-miss e so addictive-under construction

NoVideo said:

I know we've had this topic before in the past, but I've been immersed in the Stones this weekend and it really struck me again how massively amazing the Beggars Banquet/Let It Bleed/Sticky Fingers/Exile on Mainstreet sequence really is.

There are only a couple sequences that I think might compare:

Beatles: Revolver/Sgt. Peppers/MMT/White Album

or if you count MMT out as an EP, then add Rubber Soul to the beginning, or - maybe better - Abbey Road to the end.

Then there's Bowie's magical run: Station to Station/Low/Heroes/Lodger

Prince, of course: 1999/PR/ATWIAD/Parade - - or do you start with PR and go to SOTT? Debatable. ATWIAD is the weak link either way.

I gotta think that the Stones classic foursome is the best of them all.

Thoughts?

Beatles on the nose Prince of course

I would add

Billy Joel : Turnstiles -- The Stranger -- 52nd Street ---Glass Houses (one of the best ever runs)

Elton John : Elton John-- Tumbleweed Connection ---Madman Across the Water---Dont Shoot Me im only the piano player. (scary thing is that after this came Goodbye YellowBrick Road)

a-ha: Minor Earth Major Sky --- Lifelines----Analogue---Foot of the Mountain

John Mellencamp: Scarecrow---Lonesome Jubille---Big Daddy--Whenever We Wanted (and scary also because his greatest recording ever HUMAN WHEELS came right after this)

Great thread, i think with most its also good to recognize these artists were doing albums every year! Billy Joel, Elton,mellencamp,beatles,prince etc....there was no 5 year gap between a record a year at the most, in Elton's case a few came in the same year along with live albums, dude had 21 albums out by age 33.

lastdecember said:

NoVideo said:

I know we've had this topic before in the past, but I've been immersed in the Stones this weekend and it really struck me again how massively amazing the Beggars Banquet/Let It Bleed/Sticky Fingers/Exile on Mainstreet sequence really is.

There are only a couple sequences that I think might compare:

Beatles: Revolver/Sgt. Peppers/MMT/White Album

or if you count MMT out as an EP, then add Rubber Soul to the beginning, or - maybe better - Abbey Road to the end.

Then there's Bowie's magical run: Station to Station/Low/Heroes/Lodger

Prince, of course: 1999/PR/ATWIAD/Parade - - or do you start with PR and go to SOTT? Debatable. ATWIAD is the weak link either way.

I gotta think that the Stones classic foursome is the best of them all.

Thoughts?

Beatles on the nose Prince of course

I would add

Billy Joel : Turnstiles -- The Stranger -- 52nd Street ---Glass Houses (one of the best ever runs)

Elton John : Elton John-- Tumbleweed Connection ---Madman Across the Water---Dont Shoot Me im only the piano player. (scary thing is that after this came Goodbye YellowBrick Road)

a-ha: Minor Earth Major Sky --- Lifelines----Analogue---Foot of the Mountain

John Mellencamp: Scarecrow---Lonesome Jubille---Big Daddy--Whenever We Wanted (and scary also because his greatest recording ever HUMAN WHEELS came right after this)

Great thread, i think with most its also good to recognize these artists were doing albums every year! Billy Joel, Elton,mellencamp,beatles,prince etc....there was no 5 year gap between a record a year at the most, in Elton's case a few came in the same year along with live albums, dude had 21 albums out by age 33.

What about Honky Chateau? Wasn't that before Don't Shoot Me I'm Only the Piano Player?

Elvis Costello-My Aim is True/This Years Model/Armed Forces/Get Happy!!

The Byrds-Fifth Dimension/Younger Than Yesterday/The Notorious Byrd Brothers/Sweetheart of the Rodeo

Blur-Modern Life is Rubbish/Parklife/The Great Escape/Blur

The Kinks-Face To Face/Something Else/Village Green Preservation Society/Arthur

Led Zeppelin-II/III/(untitled)/Houses of the Holy

Black Sabbath-Black Sabbath/Paranoid/Master of Reality/vol. 4

Todd Rundgren-Runt/Ballad of Todd Rundgren/Something/Anything?/A Wizard, A True Star

rialb said:

lastdecember said:

Beatles on the nose Prince of course

I would add

Billy Joel : Turnstiles -- The Stranger -- 52nd Street ---Glass Houses (one of the best ever runs)

Elton John : Elton John-- Tumbleweed Connection ---Madman Across the Water---Dont Shoot Me im only the piano player. (scary thing is that after this came Goodbye YellowBrick Road)

a-ha: Minor Earth Major Sky --- Lifelines----Analogue---Foot of the Mountain

John Mellencamp: Scarecrow---Lonesome Jubille---Big Daddy--Whenever We Wanted (and scary also because his greatest recording ever HUMAN WHEELS came right after this)

Great thread, i think with most its also good to recognize these artists were doing albums every year! Billy Joel, Elton,mellencamp,beatles,prince etc....there was no 5 year gap between a record a year at the most, in Elton's case a few came in the same year along with live albums, dude had 21 albums out by age 33.

What about Honky Chateau? Wasn't that before Don't Shoot Me I'm Only the Piano Player?

True actually that was elton's first number one lp. Thing is that Elton easily had a 7-8 album run, and is on another 4 album run now.

Merle Haggard had a fantastic run from the mid '60s till the early '70s, there's got to be four great albums in a row there.

Frank Sinatra in the '50s, although personally I prefer the up tempo albums to the ballad albums.

Cheap Trick-Cheap Trick/In Color/Heaven Tonight/Dream Police

lastdecember said:

rialb said:

What about Honky Chateau? Wasn't that before Don't Shoot Me I'm Only the Piano Player?

True actually that was elton's first number one lp. Thing is that Elton easily had a 7-8 album run, and is on another 4 album run now.

He was on fire in the early-mid '70s but Caribou could have been better. Hard to fault him though when he was cranking out albums as quickly as he was.

lastdecember said:

rialb said:

What about Honky Chateau? Wasn't that before Don't Shoot Me I'm Only the Piano Player?

True actually that was elton's first number one lp. Thing is that Elton easily had a 7-8 album run, and is on another 4 album run now.

Hmm, I also just remembered the Friends album. Not sure if that counts as it was a soundtrack album.

I will DEFINITELY contribute more to this thread when I have more time. One of my favorite examples is Miles Davis. We can pick several runs, but to me this is the best because it was four albums recorded over a mere TWO recording sessions:

rialb said:

lastdecember said:

True actually that was elton's first number one lp. Thing is that Elton easily had a 7-8 album run, and is on another 4 album run now.

Hmm, I also just remembered the Friends album. Not sure if that counts as it was a soundtrack album.

yeah Friends was there but i left that off since it wasnt really a full album, he also had the amazing live record in the middle of those 4 which was 11-17-70 so he basically had cranked out 6 records in less than 4 years, and then would have the others we spoke of including the Double Record "Yellow Brick Road" and than another Double Record "Blue Moves" in 1979

Alice Cooper-Love It to Death/Killers/School's Out/Billion Dollar Babies

Mott the Hoople-Brain Capers/All the Young Dudes/Mott/The Hoople

Bob Dylan-Another Side of Bob Dylan/Bringing It All Back Home/Highway 61 Revisited/Blonde on Blonde

Rod Stewart-An Old Raincoat Won't Ever Let You Down/Gasoline Alley/Every Picture Tells a Story/Never A Dull Moment (Rod was so amazing in the early '70s that I get very upset thinking about what he turned into )

XTC-The Big Express/Skylarking/Oranges & Lemons/Nonsuch (not sure if the Dukes of Stratosphear breaks this streak or not)

[Edited 6/19/11 16:18pm]

Sloan-Twice Removed/One Chord to Another/Navy Blues/Between the Bridges

People may smirk at the above but those four albums are very solid if you are a fan of power pop.

oops

[Edited 6/19/11 16:18pm]

My vote for the best:

1. Talking Book

2. Innervisions

3. Fulfillingness' First Finale

4. Songs in the Key of Life

No weak links, just stone cold classics.

AlexdeParis said:

My vote for the best:

1. Talking Book

2. Innervisions

3. Fulfillingness' First Finale

4. Songs in the Key of Life

No weak links, just stone cold classics.

Kind of shocking that no one picked those before you did.

rialb said:

AlexdeParis said:

My vote for the best:

1. Talking Book

2. Innervisions

3. Fulfillingness' First Finale

4. Songs in the Key of Life

No weak links, just stone cold classics.

Kind of shocking that no one picked those before you did.

I thought so as well.

RKJCNE said:

Madonna - Madonna Ray Of Light/Music/American Life/ Confessions

I know mostof her fans aren't big fans off all of those albums, but they are her finest work to me, besides LAP.

Bruce Springsteen - Darkness At The Edge Of Town/Nebraska/The River/Born In The USA

Wow i agree so much on both!

Ray Of Light & American Life are her best works to me! idc what people say she was on top musically then.

And Bruce! geesh those 4 albums there he made himself legendary status by the time Nebraska came out

To me That Stevie one mentioned Talking Book to Songs is just

Led Zeppelin 1

Led Zeppelin II

Led Zeppelin III

Led Zeppelin IV

Van Halen

Van Halen II

Women & Children First

Fair Wanring[There Best]

Public Enemy

Yo! Bum Rush The Show

It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back

Fear Of A Black Planet

Apocalypse 91.... The Enemy Strikes Back

Outkast

Atliens

Aquemini

Stankonia

Speakerbox/Love Below

Bob Dylan- Bringing It All Back Home, Highway 61 Revisited, Blonde On Blonde, John Wesley Harding

Bob Marley- Kaya, Survival, Uprising, Confrontation

AlexdeParis said:

My vote for the best:

1. Talking Book

2. Innervisions

3. Fulfillingness' First Finale

4. Songs in the Key of Life

No weak links, just stone cold classics.

That's what I was going with. In fact that is maybe the most universally agreed on to be the greatest run by ANY artist. although I would actually start with Music of My Mind.

Bob Dylan

Time Out Of Mind
Love & Theft
Modern Times
Together Through Life

..great run from the older Dylan.

Joni Mitchell-Ladies of the Canyon/Blue/For the Roses/Court and Spark

Neil Young-Everybody Knows This is Nowhere/After the Gold Rush/Harvest/On the Beach (if you ignore the live album Time Fades Away)

Frank Zappa-Freak Out/Absolutely Free/Lumpy Gravy/We're Only in It for the Money

Frank Zappa-Uncle Meat/Hot Rats/Burnt Weeny Sandwich/Weasels Ripped My Flesh

Frank Zappa-Waka/Jawaka/The Grand Wazoo/Over-Nite Sensation/Apostrophe (')

rialb said:

Neil Young-Everybody Knows This is Nowhere/After the Gold Rush/Harvest/On the Beach (if you ignore the live album Time Fades Away)

But it's original material, so I wouldn't. And GoldRush being unsurpassable, I think it's better than the other three.

His run from 69-80 makes it quite a mission to stick to a four album run, I could go:

Zuma --- American Stars N' Bars --- Comes a Time --- Rust Never Sleeps

[Edited 6/19/11 18:35pm]

MJ: Thriller, Bad, Dangerous, HIStory

Janet: RN, Janet, The Velvet Rope, All For You

Prince: Dirty Mind, Controversy, 1999, Purple Rain