Every now and then I reach out for an album that I know that I will get some comfort from listening to. These are albums that are stand-bys just in case the latest trend doesn't work for me (which is pretty much all the time) and I know that I will always go back to. If I had to live on a desert island and I had to pick as many albums as I had to it would be those.
Albums that I know so well and have listened to a million times. These include but are not limited to:

The Soul Cages - Sting
Time's Up - Living Colour
Fullfillingness' First Finale - Stevie Wonder
Comfort Woman - Meshell
The Hardline According To... - Terence Trent D'Arby
MTV Plugged - Bruce Springsteen
Elemental - Tears For Fears
and just about every Prince album.
And so many more.

Your turn!

Ghost in the machine - The Police
The Fragile - Nine Inch Nails
Voodoo- D'Angelo
Purple Rain-the midget who hates his fans
Infinite possibilities-Amel Larreiux
The Dream of the blue turtles - Sting
Nevermind- Nirvana
Ray of light- Madonna
The Joshua tree - U2
It takes a nation of millions to hold us back - Public Enemy

Justaphase said:

awesome list.

Great topic by the way!

for me to name some

a-Ha "Minor Earth Major Sky"
u2 "All that you cant Leave Behind"
Ryan Adams "Heartbreaker"
Norah Jones "Come Away with me"
the Jayhawks "Sound of Lies"
John Mellencamp "Human Wheels"
Paul McCartney "flaming pie"
Magne F "past perfect future tense"
Elton John "elton john"
Elton John "songs from the west coast"
Joni Mitchell "Blue"

My top 20 albums pretty much qualify here, and I get the feeling nobody wants to see another one of my lists like that!

The ones I always have in my car are the following:

Prince- 1999
Eurythmics- Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)
Stevie Wonder- Songs in the Key of Life
Annie- Anniemal
LCD Soundsystem- Sound of Silver

Others that fit the bill:

The Cure- Disintegration
Madonna- Like a Prayer
Janet Jackson- Rhythm Nation 1814
Annie Lennox- Diva
Eurythmics- 1984: For the Love of Big Brother
Prince- Dirty Mind
Prince- Controversy
Prince- Lovesexy

i get comfortable with the oddest albums. well people tell me.

Velvet Eden- Street Of Alice
Any christian death rozz williams era album
David Bowie-Honky dory/ Station to station.
All the malice mizer albums.

I was totally going to do a thread just like this!

Curious to see what other people think their comfort albums are.


Recently I was having a brutal sad morning, and I was in a rush to leave the house so I had to quickly select just a few CDs from a choice of thousands. It turned out to be the clearest "top 5 comfort albums" that I have ever seen born from my own unconscious action, and I didn't really realize this until I had already gathered them and I was throwing them in my bag.

Here they are:

Janet Jackson - Control (1986)


EPMD - Strictly Business (1988)


Boogie Down Productions - Criminal Minded (1987)


LL Cool J - Radio (1985)


Prince And The Revolution - Parade (1986)

Joni Mitchell's Blue

Depeche Mode's Violator

Joy Division's Unknown Pleasures

And this is probably planted in my head by Ian's post, but not less true;
The Eurythmics' Touch

David Bowie's Low

[Edited 2/12/08 21:09pm]

The Fall - This Nation's Saving Grace
John Cale - Paris 1919
Dylan's albums from '64 to '67
Julian Cope - Peggy Suicide
Jimmie Dale Gilmore - Spinning Around the Sun
John Lennon - Plastic Ono Band
Scud Mountain Boys - Massachusetts
Merle Haggard - Down Every Road
Pernice Brothers - Overcome By Happiness

Anything from Bob Dylan is a comfort album for me. George Michael too.

George Benson - Give Me The Night
Ronnie Laws - Solid Ground
(tie) Angela Bofill - Angie or Angle Of The Night or Something About You
Earth Wind & Fire - Raise
Steely Dan - Aja
Patrice Rushen - Straight From The Heart
Lonette McKee - Words And Music
Caldera - Sky Islands
Q - The Dude
Brothers Johnson - Winners
Earl Klugh - Heart String
Prince - (tie) 1999 or Dirty Mind

What can I say, the 80's were good to me!

Bitter – MeShell Ndegeocello
Lovers Rock – Sade
Love Deluxe – Sade
Getz/Gilberto – Stan Getz, Antonio Carlos Jobim, & Joao Gilberto
The Dude - Quincy Jones
Street Faerie – Cree Summer
Restless Times – Clara Hill
Beautiful Tomorrow – Blue Six
Night Ride Home – Joni Mitchell
Gold Experience – Prince
Shelter – Brand New Heavies

Joni Mitchell's "Blue" & "Hejira"
Ani Difranco "Reprieve"
Meshell Nedegeocello "Bitter"
Dead Can Dance "Toward The Within"
Air "Virgin Suicides" soundtrack
Erykah Badu "Mama's Gun"
Prince & the Revolution "Parade"
Wendy & Lisa "Eroica"
The Beatles "Sgt. Pepper Lonely Heart Club's Band"
New Order "Substance"
Quincy Jones "Walking In Space"
Digibable Planets - the debut album forgot the title...
LoveJones - soundtrack
Marvin Gaye - I Want You
Brendan Perry - Eye of the Hunter
Madonna - Something to Remember
Nina Simone - Greatests

Good thread. Mine are albums that usually cheer me up or ones i can just sit back and enjoy.

Boston - S/T.
The Cars - S/T
John Mellencamp - The Lonesome Jubilee
Norah Jones - Not Too Late
The Allman Brothers - Brothers And Sisters
Van Halen - 1984
Gov't Mule - Dose
Ohio Players - Honey

tricky2 said:

Aja is a good call. In fact all Steely Dans albums qualify!

Aja is a good one!

Also:

OK Computer, Radiohead- odd choice I know, but to me that album is soothing
Ray Of Light, Madonna
Felt Mountain, Goldfrapp
The Best Of Sade, Sade

just a few that immediately come to mind

Milty said:

Thanks

HamsterHuey said:

Achtung Baby is probably my #1 comfort album. I can listen to it and instantly take solace in the lyrics and feel at ease in the production.

PricelessHo said:

you rule!

Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere - Neil Young
Hotel California - The Eagles
The Band - The Band
American Beauty - Grateful Dead
Born to Run - Bruce
Sign o The Times - Prince
Yankee Hotel Foxtrot - Wilco
Ram - Paul McCartney
Wendy & Lisa - 1st album
London Calling - The Clash
The Who - Who's Next
Physical Graffiti - Led Zeppelin

GangstaFam said:

sweet the sting

Sometimes I feel like...

if a person were ever in a coma..

hearing one of these truly "close" albums could have the power to wake them up.

Axchi696 said:

My sister just told me this is hers. I adore it too.

Bitter
Me'shell Ndegeocello


Gone To Earth
David Sylvian


1999
Prince


Sea Change
Beck


Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1
George Michael


Two Wheels Good
Prefab Sprout


Innervisions
Stevie Wonder


Maxwell's Urban Hang Suite
Maxwell


Kind Of Blue
Miles Davis

All of these albums are amongst my favorites. But of my favorites, these are the ones that, when I'm tired of almost everything else, I can listen to repeatedly...

...some...
Prince & The Revolution - Parade
David Bowie - "Heroes"
Eurythmics - Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This)
Björk - Vespertine
Peter Gabriel - So
Kate Bush - Hounds Of Love
Tori Amos - Boys For Pele
Fleetwood Mac - Rumours
Tom Waits - Rain Dogs
Patti Smith - Land (1975-2002)
Beck - Midnite Vultures
Sly & The Family Stone - There's A Riot Goin' On
The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Electric Ladyland
Bob Dylan - Highway 61 Revisited
Yoko Ono - It's Alright (I See Rainbows)
Iggy & The Stooges - Raw Power
U2 - Pop

Some more:


Madge - Bedtime Stories


Depeche Mode - Violator


The Beatles - Abbey Road


REM - Automatic For the People

violator said:

One of my friends seriously digs this one.