I have to respectfully disagree... the word "cross-over" comes to mind with MJ and PRINCE's early 80s albums.

As much as I love both OFF THE WALL and THRILLER, OFF THE WALL is essentially a final ode to disco and a sign of things to come.

GIRLFRIEND and THE GIRL IS MINE cancel each other out for corniness, but the rest of the OFF THE WALL album is wonderful R&B at it's soul, unfortunately there is no BILLIE JEAN or the crossover power of BEAT IT to take it to that next level, the mainstream, the acceptance of ROCK & ROLL, FUNK & SOUL on the same album, as we all know, both MJ and PRINCE played a big role in shaping radio and music television as we know it today.

Same goes for 1999 and PURPLE RAIN, even tho' 1999 had LITTLE RED CORVETTE in it's arsenal, it was just a stepping stone to the full on funk and rock fusion that is the entire PURPLE RAIN album.

IMHO, PRINCE's first 5 albums, all get progressively better - from FOR YOU right thru to PURPLE RAIN, each one gave me a little bit more.

Just my 2 cents, but, I don't think THRILLER nor PURPLE RAIN r overrated, there r multiple reasons (millions of them actually) as to why they r held in such high esteem.
[Edited 9/21/09 20:16pm]

suga10 said:

I actually think this is underrated.

Timmy84 said:

Alej said:

Same. I'm not sure it actually gets "rated" at all.

Cinnie said:

It's so good

Really, ANY album by U2. I think they are the most overrated band of all time. They might be a great bunch of guys who have some catchy songs, but musically they are NOT that great. As my brother once said, they're just a couple of steps above a garage band.

bellanoche said:

agreed, never understood why people liked them.

bellanoche said:

I dig this album but everything else is just blah.

i think the most over - rated album ever is the stone roses first album.their second and thankfully last album was rubbish too.

Alej said:

Co-sign

There are plenty mediocre albums that have stood the test of time to still stand revered today as part of the 'Classic Rock' canon that I just don't get:

The Clash : London Calling
Pink Floyd : The Wall
The Who : Tommy
Lou Reed : Transformer

.....I don't particularly like any of their music mind, so biased I am, but I've listened to the albums listed and think they're naff.

SUPRMAN said:

elmer said:

Get the fuck out. Both those albums are amazing.

Michael Jackson This is It soundtrack.....and its not even out yet!!

voyevoda said:

What may be inspiring to one may inhibit another.

I say The Clash were po-faced, sodden with pretension and boring as fuck.
The Who are just a singles band.

voyevoda said:

you do realize this thread was based on personal preference, not what you think, right?

BenaimanBawkah said:

Yeah...But I'm gonna express my opinion.

voyevoda said:

Man, I heard the chronic the fisrt time in 2008 and it's still bangin', best hip hop album ever

Cinnie said:

It does get dissed a lot. Especially since it's predecessor was so popular.

Thibaut said:

Listen to Illmatic by nas....that's the greatest hip hop album of all time.

voyevoda said:

i understand that. but telling people your opinion that way, without putting "imo" looks like an attack on their tastes, from an outside perspective.

voyevoda said:

Ooh. I would have to agree here.

NDRU said:

Wow, I heard that album too and really didn't like it too much.

I did a thread a while back saying how Dylan's Blonde on Blonde was one of the most overrated albums ever, so I'll repeat that and add The White Album. George Martin was totally right. It should've been a single album, not a double. There's quite a large amount of crap on there. Never did enjoy Pet Sounds much either, although it's brilliantly produced.

SoulAlive said:

Only if you're judging it by Prince's standards could you call Purple Rain conventional. Judged by anyone else's standards that's an extremely radical album.

elmer said:

I can't imagine anyone not liking Transformer. That's a really cool album. It deserves every bit of it's reputation.

London Calling has some brilliant stuff on it, but like a lot of double albums it's very uneven. Nonetheless there are 8 or 9 songs on it that are truly great. The title track is one of the best rock songs of all time.

As for MJ, Thriller is my favourite album of his, but I kind of feel that Off The Wall is overrated. It's very slick, but I never truly enjoyed it.

midnightmover said:

mimi07 said:

Stop lowering the tone. Save that shit for your MJ threads.

midnightmover said:

Floons are ruining what was a very good thread. Are there any grown ups left around here or is it just me?

midnightmover said:

you never act like a grown up on here. You come in every thread trying to ruin it and bash/talk down to everyone. Your childish bickering to try to prove that you are always right is quite tiring. You should be banned permanently but I highly doubt that will happen. So do us all a favor, retire your account. We all know you won't change and will be more than happy for you to leave the forum forever. For someone who is in their 40s, your behavior is quite immature. Grow up.