Music: Best Albums of the Year Series: 1968

[Saturated Fats]

1965: The Beatles - Rubber Soul
1966: The Beatles - Revolver
1967: The Beatles - Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
1969: The Beatles - Abbey Road
1970: Black Sabbath - Paranoid
1971: Led Zeppelin - IV
1972: Neil Young - Harvest
1973: Pink Floyd - Dark Side of the Moon
1974: Supertramp - Crime of the Century
1975: Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here
1976: Eagles - Hotel California
1977: Fleetwood Mac - Rumours
1979: Pink Floyd - The Wall
1980: AC/DC - Back in Black
1981: Rush - Moving Pictures
1982: Iron Maiden - The Number of the Beast
1984: Metallica - Ride the Lightning
1985: Tears for Fears - Songs from the Big Chair
1987: Guns 'n Roses - Appetite for Destruction
1988: Metallica - ...And Justice for All
1989: Pixies - Doolittle
1991: Nirvana - Nevermind
1992: Alice in Chains - Dirt
1995: Oasis - (What's the Story) Morning Glory?
1996: (TIE) Soundgarden - Down on the Upside // Rage Against the Machine - Evil Empire
1997: (TIE) Radiohead - OK Computer // Foo Fighters - The Color and the Shape
1998: (TIE) Lauryn Hill - The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill // System of a Down - System of a Down
1999: Red Hot Chili Peppers - Californication
2000: Radiohead - Kid A
2001: The Strokes - Is This It
2002: Queens of the Stone Age - Songs for the Deaf
2004: (TIE) Madvillain - Madvillainy // The Killers - Hot Fuss // Green Day - American Idiot
2005: Coldplay - X & Y
2006: Tool - 10,000 Days
2007: Radiohead - In Rainbows
2009: Them Crooked Vultures - Them Crooked Vultures
2010: The National - High Violet
2011: No definitive winner
2012: (TIE) Kendrick Lamar - good kidd, M.A.A.D. city // Deftones - koi no yokan
2014: Behemoth - The Satanist

1986: Metallica - Master of Puppets (18 votes)

2nd Place: Slayer - Reign in Blood (16 votes)
3rd Place: Beastie Boys - License to Ill (11 votes)
4th Place (TIE): Paul Simon - Graceland (10 votes)
4th Place (TIE): Megadeth - Peace Sells, But Who's Buying?

Not a real surprise, as the album that I figured would take it down, does. MOP is a legendary album, and I have zero problem with it winning - but man, I would love to see a year where the resident 'hard rock classic' is upended by something unexpected. There are and were a lot of pretty amazing albums in '86 that could've given it a run for its money. Reign in Blood being the only one that did is, again, very in-keeping.

1968 should see a pretty different tone and tenor. The last of the individual years in the 60's, and a deeply important year in the evolution of popular music. A lot of classic works from legendary artists, and I'm obviously curious to see if The Fab Four can go 5 for 5 in the 60's polls.

11/9: 2015
11/11: 1993
11/13: 1978

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[Pranzo Oltranzista]

This is just a sexy year. Possibly my favorite Beatles album, and certainly my favorites from Nilsson and The Turtles. Add to that some great jazzy avant-garde works and you've got one hell of a year. I just couldn't go against The Beatles at #1, but Wonderwall Music is one of my favorite albums of all times.

T1. George Harrison – Wonderwall Music
T1. The Beatles – The Beatles (The White Album)
3. Harry Nilsson – Aerial Ballet
4. The Peter Brötzmann Octet – Machine Gun
5. The Jazz Composer's Orchestra – The Jazz Composer's Orchestra
6. The Turtles – The Turtles Present the Battle of the Bands
7. The Pretty Things – S.F. Sorrow
8. John Coltrane – Om / John Coltrane & Alice Coltrane – Cosmic Music (Coltrane's solo album is better by a wide margin, but I put these together because they're both very good albums – Alice also has a single album that year, pretty good too but not on par with these two)
9. The United States of America – The United States of America
10. Otis Redding – The Immortal Otis Redding / Otis Redding – The Dock of the Bay

HMs:
The Kinks – The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society
The Velvet Underground - White Light / White Heat
The Amboy Dukes – Journey to the Center of the Mind
Blue Cheer – Vincebus Eruptum / Blue Cheer – Outsideinside
The Zombies – Odessey and Oracle
The Holy Modal Rounders – The Moray Eels Eat The Holy Modal Rounders
Frank Vincent Zappa – Lumpy Gravy (I put this one apart from the Mothers' albums, because even though they're good and funny, they really are far away from Lumpy Gravy)
The Beach Boys – Friends
Archie Shepp – The Way Ahead
Tyrannosaurus Rex – My People Were Fair and Had Sky in Their Hair... But Now They're Content to Wear Stars on Their Brows
Terry Riley – In C
Randy Newman – Randy Newman
Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band – Strictly Personal
Silver Apples – Silver Apples
John McLaughlin – Extrapolation
Creedence Clearwater Revival – Creedence Clearwater Revival
The Mothers of Invention – We're Only In It For the Money / The Mothers of Invention – Cruising With Ruben & The Jets
Serge Gainsbourg – Initials B.B.

Curiosities:
Roland Kirk – The Inflated Tear
The Jimi Hendrix Experience – Electric Ladyland
Dr. John The Night Tripper – Gris-Gris
Jacks – Vacant World
The Electric Flag – A Long Time Comin'
David Axelrod – Song of Innocence
Cream – Wheels of Fire
Miles Davis – Nefertiti / Miles Davis – Miles in the Sky (good stuff, but nothing I go back to)
Taj Mahal – Taj Mahal / Taj Mahal – The Natch'l Blues
Gábor Szabó – Dreams

 

[kihei]

Jimi Hendrix: Electric Ladyland
The Band: Music from Big Pink
Velvet Underground: White Light, White Heat
Neil Young: Neil Young
Cream: Wheels of Fire
Big Brother and the Holding Company: Cheap Thrills
The Beatles: The White Album
Rolling Stones: Beggar's Banquet
The Byrds: The Notorious Byrd Brothers
Bloomfield/Kooper/Stills: Super Session

 

[Chili]

White Album
Bookends
Dock of The Bay
C'era una volta il West
Astral Weeks

Added:

Soundtrack of The Graduate
Blood Sweat & Tears-Blood Sweat & Tears
Steppenwolf-Steppenwolf
Gordon Lightfoot-Did She Mention My Name

 

[MetalheadPenguinsFan]

Other:

 

[Mescaleroman]

Steppenwolf - s/t
Donovan - The Hurdy Gurdy Man
Herman's Hermits - Mrs Brown , You've Got a Lovely Daughter

 

[frisco]

Other than Folsom Prison, Waiting For The Sun:
Elvis (Comeback Special Soundtrack)-Elvis Presley
Idea-Bee Gees
Horizontal-Bee Gees

My Best-Carey

 

[Teemu]

Johnny Cash – At Folsom Prison
The Byrds – Sweetheart of the Rodeo
Zombies – Odessey & Oracle
The Beatles – The Beatles
International Submarine Band – Safe at Home
The Band – Music from Big Pink
Velvet Underground - White Light/White Heat
Simon & Garfunkel – Bookends
Merle Haggard - Mama Tried
Aretha Franklin – Lady Soul

 

[MakeTheGoalsLarger]

1. The Kinks are the Village Green Preservation society : 10/10 perfect album
2. The Zombies - Odessey and Oracle : 10/10 another perfect album. I put Village Green first based on variety.
3. Once upon time in the west . amazing , but it's more fitting to watch the movie, than just listen to the music on its own
4. the white album: lots of nice music here, but there is some famously bad stuff..... #9........#9.......#9
5. We're only in it for the money. I like the attitude,mocking the hippies while most of their fans were hippies.

 

[WetcoastOrca]

Some of my all time favourites here:
1. Van Morrison: Astral Weeks
2. The Band: Music from the Big Pink
3. The Zombies: Odyssey and Oracle
4. Aretha: Lady Soul
5. Simon and Garfunkel: Bookends
6. Byrds: The Notorious Byrd Brothers
7. Johnny Cash: At Folsom Prison
8. The Kinks
9. Otis Redding: Dock of the Bay
Other:
10. Crimson and Clover: Tommy James and the Shondells
11. Neil Young: s/t

 

[Spring in Fialta]

VU and Kinks for me. Forgot to put in a vote for Hendrix as well. Don't know if that can be corrected.

 

[Pranzo Oltranzista]

1. The Kinks are the Village Green Preservation society : 10/10 perfect album
2. The Zombies - Odessey and Oracle : 10/10 another perfect album. I put Village Green first based on variety.
3. Once upon time in the west . amazing , but it's more fitting to watch the movie, than just listen to the music on its own
4. the white album: lots of nice music here, but there is some famously bad stuff..... #9........#9.......#9
5. We're only in it for the money. I like the attitude,mocking the hippies while most of their fans were hippies.

I agree that there's weaker songs on the White Album (Birthday being, to me, by far the worst), but strongly disagree Revolution 9 being one of them. I must quote that song at least once a week, just love it.

VU and Kinks for me. Forgot to put in a vote for Hendrix as well. Don't know if that can be corrected.

Yes it can, just click on "Change your vote".

 

[reckoning]

I have no doubt The White Album will win this, because anything the Beatles released wins here, but to me the good songs on it (and there are undeniably some great ones on the album) are outnumbered by the weak ones.

If "Birthday" made it on the album, I'd love to hear how bad the songs were that didn't make the cut.

 

[plank]

Jimi Hendrix: Electric Ladyland
The Band: Music from Big Pink
Velvet Underground: White Light, White Heat
Neil Young: Neil Young
Cream: Wheels of Fire
Big Brother and the Holding Company: Cheap Thrills
The Beatles: The White Album
Rolling Stones: Beggar's Banquet
The Byrds: The Notorious Byrd Brothers
Bloomfield/Kooper/Stills: Super Session

Murderer's row of music right there.

 

[MoreOrr]

I imagine this was on the 1967 list, but really, an album released on December 27th should go as an album for the New/next year.

Songs of Leonard Cohen - Leonard Cohen (his first album)

 

[Mikeaveli]

The Zombies - Odessey and Oracle
Velvet Underground - White Light/White Heat
The United States of America - The United States of America

 

[Pranzo Oltranzista]

The United States of America - The United States of America

I was surprised not seeing them in the poll, and even more surprised that they're not making a splash in the "other" votes. I thought The American Way of Love and I Won't Leave My Wooden Wife For You were now - as they should be - considered as some of the best songs of the era.

 

[kook10]

Others -
Small Faces - Ogden's Nut Gone Flake
Traffic - s/t
Merle Haggard - Mama Tried
Albert King - Live Wire/Blues Power
Wendy Carlos - Switched on Bach

 

[BigBadBruins7708]

I know I'm in the minority but God the White Album is so overrated it hurts.

Flipped a coin between Otis Redding and Johnny Cash.

 

[MakeTheGoalsLarger]

I know I'm in the minority but God the White Album is so overrated it hurts.

Flipped a coin between Otis Redding and Johnny Cash.

Rare are the people who don't know the Beatles and don't like them at least a little. There are some gems in this poll, but not as known as the White album, so they don't get as many votes.

It would be interesting to remake this particular poll and allow only one vote. Based on the comments the white album doesn't seem to be anyone's favorite album but Pranzo Oltranzista.
https://hfboards.mandatory.com/members/pranzo-oltranzista.292999/

 

[Pranzo Oltranzista]

Rare are the people who don't know the Beatles and don't like them at least a little. There are some gems in this poll, but not as known as the White album, so they don't get as many votes.

It would be interesting to remake this particular poll and allow only one vote. Based on the comments the white album doesn't seem to be anyone's favorite album.

The White Album is my favorite option in the poll by a pretty large margin!

 

[WetcoastOrca]

I know I'm in the minority but God the White Album is so overrated it hurts.

Flipped a coin between Otis Redding and Johnny Cash.

I’m a huge Beatles fan but I didn’t vote for the White Album. Just too many weak songs for my taste.

 

[frisco]

Cash's live album was ground breaking as it was really the first live album that really moved major units in sales. Of course, it wasn't the first but one could argue it was the first hugely successful one. The prison setting was brilliant in both concept and execution.

By the mid-70's it was like everyone had a live album out.

My Best-Carey

 

[BigBadBruins7708]

Cash's live album was ground breaking as it was really the first live album that really moved major units in sales. Of course, it wasn't the first but one could argue it was the first hugely successful one. The prison setting was brilliant in both concept and execution.

By the mid-70's it was like everyone had a live album out.

My Best-Carey

Agreed.

Live at Folsom, KISS Alive and Frampton Comes Alive had everyone scrambling to make a live album (as well as Cheap Trick Live at Budokan)

 

[MoreOrr]

Rare are the people who don't know the Beatles and don't like them at least a little. There are some gems in this poll, but not as known as the White album, so they don't get as many votes.

Knowing them and liking them, even a lot, still shouldn't necessarily translate to them being your favorites or that everyone of their albums has to be your favorite for that particular year.