20 essential hard rock albums

[The Rover]

OK, Here's My Essential Hard Rock "20" ( I could never list just ten....I wasn't born yesterday--- so you get Twenty):



Van Halen - Van Halen

Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin II

Deep Purple - Machine Head

The Who - Live At Leeds

Grand Funk Railroad - Live Album

Alice Cooper - Killer

Metal Church - Metal Church

Cheap Trick - Cheap Trick

ELP - Welcome Back My Friends To The Show That Never Ends

Guns & Roses - Appetite For Destruction

AC/DC - Back In Black

White Zombie - Supersexy Swingin' Sounds

Judas Priest - Screaming For Vengance

Nirvana - Nevermind

Filter - Short Bus

Pro-Pain - The Foul Taste of Freedom

Dream Theater - Awake

Iron Butterfly - Inna Gadda Da Vida

Pink Floyd - Animals

Rush - Test For Echo

[godisEd]

Interesting choices, some very good records on that list. I was surprised by your choice of Floyd records. Animals has always been my favorite.

[Ian Sane]

I could add more, but here's 20...

AC/DC - Back In Black
Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin IV
Van Halen - Van Halen
Black Sabbath - Sabbath Bloody Sabbath
The Who - Who's Next
Iron Maiden - The Number Of The Beast
Judas Priest - British Steel
Metallica - Metallica
Tool - Ænima
Rush - Permanent Waves
Deep Purple - Machine Head
Guns N' Roses - Appetite For Destruction
UFO - Lights Out
Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here
Alice Cooper - Billion Dollar Babies
Motörhead - No Sleep 'Til Hammersmith
Thin Lizzy - Jailbreak
Rainbow - Rainbow Rising
Def Leppard - Pyromania
Aerosmith - Rocks

[The Rover]

Interesting choices, some very good records on that list. I was surprised by your choice of Floyd records. Animals has always been my favorite.

Well, ANIMALS is one of PF's hardest rocking albums. I wish I could have goone and seen that tour in 1977. I was in college and short of cash at the time, since I was paying to go and see Led Zeppelin three times that year. Hindsight is always 20-20, isn't it...

[mistere]

MSG-MSG
Thin Lizzy-Thinder & Lightning
Def Leppard-High & Dry
AC/DC-Back In Black
Alcatrazz-Disturbing the Peace
Coheed & Cambria-Good Apollo I'm Burning
Corrosion of Conformity-Deliverance
The Cult-Beyond Good & Evil
Foo Fighters-In Your Honor
Billy Idol-Devil's Playground
Iron Maiden-Number of the Beast
Jane's Addiction-Ritual De Lo Habitual
Jimmy Eat World-Bleed American
Ozzy-Dairy of a Madman
Paul Stanley- ST Kiss '77
PIL- Album
Porcupine Tree-In Absentia
STP-Tiny Music
Temple of the Dog-ST
TNT-My Religion
Tool-10000 Days
ZZ Top-Deguelo
Masters of Reality-Blue Garden
Muse-Origin of Symmetry
Pride & Glory-ST
Ratt-Out of the Cellar
Rush-Permanent Waves

[vistadelrey]

Here you go. It's pretty much rated in order. I managed to choose only one release per band. I could have put all zepp, Halen & Queensryche to cover all twenty. easily. but i didn't. I also strayed a little from the 'Hard Rock' classification.

Led Zeppelin Physical Graffiti

Van Halen Fair Warning

Queensryche Rage for Order

ACDC Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap

Soundgarden Superunknown

Red Hot Chili Peppers The Uplift Mofo Party Plan

Rush All the World's A Stage

Cheap Trick Live at Budokon

Nazareth Hot Tracks

April Wine Nature of the Beast

Fishbone Truth and Soul

Judas Priest Turbo

Def Leppard Hysteria

Scorpions Love at First Sting

Kings X Gretchen Goes to Nebraska

Living Colour Time's Up

Boston Don't Look Back

Aerosmith Done with Mirrors

The Cult Love

Pearl Jam Ten

[LLFHS]

No particular order.........

1 Halen - Balance

2 Rush - Signals

3 Queensryche - Empire

4 AC/DC - High Voltage

5 Queen - News of the World

6 Rik Emmett - Absolutely

7 Giant - Time To Burn

8 Stiltskin - SHE

9 Rush - Moving Pictures

10 Halen II

11 Yes - Talk (listen to it and you'll agree that it qualifies as 'hard rock')

12 Floyd - Animals (ditto)

13 Led Zep - Houses of the Holy

14 Def Lep - Pyromania

15 Boston - Debut

16 Rainbow - Bent Out Of Shape

17 Rush - Exit...Stage Left

18 Sammy Hagar - Sammy Hagar (with Ed)

19 Live - Throwing Copper

20 Heart - Bad Animals

[Buckeye]

These were the albums had the most profound impact on me at the time I discovered them:

• Motley Crue: Shout At the Devil (can't believe no one mentioned this one yet)
• Iron Maiden: Powerslave
• Led Zeppelin: IV
• Kiss: Destroyer
• Van Halen
• Rush: Moving Pictures
• Judas Priest: Screaming For Vengeance
• Aerosmith: Toys In the Attic
• Metallica: Ride the Lightening
• Ozzy: Blizzard of Ozz
• ACDC: Highway To Hell
• Guns n' Roses: Appetite For Destruction
• Red Hot Chili Peppers: Blood Sugar Sex Magik
• Def Leppard: Pyromania
• Blackfoot: Strikes
• Tesla: Mechanical Resonance
• Ratt: Out of the Cellar
• Lynyrd Skynyrd: pronounced leh-nerd sky-nerd
• the Scorpions: Love At First Sting
• Pearl Jam: Ten

[Ain't Talkin' Bout' Love]

Here goes

Van Halen- Van Halen
AC/DC- Powerage
Lynch Mob- Wicked Sensation
Guns N' Roses- Appeteite for Destruction
Led Zeppelin II or III
Alice Cooper-Killer
Motley Crue- Shout At The Devil
Black Sabbath- Paranoid
Cheap Trick- Heaven Tonight
Def Leppard- Pyromania
David Lee Roth- Eat Em' And Smile
Dio- Holy Diver
Cinderella- Night Songs
Dokken- Tooth And Nail
Ozzy Osbourne- Blizzard of Ozz
Poison- Look What The Cat Dragged In
The Doors- Morrison Hotel
Aerosmith- Toys In The Attic
Montrose- Montrose
Skid Row- Skid Row

No particular order. I love the diversity I'm seeing in this thread, maybe it should've been 30!

[Van Squalen]

Van Halen - Fair Warning
Led Zeppelin - Physical Graffiti
AC/DC - Back in Black
Black Sabbath - Paranoid
Rush - Exit Stage Left
Van Halen - Women and Children First
Guns n Roses - Appetite for Destruction
Rolling Stones - Exile on Main Street
The Who - Live at Leeds
The Police - Synchronicity
Led Zeppelin
The Scorpions - Love at First Sting
Cheap Trick - At Budokan
AC/DC - Highway to Hell
Boston
Billy Idol - Devil's Playground
The Scorpions - Unbreakable
Van Halen
Rush - Signals
The Police - Outlandos D'Amour

[vanzefflin]

In no particular order:

Van Halen
Kiss Destroyer
Cheap Trick Budokan
Led Zeppelin 2
Led Zeppelin 4
AC/DC Back In Black
Kiss Alive
Frampton Comes Alive
Deep Purple Perfect Strangers
Guns n Roses Appetite For Destruction
AC/DC Dirty Deeds
Boston
Aerosmith Toys In The Attic
Def Leppard Pyromania
Ozzy Diary of a Madman
Ozzy Blizzard of Oz
Van Halen Fair Warning
Foreigner 4
Queen A Night At The Opera
Prince Purple Rain

[naturallywired]

Led Zep-IV
Sabbath-Heaven and Hell
Deep Purple-Machine Head
Pink Floyd-Dark Side of the Moon
Van Halen-I
AC/DC-Back in Black
Judas Priest-Screaming for Vengeance
Iron Maiden-Number of the Beast
GnR-Appetite for Destruction
Metallica-Master of Puppets
Slayer-Reign in Blood
Queensryche-Operation Mindcrime
Soundgarden-Superunknown
Alice in Chains-Dirt
Ozzy-Blizzard of Oz
Pantera-Vulgar Display of Power
Rush-2112
Van Halen-Fair Warning
Montrose-Montrose
Aerosmith-Toys in the Attic

[SuckaInA3Piece]

Nice lists guys, here's my 20.

Holy Diver~Dio
Fair Warning~Van Halen
Appetite For Destruction~Guns 'N Roses
Let There Be Rock~AC/DC
Powerslave~Iron Maiden
Ride The Lightining~Metallica
Rust In Peace~Megadeth
Bristish Steel~Judas Priest
Physical Graffitti~Zep
Vol. 4~Sabbath
Dirt~Alice In Chains
Core~STP
Superunknown~Soundgarden
Degrees Of Black~Dust For Life
Rocks~Aerosmith
No More Tears~Ozzy
Jailbreak~Thin Lizzy
Vivid~Living Colour
Seasons~Sevendust
Dysfunction~Staind

[FORD]

In no particular order.....

Van HALEN - Fair Warning
AC/DC - Highway to Hell
Rolling Stones - Some Girls
Sex Pistols - Never Mind the Bollocks
The Clash - London Calling
Ramones - Rocket to Russia
Generation X - Kiss Me Deadly
Aerosmith - Toys In The Attic
Black Flag - Damaged
Black Sabbath - Paranoid
Queen - News of the World
Metallica - Ride the Lightning
The Who - Live at Leeds
77's - Drowning With Land In Sight
David Lee Roth - Eat Em And Smile
U2 - War
Led Zeppelin - Houses of the Holy
Bruce Springsteen - Born to Run
The Alarm - Declaration
Jimi Hendrix - BBC Sessions

These are 20 essential albums that everyone with decent musical taste should own. Labels like "hard rock" can be argued as to the definition, but my criteria was simply albums that are damn good and timeless, regardless of what labels you throw at them".

[Judgement Day]

In no particular order:

1.Van Halen: Van Halen I
2.Van Halen: 5150
3.Dream Theater: Images and Words
4.Led Zeppelin: Led Zeppelin II
5.The Doors: Waiting For the Sun
6.Queensryche: Empire
7.Metallica: Master of Puppets
8.AC/DC: Back In Black
9.Guns N Roses: Appetite for Destruction
10.Oasis: Definitely Maybe
11.Pride and Glory: Pride and Glory
12.The Who: Live at Leeds
13.Ozzy Osbourne: No More Tears
14.Motley Crue: Motley Crue (the one without Vince Neil)
15.Pantera: Cowboys From Hell
16.Korn: Korn
17.Lindsey Buckingham: Out of the Cradle
18.Black Sabbath: Paranoid
19.Megadeth: Countdown to Extinction
20.Queen: Classic Queen