Lesser albums by the BBs compared to lesser albums by their contemporaries

[Lee Marshall]

Don't worry one iota Charlie.  There are at least 2 people here who think that Deja Vu is a less than great album.  YOU, my friend, are SAFE.   [and sane.  ]

[Lonely Summer]

eventually they would have put out 1 or 2 plain awful albums.

Hehe, IMHO the Beatles did do that with their last two ones!

Not a fan of Let It Be, but I think it's at least competent. Love Abbey Road. White Album has enough great songs for a great album if egos didn't ensure the good was buried in a mountain of filler. Honestly, I think Pepper is fluff.

Even so, no band I can think of has a SIP to answer for. You don't get to just discount it because Brian wasn't involved. Even if you do, 15 Big Ones is almost as awful and DID include Brian, so...

Well, if we can include the Brian-less SIP, then I guess we can include the final Lovin' Spoonful album, minus Sebastian and Zally, Revelation '69 or whatever it's called. Just awful - and I actually liked Joe Butler's songs on the earlier albums, but a whole album of his stuff? No thanks.

[Mujan, 8@$+@Rc| of a Blue Wizard]

I vastly prefer Octopus' Garden to Yellow Submarine, which I always hated. Never understood the flack the former or praise the latter gets.

Rubber Soul and Revolver are the best Beatles albums. Abbey Road is third. After that it doesn't really matter.

[Mike's Beard]

The Monkees "Pool It". A once great group doesn't sink any lower than this.

[Mujan, 8@$+@Rc| of a Blue Wizard]

Does Velvet Underground's Squeeze count? I've never heard it, and I'm not a particular fan of the Velvets, but it does have an infamous reputation.

[Dancing Bear]

Does Velvet Underground's Squeeze count? I've never heard it, and I'm not a particular fan of the Velvets, but it does have an infamous reputation.

If it was a Doug Yule solo album, it would be a nice little obscure rock album, with 5 good tracks and 7 other more in the 'meh' park. Because of the credited artist it's become this abomination.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nwCwGBHd61s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YY_g6FT794o

[Lonely Summer]

The Monkees "Pool It". A once great group doesn't sink any lower than this.

Well, it didn't help that the best songwriter in the group, Papa Nez, was not involved; or that the other 3 did not assist each other on their tracks.

[Terry]

Justus is no picnic either.

[FFS]

Monkees are not comparable. Who By Numbers is a brave,  abrasive album, well superior to Who Are You. I can only co spider the Who, Kinks and Rolling Stones as comparable to BBs given the time they started and finished, thus Dirty Work by the Stones stands as a wretched product equal to the worst of the BBs.

[Lonely Summer]

Justus is no picnic either.

I like Justus. It's no match for PACJLTD or Headquarters, though.

[job]

Monkees are not comparable. Who By Numbers is a brave,  abrasive album, well superior to Who Are You. I can only co spider the Who, Kinks and Rolling Stones as comparable to BBs given the time they started and finished, thus Dirty Work by the Stones stands as a wretched product equal to the worst of the BBs.

Dirty work is only "wretched" compared to OTHER STONES records.  It is miles better than the BB worst stuff.  In fact, you just stumbled upon the answer:  The Stones have held a MUCH higher level of quality throughout their entire career than anyone else by a long shot.  /thread

[Lonely Summer]

Monkees are not comparable. Who By Numbers is a brave,  abrasive album, well superior to Who Are You. I can only co spider the Who, Kinks and Rolling Stones as comparable to BBs given the time they started and finished, thus Dirty Work by the Stones stands as a wretched product equal to the worst of the BBs.

Dirty work is only "wretched" compared to OTHER STONES records.  It is miles better than the BB worst stuff.  In fact, you just stumbled upon the answer:  The Stones have held a MUCH higher level of quality throughout their entire career than anyone else by a long shot.  /thread

Well, I can't think of a Kinks album that ranks as low as SIP. Soap Opera is my least favorite, but I wouldn't call it absolutely awful.

[joshferrell]

I actually like "The Soft Parade", I know a lot of people don't like it, but IMO it has the best Production out of all the their albums, it's mainstream with horns etc, which is different from their other albums but if you think about it, that album IS the Doors experimenting, it reminds me of the Monkees PAC&J in the sense that it's obvious that they took time with the record to make it perfect, and maybe that's the reason a lot of people don't like "The Soft Parade", but to my ears the fact that it's as well produced as it is is because the Doors were experimenting outside of their normal sound, they also experiment with Country music and R&B on that album and they actually go for different sounds, don't get me wrong I like their other albums ,but for me the Soft Parade underrated...

[Malc]

The Monkees "Pool It". A once great group doesn't sink any lower than this.

Too true... but IMHO they redeemed themselves considerably with the excellent Justus. Yes, it wasnt HQ or PACJ but it was a vast improvement on the aforesaid abomination ... and Changes for that matter.
As for Chicago... when WAS their last really good release ?? Chicago XVIII ?? Sisyphus ??

[Mike's Beard]

Well, I can't think of a Kinks album that ranks as low as SIP. Soap Opera is my least favorite, but I wouldn't call it absolutely awful.

UK Jive and Phobia are tragic, The Kinks really had lost it by the last couple of albums.
P.S. Soap Opera is a campy classic.

[Mike's Beard]

I know many disagree but I really don't consider SIP to be a benchmark for bad albums. Yes it's clearly one of their lesser efforts but there's actually a few okayish songs on it, once you get past the horrible, cheap sounding production. Other then a few shitty covers much of the album is simply 'meh', neither good nor bad. There are a couple of stinkers on Love You and Beach Boys 85 that are FAR worse then anything off SIP.

[Mike's Beard]

As for Chicago... when WAS their last really good release ?? Chicago XVIII ?? Sisyphus ??

YIKES! Well before that! I get off the Chicago train after Chicago 13, the Donnie Dacus era is a masterwork compared to the Cetera 80s power ballad schlock.

[elnombre]

Does Velvet Underground's Squeeze count? I've never heard it, and I'm not a particular fan of the Velvets, but it does have an infamous reputation.

If it was a Doug Yule solo album, it would be a nice little obscure rock album, with 5 good tracks and 7 other more in the 'meh' park. Because of the credited artist it's become this abomination.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nwCwGBHd61s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YY_g6FT794o

I used to have a CD of a Lou Reed radio broadcast. In the interview Lou is asked where Doug Yule is these days. He deadpans "Dead I hope" to an audible gasp from the crowd. Made me laugh.

[job]

Monkees are not comparable. Who By Numbers is a brave,  abrasive album, well superior to Who Are You. I can only co spider the Who, Kinks and Rolling Stones as comparable to BBs given the time they started and finished, thus Dirty Work by the Stones stands as a wretched product equal to the worst of the BBs.

Dirty work is only "wretched" compared to OTHER STONES records.  It is miles better than the BB worst stuff.  In fact, you just stumbled upon the answer:  The Stones have held a MUCH higher level of quality throughout their entire career than anyone else by a long shot.  /thread

Well, I can't think of a Kinks album that ranks as low as SIP. Soap Opera is my least favorite, but I wouldn't call it absolutely awful.

People rip on Think Visual a lot but I LOVED that album.

[Jason Penick]

Just some thoughts here:

Surely the worst Doors albums must be the two they cut after Jimbo died, right? There's still some good stuff there, but not at the level of their core catalog (how could it be?). Soft Parade happens to be one of my favorites, though I know it's a divisive album.

Similarly, I would think the low ebb of Pink Floyd would be something like Delicate Sound of Thunder that was released after RW left. With the Who, I'd say Endless Wire is the obvious low point (I LOVE By Numbers).

Pool It and Justus are each about half-good to my way of thinking. Take the best cuts from both and you've got a decent album.

If you want to talk bad late period efforts, the Nashville reunion tracks on the Byrds box set really stink, except "Love That Never Dies" which is not the Byrds at all, but a McGuinn solo track. Of all the great songs they could have covered, they went with "From a Distance"? (Now where is that puke emoticon when I need it?)

The bottom of the barrel can probably be found on various solo efforts from the 80s and 90s by Davy Jones, Roger Daltrey, John Entwistle (excepting the title track from "Too Late the Hero" which is great), Mike Love, Macca (Pipes of Peace or Broad Street anyone?), Jagger, Bowie, Neil... the list goes on. Those two decades were like kryptonite to most classic rock idols. Of the big names only Springsteen seems to have thrived, and he was a little younger going in than the rest of those guys. The point is that the Beach Boys were far from the only ones releasing substandard goop during that era.

[CenturyDeprived]

Just some thoughts here:

Surely the worst Doors albums must be the two they cut after Jimbo died, right? There's still some good stuff there, but not at the level of their core catalog (how could it be?). Soft Parade happens to be one of my favorites, though I know it's a divisive album.

Similarly, I would think the low ebb of Pink Floyd would be something like Delicate Sound of Thunder that was released after RW left. With the Who, I'd say Endless Wire is the obvious low point (I LOVE By Numbers).

Pool It and Justus are each about half-good to my way of thinking. Take the best cuts from both and you've got a decent album.

If you want to talk bad late period efforts, the Nashville reunion tracks on the Byrds box set really stink, except "Love That Never Dies" which is not the Byrds at all, but a McGuinn solo track. Of all the great songs they could have covered, they went with "From a Distance"? (Now where is that puke emoticon when I need it?)

The bottom of the barrel can probably be found on various solo efforts from the 80s and 90s by Davy Jones, Roger Daltrey, John Entwistle (excepting the title track from "Too Late the Hero" which is great), Mike Love, Macca (Pipes of Peace or Broad Street anyone?), Jagger, Bowie, Neil... the list goes on. Those two decades were like kryptonite to most classic rock idols. Of the big names only Springsteen seems to have thrived, and he was a little younger going in than the rest of those guys. The point is that the Beach Boys were far from the only ones releasing substandard goop during that era.

LOL at "substandard goop"

But yeah… It's always easier to understand substandard goop in context.

[Lee Marshall]

"Substandard Goop" is spelled with a *P*.

Pubstandard goop.

[Lonely Summer]

Well, I can't think of a Kinks album that ranks as low as SIP. Soap Opera is my least favorite, but I wouldn't call it absolutely awful.

UK Jive and Phobia are tragic, The Kinks really had lost it by the last couple of albums.
P.S. Soap Opera is a campy classic.

Tragic? No, I love those albums. How can any Kinks fan not love Looney Balloon, War is Over, Scattered, or Hatred?

[Lonely Summer]

Monkees are not comparable. Who By Numbers is a brave,  abrasive album, well superior to Who Are You. I can only co spider the Who, Kinks and Rolling Stones as comparable to BBs given the time they started and finished, thus Dirty Work by the Stones stands as a wretched product equal to the worst of the BBs.

Dirty work is only "wretched" compared to OTHER STONES records.  It is miles better than the BB worst stuff.  In fact, you just stumbled upon the answer:  The Stones have held a MUCH higher level of quality throughout their entire career than anyone else by a long shot.  /thread

Well, I can't think of a Kinks album that ranks as low as SIP. Soap Opera is my least favorite, but I wouldn't call it absolutely awful.

People rip on Think Visual a lot but I LOVED that album.

It's not one of my favorites, but I love Working at the Factory, Lost and Found, and When You Were a Child.

[PaulTMA]

There's even a pseudo rap song where old, famous Bee Gees song lyrics are referenced.
Smart Girls-style.

What is this song called?  I think I have to hear it.