U2's 'Achtung Baby' has been crowned the most influential album of the past 25 years in a magazine poll.

The Irish band's 1991 album beat Prince's 'Sign O' The Times' at two and The Smiths 'The Queen Is Dead' at three to the Spin Magazine title.

Spin listed the staff-voted top 125 albums of the past 25 years to celebrate the magazine's quarter of a century in the business.

Completing the top five are Nirvana's 'Nevermind' and Radiohead's 'OK Computer' at four and five respectively.

Defending the unlikely number one, Spin Magazine editor Charles Aaron said: "Unlike Radiohead with 'OK Computer' and 'Kid A,' U2 took their post-industrial, trad-rock disillusionment not as a symbol of overall cultural malaise, but as a challenge to buck up and transcend.

"Struggling to simultaneously embrace and blow up the world, they were never more inspirational."

The top 10 is as follows:

1. U2 - 'Achtung Baby'
2. Prince - 'Sign O' The Timnes'
3. The Smiths – 'The Queen Is Dead'
4. Nirvana – 'Nevermind'
5. Radiohead – 'OK Computer'
6. Public Enemy - ' It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back'
7. Guns N' Roses – 'Appetite For Destruction'
8. PJ Harvey – 'Rid Of Me'
9. Pavement – 'Slanted and Enchanted'
10. Nine Inch Nails – 'The Downward Spiral'

No mention of A Bigger Bang....?

29years ok too?

Friday Night in San Francisco /Paco/John/Al.
Influenced a 10000000000 guitar players to take it really serous.

CRACKER - KEROSINE HAT

White Stripes - Elephant

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Edith Grove
White Stripes - Elephant

Agree...love this album.

I think most of the list looks pretty good though.

ABB

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mickscarey
ABB

I would prefer ABBA.

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treaclefingers

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Edith Grove
White Stripes - Elephant

Agree...love this album.

I think most of the list looks pretty good though.

Not really. "Most Influential" just means "Which album has inspired the most copycats?" I'd put Nirvana at the top of the list, and Pearl Jam, who aren't even on it, at #2.

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tatters

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treaclefingers

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Edith Grove
White Stripes - Elephant

Agree...love this album.

I think most of the list looks pretty good though.

Not really. "Most Influential" just means "Which album has inspired the most copycats?" I'd put Nirvana at the top of the list, and Pearl Jam, who aren't even on it, at #2.

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU for the definition of "Most Influential". Without your input, I think that the majority of us may have been lost.

Keep up the good work!><

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treaclefingers

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tatters

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treaclefingers

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Edith Grove
White Stripes - Elephant

Agree...love this album.

I think most of the list looks pretty good though.

Not really. "Most Influential" just means "Which album has inspired the most copycats?" I'd put Nirvana at the top of the list, and Pearl Jam, who aren't even on it, at #2.

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU for the definition of "Most Influential". Without your input, I think that the majority of us may have been lost.

Keep up the good work!><

Well, clearly the folks at Spin magazine don't know what it means. Achtung Baby's a pretty good album, but who exactly has been influenced by it? What famous, influential artist of TODAY heard that album when it first came out and thought "Wow! That's amazing! I'm gonna put a band together and we're gonna do music that sounds just like that!"

IMO RHCP Blood Sugar Sex Magic...hands down!

The Strokes first record

Most influential to me:

Elvis Costello & The Attractions: Blood & Chocolate
The Replacements: Pleased To Meet Me, Don't Tell A Soul
Tom Waits: Rain Dogs, Mule Variations
Liz Phair: Exile In Guyville
Lucinda Williams: Car Wheels On A Gravel Road, Essence

Bingo,

regarding RHCP it's Magik not Magic.

"Well my heavy throbbers itchin' just to lay a solid rhythm down"

Any of a few Guided by Voices albums: Propellor, Bee Thousand or Alien Lanes. Low-fi, warts and all, indie rock could still rule!

agree with RHCP, and there should be some Wilco there. The White Stripes and Pearl Jam sorely missed. All these have been hugely influental, but none surpassed. I would like to add the Stone Roses and Oasis, SR 1st album especially.

It's Dirty Work, and don't do it again...

It looks like Spin magazine are trying to list the "most influential", not "the best"... interesting idea.


On that criteria alone, I would suggest:

- Nirvana "Nevermind".

- Eric Clapton "Unplugged". It kickstarted the whole Unplugged phenomenon, which was everywhere in the 1990s. It won endless Grammys and everyone followed with an unplugged album of their own. You might say that the success of this album is related to Nirvana's "Nevermind" album, as it reflected a desire/fashion to strip away the 1980s pomposity and artifical click-tracks. A back-to-authenticity approach... And hey, Nirvana themselves would be influenced by Eric Clapton's success and record their own Unplugged album... All of which leads to an interesting question- can we trace the current popularity of 'roots' music (such as Wilco) to the unplugged phenomenon?

- My Bloody Valentine "Loveless". This was incredibly influential amongst musicians and music fans. Its good too.

- Me personally I hate Oasis, but even I can see from over here in Australia that "Definitely Maybe" was incredibly influential in the UK and caused many kids to pick up a guitar. So I guess that should be on the list.

- NWA "Straight Outta Compton". This was really influential, it helped make gansta rap very popular, for better or worse.

- Beck "Odeley". This was a commercial success and the cut-up sampling production techniques by the Dust Brothers influenced many many musicians. "Odeley" is interesting because Beck's own approach to music compliments the cut-up style (eg: recycling pop culture).

- Bob Dylan Bootleg Series 1-3. This boxset was a big success, and in my opinion it influenced countless other successful bands to open their vaults... Springsteen, Velvet Underground, Rolling Stones, etc. It showed that you could release new material from the past and people would still love it.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 2010-06-14 08:40 by bolexman.

Beck Odelay

Just looked it up; it's a list of 125 with many of our suggestions scattered throughout. spin list

Unless I read too fast and missed them, I was surprised it didn't include Peter Gabriel's So, Paul Simon's Graceland, U2's Joshua Tree, Depeche Mode's Violator, The Cure's Disintegration.

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treaclefingers

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Edith Grove
White Stripes - Elephant

Agree...love this album.

Wrong.

That's the problem right there, it's not about what you love, and therefore think is great, it's about influence. If your going to try and pick an album as being influential, you have to be willing to legitimately consider albums you hate, but that have had a major impact on what's come after them.

In my opinion, it's Nevermind, an album of which I only like half and hate the other. Unfortunately, the half I don't like, songs such as In Bloom and Come As You Are, seems to be the part that has influenced so much of what has come since.

I think the list is pretty accurate, although I think a few things, such as Sign O' The Times, Rid Of Me, and It Takes A Nation Of Millions are stretches. I think the performers are influential, but the albums not so much, mostly because I don't really hear them in today's music.

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69boogie

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treaclefingers

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Edith Grove
White Stripes - Elephant

Agree...love this album.

Wrong.

That's the problem right there, it's not about what you love, and therefore think is great, it's about influence. If your going to try and pick an album as being influential, you have to be willing to legitimately consider albums you hate, but that have had a major impact on what's come after them.

In my opinion, it's Nevermind, an album of which I only like half and hate the other. Unfortunately, the half I don't like, songs such as In Bloom and Come As You Are, seems to be the part that has influenced so much of what has come since.

I think the list is pretty accurate, although I think a few things, such as Sign O' The Times, Rid Of Me, and It Takes A Nation Of Millions are stretches. I think the performers are influential, but the albums not so much, mostly because I don't really hear them in today's music.

Just because I express a preference for this album doesn't automatically disqualify it for contention.

Just because you are rude doesn't automatically disqualify you from having an opinion.

Just understand, it is only an opinion...and just like *ssholes, everybody's got one!

But Dirty Work is still the most influential album of the past 25 years if you can register how many shit-alums there are issued after it...

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Come On
But Dirty Work is still the most influential album of the past 25 years if you can register how many shit-alums there are issued after it...

Now that, IS PHUNNY!

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bolexman
It looks like Spin magazine are trying to list the "most influential", not "the best"... interesting idea.


On that criteria alone, I would suggest:

- Nirvana "Nevermind".

- Eric Clapton "Unplugged". It kickstarted the whole Unplugged phenomenon, which was everywhere in the 1990s. It won endless Grammys and everyone followed with an unplugged album of their own. You might say that the success of this album is related to Nirvana's "Nevermind" album, as it reflected a desire/fashion to strip away the 1980s pomposity and artifical click-tracks. A back-to-authenticity approach... And hey, Nirvana themselves would be influenced by Eric Clapton's success and record their own Unplugged album... All of which leads to an interesting question- can we trace the current popularity of 'roots' music (such as Wilco) to the unplugged phenomenon?

- My Bloody Valentine "Loveless". This was incredibly influential amongst musicians and music fans. Its good too.

- Me personally I hate Oasis, but even I can see from over here in Australia that "Definitely Maybe" was incredibly influential in the UK and caused many kids to pick up a guitar. So I guess that should be on the list.

- NWA "Straight Outta Compton". This was really influential, it helped make gansta rap very popular, for better or worse.

- Beck "Odeley". This was a commercial success and the cut-up sampling production techniques by the Dust Brothers influenced many many musicians. "Odeley" is interesting because Beck's own approach to music compliments the cut-up style (eg: recycling pop culture).

- Bob Dylan Bootleg Series 1-3. This boxset was a big success, and in my opinion it influenced countless other successful bands to open their vaults... Springsteen, Velvet Underground, Rolling Stones, etc. It showed that you could release new material from the past and people would still love it.

wrong. TESLA released a successful live "unplugged" album in 1990 which the people at MTV say inspired them to create the unplugged series. also a bon jovi performance of "wanted dead or alive" that was unplugged at some awards show. mariah carey and paul mccartney both appeared for MTV unplugged before clapton

Beastie Boys!

C

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keefriffhard4life

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bolexman
It looks like Spin magazine are trying to list the "most influential", not "the best"... interesting idea.


On that criteria alone, I would suggest:

- Nirvana "Nevermind".

- Eric Clapton "Unplugged". It kickstarted the whole Unplugged phenomenon, which was everywhere in the 1990s. It won endless Grammys and everyone followed with an unplugged album of their own. You might say that the success of this album is related to Nirvana's "Nevermind" album, as it reflected a desire/fashion to strip away the 1980s pomposity and artifical click-tracks. A back-to-authenticity approach... And hey, Nirvana themselves would be influenced by Eric Clapton's success and record their own Unplugged album... All of which leads to an interesting question- can we trace the current popularity of 'roots' music (such as Wilco) to the unplugged phenomenon?

- My Bloody Valentine "Loveless". This was incredibly influential amongst musicians and music fans. Its good too.

- Me personally I hate Oasis, but even I can see from over here in Australia that "Definitely Maybe" was incredibly influential in the UK and caused many kids to pick up a guitar. So I guess that should be on the list.

- NWA "Straight Outta Compton". This was really influential, it helped make gansta rap very popular, for better or worse.

- Beck "Odeley". This was a commercial success and the cut-up sampling production techniques by the Dust Brothers influenced many many musicians. "Odeley" is interesting because Beck's own approach to music compliments the cut-up style (eg: recycling pop culture).

- Bob Dylan Bootleg Series 1-3. This boxset was a big success, and in my opinion it influenced countless other successful bands to open their vaults... Springsteen, Velvet Underground, Rolling Stones, etc. It showed that you could release new material from the past and people would still love it.

wrong. TESLA released a successful live "unplugged" album in 1990 which the people at MTV say inspired them to create the unplugged series. also a bon jovi performance of "wanted dead or alive" that was unplugged at some awards show. mariah carey and paul mccartney both appeared for MTV unplugged before clapton

You miss my point. Clapton's Unplugged was incredibly popular. A phenomenon of sorts. McCartney's Unplugged did not have any success that was even remotely comparable to Clapton's, for example. We are talking cultural success here. Clapton's album was everywhere, and suddenly every man and his dog was cutting an Unplugged disc... I also believe the success of the Unplugged format was closely linked to the impact that 'grunge' had in the early 1990s. Public tastes had changed, and 'authenticity' was suddenly fashionable.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 2010-06-14 12:44 by bolexman.

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bolexman

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keefriffhard4life

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bolexman
It looks like Spin magazine are trying to list the "most influential", not "the best"... interesting idea.


On that criteria alone, I would suggest:

- Nirvana "Nevermind".

- Eric Clapton "Unplugged". It kickstarted the whole Unplugged phenomenon, which was everywhere in the 1990s. It won endless Grammys and everyone followed with an unplugged album of their own. You might say that the success of this album is related to Nirvana's "Nevermind" album, as it reflected a desire/fashion to strip away the 1980s pomposity and artifical click-tracks. A back-to-authenticity approach... And hey, Nirvana themselves would be influenced by Eric Clapton's success and record their own Unplugged album... All of which leads to an interesting question- can we trace the current popularity of 'roots' music (such as Wilco) to the unplugged phenomenon?

- My Bloody Valentine "Loveless". This was incredibly influential amongst musicians and music fans. Its good too.

- Me personally I hate Oasis, but even I can see from over here in Australia that "Definitely Maybe" was incredibly influential in the UK and caused many kids to pick up a guitar. So I guess that should be on the list.

- NWA "Straight Outta Compton". This was really influential, it helped make gansta rap very popular, for better or worse.

- Beck "Odeley". This was a commercial success and the cut-up sampling production techniques by the Dust Brothers influenced many many musicians. "Odeley" is interesting because Beck's own approach to music compliments the cut-up style (eg: recycling pop culture).

- Bob Dylan Bootleg Series 1-3. This boxset was a big success, and in my opinion it influenced countless other successful bands to open their vaults... Springsteen, Velvet Underground, Rolling Stones, etc. It showed that you could release new material from the past and people would still love it.

wrong. TESLA released a successful live "unplugged" album in 1990 which the people at MTV say inspired them to create the unplugged series. also a bon jovi performance of "wanted dead or alive" that was unplugged at some awards show. mariah carey and paul mccartney both appeared for MTV unplugged before clapton

You miss my point. Clapton's Unplugged was incredibly popular. A phenomenon of sorts. McCartney's Unplugged did not have any success that was even remotely comparable to Clapton's, for example. We are talking cultural success here. Clapton's album was everywhere, and suddenly every man and his dog was cutting an Unplugged disc... I also believe the success of the Unplugged format was closely linked to the impact that 'grunge' had in the early 1990s. Public tastes had changed, and 'authenticity' was suddenly fashionable.

well you say grunge played a part in it yet poison, ratt, kiss, great white and a few other pop metal bands were on unplugged. most of the time the artists had no say if mtv released the album. they sign a contract to play the MTV unplugged series and know MTV may release the album or may not.