Masterpiece albums

Ten · #1 08-15-2018, 09:12 PM

I listen to music most of the day at work on headphones and am always looking for new things to check out. I know there have been some great threads about YouTube performances, but I’m curious to know what complete albums you feel are absolute masterpieces.

I’m mainly curious about acoustic based albums (sorry Dark Side of the Moon, this is an acoustic forum), but obviously many may have a wide variation of instruments.

Some albums may have great songs, but as an album may not stand as complete as others that you truly feel stand as an inspired work of art as a whole.

To kick it off, I feel that Red Headed Stranger by Willie Nelson is one of the greatest albums ever made.

What are your favorites?

justonwo · #2 08-15-2018, 09:20 PM

Bob from Brooklyn · #3 08-15-2018, 09:20 PM

Off the top of my head, Home by the Dixie Chicks

Brucebubs · #4 08-15-2018, 09:25 PM

Acoustically,
- Neil Young Live at Massey Hall
- Will Ackerman - 'Returning'.
- W.G. Snuffy Waldren - 'Music by ...'
- Bruce Cockburn

posternutbag · #5 08-15-2018, 09:51 PM

Being in middle and high school during the height of MTV's Unplugged, I have a fondness for many of those albums.

First and foremost, Eric Clapton Unplugged literally changed my life, as did Nirvana Unplugged. I actually think Alice in Chains Unplugged is probably the strongest of the Unplugged albums that have been released. All three are great, beginning to end.

Aside from those, I really like The Grateful Dead Dick's Picks #8, Live at Harpur College. The first whole disc is a mini acoustic concert.

I love The Dave Matthews Band. Under The Table and Dreaming and Crash are both good. Rusted Root's When I Woke is their most immersive and listenable album with very little filler and lots of acoustic guitar and percussion. So much percussion.

Ceabeceabe · #6 08-15-2018, 09:57 PM

Slice o Life (live, solo) by Bruce Cockburn

Steel and wood · #7 08-15-2018, 10:14 PM

Discovering Nora Jones' "Feels Like Home" album turned me into a bit of a fan.

jim1960 · #8 08-15-2018, 10:18 PM

This album is one of the best things I've heard in recent years. The lyrics are clever and original, the melodies are solid, and the production is wonderful.

brad2001 · #9 08-15-2018, 10:27 PM

I've felt that Nickle Creeks' "This Side" album was masterful in that it breathed new life into folk music.

Everton FC · #10 08-15-2018, 10:36 PM

I could give you a list of a lot of artists... But one album I love is Dala - "Girls From The North Country" Live. Excellent stuff. Is it a "masterpiece"? No one's ever heard of them, so probably not. But that's not their fault!

If you want a list of artists to comb through, I can provide!

kaos · #11 08-15-2018, 10:50 PM

Joni Mitchell - Blue
Neil Young - Silver and Gold
Nick Drake - Pink Moon
Jackson Browne - Solo Acoustic 1&2
Eagles - Desperado
Bob Dylan - Freewheelin Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan - Blood on the Tracks
So many more ...

Five Fourths · #12 08-15-2018, 11:06 PM

Here are some more...

"August and Everything After," Counting Crows

"Sheryl Crow," Sheryl Crow (Can't go wrong with most of hers, but this sophomore effort is my favorite.)

"Automatic for the People," "Eponymous," REM

"Bringing Down the Horse," Wallflowers

"Shake Your Money Maker," Black Crowes

"In Between Dreams," Jack Johnson

"Baja Sessions," Chris Isaak

"Sea Change," Beck

FF

rockabilly69 · #13 08-15-2018, 11:07 PM

Chris Whitley's Dirt Floor
Nice Drake's Five Leaves Left
Bruce Springsteen's Nebraska

robj144 · #14 08-15-2018, 11:34 PM

In the last 30 years or so... Ok Computer by Radiohead.

Pura Vida · #15 08-15-2018, 11:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ten

To kick it off, I feel that Red Headed Stranger by Willie Nelson is one of the greatest albums ever made.

What are your favorites?

Hey, Ten... good post. My most played album of this decade is “Muchacho” by Phosphorescent. And he’s a huge Willie fan. In fact, he did an entire album, called “For Willie.”