A few weeks back, a Brat bravely postulated that 1987 was the greatest year in the history of music. After the laughter died down, we took a closer look at the albums released twenty-five years ago and you know what?He may very well be right.
See if he's correct. We compiled the twenty-five greatest albums from twenty-five years ago, 1987. Tell us what you think when you get down to #1. And let us know if you would've ordered them differently.
Here are Numbers 6-10:
10. The Replacements, Pleased To Meet Me
This one is so very difficult for me to put into words because of all the things that happened to me while this record provided the soundtrack. I grew up and these songs came along for the ride on cassette and then on CD right afterward. Some of the Replacements' best work is here, a hugely ambitious album where the Replacements were hitting their stride and they never sounded more amazing. It marked their departure from punk rock roustabouts to big label musicians, a joke they make very plain in the lyrics for "I Don’t Know:" One foot in the door, the other one in the gutter.--Dufmanno
9. George Michael, Faith
You know it's a pretty good year for music when George Michael's twenty-million-selling Faith clocks in at #9. Faith was Michael's first album post-Wham!, a chance to show the world he could stand on his own two feet. And boy did he show them with six Top 5 hits: "Faith," "Father Figure," "I Want Your Sex," "Kissing A Fool," "Monkey," and "One More Try" (five of which hit #1). How great was the album? We even put up with overzealous radio censors taking a 1/4 of the chorus away in "I Want Your Sex" just so we could listen to the song the summer before the album dropped.--Chris
8. The Cure, Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me
Hey there, NextGen Goth Whippersnappers! I know you love your chemical romances, your black fingernail polish, and your cultivated GaGa androgyny. It's adorable! But let me just school you for a sec. You aren't goth until you dump two cans of Aqua Net in your hair, rim your eyes in black liner, start smoking clove cigarettes, and find a nice chilly mall parking lot with your friends and listen to The Cure's Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me about fifty thousand times.Some say this isn't the band's most authentic record, but you'll love it, trust me. Stomp around to Robert Smith's passionate whine as he asks "Why Can't I Be You?" (Ignore the cheese-tastic synthesizer; just focus on the relentless drumming). Allow yourself five minutes (and no more) of twirly optimism when you hear "Just Like Heaven," the song that makes everyone dance like Molly Ringwald in every John Hughes movie about misunderstood youth. Come for the funky snarling bass line in "Hot, Hot Hot!!," stay for the ethereal "One More Time" that'll make you sway like dreamy little hairsprayed jellyfish at the end of the night.
We’re talking about a Goth concept album here. Trust me.--Didactic Pirate
7. Sting, ...Nothing Like The Sun
For me, 1987 will always be the year that music changed for me forever. Or at least the way I listened to music. It was when I first made the leap from cassettes to CDs. And the first CD I ever bought was Sting's ...Nothing Like The Sun. Not only did I love not having to change sides and being able to shuffle the songs on an album, in '87 I was in the midst of a huge Police phase so Sting's seminal solo album popped at the right time. This album was a sonic departure from the artist I knew who fronted the Police. The rock/reggae was replaced with soulful and melodic tracks like "History Will Teach Us Nothing" and "Be Still My Beating Heart." I was drawn in by the jazzy riffs of "Rock Steady" and the pop beat of "We'll Be Together." I spent hours in my room, headphones plugged into my stereo, soaking in this album. Even today, hearing any song from it will automatically transport me back to that awkward teenaged time in '87 when music was my escape.--Daddy Geek Boy
6. Depeche Mode, Music For The Masses
Confession: I was only nine when this was released, so I did not appreciate it during its time. I didn't discover Depeche Mode until "Personal Jesus" became a monstrous hit off their following album. Even more confessions: I didn't even sit down for a good listen to this until college, nearly a decade later. Music For The Masses is an album that just SCREAMS "We are about to hit the big time, but for all the right reasons." Those right reasons are that they are damn good songwriters and musicians; Martin Gore's harmonies rival Peter Buck's. Rarely have I heard an album where every song is radio-ready, yet still musically and melodically genius. Depeche Mode are no rays of sunshine, their songs deep, dark and often powerful in meaning. To this day, the first few bars of "Strangelove" make me want to put eyeliner, Doc Martens, and dance around solemnly without a shred of irony.--Robin| << Nos. 11-15 | Nos. 1-5 >> |
