crap debut, went on to greatness!

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Honestly, I find Homework to be the dullest albums I've ever bought and Discovery the most sonically lush. Homework: few melodies, plodding 4/4 tempos, very little else (around the world is nice though); discovery: loads of nice melodies, danceable choons, loads of nods to other styles, great songs.

― dog latin (dog latin), Monday, 24 March 2003 12:56 (twenty-three years ago)

i've re-listened to it recently and I gotta say that apart from 2-3 standout tracks 'Yo! bum rush the show' is pretty tedious..

― Fabrice (Fabfunk), Monday, 24 March 2003 15:25 (twenty-three years ago)

The s/t Unwound album was recorded first and came out after "Fake Train" and it is pretty crappy.

― Jon Williams (ex machina), Monday, 24 March 2003 15:27 (twenty-three years ago)

"I actually quite like Leisure by Blur, actually. Hell, it's a fuckuva lot better than, say, The Great Escape."

Sacrilege! You're choosing a semi-melodic, instantly forgettable baggy album over THE sharpest set of 90's pop songs! I will defend that album to the grave!

― weasel diesel (K1l14n), Monday, 24 March 2003 15:28 (twenty-three years ago)

I will defend that album to the grave!

You go right ahead with that. In fact, I'm going to go home tonight, put on Leisure at a ill-advisedly high volume, open a bottle of beer and use The Great Escape as a coaster.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Monday, 24 March 2003 16:31 (twenty-three years ago)

Nabokov.

― Chris P (Chris P), Monday, 24 March 2003 17:34 (twenty-three years ago)

"Leisure" and "The Great Escape" are both excellent albums. If you are going to use a Blur album as a coaster, then use "13", or wait for their forthcoming, probably crap, R&B-influenced album and use that one as a coaster.

― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Monday, 24 March 2003 18:31 (twenty-three years ago)

"You go right ahead with that. In fact, I'm going to go home tonight, put on Leisure at a ill-advisedly high volume, open a bottle of beer and use The Great Escape as a coaster."

I would scold you further, but the fact that you have no "great Escape" in your life is punishment enough!

― weasel diesel (K1l14n), Tuesday, 25 March 2003 10:38 (twenty-three years ago)

The Great Escape is incredibly over-produced and half of the songs are just lame pieces of pop trash that speak of overconfidence and lazy writing. There are some standout tracks on it: The Universal, Best Days, He Thought Of Cars. That's about it.
Leisure has some depth and speaks of a dedicated band trying to fulfill some ambitions. It may not be that great, but at least it is not so forced and shamefully poppy as the Great Escape. I'd prefer Leisure.
But Blur's masterpieces are without any doubt Modern Life Is Rubbish and Parklife. I can understand if some would vote for the nameless album. But the Great Escape? Naaaahhhh!!!

― Tijn, Tuesday, 25 March 2003 11:08 (twenty-three years ago)

"it is not so forced and shamefully poppy as the Great Escape"

what on earth is shameful about being poppy?

― weasel diesel (K1l14n), Tuesday, 25 March 2003 11:15 (twenty-three years ago)

Aaliyah.

― Matt DC (Matt DC), Tuesday, 25 March 2003 11:22 (twenty-three years ago)

NWA

― Fabrice (Fabfunk), Tuesday, 25 March 2003 11:27 (twenty-three years ago)

Poppy isn't shameful by definition, but the poppiness of their Great Escape pop songs is a shameful type of poppiness, judging by the standards they set for themselves with their previous albums.

― Tijn, Tuesday, 25 March 2003 12:03 (twenty-three years ago)

"The Great Escape" doesn't differ that much from "Parklife" musically. The only differences being that "The Great Escape" adds an influence from late 70s/early 80s Madness/Specials ska and slightly more synths.

― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Tuesday, 25 March 2003 13:24 (twenty-three years ago)

I agree the Great Escape is not a huge step away from its predecessor. But I can't see Madness/Specials in it. Many songs sound so effortless that maybe you might mistake them for two-tone inspired songs. Mind that I do not think of it as a terrible album, it's just far less good than MLIR and Parklife but I still won't ever think of selling my copy.
The album just disappointed me, I had heard an early live version of Country House which was superb, and then the produced version was so much of a forced pop-song, it didn't do it justice. Thanks to the overproduction about all of the potential emotion in the songs got lost on the album, save for the ones I mentioned earlier.

― Tijn, Tuesday, 25 March 2003 13:32 (twenty-three years ago)

But I can't see Madness/Specials in it

Listen to any early to mid-period Madness song, watch its video. Then listen to "Country House" and look at the video for it.

Then...

Listen to the "More Specials" album, particularly "Stereotype". Then, listen to "Fade Away".

Then...

Listen to any Fun Boy Three single
Then, listen to "T.O.P. M.A.N."

― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Tuesday, 25 March 2003 13:42 (twenty-three years ago)

Point understood!

― Tijn, Tuesday, 25 March 2003 14:24 (twenty-three years ago)

Public Enemy's Yo Bumrush The Show was pretty near the low end of rap even at the time it came out.

― Mr Noodles (Mr Noodles), Tuesday, 25 March 2003 15:58 (twenty-three years ago)

fourteen years pass...

Surely Prince is the best example of this? The guy would later make records like Chaos and Disorder, which although not an essential Prince LP is still fairly enjoyable and has its highlights. For You provides little indication of the brilliant music that was to follow, and is probably one of his least enjoyable LP's.

― The Anti-Climax Blues Band (Turrican), Saturday, 1 July 2017 21:45 (eight years ago)

or the 1975?

― joshywinty (josh), Sunday, 2 July 2017 00:30 (eight years ago)

Hawkwind. The debut album is not good. In Search of Space through Warrior on the Edge of Time, though...

― grawlix (unperson), Sunday, 2 July 2017 01:12 (eight years ago)

some of these may just be me:

japan
nomeansno
cop shoot cop
bad religion
the waterboys
coil (Transparent)
swans (s/t EP, not Filth obv.)
kraftwerk (sorry, just don't like the traffic cones)

― StanM, Sunday, 2 July 2017 03:59 (eight years ago)

David Sylvian dismisses the first Japan LP and reckons the second album should have been their debut, but I disagree... I think that the first album is great and the second LP not so much.

― The Anti-Climax Blues Band (Turrican), Sunday, 2 July 2017 11:51 (eight years ago)

or the 1975?
― joshywinty (josh), Sunday, July 2, 2017 12:30 AM (eleven hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Nah, they don't count because they never went onto greatness and they're crap full stop.

― The Anti-Climax Blues Band (Turrican), Sunday, 2 July 2017 11:52 (eight years ago)

The Divine Comedy

― heaven parker (anagram), Sunday, 2 July 2017 12:17 (eight years ago)

These New Puritans's debut is rubbish, Hidden is interesting but flawed, but they definitely achieved greatness with Field of Reeds

― ultros ultros-ghali, Sunday, 2 July 2017 12:28 (eight years ago)

I will rep for the Prince debut...haven't got the time now... but I WILL rep for it...also the 'Adolescent Sex' is genius...they just can't see it

― X-Prince Protégé (sonnyboy), Sunday, 2 July 2017 14:00 (eight years ago)

Motorpsycho is kind of the quintessential example of this, if we're including stuff like Prince that is. Who could have known...

― frogbs, Monday, 3 July 2017 03:37 (eight years ago)

first Afghan Whigs is pretty terrible.

― campreverb, Monday, 3 July 2017 04:21 (eight years ago)

Bob Dylan

― Fine Toothcomb (sonofstan), Monday, 3 July 2017 22:25 (eight years ago)

I like all of Japan's albums.

― Austin, Tuesday, 4 July 2017 01:14 (eight years ago)

I like 'em all too, but think the second one is the weakest.

― The Anti-Climax Blues Band (Turrican), Tuesday, 4 July 2017 12:45 (eight years ago)

Since the thread includes some of the greatest artists of contemporary music with a huge catalogue, obviously there will always be someone who loves the more obscure stuff.
It's the distance and evolution between the debut - no matter how good it is - and the peak of the artist in question that seems more interesting to me.
In that regard, Dylan, the Stones or Prince would be perfect examples. Stevie Wonder even more imo : I mean, from "The Jazz Soul Of Little Stevie" to "Songs In The Key Of Life" !

― AlXTC from Paris, Tuesday, 4 July 2017 12:59 (eight years ago)

The first Prince album is underrated if anything.

― Universal LULU Nation (upper mississippi sh@kedown), Tuesday, 4 July 2017 13:51 (eight years ago)

Yeah listening now this is fantastic r&b

Title track opens the album a lot like "Our Prayer/Gee" does Smile by the Beach Boys, like the doo wop/gospel version

― Universal LULU Nation (upper mississippi sh@kedown), Tuesday, 4 July 2017 14:14 (eight years ago)

Judas Priest.

― EZ Snappin, Tuesday, 4 July 2017 14:18 (eight years ago)

arguably : M. Jackson - from Got To Be There to OFW/Thriller.
GTBT is good though so again, it's not so much about the debut being crap but about it being far from the following peak.

― AlXTC from Paris, Tuesday, 4 July 2017 14:24 (eight years ago)

I guess there's a few examples of artists on Motown coming into their own when they've been allowed to express themselves creatively.

― The Anti-Climax Blues Band (Turrican), Tuesday, 4 July 2017 21:52 (eight years ago)

one month passes...

Does anyone stan for Springsteen's debut? I adore the man, hate that debut album, though.

― Rod Steel (musicfanatic), Tuesday, 29 August 2017 00:28 (eight years ago)

Carly Rae Jepsen

― MarkoP, Tuesday, 29 August 2017 03:57 (eight years ago)

xpost yep hi I love the debut

spirit of the night, blinded by the light, lost in the flood, hard to be a saint in the city... besides the highlight tracks, just the general folky Bruce, yknow, the Van Morrison/Bob Dylan idol worship & megawordy young & antsy vibe is really enjoyable for me

i'll stan for it forever

― Squeaky Fromage (VegemiteGrrl), Tuesday, 29 August 2017 04:43 (eight years ago)

Same. Lots of good to be found on the first Springsteen album.

― Ⓓⓡ. (Johnny Fever), Tuesday, 29 August 2017 05:21 (eight years ago)

three weeks pass...

^yeah, figured I was in the minority about The Boss. I much prefer his economy-of-words approach to his latter-day lyric writing.

― Rod Steel (musicfanatic), Saturday, 23 September 2017 23:01 (eight years ago)

Simple Minds (before becoming crap again)

― palko, Tuesday, 26 September 2017 20:27 (eight years ago)

warren zevon wanted dead or alive

― fact checking cuz, Tuesday, 26 September 2017 20:35 (eight years ago)

(UK) Squeeze

― PaulTMA, Tuesday, 26 September 2017 21:12 (eight years ago)

Yo la Tengo

― rip van wanko, Tuesday, 26 September 2017 21:36 (eight years ago)

Chairlift, who went crap again

― Shat Parp (dog latin), Wednesday, 27 September 2017 07:52 (eight years ago)

I love the Latin Van Morrison feel of Greetings From Astbury Park. & the amount of words adds to the cadence.

― Stevolende, Wednesday, 27 September 2017 07:58 (eight years ago)

a lot of people (not necessarily me) would classify Lana Del Rey here

― sick, fucking funny, and well tasty (katherine), Wednesday, 27 September 2017 16:05 (eight years ago)

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