Every huge artist has their "New Jersey" - a huge event album that ultimately feels a bit hollow & signals a career decline

We have different working definitions of "huge event album."

sorry I was not under the impression people still liked True Colors

cyndi's third album didn't even go gold so if True Colors is just too damn good an album to be a New Jersey she doesn't have one

Tusk was one of these, and then it got released

R.E.M. - Monster

Insanity itself -- it's obviously AUTOMATIC FOR THE PEOPLE, which seemed huge at the time, but let's face it, in retrospect, R.E.M. as a hitmaker is "the band who recorded Losing My Religion" not "the band who recorded Drive." It sold a lot of copies at the time, though.

people still rave about Automatic. I love Monster but the "#1 sold-back cd ever" thing is hard to ignore. Wish would qualify if Cure fans had abandoned it but I don't think that's the case.

eephus otm, and I'd never realised before

hit-wise you could talk about "the band who recorded Everybody Hurts"

Wish would qualify if Cure fans had abandoned it but I don't think that's the case.

This is the main reason why I said Wild Mood Swings

actually yeah croup is right about True Colors, insofar as it's a piece of shit that coasted on momentum, and you never hear "What's Going On" and "Change of Heart" anymore.

you do in my house, buddy

I want video of you and the misses slow dancing to "What's Going On"

The Verve - Urban Hymns

britpop rules this thread

It's obviously not Automatic but Monster seems wrong because people immediately hated that album.

Be Hear Now?

Be Here Now lol

in American Urban Hymns was their only hit album and it looks like Richard Astbury's solo career did quite alright over in the UK so idgi - also don't critics still worship that album?

Let It Come Down by Spiritualized might fit.

lol Richard Ashcroft, sorry, freudian slip

Then again, on the metric of "last.fm" plays, people are still listening to "Everybody Hurts," "Man in the Moon," and "Nightswimming" in large numbers -- who knew?

Actually, I think REM just fails to meet this pattern: looks like AFTP sold about as many copies as Out of Time but none of the singles charted higher than 28; "Everybody Hurts" topped at 29, and "Nightswimming," 5th most listened to REM song per last.fm, didn't even crack top 100.

None of these charted as high as "Losing My Religion" or "Shiny Happy People" or, for that matter, "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?" or "Bang and Blame."

"What's Going On" isn't a slow dance song!

with REM isn't it New Adventures? it was obvious the gig was up but it still sold bucketloads; oh but I guess people on ILM defend this hunk of junk, blah

"What's Going On" isn't a slow dance song!

shows you how long it's been since I heard it. I remember those goopy synths at the beginning

with REM isn't it New Adventures? it was obvious the gig was up but it still sold bucketloads

No, because Monster sold as many copies and scored two more singles that charted higher

whoops – thought this said Automatic. Time for lunch!

yeah & they coasted into New Adventures' sales

xp right!

Out Of Time, Automatic and Monster all sold 4 million copies stateside. New Adventures sold 1 million. Monster is famously the most sold back CD, now gets two-star reviews in publications when it came out to four stars - I hate to admit it but I don't know how it's not "THE ONE EVERYONE BOUGHT"

Mj's "bad"

^^^ first thing I thought of

eephus's crazy REM theory is eating itself

you still hear "Bang & Blame" on the radio though; but "Bittersweet Me" was the biggest single on New Adventures and uh

it's not like all the songs from New Jersey are banned from radio

thread title just does not scan well with chorus of "Hungry Heart"

Billy Ocean - Love Zone

why Love Zone and not Tear Down These Walls

the fact that stipe so strenuously insisted that monster was 'totally punk rock' weighs in favor of its nj-osity

Metallica - The Black Album

only cuz TDTW only managed one massive #1 and the album charted lower.

xxpost

Hmm how about In Through The Out Door? Pretty much un-listened to these days, apart from people on ilm obviously.

The album remained on the US top spot for seven weeks and sold three million copies by the end of September 1979.[9] It is also the Led Zeppelin album that has been most weeks on the top of the charts (tied along with Led Zeppelin II). To date, the album has sold six million copies in the US.

TDDW had a top #3 hit with a cartoon duck in the video, so I don't think that album is a "CLEARLY THINGS HAVE CHANGED" album

i'd say presence

xpost where as the follow-up to TDDW is literally named Time To Move On

Guns & Roses - Use Your Illusion 1 & 2

"Bad" didn't follow the exact NJ formula, as it had hits that are still remembered, but there was a definite sense that things had gone sour after OTW and Thriller.

silverfish otm

Cheap Trick- Dream Police

You got killer single and George Martin- should have been their victory lap and it was popular but they had kinda lost something and the slide to the state fair starts.

― earlnash, Tuesday, August 7, 2012 1:43 PM (22 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

George Martin didn't produce Dream Police, but did produce the follow-up, All Shook Up (which didn't sell too well, and didn't have any major hits).

Ironically, Dream Police was recorded before At Budokan was released.

but only one follow-up single scraping into the top twenty and the album stalled at platinum. Love Zone was his last event album.

xpost to croup.

ok i was only there as a little kid watching billy ocean videos with aliens, cartoon ducks and danny devitos so if you're really sure that the "Event" status of a billy ocean album had been lost and I missed it that's possible.

the thing about the NJ is that it's a bit of a dis. Hard to pin on someone like MJ because it requires implying "The Way You Make Me Feel" or "Remember The Time" was negligible in hindsight and good luck with that.

Yep, MJ managed to sidestep having a New Jersey, unless the second disc of HIStory being smuggled in as part of a greatest hits counts. Even still, the singles from it are still pretty well regarded.

if an artist is consistently good and doesn't have a quality drop-off before a commercial drop-off, they didn't really have a New Jersey.

i have no idea what "Remember The Time" is, and I'm pretty sure I can sing every single off Thriller, so there's that