AC/DC, Black Sabbath and Van Halen make 'Most Disappointing Albums' countdown
Published by Rolling Stone
Last updated 16th Oct 2024
Never afraid of dividing opinions with their countdown features, Rolling Stone Magazine has published a list of what it deems The 50 Most Disappointing Albums of All Time.
Decided entirely by the US publication’s writers, Rolling Stone notes that their most disappointing albums in music history list doesn’t take into account retrospective opinion.
“We absolutely love some of these albums,” they write. “An album can be seen as disappointing in the moment it came out, and be forever reappraised afterward.
“This largely has to do with timing and where the critical consensus is at a given moment. And an album that’s seen as a B+/A- is still disappointing if it follows a bunch of A/A+ albums.”
They add: “Also, a disappointing album for a titanically talented act like Radiohead or U2 would be seen as a masterpiece if almost anyone else had released it.”
John Lennon’s widely panned ‘Some Time in New York City’ album from 1972 has the dubious honour of being crowned The Most Disappointing Album of All Time ahead of The Rolling Stones’ ‘Their Satanic Majesties Request’ in second spot, an album Mick Jagger has previously lambasted.
Other rock albums that make the Top 10 include David Bowie’s ‘Tonight’ (No.4), Guns N’ Roses’ ‘Chinese Democracy’ (No.5), Bruce Springsteen’s ‘Human Touch’ (No.6), and Yes’ ‘Tales From Topographic Oceans’ (No.9).
AC/DC aren’t too far behind at Number 12 with 1983’s ‘Flick of the Switch’, an album Rolling Stone quotes as being “utterly generic.” Ouch.
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers’ ‘Let Me Up (I’ve Had Enough)’ is at No.16, while Journey’s ‘Raised on Radio’ just about sneaks in the Top 20.
Rock albums that feature in the rest of the Top 50 include John Fogerty’s ‘Eye of the Zombie’ (No.24), Van Halen’s ‘Balance’ (No.27), Pink Floyd’s ‘The Final Cut’ (No.29), Red Hot Chili Peppers’ ‘One Hot Minute’ (No.30), Black Sabbath’s ‘Technical Ecstasy’ (No. 34), Meat Loaf’s ‘Bat Out of Hell III’ (No. 40) and Aerosmith’s ‘Draw the Line’ (No. 44).
Curiously, Metallica and Lou Reed album 'Lulu' didn't make the Top 50, nor did Queen's 'Hot Space.'
Last year, Rolling Stone was widely derided for omitting Gary Moore from its countdown of the 250 Greatest Guitarists of All Time feature.
Other rock guitarists who didn’t feature in the Top 250 included Zakk Wylde, Joe Bonamassa and Michael Schenker, while Rory Gallagher was at a lowly 176.
The 50 greatest albums of all times, as voted by Planet Rock listeners:
50: Marillion - ‘Misplaced Childhood’ (1985)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
49: Thunder - ‘Backstreet Symphony’ (1990)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
48: Hawkwind - ‘Space Ritual’ (1973)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
47: Black Sabbath - ‘Sabbath Bloody Sabbath’ (1973)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
46: Thin Lizzy - ‘Jailbreak’ (1976)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
45: The Rolling Stones - ‘Exile on Main St.’ (1972)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
44: Pearl Jam - ‘Ten’ (1991)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
43: AC/DC - ‘If You Want Blood You've Got It’ (1978)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
42: Queen - ‘Queen II’ (1974)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
41: AC/DC - ‘Let There Be Rock’ (1977)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
40: Eagles - ‘Hotel California’ (1976)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
39: Bruce Springsteen - ‘Born to Run’ (1975)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
38: Bon Jovi - ‘Slippery When Wet’ (1986)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
37: Iron Maiden - ‘Seventh Son of a Seventh Son’ (1988)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
36: The Who – ‘Quadrophenia’ (1973)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
35: David Bowie – ‘The Rise & Fall of Ziggy Stardust & the Spiders from Mars’ (1972)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
34: Van Halen – ‘Van Halen’ (1978)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
33: The Who – ‘Who’s Next’ (1971)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
32: Led Zeppelin – ‘Led Zeppelin’ (1969)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
31: Black Sabbath – ‘Paranoid’ (1970)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
30: Queensrÿche - 'Operation: Mindcrime' (1988)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
29: Wishbone Ash – ‘Argus’ (1972)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
28: Rush – ‘2112’ (1976)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
27: Black Sabbath – ‘Black Sabbath’ (1970)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
26: AC/DC – ‘Highway to Hell’ (1979)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
25: AC/DC – ‘Powerage’ (1978)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
24: Black Sabbath – ‘Heaven & Hell’ (1980)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
23: Pink Floyd – ‘Wish You Were Here’ (1975)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
22: Pink Floyd – ‘The Wall’ (1979)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
21: Metallica – ‘Metallica’ (aka The Black Album) (1991)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
20: Metallica – ‘Master of Puppets’ (1986)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
19: UFO – ‘Strangers in the Night’ (1979)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
18: Deep Purple – ‘Machine Head’ (1972)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
17: Rush – ‘Moving Pictures’ (1981)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
16: Led Zeppelin – ‘Led Zeppelin II’ (1969)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
15: Iron Maiden – ‘The Number of the Beast’ (1982)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
14: Deep Purple – ‘Made in Japan’ (1972)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
13: Deep Purple – ‘Deep Purple in Rock’ (1970)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
12: Def Leppard – ‘Hysteria’ (1987)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
11: Nirvana – ‘Nevermind’ (1991)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
10: Fleetwood Mac – ‘Rumours’ (1977)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
9: Thin Lizzy – ‘Live and Dangerous’ (1978)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
8: Queen – ‘A Night at the Opera’ (1975)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
7: Led Zeppelin – ‘Physical Graffiti’ (1975)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
6: Rainbow – ‘Rising’ (1976)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
5: Meat Loaf – ‘Bat Out of Hell’ (1977)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
4: Led Zeppelin – ‘Led Zeppelin IV’ (1971)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
3: Gun N' Roses – ‘Appetite for Destruction’ (1987)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
2: AC/DC – ‘Back in Black’ (1980)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time
1: Pink Floyd – ‘The Dark Side of the Moon’ (1973)
The 50 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time