SPIN: 125 Best Albums of the Past 25 Years

[D]

My first thought was "any list that has U2 #1 is asinine," but then I stepped back and remembered that this is "the most influential music of the last 25 years" and if that's the case, then it's hard to argue with U2 being #1, since every other band nowadays sounds like they want to be Archtung-era U2 or Ten-era Pearl Jam (which is why I think Pearl Jam's "Ten" should be way higher than "Nevermind").   

I'm also not so sure about Prince being all that influential...at least in terms of having people attempting to recreate what Prince brought to popular music (how many R&B singers even bother w/ guitar?).

Prince's influence goes very very far. U are trying to put Prince into one genre and that is where u are messing up. Prince isn't an R&B singer.

Prince is everything combined into one. He is one of the greatest frontmen AND lead guitarist of all time. how many musicians can say that?

Sign O The Times is a ridiculously amazing album. 

check out:
sign o the times
Adore
I could never take the place of your man
hot thing
playing in the sunshine
Forever In My Life
Housequake
It
Slow Love
If I was Your Girlfriend
U Got The Look

masterpiece of an album

AFD is a top 5 though definitely

[FunkyMonkey]

This from a poll on musicians' website MusicRadar.com...

The 50 Greatest Heavy Metal Albums Of All Time

The best, loudest, heaviest, dirtiest and scariest records ever!

The MusicRadar Team, Wed 28 Apr 2010

#3 Guns N' Roses "Appetite For Destruction"

The best selling debut album of all time has sold well in excess of 33 million copies. Not bad for a bunch of skinny kids from the LA club circuit. It doesn't matter that the third best heavy metal album of all time is a hard rock record. For many people, this is the best album of all time, regardless of genre.

Tom Morello: ?From top to bottom, it?s the embodiment of lightning being caught in a bottle. An unbelievable combination of band chemistry, great rock and attitude, brewed to perfection.?

http://www.musicradar.com/news/guitars/the-50-greatest-heavy-metal-albums-of-all-time-245511/48#content

[tippasaurus]

Prince's influence goes very very far. U are trying to put Prince into one genre and that is where u are messing up. Prince isn't an R&B singer.

Prince is everything combined into one. He is one of the greatest frontmen AND lead guitarist of all time. how many musicians can say that?

I think Prince suffers from the same problem Gn'R does...you might be influenced by them in some sort of way, but how does it show up in your band/music?  I think artists like Gn'R and Prince are too unique, too "once in a generation" to be influential in any tangible way, at least musically speaking.

You are right about my attempt to pigeon-hole Prince; which is probably about like calling Gn'R a "hair band" or calling STP "grunge."  I agree w/ your assessment of Prince transcending genre.

As far as being an all-time great guitarist...not so sure about that.  I'll admit that I haven't listened to enough of his stuff to say for sure (although people say Kurt Cobain is a "all time great" guitarist, so certainly there's a fair bit of subjectivity to that categorization).     

[requiem156]

I think what GN'R does better than U2 is reach a wider audience. U2 seem to stay within their own confines, and alot of their fans seem to be from the same mould. But with GN'R, they seem to appeal to everyone, to rappers, F1 drivers, baseball players, business men, actors, fashion designers and many more.

I think GN'R and Appetite have influenced much more people over a wider margin that U2 has.

Just my opinion. 

 

I understand parts of your point but I still say that GN'R and Appetite have been more influential to a wider range of people than U2. I don't think U2's style is strong enough to say that they have influenced more bands. If a band is influenced by U2 it's not as recognisable than say if a band are influenced by GN'R.

You can tell instantly if a bands main influence is GN'R. Just look at Avenged Sevenfold, and countless other bands, not forgeting the thousands of unsigned acts that list GN'R as their main influence. You can instantly tell in their music that they have been influenced by Guns. Although U2 are good, I think that they are too much like other bands, and their music isn't that distinctive to be classed more influential in my view.

U2 gradually climbed to success, over many albums, although I would admit Achtung Baby was strong. But with GN'R, Appetite changed everything and made GN'R the best band in the world. It hit like a tornado and no one could deny it, GN'R took over the world with that album.

On a last note, how many films have got GN'R references, how many times have you seen a GN'R reference on TV. Whether it be a poster, some music, name dropping, lookalikes, etc. (even people dressing for halloween as GN'R members)

Believe me I know U2 have got loads of fans, but if we are talking about being influencial, which to me means changed the way people think or act, I would have to give it to Guns N' Roses all day over U2. 

I want the drugs that you are taking.

[Bodhi]

You can tell instantly if a bands main influence is GN'R. Just look at Avenged Sevenfold, and countless other bands, not forgeting the thousands of unsigned acts that list GN'R as their main influence. You can instantly tell in their music that they have been influenced by Guns. Although U2 are good, I think that they are too much like other bands, and their music isn't that distinctive to be classed more influential in my view.

Who are these "countless other bands?"  Buckcherry?  Sum 41?  That's about all I can name...and those are pretty dubious examples imo.

Avenged Sevenfold, Buckcherry, Bullet for My Valentine, Trivium, Hinder, Charm City Devils, Papa Roach, Limp Bizkit, Stone Temple Pilots, CKY, Eighteen Visions, Fuel, Good Charlotte, Kid Rock, The Killers, Linkin Park, Marilyn Manson, Rev Theory, Slipknot, Theory of a Deadman, Disturbed, Wolfmother,  Most if not all of those bands have cited Guns N Roses an influence at one point.  Being an influence on a band doesnt always mean that that band has to sound just like you, but it influences how you go about doing what you do.

That is just a list of some of the few bands that came after GNR, nevermind GNR's contemporaries who have also cited GNR as an influence in what they do.  Like Lars from Metallica, Zakk Wylde, Ozzy Osbourne etc..

[tippasaurus]

Avenged Sevenfold, Buckcherry, Bullet for My Valentine, Trivium, Hinder, Charm City Devils, Papa Roach, Limp Bizkit, Stone Temple Pilots, CKY, Eighteen Visions, Fuel, Good Charlotte, Kid Rock, The Killers, Linkin Park, Marilyn Manson, Rev Theory, Slipknot, Theory of a Deadman, Disturbed, Wolfmother.

That's a believable list, but it's mighty strange that I only enjoy one of those bands (STP) considering how much I love Gn'R.

...an influence on a band doesnt always mean that that band has to sound just like you, but it influences how you go about doing what you do.

What do you mean by "how you go about doing what you do?"  The only way I perceive influence is if I hear something that reminds me of Gn'R...otherwise it's just another case of someone saying they are influenced by Gn'R to more or less build up some sort of music cred that otherwise wouldn't have been apparent. 

[One.In.A.Million]

I think what GN'R does better than U2 is reach a wider audience. U2 seem to stay within their own confines, and alot of their fans seem to be from the same mould. But with GN'R, they seem to appeal to everyone, to rappers, F1 drivers, baseball players, business men, actors, fashion designers and many more.

I think GN'R and Appetite have influenced much more people over a wider margin that U2 has.

Just my opinion. 

 

I understand parts of your point but I still say that GN'R and Appetite have been more influential to a wider range of people than U2. I don't think U2's style is strong enough to say that they have influenced more bands. If a band is influenced by U2 it's not as recognisable than say if a band are influenced by GN'R.

You can tell instantly if a bands main influence is GN'R. Just look at Avenged Sevenfold, and countless other bands, not forgeting the thousands of unsigned acts that list GN'R as their main influence. You can instantly tell in their music that they have been influenced by Guns. Although U2 are good, I think that they are too much like other bands, and their music isn't that distinctive to be classed more influential in my view.

U2 gradually climbed to success, over many albums, although I would admit Achtung Baby was strong. But with GN'R, Appetite changed everything and made GN'R the best band in the world. It hit like a tornado and no one could deny it, GN'R took over the world with that album.

On a last note, how many films have got GN'R references, how many times have you seen a GN'R reference on TV. Whether it be a poster, some music, name dropping, lookalikes, etc. (even people dressing for halloween as GN'R members)

Believe me I know U2 have got loads of fans, but if we are talking about being influencial, which to me means changed the way people think or act, I would have to give it to Guns N' Roses all day over U2. 

I want the drugs that you are taking.

Well I did say it was my opinion, and one that I know many others share all over the world. And Bodhi is right, being influenced by someone Does not mean you have to sound like them. It can mean a whole range of things.

I can also add alot more to Bodhi's list of people who are influenced by GN'R. And also bare in mind all of the acts that are not well known, who play clubs, pubs etc.

I think alot of people are underestimating just how much GN'R changed the world. I'm not going to repeat the reasons why I think this, as I think I explained it well in my previous post(s).

I'm really surprised that 1 or 2 people on this forum, seem to think it's so rediculous to think that GN'R and Appetite are more influencial than U2. 

[D]

dont know how much sense it makes, but I think Guns were just too different to emulate


That in my opinion is how u separate the truly great all time bands from everybody else

for example

No one sounds like The Beatles,Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, Aerosmith,Guns N Roses etc

whereas with grunge and hair bands, all did a fair job imitating the other.