I was over in the "Ten greatest albums EVAR' thread, and LT made a very inneresting point.

Are there any albums that can be listened to from beginning to end, no skipping fillers.

I would say "Smile" is one ( you need yer vegtebles.) but I also like "Avalon" by Roxy Music.

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Originally posted by storm_chaser:
Are there any albums that can be listened to from beginning to end, no skipping fillers.

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"Something/Anything" by Todd Rundgren.

25 tracks on two discs, cue 'em up and let 'em play right through.


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The Brown Album by The Band is one without a weak track. Also, I just got the Atlantic Records 1947-1974 box set as a Christmas gift. 203 tracks, and I'd say about 3 are filler. It may just be the single best collection of music I've ever heard.

I just bought Pavement's Crooked Rain Crooked RAin and I'm liking it.....lookin' like it is one of these gems.

Also...The Cure/Disintegration, Broken Social Scene/You Forget It In people, PJ Harvey/Stories From The City..., Kate Bush/Hounds Of Love, Flaming Lips/Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots, and I have a soft spot for Genesis/Duke. Close: Radiohead/Ok Computer. Electioneering is a good tune, but seems out of place...

OK Computer is an obvious choice. I'd almost say it gets stronger with each listen. I somehow failed to notice some of the true gems (like "Let Down" and "No Surprises") on my first few times through.

The only track on the album that I've never been able to like is "Exit Music (For A Film)". Then there's "Electioneering", which isn't bad, but seems quite out-of-place. "Fitter Happier" is a bit of a novelty track, but it still manages to fit in better than "Electioneering"

Still, no album is entirely faultless.

I disagree about the faultless remark, as it is to the listeners ear that decides. the ones on my list are faultless to MY ears. Massive Attack's/Blue Lines comes bloody close too.

Even if there were producing mistakes, or 'off' timing during recording, and no bad songs, some albums are known for those little 'faults' BUT in the end, and after time, make it that much better and maybe as strikes of genius.

Similiar view on 'electionering' though. Right from the bat, I didn't think it belonged in the mix. But the rest of the album fell into place after about 4 listens...ooohhh, 1997....nearly never left my ears....that and DJ shadow/Endtroducing. Yes, 1997 was a good one..

Who DOESNT listen to "Dark Side of the Moon" all the way through---anyway???

I can go through Fountains of Wayne's Greetings Interstate Managers without a skipped track.

Echo and the Bunnymen's What Are You Going to Do With Your Life? is a short record (35 minutes) but it works best as a whole, not in pieces. It's also one of my favorite records, both of the last 15 years and ever.

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Originally posted by philosopherEric:
I can go through Fountains of Wayne's _Greetings Interstate Managers_ without a skipped track.

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Man, I wish I liked that album more than I do, but I really don't.

Anyhow, some more S2F candidates:

"Kimono My House" by Sparks
"Sleeping Gypsy" by Michael Franks
"Ben Folds Five" by Ben Folds Five

(I suppose "Close to the Edge" by Yes would be cheating...still trying to come up with something this side of the millenium)


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"An unbridled celebration of the human soul. This album makes me quiver with delight." -Robert Christgau
"The 100 year history of Western popular music perfectly condensed. The album Dylan, Jagger and Bowie only wish they could make." -Dave Marsh
"Orgasmic." -Greil Marcus

Critics were unanimous in their praise for a particular album sorely overlooked today. In 1985, the biggest superstars in the world set aside their bitter feuds and huge egos to collaborate on my generation's Sgt. Pepper. Elegantly titled The Wrestling Album, it hops genres as fluidly as Coco Beware's patented parrot dance, segueing from Junk Yard Dog's spirited blues-growl on "Grab Them Cakes" to Derringer's fist-pumping anthem (and Hulk Hogan's theme song) "Real American", to The Mouth of the South Jimmy Hart's impassioned soul stylings. After breathtaking tracks by Captain Lou Albano, Hillbilly Jim, and other WWF greats, the album concludes with Nicolai Volkoff performing the classic "Cara Mia" which would even make Andre the Giant weep (RIP, big fella). For Megatron's money, The Wrestling Album is the top to bottom, front to back, greatest album. Ever.

After looking at my CD collection, I've found a surprisingly high number of albums that usually get the no-skip treatment when I play them.

The Avalanches - Since I Left You
Cornelius - Point
The Cure - The Head on the Door
Daft Punk - Alive 1997 (Only one track, but I almost always get through all 45 minutes)
Miles Davis - Kind of Blue
Pink Floyd - Dark Side of the Moon
Th' Legendary Shack*Shakers - Believe
Brian Wilson - Smile

The one all these have in common is that they all have a really strong opening track - I have a tendency to start CDs with my favorite tracks and just let the CD play out from there. I would have put disc 1 of Bitches Brew on that list, but that's only half an album (by the time physical activity is required, my musical cravings have switched), and I don't think that counts.

kwakerjak

I've got my personal favorites of course, and they're sprinkled throughout this site. I just don't get the skipping "filler" part. Perhaps it's because I don't download music and have none on my computer. Maybe it's because I grew up playing LPs and picking up the needle and flipping it over, and then with cassettes, I had to flip it over. I don't even remember the last time I EVER skipped a song or put on a CD and skipped around unless it's when I've just bought some new music, have friends over, and I have a limited amount of time, so then I'd play some "highlights" for them to give them a taste. I rarely find that my friends or family members pick the same songs as favorites that I do. I guess I'm dumb or something. I also don't fast-forward movies, etc.

Oh, stormy, I'd pick "Country Life" as the perfect Roxy Music album.

I've found more and more that it's very easy to listen to albums front to back. Either I've started listening to music whose albums aren't so inconsistent, or my tastes welcome a wider range of music, making it more likely that any particular song will be suitable to my ears.

If we're talking about albums that are exceptionally cohesive, I offer the Avalanches - Since I Left You. Whether or not you consider how many samples they use, it is an amazing album front to back.

Buck, I'll go along with "Since I Left You". There's basically no breaks in the whole thing. It's great to just play it for someone who hasn't heard it just to see their reaction when they say, "WHAT IS THAT?!" I also enjoyed your #1 last year big-time, "Every Night".

stormy, "Memento" was the beginning of the end of Roxy for me. They were Gods for about three years, and then I couldn't care less about them. "Siren" was the last great Roxy album, but I can accept that many people would love "Avalon". But to me, it's like Steely Dan and "Aja"; once they got too refined, they lost me. Oh, by the way, I think "Country Life" is far more romantic and sexy than "Avalon". TRIVIA NOTE- Most diamonds are flawed.

yeah...Kind of Blue, how could I forget??

For short albums that are a quick,sweet listen, almost flawless...The new Fiery Furnaces EP, and The Promise Ring-Nothing Feels Good (clocking under 35min)

Megatron- now I gotta buy another copy of The Wrestling Album[/B] I think I used my first copy as kitty liner...but you've convinced me to take a second look. Now to find a record store that would be brave enough to still have one in stock, OR, I could borrow your copy

Roxy Music´s Roxy Music is pretty darn listenable too. Along with David Bowie´s Hunky Dory, Iron and Wine´s The Creek Drank the Cradle and Bright Flight by the Silver Jews.

Storm...the more the merrier.

Don't forget the guac dip and the fondue.

Muddy boots left at the door, please.

by the way, what am I missing....I haven't heard SMILE yet??? For Pet Sounds fans OR for anyone(even if not a huge fan).

Is it just me or is there a SLIGHT change in how music is consumed by the public nowadays? Here we are with all this discussion about albums while inventions like Napster and now legal-friendly iTunes seemly gives more emphasis back to the indivdual song. These were sites that allowed someone to consume just a single track off of an album for a small fee (and given the option to ignore the rest of the songs), rather than having one pay for a full album and that ever impeding hope that you didn't in fact buy $15.99 worth of fillers (a feeling all too familiar when giving a band you've heard about through word of mouth).

Is this a good or bad thing?!
Do you think that might the underlying reason why the major labels are sueing the pants off of kids today is 'cause they fear that a lot of the schlock they put out can't be cleverly hidden behind a couple of singles?

I personally advocate the use of filesharing and iTunes because as much as I love discussing the beauty of the perfect album, there seems something great about that one perfect song, even if the rest of the album is shite.

oh to throw in my two cents, for me a couple examples of the perfect "no filler" albums for myself is OK COMPUTER by Radiohead ("Let Down being the pinnacle of that album in my opinion) and LONESOME CROWDED WEST by Modest Mouse. I have a great number more, but that's all i could recall for now.

That's a nice point about downloading songs, slackerjacks, and I think you're right about it. But I think the tide really started to turn when the primary medium shifted from vinyl and cassettes to CDs. When you could PROGRAM your player to play only the songs you wanted to hear, you started to see people paying less attention to the whole album and focusing only on the stuff they wanted to hear. And putting 5 discs on shuffle certainly killed the magic of listening to a whole record all the way through.

Not to be an old fuddy-duddy, but in my day, people would play a whole SIDE of a record as background music at a party. Now it's multi-disc players and IPods on shuffle.

I think a result of this change is that many (not all, but many) bands view albums as a few key tracks and the rest as filler.