Albums that should have been huge but weren't

[arturs]

I'm thinking of high quality records whose sound, attitude and overall vibe very much captured the spirit of the times but still just didn't do it commercially. A lot of good records stiffed because they are a few years late in terms of trends and some flopped because they were too early. But what about ones that were at the right place at the right time, had great songs, good playing, etc., but still were a flop?

I can think of two:

Todd Rundgren Nearly Human: An awesome pop/soul/gospel record with at least four possible hits. Want of a Nail, Parallel Lines, Waiting Game, Can't Stop Running. Steve Winwood had just taken the retro-soul sound to the top regions of the charts, ersatz soul crooners like Michael Bolton were all the rage. Why not Todd?

Bill Nelson Love that Whirls: A ton of potential hits in the new romantic synth-pop style that was all the rage in 81 and 82: Empire of the Senses, Hope for the Heartbeat, Flaming Desire, etc. Bill looked the part, sounded the part, so why wasn't this as big as Depeche Mode or OMD or Spandau Ballet for that matter?

What others are out there?

[klothos]

My favorite E.L.O. album, "On The Third Day" (1973), is exactly one of these. It had a little bit of everything on it -- it was very "mainstream" Proggy (during a time when Prog was mainstream) and, at the same time, pop accessible. The hard/glitter rock song "Ma-Ma-Ma-Belle" (with guitar by Marc Bolan making a guest appearance), which has been covered by many artists including Earthquake and Earl Slick, is as good as any radio rock song of its time, was released as a single but failed to chart in the US (and got in the 20s in the UK) ......... Its a complete headscratcher to me why that song didnt make it on the charts in the US to propel the album a lot further

[rcarlberg]

Group 87 first and second -- the material has the potential to have been massive radio hits. No idea why they didn't sell.

[klothos]

Group 87 first and second -- the material has the potential to have been massive radio hits. No idea why they didn't sell.

The band M83 is like that also. The first five albums has a bunch of excellent radio potentials on them, but probably because they're a 2000s band, I think they are just a victim of their generation's media business models. This is also probably why Muse isn't bigger than what they are.....not sure why Group 87 didnt hit harder

[Supersonic Scientist]

In the vein of Deep Purple and Uriah Heep for the early '70's, Lucifer's Friend should have been HUGE !

[Mike D]

I've always thought 'Lost in the Former West', the 1994 album by the Irish rock band Fatima Mansions is a great, lost, should have been classic rock album.

Great songs, great vocals (Cathal Coughlan) great delivery, lots of energy and crunchy impactful sound.

[zravkapt]

The band M83 is like that also. The first five albums has a bunch of excellent radio potentials on them, but probably because they're a 2000s band, I think they are just a victim of their generation's media business models. This is also probably why Muse isn't bigger than what they are.....

The last M83 had a few hit singles on it. Muse are yuuuuge, especially in the UK.

[klothos]

Muse are yuuuuge, especially in the UK.

Im not saying they arent big here in the US - they are - but they should be bigger here in the US, on the level with being a U2 or REM (based on the quality of the musicianship, songwriting, arranging, performance, and production)

[Nearfest2]

Is that the same M83 that did the soundtrack for "Oblivion"?

[zravkapt]

^Yep

[Dana5140]

MDK, Magma.

[klothos]

The last M83 had a few hit singles on it.

Is that the same M83 that did the soundtrack for "Oblivion"?

Yes, they are a successful band. They have pop (and very good pop) on all their albums.....but keeping in format with the thread topic, here's M83s album chart history from Wiki:

[Progbear]

Todd Rundgren Nearly Human: An awesome pop/soul/gospel record with at least four possible hits. Want of a Nail, Parallel Lines, Waiting Game, Can't Stop Running. Steve Winwood had just taken the retro-soul sound to the top regions of the charts, ersatz soul crooners like Michael Bolton were all the rage. Why not Todd?

This would certainly get my vote. I loved this record to pieces when it came out. Saw him live during this tour and it was a life-changing experience. Even though it was Todd trying to get on the charts and make more pop-friendly stuff, it was still Todd being his stubborn, artistic self. At a time when everyone else was doing “workstation synth and drum machine” productions, Todd insisted on using real choirs and string/horn sections.

In the vein of Deep Purple and Uriah Heep for the early '70's, Lucifer's Friend should have been HUGE !

LF kind of shot themselves in the foot by being too eclectic and unpredictable for their own good. As I’ve said before, their back-catalogue has the consistency of chunky peanut butter, and navigating through it can be a frustrating experience for the neophyte. Usually a band starts out good and gradually degenerates with time, but one of their worst albums is I’m Just a Rock & Roll Singer, which is right in the middle of their discography. And they followed that up with Banquet, a bombastic, orchestrated big-band jazz-rock album that has nothing to do with the rest of their output!

Comparing them to UH just because Lawton later sang with them is, I think, extremely unfair. I think LF had much better chops, as musicians and composers, than the Heep ever did.

Ironically, their albums were, in fact, the biggest sellers by a German act in the States prior to the release of Autobahn and Spartacus. And they never saw a penny from those sales, because their US record companies/publishers completely stole all their royalties!

[GuitarGeek]

MDK, Magma.

Wasn't that like a top 10 hit in Europe?

For me, Zebra and Y&T both should have been bigger than they were. In particular, Zebra's No Tellin' Lies and Y&T's In Rock We Trust should have been huge, but they weren't.

Similarly, Slade, Status Quo, The Move, and Hawkwind should have all been bigger Stateside than they were.

[jake]

Martin Newell - The Greatest Living Englishman - the best album XTC never made - produced by and starring on drums(!?) Andy Partridge.

[Mythos]

Far East Family Band: Nipponjin (Easily on par with Dark Side of the Moon)

Mythos: First (Extremely well made Krautrock with horrible english-accented lyrics)

Wild Swans: Bringing Home the Ashes (Nearly every song is as enjoyable as the best Smiths songs)

Chameleons: Script of the Bridge (My all-time favorite 80's release behind only Unknown Pleasures)

[rcarlberg]

I never understood why 10cc weren't as big as the Beatles -- aside from the fact that the band didn't perform in public.

[Facelift]

Big Star seems to be the band most often thought of in this way. Either of their first two albums could have been big hits, but they weren't.

XTC's Skylarking sold well by the band's standards, but I always thought that it could have been really huge. It had a number potential hit singles and the timing of the release was perfect, for the kind of album it was.

Dinosaur Jr. was one of the progenitors of grunge, but the '80s SST albums were too raw and too early for them to have sold anything. By the 1990s, the band signed to a major label and softened its sound, somewhat. Their 1993 album, Where You Been, had the right sound and was timed right for the band to become known to a wider audience in the scene that they helped create. The album title even hinted at an expectation of greater commercial success. It started promisingly with the single 'Start Choppin' doing well on the modern radio chart, but it didn't translate into big album sales and the momentum stalled. Ultimately, not that many more people knew of Dinosaur Jr. after Where You Been than before.

[GuitarGeek]

re: Lucifer's Friend

LF kind of shot themselves in the foot by being too eclectic and unpredictable for their own good. As I’ve said before, their back-catalogue has the consistency of chunky peanut butter, and navigating through it can be a frustrating experience for the neophyte. Usually a band starts out good and gradually degenerates with time, but one of their worst albums is I’m Just a Rock & Roll Singer, which is right in the middle of their discography. And they followed that up with Banquet, a bombastic, orchestrated big-band jazz-rock album that has nothing to do with the rest of their output!

And wouldn't you know it, that's the other one besides the first Lucifer's Friend album I have. I was aware by that time that one has to be wary of latter day records by anyone, after making the mistake of picking up late model Camel (Breathless and I Can See Your House From Here) and Caravan (Blind Dog At St. Dunstans, great cover, terrible record) records at what I thought was no brainer prices. But I saw it was still the original lineup, with Lawton on vocals, and it was only like 4 bucks. I couldn't believe how bad that record was.

Comparing them to UH just because Lawton later sang with them is, I think, extremely unfair. I think LF had much better chops, as musicians and composers, than the Heep ever did.

Ehhh, I dunno about that. Heep produced six bonafide classic albums during the early part of the 60's. SO far as I can tell, Lucifer's Friend only produced one (I still to this day have never heard Where The Groupies Killed The Blues, which I'm told is their other classic).

Ironically, their albums were, in fact, the biggest sellers by a German act in the States prior to the release of Autobahn and Spartacus. And they never saw a penny from those sales, because their US record companies/publishers completely stole all their royalties!

They were on Billingsgate Records, Stateside, weren't they? Seems to me like I've got a few different German records that were released through them, the first Neu and I think a couple others.

[grego]

Hm, I quite like I'm Just A Rock'n Roll Singer. Song For Louie is great. Caravan seems an overlooked band indeed. After Waterloo Lily nothng really attractive. Too much of polishing the style, and lack of fresh ideas.

[spacefreak]

re: Lucifer's Friend

(I still to this day have never heard Where The Groupies Killed The Blues, which I'm told is their other classic). .

This always had been their most rewarding, musically rich and adventurous album for me. Still their best and I also consider their debut as classic.

[StevegSr]

This is going back in time, but Tape From California and Rehearsals For Retirement by Phil Ochs, that were released in the late sixties, are a unique mixture of arty pop rock and social commentary which never found an audience.

[Trane]

Wasn't that like a top 10 hit in Europe?

I don't think Magma ever went top 10 in France (at least in mainstream charts) , let alone Europe

I never understood why 10cc weren't as big as the Beatles.

Well, I tend to put them in the same category as Queen in the 70's... potential Beatles.... However, Queen went on to be huge in the 80's, while 10 CC fizzled out (mainly a couple of years after their split)

Caravan seems an overlooked band indeed. After Waterloo Lily nothng really attractive. Too much of polishing the style, and lack of fresh ideas.

Well G&P should've had the success Meddle had , at least, IMHO

[Chain]

[Scrotum Scissor]

This is going back in time, but Tape From California and Rehearsals For Retirement by Phil Ochs, that were released in the late sixties, are a unique mixture of arty pop rock and social commentary which never found an audience.

They were always overshadowed by Pleasures of the Harbor, which in turn should have been as big as anything of the day by someone like Dylan (who himself more or less admitted to this).

Another US highly ambitious singer-songwriter effort which should have found an audience would be American Gothic by David Ackles. And, obviously, Song Cycle by Van Dyke Parks.

And as for Todd, The Nazz were arguably the most underappreciated "accomplished" act in the late 60s US.