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Double Albums/CDs, curse or blessing?

For no good reason, I have been thinking about the worth of double albums or cds that bands release. The only two that I can come up that make sense are the Who's Tommy and Pink Floyd's The Wall. These are obviously rock opera type albums that hang together. Excluding Greatest Hits which might make sense, are there others doubles that people think of highly?

Most other double albums (double cds more so) I am familiar with would have been much better if only the best material had made it onto a single disc. Examples in my view would be Red Hot Chili Peppers Stadium Arcadium, Guns N Roses Use Your Illusion I & II (at least they are sold separately).

While it may make the bands more money to issue doubles, I think that it generally cheapens the brand.

What do fellow agoners think?
dokosan
theo's avatar
theo
2,681 posts
 
Fleetwood mac "Tusk", All double live albums, Seger, Supertramp, Skynyrd etc, Pink Flyd "meddle" are few that come to mind.
atomickid
15 posts
 
Basically agree with OP, but really, LIVE albums are a different animal. They most always have SEVERAL albums of material to pull from when performing live, thus making it much easier to stay strong over a Double album.

Also, live tracks are very often MUCH longer, so a SINGLE live album might have only, say, 4 eight or ten minute cuts, so a Double Live seems to make sense, to include more tracks. An album with only four or five cuts could be a tougher sell, so what do you do? Add another LP. (Think
like record label)

So.......

Best LIVE Double Albums

Led Zeppelin - How the West Was Won (OK....actually a triple album)
Pink Floyd - Delicate Sound of Thunder
Deep Purple - Made in Japan
Hawkwind - Space Ritual
The Allman Brothers - Live at the Fillmore East
Neil Young and Crazy Horse - Live Rust
Yes - Yessongs (OK....actually a triple album..again)
Wishbone Ash - Live Dates
Thin Lizzy - Live and Dangerous
Traffic - On the Road
Rush - All the World's a Stage and Exit Stage Left
Humble Pie - Performance: Rockin' the Fillmore
Be Bop Deluxe - Live in the Air Age
UFO - Strangers in the Night
Jean Michel Jarre - Concerts in China
Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young - 4 Way Street

Tom Petty & Heartbreakers - Pack Up the Plantation:Live
Neil Young & Crazy Horse - Weld
Peter Frampton - Comes Alive
Peter Gabriel - Secret World Live

Best STUDIO Double Albums

Genesis - The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway
The Beatles - White Album
The Who - Quadrophenia
Jimi Hendrix Experience - Electric LadyLand
Pink Floyd - The Wall
The Clash - London Calling
The Who - Tommy
Amon Duul II - Tanz der Lemminge
Amon Duul II - Yeti
Mike Oldfield - Incantations

Omissions (for me, at least)

Led Zeppelin - Physical Graffitti..should have been a single LP, way too much filler for Led Zep.
I love this band....I do NOT love this bloated album.
Pull off the best 40 minutes and it could have been sweet.

Bob Dylan - Blonde on Blonde ....good stuff, not my cup of tea, tho.

'nuff said.....
buconero117
2,311 posts
 
Stresland's 'Love is the Answer' is two cd's, but just two different versions of the same material. I've played both and I am hard pressed to tell the difference, other then paying $22 dollars. So, just order the single cd seems a better bargain. Maybe this is a trend, you know, issue two versions of the same music. In any event, Barabra does sound good as ever. Can your system tell the difference is the issue.
cyclonicman
693 posts
 
If the material is not good then the double album may be a curse. I know I have a few that I only play a few songs on one album and nothing on the other. I actually like Stadium Arcadium. You mentioned the Who and I would have to include Quadrophenia alongside Tommy. I also rate the Beatles White Album and Zep's Physical Graffiti very highly. Hope this doesn't lead to another remasters post/thread.
smholl
190 posts
 
I'll add another: Bruce Springsteen-The River. I don't believe this could have been edited down to a single LP. All sides are as they should be.
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