Bands with great second albums

Good ones tseliot, though After Bathing is The Airplane's 3rd album (the 2nd with Grace; they had a different singer and drummer---Skip Spence, later in Moby Grape---on the 1st album, Takes Off). And Veedon Fleece, from 1974, is Van's 8th album!

Butthole Surfers "Rembrandt Pussyhorse."

waltersalas, vg list, altho i though "leave home" was decidedly weaker than the debut.

loomis, I agree, and that's why I left in off my list. I feel The Ramones didn't get really good as a band until Marky replaced Tommy on drums. It was on their 4th album---Road To Ruin---that they fulfilled their potential. The earlier albums had great material, but Tommy's weak drumming undermined the power of the songs. Marky is a much "stronger" drummer than was Tommy.

+1 Warren Zevon "Excitable Boy" I didn't realize that was his second, great album.