Top 5 ‘Black’ Albums
exemplary artwork by sarca @ caughtmegaming
After a colourful October, time to get back in black: a full month of ‘black’ titled tunes/artists/albums.
Which would make this the first of (at least) three Top 5s. enjoy!
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5. Venom, Black Metal (1982)
Recency bias? Points for commitment to the Black theme? Extra credit for METAL? All of the above.
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4. Metallica, Metallica (1991)
Yes, black is not featured in the title. But 4 out of 5 dentists likely call this ‘the black album.’ A similar ratio of accountants could also note that considering the album sales, the band’s 1991 financial statements were certainly ‘in the black.’
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3. Public Enemy, Fear of a Black Planet (1990)
My favourite rap album (so far).
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2. AC/DC, Back in Black (1980)
\m/, or rather, \m/ \m/.
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1.Weezer, Songs From The Black Hole (unreleased/unfinished, recorded 1994-1996)
Perhaps it will be my generation’s Smile, released 38 years late. If so, only about two more decades of waiting to go!
I have long been intrigued aboot that Black Hole album. I love reading about all the unreleased Weezer bits and bobs!
And it’s from that absolute golden era of weezer for which I have less than no perspective!
I hear good things though!
So many black songs. It must be the best color for this. I think of Pearl Jam’s “Black” and Soundgarden’s “Fell on Black Days”. And “Back to Black”, not to be confused with “Back in Black.”
Ahh – forgot fell on black days (I found myself singing black hole sun recently though), nice call, that’ll be a contender!
I forgot about Black Hole Sun! Reminds me that someone borrowed my Down on the Upside shirt back in 1997 and I never got it back. Might be too late now. 😉
Sorry about that. I would send it back but it is probably way too stretched for you now though.
What, no Smell The Glove? I mean, how much more black can you get? The answer, of course, is none. None more black.
Forgot the Tap!
Black Sabbath/Black Sabbath ……what is this that stands befooooooore me? Oh right it’s Aaron! Hahaha! Throw the horns!
I think there will be many horns this month! \m/
My list would have been
5 Black Ice – AC/DC
4 Blackout – Scorpions
3 Black Album – Metallica
2 Back in Black – AC/DC
1 Black Sabbath – Black Sabbath
No matter what the list is, Black Sabbath will always be number 1.
And I like how if you did Top song/album/artist, the debut album provides all you need!
Close album ( and song) Man in Black – Johnny Cash.
Songs
5 Blue on Black – Kenny Wayne Shephard
4 Paint it Black – Rolling Stones
3 Fade to Black – Metallica
2 Back in Black – AC/DC
1 Black Sabbath – Black Sabbath(still #1)
Close calls
Black Betty – Ram Jam
Black Widow – Kyuss
Black Velvet – Allanah Myles
Black Water – Doobie Brothers
Black Magic Woman – Fleetwood Mac
Fell on Black Days & Black Hole Sun – Soundgarden
Fade to Black will be among my top 5 songs, Fell on Black Days may be close too!
We need our infernal HMO to chime in, here. I’ll bet he’s got entire albums where every song has Black in the title of them. You know, Black Mayhem. Black Death. Black Seething Pit. Black Soul Black Heart Black Mind. And so on… HMO? 🙂
our infernal HMO, I like it!
Oh infernal one?
All I can think of is the GWAR song ‘Black and Huge’. Sorry.
“Because I’m black and huge!”
This is an awesome post. I can’t argue any of you entries (though I might not have put Weezer at the top spot). That’s for Black Sabbath – Black Sabbath. 😉
Nice one, Geoff!
I don’t have the album Black Sabbath yet but I applaud their ability to open their debut album with a self-titled title track – Black Sabbath by Black Sabbath on the album Black Sabbath, brilliant!
Definite must-have. It’s on the 1001, man! 🙂
That it is!
I have most of the ones you’ve listed (as well as some of what Boppin mentioned), but here’s some more albums from my collection (it’s a strong list!):
Tom Waits – The Black Rider
Rolling Stones – Black And Blue
Henry Rollins – Black Coffee Blues
Kurt Swinghammer – Black Eyed Sue
Alice In Chains – Black Gives Way To Blue
Franck BLACK and the Catholics – Black Letter Days
Calexico – The Black Light
Ozzy Osbourne – Black Rain
Cypress Hill – Black Sunday
Neko Case – Blacklisted
Opeth – Blackwater Park
Black Flag – Everything Went Black
Chieftains – The Long Black Veil
John Guliak and the Lougan Brothers – The Black Monk
Alannah Myles – Black Velvet (album)
and also:
Various – Black On Black: A Tribute To Black Flag
Give ‘Er!
I know most of those artists but can’t say I have any of the albums. Ahh Black Flag, thank you for the reminder – Damaged is on the list, this would be a good month to investigate!
Oh man Damaged is one of my favourite records ever. EVER.
Sounds promising!
It does have that certain singer after all, Henry something?
The Black Rider. Yes.
Seconded! 🙂
So enough for a black year, then.
there should be no shortage!
Bruce I wish to quote you in an upcoming post but I can’t remember your line exactly – it was something like ‘fans & critics obsess over genre classifications, musicians make music.’
Is that semi-accurate?
As I recall, that’s pretty close, Geoff. Of course, your adaptation is entirely valid too!
close enough for jazz as they say, thanks!
When ‘they’ say that, I cringe. 😉
A fine list! Anything with Sabbath and Acadaca gets my vote! 🙂
haha, I read ‘acadia’ at first and thought it was an east coast band I hadn’t heard, sort of like reading Zed Zed Top!
Hahaha Zed Zed Top. It’s like going to the zoo to see the chimpanzeds.
Try Black, Wonderful Life: http://youtu.be/uMXz3TQOS_c X
I’m with you on that one, one of my real faves.
Reckon that Weezer album would be the first of theirs I’d have bought since Pinkerton should they ever release it. Back when they were great!
And great they were!
The most recent one was a step back in the right direction – a few more leaps to go I suppose though to get back to where they once were 😀
I’m still trying to determine whether I just look at those albums so fondly cause of that whole ‘time and place’ thing, or because they were / are genuinely brilliant. Cause it just makes no sense that they hit nothing but water since …
I think a bit of both – but I can assure you, the brilliance is genuine!
Got me in the mood for Pinkerton … yeah – brilliance. I’ll never understand what happened …
Last year I proposed a theory that there was a disruption in the space-time continuum somewhere after 1996, creating an alternate timeline with an inferior weezer.
It was the only plausible explanation!
Sounds like a very reasonable theory …