Greatest Run of 4 Albums

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Holden
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Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by Holden »

I recently read an article that made mention of the best run of four albums in history by one artist. So what is your favorite run of four chronological LPs by one artist?
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andyd1010
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Re: Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by andyd1010 »

1. Arcade Fire
Funeral
Neon Bible
The Suburbs
Reflektor

2. The Rolling Stones
Beggars Banquet
Let It Bleed
Sticky Fingers
Exile on Main St.

3. The Beatles (could go a few different ways)
Help!
Rubber Soul
Revolver
Sgt. Peppers

4. Radiohead
The Bends
OK Computer
Kid A
Amnesiac
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Re: Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by TheLastEnemy »

Ditto those four Radiohead albums, also the four LCD Soundsystem albums. Much as I love Arcade Fire, Reflektor did nothing for me.

I'm going to bed now so will probably think of loads more examples in the night.
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Re: Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by Bruno »

Michael Jackson
- Off the Wall
- Thriller
- Bad
- Dangerous

Stevie Wonder
- Talking Book
- Innervisions
- Fulfillingness' First Finale
- Songs in the Key of Life
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Safetycat
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Re: Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by Safetycat »

Tom Waits:
Swordfishtrombones
Rain Dogs
Frank's Wild Years
Bone Machine

Although Frank's Wild Years is a weaker link, depending how you feel about it.

I think the Blue Valentine-Heartattack and Vine-Swordfishtrombones-Rain Dogs stretch is also really solid but I know that's not an opinion shared by many.
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Re: Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by Madzong »

Roxy Music:

Roxy Music
For Your Pleasure
Stranded
Country Life

The Velvet Underground:
The Velvet Underground And Nico
White Light/White Heat
The Velvet Underground
Loaded

The Kinks:

The Kink Kontroversy (1965)
Face to Face (1966)
Something Else by the Kinks (1967)
The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society (1968)

The Who:

The Who Sell Out
Tommy
Who's Next
Quadrophenia

Pink Floyd:

The Dark Side of the Moon (1973)
Wish You Were Here (1975)
Animals (1977)
The Wall (1979)

David Bowie:

Hunky Dory
The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars
Aladdin Sane
Diamond Dogs

NB: I know that Pin Ups was in between Aladdin Sane and Diamond Dogs but since it was a covers album I ignored it.
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Re: Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by rumpdoll »

Tocotronic
K.O.O.K.
Tocotronic (white)
Pure Vernunft darf niemals siegen
Kapitulation

OutKast
ATLiens
Aquemini
Stankonia
Speakerboxxx/The love below

Stereolab
Peng!
Transient Random-Noise Bursts with Announcements
Mars Audiac Quintet
Emperor Tomato Ketchup
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Re: Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by Wezzo »

Bruce Springsteen
-Born to Run
-Darkness on the Edge of Town
-The River
-Nebraska

The National
-Boxer
-High Violet
-Trouble Will Find Me
-Sleep Well Beast
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Re: Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by PlasticRam »

Kanye:

Grad
808s
MBDTF
Yeezus
I feel like that
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Re: Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by Illiniq »

Surprised no has listed what is usually the de-facto number 1 in this conversation....

The Rolling Stones:
Beggar's Banquet
Let It Bleed
Sticky Fingers
Exile On Main Street.


For my money, I'd rank the top 5 as...
1. The Velvet Underground - Nico, White Light, s/t, Loaded
2. The Stones run above
3. Bob Dylan - Bringing It All Back Home,Highway 61,Blonde On Blonde,John Wesley Harding
4. Led Zeppelin 1- 4
5. LCD Soundsystem - s/t, Sound Of Silver, This Is Happening, American Dream

Hendrix, Radiohead, Beatles, Clash,Prince, Graham Parker, Steely Dan, Kendrick, Joni Mitchell, Stevie Wonder, several others all have magnificent 3 album runs but to get to four have to bring a slightly lesser working into the chain.
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Re: Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by andyd1010 »

Illiniq wrote: Mon Apr 06, 2020 1:27 pm Surprised no has listed what is usually the de-facto number 1 in this conversation....

The Rolling Stones:
Beggar's Banquet
Let It Bleed
Sticky Fingers
Exile On Main Street.
I did.
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Re: Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by Cold Butterfly »

Kendrick Lamar:
- good kid, m.A.A.d city
- To Pimp A Butterfly
- untitled unmastered
- DAMN.
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Re: Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by Brad »

Personal favorite is Pavement:
Slanted & Enchanted
Crooked Rain Crooked Rain
Wowee Zowee
Brighten The Corners

(though I fully acknowledge that the Stones run noted above is "the best")

Thanks!
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Re: Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by Madzong »

Illiniq wrote: Mon Apr 06, 2020 1:27 pm Surprised no has listed what is usually the de-facto number 1 in this conversation....

The Rolling Stones:
Beggar's Banquet
Let It Bleed
Sticky Fingers
Exile On Main Street.


For my money, I'd rank the top 5 as...
1. The Velvet Underground - Nico, White Light, s/t, Loaded
2. The Stones run above
3. Bob Dylan - Bringing It All Back Home,Highway 61,Blonde On Blonde,John Wesley Harding
4. Led Zeppelin 1- 4
5. LCD Soundsystem - s/t, Sound Of Silver, This Is Happening, American Dream

Hendrix, Radiohead, Beatles, Clash,Prince, Graham Parker, Steely Dan, Kendrick, Joni Mitchell, Stevie Wonder, several others all have magnificent 3 album runs but to get to four have to bring a slightly lesser working into the chain.
I thought the same in regards to the Velvet Underground too (see my post above) :whistle:
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Re: Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by Jirin »

Stones and Beatles are the obvious ones.

Tom Waits:
Swordfishtrombones
Rain Dogs
Frank’s Wild Years
Bone Machine

The National:
Boxer
High Violet
Trouble Will Find Me
Sleep Well Beast

Really the middle four of an amazing six album run.

St Vincent:
Actor
Strange Mercy
St Vincent
Mad seduction
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Re: Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by Wisnu Tirta Aji »

Air Supply:
lost in love
The Earth Is...
The Vanishing Race
Mumbo Jumbo

Dire Straits:
Making Movies
Love over Gold
Brothers in Arms
On Every Street

Fleetwood Mac:
Then Play On
Mystery to Me
Rumours
Tango in the Night

Uriah Heep:
Very 'Eavy... Very 'Umble
Look at Yourself
Demons and Wizards
Into the Wild
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Re: Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by Henry »

Todd Rundgren:
Runt
The Ballad of Todd Rundgren
Something/Anything?
A Wizard, A True Star

Steely Dan:
Can't Buy a Thrill
Countdown to Ecstasy
Pretzel Logic
Katy Lied

Simon & Garfunkel:
Sounds of Silence
Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme
Bookends
Bridge Over Troubled Waters

Beatles:
Sgt. Peppers
Magical Mystery Tour
White
Abbey Road

The Who:
Tommy
Who's Next
Quadrophenia
The Who By Numbers

Stevie Wonder:
Talking Book
Innervisions
Fulfillingess' First Finale
Songs In the Key of Life

Utopia:
Todd Rundgren's Utopia
Ra
Oops! Wrong Planet
Adventures In Utopia

Style Council
Cafe Bleu
Our Favourite Shop
The Cost of Loving
Confessions of a Pop Group

Doobie Brothers:
Toulouse Street
The Captain and Me
What Were Once Vices Are Now Habits
Stampede

Eagles:
On the Border
One of These Nights
Hotel California
The Long Run

Elton John:
Madman Across the Water
Honky Chateau
Don't Shoot Me I'm Only the Piano Player
Goodbye Yellow Brick Road

Journey:
Infinity
Evolution
Departure
Escape

Jackson Browne:
Saturate Before Using
For Everyman
Late for the Sky
The Pretender

Genesis:
Duke
Abacab
Genesis
Invisible Touch
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Re: Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by Madzong »

The Beatles:

Rubber Soul (1965)
Revolver (1966)
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967)
Magical Mystery Tour (1967)

OR

Rubber Soul (1965)
Revolver (1966)
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967)
The Beatles ("The White Album", 1968)

Depending on whether you agree that Magical Mystery Tour was an album (in the US) or not (the U.K.)
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Re: Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by Madzong »

Beach Boys:

The Beach Boys Today! (1965)
Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!) (1965)
Pet Sounds (1966)
Smiley Smile (1967) / Smile / Smile Sessions

I'm including Smile / Smile Sessions with Smiley Smilr to make it a truly great run depending on your preference
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Re: Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by Madzong »

Husker Dü:

Zen Arcade (1984)
New Day Rising (1985)
Flip Your Wig (1985)
Candy Apple Grey (1986)
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Re: Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by Madzong »

The Replacements:

Hootenanny (1983)
Let It Be (1984)
Tim (1985)
Pleased to Meet Me (1987)
"On a mountain range, I'm Dr. Strange"
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Re: Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by prosecutorgodot »

Santana (1969)
Abraxas (1970)
III (1971)
Caravanserai (1972)
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Re: Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by SL3 »

Gary Numan:
- Tubeway Army
- Replicas
- The Pleasure Principle
- Telekon
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Re: Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by acroamor »

Some examples off the top of my head:

Modest Mouse
This Is a Long Drive for Someone with Nothing to Think About
The Lonesome Crowded West
The Moon and Antarctica
Good News for People Who Love Bad News

Fiona Apple:
Tidal
When the Pawn...
Extraordinary Machine
The Idler Wheel...

Julia Holter
Ekstasis
Loud City Song
Have You in My Wilderness
Aviary

Mitski
Retired from Sad, New Career in Business
Bury Me at Makeout Creek
Puberty 2
Be the Cowboy
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Re: Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by JohnnyBGoode »

Personal favourites as include as above Radiohead #2-5 & Arcade Fire #1-4 (even if 4 nowhere near as good as #1). Also:

Wilco (excluding Mermaid Ave with Billy Bragg which themselves are good):
Being There
Summerteeth
Yankee Hotel Foxtrot
A Ghost Is Born

The National:
Alligator
Boxer
High Violet
Trouble Will Find Me

Elliott Smith:
Elliott Smith
Either / Or
XO
Figure 8
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Re: Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by Madzong »

Ramones:

Ramones (1976)
Leave Home (1977)
Rocket to Russia (1977)
Road to Ruin (1978)
"On a mountain range, I'm Dr. Strange"
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Re: Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by mileswide »

Led Zeppelin:
II
III
Untitled/IV
Houses of the Holy

The Jam:
All Mod Cons
Setting Sons
Sound Affects
The Gift

Elvis Costello and the Attractions:
Armed Forces
Get Happy!!
Trust
Almost Blue
(This Year's Model to Trust is just as great a run)

Billy Bragg:
Life's a Riot with Spy vs Spy
Brewing up with Billy Bragg
Talking with the Taxman about Poetry
Workers Playtime

R.E.M.
Document
Green
Out of Time
Automatic for the People

Laura Marling:
I Speak Because I Can
A Creature I Don't Know
Once I Was an Eagle
Short Movie
All I got inside is vacancy!
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Re: Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by Gillingham »

Lots of excellent runs, but this is one of my favorites.

Swans:
Soundtracks for the Blind
My Father Will Guide Me Up a Rope to the Sky
The Seer
To Be Kind
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Re: Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by Edre Depeche Head »

Depeche Mode (literally any 4 albums work cause I genuinely like them all):

Black Celebration
Music For The Masses
Violator
Songs of Faith and Devotion

Green Day (a more unpopular choice but a personal one):

39/Smooth
Kerplunk
Dookie
Insomniac

Wavves (massivly underrated run):

Wavves (Self-Titled)
Wavvves
King of The Beach
Afraid of Heights

Radiohead:

Pablo Honey
The Bends
OK Computer
Kid A

Bad Religion (one of the best punk runs):

Suffer
No Control
Against The Grain
Generator

The Who:

Tommy
Who's Next
Quadrophenia
Who By Numbers

Eminem:

The Slim Shady LP
The Marshall Mathers LP
The Eminem Show
Encore

The Offspring:

Ignition
Smash
Ixnay on the Hombre
Americana

Pink Floyd:

Dark Side of The Moon
Wish You Were Here
Animals
The Wall

Lil Peep (strangest one here):

Live Forever
Crybaby
Hellboy
Come Over When You're Sober, Pt. 1

The Cure:

Seventeen Seconds
Faith
Pornography
The Top

Now keep in mind there are a lot of artists who are damn close right now to crossing that 4 album threshold or were very close.
Here are some of my best ones

- Post Malone (Stoney, B&B, Hollywoods Bleeding) Still is in the running
- Tame Impala (Lonerism, Currents, The Slow Rush) Still is in the running
- Bauhaus (In The Flat Field, Mask, The Sky's Gone Out) Not in the running
- Beatles (White Album is the only dud) Not in the running
- Keane (Under The Iron Sea, Perfect Symmetry, Night Train) Not in the running
- Kanye West (808s and Heartbreak, MBDTF, Yeezus) Not in the running
- Social Distortion (Self Titled, SBH&H, White Light) Not in the running
- XXXTENTACION (Revenge, 17, ?) Not in the running
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Re: Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by prosecutorgodot »

Edre Peraza wrote: Fri Apr 10, 2020 6:39 pm Green Day (a more unpopular choice but a personal one):

39/Smooth
Kerplunk
Dookie
Insomniac
I totally agree this is a good-great run, though I prefer Nimrod over 39/Smooth as the fourth album.
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Re: Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by Edre Depeche Head »

prosecutorgodot wrote: Fri Apr 10, 2020 6:54 pm
Edre Peraza wrote: Fri Apr 10, 2020 6:39 pm Green Day (a more unpopular choice but a personal one):

39/Smooth
Kerplunk
Dookie
Insomniac
I totally agree this is a good-great run, though I prefer Nimrod over 39/Smooth as the fourth album.
39/Smooth is my fav album! But yeah they were great back in the day
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Re: Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by nhuante00 »

Tame Impala:
1. Innerspeaker
2. Lonerism
3. Currents
4. The Slow Rush

Talking Heads:
1. Talking Heads: 77
2. More Songs About Buildings and Food
3. Fear of Music
4. Remain in Light

TV on the Radio:
1. Young Liars
2. Desperate Youth, Blood Thirsty Babes
3. Return to Cookie Mountain
4. Dear Science
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Re: Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by Mulholland »

Bjork
1. Debut
2. Post
3. Homogenic
4. Vespertine
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Re: Greatest Run of 4 Albums

Post by Dexter »

Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath
Paranoid
Master of Reality
Vol. 4
Sabbath Bloody Sabbath
Sabotage

Creedence Clearwater Revival
Creedence Clearwater Revival
Bayou Country
Green River
Willy and the Poor Boys
Cosmo's Factory

Crosby, Stills & Nash (& Young)
Crosby, Stills & Nash
Deja Vu
4 Way Street
CSN

Frank Zappa
Freak Out!
Absolutely Free
Lumpy Gravy
We're Only in It for the Money

Frank Zappa (Pt. 2)
Uncle Meat
Hot Rats
Burnt Weeny Sandwich
Weasels Ripped My Flesh

Aretha Franklin
Spirit in the Dark
Live at Fillmore West
Young, Gifter and Black
Amazing Grace

Metallica
Kill 'Em All
Ride the Lightning
Master of Puppets
...And Justice for All
Metallica [Black Album]

Beastie Boys
Licensed to Ill
Paul's Boutique
Check Your Head
Ill Communication
Hello Nasty

Iron Maiden
Iron Maiden
Killers
The Number of the Beast
Piece of Mind
Powerslave
Live After Death

Tool
Undertow
Aenima
Lateralus
10,000 Days
Fear Inoculum

Pearl Jam
Ten
Vs.
Vitalogy
No Code

Weezer
Weezer [Blue Album]
Pinkerton
Weezer [Green Album]
Maladroit

Tori Amos
Little Earthquakes
Under the Pink
Boys for Pele
From the Choirgirl Hotel

System of a Down
Toxicity
Steal This Album!
Mezmerize
Hypnotize

Queens of the Stone Age
Queens of the Stone Age
Rated R
Songs for the Deaf
Lullabies to Paralyze
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