In popularmusic , there are record album , and then there are “ concept record album . ” Definitions vary , but essentially , concept albums are carefully sequence collections of birdsong that fit together to secernate cohesive stories or search specific root . While these types of albums are typically consort with the psychedelic and reformist rock eras of the ’ 60s and ’ 70s , they actually predate rock ’ n ’ roll , and they ’re still go unassailable in the 21st century .
For object lesson , in October 2024 , Broadway heavyweight Lin - Manuel Miranda teamed up with playwright Eisa Davis — as well as artists like Lauryn Hill , Ghostface Killah , and Billy Porter — to createWarriors , a concept album urge by the1979 filmabout New York City street bunch . That same month , * NSYNC fellow member JC Chasez releasedPlaying With Fire , a melodic theater concept album aboutMary Shelly’sFrankenstein .
love by some , derided by others , concept album never fail to provoke strong reactions and spur intense conversation among music fan . What follow is a rundown of 15 fabled construct albums that illustrate all of the ambition , artistry , and at times pretentiousness underlying to the variant .
Woody Guthrie //Dust Bowl Ballads(1940)
Often credited as thefirst construct album , this album by seminal tribe artist Woody Guthrie centers on theDust Bowl , the dust storm that decimated the American prairie in the thirties — something Guthrieexperiencedfirsthand . Despite the bleakness of the subject matter , Guthrie works spot of dark humor into songs like “ Dust Pneumonia Blues , ” in which the infirmed narrator laments his unfitness to yodel .
Les Baxter //Ritual of the Savage(1951)
In the fifties , a certain subset of upward fluid American consumers fell for “ exotica ” euphony , far - out sounds inspire by fantasies of far - off blank space like Africa and the South Pacific . The medicine paired well with Tiki cocktails and high - end stereo equipment , and composer Les Baxter’sRitual of the Savage — a “ tone verse form of the sound and the struggle of the jungle,”according toBaxter — encapsulates the genre as well as any album .
Frank Sinatra //Songs for Swingin’ Lovers!(1956)
Ol’ Blue Eyeswas bragging on concept album , and this aggregation of giddy lovemaking call ranks among his most pop . Highlights admit “ You Make Me find So Young ” and “ I ’ve fetch You Under My Skin , ” songs whose titles pretty much say it all . adapter and conductor Nelson Riddle moderate it all together withdistinctive introsthat connect the tracks and keep the romantic vibes going unattackable .
Marty Robbins //Gunfighter Ballads and Trail Songs(1959)
land and western champion Marty Robbins tapped into the emotional state of the Old West for this 1959 set . The LP include the hit “ El Paso ” and the enduring fave “ Big Iron , ” which has been covered or retread by everyone from reggae great Eek - A - Mouse to Mike Ness , leader of the punk band Social Distortion .
The Who //The Who Sell Out(1967)
The Who were rock ’s kings of conception record album . While everyone fuck them forTommy(1969 ) andQuadrophenia(1973 ) , both of which spawned feature films , Pete Townshend and companystarted downthe conceptual path with 1967’sThe Who Sell Out , a sly comment on mercantilism that plays like a pirate - radio program , complete with phoney commercials .
The Pretty Things //S.F. Sorrow(1968)
construct albums share much in vulgar with rock operas , and the full term are often used interchangeably . sensible people will disagree about what differentiates the two , but many critics deferred payment UK rockers The Pretty Things with releasing the first - ever rock opera house , S.F. Sorrow , a psychedelic song cycle per second about a case named Sebastian F. Sorrow . The record album make it months before The Who’sTommy , which wound up deal much better and garnering mode more plaudit .
Marvin Gaye //What’s Going On(1971)
Motown Bos Berry Gordy was reluctant to release this topical masterpiece from Marvin Gaye . The reasonableness : Gordy was in the patronage of selling records , and he was n’t certain how the world would reply to a bunch of searching , plaintive songs about the Vietnam War , civic rightfulness , defilement , and the plight of urban areas . What ’s Going Onwound up becoming Motown ’s all - timebest - selling album , and in 2021,Rolling Stonenamed it thegreatest album ever .
Kraftwerk //Autobahn(1974)
On their 4th record album , German electronic trailblazer Kraftwerk hit upon the sleek synth - pop sound that would become their trademark . The labor is named for Germany ’s national highway organisation , and the music is mean to repair the sound of cruising over the blacktopping .
Hüsker Dü //Zen Arcade(1984)
Quite perchance the first punk concept album , Zen Arcadetells a knotty come - of - age story through systematically thrill music that receive this Minnesota trio broadening its horizon to include psychedelia , family , and other sounds . In his 2013 memoirSee a Little Light : The Trail of Rage and Melody , Hüsker Dü singer and guitarist Bob Moulddescribesthe “ escaped plot ” like this : “ A bright kid leaves his busted home and head to Silicon Valley to design a information processing system game call off ‘ Search . ’ ” Everybody scram that ?
Magnetic Fields //69 Love Songs(1999)
The conception behind the sixth record album from songwriter Stephin Merritt ’s indie - daddy kit is pretty self - explanatory . There are , indeed , 69 sexual love songs here , and stylistically , they range from blue-blooded sept ( “ Acoustic Guitar ” ) and banjo - power country ( “ Reno Dakota ” ) to synth - pop ( “ Long - Forgotten Fairytale ” ) and whatever it is you ’d call “ Punk Love . ” Merritt wrote the album at Dick ’s Bar in New York City , where he ’d hang for eight hours a day . “ I used to convey Irving , my chihuahua , and sit in the window seat , ” hetoldThe Guardian . “ My friend Dudley had a few experiences where he would put his drinking down and , when no one was looking , Irving would wassail Dudley ’s potable and get inebriated and fall asleep . ”
Green Day //American Idiot(2004)
Bay Area punks Green Day showed actual maturity with this complex , character reference - driven examination of suburban angst and spirit in the metre of George W. Bush . boast a pair of multi - part suite , the record album inspired a Broadway musical that ran for more than400 performancesand evenwon a pairof Tony Awards .
Janelle Monáe //The ArchAndroid(2010)
On her debut record album , boundary - push futuristic alt - mortal auteur Janelle Monáe pick up where her 2007 EPMetropolis : The Chase Suiteleft off and ease up us the next chapter in the adventures of Cindi Mayweather , an android fighting the forces of oppression . “ I pick out an android because the humanoid to me typify ‘ the other ’ in our society , ’ ” MonáetoldThe Chicago Tribune . “ I can touch base to the other , because it has so many parallels to my own lifetime — just by being a female , African - American creative person in today ’s music diligence . ”
Kendrick Lamar //good kid m.A.A.d city(2012)
The breakthrough album by this Pulitzer - winning knocker is a coming - of - age , Clarence Shepard Day Jr. - in - the - liveliness report about vernal Kendrick ’s efforts to vanish straight in a world filled with peril and enticement . As Kendrick navigates his tricky Compton environs , he must also plow with frequent voicemails from his female parent , who ’d like him to please return her automobile .
Twenty One Pilots //Blurryface(2015)
Ohio twosome Twenty One Pilots are stay fresh alt - rock concept album alive in the 21st century . On their chart - topping fourth record album , 2015’sBlurryface , they plunge deeply into the titular character , who “ correspond all the things that I as an individual , but also everyone around , are insecure about , ” as frontman Tyler JosephtoldMTV .
Halsey //The Great Impersonator(2024)
Halsey loves a conception record album . Her 2015 debut , Badlands , is coif in a dystopian fellowship , and 2020’sManicfeatures invitee like Suga of BTS and Alanis Morissette play different parts of her nous . With each birdsong on 2024’sThe Great Impersonator , Halsey drawsinspirationfrom a different melodious hero . Dolly Parton , Bruce Springsteen , Kate Bush , Bjork , and David Bowie are among the icons she attempts to channel .
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