End Of The Line - Top 10 Final albums

[Charger]

So time for a new Top 10 list..

This time we're going straight to the end.

FINAL ALBUMS from bands long forgotten or bands still hot even if their creative career has ended or bands that have gone quietly into the night.

Some bands might ofcourse make a comeback but lets try to keep focus on bands that most likely will not...so no Kiss. 


I'm gonna kick this thing off with an album from a gentleman that is very much still doing albums and singing great even at the ripe age of 80.

But his name sake solo band ended life on top of their career when the man in question went on a year long party with some guys from Birmingham.


GILLAN - MAGIC




Their first and last (studio) album with guitar wiz Janick Gers who brought new energy and drive into the band. He ofcourse few years later joined a small little band called Iron Maiden but that's another story.

I discovered Gillan quite late actually...only when Ian released his solo album of remade tracks called Gillan's Inn back in 2006. The track featured on that album was Bluesy Blue Sea which has a brilliant guitar....not even sure you can call it a riff...lets say part. But honestly there's not really a bad song on this album...even the Stevie Wonder cover works.

I think this line up could have been headed to great things but ofcourse things didn't work out as a one drunken night lead to other things.


The track I'm gonna pick from this album is Demon Driver, which has to be one of Gillan band's best tracks.

[Zzzptm]

Although I felt Magic wasn't as good as Glory Road, it's still a solid album and "Demon Driver" is a great bit of fun.

My first thought was to put in Grand Funk's Good Singin' Good Playin', but then I remembered they did some more albums after that, so it's not a final album. I'll give it a sort of honorable mention, as I think that one and Born to Die are two great records that deserve a listen or three.

For "last album" rules, I'll try to keep to bands that have more than one album released in mind, albums that are both first and last might belong in a list of their own. But that's my personal rule, I won't object if anyone listing puts in a one-album-wonder as a last album.

So now I think... ponder... consider... stare at my list of bands... and I'm struck at how many are still kicking along, these days!

And then there are those that did make a "last album" that I can't recommend. Yikes to those lads...

But then there's Faces, a solid band with a *definite* end to their career, and they went out with an album that hit the number one spot on sales, knocking out the big album from Led Zeppelin at the time, Houses of the Holy.



Faces - Ooh La La

With the magic of the YouTube, the whole album is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JrCDCQTASBU&list=OLAK5uy_ntf6X9c67lnTIU_Ggy25lG2cUaG2_gorc&index=1&pp=8AUB

While Rod Stewart wasn't involved much with the composition process and slagged the album in the press upon its release, the work done still comes through. The other band members do more with the music and it's a rich album experience. The title track is also the closing track of the album, and it's a great number. It's been used in movies and commercials but it's best when it stands on its own, listened to with a drink in hand and a memory in mind.

The whole album is only around 30 mins, so it's a nice diversion for the day, if you carve out the half-hour to enjoy it. The songs are well-written, the band rocks steady, and it's got killer openers and closers with plenty of fun in between. For a final album, it sets a high mark.

[Charger]

For "last album" rules, I'll try to keep to bands that have more than one album released in mind, albums that are both first and last might belong in a list of their own. But that's my personal rule, I won't object if anyone listing puts in a one-album-wonder as a last album.

This was something I was thinking about as well and I had full intention of writing about it but alas seemed to have slipped my mind...like so many things seem to do these days...


I was thinking that it would be better if there would be a like a 3 album minimum here...if band only released one or two albums it's kind of silly to put them up here....that might be a whole other list...
One that I was thinking ofcourse was The Devil You Know...and thought it would not be fair to include that...even if it is far superior to 13 it still isn't even Sabbath's last album...and 13 is but not in a million years could it be worthy of this listing.

Then a band like Witchburn who only released two albums...I was bit on the fence with that one as Bathed In Blood is a brilliant album but opted not to include that one either....

[Zzzptm]

Indeed, finding a band that had a run of good albums *and* actually ended their association *and* ended on a high note, well, that's going to be some detective work we'll have to do to find!

[KiloDeltaCharlie]

Lordy I've only got 4 at the moment and 3 of those will be the top 3!

So I'll start with the 4th one I've thought of...

10 - Motorhead - Bad Magic



It's a solid final album, I like the first half and the Sympathy For the Devil cover was pretty good.

[Vyn]

Good call with Motorhead!

I'm going to go ahead and drop this one:

Megadeth by Megadeth. Not their best ever, but as good a finale as one could hope for from a band that consistently put out new material throughout their lengthy career. If they put out another one in a few years I'll come back and edit this lol.

[Charger]

^^^
I was thinking about Bad Magic but it didn't quite make the list...

Megadeth should have made the list but I forgot! Good thing you didn't Vyn!

[Charger]

Well my number 2 then!


Here's an album that is most certainly a final album. Sadly so.

Back in 2018 the founder and lead singer and songwriter JILL JANUS died by suicide. She had some serious mental problems, fighting manic depression...

The band ofcourse is HUNTRESS and their catalogue only contains 3 albums. The First one Spell Eater was their best, their second Starbound Beast their worst and their final album Static was a return to form and a very very good album.

The band combined traditional heavy metal to Thrash metal to even death metal to Jill's occultistic lyrics.

This band had the potential to become something bigger I think, but sadly sometimes things just take a turn for the worst unexpectedly.




The song I'm gonna pick from the album is the fierce opening track called SORROW

[Vyn]

Up next, The Dock of the Bay by Otis Redding. Released after his untimely demise, this would most assuredly not have been his last, otherwise. Iconic.

[Zzzptm]

Up next, The Dock of the Bay by Otis Redding. Released after his untimely demise, this would most assuredly not have been his last, otherwise. Iconic.

It's amazing, I agree. And I think this list for me is going to be a matter of going down the list of artists gone too soon.

Like Tommy Bolin. He didn't know Private Eyes was going to be his last album, but it was. And it's a monster of a set.



Excellent writing and Bolin's guitar work is brain-melting, the guy's a true genius, that's for sure. There are some tracks that fit the bill to be categorized as mid-70s California-style Soft Rock, but I don't care. They're very well done and they play well off of Bolin's harder tracks.

Which takes me to the textured, fun, awesome, made-me-a-Bolin-fan-instantly centerpiece track of the album, Post Toastee:

It's always a good time to listen to Post Toastee, that's my opinion. The instrumental sections are pure gold. Enjoy and raise a glass to Mr. Tommy Bolin.

[KiloDeltaCharlie]

Count down to - ironically - my number 9

Ozzy Osbourne - Patient Number 9



I was pleasantly surprised when I first listened to this album, it was probably the best thing he'd done since the 90s, maybe even the 80s. Probably helped by all the guests he had on it and having a mix of song writers. Having said that there's still some filler in amongst the 13 songs.

[Charger]

^^^
I was thinking about that one, but honestly I only like the songs with Tony and Zakk...the others do feel bit too fillery...but I'm glad it made the list though.

[Vyn]

Number 3: The Gift by The Jam. Sort of a continuing gear-shift for those guys, I think if they would have kept it together this album would be the marker for the start of a new era for them, rather than their last hurrah.

[KiloDeltaCharlie]

Mutter, mutter, mutter... crosses The Jam off his list...!

[Vyn]