Why these 20 albums that turn 50 in 2022 are so good

Records turning 50 in 2022. Above, from left, albums by David Bowie, Cecilia and the J. Geils Band.

Below, Jackson Browne, Nick Drake, and Todd Rundgren.

In 1972,

was exploding. The musicians donned platforms, tight pants, and silk shirts. They painted themselves, dramatized their performances, and enacted sexual ambiguity. They played sticky

, as opposed to the prog rock cut. David Bowie invented Ziggy Stardust, Marc Bolan made T. Rex fly, Roxy Music debuted with a great album, Slade released their wild

... Broken the dream of peace and love, the

they colonized Laurel Canyon to get high and compose music as turbulent as it was balsamic, like Jackson Browne's debut.

In Spain, it was the year of the presentation of Cecilia, a girl who could have been a legend if she did not run into misfortune.

The harvest from 50 years ago was abundant and outstanding.

This is a selection of some of the best ...

Cover of the Rolling Stones album 'Exil on Main St.'. Quique

- The Rolling Stones, 'Exile On Main Street'

Who are they?

The Rolling Stones fleeing the British treasury in the early 1970s.

They settled in the south of France, in a mansion, Villa Nellcote, invited street thugs and night owls from high society and recorded a good part of this double album, for many the best of their careers.

Why is

It is curious to see that none of the classic songs of the Rolling Stones are in what is considered his best work. The ones that come closest are

surely the most famous song sung by Keith Richards, and

a favorite gem of the Stones

that reached mass territory because the group began to recover it on their tours of stadiums in Los Angeles.

the modern era. Two

classics on a double 18-track album. Although in their previous work,

they already noted it,

is the most American album of the British, with a clear surrender to the

-rock (remember that Gram Parsons was visiting Richards a lot at that time).

Sometimes chaotic in sound (anyone passing by - camels included - could clap their hands or play a tambourine) and fast-paced (listen to

it contains absolutely wonderful songs, like

perhaps the best ballad of his career. ;

, an exciting

bar;

with

sticky

There are few double records in rock history where it isn't about any song.

This is one.

- David Bowie, 'The Rise And Fall of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars'

Who?

Ah, David's rogue. He sold this album to the world as a concept album: an orange-haired bisexual alien who becomes a rock star and ends up committing suicide. However, the songs are a bit from here and there, many offline. But thanks to the character he invented (Ziggy Stardust) he managed to sell the theme of conceptuality. A trick of the artist that makes his proposal even more fascinating. Stardust announced his death at a concert in July 1973 in London. Not even the musicians, who were left without work, knew about it. They did feel bad about the joke.

Why is

Surely David Bowie has better albums than this one, but he never sounded as cheeky and thought-provoking as on Ziggy Stardust.

It is the culmination of

that movement in essence rock but flooded with theatricality and sexual androgyny.

Bowie proposed accessible songs that were both sophisticated and baroque.

An absolute triumph.

… Songs that 50 years later still sound modern.

Only he could do it.

- Cecilia, 'Cecilia'

Whom?

At the age of 23, she recorded her long debut album Evangelina Sobredo, a girl with an itinerant life (Jordan, England, Algiers or the United States) due to the profession of her father, a military man and a diplomat. He edited three long discs until he died in a traffic accident at the age of 27.

Why is

A girl from a family well bringing out the colors to the Spain of the last years of the dictatorship.

With songs like the devastating

where through animals he portrays the different species of Spanish society;

or

, on the hypocrisy of the upper classes;

o

with an almost nihilistic lyrics.

With the pompous arrangements of Juan Carlos Calderón and under a certain Serratian influence, it is a surprisingly transgressive folk-pop album for the time and for a singer who was making her debut.

Attention to the image on the cover, with a boxing glove, an empowered woman in Franco's Spain.

A pity the early death of its author.

- The Allman Brothers Band, 'Eat A Peach'

Who is it?

A rock group in its worst possible scenario: after the abrupt death of its leader. Duane Allman was 24 years old when he died in a motorcycle accident. It happened in October 1971 and this work came out months later.

Why is

After Duane's disappearance, the group wondered if it should continue.

He decided that he would and he did it with this album, where some recordings still with Duane are rescued, especially songs recorded from the Fillmore concerts.

The first three songs are already without the guitarist and it is appreciated that the group will be able to survive this loss.

Dickey Betts takes command of the guitar and the band

's southern

is a fiery approach to the Santana universe, and

is a formidable ballad in the vein of

of the Rolling Stones.

Between the last contributions of Duane and the rebirth of the group a splendid album is completed.

- Jackson Browne, 'Jackson Browne'

Whom?

A wonder.

At the age of 16 he had already composed

for Nico.

Then songs would come for the Byrds, Eagles ... and their debut, this album, which made them 24 years old.

Why is

Romantic, vulnerable, incisive, seductive ... All of this conveyed with his first songs a Jackson Browne in his twenties, with a unique voice to reach the depths of the listener.

This album discovers an overflowing talent that would develop on his next albums.

A fundamental piece of the Californian sound of Laurel Canyon with songs like

or

The number of times the Urquijo brothers have listened to this album.

- The J. Geils Band, 'Full House'

Who are they?

Most of us met The J. Geils Band when they opened for the Rolling Stones in 1982, on the tour that brought them to Spain for the second time (the first was in Barcelona in 1976). At that time they were succeeding with an album called

(1981) and their song

the most commercial of their career. But earlier, in the 1970s, this Massachusetts band produced incendiary rock and soul.

Why is

One recommendation: search YouTube for live recordings of the J. Geils Band from the seventies.

Difficult to see such a wild, funny and at the same time virtuous demonstration of rock and roll.

This album, after two sensational works in the studio, is the demonstration of his fiery live performance.

Piloting the ship are vocalist Peter Wolf, guitarist J. Geils and harmonica player Magic Dick.

A work with his own songs and crazy versions of Smokey Robinson, Otis Rush or John Lee Hooker.

Tremendous, to scream and dance in the living room.

- Deep Purple, 'Machine Head'

Who are they?

By 1972 Deep Purple had already released

(1970) and they had become the best-selling hard rock band.

Could they get over that?

Yes they did it…

Why is

We are talking about the album where the most famous guitar

in rock history appears, that of

, that from listening to it so much, incidentally, we have caught a mania. But let's see the rest. There's no better opening for a rock album than

with unbeatable keyboard (Jon Lord) and guitar (Ritchie Blackmore) solos.

with its bluesy air, is overwhelming;

must be one of Jack White's bedtime songs;

It is a message for Led Zeppelin: we also know how to compose good rock ballads… And so the whole album.

Ian Gillan is at his best vocal moment (and that's saying a lot) and Blackmore's guitar shines with that mix of classical, blues and psychedelic music structures.

The tour for this album was picked up on

, one of the most popular rock shows, an album with an impact even in Spain, which with Franco still alive served as a soundtrack for clandestine dates with drinks and joints.

And as such success is difficult to manage, a little over a year later Ian Gillan left the band due to his continuous struggles with Ritchie Blackmore.

Then they would be friends again, later they would fight again ... And so ...

- Neil Young, 'Harvest'

Who? In 1972 Neil Young was 26 years old and had to digest his

failure :

the idealistic young man had transmuted into a millionaire living on a half million dollar ranch (early 1970s money). But that did not mean he was going to be artistically accommodated.

Why is

In the song

, the Canadian explains his situation, dedicating the lyrics to one of the caretakers of his vast Californian property: "Old man, look at my life, I'm very similar to you, I need someone to love me." It also speaks (without metaphors) of the devastating heroine in

. Or his vision of the retrograde southern United States in

(song replicated by

from the scowling Lynyrd Skynyrd). And then there is, of course, his first big hit,

.

It seems like a washed-out album (some live take; the surprising appearance of the London Symphony Orchestra; posh collaborations that are hardly felt: James Taylor, Linda Ronstadt or David Crosby ...) but there is a common thread that serves more than any concept: all the songs are ten.

- Big Star, '# 1 Record'

Who are they?

One of those "best groups in history with the greatest of bad luck." Misunderstood and fallen into the worst hands (the components always regretted that record stores were visited and in none of them they found their debut album due to the poor distribution of the record company), they ended up being diluted in bad internal rolls and economic hardships. And they would be forever forgotten if it were not for groups like REM, who deservedly put them on altars in each interview.

Why is

Two creative forces like Alex Chilton and Chris Bell could only come up with one path: write a legendary record and fight so much in the process that they eventually parted ways.

Chilton signs the most heartfelt pieces, like two ballads that are heard with a lump in the throat:

and

.

And Bell takes care of the

also superb.

They both died young (especially Bell, at 27; Chilton left at 59) to add to their curse.

- Jethro Tull, 'Thick as a Brick'

Who are they?

In case there was any doubt about who was the boss of the group, this is the album in which Ian Anderson takes absolute command of Jethro Tull.

He was 24 years old, he had composed

(1971), a work that all the critics announced as "conceptual" and that he got tired of saying it was not.

Why is

It must first be said that Anderson was a fanatic of the English humor group Monty Python and its way of critically dissecting British society.

It was his example for

.

As many people had claimed that

It was a conceptual album (all the songs unified by a common idea), Anderson decided that this would be it, but parodying this type of album.

And the joke became a seminal work of progressive rock.

Just one song, split into two parts to fit the faces of the vinyl, that tells the story of an eight-year-old boy who wins a poetry contest, but then has the award taken away because he gets a 12-year-old girl pregnant.

A critique of his country's society, the church, British hypocrisy ... A lofty message with high music that combines hard rock, jazz or classical music.

It is still fascinating today.

- Barabbas, 'Barabbas'

Who are they?

One of the most international groups that Spain has had, with several number one in the United States in the seventies and playing in discos until the eighties.

Devised by Fernando Arbex after leaving Los Brincos.

We talk about the origins of Spanish pop ...

Why is

With a cover designed by Luis Eduardo Aute, it is the group's first album, influenced by Santana's Latin rock and Osibisa's African rock.

With those wickers they composed songs like

or

, the latter a feverish

, a genre that they also faced wonderfully.

It is an album with international projection recorded by a Spanish band.

Years later he would continue his success with his foray into emerging disco music.

- Todd Rundgren, 'Something / Anything?'

Whom?

In the sixties, Todd Rundgren had stood out as a recording studio freak, which led him to work on albums by Patti Smith, Badfinger, Meat Loaf or XTC.

He also had a band, The Nazz, that did not transcend beyond the epicurean fans.

His solo talent exploded in the early 1970s.

Why is

Long before Andrés Calamaro did it with

Rundgren experienced that of locking himself in a studio and recording music while gorging himself on drugs.

This is how

created, a double album where the American offers precious mid-times pop full of majestic melodies.

Showing off his allergy to commerciality and fame, the musician would boycott himself with his bizarre experiments in some phases of the album.

A trend that would continue in subsequent solo installments and in projects like

.

- Steely Dan, 'Can't Buy A Thrill'

Who are they?

While rock became dangerous with characters like Ziggy Stardust, Marc Bolan or Lou Reed, here were in opposition Walter Becker and Donald Fagen, two virtuous instrumentalists

with carefree clothing and lovers of jazz and Frank Zappa. Nobody gave a penny for them.

Why is

On occasion Becker and Fagen hinted that they concocted their e record as a commercial pop work only to have enough credit (money, too) and face a much more experimental career.

It was luxurious.

All the songs on this album are as refined as they are accessible.

The incorporation of Latin percussions, the sun of Californian rock, the influence of the Beach Boys, the precious guitar solos, the keyboards creating fluffy melodies, the vocal harmonies… What a marvel.

The cover, by the way, with a group of prostitutes on the street, was censored in Spain.

Remember: 1972.

- Nick Drake, 'Pink Moon'

Whom?

The embodiment of fatalism. He only released three albums, never managed to make a decent living from music, and fell into a depression that led to his death after an overdose of pills. He was only 26 years old. His disappearance in November 1974 (which occurred at the home of his parents, with whom he had returned to live due to their poor financial situation) did not occupy almost space in the press. It was not until the nineties when his figure began to be known when he was vindicated by musicians such as Thom Yorke, Paul Weller, Robert Smith or Michael Stipe. In 2000, the Volkswagen car brand used their theme

(the one that opens this album) for an advertisement. The album, which had sold just over 3,000 units in 1972, then shipped 200,000.

Why is

An acoustic guitar, some piano and the voice of Nick Drake.

Nothing else is heard on this album of only 28 minutes and 22 seconds.

The greatness is found in the whispered voice of the Briton, suffering, without intermediaries, as if he were playing in the listener's room.

Naked music, laments of a wounded soul, trembling words.

- Pappo's Blues, 'Vol.

two'

Whom?

Norberto Napolitano, alias Pappo, eminence of Argentine music.

Surely the best

guitarist that national rock ever produced, as it is called there.

He died young, in 2005 at the age of 54, and Argentina's rocker cried as only they feel before their local idols.

Why is

After passing through legendary first Argentine pop groups such as Los Gatos or Los Abuelos de la Nada, Pappo began his solo career with a

trio . He could have simply demonstrated his virtuosity by following the teachings of the Jimi Hendrix Experience or Cream. Nothing further: Pappo develops his own guitar style and sings with his deep and high voice (very similar to that of his compatriot Moris) in Spanish, when no one dared to interpret blues in Castilian. Criticisms of the violence that was lived at that time ("that if we all agree, peace will come",

stories of a lonely guy ("but here I am, so alone in life, I better go ”,

or songs to a freedom in a period when his country was ruled by the military ("I walk down the street and I don't understand how expensive freedom is",

All with continued epic demonstrations of guitar solos, like the one from

which closes the album. Let's see if Clapton can beat him ...

- Lou Reed, 'Transformer'

Whom?

Lou Reed was 30 years old and the water was up to his neck. He broke through with The Velvet Underground, but his first solo album had flopped. He desperately called David Bowie, in the throes of the

recording,

and they did this perfect piece.

Why is

New York was not only that "brand new" city that Frank Sinatra sang to. Here was Lou Reed to narrate what happened in the alleys and the rooms of cheap hotels, stories of prostitutes, hustlers, transsexuals, junkies, homeless people ... A make-up, bisexual and unprejudiced Reed recounts with the voice of a badass poet how the life in the lumpen of the city. Is

a hymn to heroin or is it just a perfect day for a couple? Everything is interpretable in lyrics that exude vice, flashing lights and asphalt. It is the album where

or the aforementioned

burst .

cabaret and sour ballads make up an album with no weak points.

- Stevie Wonder, 'Talking Book'

Whom?

A teenage Stevie Wonder was already manufacturing instant soul hits for Motown.

When she turned 20, she was a young veteran who was no longer satisfied with the formula of the two and a half minute dance song.

So he started creating his own sound.

That's where

Wonder was only 22 years old.

Why is

With this album begins the legend Stevie Wonder.

The musician underpins his style: fiery

, social conscience (as in

criticism of a political class only interested in the armchair), immortal ballads

a keyboard sound that will already be theirs (especially with the use of the rubbery claviret) and a versatile voice that sounds romantic on laid-back and sharp pieces when the beat picks up. All crowned by

piece that sounds at the point of the planet that sounds is optimism made song.

- Black Sabbath, 'Vol. 4'

Who are they?

Some boys from dark and depressing Birmingham turned into millionaires thanks to three albums in two years that laid the foundations for what was later called

Why is

Money was raining down on the Sabbaths in 1972 so they left their gloomy English city to stop at a Los Angeles recording studio. The consequence? "We spend more on cocaine than the entire budget for the record," said bassist Geezer Butler, perhaps exaggerating (or not!). The best that can be said for

is that it sticks with the guidelines of the first three albums (those heavy and haunting

by Tony Iommi, the devastating rhythm section and the crazed vocals of Ozzy Osbourne) and opens up to experiments like

a delicious ballad on piano and voice, or some folk acoustic guitar tunes

Iommy at

.

Memorable, as in almost his entire career.

- Randy Newman, 'Sail Away'

Whom?

One of those fascinating characters that the music industry fails to understand and, thankfully, leaves his ball.

While Randy Newman was composing on request, he was releasing records in the seventies with little impact on sales, but of great quality, such as

In the eighties, Newman turned to soundtracks, becoming one of Pixar's top songwriters.

His are the music from the

or

saga. He has won two Oscars.

Is

Beautiful songs of impulse New Orleans, with the piano as the main instrument.

Everything seems beautiful until one scratches at the lyrics of Newman, a master of the sardonic, remarkable creator of singular characters with whom he disembowels his own contradictions and those of an American society as fascinating as it is schizophrenic.

includes

You

, which on Joe Cocker's voice put music to one of the most famous movie scenes of the eighties in

.

- Al Green, 'Let's Stay Together'

Whom?

One of the great voices of soul, perhaps the most relevant of the second generation (after Otis Redding, Sam Cooke, Marvin Gaye ...) and the only one who has not left us. Green is 75 years old and can still be seen in a Memphis church singing gospel in his wonderful voice.

Why is

Since that bass sounds followed by some winds and then the soft voice of Al Green enters ... It is the beginning of the album with the song that gives it its title,

, the same one that Back Obama sang in a congress of his party in 2011 And from there the listener enters the pleasant world of Al Green and his happy songs of love.

A sensual and vital album to enjoy Green's voice, a falsetto imitated a thousand times, from Mick Jagger to Prince.