Brothers in Arms
Artist: Dire Straits
Community Score: 7.83

Brothers in Arms brought the atmospheric, jazz-rock inclinations of Love Over Gold into a pop setting, resulting in a surprise international best-seller. Of course, the success of Brothers in Arms was helped considerably by the clever computer-animated video for "Money for Nothing," a sardonic attack on MTV. But what kept the record selling was... Read More

The Rolling Stones (England's Newest Hitmakers)
Artist: The Rolling Stones
Community Score: 7.40

The British version of the Stones' first album has a nearly identical cover to its American equivalent, issued six weeks later, but a slightly different song lineup. Among these 12 songs, absent is "Not Fade Away," which was a hit single in England (where singles and LPs were usually kept separate), and in its place is the Stones' cover of Bo... Read More

Greatest Hits - RHINO
Artist: The Searchers

The best American best-of on the band, and the most desirable for those on a budget, with superior sound to the Silver Searchers collection. ~ Bruce Eder, All Music Guide Read More

The Rolling Stones, Now!
Artist: The Rolling Stones
Community Score: 7.25

Although their third American album was patched together (in the usual British Invasion tradition) from a variety of sources, it's their best early R&B-oriented effort. Most of the Stones' early albums suffer from three or four very weak cuts; Now! is almost uniformly strong start-to-finish, the emphasis on some of their blackest material. The... Read More

12 X 5
Artist: The Rolling Stones
Community Score: 7.25

The evolution from blues to rock accelerated with the Rolling Stones' second American LP. They turned soul into guitar rock for the hits "It's All Over Now" and "Time Is on My Side" (the latter of which was their first American Top Ten single). "2120 South Michigan Avenue" is a great instrumental blues-rock jam; "Around and Around" is one of... Read More

Big Hits (High Tide and Green Grass)
Artist: The Rolling Stones
Community Score: 4.50

The first hits compilation of the Rolling Stones is still one of the most potent collections of singles that one can find. Listening to it in 1966 or today, one can understand how, almost prematurely for the 1960s -- as most of the material here dates from 1964 or 1965 -- the Stones set themselves up as the decade's most visible rock & roll... Read More

Between the Buttons
Artist: The Rolling Stones
Community Score: 7.12

The Rolling Stones' 1967 recordings are a matter of some controversy; many critics felt that they were compromising their raw, rootsy power with trendy emulations of the Beatles, Kinks, Dylan, and psychedelic music. Approach this album with an open mind, though, and you'll find it to be one of their strongest, most eclectic LPs, with many fine... Read More

Come Dancing With the Kinks: The Best of the Kinks 1977-1986 - 1986
Artist: The Kinks
Community Score: 10.00

Originally released as a double-album set in 1986, just after the Kinks had their last run at chart success, Come Dancing With the Kinks (The Best of the Kinks 1977-1986) does an excellent job of summarizing their stadium rock and AOR radio favorites on Arista. It leaves no single or radio favorite behind, while adding such terrific obscurities... Read More

The Kink Kontroversy
Artist: The Kinks
Community Score: 5.33

The Kinks came into their own as album artists -- and Ray Davies fully matured as a songwriter -- with The Kink Kontroversy, which bridged their raw early British Invasion sound with more sophisticated lyrics and thoughtful production. There are still powerful ravers like the hit "Till the End of the Day" (utilizing yet another "You Really Got... Read More

The Kinks' Greatest Hits
Artist: The Kinks

In its time -- and it was in print for about 20 years -- this ten-song compilation was the way that most listeners discovered the Kinks for the first time. Along with The Live Kinks, it was the sole showcase for the band's early work in the United States for those same 20 years, and it did its job well as far as it went, opening with that rock &... Read More

Fleetwood Mac/Rumours
Artist: Fleetwood Mac

In the early '80s, Reprise combined Fleetwood Mac's two most popular albums, Fleetwood Mac and Rumours, on one cassette. This reissue may be of interest to budget-minded consumers. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide Read More

The Best of the Doors - 1985
Artist: The Doors
Community Score: 8.68

A well-chosen, 19-track compilation balancing the radio hits with the longer, more complex song poems. It's a good sampler (and contains enough of the good tracks from Strange Days that we didn't bother to list that album separately), but this is one group for whom you need to hear the whole story. ~ William Ruhlmann, All Music Guide Read More