Top 5 - Most Underrated Rock Albums of All Time

These are rock n roll albums that, for whatever reason, never got their due. Generally, they are sort of lost in an artist or band’s catalog, a middle album that just kind of came and went. here are my Top 5:

5. Flick of the Switch - AC/DC (1983) I always kind of joke about AC/DC releasing the same album year after year. Don’t get me wrong! It’s a great album. The band was falling apart a little on this one. Some drug and alcohol issues with some members. Phil Rudd was fired halfway through.. This album never matched the huge selling previous two. But, it is still a solid effort, even if it has no real super-hits!

4. Communique - Dire Straits (1979) Sandwiched between their debut album which contained their signature hit, Sultans of Swing and the well-received Making Movies (both of which went Platinum +) this album is terrific on it’s own merit, but only managed about half the sales of the other two. Six years later they would go 19 times Platinum with the album Brothers in Arms.

3. Diver Down - Van Halen (1982) When talking about the Roth era Van Halen most talk about I and II, but especially 1984. Of the three albums between II and 1984, Diver Down gets the least amount of love. While Diver did manage to hit #3 on the Billboard 200 and eventually 4X Platinum, it has been overshadowed by the wildly popular 1984 which has sold over 10,000,000 copies. Maybe due to all the cover songs on the album, which are really well done: Where Have All the Good Times Gone, Pretty Woman, and Dancing in the Streets.

2. Panorama - The Cars (1980) Sandwiched between the fantastic Candy-O and the massive Shake It Up, The Cars’ third album was more aggressively experimental, moving away from the pop rock that got them started and before the string of hits of the next couple albums when they headed back to their power pop roots.

1. Presence - Led Zepplin (1976) When people talk Led Zepplin usually, I feel like they often stop at the end of Physical Graffiti’s Kashmir. But if they don’t acknowledge Presence then they are missing out. Heavily showcasing Page’s guitar and Bonham’s drums, as Plant was recovering from a car accident. The songs feel like a call back to the early days of their career. Standout for me is Nobody’s Fault But Mine, of course, but I also really like the groove on Achilles Last Stand.

Thanks for reading!