COVID-19 has been difficult on all of us – some more than others, of course. One way to cope during this unprecedented time is by listening to music. A silver lining of being home-bound is that it gives us all an opportunity to discover, or re-discover, music. And in that scope of thought, I thought it would be fun to put together a list of binge-worthy albums to listen to during this quarantine. Each album on this list is worth listening to from start to finish because they have no bad songs. Some of these albums you may have listened to many times before, and some might be new to you. What better time than now to give each of these albums a chance?
**Albums are in chronological order and do not indicate a specific ranking**
Paranoid (1970) – BLACK SABBATH
BLACK SABBATH’s second album and the inspiration for many of the other albums on this list. It was also named the greatest metal album all-time by Rolling Stone. Tracks include legendary songs like “War Pigs”, “Paranoid”, and “Iron Man”.
Genre: Pure Heavy Metal/Hard Rock/Doom Metal
Rising (1976) – RAINBOW
Led by vocalist Ronnie James Dio and guitarist Richie Blackmore, Rising was voted the 48th greatest metal album of all-time by Rolling Stone. Tracks include “Tarot Woman”, “Stargazer” and “A Light in the Black”.
Genre: Pure Heavy Metal/Hard Rock/Progressive Rock
Holy Diver (1983) – DIO
The first solo album for established vocalist Ronnie James Dio (who had previous stints with RAINBOW and BLACK SABBATH) is #16 on Rolling Stone’s all-time greatest metal albums. It also includes tracks still payed on the radio almost 40 years later.
Genre: Pure Heavy Metal/Hard Rock
Melissa (1983) – MERCYFUL FATE
This album was a major influence on METALLICA, which says a lot. King Diamond’s vocals are an acquired taste but the songs and musicianship on this album are undeniable. It’s also listed as the #17 greatest metal album of all-time by Rolling Stone.
Genre: Black Metal/Speed Metal
Piece of Mind (1983) – IRON MAIDEN
Overshadowed by some of IRON MAIDEN’s other 80’s releases, Piece of Mind is a largely underrated album and has been described as “essential for anyone with even the most basic interest in heavy metal”. It also gave us “The Trooper”.
Genre: Pure Heavy Metal
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