Desert Island Discs

[Stuhoo]

Decided to gve this a breakout thread apart from the music thread.

Been a few years since the music afficiando regulars have weighed in, and tastes change. Since it's slow season for IU sports, let's give it a go:

List your Ten "desert island" albums (if you were stranded forever on a deserted island and could only take ten albums with you).

For me (unranked and in no particular order):

1. Radio City - Big Star
2. The Fantastic Expedition of Dillard and Clark - Gene Clark and Doug Dillard
3. The Unfairground - Kevin Ayers
4. Paris 1919 - John Cale
5. Let It Be - The Replacements
6. Velvet Underground- The Velvet Underground 
7. Sound Affects- The Jam
8. American Water - Silver Jews
9. Moby Grape - Moby Grape
10. Karen Dalton - In My Own Time

[HoosierReb01]

I tend to do a lot of greatest hits albums but I'll give this a shot.

Numbered but also not ranked or ordered.

 

1. Live 2 Five - Nitty Gritty Dirt Band

2. For The Record - Alabama

3. Confederate Railroad - Greatest Hits

4. Ellis Island - The Irish Tenors

5. Their Greatest Hits - The Eagles

6. Stars: The Best of 1992-2002 - The Cranberries

7. The Three Tenors in Concert 1994 - Carreras, Pavarotti and Domingo

8. Les Misérables: The Dream Cast in Concert

9. Greatest Hits(All 3) - The Oak Ridge Boys

10. Chronicle: The 20 Greatest Hits - CCR

[JSHoosier]

1. The Essential Johnny Cash

2. Their Greatest Hits -  the Eagles

3. Chronicle:  The 20 Greatest Hits - CCR

4. Greatest Hits - Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers 

5. Moving Pictures - Rush

6. Error - The Warning (although anything by them is really good)

7. Slowhand - Eric Clapton

8. Mothership- Led Zeppelin

9. Electric Ladyland- The Jimi Hendrix Experience 

10. Texas Flood - Stevie Ray Vaughan

[Demo]

The non-negotiables:

1) Born to Run- Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band

2) At Fillmore East- Amman Brothers Band

3) #1 Record- Big Star

4) Grace- Jeff Buckley

The depends on the day. Today:

5) Melt- Peter Gabriel

6) Songs of Love and Hate- Leonard Cohen

7) Bad Brains- Bad Brains

8) Car Wheels on a Gravel Road- Lucinda Wiiliams

9) Fables of the Reconstruction- REM

10) Cosmo’s Factory- Creedence Clearwater Revival

That there isn’t a Husker Du, Smiths or Boomtown Rats album and no Unknown Pleasures seems just wrong, but, again, depends on the day. 

[Stuhoo]

17 minutes ago, Demo said:

The non-negotiables:

1) Born to Run- Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band

2) At Fillmore East- Amman Brothers Band

3) #1 Record- Big Star

4) Grace- Jeff Buckley

The depends on the day. Today:

5) Melt- Peter Gabriel

6) Songs of Love and Hate- Leonard Cohen

7) Bad Brains- Bad Brains

8) Car Wheels on a Gravel Road- Lucinda Wiiliams

9) Fables of the Reconstruction- REM

10) Cosmo’s Factory- Creedence Clearwater Revival

That there isn’t a Husker Du, Smiths or Boomtown Rats album and no Unknown Pleasures seems just wrong, but, again, depends on the day. 

I almost included Zen Arcade and Unknown Pleasures.

Ballad of El Goodo is the single most beautiful song I’ve ever heard, but I couldn’t put #1 on there as long as The India Song is still on it and Radio City is extraordinary from first cut to last. 

[Demo]

23 minutes ago, Stuhoo said:

I almost included Zen Arcade and Unknown Pleasures.

Ballad of El Goodo is the single most beautiful song I’ve ever heard, but I couldn’t put #1 on there as long as The India Song is still on it and Radio City is extraordinary from first cut to last. 

Actually, if this was a real thing and 10 albums was the list for the rest of my life it would probably be 10 live albums. Something like:

Springsteen Live at Hammersmith Odeon

Jeff Buckley- Live at Sine’- the box set

ABB At Fillmore East

The Who- Live at Leeds

Johnny Cash Live At Folsom Prison

The Band- Rock of Ages

The Ramones- It’s Alive

Magnolia Electric Company- Trials and Errors

Couple of others. Maybe Aretha At Fillmore West. Really like the Thin Lizzy live album a lot. Would have to chew on the last couple a little bit. Probably missing an obvious one or 2. 

[OliviaPope40]

10 hours ago, HoosierReb01 said:

I tend to do a lot of greatest hits albums but I'll give this a shot.

Numbered but also not ranked or ordered.

 

1. Live 2 Five - Nitty Gritty Dirt Band

2. For The Record - Alabama

3. Confederate Railroad - Greatest Hits

4. Ellis Island - The Irish Tenors

5. Their Greatest Hits - The Eagles

6. Stars: The Best of 1992-2002 - The Cranberries

7. The Three Tenors in Concert 1994 - Carreras, Pavarotti and Domingo

8. Les Misérables: The Dream Cast in Concert

9. Greatest Hits(All 3) - The Oak Ridge Boys

10. Chronicle: The 20 Greatest Hits - CCR

You're speaking my language on number 7. I love opera music think I'm the only one in the family other my mom's aunt who has an appreciation for it.

[HoosierReb01]

2 hours ago, OliviaPope40 said:

You're speaking my language on number 7. I love opera music think I'm the only one in the family other my mom's aunt who has an appreciation for it.

I tend to move from one style of music to another with a lot of weird mixes. I can't say I love opera, but I have a great appreciation for the vocal talents there. I can pop up the video of Pavarotti singing Nessun Dorma in Dodger Stadium and just watch it repeatedly. But I might be listening to Willie, Motown, R&B, bluegrass or just about anything else a hour later. Have a ton of opera records left to us by my uncle. He was a professional singer and loved opera.

[Stuhoo]

3 hours ago, OliviaPope40 said:

You're speaking my language on number 7. I love opera music think I'm the only one in the family other my mom's aunt who has an appreciation for it.

The classical voice GOATs for me?

Male: Jussi Bjorling. Wow; just wow.

Female: Maria Callas. That girl from Brooklyn, before her instrument faded, is the single greatest female singing voice I've ever heard.

[jermhoosierfan]

Shinedown - Amaryllis

Metallica - S&M

Van Halen -  Live: Right Here, Right Now

The Offspring - Greatest Hits

Sixx: A.M. - Modern Vintage

Motley Crue - Decade of Decadence 

Linkin Park - Hybrid Theory

Foo Fighters - The Colour and the Shape

Def Leppard - Hysteria

AC/DC - Back in Black

You could just give me Metallica and Van Halen, and I would be pretty happy.

[WayneFleekHoosier]

For me, stranded island, greatest hits albums give you a huge variety of hits and long albums. Hard not to pick Greatest hits albums although I love the art of other albums more. With that thought in mind. 
 

1. Van Morrison: Best of

2. Michael Jackson: Number one’s

3. Bob Marley: Legend

4. Beatles: 1

5. Al Green: Greatest Hits

6. Bob Dylan: the essential

7. Red Hot Chili Pepper: Stadium arcadium

8. Chance the Rapper: Acid Rap

9. 2Pac-Greatest Hits

10. Queen- Greatest Hits

My 10 best albums list would look nothing like this but I’d want a variety, and quantity of song. This would give me that. 
 

I feel like I’m missing a Kings of Leon, Dave Matthews, Bob Schneider type of music that I’d miss. Hard to pick a single album even if they are my favorites. 

[RaceToTheTop]

Story of the Clash, Volume 1 -- The Clash

The Moon and Anartica -- Modest Mouse

Good News for People Who Love Band News -- Modest Mouse

Everything Went Numb -- Streetlight Manifesto

Don't Know How to Party -- MIghty Mighty Bosstones

Operation Mind Crime -- Queensryche

Angel Dust -- Faith No More

Live at Budokan -- Cheap Trick

Queen (unnamed first album) -- Queen

 

The 10th depends on the day.  Maybe something by Interpol.

[Stuhoo]

51 minutes ago, RaceToTheTop said:

Story of the Clash, Volume 1 -- The Clash

The Moon and Anartica -- Modest Mouse

Good News for People Who Love Band News -- Modest Mouse

Everything Went Numb -- Streetlight Manifesto

Don't Know How to Party -- MIghty Mighty Bosstones

Operation Mind Crime -- Queensryche

Angel Dust -- Faith No More

Live at Budokan -- Cheap Trick

Queen (unnamed first album) -- Queen

 

The 10th depends on the day.  Maybe something by Interpol.

Are you a Boston guy? The Bosstones are super fun, but they don't show up on many all-time lists outside of the 128 belt.

[Home Jersey]

Deja Vu - Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young

No More Tears - Ozzy Osbourne

K.I.D.S - Mac Miller (pure nostalgia for me) 

Toys in the attic - Aerosmith

Home - Billy Strings

Highway Prayers - Billy Strings

The Police (2006 compilation album)

Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band - The Beatles

Bad - Michael Jackson 

Thriller - Michael Jackson

Bonus pick: Swimming - Mac Miller (won't be everybody's cup of tea) 

[RaceToTheTop]

11 minutes ago, Stuhoo said:

Are you a Boston guy? The Bosstones are super fun, but they don't show up on many all-time lists outside of the 128 bely.

Not a Boston guy.  Fan of ska and Bosstones are essential.

[HoosierReb01]

I will be having to give some of these on your lists a listen too. Some in here I've never heard of.

[OliviaPope40]

On 7/24/2026 at 8:02 AM, HoosierReb01 said:

I tend to move from one style of music to another with a lot of weird mixes. I can't say I love opera, but I have a great appreciation for the vocal talents there. I can pop up the video of Pavarotti singing Nessun Dorma in Dodger Stadium and just watch it repeatedly. But I might be listening to Willie, Motown, R&B, bluegrass or just about anything else a hour later. Have a ton of opera records left to us by my uncle. He was a professional singer and loved opera.

My favorite of Pavarotti.  

[HoosierReb01]

1 hour ago, OliviaPope40 said:

My favorite of Pavarotti.  

And without a doubt I can listen to that over and over again.

[OliviaPope40]

26 minutes ago, HoosierReb01 said:

And without a doubt I can listen to that over and over again.

There is one old CD I could put on repeat and not get tired of it.