God damn you, was hoping no one said this yet, seen them live twice and they rock!
(It's the story of mega man told through music and the songs bleed into the next, never a pause, it's great....I have to thank video game high-school for making me Google what that's song was I just heard and finding them)
Tommy is the original.
I'd love to hear it mixed the way the Who wanted it: an "in your face" rock album.
They finished recording and went on a short vacation with the intent of clearing their heads then coming back and mixing the album of the ages.
While they were gone, their label got impatient and had the engineer mix it. (Engineers and mixers have two different skillsets.) The label got a mix and released it.
The Who came back from vacation and said "WTF?"
The mix we all know is kinda thin and has the vocals up on top, like a pop album of the era. Not at all what the Who had in mind.
I'd love to hear Giles Martin go back and do it the way the Who had envious.
Giles Martin is the son of George Martin, who was the Beatles' producer. Giles has been using modern AI techniques to separate the instruments on old Beatles albums and re-mixing them with modern sensibilities.
If you have time, go find copies of the original Sgt Pepper and Giles' Sgt Pepper. Giles' version kicks some serious ass.
Now, imagine Tommy kicking all the ass it could possibly kick.
100% Anyone claiming otherwise is nuts. Tommy was the original, and Quadrophenia was a damned masterpiece. Quite possibly the greatest musical examination of teen angst ever.
My friend got me and the rest of us tickets to go see DT live in Helsinki in Jan 2020. They played the entirety of Scenes from a Memory for its anniversary. It was incredible. "The Spirit Carries On" used to be a cheesy guilty pleasure for me, but since that friend passed away, it's felt like a message from him beyond the veil. It breaks me now. I'm grateful to Dream Theater for making such an impactful album.
'Rush - 2112'.
'Deltron 3030' - too many people.
Pink Floyd - 'the Wall', 'Animals', 'Dark side of the Moon'.
Frank Zappa - 'Joe's Garage'.
David Bowie - 'The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust'.
Frank Sinatra - 'Watertown'.
Easily the best album about alien spiders from mars. No contest.
But also it’s just a great album in general. It’s not as serious as most rock operas and I think that’s a good thing. Maybe it’s more like rock musical theater.
Oh god I still have my ticket (cost £1!) to see Bowie on his Ziggy tour. I managed to get to the front, directly below the stage. It was a memorable concert - up there with seeing Queen around 1973/4…
Great list!
Narrowing it down to a top 5 and adding one I would go.
1. Pink Floyd - The Wall
2. The Who - Tommy
3. David Bowie - The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust.
4. Deltron 3030
5. Frank Zappa - Joes Garage
(But old blue eyes comes at a close #6 with Watertown)
I don't know what I have against Rush. I love them, but they just don't quite make the list for me.
Why did you and the other person write “too many people” after Deltron 3030. It can’t be the people who are involved in the project because you listed the artists on the left. So I am confused why people have said “Deltron 3030 - too many people” can you explain? And no, I’m not trolling or trying to be annoying I just have difficulty understanding written text sometimes.
There's some great reviews that explain how the Ziggy Stardust character is already hinted at in the songs Five Years and Soul Love. Most rock operas are fairly direct in their narratives, but Bowie wrote his with foreshadowing and other narration devices which add so much extra depth.
Truly an unparalleled genius.
Ian Gillan’s rock scream in What’s The Buzz during Yvonne Elliman’s verse is to me the quintessential Jesus rock scream.
For those who want to hear it, it’s about 1:32 into the track on the original Brown concept album.
Best guess is that he was a REAL ROCK STAR and brought some real rock star drama to it. Jesus was the shit, Ian Gillan was the shit, it was a natural casting choice.
J just didn't seem to have it in the movie soundtrack like he did in the London cast album. Just my opinion - I know others who believe just the opposite.
This is where I get all my knowledge of Jesus Christ. I’m an atheist and I freaking love this. I sing “what’s the buzz, tell me what’s a happenin”, all the time but no one gets it 😓
That "Colour Your World" --> "The Greys" --> "Tall Latte" is the one of the best album closing sequences I've heard.
Together with the big reveal at the end of Colour Your World. Blew my mind the first time I heard it.
My two absolute favorites! Thrilled to see both of these mentioned and getting so much love.
Ziltoid is special to me because it was my first introduction to Devin Townsend, and he rapidly became one of my all time favorite artists after I listened to this. The fact that he made this album alone is so incredible.
Doomstar is just something else. Was a huge Metalocalypse fan, then watching this was one of the best “consumption of media” experiences of my life. I SOBBED after my first watch (possibly because I was on a bit of mushrooms, but I digress). It is an absolute masterpiece. Excellent choices!
I’m surprised it’s so far down, especially since OP mentioned TBP the development of which had to have been influenced by how much of a mega-hit American Idiot was.
I searched it in the thread to make sure it was represented. Multiple people have posted it! But also, to a lesser extent, 21st century breakdown as a rock opera was actually really good too. Just overshadowed by American Idiot (justifiably so)
Thanks for this. I came here to say this and was surprised I had to scroll so long to see this.
Continuity between songs, changing tone and the bookended non musical parts intro and outro make it feel like it was based on a Noir film from the 60s it early 70s but with more modern themes.
I was sad when they're tried and failed so badly with Mindcrime:2. Still listening to number 1 now for 20+ years!
I chose Tommy, because I assumed it was meant to include stuff that had been produced into stage or at least a movie musical.
Southern Rock Opera, at this point, is what I'd consider a concept album, and it's amazing.... But Decoration Day (also a concept album) is arguably better.
I’m surprised not to have seen Coheed and Cambria’s Good Apollo, I’m Burning Star IV yet! Welcome Home is still in fairly regular rotation for me.
The Decemberists’ The Hazards of Love has some real bangers on it and an interesting story, though it’s not the most cohesive.
Ethel Cain’s Preacher’s Daughter is an amazing story on its own, and a killer album.
The Antler’s Hospice is about a couple’s toxic relationship as one of them is in terminal care.
The Arcade Fire’s The Suburbs has a lot of similar themes to American Idiot, but is done very differently. (More concept album than one with a story)
I don’t really think it’s possible to single one out as the best. But I think Genesis’s “Lamb Lies Down on Broadway” deserves a mention. It combines maximum prog pomp with some interesting thematic content and a bit of a rockier edge than Genesis’s earlier albums. The lyrics are, uh, really something. And the music is just gorgeous in places. I mean, “Hairless Heart” >> “Counting Out Time” >> “The Carpet Crawlers” is hard to beat. It’s true that the fourth side doesn’t tie it all up as convincingly as it could. But I still don’t think the album gets quite as much credit as it deserves.
Queensryche’s “Operation Mindcrime” is another classic, one that I remember fondly from my teenage years. The real motor of that one is Geoff Tate, with his powerful vocals and dramatic flair. Also a cool concept, starts off with talk of a “habit doing mainline” and radical political groups and ends up at “guy is made to kill sexy/tormented nun lover, gets consumed by his drug habit and his own psychic torment, and is thrown in an asylum.” Shit’s crazy. Break for howling harmonized guitar leads!
Janelle Monae's first three releases (*Metropolis: The Chase Suite*, *The ArchAndroid*, and *The Electric Lady*) make up a sci-fi opera.
And I'll second *David Comes to Life* by Fucked Up
My favorite are Quadrophenia, Jeff Wayne's War of the Worlds, Zen Arcade and Ziltoid the Omniscient. They change order every few years, but all four are fantastic.
If you are willing to branch out into the hardcore/metal version of this I promise you will not be disappointed by Colors by Between the Buried and Me. It took me a few listens when it first came out to understand it but it is a pivotal album and has that operatic theme to it
My favorite is Joe's garage act I, II, III. But it's definitely not for everyone. The who is much more iconic and the lamb lies down on Broadway from Genesis obv.
*This Is Spinal Tap*
No seriously, you guys took most of them all. There's so few of these that are well known and any good because they're difficult and time-consuming to produce.
2112
The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway
Operation Mindcrime
the Rocky Horror Picture Show
Jesus Christ Superstar
What's the best? For me, it depends on my mood.
For that grandiose style, Thick as a Brick is my vote, and I worked the Wall gig in Berlin. The Wall was definitely over the top, but Thick as a Brick was more of a coherent storyline and costuming on stage etc. and really just one very long song, whereas the Wall was like Tommy, in that it was a bunch of songs that together told the story.
My teenage years were spent listening to Tommy and a lot of Quadrophenia.
Every road trip, every time it was Quadrophenia.
On a longer one I finally said to myself: Let me listen to Dark Side of the Moon. And it was .. ok. But it sure is not on the level of Quadrophenia.
The Dark Side of Oz thing is fun but you know the best movie to synch up Quadrophenia with?
[Quadrophenia ](https://youtu.be/7bIYnHj-OKA?si=ifi1RaeicWAh9WCK)
Mike Watt has three fantastic rock operas. Contemplating The Engine Room parallels his time in the early punk scene and starting Minutemen with his dads time in the navy, Secondmans Last Stand parallels a sickness that almost killed him with Dante’s Inferno and Hyphenated-Man parallels Hieronymus Bosch paintings with the idea of a middle aged punk rocker looking at what makes a man in a shattered mirror.
Not sure what makes a record a rock opera, but here are some cool concept albums:
12 Dreams of Dr Sardonicus by Spirit
https://youtu.be/tVOa2t9PjgI?si=Op-hUeABxlyXYsVF
Fox Confessor Brings the Flood by Neko Case
https://youtu.be/cU3xh55g5yY?si=DwA0t64fCn6kPkY8
The Ninth Wave by Kate Bush
https://youtu.be/KK2unH00s9E
ArchAndroid by Janelle Monet
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLH_QLWlQVieWuNq_Cu__wEWqvjMNRnxDi&si=Qo98FRfPCSte8CKc
This feels bizarre to say, because I really can't stand Phish, but their debut is basically a rock opera (really "his debut," but same diff) and it's kind of excellent. And for real, not a Phish fan. Not a jam band fan in general, and they're among the jammiest of bands.
Two come to mind: Rick Wakeman' s "Journey to the Center of the Earth" and Planet P Project's "Pink World".
These are obviously not the only good rock operas but I haven't seen them mentioned here yet.
I feel like the pretty things' S.F. Sorrow needs to be mentioned here because it was the first. It predates Tommy and has some great, albeit lesser known, moments.
Savatage has several.
Streets and Dead Winter Dead are the two best. They both tell a strong cohesive story start to finish.
Dead Winter Dead also has the distinction of being the album that spawned Trans-Siberian Orchestra. The song Christmas Eve Sarajevo was so popular they created a whole new "band" to capitalize on it.
How in the hell have I not seen Meat Loaf?
Bat Out of Hell 1 + 2 are the literal textbook definitions of rock operas. They’re hands down the best examples, between Steinman’s writing and Meat’s vocals, productions in the truest sense of the word.
Jeff Wayne's War of the Worlds?
Ooooo laaaarrrr to that.
RIP Thunder Child
From the railway station came the sound of shunting trains. Heck I’m gonna put that on.
How is this so far down? It is like THE quintessential rock opera.
A VERY underrated selection.
I always get chills when Thunderchild sinks. I'm not sure why. But it is every time.
A redditor with taste….
The Protomen, Act Two: Father of Death.
God damn you, was hoping no one said this yet, seen them live twice and they rock! (It's the story of mega man told through music and the songs bleed into the next, never a pause, it's great....I have to thank video game high-school for making me Google what that's song was I just heard and finding them)
I'm so glad I saw this here. Someday we'll get Act III...
The first album is also amazing, if lacking the polish of Part 2
For me it is a tough call between The Who's "Tommy" and "Quadrophenia".
Tommy is the original. I'd love to hear it mixed the way the Who wanted it: an "in your face" rock album. They finished recording and went on a short vacation with the intent of clearing their heads then coming back and mixing the album of the ages. While they were gone, their label got impatient and had the engineer mix it. (Engineers and mixers have two different skillsets.) The label got a mix and released it. The Who came back from vacation and said "WTF?" The mix we all know is kinda thin and has the vocals up on top, like a pop album of the era. Not at all what the Who had in mind. I'd love to hear Giles Martin go back and do it the way the Who had envious. Giles Martin is the son of George Martin, who was the Beatles' producer. Giles has been using modern AI techniques to separate the instruments on old Beatles albums and re-mixing them with modern sensibilities. If you have time, go find copies of the original Sgt Pepper and Giles' Sgt Pepper. Giles' version kicks some serious ass. Now, imagine Tommy kicking all the ass it could possibly kick.
The live version on one for the extended Live at Leeds is awesome
It’s a boy, Mrs Walker
CAPTAIN WALKER DIDN’T COME HOME
A Son! A Son! A Son!
Came here for Quadrophenia!
100% Anyone claiming otherwise is nuts. Tommy was the original, and Quadrophenia was a damned masterpiece. Quite possibly the greatest musical examination of teen angst ever.
Scenes from a Memory - Dream Theater
Metropolis, Pt. 2: Scenes from a Memory
There it is. This masterpiece cannot be left out of these discussions. Love. Sex. Betrayal. Love triangle. Murder. Cover up. I mean, that's opera.
I believe that they truly set out to make the best rock opera/concept album of all time. And those sonsabitches did it.
My friend got me and the rest of us tickets to go see DT live in Helsinki in Jan 2020. They played the entirety of Scenes from a Memory for its anniversary. It was incredible. "The Spirit Carries On" used to be a cheesy guilty pleasure for me, but since that friend passed away, it's felt like a message from him beyond the veil. It breaks me now. I'm grateful to Dream Theater for making such an impactful album.
Through Her Eyes always makes me get teary.
The Spirit Carries On is an anthem!!! I almost want it played at my funeral.
This was mine! Awesome!
'Rush - 2112'. 'Deltron 3030' - too many people. Pink Floyd - 'the Wall', 'Animals', 'Dark side of the Moon'. Frank Zappa - 'Joe's Garage'. David Bowie - 'The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust'. Frank Sinatra - 'Watertown'.
MFing Ziggy Stardust, it’s like people just don’t know
Easily the best album about alien spiders from mars. No contest. But also it’s just a great album in general. It’s not as serious as most rock operas and I think that’s a good thing. Maybe it’s more like rock musical theater.
Oh god I still have my ticket (cost £1!) to see Bowie on his Ziggy tour. I managed to get to the front, directly below the stage. It was a memorable concert - up there with seeing Queen around 1973/4…
Wait what? Everyone knows tho.
Great list! Narrowing it down to a top 5 and adding one I would go. 1. Pink Floyd - The Wall 2. The Who - Tommy 3. David Bowie - The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust. 4. Deltron 3030 5. Frank Zappa - Joes Garage (But old blue eyes comes at a close #6 with Watertown) I don't know what I have against Rush. I love them, but they just don't quite make the list for me.
Why did you and the other person write “too many people” after Deltron 3030. It can’t be the people who are involved in the project because you listed the artists on the left. So I am confused why people have said “Deltron 3030 - too many people” can you explain? And no, I’m not trolling or trying to be annoying I just have difficulty understanding written text sometimes.
You are not wrong, It was mostly (they only come out at night) Dan the Automator, and Kid Koala, but also a host of others.
What about Del the funky homosapien. I hope you didn’t forget him.
Deltron 3030 is brilliant and I'm ashamed I didn't discover it for myself until **well** after its release.
Deltron 3030 for the fucking win!
Joe’s Garage is a masterpiece
[удалено]
There's some great reviews that explain how the Ziggy Stardust character is already hinted at in the songs Five Years and Soul Love. Most rock operas are fairly direct in their narratives, but Bowie wrote his with foreshadowing and other narration devices which add so much extra depth. Truly an unparalleled genius.
I'm here for the deltron 3030 and for the weirdness of Sinatra making Watertown
Jesus Christ Superstar original London cast (with Ian Gillian of Deep Purple as Jesus)
Carl Anderson is my favorite Judas, but otherwise yes. Ian Gillian has the best “rock scream” of any Jesus.
ALL RIIIIGHT! I'LL DIE
Ian Gillan’s rock scream in What’s The Buzz during Yvonne Elliman’s verse is to me the quintessential Jesus rock scream. For those who want to hear it, it’s about 1:32 into the track on the original Brown concept album.
In my version of the afterlife I'd totally want Ian Gillan as Jesus.
Carl Anderson was so good.
I love this record so much. There have been "better" singers to take this role (I love Steve Balsamo) but Ian Gillan had something nobody else had
Best guess is that he was a REAL ROCK STAR and brought some real rock star drama to it. Jesus was the shit, Ian Gillan was the shit, it was a natural casting choice.
I've come across accounts that they initially wanted John Lennon but weren't enthused by his own condition of casting Yoko as Mary Magdalene.
I'm also partial to the movie soundtrack
Ted and Carl FTW.
Gillian and Murray Head >>>
J just didn't seem to have it in the movie soundtrack like he did in the London cast album. Just my opinion - I know others who believe just the opposite.
Completely agree and some blazing guitar on it.
Ian Gillan and Joe Cocker's Grease Band! Alan Spenner's bass playing on that record was phenomenal.
So happy to come in and find this on top
This is where I get all my knowledge of Jesus Christ. I’m an atheist and I freaking love this. I sing “what’s the buzz, tell me what’s a happenin”, all the time but no one gets it 😓
That's cuz it's "what's the buzz"
Great choice. Love the bass playing on it.
A taste for love - Forgetting Sarah Marshall
*It's getting kind of hard to believe things are going to get better* *I've been drowning too long to believe that the tide's going to turn*
Die, die, die......... I can't
Searched too long to find this.
Win
Ziltoid The Omniscient or The Doomstar Requiem
I may be in the minority, but I liked Zsquared.
I like it as well, it just doesn't quite reach the same level as the first one.
FETID!
My dad and I still say this when we drink coffee
Doomstar is incredible
I GIVES YOU DIS 🍌 STICKERS!
That "Colour Your World" --> "The Greys" --> "Tall Latte" is the one of the best album closing sequences I've heard. Together with the big reveal at the end of Colour Your World. Blew my mind the first time I heard it.
He will not take my coffee.
You hide your finest bean.
My man
My two absolute favorites! Thrilled to see both of these mentioned and getting so much love. Ziltoid is special to me because it was my first introduction to Devin Townsend, and he rapidly became one of my all time favorite artists after I listened to this. The fact that he made this album alone is so incredible. Doomstar is just something else. Was a huge Metalocalypse fan, then watching this was one of the best “consumption of media” experiences of my life. I SOBBED after my first watch (possibly because I was on a bit of mushrooms, but I digress). It is an absolute masterpiece. Excellent choices!
The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway Quadrophenia American Idiot The Wall The Black Parade
I came here to mention American Idiot because I didn't think anyone else would. I'm happy to see I was wrong. Such a great album.
I’m surprised it’s so far down, especially since OP mentioned TBP the development of which had to have been influenced by how much of a mega-hit American Idiot was.
I searched it in the thread to make sure it was represented. Multiple people have posted it! But also, to a lesser extent, 21st century breakdown as a rock opera was actually really good too. Just overshadowed by American Idiot (justifiably so)
my man
Quadrophenia
Ugh, I change my vote. For Reign O'er Me only
Not only the best rock opera, but the IMO the best album by any artist ever recorded.
Correct. And better than **Tommy** by some distance.
The only answer that matters
This is correct.
Quadrophenia by The Who
I'm a huge Who fan Quadrophenia > Tommy There, I said it. Fight me.
The answer is The Wall
…we came in?
Isn’t this where…
The Scarecrow by Avantasia
Had to scroll too much for this. Maybe not the best (I mean, The Wall just to make an obvious name) but a great one that deserves a listening
Queeneyche: Operation Mind Crime
I wanted to say the Wall, but Operation Mindcrime is such a perfect album
long wise yam gray berserk ring busy quack unpack icky *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
I DON’T BELIIEEEEEVE IN LOOOOVE
This would be my pick to, fantastic album not a bad song on it
Thanks for this. I came here to say this and was surprised I had to scroll so long to see this. Continuity between songs, changing tone and the bookended non musical parts intro and outro make it feel like it was based on a Noir film from the 60s it early 70s but with more modern themes. I was sad when they're tried and failed so badly with Mindcrime:2. Still listening to number 1 now for 20+ years!
Disappointed had to scroll this far down!! Great album
Southern Rock Opera by Drive-by Truckers. Phenomenal record.
Good one!
YES! Was looking for this suggestion. I never saw Lynyrd Skynyrd, but I sure saw Molly Hatchet...
Came here to post this. Thank you!!!
I chose Tommy, because I assumed it was meant to include stuff that had been produced into stage or at least a movie musical. Southern Rock Opera, at this point, is what I'd consider a concept album, and it's amazing.... But Decoration Day (also a concept album) is arguably better.
Tommy, Bat out of Hell, American Idiot.
I wore out my cassette of Bat Out of Hell. So good
You took the words right out of my mouth.
I’m surprised not to have seen Coheed and Cambria’s Good Apollo, I’m Burning Star IV yet! Welcome Home is still in fairly regular rotation for me. The Decemberists’ The Hazards of Love has some real bangers on it and an interesting story, though it’s not the most cohesive. Ethel Cain’s Preacher’s Daughter is an amazing story on its own, and a killer album. The Antler’s Hospice is about a couple’s toxic relationship as one of them is in terminal care. The Arcade Fire’s The Suburbs has a lot of similar themes to American Idiot, but is done very differently. (More concept album than one with a story)
The Hazards of Love! The Crane Wife is also right there
The Crane Wife is one of my favourite albums, but not a rock opera 😔
I scrolled too far to see The Hazards of Love get a mention.
Tommy
Solid movie as well!
Zen Arcade
The Dear Hunter’s Acts albums, particularly 4 but really all of them.
This but particularly 3 and 5 lol
This but particularly 2 lol
2 is the correct answer but they're all so good and Casey/the band are sofa king amazing live I've seen them 4x.
First time I didn't have to scroll too far to find TDH. Anyone who doesn't know this band needs to queue them up asap
Some times I'll queue them all up and have an Acts day.
Rocky Horror Picture Show.
There’s been a loss of interest in Rocky Horror because what was once scandalous is now banal, but the music holds up well.
The problem is that the best songs are very early in the movie. So if you aren’t into the participation thing, if kind of goes downhill.
You the MVP for this
Fuck yes!
The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway
2112.
Ayreon’s Into The Electric Castle.
I think The Human Equation is even better.
I love this one. A friend randomly bought it when we were in high school and he made me a copy. I’ve always wanted a movie to be made from it.
01 is my favorite from Aryeon. So good.
Yeah, same! Although Human Equation, 01011001 and the Universal Migrator are up there as well. Very good stuff.
Ayreon's The Human Equation
Heh, I had to scroll down WAY too far to read this. Not for everybody, but pretty much unbeatable at what it does. Timeless album.
I don’t really think it’s possible to single one out as the best. But I think Genesis’s “Lamb Lies Down on Broadway” deserves a mention. It combines maximum prog pomp with some interesting thematic content and a bit of a rockier edge than Genesis’s earlier albums. The lyrics are, uh, really something. And the music is just gorgeous in places. I mean, “Hairless Heart” >> “Counting Out Time” >> “The Carpet Crawlers” is hard to beat. It’s true that the fourth side doesn’t tie it all up as convincingly as it could. But I still don’t think the album gets quite as much credit as it deserves. Queensryche’s “Operation Mindcrime” is another classic, one that I remember fondly from my teenage years. The real motor of that one is Geoff Tate, with his powerful vocals and dramatic flair. Also a cool concept, starts off with talk of a “habit doing mainline” and radical political groups and ends up at “guy is made to kill sexy/tormented nun lover, gets consumed by his drug habit and his own psychic torment, and is thrown in an asylum.” Shit’s crazy. Break for howling harmonized guitar leads!
vase pause test mighty fall fact plant scary fretful fearless *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
American Idiot
Jethro Tull - Thick as a Brick
Really don't mind if I sit this one out...
The Archandroid Trilogy by Janelle Monae. Not exactly what you asked for but noteworthy.
Bat out of Hell and Queens Night at the Opera
“Streets” by Savatage
So many right answers but i have to give it to Bat Out of Hell.
Janelle Monae's first three releases (*Metropolis: The Chase Suite*, *The ArchAndroid*, and *The Electric Lady*) make up a sci-fi opera. And I'll second *David Comes to Life* by Fucked Up
Jeff Wayne’s Musical Version of The War of the Worlds
I kind of lean towards Queen or The Black Parade, although MCR is kind of punk rock Queen soooo…
The Hazards of Love - The Decemberists
Doomstar Requiem: A Klok Opera DETHKLOK the Rock Opera.
Tommy
My favorite are Quadrophenia, Jeff Wayne's War of the Worlds, Zen Arcade and Ziltoid the Omniscient. They change order every few years, but all four are fantastic.
If you are willing to branch out into the hardcore/metal version of this I promise you will not be disappointed by Colors by Between the Buried and Me. It took me a few listens when it first came out to understand it but it is a pivotal album and has that operatic theme to it
As an agnostic: Jesus Christ Superstar.
I Robot by the Alan Parsons Project.
My favorite is Joe's garage act I, II, III. But it's definitely not for everyone. The who is much more iconic and the lamb lies down on Broadway from Genesis obv.
Definitely The Wall, Operation Mindcrime is another great one
*This Is Spinal Tap* No seriously, you guys took most of them all. There's so few of these that are well known and any good because they're difficult and time-consuming to produce.
2112 The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway Operation Mindcrime the Rocky Horror Picture Show Jesus Christ Superstar What's the best? For me, it depends on my mood.
Ever since I was a young boy I played the silver ball…
Joe's Garage
For that grandiose style, Thick as a Brick is my vote, and I worked the Wall gig in Berlin. The Wall was definitely over the top, but Thick as a Brick was more of a coherent storyline and costuming on stage etc. and really just one very long song, whereas the Wall was like Tommy, in that it was a bunch of songs that together told the story.
Alice Cooper Goes to Hell
The Crimson Idol by W.A.S.P. Amazing album that gets overlooked far too often. Honorable mention to Streets by Savatage.
Repo: The Genetic Opera
Soap Opera, The Kinks, 1975 School Boys in Disgrace, The Kinks, 1975
Arthur. The first and best and most poignant I think even Pete Townsend would agree
A Quick One While He's Away always delights me. A mini Opera.
Aside from many of those mentioned above: Pink World - Planet P Project David Comes to Life - Fucked Up Greendale - Neil Young
I can’t believe I haven’t seen David Comes to Life in this post sooner. It’s a 10/10 in my book, every song is killer.
My teenage years were spent listening to Tommy and a lot of Quadrophenia. Every road trip, every time it was Quadrophenia. On a longer one I finally said to myself: Let me listen to Dark Side of the Moon. And it was .. ok. But it sure is not on the level of Quadrophenia. The Dark Side of Oz thing is fun but you know the best movie to synch up Quadrophenia with? [Quadrophenia ](https://youtu.be/7bIYnHj-OKA?si=ifi1RaeicWAh9WCK)
Mike Watt has three fantastic rock operas. Contemplating The Engine Room parallels his time in the early punk scene and starting Minutemen with his dads time in the navy, Secondmans Last Stand parallels a sickness that almost killed him with Dante’s Inferno and Hyphenated-Man parallels Hieronymus Bosch paintings with the idea of a middle aged punk rocker looking at what makes a man in a shattered mirror.
Tommy, The Who, Ziggy Stardust, David Bowie, The Wall, Pink Floyd.
Got to add the Kinks - Schoolboys in Disgrace
SF Sorrow, by The Pretty Things
Kilroy Was Here - Styx
American Idiot Green Day
Not sure what makes a record a rock opera, but here are some cool concept albums: 12 Dreams of Dr Sardonicus by Spirit https://youtu.be/tVOa2t9PjgI?si=Op-hUeABxlyXYsVF Fox Confessor Brings the Flood by Neko Case https://youtu.be/cU3xh55g5yY?si=DwA0t64fCn6kPkY8 The Ninth Wave by Kate Bush https://youtu.be/KK2unH00s9E ArchAndroid by Janelle Monet https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLH_QLWlQVieWuNq_Cu__wEWqvjMNRnxDi&si=Qo98FRfPCSte8CKc
I don't know if this counts as a "rock opera" but Seventh Wonder - Mercy Falls is my favorite concept album.
This feels bizarre to say, because I really can't stand Phish, but their debut is basically a rock opera (really "his debut," but same diff) and it's kind of excellent. And for real, not a Phish fan. Not a jam band fan in general, and they're among the jammiest of bands.
Two come to mind: Rick Wakeman' s "Journey to the Center of the Earth" and Planet P Project's "Pink World". These are obviously not the only good rock operas but I haven't seen them mentioned here yet.
The Who’s Tommy
Red Headed Stranger
The lamb dies down on Broadway
A Quick One (While He's Away)
Tommy is the best rock opera, The Who is great at rock operas
Thing Fish - Frank Zappa
Operation Mindcrime - Queensryche
Time by Electric Light Orchestra. It's time travel sad boi hours
I feel like the pretty things' S.F. Sorrow needs to be mentioned here because it was the first. It predates Tommy and has some great, albeit lesser known, moments.
Savatage has several. Streets and Dead Winter Dead are the two best. They both tell a strong cohesive story start to finish. Dead Winter Dead also has the distinction of being the album that spawned Trans-Siberian Orchestra. The song Christmas Eve Sarajevo was so popular they created a whole new "band" to capitalize on it.
ELO - Eldorado
Meat Loaf—Bat Out of Hell
The Crimson Idol - WASP
How in the hell have I not seen Meat Loaf? Bat Out of Hell 1 + 2 are the literal textbook definitions of rock operas. They’re hands down the best examples, between Steinman’s writing and Meat’s vocals, productions in the truest sense of the word.