10 Albums That Defined Rock And Roll

By the mid '80s, we had gotten a pretty good idea of what the rock genius was supposed to sound like. Given that everyone from the Stones to Van Halen were making waves around that time, people had gotten used to a fun loving attitude and music that stuck to your traditional bluesy structure without drifting into the unholy world of pop or soul. Then one purple individual emerged from the shadows and made everyone rethink the concept of what rock was altogether.

While Purple Rain may not be considered a true rock album from front to back by some rock fans, the ethos behind Prince's masterpiece has all the building blocks of rock already in it. From the opening firecracker Let's Go Crazy, there are no brakes in sight on this record, with Prince proving he's a genius at every turn. Just when you think you'll settle into the groove of something like The Beautiful Ones, When Doves Cry comes on with its amazing guitar opening and no bass line to tie the whole thing together.

And when you eventually hit the closing title track, Prince writes the ultimate power ballad that bands like Motley Crue would kill to say they had written. This might not be the first thing you think of when you hear the words rock and roll, but it is brash, abrasive, and uncompromising in what it does. And isn't that what rock's all about?