10 Overrated Rock Albums Of The 80s

To a certain generation of UK bloke, this is nothing short of sacrilege. The Stone Roses’ debut is certainly a confident one, instrumental in introducing the Madchester sound that later gave way to Britpop and the indie wave of the ‘90s. To some, that’s nothing but a good thing.

To others, though, the hype is a little baffling. There are undeniably great tracks on The Stone Roses, like the foreboding “I Wanna Be Adored”, and daring closer “I Am The Resurrection”. US consumers were treated to “Elephant Stone”, easily the band’s best song, as well as the indulgent but influential “Fools Gold”.

Amid those gems, though, there’s filler aplenty. “Bye Bye Badman” is anemic and forgettable, and following up the sugary “Waterfall” with, essentially, the same song backwards, is not nearly as original or interesting as Brown et al seem to think. Even some of the big tracks are lacking - “This Is The One” and “Made Of Stone” endure simply by being quite fun to shout along to.

By no means is The Stone Roses a bad album, obviously, but its status as an all time great seems strictly nostalgia-based. You’re not in the Hacienda now, lads.