50 Rock And Metal Albums You Need To Hear Before You Die

23. Bon Jovi - Slippery When Wet

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pRqBA3NUCE0 Despite the amount of raised eyebrows that this entry will cause, Bon Jovi's third album was an instant classic and cemented the band as force to be reckoned with in the music industry. Featuring their biggest singles, such as Living On A Prayer and You Give Love A Bad Name, this was Bon Jovi at the peak of their creative appeal, writing mainstream songs with a guitar heavy edge to them. Despite them generally falling into a pattern of naff power ballads, facelifts and middle-aged mediocrity, the sound of the young Bon Jovi is still something to behold.

22. Joe Satriani - The Extremist

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hd7QSWdymd0 Say the name "Joe Satriani" to most people and they'll instantly think of Surfing With The Alien, which is a great album but is far and away eclipsed by his 1992 effort, The Extremist. An altogether more sedate affair than his 80s output, the music on offer here is top notch in every respect, from the writing to the performance and even the production, it's all amazing. The Extremist spawned some of Satriani's best loved instrumentals, from lead single Friends to the mainstay of his touring set, Summer Song.

21. Rush - 2112

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PeFfiN-htZg In 1976, Rush released their seminal 2112 album and massively reshaped their career with an unprecedented level of success. The album consists of the 2112 Suite, a 20 minute-long science-fiction story separated into seven parts and then five conventional Rush songs, three of which were released as singles. It's worth remembering that when it was released on vinyl, the 2112 Suite took up one side of the record, with the unrelated songs taking up the B-side, in which case the format of the album makes a touch more sense. 2112 has been adored by rock and prog fans for years and frequently tops Greatest Prog Albums charts, remaining one of Rush's greatest selling albums thanks to having been certified 5x platinum.