3 Legendary Rock Albums That Were Almost Never Released

Sometimes people get cold feet. Yes, sometimes even your favorite songwriter experiences it. They look at their new work, and they think it all sounds worthless, that no one could ever find value in it. They can’t help but want to walk away from it entirely.

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Here below, we wanted to highlight three times when that nearly happened. We wanted to explore three incredible rock albums that were nearly lost to history thanks to cold feet. Indeed, these are three legendary rock albums that were almost never released.

‘OK Computer’ by Radiohead (1997)

Radiohead always seemed to be in crisis. The band’s genius lead singer, Thom Yorke, was often resisting his fame and commercial success, and at the same time, fighting with those around him about getting his authentic sounds out in the world. When it came to OK Computer, Radiohead’s label worried the album lacked singles and sounded too inaccessible. But little did they know that the album’s themes of alienation and technology were exactly what drew fans to it. It was good that Yorke fought for what he believed in. It’s just too bad he always seemed to have to be in conflict.

‘Nebraska’ by Bruce Springsteen (1982)

Being an artist is difficult for many reasons, but perhaps the No. 1 reason is that you can never quite get what’s in your head out and on the page. When Bruce Springsteen originally wrote the songs for his 1982 LP, Nebraska, he recorded stripped-down acoustic demos. His intention was to later record the tracks with the E Street Band. But something about those cassette recordings was eerie and emotionally real. Studio cuts would only seem too polished. So, Springsteen pushed to release Nebraska in its stripped-down format. The record label pushed back—they thought it was too risky. But Springsteen wasn’t going to do it any other way. Eventually, he won out. And Nebraska has maintained a legendary status because of its rawness.

‘Rumors’ by Fleetwood Mac (1977)

When it comes to the history of classic rock, few albums can boast such tumultuous origin stories as the 1977 LP, Rumors, by Fleetwood Mac. Not only was the album a sonic work of entertainment. But it was also a veritable soap opera with many twists and turns. Emotionally, the band was collapsing in on itself. Among the members, there were divorces, romantic affairs, drug abuse, and constant fighting. Somehow, though, they were able to make it work professionally. While everything seemed to teeter on a razor’s edge, including the LP itself, the dysfunction ultimately seemed to fuel one of the greatest records of all time.

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