3 of the Best Sophomore Albums From the 1960s

In a 1981 interview with Creem magazine, Elvis Costello said this: “You have 20 years to write your first album, and you have six months to write your second one.” The point is, there’s a lot of pressure and little time to write and record a sophomore album. Which makes these follow-up releases from the 1960s so impressive.

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Led Zeppelin: ‘Led Zeppelin II’ (1969)

If this list were about the greatest sophomore albums ever, Led Zeppelin II would still be included. It begins with “Whole Lotta Love”, a track that few would deny contains the greatest guitar riff of all time. But the rest of the record is stacked: “What Is And What Should Never Be”, “Heartbreaker”, and “Ramble On”. Now, look at the rest of the track listing to see the titles I left off to understand what I mean by “stacked.”

It’s hard to imagine Eddie Van Halen, Slash, Tom Morello, Chris Cornell, and Jack White becoming legends without Led Zeppelin II. And if I were in a ranking mood, Led Zeppelin’s second album would be listed first.

Bob Dylan: ‘The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan’ (1963)

Bob Dylan’s self-titled debut features mostly traditional folk songs. But Dylan wrote his own standards on its follow-up. He still borrowed old tunes, but by adding contemporary lyrics, he soon (begrudgingly) became the spokesman for his generation. “Blowin’ In The Wind”, “A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall”, and “Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right” are all anthems.

“Masters Of War” is Dylan raging, “I Shall Be Free” is Dylan laughing, and he even gets his own “blues” and “dream” on a timeless record that created a kind of cult around him. It wouldn’t be long before that cult turned on Dylan once he went electric.

The Velvet Underground: ‘White Light/White Heat’ (1968)

The Velvet Underground’s second album was its last with John Cale. This is the band post-Andy Warhol. The opening title track foreshadowed glam rock and had been a regular cover in David Bowie’s sets since 1971. Bowie’s own glam standard, “Queen B*tch”, was an ode to The Velvet Underground and set the stage for Ziggy Stardust. But White Light/White Heat inspired more than glam rock. The closing track, “Sister Ray”, provided the blueprint for The Modern Lovers’ proto-punk classic “Roadrunner”.

In those songs, you can trace a path to alternative, indie, and punk rock. Moreover, the list of groundbreaking bands influenced by Lou Reed’s seedy character sketches and the coarse experimentalism of White Light/White Heat is endless. Sonic Youth, Social Distortion, Buzzcocks, and Joy Division all owe a great debt to the Velvets’ second album.

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