Eponymous albums have fallen out of style in recent years, but you really can’t beat these classics. Take a look at five of our top picks for the best self-titled rock albums of all time!
1. ‘Fleetwood Mac’
Fleetwood Mac’s eponymous album doesn’t get as much love as Rumours, but it’s still an excellent record. This 1975 folk-rock classic (not to be confused with the band’s debut album, commonly known as Peter Green’s Fleetwood Mac) features the hit “Rhiannon” as well as a number of other underrated tracks. This album was truly Fleetwood Mac’s beginning of a stellar career.
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2. ‘The Clash’
Few albums define punk rock like The Clash’s debut 1977 album. There isn’t an album quite like it, even through the various iterations and revivals of punk music through the years. It’s surprisingly hopeful but undeniably angsty. Virtually every young working-class teen in late 1970s England felt seen for the first time after listening to this album. “White Riot” and “Janie Jones” are classics.
3. ‘The Beatles’
What kind of list of the best self-titled rock albums of all time would this be without mentioning The Beatles’ self-titled 1968 album? Commonly known as the White Album, this release was a big deal for the Fab Four. They had already quit touring by the time this record was released, and some detractors weren’t sure if they still had it in ‘em. Each member had more room to contribute their own songs, and the whole of the band returned to their roots and managed to pull out something new.
4. ‘Led Zeppelin’
Led Zeppelin’s highly-anticipated debut in 1969 ruffled a few feathers, but it’s considered legendary today. Technically, it’s one of four self-titled albums; but this was the one that started it all. The release of Led Zeppelin changed the course of rock history and paved the way for heavy metal to do its thing in the 1970s.
5. ‘Black Sabbath’
Black Sabbath’s 1970 eponymous album is one of the best of the bunch when it comes to the best self-titled rock albums of all time. It was the English heavy metal band’s debut, and it’s still a classic among hard rock and metal fans today. The opening track of this album converted a lot of people to metal and the subsequent culture, and it’s an important part of rock history.
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