Rank Stevie's Studio Ablums!

[TrueFaith77]

How would you rank these from best to worst:

Bella Donna (1981)
The Wild Heart (1983)
Rock a Little (1985)
On the Other Side of the Mirror (1989)
Street Angel (1994)
Trouble in Shangri-La (2001)


The above is chronological. I'll have to think on this myself.

[Gypsybecca]

I'd rank them in the order you listed, just flip the last 2.

[Spoinny]

In Your Dreams (hoping!)
The Wild Heart
Bella Donna
Trouble in Shangri-La
Rock a Little
Street Angel
On the Other Side of the Mirror

[markolas]

1. Bella Donna
2. Rock a Little
3. Trouble in Shangri-La
4. The Wild Heart
5. The Other Side of the Mirror
6. Street Angel

4 & 5 could be flipped around; they're kind of a toss-up.

[Fiver]

Bella Donna
Trouble in Shangri-la
The Wild Heart
Rock a Little
Street Angel
The Other Side of the Mirror

[Jondalar]

Bella Donna
Wild Heart
Rock a Little
Trouble In Shangri
TOSOTM
Street Angel

[louielouie2000]

Bella Donna
Rock A Little
Other Side Of The Mirror
Street Angel
Trouble In Shangri La










Wild Heart (it's so bad it has to sit in a corner away from the others! :p)

[Spoinny]

Bella Donna
Rock A Little
Other Side Of The Mirror
Street Angel
Trouble In Shangri La










Wild Heart (it's so bad it has to sit in a corner away from the others! :p)

GRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :shocked::mad::lol:

[whitesoxx]

Bella Donna
Wild Heart
Trouble In Shangri-La
Rock A Little
Other Side Of The Mirror
Street Angel

[TheWILDheart]

Bella Donna
Trouble In Shangri-La
The Wild Heart
Rock A Little
Street Angel
Otherside Of The Mirror

[KarmaContestant]

These are in order of favorite-to-least-favorite, not necessarily best-to-worst:

Rock A Little
Bella Donna
Street Angel
The Wild Heart
Trouble In Shangri La
The Other Side of the Mirror

[tilthefirefades]

1. Trouble in Shangri-La
2. Street Angel
3. Bella Donna
4. Rock a Little
5. TOSOTM
6. Wild Heart

The first 3 are basically tied though.

[GoldDustBoy]

Bella Donna
Wild Heart
TISL
Rock A Little
Other Side Of The Mirror
Street Angel

And I hope that In Your Dreams will get in my top 3. I don't like Secret Love and Cheaper Than Free, but I LOVE all the clips from the sizzle reel.

[CreepingDeath]

In Your Dreams ;)
Bella Donna
The Wild Heart
Trouble in Shangri-La
Rock a Little
The Other Side of the Mirror
Street Angel

[GypsySorcerer]

1. Bella Donna
2. The Wild Heart
3. Trouble in Shangri-La
4. Rock a Little
5. The Other Side of the Mirror
6. Street Angel

Sometimes four and five are swapped.

[pattyfan]

1. Bella Donna
2. Wild Heart




big gap.......
It's hard for me to rate the other 4. For example, I only like a few of the song on Street Angel, but those few that I like I like a lot. Most of the songs on The Other Side of the Mirror I just kind of don't mind, but the bad ones aren't nearly as bad as the bad ones on Street Angel, for example. Hmm.......

3. Trouble in Shangri-la
4. Street Angel (though I dislike many of the songs on it)
5. The Other Side of the Mirror
6. Rock a Little (most of the Stevie songs that I can't listen to all the way through are on this CD).

Kevin

[TheSorcerer]

Rock a Little

Bella Donna
The Wild Heart
Trouble In Shangri-La


The Other Side of the Mirror
Street Angel

[Johnny Stew]

1. The Wild Heart
2. Rock A Little
3. Trouble In Shangri-La
4. Street Angel
5. Bella Donna
6. The Other Side Of The Mirror

[tabruns]

Nearly perfect:
1. Trouble In Shangri-La
2. Bella Donna

Very good:
3. The Other Side of the Mirror
4. Rock A Little

Good:
5. The Wild Heart

Fair:
6. Street Angel

I expect In Your Dreams will join Bella Donna and Trouble In Shangri-La.

[bluefox4000]

1.Bella Donna
2.Wild Heart
3. Trouble in Shangri-La
4. Street Angel.

The other 2 are bombs with no redeemable qualities so they don't rank. I have not played those in about 6 years. they gather dust:nod: IYD. no idea where it will rank. I shall make no call until i've absorbed the album

Mick

[Musicman408]

I feel like a week after IYD is released we should do this again.

Street Angel
TISL
OSOTM
RAL
WH
BD

I know, crazy! But as a younger fan, the lesser known stuff has always been my fave!

[WildHearted]

1. Bella Donna
2. The Wild Heart
3. Rock A Little
4. Trouble in Shangri-La
5. Street Angel
6. Other Side of the Mirror

5 & 6 are pretty much interchangeable, the important thing is that they're at the bottom.

Also, it seems bizarre to have TISL next to SA in a list... but I had to be honest and say that at this point, I'm liking RAL more than TISL. That's subject to change, as it usually does. However really I enjoy #1-4 in general and then there's a big leap down to #5-6 quality wise, in my opinion..

I'm predicting that In Your Dreams will fall in the #3 spot, under The Wild Heart, based on what we've heard. I hope I'm right and it's not any lower than that!

[ontheEdgeof17]

Rock A Little
The Wild Heart
Street Angel
Bella Donna
TISL
The Other Side of the Mirror

[Maxd9]

1. Bella Donna
2. Wild Heart
3. Rock A Little
4. The Other Side Of The Mirror
5. Trouble In Shangri-La
6. Street Angel

[mezzoforte]

It's hard judging an entire album. Rooms on Fire might be my favorite song of Stevie's solo career, but I barely listen to anything else on TOSOTM. How should that compare to TISL, from which I like most of the songs but don't love any nearly as much? Best guess:

1. Bella Donna
2. TISL
3. RAL
4. The Wild Heart
5. TOSOTM
6. Street Angel

[markolas]

My slightly altered version of The Wild Heart would push it up to the #2 or #3 spot, making it, along with Bella Donna & Rock a Little, an absolutely perfect album:

1. Wild Heart
2. If Anyone Falls
3. Gate & Garden
4. Enchanted
5. Nightbird
6. Violet & Blue
7. Stand Back
8. Garbo
9. Sable on Blond
10. Beauty & the Beast

[markolas]

I wouldn't touch Bella Donna or Rock a Little, but TOSOTM & TISL both have a couple of songs each that I just can't abide. So, I fixed them thusly:

TOSOTM:
1. Rooms on Fire
2. Long Way to Go
3. Don't Treat Me Like a Stranger
4. Ooh My Love
5. Ghosts
6. Whole Lotta Trouble
7. Fire Burning
8. Real Tears
9. Alice
10. Juliet
11. Doing the Best That I Can
12. I Still Miss Someone

TISL:
1. Trouble in Shangri-La
2. Candlebright
3. Sorcerer
4. Planets of the Universe
5. Every Day
6. Thrown Down
7. My Heart
8. It's Only Love
9. Love Changes
10. I Miss You
11. Bombay Sapphires
12. Fall from Grace
13. Love Is

It's magic!

[CreepingDeath]

My slightly altered version of The Wild Heart would push it up to the #2 or #3 spot, making it, along with Bella Donna & Rock a Little, an absolutely perfect album:

1. Wild Heart
2. If Anyone Falls
3. Gate & Garden
4. Enchanted
5. Nightbird
6. Violet & Blue
7. Stand Back
8. Garbo
9. Sable on Blond
10. Beauty & the Beast

Add All The Beautiful Worlds, and this list would be perfection.

[On Ice]

For me, my favourite I think is always going to be the first one, but hearing some of the outtakes, it would have gone to another level of greatness.

Bella Donna: Add Julia, The Dealer and Gold and Braid, keep all other tracks.

The Wild Heart: Ranks #2 only for the great vocals, has many lyrical issues.

Trouble in Shangri-La: To me, mostly a return to some solid writing sans That Made Me Stronger. Some poor vocals on the title track, but great to hear the high notes on Sorcerer and that alone makes the album as I've been longing for those notes for years.

Street Angel: I like this album and think her vocals are improved over both RAL and TOSOM. It's not near as bad as is let on in my view. Albeit a couple of not so hot songs...Street Angel, Docklands and Jane.

Rock a Little: The first time I heard this one in '85 I could have sworn I heard Rumours-type vocals, but second time I thought what the hell happened. I don't mind the 80's production, but her singing is not good on this record. Also after seeing her on this tour in Toronto, she almost lost me as a fan. Absolutely terrible concert.

The Other Side of the Mirror: Completely falls off after the wonderful Rooms on Fire. Most of the album is unlistenable to me and I haven't pulled it out for a spin in years. Strangely, the concert in Toronto on this tour was great.

In Your Dreams: So far, I love what I hear and can't wait for Moonlight to blast through my speakers.

[Macfanforever]

Belladonna is one. the rest will follow.

[Artemis]

1) Wild Heart
2) Bella Donna
3) TISL

Small gap

4) Rock A Little

Big gap

5) Street Angel

Big gap

6) The Other Side Of The Mirror

[On Ice]

Add All The Beautiful Worlds, and this list would be perfection

I agree Kimberly, that track most definitely should have been on the Wild Heart, at least lyrically it would have been the best song. Let's not forget Sleeping Angel, wow, why would she not put this gem on her own album is beyond me.

[hveasey]

1. Bella Donna
2. The Wild Heart
3. Trouble In Shangri-La
4. Rock A Little
5. The Other Side Of The Mirror
6. Street Angel

[mikephxaz]

Wild Heart
Rock ALittle
BellaDonna
Trouble in Shangrila
The Other Side of the Mirror
Street Angel

[Japhry]

1. Bella Donna
2. Trouble in Shangri-La
3. Rock a Little
4. The Other Side of The Mirror
5. The Wild Heart
6. Street Angel

[Japhry]

I wouldn't touch Bella Donna or Rock a Little, but TOSOTM & TISL both have a couple of songs each that I just can't abide. So, I fixed them thusly:

TOSOTM:
1. Rooms on Fire
2. Long Way to Go
3. Don't Treat Me Like a Stranger
4. Ooh My Love
5. Ghosts
6. Whole Lotta Trouble
7. Fire Burning
8. Real Tears
9. Alice
10. Juliet
11. Doing the Best That I Can
12. I Still Miss Someone

TISL:
1. Trouble in Shangri-La
2. Candlebright
3. Sorcerer
4. Planets of the Universe
5. Every Day
6. Thrown Down
7. My Heart
8. It's Only Love
9. Love Changes
10. I Miss You
11. Bombay Sapphires
12. Fall from Grace
13. Love Is

It's magic!

I Love your re-listing of OTOSM! It seems like so many rank it at the bottom of their favorite Stevie albums...I always wanted to see it WITHOUT "I still miss someone", "Fire Burning" and "Cry Wolf"....but I really like your replacements of material she had recorded during that time.

[jeffd8382]

This is tough... a few probably tie or change depending on my mood, but here is from most favorite to least:

1.) Rock A Little
2.) The Wild Heart
3.) The Other Side Of The Mirror
4.) Bella Donna
5.) Trouble In Shangri-La
6.) Street Angel

Some people might be appalled at my placing Bella Donna behind the likes of OSOTM, but that doesn't mean I don't still love Bella Donna. OSOTM was the first album I owned on CD, and I loved it... but I don't have the least bit of distaste for the A/C genre of that period. I also enjoy Rupert Hine's production (weird.. my ipod just started playing a Rupert Hine solo song right as I was typing this! :eek:) And even though Street Angel comes in last, I really enjoy that album.. for me, there's a lot of tracks to love on there.

[darklinensuit]

Bella Donna
Rock a Little
The Wild Heart
Trouble in Shangri-la
Street Angel
The Other Side of the Mirror

- Jake

[ryguy2010]

1. Street Angel
2. T.O.S.O.T.M
3. Rock a Little
4. Bella Donna
5. T.I.S.L

[ryguy2010]

oops. sorry forgot to put Wild heart. So must be last I guess

[daniellaaarisen]

Bella Donna
Rock A Little
Other Side Of The Mirror
Street Angel
Trouble In Shangri La










Wild Heart (it's so bad it has to sit in a corner away from the others! :p)

Trouble and Shangri-La and Wild Heart at the bottom? Who are you and why are we friends?


My list:

Bella Donna
Trouble in Shangri-La
The Wild Heart
Rock A Little
Street Angel
The Other Side of the Mirror

[windbecame]

hmmm... well i thought about this and decided to put them in the order of what i've been listening to the most to the least in the last 5 years or so....
Street Angel - oddly enough I noticed i listen to this one at least 2x a week??
TISL
The Wild Heart
Rock a Little
Bella Donna
The Other Side of the Mirror
.....even I think it's weird that I listen to Street Angel the most??? oh well, must be speaking to me...:lol:

[ryguy2010]

hmmm... well i thought about this and decided to put them in the order of what i've been listening to the most to the least in the last 5 years or so....
Street Angel - oddly enough I noticed i listen to this one at least 2x a week??
TISL
The Wild Heart
Rock a Little
Bella Donna
The Other Side of the Mirror
.....even I think it's weird that I listen to Street Angel the most??? oh well, must be speaking to me...:lol:

Definitely not weird at all. I would argue and fight tooth and nail for Street Angel. Even though It was recorded during her addiction.. (she was in her final stage) I find the album to be very sobering. her voice is so painfully good on the record and as a whole her vocals have never come out soooooooo strong. To me this is an album I believe Stevie herself will look back on and be very proud of. So raw... this album tears a piece of my heart out and reveals just enough silence that it Screams Superb!

[Zanobbi]

Wildheart
Bella Donna
TISL
Rock a little
Street Angel
TOSOTM
_______(I hope this is NOT the place for IYD)

[markolas]

I Love your re-listing of OTOSM! It seems like so many rank it at the bottom of their favorite Stevie albums...I always wanted to see it WITHOUT "I still miss someone", "Fire Burning" and "Cry Wolf"....but I really like your replacements of material she had recorded during that time.

Thanks - I'm sort of re-thinking my inclusion of Don't Treat Me Like a Stranger. After listening to it again, I'd almost rather stick Two Kinds of Love back on there.

[Dodfather]

Bella Donna
Rock A Little
Other Side Of The Mirror
Street Angel
Trouble In Shangri La










Wild Heart (it's so bad it has to sit in a corner away from the others! :p)

No No No! Dani and I will convert you to the wonders of The Wild Heart! :nod:

I'd got for

Bella Donna
The Wild Heart
Rock A Little
Trouble In Shangri-La (It was tough to put this and Rock A Little in an order!)
The Other Side Of The Mirror
Street Angel (and I do really like a lot of moments on this album, especially Kick It and Listen To The Rain, but I still think it's her weakest effort. Tracks like Unconditional Love, Destiny and Jane are just bad).

[Travis]

My slightly altered version of The Wild Heart would push it up to the #2 or #3 spot, making it, along with Bella Donna & Rock a Little, an absolutely perfect album:

1. Wild Heart
2. If Anyone Falls
3. Gate & Garden
4. Enchanted
5. Nightbird
6. Violet & Blue
7. Stand Back
8. Garbo
9. Sable on Blond
10. Beauty & the Beast

No "Nothing Ever Changes"??? That is a highlight on the album and her vocals soar on that song. I think album flows well exactly how it is, the only thing I would do (and have done for my WH playlist) is simply insert "Garbo" between "Nightbird" and "Stand Back". Back in the day, the running order was fine for the album and cassette because you had a "breather" moment while you flipped the album or cassette, but if you're listening to it straight thru; something slower needs to be after Nightbird and before Stand Back. They are similar with their drum machine sound intro but also, Stand Back is slower beat per minute wise and it does not sound good after the faster paced Nightbird (NB is 125 BPM while SB is only 115 BPM). This is the same reason why I would not put Violet and Blue (120 BPM) after NB, something much slower needs to be in-between.

[J.Miller]

The Wild Heart- The first music I purchased from anyone and that says it all.
Bella Donna- Stevie could have been in the Eagles in a pinch.
Rock A Little- At first I was like 'huh', ok now I get it.
Trouble In Shangri La- A good return. I think it could have been a little more 'muscular'.
Street Angel- There are some stinkers here ,but I like the grittiness of this record
The Other Side Of The Mirror- It drags in a few places,but it is good therapy when I'm sad.


The Wild Heart,Bella Donna,Rock A Little and The Other Side Of The Mirror are hung proudly in vinyl in the man cave on a four sided support beam.

[Travis]

Rock a Little (Stevie’s most fun and electrifying album)

The Wild Heart / The Other Side of the Mirror (tie) (both are magical to me)

Bella Donna (great, but I don’t think the running order is the best – I would change it)

Street Angel

Trouble in Shangri-La

I never thought I’d actually pick SA over TISL but I actually think SA has more stand out songs than TISL does. TISL is a very “dry sounding” album for me. Nothing on it really stands out with the exception of the extended album version of “Planets of the Universe” but, it’s not on the album. I find both TISL (the song) and Fall from Grace too “wordy” and “lengthy” for lack of better words, but SA has songs I love like “Blue Denim” and “Maybe Love …”

[markolas]

No "Nothing Ever Changes"???

I've just never liked it. That and I Will Run to You remind me of something that should've been on the soundtrack of one of the Rocky movies. Blech.

Stand Back following Nightbird is another thing that always bugged me about this album, but a slower song after Nightbird would be too much of a drag for me.

[belladonnadream]

Bella Donna
Rock A Little
Other Side Of The Mirror
Street Angel
Trouble In Shangri La










Wild Heart (it's so bad it has to sit in a corner away from the others! :p)
You're kidding right?:shocked:

[belladonnadream]

Wild Heart
Bella Donna
Trouble in Shangri La
Rock a Little
OSOTM
Street Angel

[Christopher]

Bella Donna
Trouble In Shangri~La
Rock A Little
The Wild Heart

Other Side Of The Mirror
Street Angel

This is pretty much my ranking. The last 2 are almost inter-changable depending on my mood, but OSOTM has an edge over SA due to the deeply powerful & personal lyrics. While in theory, I wanted to enjoy the straight forward stylings of SA, and at the time Stevie said she wanted to go back to the basics, back to her roots, from which you could infer she was trying to find her way back to Bella Donna. But SA is a far cry from BD:distress: For not only does it lack the Stevie mysticism and passion, but the musical arrangements are unimaginative and come up dry dry dry, which is why it falls to the bottom for me. It does contain songs I absolutely love (Greta, Blue Denim, LILAR, MLWCYM & RG), but it's also the album with the most songs that I skip, esp. Just Like A Woman, Jane & Unconditional Love. The remaining songs are ok.

My Top 4 Stevie albums are pretty firmly ensconced. All are pretty solid in their own unique ways. I expect IYD to be on the same level.:angel:

[Thrown_Down]

Well, it's hard because some are great from start to finish, whilst others are very mixed. I would have to say:

1) The Wild Heart (I only dislike Gate and Garden.)
2) Rock A Little (Imperial Hotel is awful, but I like the ragged vocals and the super 80s feel to a lot of it.)




3) Trouble In Shangri-La (I love tracks 1-5 but I despise Too Far From Texas, That Made Me Stronger and It's Only Love.)
4) The Other Side Of The Mirror (I Still Miss Someone is awful, whilst Fire Burning, Cry Wolf and Ghosts are a bit average to me.)
5) Bella Donna (Some classic stuff, but some I can't abide such as: The Highwayman, After The Glitter Fades, Kind Of Woman. Then there is Think About it, which I am not too keen on.)











6) Street Angel (I only like the title track and Blue Denim. Greta is okay. The rest is hurls-ville.)

[fumidesigns]

How would you rank these from best to worst:

Bella Donna (1981)
The Wild Heart (1983)
Rock a Little (1985)
On the Other Side of the Mirror (1989)
Street Angel (1994)
Trouble in Shangri-La (2001)


The above is chronological. I'll have to think on this myself.

take Street Angel with you. God bless Stevie but i just didn't like this album at all.

i have a looooooooooooong story on y i even have this album!!!! smh @ SOME STEVIE FANS!

[tbaker3]

I feel like a week after IYD is released we should do this again.

Street Angel
TISL
OSOTM
RAL
WH
BD

I know, crazy! But as a younger fan, the lesser known stuff has always been my fave!

WOW! Bella Donna last, huh? I was not expecting to see that at all.

Different Strokes, Different Folks.

[tbaker3]

This is the hardest list ever. Mostly because I hate having to choose favorites, especially when it comes to anything Stevie related. But, here it goes.

The Wild Heart
Bella Donna
The Other Side of the Mirror
Trouble in Shangri-La
Rock a Little
Street Angel

I HATE to put Street Angel last, because I do love it. But I had to go by percentage of songs on each album that adore. So thats how it shook out.

[starshine]

Here's my list:

Wild Heart
Bella Donna
The Other Side Of The Mirror
Trouble In Shangri-La
Rock A Little
Street Angel

**Not sure where IYD will be thats something I'll have to listen to for sometime before that decision is made** Plus: I'd say WH/BD can be switched around at times. Predictable list maybe but I have to rank Mirror higher than RAL cause RAL is just to inconsistent and too many Producers and I think song choices etc could've been much better than what was chosen but well than again I guess we could say that about every cd/lp theres always a song we would've picked over this one or version.:shrug::D

[AliceLover]

Boo to all the OSOTM hate

1. Bella Donna
2. OSOTM
3. Wild Heart
4. Rock a Little
5. TISL
6. SA

[Garbo]

1. Belladonna
2. Rock A Little
3. Wild Heart
4. TOSOTM
5. Street Angel
6. TISL

[ryguy2010]

Well I have been wondering for a while now why people dislike S.A. so much? Well compared to Bella Donna and W.h (aside from a select few songs on those albums) SA is much grittier and rock infused holistically than any of those/ others. With the exception of EO17 and not much else from those albums.. I would easily categorize them as pop/ heavy synth. S.A again is more "real" straight ahead rock... even has a nice bluesy feel. Whenever I would want to draw a comparison between Stevie and say someone like the Stones I would think S.A all the way!

[bluefox4000]

Quite simply.....for me anyway...The songs are not that good. I only like 4 or 5 songs. So that's my problem with SA.

Mick

[ryguy2010]

Well too each their own :) I guess I just love the whole Dylanesque vibe of the album. She really just breaks my heart as she sing the songs from S.A. That being said I love all of her albums as they each give me something different.

[David]

How would you rank these from best to worst:

Bella Donna (1981)
The Wild Heart (1983)
Rock a Little (1985)
On the Other Side of the Mirror (1989)
Street Angel (1994)
Trouble in Shangri-La (2001)


The above is chronological. I'll have to think on this myself.They're all interchangeable to me in terms of their artistic quality, except for the higher standards of engineering on the first few albums & the Shangri-La album.

I look over that list & I get sort of depressed. I wish Stevie had started her solo recording career in the mid 1970s. I think the albums would have been a lot better. She was a better songwriter then--she knew how to keep her imagery in better focus & she had a better ear for a deft turn of phrase--and the status the band had in the mid '70s would have spilled over into the solo sound in the studio. By the '80s, Stevie's sound turned into something pretty tasteless & even tacky sometimes.

[KarmaContestant]

Well I have been wondering for a while now why people dislike S.A. so much? Well compared to Bella Donna and W.h (aside from a select few songs on those albums) SA is much grittier and rock infused holistically than any of those/ others. With the exception of EO17 and not much else from those albums.. I would easily categorize them as pop/ heavy synth. S.A again is more "real" straight ahead rock... even has a nice bluesy feel. Whenever I would want to draw a comparison between Stevie and say someone like the Stones I would think S.A all the way!

I agree with you wholeheartedly.

I have long suspected that many people don't own or don't listen to Street Angel enought to really know the album - I was in this same group for a long time. I bought the album on release day, played it a few times over the next couple months and literally forgot about it for 10 years. It stuck in my mind as the 'bad Stevie album with bad songs'. And the dreadful pink cover. :laugh:

One day around 2003/2004 I decided, mostly out of a strange curiosity to put it in my regular CD rotation, and was surprised at how well the album had aged. It sounded better, fresher and far more interesting than it had in 1994.

This isn't meant as a criticsim, but I suspect that there are many fans who just put it at the bottom of their list because of reputation. Like me perhaps, they bought it, heard it a couple times, didn't like it and forgot about it. I also think there are many fans who don't even own it. It's funny how people will say "Oh, I only like Blue Denim, Rose Garden and Street Angel" which is kind of funny since those are all on Enchanted. :laugh:

Either way - I would recommend giving the album another shot to everyone - if I were trying to convert a new Stevie fan, one of the first albums I would give them is Street Angel.

For those who believe they don't like it, it really is worthy of another chance if you haven't played it from start to finish in a long time. Give it a try - you might be surprised. I'll concede, Jane has the weird chimpanzee lyric. So what, get over it. Unconditional Love & Destiny are rather sappy - yes - but no more so than If Anyone Falls or Gate And Garden or Beauty & The Beast or Beautiful Child. Docklands is an odd choice for a cover, but is actually a really good song about the despair of growing up in a lonely place devoid of opportunity. Listen To The Rain has one of the coolest rough-around-the-edges Stevie vocals I've ever heard. Love Is Like A River has a variation of the awesome 'Edge wail' in it that always makes me wonder why she never took it to the stage. Greta is one of the most fun songs Stevie has ever recorded.

:)

[ryguy2010]

Ty karma C . For a while there I thought I was falling off the deep end. Glad to know someone else shares my love.

[Spoinny]

I agree with you wholeheartedly.

I have long suspected that many people don't own or don't listen to Street Angel enought ot really know the album - I was in this same group for a long time. I bought the album on release day, played it a few times over the next couple months and literally forgot about it for 10 years. It stuck in my mind as the 'bad Stevie album with bad songs'.

One day around 2003/2004 I decided, mostly out of a strange curiosity to put it in my regular CD rotation, and was surprised at how well the album had aged. It sounded better, fresher and far more interesting than it had in 1994.

This isn't meant as a criticsim, but I suspect that there are many fans who just put it at the bottom of their list because of reputation. Like me perhaps, they bought it, heard it a couple times, didn't like it and forgot about it. I also think there are many fans who don't even own it. It's funny how people will say "Oh, I only like Blue Denim, Rose Garden and Street Angel" which is kind of funny since those are all on Enchanted. :laugh:

Either way - I would recommend giving the album another shot to everyone - if I were trying to convert a new Stevie fan, one of the first albums I would give them is Street Angel.

For those who believe they don't like it, it really is worthy of another chance if you haven't played it from start to finish in a long time. Give it a try - you might be surprised. I'll concede, Jane has the weird chimpanzee lyric. So what, get over it. Unconditional Love & Destiny are rather sappy - yes - but no more so than If Anyone Falls or Gate And Garden or Beauty & The Beast or Beautiful Child. Docklands is an odd choice for a cover, but is actually a really good song about the despair of growing up in a lonely place devoid of opportunity. Listen To The Rain has one of the coolest rough-around-the-edges Stevie vocals I've ever heard. Love Is Like A River has a variation of the awesome 'Edge wail' in it that always makes me wonder why she never took it to the stage. Greta is one of the most fun songs Stevie has ever recorded.

:)

funny you posted this, I actually NEVER listened to (or even had!) this CD until recently so I always dogged it too (just based on snippets and based on Stevie hating it), but I have to agree, it is really a great CD! I prefer it for the most part over RAL and definately over OSOTM.

[vivfox]

1. Rock a Little (1985)
2. The Wild Heart (1983)
3. Bella Donna (1981)
4. The Other Side of the Mirror (1989)
5. Street Angel (1994)
6. Trouble in Shangri-La (2001)

[chiliD]

1) TROUBLE IN SHANGRI-LA
2) BELLA DONNA

3) ROCK A LITTLE (without the dreadful side 1, it might've made #1)

4) STREET ANGEL









5) WILD HEART

------------------------------- ground level













6 feet under) OTHER SIDE OF THE MIRROR

[TrueFaith77]

They're all interchangeable to me in terms of their artistic quality, except for the higher standards of engineering on the first few albums & the Shangri-La album.

I look over that list & I get sort of depressed. I wish Stevie had started her solo recording career in the mid 1970s. I think the albums would have been a lot better. She was a better songwriter then--she knew how to keep her imagery in better focus & she had a better ear for a deft turn of phrase--and the status the band had in the mid '70s would have spilled over into the solo sound in the studio. By the '80s, Stevie's sound turned into something pretty tasteless & even tacky sometimes.


Truth.


ty

[Christopher]

They're all interchangeable to me in terms of their artistic quality, except for the higher standards of engineering on the first few albums & the Shangri-La album.

I look over that list & I get sort of depressed. I wish Stevie had started her solo recording career in the mid 1970s. I think the albums would have been a lot better. She was a better songwriter then--she knew how to keep her imagery in better focus & she had a better ear for a deft turn of phrase--and the status the band had in the mid '70s would have spilled over into the solo sound in the studio. By the '80s, Stevie's sound turned into something pretty tasteless & even tacky sometimes.

That's a pretty easy observation to make looking through the rear view window.:cool: Stevie was embracing and experimenting with the musical styles of the day and also the new music technology. Sure if Stevie had started recording her solo records in the mid to late 70's, her sound would have been somewhere between Linda Ronstadt, Suzi Quatro and Nicolette Larson, but it was not to be. Instead Stevie entered the big 80's head first with arguably a more powerful and exciting new musical landscape to consider.

[jwd]

TISL
Bella Donna
The Wild Heart
Rock A Little
OSOTM
SA

[Ghosty]

1. Bella Donna & Wild Heart - tied

2. Rock a Little

3. Street Angel

4. Trouble in Shangri-La

5. Other Side of the Mirror


I am hoping IYD ties with BD and WH (so far, seems like it could), or at the very least, ties with RAL.

[markolas]

For those who believe they don't like it, it really is worthy of another chance if you haven't played it from start to finish in a long time. Give it a try - you might be surprised. I'll concede, Jane has the weird chimpanzee lyric. So what, get over it. Unconditional Love & Destiny are rather sappy - yes - but no more so than If Anyone Falls or Gate And Garden or Beauty & The Beast or Beautiful Child. Docklands is an odd choice for a cover, but is actually a really good song about the despair of growing up in a lonely place devoid of opportunity. Listen To The Rain has one of the coolest rough-around-the-edges Stevie vocals I've ever heard. Love Is Like A River has a variation of the awesome 'Edge wail' in it that always makes me wonder why she never took it to the stage. Greta is one of the most fun songs Stevie has ever recorded.

I have listened to Street Angel many times. Taken as a whole, it's my least favorite album of hers. Out of all her albums, this one has the most songs that I can't stand. It is possible for people to genuinely not like it. :)

Unconditional Love does not compare to If Anyone Falls, Beauty & the Beast, or Beautiful Child. At all. The co-dependent lyrics (bested by Maybe Love, if such a thing is possible, and it is) are cringe-inducing.

Some of the songs are fun: LILAR, LTTR, and Greta - but neither the compositions themselves, nor Stevie's performances of them, are anywhere close to her best work.

[WildHearted]

Well, I was kind of curious as to how the albums were fairing in the big picture... So I went through and tallied up everyones answers so far. I used a simple point system based on the rankings people gave them (6 points awarded if number 1, 5 if number 2, 4 if number 3, 3 if number 4, 2 if number 5, and 1 if number 6), then added those points up for each album to find their overall rank.

So in case anyone is interested in the mean ranking of these albums (so far):

1. Bella Donna (229 points)

2. The Wild Heart (206)

3. Rock A Little (179)

4. Trouble in Shangri-La (166)

5. The Other Side of the Mirror (100)

6. Street Angel (97)

[Chris_Sydney]

1. Rock A Little (I know this is the height of Coke Stevie, but I just love it in all its synthy messiness)
2. Bella Donna
3. The Wild Heart
4. Trouble In Shangri-La
5. The Other Side Of The Mirror (it only gets placed beneath 'TISL' because the second half of the album falls apart)
6. Street Angel


x

[tabruns]

Here's a few more takes on this question:

From Stevie's statements, the only poor album is Street Angel. It's the only album of hers that she openly says she doesn't like. All the rest she considers equally good (as she said once, "I can't pick a favorite, they're all my children"....course this was prior to Street Angel).

Sales-wise Bella Donna is the clear winner, with Wild Heart in second place. Rock A Little is third, then The Other Side of the Mirror, then Trouble In Shangri-La and lastly Street Angel.

Critically its likely to be more mixed, but using Rolling Stone reviews:

Bella Donna - 3 1/2 stars
Trouble In Shangri-La - 3 1/2 stars
The Other Side of the Mirror - 2 1/2 stars
The Wild Heart - 2 stars
Rock A Little - 1 1/2 stars

I can't include Street Angel in that list because I don't recall how Rolling Stone rated it. They gave Bella Donna and Trouble In Shangri-La pretty good reviews. The Other Side of the Mirror was notable because it got slightly better reviews than The Wild Heart and Rock A Little, both of which had been raked over the Rolling Stone coals.

[Jondalar]

Here's a few more takes on this question:

From Stevie's statements, the only poor album is Street Angel. It's the only album of hers that she openly says she doesn't like. All the rest she considers equally good (as she said once, "I can't pick a favorite, they're all my children"....course this was prior to Street Angel).

Sales-wise Bella Donna is the clear winner, with Wild Heart in second place. Rock A Little is third, then The Other Side of the Mirror, then Trouble In Shangri-La and lastly Street Angel.

Critically its likely to be more mixed, but using Rolling Stone reviews:

Bella Donna - 3 1/2 stars
Trouble In Shangri-La - 3 1/2 stars
The Other Side of the Mirror - 2 1/2 stars
The Wild Heart - 2 stars
Rock A Little - 1 1/2 stars

I can't include Street Angel in that list because I don't recall how Rolling Stone rated it. They gave Bella Donna and Trouble In Shangri-La pretty good reviews. The Other Side of the Mirror was notable because it got slightly better reviews than The Wild Heart and Rock A Little, both of which had been raked over the Rolling Stone coals.

Rolling Stone only gave Bella Donna 3 stars, not 3.5 when it came out, which was a freaking joke. Street Angel got two stars I think.

[mylittledemon]

For me...

Trouble in Shangri La & Bella Donna are a tie
Wild Heart
Rock A Little
Street Angel
Other Side of the Mirror

[Spoinny]

Here's a few more takes on this question:

From Stevie's statements, the only poor album is Street Angel. It's the only album of hers that she openly says she doesn't like. All the rest she considers equally good (as she said once, "I can't pick a favorite, they're all my children"....course this was prior to Street Angel).

Sales-wise Bella Donna is the clear winner, with Wild Heart in second place. Rock A Little is third, then The Other Side of the Mirror, then Trouble In Shangri-La and lastly Street Angel.

Critically its likely to be more mixed, but using Rolling Stone reviews:

Bella Donna - 3 1/2 stars
Trouble In Shangri-La - 3 1/2 stars
The Other Side of the Mirror - 2 1/2 stars
The Wild Heart - 2 stars
Rock A Little - 1 1/2 stars

I can't include Street Angel in that list because I don't recall how Rolling Stone rated it. They gave Bella Donna and Trouble In Shangri-La pretty good reviews. The Other Side of the Mirror was notable because it got slightly better reviews than The Wild Heart and Rock A Little, both of which had been raked over the Rolling Stone coals.

Do you know where I can find the reviews for RAL? I always wondered how that album faired with the critics as it was pretty much the first record that got me into stevie, however to this day i still only listen to about 3-4 tracks from it.

[Jondalar]

Do you know where I can find the reviews for RAL? I always wondered how that album faired with the critics as it was pretty much the first record that got me into stevie, however to this day i still only listen to about 3-4 tracks from it.

One of the original gave RAL 3 stars. I remember that review well, because the reviewer criticized the album, but then slapped 3 stars on it. I thought it was patronizing. I thought it was the rolling stone reviewer, but must not have been

[Jondalar]

Well, I was kind of curious as to how the albums were fairing in the big picture... So I went through and tallied up everyones answers so far. I used a simple point system based on the rankings people gave them (6 points awarded if number 1, 5 if number 2, 4 if number 3, 3 if number 4, 2 if number 5, and 1 if number 6), then added those points up for each album to find their overall rank.

So in case anyone is interested in the mean ranking of these albums (so far):

1. Bella Donna (229 points)

2. The Wild Heart (206)

3. Rock A Little (179)

4. Trouble in Shangri-La (166)

5. The Other Side of the Mirror (100)

6. Street Angel (97)

That's on point. Had TISL had a decent single on it, it would of probably went ahead of Rock of Little. It's hard to forget Has Anyone Ever Written, I can't Wait and Talk to Me

[Spoinny]

of course just after I posted wondering where the RS review of RAL is, I see there was a post about it earlier. oops :laugh:

[Silylily]

1. Rock A Little (I just seem to enjoy it the most!)
2. Bella Donna (classic)
3. The Wild Heart (Bella Donna meets West Side Story)
4. Trouble In Shangri-La (great comeback album)
5. The Other Side Of The Mirror (some good songs, iffy production and mixing)
6. Street Angel (okay songs, iffy production and mixing)

:wavey:

[Hawkeye]

That's on point. Had TISL had a decent single on it, it would of probably went ahead of Rock of Little. It's hard to forget Has Anyone Ever Written, I can't Wait and Talk to Me

I don't think singles had anything to do with how people were ranking their albums :shrug:

Anyways I think we should've waited a month to do these lists, but here are my rankings until IYD comes out.

1. Wild Heart- this is the only one that was easy to place


2. Bella Donna
3. Rock a Little- this was 6th as recent as a year ago, somehtings just clicked
4. Trouble in Shangri La
5. Street Angel
6. Other Side of the Mirror

[tabruns]

Well in regards to Rolling Stone, Bella Donna got a decent review but The Wild Heart and Rock A Little both got slammed, hard. The Other Side of the Mirror actually got a better review than The Wild Heart and Rock A Little had. Street Angel got an okay review, and Trouble In Shangri-La got a good review.

[tabruns]

AllMusic reviews:

Bella Donna - 4 1/2 stars
The Wild Heart - 4 stars
Rock A Little - 3 1/2 stars
The Other Side of the Mirror - 3 stars
Street Angel - 2 stars
Trouble In Shangri-La - 4 stars

[Jondalar]

Well in regards to Rolling Stone, Bella Donna got a decent review but The Wild Heart and Rock A Little both got slammed, hard. The Other Side of the Mirror actually got a better review than The Wild Heart and Rock A Little had. Street Angel got an okay review, and Trouble In Shangri-La got a good review.

They actually changed their toon during the late 90s. She only had two good albums. All you need are ears.

[tabruns]

They actually changed their toon during the late 90s. She only had two good albums. All you need are ears.

I think Nicks has had many "good albums", the only one that I wouldn't say is good is Street Angel. If by good you mean excellent or classic albums then I might agree, but I would say those are Bella Donna and Trouble In Shangri-La.

[johnnystorms]

Wild Heart
Rock a Little
Trouble in Shangri La
Bella Donna
The Other Side of the Mirror
Street Angel

[bluefox4000]

They actually changed their toon during the late 90s. She only had two good albums. All you need are ears.

The thing is music varies for people. While i agree with you about BD and WH, People do love RAL AND OSOTM. while I'll never understand how ANY one can enjoy RAL, people do. It's all taste. Ears hear things differently.

Mick

[Hippocampus]

1. Bella Donna
2. The Wild Heart
3. Trouble In Shangri-La
4. The Other Side Of The Mirror
5. Street Angel
6. Rock A Little

[saintvox]

1. Trouble In Shangri-La
2. The Other Side of the Mirror
3. Street Angel
4. Rock A Little
5. Belladonna
6. The Wild Heart

I feel weird because mine is different.

[tabruns]

1. Trouble In Shangri-La
2. The Other Side of the Mirror
3. Street Angel
4. Rock A Little
5. Belladonna
6. The Wild Heart

I feel weird because mine is different.

Don't feel weird. Everyone's got a different opinion.