The Contrarians Presents: Great Talent Gone to Waste

Who has let us down? Find out in this episode!
The Contrarians is a show where one of us jumps in the hot seat picks a dark horse album from a band as that band's best album. The guest host will argue against them with facts, stats and all around truth, subjective and objective!
Agree, disagree or agree to disagree!
Support us on Patreon or Ko-Fi:
/ contrarians
ko-fi.com/thecontrarians
Official Merch:
www.teepublic.com/t-shirt/249...
Twitter: @tcontrarians
@popoffmartin
Facebook: @tcontrarians
Instagram: the.contrarians
Website: www.martinpopoff.com
Facebook: Martin Popoff
Theme music Performed by: Andee Blacksugar
/ andeeblacksugar to support Andee!
Theme Music Written by: Nic L. Woodside
Title graphic by: Aaron Lebel
[e-mail]
[e-mail]
Thank you to our Patrons:
David Hens
Peter CJ
Dan Chartland
Kevin J. Julie
Steve Eads
Larry Mills
The Elder of Rock
Olivia
The Chadmiral
Kyle Elser
Peter C Jones
Grumqa
Gv Carter
Bernd Wilhelm
Andrew Clark
Gracious Host
Parish Of Rock
Keith Searock
Philip-Edward Phillis
Richard Recchia
Martin Popoff
Jack Holloway
Steve Poleri
Tom Owens
Tate Davis
Brendan Kilroy
Jonathan Banahasky
Kevin Turchin
Brad L Duren
Butch Balich
Bill Schuster
m
David Alpizar
John Phillips
gellaho
John TheMusicNut
Mike LeBrain
Melissa
Rand Kelly
Tyson Brown
Joe LeBlanc
Peter C Jones
John Clauser
Peter Kerr
Pontus Norshammar
bicyclelegs
Andee Blacksugar
Frans Gagiano
Reed Little
Todd Evans
Matt Thompson
Noah Ambler
Andrew Meyer
Grant Arthur
Howard Herrick
Tim's Vinyl Confessions
Jamie Laszlo
Colston Vear
Bret Peters
Nick S Squire
Ben N
Joe B
List of Associated Channels:
Mystique Film
/ @mystiquefilm5704
www.mystique-black-rider-onli...
Waste Some Time With Average Joe
@wastesometimewithaverage-hc2fb
Andee Blacksugar Transmission
/ @ninebutterflies
Tim's Vinyl Conefssions
/ @timsvinylconfessions
Davey's Cinema Flicks and Music Picks
/ @flicksnpicks
Rand Anthony Kelly
/ @shyshift
Ryan's Vinyl Destination
/ @ryansvinyldestination...
bicyclelegs
/ @bicyclelegsmusic
My Music Corner
/ @mymusiccorner
Grant's Rock Warehaus
/ @grantsrockwarehaus
Rock Daydream Nation
/ @rockdaydreamnation
LP Tremors
/ @lptremors882
Jamie Laszlo
/ @kingofmars2010
Mike Lebrain
/ @mikelebrain
Rushfans
/ @rushfans
SOT
/ @seaoftranquilityprog
Almost Human
/ @almosthuman56
Credit to Discogs.com for use of some images
Remember to subscribe and like!
Comment below and join the debate!
#martinpopoff #thecontrarians #albumreview

[@thecontrarians2438]

Let us know which artists disappointed you with their lack of output in the comments below!

[@DBTdad]

Just gimme the Tony Martin box set already

[@pjbrown4736]

Tony could have been a good power metal front man.

[@nickvickers3486]

Tony's still got it, Thorns is an amazing album!

[@patriotpizzaman]

Savatage's new album is scheduled to drop on April 3, 2024.

[@user-vz3bg2vy3w]

Paul Rodgers, Jimmy Page,, David Lee Roth, John Sykes, yeah more Jake E Lee would be great too

[@zerodok]

Vinnie Vincent fell off the map and then his lunatic tendencies took over.

[@zandig666]

Ya how does someone that relatively good forget how to play guitar Vincent was best teamed with others to reign the BS in

[@LeatherRebel75]

The 90's definitely produced some of these.: John Christ of Danzig, Jim Martin of Faith No More, and J. Yuenger of White Zombie, When they left the bands they were famous for, they just disappeared. Same thing with Kim Thayill of Soundgarden, except when they reunited. Now with Chris Cornell gone, he's pretty disappeared again, except for a guest appearance on the most recent Pretty Reckless album.

[@christianman73]

In 2022, Kim Thayil formed a group with Krist Novoselic and Matt Cameron named 3rd Secret. They have already released two albums and have numerous videos on their own channel here.

[@michaelbaucom4019]

I wish Dire Straits had done more than six albums. Never enjoyed Mark Knopfler's solo albums as much as Dire Straits,,but, MK wanted to explore other genres besides rock. More albums from The Police,,instead of Sting going solo More from Tears For Fears in the 1980s, instead of what actually happened. Boston--much more

[@RitchieBlackmoresWig]

King Diamond, Vinnie Vincent, Saint Vitus, King Crimson, Boz Scaggs.

[@daanthing6002]

Love Brian May and Tony Iommi playing guitar on the couch in that Riff documentary. Both should play/write more.

[@nickvickers3486]

They could do a lot worse then make a band together and get Tony Martin on vocals!

[@cardinalsin5419]

I'd have added Poison and Cinderella who haven't released anything in years

[@peterdelaney7061]

That's actually a blessing

[@leepassmore7032]

@@peterdelaney7061 I felt Cinderella never quite reached their full potential. Poison was never any good.

[@keithleeuwen877]

@@peterdelaney7061 OH !

[@andresferbu]

Izzy Stradlin, Stewart Coppeland, Andy McCoy, Viv Campbell, George Lynch, Mick Taylor!

[@treyrobinson1970]

Sykes, of course. Great call on Warren DeMartini.

[@aldebaran4154]

I think we tend to forget all the studio musician work Jimmy Page did. I believe he had his fill of recording by the late 1980's. Roger Waters is one I would add. He's only done four proper studio albums since leaving Pink Floyd, with another being home demos of older songs, an opera and then the re-imagining of Dark Side of the Moon. Plus a song for a movie. That's not a lot for 39 years of going solo.

[@jimekberg]

1. Tony Iommi 2. Jimmy Page 3. Eddie Van Halen 4. Tom G Warrior 5. Ritchie Blackmore

[@loungedweller]

As far as Ritchie Blackmore goes... I love Blackmore's Night, and I've returned to their music over the last few years more than I have numerous Deep Purple and Rainbow albums. I know I'm in the minority, as they are either never mentioned on many of these type channels or given short shrift.

[@LarryFleetwood8675]

Nancy Wilson, Peter Criss, Pete Goalby, Jon Lord, Brian Robertson.

[@chrisfelix7257]

Peter Criss 🤟

[@djacobmadrigal]

Geddy Lee I think is the one who became way obsessed with gear post Moving Pictures. Also Pete Willis. I get why he left to clean himself up but Def Leppard was never the same

[@jaspergillgannon4991]

Everything past Roll the Bones became bass-centic again, with synths only showing up here and there

[@keithleeuwen877]

They were different after that sure.

[@pjbrown4736]

UFO's Wild Willing And The Innocent is great. Not easy to fill Schenker's shoes, but Chapman delivered on that record.

[@jcollins1305]

I’m not sure tho artists mentioned are “wasted talent” many have put of voluminous amounts of great material. Maybe they haven’t put out material recently, but they have produced. Wasted talent? I’d say someone that ruined their careers, lives or both, before achieving the success they could have.

[@jimmycampbell78]

I think John Sykes is the ultimate example.

[@leepassmore7032]

He has that Don Felder sort of factor working. Their cult followers insist that they were kicked out or forced to abandon the bands who made them famous and now they're finally free out from under the iron fist of their autocratic leaders. But what have they done since?

[@CJINW]

My biggest take away is the reminder that I could care less what Vinney Vincent is up to and never need to hear another note from him/her.

[@andrewpeters8906]

Andrew Eldritch- I know Sisters of Mercy still tour, but no new recordings for decades now.

[@melissanee3226]

Many good choices.

[@quantumparadox2518]

Ian MacKaye, Stewart Copland, Reb Beach, Chris DeGarmo, Jason Newsted

[@briandunlap8534]

Brian May absolutely

[@askoholli9306]

Peter Green and Syd Barrett are fairly obvious choices. Jimmy Page, Pete Townshend (Martin Popoff probably disagrees; EDIT: No he didn't!), Tony Banks... i.e. who were the heart & soul of their respective bands but who hardly set the world on fire in their solo/other career. Those who died way too early; Sam Cooke, Otis Redding, Jim Morrison, Janis Joplin, Lowell George, Chris Cornell...

[@gellargod]

Disagree on Ace. Frehley's Comet was awesome. Plus lots of albums with his guitar playing, including his new.

[@drewrose374]

IOMMI MAY HUGHES TAYLOR would be my super collaboration!

[@Sabotaged88]

Reed brought up my personal choice which is Tony Iommi. It is so weird how often he casually mentions that he does still just sit down, play and record but never does anything with it, he just throws it in a cupboard never to see/hear the light of day. I think he kind of needs to be inspired to want to work with someone who will egg him on just a bit, he's definitely not work shy but I think he essentially needs a "gym buddy" that he wants to keep pace with. The sad thing is I feel he probably lost that when Ronnie died. You listen and read to everything that both Iommi and Geezer have said since Dio left us and they were totally on board for just continuing on with him and I think they retroactively respect a lot more all the work they done with him and possibly even feel he was a better fit for them than anyone ever was. Certainly that's a controversial take I have is that Dio was a better fit for Iommi (and Sabbath) than Ozzy ever was, and the Ozzy era is my favourite too! Just because of how similar the musical tastes of Iommi/Dio were as the years went on and you can clearly see how Ozzy never really was into the same sort of thing musically as the rest of the guys in Sabbath ever were. It's interesting that everyone just went for individuals as wasted talent, I thought we would've got some mentions of bands as a whole. For me I think that, as a whole, Metallica are a pretty wasted group of talent. If you look at the fact that during their absolute peak of popularity (during the 90s) they essentially put out 2 albums (Re-Load was just Load leftovers so doesn't really count). In over 3 decades (91 until now) they've put out 7 studio albums, that is just such a waste. Few bands could afford to have such little output and maintain such a level of popularity. I think had they taken a more pro-active approach with releasing music over the last 30 years their popularity could've potentially been ever bigger, it certainly wouldn't have diminished! They'd have still gone out on huge tours to all the casuals who bought the Black Album and nothing else, but potentially brought back even more of the old fans and potentially some new ones by just consistently putting out new material. We might've actually gotten something interesting from them because they surely would've tried different things if they were just always at least trying to do something, and the songs would've hopefully have been a lot shorter because they didn't spend as much time arseing about with them between albums! Hell, they might've even stumbled upon another chart hit for the non-metal listeners along the way. But, alas, I don't think Metallica are genuinely interested in really making music, I think they're much more happy being business men who happen to have a branch of their portfolio being "play in front of 10,000 people". The music that they have put out I also don't think they've been genuinely interested in making that type of music, I don't think they really want to be a "metal" band but they're at the stage where they think they "need" to make that kind of music to satisfy and large portion of their fanbase. Just imagine what Metallica would've been like if someone had put them on a Motorhead style schedule of releasing a new album every 2 years.

[@lostcauseforkl]

Correct on Jake E. Lee! Red Dragon Cartel was ok, but after Badlands I really was expecting something better

[@corleth84]

80s Queen

[@Solidballofrock]

If they did a Christmas album… they’ve let me down

[@bgmchrisc]

My hero, Jim Steinman, is the one for me. With how much he recycled his own ideas and songs, sometimes it seems like he wrote more good songs than he actually did. He always had at least one eye on theater, and that's probably why he barely wrote anything after the couple of new songs on "Bat Out Of Hell II" in '93. Heck, the last full album he wrote was in 1981. It's a shame, since no one was ever like him.

[@martymartin2894]

Definitely a genius, bat out of hell is an all time masterpiece. Him and meatloaf were the perfect match.

[@samhouston1979]

i agree with Ted Nugent…especially with Derrick St Holmes

[@carlosapompa2095]

Peter Gabriel ( I know, new album and that but still )

[@SWEETFA24]

Ritchie Blackmore. Would like one more flirtation with Rock.

[@williamwalker146]

Most mentioned were guitarists or vocalists, and that's usually the way it goes. Look at drummers and bassists, many of them will play and record studio albums with 30 different bands.

[@keithleeuwen877]

I wish Page had done more but he is always busy with preserving the Zep catalog of course. Didn't Page used to have Sol Studios at his home ?

[@toddhill7483]

The Modern Lovers, Suburban Lawns

[@peterdelaney7061]

Edward Van Halen, The last 15 years for Steve Vai

[@seangerant653]

do i need to say ......guns-n-roses !!!!!!!!!!!!

[@user-vz3bg2vy3w]

I thought the Patina album by Red Dragon Cartel was good, the song Ink and Water, fantastic.

[@patriotpizzaman]

I don't even have to wonder. John Sykes is #1 on this list. Jimmy Page is my pick though. Jimmy could have been doing something, anything these past how many years???

[@davidholmes6119]

The slow-slow-drip of output from shoegaze maestro Kevin Shields of My Bloody Valentine is part of the mystique, but it's also disheartening to reflect on the tiny amount of music he has made between 1988 and today. It's already been a decade-plus since m b v. I've always wished Tony Iommi could find a Them Crooked Vultures- or Black Country Communion-type project, pairing him with younger rockers and allowing him to employ his doom-guitar wizardry in a new context versus just waiting for Sabbath reunions and remastering the Sabbath catalog. I know there was the guest-artist-heavy self-titled solo album, but it feels forgotten/buried (it isn't streaming anywhere), and there was never a proper follow-up. I am surprised mid-career Beach Boys sideman Blondie Chaplin has never had more presence as a solo artist. He may be best known for singing the Beach Boys classic "Sail On, Sailor" and touring with Brian Wilson in recent years. Terrific vocalist and guitarist with an ability to move nimbly between rock, the blues, rocksteady, and reggae. I would have enjoyed hearing more from the Witchfinder General crew over the years. It'd be neat to see them have a Cirith Ungol-type latter-day boost in productivity and acclaim.

[@charlespalermo6476]

Trouble hasn’t put out an album since 2013. Nothing from Rick Wartell and Bruce Franklin. My favorite guitar duo tops my list 🤘🎸

[@tanktuba]

For me it would be David Gilmour. A couple of Floyd's,a couple solos. Not much after Roger left.

[@Rockstardust69]

Jimmy page absolutely tops this list for me

[@brianzawistowski5743]

Brian Robertson Billy Squier Y & T Zebra Bruce Kulick

[@leepassmore7032]

I think Paul Westerberg is one of the greatest rock songwriters ever, and his solo debut 14 Songs was better than the last two Replacements albums. However, it's been well over a decade since he's put out anything recorded, and he hasn't played live in who knows how long.

[@billedwards4285]

John Sykes

[@christianreuter5810]

Brad Delp of Boston

[@ashleygeisler1003]

Here is a couple Billy Joel The Moody Blues Lisa Dominique

[@seangerant653]

glenn hughes !!..........just kidding !!!!!!!!!!!!

[@jimkanavy6654]

5. The Allman Brothers Band - they were playing with peak power in their last years, had a steady lineup, amazing shows, and only one studio album to show for it. They should have been churning out records every two years at least. 4. The Who - reunited in 1989, no records until after The Ox punched out. Roger's voice was amazing in the 90s and he should have been singing new Townshend songs every couple years. 3. Robert Plant, one of the greatest voices in rock gave up on rock and makes unlistenable folk music now. 2. John Paul Jones - dude? Where have you been? Every band in the world needs your expertise 1. Jimmy Page - what the actual fuck Jimmy? He never recovered from the death of Led Zeppelin. He's squandered his talents since 1980. The 2000s should have been his renaissance. What did we get? 101 new remasters of Zep records.

[@BenDowdy]

Animal Logic, X-Ray Specs, Maggie Roche.

[@MetalPersonJ]

Floor Jansen in Nightwish and nothing else comes close.

[@mynameismok8424]

I respect Jake for not trying to milk the past. He did what he wanted to do.

[@toddhill7483]

Boston

[@moodlefyful]

Tom Scholz.

[@Chaz4543]

Was Axl Rose a great talent or not ? He needed the other members of Guns N Roses to produce some great music and then after Guns n Roses breaks up he has to surround himself with other people to make a new version of Guns n Roses which isnt as good as the original. Nothing about this screams hes a great talent and it seems he's just a guy who needed to surround himself with people better than him. I mean he can sing sure and can write decent lyrics but musically there's nothing he has done on his own.

[@keithleeuwen877]

That first GNR album was massive !

[@adamsmashups4839]

Brian May.The man wrote A LOT of great songs while in Queen.But ever since Freddie died he has put out only 2 solo albums.Oh,I forgot about The Cosmos Rocks.A very talented but also very lazy songwriter. I am a big Thomas Dolby fan but ever since the first album back in 1982,he has released only 4..5 if you include Minds Eye..albums. John Deacon.I kind of wish he were still involved in music ,but he seems happy out of it and I wish him the best.

[@seangerant653]

John Sykes !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1............eddie van halen !!!........2 full lps in 20 years ????

[@grumqa]

Witchfynde Diamond Head Sisters of Mercy Men Without Hats The Jags Dust

[@ryanjacobson2508]

Didn't Diamond Head's singer have his mom manage the band or something?

[@williamwalker146]

There are many examples of these, but my top 5 are: 5. Jon Oliva 4. Peter Criss 3. John Sykes 2. John Deverill 1. Sean Harris Deverill and Harris in particular pain me, because even though Oliva, Criss, and Sykes haven't done anything in YEARS, Deverill and Harris haven't done anything in years, and even when they were around in the 80s, they were not super prolific. Think about it: Harris and Deverill are still alive and there's only six albums with Deverill's voice on them, and only six albums with Harris' voice on them. Two of THE BEST heavy metal singers EVER, and they've been wasting away since the late-80s aside for a few scant albums since then).

[@williamwalker146]

I gotta revise that and throw Oliva out and put Uli Jon Roth at my #4. I've been waiting for him to do great Scorpions-style hard rock since the Scorpions, and he's never ever played hard rock since the second Electric Sun record in 1981 and he's never ever had a great singer, because he himself is a horrendous singer as well. Since 1981, he hasn't come out with one thoroughly good album. He plays live a lot, replays Hendrix and Cream tunes, covers classical music, and performs Scorpions classics. One of the best guitarists of all time and he's COVERING music, most of which is inferior to his skills and brilliance IMO.

[@toddschulz2807]

You don't like Furious George George Lynch which had many different singers I believe. Awesome album IMO

[@pitapocketortwo]

John Paul Jones Mitch Mitchell

[@patriotpizzaman]

Bruce solo < any Bruce era Maiden. Sorry Reid, he and Roy Z aren't better than Maiden. I get it though. You have your convictions and you hear things differently than I do. It's cool. I just couldn't let that take go unchecked. If Bruce would have garnered more fans as a solo artist, he might have kept on recording and touring with his own band. The sum of the parts of Maiden outweighs all of their side projects combined. I love some of their pet projects but, none of them come close to what Maiden does. I have Senjutsu ranked 6th on my Maiden ranking these days. I still play the album regularly. I get the disappointment with Book of Souls but, Senjutsu is so much better conceived. The production isn't an issue for me either. I'm glad the reunion era of Maiden doesn't have Andy Sneap producing them. I really don't care for that almost too perfect sound he has on his productions. Every band he produces comes out sounding like they played through the same rig. Kevin Shirley's productions breathe and feel alive to my ears. They have an urgency. Sneap's sound as though they've been cut and pasted perfectly into place on Pro Tools. Maybe a little Ai thrown in there for good measure. Andrew Watt is another one of these new "critically acclaimed" producers that I don't care much for. I think he gets too involved in the album and every album he does sounds like him instead of the artists he's working for. I don't think you have to agree with me nor do I think you care one way or another about what I think about them. I don't watch a channel called the Contrarians expecting confirmation bias. Keep swinging for the fences with your takes guys! I love it when you guys stir the pot! I sometimes feel the urge to stir it too.

[@careful__Icarus]

Eddie Van Halen is the ultimate letdown. He came in like a frikken tsunami for about 4 records then skated on his reputation and old recycled songs for the rest of his career. Decent enough catalog,even like the Sammy and Gary eras, but really just meh as far as pushing the envelope after about 1980.

[@GuitarHack66]

I couldn't agree more about Ace.

[@zandig666]

Halford when he left Judas Priest when he re joined let's face it that was some prime real estate priest missed out on man Great point on the Ace thing man !!!!!!! Ace was great back then really great licks and leads as much as im not a Kiss fan after '78

[@squirrelinatree7241]

Howard Devoto/Magazine, The Undertones, Bram Tchaikovsky, The Records, Sniff n the Tears.

[@waynekozik525]

Vinnie Vincent what a waste

[@geoffdennis8382]

Loved Steve Perry with Journey. His solo stuff not so much. Ted Nugent loved his 1970s early 1980s stuff, but I can totally live without his 1990s to now stuff, not to mention his idiotic lyrics. I would like to see more Geddy Lee music as well as others mentioned.

[@liberatoreZ]

Glenn Danzig

[@renetrachet]

IMO Jimmy Page is lazy. No more no less.

[@tommyaddison6539]

He put the work in. Crazy amount of studio sessions in the 60’s, before the Yardbirds and Zeppelin. He did more than enough.

[@pjbrown4736]

Ace definitely is worth the mention. And his new record, it did nothing for me. So, as a result, I'm over him as a solo artist in terms of original material.

[@dennisheflin2680]

Jimmy Page… too easy. Such a waste of time redoing the LZ catalog

[@jimmycampbell78]

I agree to some extent and have liked your comment. But he did two albums with The Firm, a solo album Outrider, Coverdale/Page, No Quarter (part original material) and Walking into Clarksdale, six studio albums containing original material since 1980 and generally people weren't interested. All those albums sold poorly at the times compared to Led Zeppelin sales, as if people were keeping their money in their pockets waiting for a Zeppelin reunion that was never going to happen. Historically people have been far less interested in Page's post Zeppelin material than the LZ albums themselves. (although Coverdale Page has become a bit of a cult record because of Whitesnake/Coverdale fans too). So you could blame Jimmy but in my opinion he responded to the reaction of the music buying public and just redid the LZ catalog instead. Walking into Clarksdale was essentially a new Led Zeppelin album in the 1990s but the reaction of the public was mild indifference, so he no longer bothered. The pathetic thing is that if he and Plant had put Led Zeppelin on that record cover and invited JPJ to play bass on it then it would have sold a lot more.

[@magnuswettermark8293]

Overrated as hell,like the whole band.

[@winstonsyme5899]

@@magnuswettermark8293 Your mother was a whore.

[@jimmycampbell78]

@@magnuswettermark8293 (cough) bull s----t.

[@SaintMartins]

Pearl Jam. At first they were considered a new hope for Rock music with cool guitar riffs & solos. Then by the 3rd album Eddie took over the band & the songs began watering down to solo-less, simple 5 chord grunge. (b/c Ed can't play guitar) The last good album was their 2006 self-titled one. Since then the next 3 albums sucks ! 1) Ten (1991) ✔ 7) Riot Act (2002) ✔ 2) Vs (1993) ✔ 8) Self-titled (2006) ✔ 3) Vitalogy (1994) ✔ 9) Backspacer (2009) ❌ 4) No Code (1996) ❌ 10) Lightning Bolt (2013) ❌ 5) Yield (1998) ✔ 11) Gigaton (2020) ❌ 6) Binaural (2000) ❌ 12) Dark Matter (2024) ❓

[@TheBerndude]

What are all the X’s for?

[@rorke47]

russell allen is always the first person i think of when this is brought up. Dude could've made millions in some grunge act or some nu-metal five finger death punch band as that was always his real passion but squandered his potential by remaining in fat romeo's dead end nerdy metal band. By the time he started adrenaline mob it was already way too late and now he's forever trapped in fat romeo's overrated band.

[@TheBerndude]

I completely agree with Pete. What the hell happened to Ace Frehley after he left KISS. I never cared for his Comet stuff, and his subsequent releases were largely uninspiring.