3 Incredibly Important Rock Albums That Deserve Their Own Documentaries

Some albums are lightning-in-a-bottle moments. The three majorly important rock albums below were once-in-a-generation works. They were so pivotal to the formation of rock music that we need entire documentaries to capture their impact.

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 ‘Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band’ — The Beatles

Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band was an ambitious rock album to say the least. The Beatles created a fake band, wrote songs for that band, and delivered something no one even thought possible back in 1967. This record completely reshaped what the music industry considered to be a concept record.

The way this album shaped popular music is almost too profound to discuss in this format. You could fill hours talking about the making of Sgt Pepper’s. An entire documentary is what is needed to fully capture this work, both its content and the culture it was made under. This album was a turning point for The Beatles, taking them from teen pop sensations to adventurous recording artists.

‘Pet Sounds’ — The Beach Boys

Speaking of inventive albums, we have The Beach Boys’ Pet Sounds. This record perfectly blended the band’s lulling harmonies with Brian Wilson’s inventive vocals. It was equally listenable as it was impressively new. From “God Only Knows” to “Wouldn’t It Be Nice”, rock music wouldn’t be the same without these era-defining songs.

Pet Sounds is an album that fans could spend an endless amount of time learning more about. All of its nooks and crannies hold treasures; every story is a stroke of genius. This is an album that not only appeased fans but wowed fellow musicians for its singularity.

‘Disraeli Gears’ — Cream

“Cream absolutely might be called the first progressive band,” Neil Peart once said. “They were breaking out of the chains of pop.” You can hear evidence of that claim in Disraeli Gears. This record revolutionized what the guitar could do. That instrument has always been an important part of the genre, but this short-lived outfit took that to the extreme.

Their exploratory musicality can be heard throughout this album, as can the influence they had on subsequent bands. Whether you were a blues fan or a psychedelia adopter, there was something about this album to take inspiration from. The 1970s were forever changed by this late-1960s work of art. It was a fork in the road.

(Photo by L. Cohen/WireImage)

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