5 albums that critics initially hated :
5“Black Sabbath” - Black Sabbath (1970)
Lester Bangs of Rolling Stone might have been the best rock critic there ever was, but he also missed the mark on one of the greatest metal records there ever was:
4 “Exile on Main St.” - The Rolling Stones (1972)
When the Rolling Stones released “Exile on Main St.” in 1972, critics collectively yawned at what they deemed inconsistent and what Rolling Stone writer (and Patti Smith guitarist) Lenny Kaye said “once again slightly miss[ed] the mark” and left him thinking the best Stones album of the band’s mature period was yet to come.
3 “Wish You Were Here” - Pink Floyd (1975)
You really can’t get much better than an album containing nothing but the five songs “Welcome to the Machine"
2 “Led Zeppelin” - Led Zeppelin (1969)
The reason for this list is also its earliest entry. When Led Zeppelin dropped its debut record, Rolling Stone famously panned it and the band (get used to this kind of miss from the magazine) by criticizing everything from the authenticity (calling them a lesser version of the Jeff Beck Group) to Jimmy Page’s multiple roles, referring to him as “a very limited producer and a writer of weak, unimaginative songs.”
1“Abbey Road” - The Beatles (1969)
If “Abbey Road,” a masterpiece by the Beatles, can appear on this list, then clearly no record is safe. The Fab Four’s 11th studio album was turned into road kill by critics like Nik Cohn of The New York Times, who said the tracks are “nothing special.” Rolling Stone lamented the use of its signature synthesizers, saying the sound “disembodies and artificializes” the music.