1. The Beach Boys

The Beach Boys were much more than a band who sang about girls, cars, and surfing. Few bands have had more influence on popular music than the Beatles. There would have been no Sgt. Without their 1966 masterwork, Pet Sounds, Pepper, and indie rock’s D.I.Y. aesthetic would have grown indifferent and less intriguing without Smile, the follow-up album that broke down Brian Wilson and was shelved for decades. The Beach Boys’ the late-’60s and early-’70s albums contain some of their best and most mature work. While they later became a bickering nostalgia act, their influence and the force of their timeless music remain undiminished.

2. The Heartbreakers, Tom Petty

Few bands have nailed the essence of the American Dream, and Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers have lived it. They obtained a record deal and released their debut self-titled album, which included “Breakdown” and “American Girl,” and launched the band on the path to legend after going from Gainesville, Fla., to Los Angeles. Their music captures all of the hope, pain, and exhilaration of rising from humble beginnings to achieve success in the major leagues – the American Dream.

3. ‘Do We Want This Life?’ (2017) Roger Waters

Waters’ return to a society in turmoil over a quarter-century after Amused to Death was exactly timed in its own sad, strange manner. In “Picture This” and “Broken Bones,” he was able to channel a cauldron of boiling rage. But Is This the Life We Want? It wasn’t your typical Waters rant, as producer Nigel Godrich and a variety of new musical partners assisted in shaping a leaner, more universal message. 

It wasn’t all hell. Is This the Life also revealed some of Waters’ most sensitive sides, with songs like “Wait for Her” giving audiences a rare glimpse of him as more than a didactic orator. After years of lawsuits and bitter public spats, he was also ready to deal with Pink Floyd’s ever-looming ghost. Waters included overt musical references to Wish You Were Here and The Wall, giving this project a vintage and contemporary air. Is This the Life We Want? Pushed the boundaries of what a Roger Waters record could be while honoring his illustrious musical past.

4. ‘David Gilmour’ (David Gilmour, 1978)

Animals and later The Wall, the two Waters-heavy Pink Floyd albums on either side of Gilmour’s self-titled debut, are destined to be forever compared. When viewed as a smaller, personal statement, David Gilmour holds up well. In 1978, Gilmour told Circus magazine, “This album was crucial to me in terms of self-respect.” “I needed to go out from under Pink Floyd’s shadow after being in a group for so long.” David Gilmour succeeds on his terms by not attempting to sound like Pink Floyd (a mistake Gilmour frequently made throughout the band’s final act). Everything instead feels familiar and at ease. Part of the credit goes to his supporting band, which included old friends from Gilmour’s early solo band, Bullitt. They collaborate to create Gilmour’s most diverse collection.

5. (Roger Waters, 1987)

Sequenced percussion and programmed keyboards, among other commercial touches, all but killed this effort, which now appears to be a plasticine bid for MTV acceptability. “Me or Him,” “Who Needs Information,” and “Sunset Strip” are all wonderful tunes that need to be toned down. Waters realized it as well. In Pigs Might Fly: The Inside Story of Pink Floyd, he stated, “We fucked that record up between [co-producer] Ian Ritchie and myself.”

“We made it sound too modern.” However, once you get beyond the production flaws, Radio K.A.O.S. reveals itself to be a strong new rendition of Waters’ famous cry to arms against bloated bureaucracy and warmongers. The strongest tracks climbed above any writerly conceits, as is customary. Waters pushed residents to stand up to the growing indignities that finally combine into actual injustice in the film “Home,” for example. In “The Tide Is Turning (After Live Aid),” Waters even gives up on an unexpected moment of hopefulness.