The Worst Albums by Great Bands

Ranker Community
Updated October 15, 2025 168.6K views 218 items
Ranked By
8.1Kvoters83.9Kvotes
25reranks
Voting Rules
Only bad or critically panned albums by famous bands

Horrible music released by usually-great artists and bands. Sometimes even the most ingenious, original and creative musical voices can turn out work that's just... not up to snuff. This should not be confused with simply being ahead of one's time. Certainly, many now-renowned and significant musicians were not appreciated in their own time, or proved to be far ahead of the curve. (Those early negative notes that inspired the band name Led Zeppelin, for example. Or everyone who didn't get what Iggy Pop was up to when he first broke on to the scene. Or Neil Young's "Tonight's the Night" album.)

Instead, these are experiments, new directions or returns to the well that just didn't go well, and that have grown even worse with time. So it's time to be brutally honest, and fess up to the low points for some of the great musical artists of all time. Have at it by voting, or if you don't see your picks already on the list, start your own to get them on there.
Most divisive: Bridges to Babylon
Over 8.1K Ranker voters have come together to rank this list of The Worst Albums by Great Bands
This list is dynamically ranked based on user voting. The order reflects the consensus of our voters and is not influenced by paid placements or editorial bias.
Ranked by
  • Lulu
    1
    Metallica and Lou Reed
    2,539 votes
    • Release Date: 2011
    • Tracks: Junior Dad, Cheat on Me, Brandenburg Gate
    • Genres (Music): Noise rock, Heavy metal, Avant-garde metal, Hard rock, Spoken word
  • St. Anger
    2
    Metallica
    2,346 votes
    • Release Date: 2003
    • Tracks: The Unnamed Feeling, Sweet Amber, My World
    • Genres (Music): Heavy metal, Alternative metal, Nu metal, Thrash metal, Metalcore
  • In... the Life of Chris Gaines
    3
    Garth Brooks, Chris Gaines
    906 votes
    • Release Date: 1999
    • Tracks: Unsigned Letter, My Love Tells Me So, Driftin' Away
    • Length (mins): 00:56:32
    • Label: Capitol Records
    • Genres (Music): Alternative rock, Rock music, Country rock, Country pop
  • Unfinished Music No.1: Two Virgins
    4
    John Lennon, Yoko Ono
    1,047 votes
    • Release Date: 1968
    • Tracks: Two Virgins, Side Two, Two Virgins
    • Genres (Music): Experimental music, Avant-garde music
  • Van Halen III
    5
    Van Halen
    1,932 votes
    • Release Date: 1998
    • Tracks: Josephina, Without You, Dirty Water Dog
    • Length (mins): 01:05:24
    • Genres (Music): Heavy metal, Hard rock
  • Cut the Crap
    6
    The Clash
    1,310 votes
    • Release Date: 1985
    • Tracks: Three Card Trick, Fingerpoppin’, We Are the Clash
    • Length (mins): 00:38:42
    • Label: Epic Records
    • Genres (Music): Hardcore punk, New Wave, Punk rock, Post-punk, Synthpunk