My favourite six-pack

Good evening, all.

Given my current stress level, and absurd workload, I thought it might be cool to pull back on the super-analytical, hyper-political reins a bit, and do something I've wanted to do for quite some time: post my all-time favourite six-pack of rock n roll albums.

Now, not just any lightweight collection of tunage can crack my prestigious list. No, this is a list of heavy-hitters, master tunesmiths, and musical prodigies. Anyway, before I get too long-winded, I present without further adieu (and with obvious debt to Comic Book Guy of Simpson's fame for the nifty opening), the best...six-pack...ever:

6. Too Fast For Love - Motley Crue - Simply the best work they've ever done. Just over 30 minutes of loud, sloppy riffage, with pop choruses so sweet they would rot even the whitest of teeth. Mick Mars has never sounded better than he does tearing it up on Take me to The Top, Piece of Your Action, and Starry Eyes. A true classic that spawned a million inferior imitations.

5. Exile on Main Street - Rolling Stones - The hits are few and far between on this album. What lies in their place is a diverse collection spanning the map from American country, to old-school blues, to ragged rawk an' roll. Their best album by a long shot. Faves of mine on it: Rocks off, Sweet Black Angel, Happy.

4. Fair Warning - Van Halen - This album tanked when it was released in 1981, but the initial fan backlash over it has subsided substantially in the nearly-thirty years since. Fact is (and most Halen fans would agree), this album is chock full of brilliant riffery, razor-sharp tunes, brooding lyrics, and thick grooves. Sure, the subject matter is dark; dealing with everything from ghetto life (Mean Streets), to adult movies (Dirty Movies). And that is what I love about this album. It isn't a typical party-anthem Van Halen record. It has serious teeth. That, and the fact that Eddie Van Halen has never again approached the level of ferocity he displayed on standouts like the afformentioned tracks, and Unchained.

3. Back in Black - AC/DC - Yes, entire forests have been clear cut to make paper for the volumes of praise heaped upon this record since it first hit store shelves in 1980. You know what? Every good word ever written about it still isn't enough. This is the perfect blues-based, good old fashioned kick-in-the-lower extremeties rock album. There isn't a wasted note anywhere to be found. The Young brothers crank it up to "11", and unleash a blistering barrage of instantly-classic riffs, while newcomer Brian Johnson hits a vocal range previously thought to only be audible to dogs. Not a bad song in sight. I love 'em all: everything from Hell's Bells, to Rock n Roll Ain't Noise Polution, to Have a Drink on Me, to Shake a Leg, and all points in between.

2. Houses of the Holy - Led Zeppelin - The best album from my favourite band of all. Many Zep fanatics often pick the obvious albums in their catalogue, like II, IV, or Physical Graffitti. Don't get me wrong, I love each one of those albums greatly, but Houses contains a brilliant eclecticism the likes of which even Zeppelin themselves could never top: the smooth jazz/pop of The Rain Song, the James Brown funk of The Crunge, the spine-tingling 12-string folk intro of Over The Hills And Far Away, the frenetic speed, and shimmering chime of The Song Remains The Same. All brilliant, all incredibly well-executed. Best album of a very good lot.

1. Toys in The Attic - Aerosmith - I love this album so much, I can barely articulate just how remarkable I think it is. On this record, Aerosmith concocted the perfect balance between Steven Tyler's gritty wail, Perry and Whitford's fantastic interplay, and the locomotive rythm section of Kramer and Hamilton. I still get goosebumps from tunes like No More No More, Adam's Apple, and Uncle Salty. The greatest American rock n roll band of all time at the peak of their power.