OK, it's time.
Round 11:
NEIL YOUNG
On the Beach (1974)
Zuma (1975)
Ragged Glory (1990)
The packaging of Neil's Archives Vol. 2 showed us that contemporary reviewers did not understand On the Beach. At all. They thought it was weird and depressing. Those of course are two of the many reasons why it's great. An apocalyptic theme pervades, despite the songs being written at different points between 1970 and 1974, and side 2 has a marvelously hazy vibe to it due to being recorded under the influence of something called honeyslides.
Revolution Blues (#15 on my Neil countdown)
On the Beach (#18 on my Neil countdown)
Zuma was Neil's return to a more mainstream rock sound after three albums of stuff that was definitely not that. IMO it, along with side 2 of Rust Never Sleeps, are the main sources of the "Godfather of Grunge" label. And those of you who followed my Neil countdown know it's home to my favorite song of all time.
Danger Bird (#23 on my Neil countdown)
Cortez the Killer (#1 on my Neil countdown)
After a career revival the year before with Freedom, Neil cemented his place in the hard rock canon with Ragged Glory, which updates and distills everything great about his work with Crazy Horse. It holds a special place in my heart because it prompted the tour on which I saw Neil live for the first time, which remains the greatest show I have ever seen by anyone.
F*!#in' Up (#11 on my Neil countdown)
Love to Burn (#31 on my Neil countdown)