Ranking the Albums: The Social Distortion version

For a band that's been around since the early 80's, Social Distortion doesn't have a whole lot of studio albums to their name. When Hard Times and Nursery Rhymes releases on February 18th, it will be only their 7th full length album in a 30 year history (frontman Mike Ness, the only remaining original member, has a couple solo albums to his credit). To celebrate that album releasing I will now perform a patented Shaft Went To Africa, I Went To Perkins album ranking post. One of the positives about only releasing a handfull of albums in a career, while still touring and writing on a fairly consistent basis, is that the quality will likely be very high. That is most definitely the case with Social Distortion's output. There are no bad records on this list, just some that I enjoy more than others.

For the purposes of this post Hard Times and Nursery Rhymes along with their rarities collection Mainliner: Wreckage From the Past and the live album Live at the Roxy will not be included.

6. White Light, White Heat, White Trash - 1996

1996 saw the waning of the mid-90's punk boom. Bands that Social Distortion had influenced were making it big and you can hear the band trying to capture some of that sound on White Light. The guitars are much louder and in your face than what's normal for the band and the lyrics are very dark even by Ness standards and there is a lack of solid hooks in a significant number of tracks. The production holds the songs back, as Social D sounds like fairly generic hard rock band on most of the tunes. The style did net them some success as "I Was Wrong" was a fairly large hit at the time but White Trash just doesn't sound like Social D. That's not to say that there aren't any positives. "Don't Drag Me Down" is one of the bands best pure punk songs. "Where The Angels Sing" and the closing "Down Here (With the Rest of Us)" are great tracks that would fit on any of the bands albums. The rest of the songs are all enjoyable but whether it's the relative lack of melody or the production they just aren't that memorable.

5. Mommy's Little Monster - 1983

Social Distortion's debut is really the only true "punk" album they've ever made. The bands roots rock influence isn't seen in this collection of straight ahead, angry punk rock but most of the album holds up remarkably well today. "The Creeps," "Another State of Mind," "Telling Them" and the title track all remain concert staples to this day and are fan favorites. Ness (never a great singer) doesn't really sing as much as he  barks and yells at this point but that style fits very well with the aggression of the music. Mommy's Little Monster is very much an album of it's time but it's also one of the best early 80's punk albums ever released and belongs in any Social D fan's collection.

4. Prison Bound - 1988

Prison Bound is where the sound that Social Distortion would be most identified with throughout their career first took shape. The pace of songs slowed down and some classic rock and even (gasp!) country influences appear. The lyrics start to be centered on Ness' tales of hard luck and hard living that would become staples on all future Social D recordings. Prison Bound features at least 4 Social Distortion classics in "It's The Law," "No Pain, No Gain," "Like An Outlaw (For You)" and the title cut. "I Want What I Want" and their cover of the Rolling Stones "Backstreet Girl" are almost as good. The rest of the tracks may not reach the aforementioned heights but they're still high quality filler. This record marks the beginning of Social Distortion's classic period and is a fine piece of roots-punk history.

3. Sex, Love and Rock 'N' Roll - 2004

I'm not exactly sure what it is about Sex, Love and Rock 'N'Roll that makes me like it so much. There aren't any songs generally considered classic Social D and I don't think a whole lot get currently get played in concert. I suspect a lot of Social D fans wouldn't have it this high. I think it's the lyrics that appeal to me so much. Mike Ness has always wrote personal lyrics but the ones in songs like ""Don't Take Me For Granted," "Highway 101," and "Angel's Wings" just ring completely true. I suppose of a lot of the content here has to with the (at the time) recent death of longtime band member Dennis Danell. Sex, Love and Rock 'N' Roll comes across a full examination of Ness' life and even though he's experienced a much different life than I have, the words mean more than normal to me here. The music is uniformly excellent throughout, with a great mix of fast ("Reach For the Sky," "Nickels and Dimes" and "Live Before You Die") and slow songs ("Footprints on My Ceiling," ""Winner's and Losers") all featuring memorable sing-a-long melodies. Sex, Love and Rock 'N' Roll" is a very mature album but still has a certain youthful exuberance to match it. I love it.

2. Social Distortion - 1990

Social Distortion's major label debut is considered their best album by a lot of fans. To be sure the first six songs are all amazing. "So Far Away," Let It Be Me," "Story of My Life," "Sick Boys," "Ball and Chain" and their cover of Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire" are all standouts tracks in the bands history. Unfortunately the last four tracks are a bit of a letdown. They're all good songs and "Drug Train" is the bands first (and best) blues-punk song but they just aren't at the level of the songs on the first half. If the track sequencing wasn't as front heavy as it is, this would probably be their best album as it's got more great songs than any other record Social D has ever released.

1. Somewhere Between Heaven and Hell - 1992

Somewhere Between Heaven and Hell is hands down my favorite Social D album. It's got a great punk song ("Cold Feelings") kicking it off but from there it shows the most country influence of any other Social D record. "Making Believe" is a great cover but the originals "99 To Life," "Born To Lose" and "King of Fools" could all pass for updated 50's country songs as well. "Bad Luck" was a decent hit for the band at the time and remains in their concert set list today. There are a few more slow songs than normal but "Sometimes I Do" and "This Time Darlin" maintain the energy of the more upbeat material.  Somewhere Between Heaven and Hell has an amazing flow and even though there aren't a ton of "classic" tracks, it's incredibly consistent from start to finish.