The compiling of any studio album is essential to any music genre’s success. A lead single is what brings audiences to the album, a string of good songs will convince them to stick around, but a great final track will solidify any album as a great one worthy of acclaim.
Sometimes, a great opening song can do the trick, as it sets the tone for the album, but a lasting impression trumps a first impression every time. The final thing that a listener hears on an album is going to be what sticks with them long after they stop listening. This applies to every genre, especially rock. There’s a reason why rock ‘n’ roll reigned supreme once upon a time ago as long as it did — because the best rock albums delivered on their final impression. In some cases, rock bands would save the best for last.
10
TOTO – Toto IV (1982)
“Africa”
It’s impossible to discuss the best album epilogues without discussing “Africa.” The ’80s mega-hit became the definitive talking point of TOTO’s fourth album. Believe it or not, “Africa” wasn’t even the lead single of the album. That honor belonged to “Rosanna,” which is ironically the first song on this album. “Africa” was the second single on this album, and it wasn’t even released as a single until two months after the album had already come out. It’s as if listeners were replaying “Africa” so much that TOTO felt compelled to release it as a single.
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For all intents and purposes, “Africa” was the show-stealer of Toto IV. That isn’t to say that “Rosanna” wasn’t a hit single, because it was. But “Africa” was the hit single. “Africa” topped the charts as TOTO’s first and only number-one charting song.
9
Tame Impala – Currents (2015)
“New Person, Same Mistakes”
The evolution of Tame Impala has been a marvel to behold through the years. While prior albums Innervisions and Lonerism took a more inspired approach, reminiscent of the Beatles, Currents saw the Aussie natives start experimenting with their sound. Leaning more toward psychedelic rock helped Tame Impala produce “New Person, Same Mistakes.”
That wasn’t the only track on the album to stick with listeners, as “The Less I Know the Better” and “Let It Happen were beloved by the masses. However, “New Person, Same Mistakes” left more of a cultural impact. Most notably, the song inspired a cover from the hit “Umbrella” songstress Rihanna on her 2016 Anti album. While Rihanna’s cover was a massive success in its own right, it helped elevate and draw attention to Tame Impala’s original song, as well as Tame Impala themselves.
8
Led Zeppelin – Led Zeppelin IV (1971)
“When the Levee Breaks”
It’s one thing for the last song on an album to be the best. It is something entirely different for that last song to be the best song of the artist’s discography. Even more so, it’s a completely new beast when that final song becomes revered as one of the best songs in the history of music. “When the Levee Breaks” is one such song.
Led Zeppelin IV is a prime example of an essential early metal album, and it has built a reputation as being an absolute must-listen because of “When the Levee Breaks.” That isn’t to shortchange the album either. “Stairway to Heaven” and “Black Dog” have earned their own amount of acclaim. It’s a testament to the strength of “When the Levee Breaks for it to still find a means of surpassing other amazing songs on the album so highly.
7
Jimi Hendrix – Electric Ladyland (1968)
“Voodoo Child (Slight Return)”
Jimi Hendrix hosts one of the best discographies that a musician could ever dream of having. Hendrix is a rare musician where each of his albums improves upon the last. They just keep getting better, with his third and final studio album being arguably his best effort as a singer and instrumentalist. The same can be said about the final song on Hendrix’s last album. It most certainly has garnered the biggest legacy for itself, both in music history and for the usage of Hendrix’s “Voodoo Child (Slight Return)” in Hollywood movies.
It’s not only the final impression that Hendrix leaves on the album, but a final impression as a musician before his death. It leaves fans to wonder how he would have continued to excel as an artist from here had he continued living after this recording.
6
Skunk Anansi – Post-Orgasmic Chill (1999)
“I’m Not Afraid”
The British rock band’s third album fully commits a more punk philosophy to their sound. Throughout “Post-Orgasmic Chill”, the troupe embodies a heavy metal fury and a call to action through its intense, electric lyricism. “On My Hotel TV” is a huge standout that carries the punk genre sensibilities that every punk fan must hear. With that in mind, “I’m Not Afraid” is far more slowed-down and even subtle compared to most of what came before it.
The result is something that truly feels like an epilogue in the cinematic sense. It brings the high-paced intensity of the album to a screeching halt in favor of slowing things down. It’s the equivalent of an ending credits sequence for the album, one which carries the themes of what came before it, but with far more low-key refinement.
5
The Doors – The Doors (1967)
“The End”
To say that this ’60s band blew the proverbial doors off the hinges of the music industry is an understatement. The Doors marked the band’s debut album in 1967. “Light My Fire” was something of a breakout single for the group, while the notoriety of their debut single — “Break On Through (to the Other Side)” — speaks for itself.
Still, it’s Jim Morrison and co.’s “The End” that helps the group separate themselves from their contemporaries. “The End” is a 15-minute epic, a move that would be risky in any portion and in any form even today. The lengthier timestamp is a bold one, but that gives listeners all the more time to resonate with the song. Even in a movie, “The End” can’t be used any better.
4
Evanescence – Fallen (2003)
“My Immortal – Band Version”
There are two versions of “My Immortal” on the Fallen album. The first is practically more orchestral, leaning into a more emo tone for the song, while the “Band Version” encompasses the band’s instruments (guitar, drums, etc.) and ends the track on almost a more upbeat, even triumphant note. It’s a sharp contrast to what came before, but that’s almost what works best about it.
“My Immortal” sets the stage for what emotions may arise from its lyrics, but then the song kicks into a whole new gift. Evanescence gives the audience the best of both worlds with this album: the modern, upbeat rock sound, gelling together with the more bittersweet gothic atmosphere. On an album that features modern-day classics like “Bring Me to Life,” “Going Under,” and “Haunted,” “The Immortal – Band Version” encompasses that style better than any other track.
3
Linkin Park – Meteora (2003)
“Numb”
A closing track is sometimes more than just a lasting impression or a final means of solidifying an album’s critical acclaim. Sometimes, the final track on an album is the deciding factor that elevates a band or musician into legend status. One can say that this was the case for Linkin Park. While their debut allowed them to put “In the End” and “Crawling” into the world, it was their second album, Meteora, that provided them a launch pad into superstardom. Songs like “Faint,” Somewhere I Belong,” and “Breaking the Habit” help mark this as a breakout for the group.
But it was “Numb” that helped take them over the moon. Any one song from the album can be considered the best, but “Numb” feels like the hit that pumped new life into the band for their sophomore attempt. It still stands as one of Linkin Park’s best.
2
Sleater-Kinney – Sleater-Kinney (1995)
“The Last Song”
Taking cues from “The End” by The Doors, “The Last Song” takes a literal approach to Sleater-Kinney’s debut album. Much like how “The End” signaled the end of the Doors’ album, “The Last Song” signals, well, the last song on their album. The actual song’s lyrics, however, are not meant to be taken in such meta territory. The song itself comes from the perspective of someone who is tired of writing songs about the same person who hurt them over and over again and declares this is the last time they will sing about this person.
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Sleater-Kinney has always showcased unrelenting female rage at its finest through the band’s energy and lyrics. For an early entry in their discography, it ranks as an early indicator of what they’re capable of. Wailing, frantic strumming, emotional drumming — it’s all here, and it only gets better.
1
Prince – Purple Rain (1984)
“Purple Rain”
For Prince’s sixth studio album, Purple Rain stands tall as not only his best but one of the greatest albums ever released in the music industry. Its failure to win the Grammy Award for Album of the Year is still regarded as the most shocking loss in Grammy history. While the movie of the same name certainly helped Purple Rain’s lasting legacy, songs like “When Doves Cry,” “Let’s Go Crazy,” and “Darling Nikki” helped deliver a more timeless quality.
As for the title track, “Purple Rain” proved to be Prince’s magnum opus. The song is a nearly nine-minute ballad of guitar strings and piano keys, slowly building from a somber tune to an epic crescendo. “Purple Rain” isn’t just the best song on this album, but the best in Prince’s entire catalog.
