Wikipedia classifies a rock opera as “a rock music album or stage production that intends to evoke the sense of music drama commonly associated with opera.” This is a list of the ten greatest rock operas; all are well worth a listen if you are not familiar with them.
10. Jesus Christ Superstar
Created By: Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim rice
Andrew Lloyd-Webber and Tim Rice introduced this rock opera in 1970. It follows the life of Christ (based on the canonical gospels) from his arrival in Jerusalem to his death by crucifixion. The opera focuses a lot of attention on Judas and his relationship with Christ. The Jesus Christ Superstar due to it being primarily based around Christ as a man and not God offended many fundamental Christian groups. Originally released as an album, the opera moved to film and Broadway where it has had great success.
9. Operation: Mindcrime
Created By: Queensryche
Operation: Mindcrime excellently treads on political themes, mainly attacking the Reagan era and shedding light on the corruption of many contemporary leaders. This is regularly thought of as Queensryche’s breakthrough album; they decided to cut loose from the mindless lyrics of their previous work and start making more meaningful songs. The story detailed in the album follows a man disheartened with current culture and in retort joins an organization planning to assassinate fraudulent leaders. To counterbalance the dark aspects, the band tossed in a common love story, which wasn’t well received by fans. The album also features a large orchestra to further embellish the story, led by Hollywood composer Michael Kamen.
8. Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes From A Memory
Created By: Dream Theater
Often billed as the definitive Dream Theater album and as one of the greatest guitar albums of all time, Scenes From A Memory tells the story of a man name Nicholas and his discovery of his past life. The opera consists of nine scenes and a progressing storyline telling of Nicholas’ troubled existence. Some prominent themes are murder, love and trust. In response to the criticism of their previous album (Falling Into Infinity), Scenes From A Memory delves back to Dream Theater’s progressive past and features abnormal time signatures and extensive instrumental sections.
7. S.F. Sorrow
Created By: Pretty Things
One of the first concept albums, S.F. Sorrow was based on a story written by singer/guitarist Phil May. The album tells about the life of Sebastian F. Sorrow; his birth, his involvement in World War I and his disillusionment of old age. The music on the album is simply amazing, from the psychedelic intonations of “S.F. Sorrow Is Born”, to the piano driven emotion of “Trust”. The album is still considered hugely significant to this day and is acknowledged as the inspiration behind Pete Townshend’s writing of Tommy.
6. The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spider From Mars
Created By: David Bowie
This album is about a Martian, Ziggy Stardust, who comes to Earth to free all humans from their dullness and predictability. Ziggy is the idealistic rock star: wild and promiscuous, but still bearing the message of peace and love. His own irresponsibility, his excessive intake of drugs and his overindulgence of sex destroy him. In many previous albums, David Bowie had drawn to sci-fi themes, but it was in this one where he would go all-out, often dressing up as Ziggy during the tour.
5. Tommy
Created By: The Who
Released in 1969, all of the songs in Tommy were composed by Pete Townshend, with some contributions by John Entwistle. It follows Tommy Walker, blind, deaf and mute since a young age. He is discovered to have fantastic talent for pinball, and soon becomes an international icon. This lead to Tommy gaining a guru-like status and opening a cult, but soon, things turn for the worse as his follower’s revolt against him. A film based on the opera was released in 1975, receiving lukewarm reviews. Interestingly, Ann-Margret, who played Tommy’s mother, got an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress.
4. Arthur (Or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire)
Created By: The Kinks
Arthur followed a rough period for The Kinks, with the commercial letdown of the highly praised The Kinks Are The Village Green Preservation Society (Top 10 Influential Albums That Bombed). The story is based on songwriter Ray Davies’ brother-in-law Arthur, who emigrated from England to Australia. Arthur is a carpet-layer and is concerned for the lack of opportunities in post-war England. The songs mainly encompass Arthur’s views on war, the England he once knew, and the emptiness of his shallow yet happy life in Australia. Arthur was somewhat a commercial success and is now considered as a turn-around from The Kinks’ failures before it.
3. The Lamb Dies Down On Broadway
Created By: Genesis
The last Genesis album to feature their extraordinary flute-playing frontman Peter Gabriel, The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway is an astonishing album utilizing abstract storytelling and recurring themes of Greek folklore. The album weaves a surreal storyline involving a juvenile delinquent being swept underground to face strange creatures and frightening dangers in a quest to rescue his brother John. Lamb showcases Genesis’ peak; the lyrics and music are extremely intricate and beautiful. It is their most notable and best-selling release to date and yet the sound does not bear any similarities to any other Genesis albums.
2. The Wall
Created By: Pink Floyd
Nothing need be said about The Wall, it is one of the best-selling albums of all time and is psychotically brilliant, both lyrically and musically. Even though it is billed to Pink Floyd, this is basically a psychological journey through Roger Waters’ mind, telling of the trials and tribulations of being a beloved musical icon. Centered on the main character Pink, The Wall is a dark, intricate haze of pain, misery, and obsession. This epic spawned a cinematic equivalent that is easily as captivating and amazing as the album. The Wall helped end the 70′s era of rock and was a crucial part of the progressive rock movement. Its elaborate guitar work, melancholy lyrics, and depressing ambiance has been a great influence on hundreds following artists.
1. Quadrophenia
Created By: The Who
While many people would choose Tommy as The Who’s greatest work, Quadrophenia is a more realized and beautiful album. Recorded at the height of Pete Townshend’s songwriting, Quadrophenia features intricate and obscure music, which is much more, developed than any other The Who album. By the time they released this double album in 1973, Townshend was already a well-known rock opera god. While Tommy was an ambitious vision of fantasy, Quadrophenia set out to examine the band’s mod roots and British adolescent society of their early years. An unquestionable classic featuring a plethora of utterly amazing songs, Quadrophenia is a must-hear for any The Who fan, or any music fan in general.
Contributor: dazednconfused
Good list, if your looking for a contemporary band that would fit into this category I would suggest Fair to Midland: Fables for a Mayfly, or Coheed and Cambria.
Yeah, right ! Dumbass “music”.
Umm, no Alice Cooper? Welcome to my nightmare was the first full rock opera…..
Dude, what about Green Day’s American Idiot? The best new punk opera–if not the first. It’s awesome!
Ravyn: Actually i thought about “other” three reasons: small, medium and big.
Small is just hillariously-silly, medium is always *****ing&complaining, and big is too full of herself (1st grade school) 
Whoever made this list has obviously never heard of Ayreon.
First off, I have to say how thrilled I am to see Jesus Christ Superstar on this list. I adore it and even went to go see it live, it rocks!
Secondly, where is We Will Rock You? It’s a musical with little spoken dialogue and is set almost entirely to rock music, with about 2(?) songs that aren’t rock!
If only the definition of Rock Opera was different…otherwise I’m sure Coheed and Cambria’s albums would’ve been on there.
I enjoy “Snow” by Spock’s Beard. Terrific rock opera.
WTF!? WHERE THE HELL IS ‘RENT’!?
“Rent” is a musical.
I like the idea of calling songs such as “Bohemian Rhapsody” and “A Quick One (While He’s Away)” rock operettas. They have an entire story in a single song with changes in melody, rhythm and character. Since it is a Queen song, BH was a satire of the rock opera genre, while the Who song was more of proto rock opera experiment.
That said, where is “Thick as a Brick?”
Where’s Ayreon’s albums ?
Nine Inch Nails’ The Downward Spiral; definitively recognized by critics as a “rock opera;” tells of the protagonist’s descent into suicidal depression…even talks about blowing his head off: “bang…so much blood for such a little hole…” One word: creepy. Amazing musical arrangements and repetitive themes. Brilliant.
I agree with Iter_Impius (66) and Enrike Brujo (72): at least one of the incredible Ayreon-albums should be on this list…especially because of the fantastic approach of each album, but also because of the meaning of the different stories alltogether – the Ayreon (Arjan Lucassen) space-imperium.
I don’t know if this would actually count for the rock opera category…but if there is ever a sequel list or something, take a look at Beethoven’s Last Night, by the Trans-Siberian Orchestra….
Another good one, if anyone is interested, is a religious one call !Hero.
I love Jesus Christ Superstar! I have almost every line memorized!
Um…if RENT is a musical, then JCS most certainly is. And I have to say that if musicals are being included on this list, Hair or RENT should definitely be on it, as they are (musically and thematically) great. And @Drakhon: Phantom of the Opera should not be anywhere near this list. It’s entertaining, but that’s about it. The music is not very interesting and the characters are shallow, and although ALW called it a rock opera, it’s more of an operetta at best.
P.S.: I agree whole-heartedly with the placements of Quadrophenia and The Wall.
I agree with Thespianette–if Jesus Christ Superstar is on this list, RENT most certainly qualifies as well. I would argue that it fits the definition beautifully, especially since in the stage version hardly a word is spoken and if you’ve seen it, it’s quite difficult to deny the drama. Jesus Christ Superstar is a musical as well and if you exclude RENT for being a musical then by the same logic JCS should not be on here.
I would put Beethoven’s Last Night by Trans-Siberian Orchestra.
The Wall should have been number 1
dazedandconfused, First I’d like to compliment your taste in music, this is list amazing. I’ve downloaded all of the albums and am currently in the process of listening to them. But I have a few arguments. I don’t feel that Arthur (Or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire)can be construed as a rock opera.
I do not know what the media or the band claimed it to be, because I haven’t done too much research on the album itself. But I can’t see any logical story to the album. Even in your explanation of it, you say its essentially just a gathering of songs that explain Arthur’s views on the war.
I by no means am saying it’s a bad album (I’m a pretty big Kinks fan) but I think it’s more of a concept album than a rock opera.
HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH!!
Hedwig and the Angry Inch is a musical. Musicals (such as Rent and Hedwig) are different from rock operas. Musicals are essentially plays where people sing from time to time. However rock operas (much like regular operas) are completely music. They are stories told through music and lyrics.
Jesus Christ Superstar was a rock opera that was later transformed into a stage production (much like Tommy). Please stop confusing the two, and do a little research before you shout out a musical you like.
while searching on google for the top ten rock operas i found this site which had most of the albums i thought to be here and then i found igns top 14list. while it is in a different order i found that the wall and quadrophenia and others were simply copied and pasted. now im not sure if this is the original or if the ign one is, but either way the writter on ign takes full credi. just thought i’d let you know
I’m glad I’m not the only fan of Ayreon here!
C’mon. The Human Equation? 01011001 (“The Binary Album” lol)?
Actually all of Ayreon’s albums span across a single story arc with the exception of The Human Equation and Into the Electric Castle.
The Binary Album is sort of a broad stroke tying his other albums together, from The Final Experiment to Universal Migrator/Dream Sequencer. Some nods are also made to The Human Equation and Into the Electric Castle, which are separate from his main story (though the last 30 seconds of Day Twenty: Confrontation are a joke).
listen to City Boy’s “The Day the Earth Caught Fire” produced by “Mr.Shania Twain” Mutt Lange….incredible vocals and amazing guitar from Mike Slamer
Mightbegiant- Ever heard the Nightwish version of Phantom of the Opera?
I like 75 and 80′s suggestion of Beethoven’s last night by TSO but, I wonder if they are familiar with the roots of TSO.
Check the band Savatage for several albums that are rock operas. The two best in my opinion are Streets (full of pain, loss, redemption, and seriously hard hitting rock and roll) and Dead Winter Dead (about the war in the former Yugoslavia and containing the original release of TSO’s Christmas Eve).
Phantom Of The Paradise should be herreee!
Rent? Phantom of the Opera? Phantom of the Paradise? The Rocky Horror Show?
great list i have heard 10, 5, and 2. must go and find them on line to listen to them.
RENT is completely a rock opera. just for the fact that it is almost completely sung, esp. with the definition of opera being a drama set to music and made up of vocal pieces with orchestral accompaniment and orchestral overtures and interludes (via webster’s). so :p
Thanks for mentioning Metropolis Pt. 2….Dream Theater kicks ass !!
…also, thanks for including “Lamb Lies Down…” from Genesis…a truely fascinating work with a graet story and playing from everybody involved (check out the live version in it’s entiriety on the “Live 68′-75′” boxset where Peter recites some of the storylines before certain songs.
I’ll just mention a few “honorable mentions” here:
-Thick as a Brick (Jethro Tull)
I’ve got an original copy of the LP with a fold-out newspaper…Tull in their hey-day…
-Tales from Topographic Oceans (YES)
This album *****ed-off a lot of people….but I find it fascinating. Four songs, each clocking in at 18-20 min. each
-Misplaced Childhood (Marillion)
One of the last albums with Fish on vocals…(Clutching at Straws was sort of a followup)
You should’ve put up Frank Zappa’s Joe’s Garage. It’s one of the most unique, well-written, masterpieces of it’s generation.
I agree with the guy above. Take off Dream Theater’s album and put on Zappa’s.
Shouldn’t Queen be up there?:O
I thought that they were rock-opera material!:P
Out of curiosity, who here has seen Repo! The Genetic Opera?
wow, having two albums on this list. townshend as a writer/composer is obviously a musical genius.
Glad The Wall is on here along with Tommy and Jesus Christ Superstar. Although I would have had Tommy a little higher than it was. I will now have to find that soundtrack since I have the song “See Me, Feel Me” running through my head.
I am pleased with the inclusion of the Lamb Lies down.. but Mabey The Minstral in the Gallery or Thick as a Brick by Jethro Tull could have been considered
I love all of pink floyd’s concept albums. I felt that wish you were here would have been good. It’s a little less of a narrative but it’s most of all about poor syd barret and the stresses and business of touring that drove him mad. Plus animals, the final cut, and who can forget the dark side of the moon are all great concept albums…. but not to such an obvious degree.
Ribbons of War, by The Extraordinaires.
It’s my favorite, maybe even better than The Wall (though that’s a tough one). The story is about a doomed romance between a sea captain and an airplane pilot.
It manages to be silly, heart wrenching, and ridiculously catchy all at the same time. I really have never heard anything like it, and I’d encourage anyone to check it out. (They go all out on their album art too.)
http://punkrockpayroll.com/music.html#extra
http://www.myspace.com/theextraordinaires
HEDWIG!
rock opera or musical, whatever! that movie is absolute brillance!
im a junior in hs and we recently did tommy… and it was *****ing amazing! i will be stage manager for the next show we do and this means i have a say in what we do. =] what are the best rock operas with scripts?
A couple of more recent concept albums/”rock operas” that I rather like:
1) Protest the Hero “Kezia”
-Tells the tale of a girl (Kezia) who’s imprisoned and sentenced to death for her various crimes. It’s an album in 3 parts, talking about the subject from the point of views of the prison’s priest, one of the members of the firing squad in charge of putting her to death, and finally her own tale.
2) Boys Night Out “Trainwreck”
-Suffering from terrible nightmares, a man kills his wife in his sleep, and track by track he continually loses his mind as the music gets heavier, doing such things as cutting off his hands, and poisoning his family to try to resurrect his wife. Amazing, while I like Kezia better musically, the story and the concept of Trainwreck makes it my favorite “rock opera” of all time.
Hello… No rent here? that is one of the best rock operas ever!!!
Yay dream theater!! And The Wall, and Tommy
Ayreon – The Human Equation!
im so glad Quadrophenia is number 1. i listen to that album at least 2x every month. much better in terms of themes, storyline, and musical ability than tommy. I love rock operas too. the only ones i hadnt heard of were Operation: Mindcrime and SF Sorrow
Ven: I have seen Repo: The Genetic Opera!
Seemingly noone else in the world besides us and my flatmate who I forced to watch it have actually seen it…
i think american idiot by green day is better than half of these
kdawg, there’s a difference between a rock opera and a single song.
Great to see Metropolis on the list- especially their magnum opus album.
Ven: I LOVE Repo!
I don’t care about the rest of the list, I *****ING LOVE YOU FOR PUTTING QUADROPHENIA AT #1!!!
Finally someone realizes the complete awesomeness of that album and that it’s miles ahead of Tommy.
There is a very fine line between rock opera and concept album, as many of those listed and mentioned in the succeeding comments could fall into both categories. The Who were phenomenal with their “Tommy” and “Quadrophenia” works. It does indeed seem that Pete Townshend’s writing did reach its zenith with the latter, as subsequent Who albums…even though I liked many of such…were not as impressive artistically and aesthetically. It’s a travesty that Townshend’s “Lifehouse” never reached fruition, as I think it would have been an interesting and intriguing experience.
An honorable mention: Marillion’s “Misplaced Childhood”.
Yep, a lot of the above mentioned seemed more like concept albums (Alan Parson’s Project – I Robot, for example). To be an opera, wouldn’t you need to revisit common musical themes, not just the beginning and end, but thru out the album?
BTW, Didn’t realize Operation Mindcrime was anti-Reagan. I always thought it was the opposite as it was 1984ish and anti totalitarian. Of course, much like the punk frauds going by the name of Greenday, their worldview might be so utterly warped that they can’t tell the obvious difference.
I agree 100% with 1st and 2nd.
Great list. When I first saw the title I figured "Oh, well 'The Wall' is going to be #1 for sure", so I'm thrilled to see Quadrophenia at the top. The Wall is an amazing ablum, as is Tommy, and many other ablums on the list, but Quadrophenia is in a class all its own. Townshend is brilliant.