Rock Albums Released in August
August has been a vibrant month for rock album releases, often capturing the adventurous energy of summer. In the early days of rock, some albums released in August lacked precise documentation of their debut dates, a reflection of the era’s less formalized industry practices. As the summer’s peak, August was the ideal time for albums that echoed the year’s hottest trends while teasing the shifts to come in fall.
Year
Artist – Album
1995
Symphony X – The Damnation Game
Pram – Sargasso Sea
Petra – No Doubt
1992
Sodom – Tapping the Vein
Powderfinger – Powderfinger (EP)
The Jennifers – Just Got Back Today
1990
Front Line Assembly – Caustic Grip
1989
Anthrax – Penikufesin
Bad Manners – Return of the Ugly
1988
The Go-Betweens – 16 Lovers Lane
Santana – Viva Santana!
1987
Mayhem – Deathcrush
Warren Zevon – Sentimental Hygiene
Midnight Oil – Diesel and Dust
The Dukes of Stratosphear – Psonic Psunspot
1986
Triumph – The Sport of Kings
Daryl Hall – Three Hearts in the Happy Ending Machine
Camper Van Beethoven – Camper Van Beethoven
Vinnie Vincent Invasion – Vinnie Vincent Invasion
Zodiac Mindwarp – High Priest of Love
The Triffids – In the Pines
Black ‘N Blue – Nasty Nasty
1985
Squeeze – Cosi Fan Tutti Frutti
Loverboy – Lovin’ Every Minute of It
Angel Witch – Screamin’ ‘n’ Bleedin’
Nick Lowe – The Rose of England
Spear of Destiny – World Service
1984
Bobby and the Midnites – Where the Beat Meets the Street
Kansas – The Best of Kansas
Krokus – The Blitz
The Fixx – Phantoms
Hanoi Rocks – Two Steps from the Move
1983
Moody Blues – The Present
Raven – All for One
Heart – Passionworks
Cabaret Voltaire – The Crackdown
Marc and the Mambas – Torment and Toreros
1982
George Thorogood & the Destroyers – Bad to the Bone
Tygers of Pan Tang – The Cage
America – View from the Ground
The Comsat Angels – Fiction
Michael McDonald – If That’s What It Takes
Manilla Road – Metal
John Cale – Music for a New Society
Little Heroes – Play by Numbers
Santana – Shango
Steve Winwood – Talking Back to the Night
Dexy’s Midnight Runners – Too-Rye-Ay
Demon – The Unexpected Guest
1981
The Allman Brothers Band – Brothers of the Road
Mission of Burma – Signals, Calls, and Marches
The Kinks – Give the People What They Want
Dan Fogelberg – The Innocent Age
The Minutemen – Joy
Donnie Iris – King Cool
Ian Hunter – Short Back ‘n’ Sides
Tim Curry – Simplicity
Simple Minds – Sons and Fascination/Sister Feelings Call
Little River Band – Time Exposure
Brad Whitford and Derek St. Holmes – Whitford/St. Holmes
1980
Van Morrison – Common One
Captain Beefheart – Doc at the Radar Station
Gamma – Gamma 2
Black Flag – Jealous Again
Loverboy – Loverboy
Michael Schenker Group – The Michael Schenker Group
The Allman Brothers Band – Reach for the Sky
Quartz – Stand Up and Fight
Toy Love – Toy Love
1979
J.J. Cale – 5
Randy Newman – Born Again
Billy Thorpe – Children of the Sun
Van Morrison – Into the Music
1978
Sammy Hagar – All Night Long
Wire – Chairs Missing
Player – Danger Zone
Magnum – Kingdom of Madness
Joe Cocker – Luxury You Can Afford
Klaatu – Sir Army Suit
Scorpions – Tokyo Tapes
Dan Fogelberg and Tim Weisberg – Twin Sons of Different Mothers
Johnny Winter – White, Hot and Blue
1977
The Angels – The Angels
The Animals – Before We Were So Rudely Interrupted
Eric Carmen – Boats Against the Current
Donovan – Donovan
Lone Star – Firing on All Six
Ry Cooder – Showtime
1976
Hall & Oates – Bigger Than Both of Us
Linda Ronstadt – Hasten Down the Wind
Artful Dodger – Honor Among Thieves
The Modern Lovers – The Modern Lovers
Split Enz – Second Thoughts
Roxy Music – Viva!
Orleans – Waking and Dreaming
Gasolin’ – What a Lemon
1975
Tina Turner – Acid Queen
Grand Funk Railroad – Caught in the Act
Eric Clapton – E.C. Was Here
The Marshall Tucker Band – Searchin’ for a Rainbow
Loggins & Messina – So Fine
Climax Blues Band – Stamp Album
The Allman Brothers Band – Win, Lose or Draw
1974
Emerson, Lake & Palmer – Welcome Back My Friends to the Show That Never Ends… Ladies and Gentlemen
Alice Cooper – Greatest Hits
T. Rex – Light of Love
Harry Chapin – Verities & Balderdash
Bachman–Turner Overdrive – Not Fragile
Steppenwolf – Slow Flux
1973
Golden Earring – Moontan
The Allman Brothers Band – Brothers and Sisters
War – Deliver the Word
Can – Future Days
Van Morrison – Hard Nose the Highway
Blood, Sweat & Tears – No Sweat
Ian Matthews – Valley Hi
Buffalo – Volcanic Rock
Brownsville Station – Yeah!
1972
Black Sabbath – Vol. 4
Family – Bandstand
Bonnie Raitt – Give It Up
Boz Scaggs – My Time
Brinsley Schwarz – Nervous on the Road
Mickey Hart – Rolling Thunder
Sandy Denny – Sandy
Pentangle – Solomon’s Seal
Budgie – Squawk
David Clayton-Thomas – Tequila Sunrise
1971
Jimi Hendrix – Experience
Big Brother and the Holding Company – How Hard It Is
Atomic Rooster – In Hearing of Atomic Rooster
If – If 3
New Riders of the Purple Sage – New Riders of the Purple Sage
Nigel Olsson – Nigel Olsson’s Drum Orchestra and Chorus
Butterfield Blues Band – Sometimes I Just Feel Like Smilin’
The Partridge Family – Sound Magazine
Ten Years After – A Space in Time
Can – Tago Mago
Gene Clark – White Light
1970
Al Kooper – Easy Does It
Fairfield Parlour – From Home to Home
Quicksilver Messenger Service – Just for Love
Joe Cocker – Mad Dogs & Englishmen
Status Quo – Ma Kelly’s Greasy Spoon
The Bob Seger System – Mongrel
Little Richard – The Rill Thing
Mungo Jerry – Mungo Jerry
1969
The Association – The Association
Harry Nilsson – Harry
Can – Monster Movie
Ten Years After – Ssssh
The Head Shop – The Head Shop
1968
Ultimate Spinach – Behold & See
Donovan – Donovan in Concert
Eric Burdon & The Animals – Every One of Us
The Vogues – Memories
Blue Cheer – Outsideinside
Country Joe and the Fish – Together
The Vogues – Turn Around, Look at Me
1967
Chuck Berry – Chuck Berry in Memphis
Tim Buckley – Goodbye and Hello
Joan Baez – Joan
The Electric Prunes – Underground
Vanilla Fudge – Vanilla Fudge
1966
The Paul Butterfield Blues Band – East-West
1965
Beau Brummels – The Beau Brummels, Volume 2
Paul Simon – The Paul Simon Songbook
1964
Bo Diddley and Chuck Berry – Two Great Guitars
The Ventures – Walk, Don’t Run, Vol. 2
1963
The Ventures – Let’s Go!
1962
Bo Diddley – Bo Diddley
1960
Bill Haley & His Comets – Haley’s Juke Box: Songs of the Bill Haley Generation