Three in a row

[Ptommydski]

Here's a good one to change it up a bit.

Do you have three bands who released three great records for three consecutive years?

I realise that this involves judging which albums can be considered 'great' but critical consensus will carry the vote.

[Christophe]

REM [Murmur (1983), Reckoning (1984), Fables of the Reconstruction (1985)]
Talking Heads [More Songs About Buildings And Food (1978), Fear of Music (1979), Remain in Light (1980)]
Wire [Pink Flag (1977), Chairs Missing (1978), 154 (1979)]

zing.

[Ptommydski]

Record timing and no arguments regarding classic status of said albums.

Nice one.

[KickThatBathProf]

The only one I could find in my library was

Sonic Youth [EVOL (1986), Sister (1987), Daydream Nation (1988)]

[AanAllein]

Wire would've been my pick too...

Another two bands:

David Bowie (The Man Who Sold The World (1970)/Hunky Dory (1971)/The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust (1972))
LCD Soundsystem (LCD Soundsystem (2005), 45:33 (2006), Sound of Silver (2007)) assuming you count 45:33 as an album...

I would mention The Jesus Lizard if I'd heard Head (1990), since Goat (1991)/Liar (1992) is a good one-two punch.

[squawk]

skwm - firewater (1996)/developer (1997)/blueblood (1998)

duh

but that's just because it's hard for me to find other bands. they usually stick to like, alternating years.

[Joseph]

I hit reply to mention Silkworm, only to have in stolen from me in the two minutes I took to confirm my intuition.

CCR - CCR [1968]/Bayou Country+Green River [1969]/Cosmo's Factory [1970]
Throbbing Gristle - D.o.A: The Third and Final Report [1978]/20 Jazz Funk Greats [1979]/Heathen Earth [1980]
Make-Up - Destination: Love [1996]/Sound Verite [1997]/In Mass Mind [1998]

[Rudi Voller]

Neil Young [Time Fades Away (1973), Tonight's The Night (1974), On the Beach (1975), Zuma (1975 as well)]

If we're allowed EPs then I'd personally class Polvo's run of Cor-Crane Secret, Today's Active Lifestyles and Celebrate the Dark Age ('92-4) as great.

Then Low's I Could Live in Hope, Long Division and Curtain Hits the Cast ('94-6) to round things off.

I though that Silkworm's Libertine was in '95, but it turns out it was '94, so I thought that ruled them out. Must admit that I hadn't even considered Blueblood. But then I much prefer Silkworm before Phelps left.

[Ptommydski]

Woah, we seem to have scarily similar taste, Sir. Well bowled.

I love JRL Phelps to a frankly embarrassing degree. I could probably listen to him recite the phonebook and be moved to the point of tears. His scatter-shot guitar playing and genuinely ridiculous vocal prowess was a massive part of what made the early years of Silkworm so great. I saw some early footage of the band a while ago and on the songs where his services were not required he would sit cross-legged facing his own amp, quietly seething to himself. One of the few people in indie rock who you could be absolutely sure was utterly without affectation. It was never about posturing, he really was that intense to be around - which ultimately cost him his role in Silkworm.

However, as much as I love Joel, I couldn't be without the records Silkworm made after his passing or his own records with The Downer Trio. Libertine is an eerily perfect record but it's very much the sound of a collaboration hitting the very ceiling. Wherever he is and whatever he's doing now, I'll bet he'd agree.

[Touch Me Im Sick]

Wire [Pink Flag (1977), Chairs Missing (1978), 154 (1979)]

and

Magazine [Real Life (1978), Secondhand Daylight (1979), The Correct Use of Soap (1980)]
Hüsker Dü [Metal Circus (1983), Zen Arcade (1984), New Day Rising (1985)]

[David_Dovey]

It's pretty weird but I prefer the post-Phelps SKWM material but oftentimes his songs are my favourites on the pre-Firewater records.

[michaelicious]

Elvis Costello's first three albums can count if you aren't too picky about adding or subtracting "& the Attractions".

Constantines - Constantines [2001], Modern Sinner Nervous Man [2002] (since EPs count!), Shine a Light [2003].

The Velvet Underground's first three albums.

[DarkAvenger]

I guess it's subjective but personally I'd add:

Sleater-Kinney: Sleater-Kinney (1995), Call The Doctor (1996), Dig Me Out (1997)
Archers of Loaf: Icky Mettle (1993), Vs the Greatest of All Time (1994), Vee Vee (1995) although this one is slightly less general consensus and more personal opinion than Sleater-Kinney due to VS the Greatest of All Time.

[scarred]

Laserdance (Future Generation [1987], Around the Planet [1988], Discovery Trip [1989])

yeah I said it.

[scarred]

(shhhhh)

[Zombiedude]

Oops, that was dumb on my part

How embarrassing

[TheFuriousWombat]

Hmm, I'd say Tarentel w/ "From Bone to Satellite" (1999), "Looking for Things/Searching for Things" (2000, technically an EP but it's pretty long so I think it counts!), "The Order of Things (2001). A pretty amazing lineup of records, that.

[Jeans]

Dead Kennedys, The Dead Milkmen, Death in June
Hot Snakes, Husker Du, Iggy & The Stooges
Mclusky, Minor Threat, Minutemen (this is the best one)
Pogues, Portishead, Public Enemy

[David_Dovey]

If you included the first two Stooges albums in with Iggy &- (presumably just Raw Power, yeah?) then that'd be yr winner straight up

[Spluff]

Black Sabbath - Black Sabbath/Paranoid [1970], Master of Reality [1971], Volume 4 [1972], Sabbath Bloody Sabbath [1973]

All the other runs that come to mind have already been listed I think?

[EDIT] Maybe Miles Davis - Miles in the Sky [1968], Bitches Brew [1969], A Tribute to Jack Johnson [1970], but I don't know if Miles in the Sky classifies as a great album. The other two definitely pick up any slack that it left in the lineup, though.

[MrBlu]

The Who
The Word
The The

[Ptommydski]

Is that alphabetical order? Isn't T before W?

Am I just being an idiot here?

[a pack of wolves]

The Minutemen: What Makes a Man Start Fires? (1983),  Double Nickels on the Dime (1984), 3-Way Tie (For Last) (1985), although some may disagree with me on the merits of the latter album (they're wrong).
Melvins: Lyson (1992), Houdini (1993), Stoner Witch (1994).
If their BBC sessions can be included then The Delgados have a great run of Domestiques (1996), BBC Sessions (1997), Peloton (1998).

[BlahBlah]

Shame on you all for forgetting Dylan.

Bringing it all back home
Highway 61 Revisited
Blonde on Blonde

[Ptommydski]

Someone mentioned that this was too hard in Meebo and I named like twenty artists on my iPod alone to whom this applied.

Some have been mentioned but by no means all of them.

[JayJayD]

Black Sabbath - Black Sabbath/Paranoid [1970], Master of Reality [1971], Volume 4 [1972], Sabbath Bloody Sabbath [1973]

All the other runs that come to mind have already been listed I think?

[EDIT] Maybe Miles Davis - Miles in the Sky [1968], Bitches Brew [1969], A Tribute to Jack Johnson [1970], but I don't know if Miles in the Sky classifies as a great album. The other two definitely pick up any slack that it left in the lineup, though.

Miles in the Sky isn't that great, but how about replacing it with In A Silent Way?
Then that is probably one of the greatest runs in all of recorded music!

[DynamiteKid]

Pink Floyd managed Wish You Were Here (1975), Animals (1977) and The Wall (1979) consecutively.

Wait, was the question three albums in three years, or just three in a row?

[Ptommydski]

Three great albums in three consecutive years.

[Jeans]

All produced by Steve Albini.