History VindicatedByHistory / Music

* Music/FrancisPoulenc was known for writing funny, light-hearted works, but in 1936 had a spiritual epiphany (his friend Pierre-Octave Ferroud was killed in a violent car crash) and henceforth alternated between his famous humourous style and more serious, religious works and more austere late duo sonatas. In contrast to his light-hearted works which have always been popular, his religious music was overlooked during his lifetime and for decades after his death in 1963. It took until the 21st century for that side of his music to be recognized and become frequently performed and recorded.

* The 1897 premiere of Symphony No. 1 in D minor by Sergei Rachmaninoff was a total disaster; the orchestra was ''extremely'' under-rehearsed and conductor Alexander Glazunov was reportedly drunk. Nonetheless, [[MisBlamed Rachmaninoff got the blame]].[[invoked]] Critical opinion was so negative that he fell into a two-year depression where he wrote virtually nothing. Like all of Rachmaninoff's work, the symphony was re-evaluated [[PosthumousPopularityPotential after his death in 1943]]. Although Symphony No. 2 in E minor is still more popular, his First is now considered a significant achievement and a milestone in the history of Russian music.

* The opera ''Theatre/{{Carmen}}'' was not a great success when it premiered in Paris, France on 3 March 1875. Although the first act was well received as was the beginning of the second, the third and fourth acts were greeted with stunned silence. Fortunately, it was well received at the second premiere (this time in Germany) just seven months later; however, by that time Georges Bizet had already died (his death had nothing to do with the opera's failure). Today, ''Carmen'' is considered not only one of the world's greatest operas, but also one of the most popular operas ever written.

** The Violin Concerto in D major from 1806 was unsuccessful at its premiere and languished in obscurity until 1844 when the legendary Joseph Joachim took it up and proved it was a masterpiece. It has since become one of the most popular Violin Concertos in the repertoire.

* Music/{{Jawbreaker}}'s fourth album, ''Dear You''. It garnered significant backlash from the band's core audience at the time, mainly due to lead singer[=/=]FaceOfTheBand Blake Schwarzenbach singing much more smoothly and producer Rob Cavallo (well-known at the time for working with Music/GreenDay) intentionally giving it much more polished production values in comparison to the first three Jawbreaker albums. The fact that it was their first album after signing to DGC Records, a major label (they had repeatedly said that they would never join a major label in the past) only helped seal its fate. After Jawbreaker broke up just a few months later, fans eventually started to reexamine the album. When the band's drummer Adam Pfahler re-released it in 2004 after successfully licensing the publishing rights from Geffen Records, the response was much more positive all-around. Furthermore, after they performed the song "Accident Prone" from this album live at Riot Fest 2017 in Chicago, there was applause from everyone attending as well.

* Music/OrnetteColeman's album ''Free Jazz'' had an almost comedically polarized response, with magazine ''Down Beat'' giving it ''both'' 5 stars and 0 stars. It invented an entire genre.

* Music/LouReed's 1973 album ''Music/{{Berlin}}'' was torn down by critics back then, but has eventually found acclaim as a great record.

* The TeenPop craze of the late '90s and early '00s, fueled by artists like Music/BritneySpears, Music/ChristinaAguilera, the Music/BackstreetBoys, and Music/{{NSYNC}}, had a ''very'' vocal [[invoked]] {{Hatedom}} composed chiefly of fans of hardcore rock and hip-hop, based on views that [[RockIsAuthenticPopIsShallow pop music is soulless and artificial]]. Over time, however, more people have not only recognized those artists for their talent, but have also concluded that the backlash against them was fueled by the GirlShowGhetto, a belief that virtually any media marketed chiefly to teenage girls was trashy, inferior, and didn't deserve to rule the charts. It didn't help that many of the arguments against the teen pop stars of the time were tinged with homophobia against the PrettyBoy singers of the {{boy band}}s, and SlutShaming against the [[MsFanservice sexy, scantily-clad]] [[IdolSinger female pop princesses]]. Once casual homophobia and misogyny became less socially acceptable, views towards those artists softened, and teen pop stars who came after them haven't been judged quite so harshly.

** In TheNineties, Springsteen experienced a creative slump and a relative lack of commercial success and critical acclaim. It was common for articles to ask "What ever happened to Bruce Springsteen?" Main/{{Grunge}} music was also emerging around this time and seemed antithetically opposed to Springsteen's sincerity and bombast, especially in the ''Music/BornInTheUSA'' era. Over time, a new generation of bands and artists started to appreciate his work including Music/TheKillers, Music/ArcadeFire, and Music/TheGaslightAnthem to the point where Springsteen was considered one of the biggest musical influences of the 2000s.
* The teen pop craze of the late 90's, fueled by artists like Music/BritneySpears, the Music/BackstreetBoys, Music/{{NSYNC}}, and so on, had a ''very'' vocal {{Hatedom}} composed of fans of hardcore rock and rap, based on views that pop music is soulless and artificial. But over time, more people have not only recognized those artists for their talent, but have also come to realize that virtually any media marketed to teenage girls tends to be automatically judged as trashy and inferior. It didn't help that the bulk of the arguments against those artists amounted to little more than "The Backstreet Boys are gay!" and "Britney's a slut!" Once casual homophobia and misogyny went out of style, views towards those artists have softened, and teen pop stars who came after them haven't been judged quite so harshly.

* For years, "We Built This City" by Music/{{Starship}} topped many "worst songs of all time" lists. Criticisms were that despite its attempt at a rebellious, anti-corporate message, [[TheManIsStickingItToTheMan the song sounded as generically radio-friendly as they came,]] and despite claiming to be "rock and roll", [[NoTrueScotsman not a single non-synthesized instrument was used]]. With the benefit of the passing of time, the song has received a much warmer reception as a cheesy guilty pleasure, and the realization that when it came to '80s schmaltz, it was ''far'' from being the worst offender. The official Website/YouTube upload has over 18 million views with mostly positive feedback, and before the comments were taken down the general tenor was, "what was supposed to be so horrible about this song again?"

* Music/AntonBruckner was a highly polarizing composer in his lifetime; his critics, such as Music/JohannesBrahms, pointed to the large size and extensive use of repetition in his symphonies. He was also widely maligned in Vienna as well, with only a few of his symphonies actually being performed while he was still alive. On the flip-side, he also had many a celebrity fan, such as Gustav Mahler, who was friends with Bruckner and called him his "forerunner", and Music/RichardWagner, whom Bruckner respected highly.[[note]]Symphony No. 3 in D minor is dedicated to Wagner; furthermore, the second movement Adagio of Symphony No. 7 in E major was written with his death and funeral in mind, since he was in poor health at the time.[[/note]] Advances in recording technology and the introduction of longer-playing records have only increased his reputation as one of the best Romantic Era composers; every one of his 9 numbered symphonies are now part of the standard classical repertoire.

* The first performance of Music/JeanSibelius's Violin Concerto in D minor on 8 February 1904 was an utter disaster. The composer finished the work only a short time before its scheduled first performance, giving violinist Victor Nováček (a player known more for his pedagogical skill than his performing prowess) scant time to learn its extremely difficult solo part. Sibelius revised the work immediately afterwards and saw this later version successfully presented a year later. It has since entered the standard concerto repertoire for the instrument.

** Music/CatherineWheel: Although they changed their sound to a more mainstream {{alternative rock}} style and kept having hits on American rock radio after the shoegazing scene ended, their final album ''Wishville'' wasn't received very well upon its original release, leaving much of their earlier work forgotten (''Wishville'' now has a growing fanbase, though). ''Ferment'' and ''Chrome'' are now both seen as classics of not only Shoegazing, but HardRock as well.

* For TheEighties and most of TheNineties, Disco music was [[DiscoSucks declared dead]]. The genre in its heyday was urban music popular in the Black, Hispanic, and queer communities and with women of all backgrounds, while the backlash against it was largely driven by straight white men who were more into rock and country. Then a wave of '70s nostalgia made it cool to admit to liking stuff from TheSeventies again, including some disco music. The genre started to gain new appreciation for its innovative production techniques and influence on later dance music styles, especially HipHop. Disco songs are still dance floor staples at weddings and other events. Then the 2010's/early 2020's saw the world examine bigotry a lot more critically, and people have finally recognized that "Disco Sucks" was always fueled by racism, homophobia, and misogyny. Fortunately disco's SpiritualSuccessor, ElectronicDanceMusic, has enjoyed worldwide success; it helps that EDM's biggest fans are at least one generation removed from the anti-disco movement.

* The Roland TB-303 Bass Line was released in 1981 as a synthesizer meant to emulate a bass guitar, which it generally did a very poor job of, leading to it commercially failing and being discontinued in 1984. A few years later, EDM musicians discovered you could create a unique, "squelchy" sound with it by [[NotTheIntendedUse tweaking with the synthesizer while it was playing]], which lead to the birth of the Acid House genre and made the 303 a cornerstone of EDM. After the market for second-hand units and clones exploded, Roland released updated models of the 303 in the mid 2010's.

* For the '80s and most of the '90s, Disco music was [[DiscoSucks declared dead]]. The genre in its heyday was urban music popular in the Black, Hispanic, and queer communities and with women of all backgrounds, while the backlash against it was largely driven by straight white men who were more into rock and country. Then a wave of '70s nostalgia made it cool to admit to liking stuff from the '70s again, including some disco music. The genre started to gain new appreciation for its innovative production techniques and influence on later dance music styles, especially HipHop. Disco songs are still dance floor staples at weddings and other events. Then the 2010's/early 2020's saw the world examine bigotry a lot more critically, and people have finally recognized that "Disco Sucks" was always fueled by racism, homophobia, and misogyny. Fortunately disco's SpiritualSuccessor, ElectronicDanceMusic, has enjoyed worldwide success; it helps that EDM's biggest fans are at least one generation removed from the anti-disco movement.

** Music/RingoStarr's work as drummer gained quite a bit of retroactive appreciation after the albums were remastered and his fills became more audible.

* Sixto Music/{{Rodriguez}}'s two albums were well-received but bombed completely in sales in the United States in the early 1970s. However, thanks to being the most extreme example of GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff, he found himself a star in South Africa (and UsefulNotes/{{Australia}} and UsefulNotes/NewZealand) decades later. That bizarre story led to a well-received documentary, ''Film/SearchingForSugarMan'', which led to him finally getting some much-deserved media attention at last in America as a long overlooked musical star.

* Music/TheyMightBeGiants departed from their signature guitar/accordion/drum sampler sound during the mid-90s with the release of two albums: 1994's ''Music/JohnHenry'' and 1996's ''Factory Showroom'', both of which showcased the duo working with a full, conventional band lineup of guitars, bass, and drum kit. The albums were initially released to middling-to-negative reviews, and despite ''John Henry'' rendering the group's highest Billboard album charting (Until 2009's ''Join Us'') neither album was particularly successful commercially. Cut to decades later, when both albums have rendered live staples out of tracks, ("New York City", "James K. Polk", "Meet James Ensor", "The End of the Tour", and others) entire concerts have been dedicated to performances of the albums themselves, and guitarist/vocalist John Flansburgh has since gone on record to name ''Factory Showroom'' as his favorite of the band's discography.

* Music/{{Jawbreaker}}'s fourth album, ''Dear You''. It garnered significant backlash from the band's core audience at the time, mainly due to lead singer[=/=]FaceOfTheBand Blake Schwarzenbach singing much more smoothly and producer Rob Cavallo (well-known at the time for working with Music/GreenDay) intentionally giving it much more polished production values in comparison to the first three Jawbreaker albums. The fact that it was their first album after signing to DGC Records, a major label (they had repeatedly said that they would never join a major label in the past) only helped seal its fate. After Jawbreaker broke up a few months later, fans eventually started to reexamine the album. When the band's drummer Adam Pfahler re-released it in 2004 after successfully licensing the publishing rights from Geffen Records, the response was much more positive all-around. Furthermore, after they performed the song "Accident Prone" from this album live at Riot Fest 2017 in Chicago, there was applause from everyone attending as well.

* Music/GustavMahler was known as a great conductor during his lifetime and did achieve a little success with his compositions (his Symphony No. 2 in C minor ''(Resurrection)'' and Symphony No. 8 in E♭ major ''(Symphony of a Thousand)'' were two of those few successes), but being a Jew meant he had to contend with fierce anti-Semitism that eventually pressured him into resigning from his job as director of New York's Metropolitan Opera. The Nazis labeling him as a creator of "degenerate music" obviously didn't help matters; by the end of UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, his music was usually either disliked or ignored. Then highly-renowned conductors such as Music/LeonardBernstein, Music/AaronCopland, and Leopold Stokowski began championing his works. He is now seen as an influential, innovative composer whose pieces are performed and recorded regularly.

* ''Magazine/RollingStone'' magazine, due to its [[LongRunners decades-long history]] and changing staff, tends to praise genres, bands and albums that its prior reviewers and past reader's poll voters once trashed, like Music/BlackSabbath, Music/LedZeppelin, Music/{{Journey|Band}}, most 80s ThrashMetal and HairMetal, ''Music/WishYouWereHere1975'' by Music/PinkFloyd, and ''Ritual de lo habitual'' by Music/JanesAddiction.

** Bowie's minimalist, synth-heavy "Berlin Trilogy" of the late 1970s (''[[Music/LowDavidBowieAlbum Low]]'', ''[[Music/HeroesDavidBowieAlbum "Heroes"]]'' and ''Music/{{Lodger}}''), on which he collaborated with Music/BrianEno and [[Music/KingCrimson Robert Fripp]], were misunderstood and low-selling by his previous standards (though ''"Heroes"'' was ''NME'''s Album of the Year for 1977). Now they're noted for influencing SynthPop, {{New Wave|Music}} and {{Ambient}} music. The title track of ''"Heroes"'', which didn't make waves as a single, is now one of his most recognized and beloved; it is also a candidate for his SignatureSong.

* Mariya Takeuchi's single "Plastic Love" was merely a modest success back in 1984, selling 10,000 copies in Japan before quickly fading into obscurity. That is, until 2017, in which a user by the name of Plastic Lover, uploaded an extended version of the song onto [=YouTube=]. This was indirectly heavily pushed by [=YouTube=]'s recommendation algorithm, resulting in the single receiving a massive boom in popularity and acclaim, quickly kickstarting and becoming the face of the City Pop resurgence in the mid-to-late 10s. As an example of the song's resurgence in popularity, back in 1984, the single had only managed to obtain a #84 rank on the Japanese music charts, by contrast, when Warner Music Japan rereleased the single in 2021, it was listed as #5 on those same charts, becoming a top-ten single after 37 years.

** Music/PaleSaints: Really obscure and barely even reviewed back during their existence. Nowadays, their albums and [=EPs=] get swiped up on Website/EBay because of how much their stature has grown. They command a pretty penny because they barely sold in the day.

* Music/SpikeJones: Very popular during the 1940s and 1950s, but most people only saw him as a musical clown, parodying hits and doing sketches and skits more typical of a circus act than a regular musician. As a result, nobody took him seriously and failed to see that his arrangements and orchestrations were actually quite complicated to pull off, especially considering that it was all done ''live''! Only [[PosthumousPopularityPotential after his death]] did music historians finally recognize his meerit.

* Music/SpikeJones: Very popular during the 1940s and 1950s, but most people only saw him as a musical clown, parodying hits and doing sketches and skits more typical of a circus act than a regular musician. As a result, nobody took him seriously and failed to see that his arrangements and orchestrations were actually quite complicated to pull off, especially considering that it was all done ''live''! Only [[PosthumousPopularityPotential after his death]] did music historians finally merit him.

* The 1897 premiere of Symphony No. 1 in D minor by Sergei Rachmaninoff was a total disaster; the orchestra was ''extremely'' under-rehearsed and conductor Alexander Glazunov was reportedly drunk. Nonetheless, [[MisBlamed Rachmaninoff got the blame]].[[invoked]] Critical opinion was so negative that he fell into a two-year depression where he wrote virtually nothing. Like all of Rachmaninoff's work, the symphony was re-evaluated [[DeadArtistsAreBetter after his death in 1943]]. Although Symphony No. 2 in E minor is still more popular, his First is now considered a significant achievement and a milestone in the history of Russian music.

* Music/CharlieParker was once seen as a cacophonous musician just noodling about. He was re-evaluated [[DeadArtistsAreBetter after his death]] as a genius and an innovator, effectively paving the way for bebop and free jazz.

* Music/SpikeJones: Very popular during the 1940s and 1950s, but most people only saw him as a musical clown, parodying hits and doing sketches and skits more typical of a circus act than a regular musician. As a result, nobody took him seriously and failed to see that his arrangements and orchestrations were actually quite complicated to pull off, especially considering that it was all done ''live''! Only [[DeadArtistsAreBetter after his death]] did music historians finally merit him.

** Eminem's {{Horrorcore}} album ''Relapse'' is now often considered better than ''Recovery'', sometimes ''[=MMLP2=]'', and occasionally even his 1999-2002 trio of albums, despite being hit with CreatorBacklash almost as soon as it came out. Initially slammed for its [[WhatTheHellIsThatAccent bizarre accent rapping]], [[AudienceAlienatingPremise alienating]] content, outmoded [[BlackSheepHit comedy single]] and excessive celebrity namedropping, its reputation started to improve after its late-2009 UpdatedRerelease ''Relapse: Refill'', which added multiple songs considered among Eminem's career best. It was helped further by the rise of playlists, mitigating the album's [[TooBleakStoppedCaring desensitising]] content by allowing listeners to fall in love with each song individually, and the album's championing by Music/TylerTheCreator, who cited ''Relapse'' as a major influence on his albums ''Bastard'' and ''Goblin''. Once Eminem responded to the backlash to the album by [[WhatCouldHaveBeen cancelling]] ''Relapse 2'', switching to a [[RatedGForGangsta softer image]] and poppier [[NewSoundAlbum sound]], ''Relapse'' was then treasured by his fandom as the last of Em's albums in his original Dre-produced "shock-rap" style.\\

Its present fans appreciate its ballsy anti-commercial {{Horrorcore}} approach (while still having enjoyable GlamRap and OdeToIntoxication cuts), the depth of the MedicalHorror SlasherMovie [[ConceptAlbum concept]], and the eccentric Music/DrDre beats (most of which were ''[[DevelopmentHell Detox]]'' rejects) which have aged better than the production on ''Recovery'' and ''The Marshall Mathers LP 2''[='=]s more radio-friendly cuts. Rap geeks also consider Eminem's beat-riding on ''Relapse'' a technical high point for him, as he used the weird beats as fuel for ConstrainedWriting, which helps some fans appreciate his [[AccentDepundent inventive use of accents to force impossible rhymes]]. As of 2020, Eminem softened his opinion towards the album, as he looked back positively on the album for the 11th anniversary of its release, and also emulated his ''Relapse'' rap style in ''Revival'''s "Framed!" and on ''Music to be Murdered By: Side B (Deluxe Edition)'' on the song "Discombobulated" (though he noted he still thinks ''Encore'' is better). Complex called ''Relapse: Refill'' Em's [[https://www.complex.com/music/eminem-best-albums/relapse 6th best solo studio album]], praising how the accent and character work expresses anxiety and [[LossOfIdentity dissociation]], and concluded that even when Eminem doesn't know who he is, there's nobody else quite like him.

** While controversial, there is a growing movement of appreciation for 2004's ''Encore''. It met mixed reviews for its AlbumFiller issues, in particular a run of six [[GrossoutShow puerile comedy songs]] surrounded by [[MoodWhiplash dark love songs, earnest antibeef tracks, child abuse anecdotes and political polemic]]. Eminem also simplified his lyricism, freestyling most of the tracks in the aim of [[RevisitingTheRoots recapturing the spontaneity of his early work]], and taking influence from then-popular [[CondemnedByHistory snap and crunk music]]. However, ''Encore'' has undergone ValuesResonance - its shock comedy is based on ToiletHumour and satire of [[HorribleHollywood entertainment industry sexual abuse]], which is transgressive and obnoxious [[KinderAndCleaner without targeting gay people and women]] like on earlier albums, and the serious songs showcase a mature, [[RealMenWearPink non-toxically masculine]] and [[PoliticalRap politically conscious]] Marshall more in line with modern sensibilities than the violent, [[TheGadfly slur-spewing brat]] of ''The Marshall Mathers LP''. The Music/DrDre production has aged well, and the [[ShiftingVoiceOfMadness cartoony voices]] and [[DenserAndWackier funny gimmick songs]] gave the album a second life in lipsync skits when [=TikTok=] took off. Retrospectively, Eminem's admission in 2010 that ''Encore'' had been made [[CreatorBreakdown in the grip of an Ambien addiction]] recontextualised it as a LightmareFuel [[AddictionSong addiction album]], letting TrueArtIsAngsty kick in and highlighting [[ConceptAlbum the album's coherent suicide theming]] (even people who hate the album tend to view the album packaging and photoshoot as Em's best). Eminem's 2010s turn towards [[TechnicianVersusPerformer extreme, crafted technical flows]] also makes ''Encore'''s spontaneity and sense of play more striking and interesting.\\

In 2010, Spin.com described the album as "a stunning portrait of a meltdown - especially at some of its dumbest moments. Eminem hopscotches between different accents and personas, repeating, interrupting, and contradicting himself... a virtuoso exploration of identity slippage". Billboard rated it his [[https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/hip-hop/8071037/eminem-albums-ranked/ third best album]], putting it (as well as rap-geek-favourite ''The Marshall Mathers LP 2'') above the generally canonised top-3 entry ''The Eminem Show''. XXL put ''Encore'' as his [[https://www.xxlmag.com/eminem-albums-ranked/ 7th best]] (above the initially-respected ''Recovery'') noting that it's aged well, and pointing out "Yellow Brick Road", "Mockingbird" and "Like Toy Soldiers" as standouts. ''Complex'' put ''Encore'' as his [[https://www.complex.com/music/eminem-best-albums/encore fifth best solo studio album]] (eighth including a compilation, a bootleg and an indie release) and praised its TrollingCreator attitude, describing it as "schizophrenic awesomeness" and "the most 'Marshall' music ever". Another ''Encore'' fan is Music/DannyBrown, who told ''Complex'' it was his favourite Eminem album, remarking on its over-the-top aesthetic and uncomfortable dark humour and saying he learned a lot about rapping from it, particularly the song "Rain Man", which he considered a masterpiece. Eminem himself wrote about all this in "Careful What You Wish For":

* The teen pop craze of the late 90's, fueled by artists like Music/BritneySpears, the Music/BackstreetBoys, Music/{{NSYNC}}, and so on, faced a backlash at the time from fans of hardcore rock and rap, based on views that pop music was soulless and artificial. But over time, more people have not only recognized those artists for their talent, but have also come to realize that virtually any media marketed to teenage girls was automatically judged as trashy and inferior. It didn't help that the bulk of the arguments against those artists were "The Backstreet Boys are gay!" and "Britney's a slut!" Once casual homophobia and misogyny went out of style, views towards those artists have softened, and teen pop stars who came after them haven't been judged so harshly.