Whether they’re called unreleased, lost, or shelved, there are many albums that never saw the light of day and live on solely in pop culture lore. We’re drawn to them because they offer a peek into the music industry, often swathed in dramatic tales of some of the greatest artists pushing back against commercial-focused record execs, or band members who couldn’t harmonize their creative vision, or songs that went missing after the artist died. The albums left in the dark often seem to appear the shiniest.
Intrigued? Click through to see some of music history’s most legendary unreleased albums.