It affects some artists more than others. Let's coin a phrase and call it "debut syndrome." It's the tendency for radio stations and thus the casual fan to focus on an artist's early work, back when it was groundbreaking and different.
This phenomenon seems to plague Van Morrison heavily. The popularity and recognition of his songs decline steadily when plotted against time. Same goes for Peter Gabriel, Bruce Hornsby, Carlos Santana, and others. The most recent album might get airtime, but it rarely has sticking power.
Now, every one of us knows "Born To Run," "Thunder Road" and maybe "Rosalita." But artists get bored of the same songs and the same style. Twenty years later, they differentiate and branch out, often with less-than-well-received results. People don't associate The Boss with acoustic, Steinbeck-inspired, bleak ballads, like "Youngstown" from The Ghost of Tom Joad.
But it still deserves attention.
Find an established artist you like, look for a rarer (probably newer) album, and set aside your preconceived notions about what they "should" sound like.
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