Records that changed your life

[Matt Jones]

Just post what records kinda changed how you saw music, or how it effected your life.

my entries:

[shuffleitall]

Green Day - American Idiot
Guns N' Roses - Appetite For Destruction

...and a whole bunch of other ones but those were the first.

[gushingblood]

In order:















Lots of yummy albums.

[lilhan]

there are too many because music IS my life, but the main one will always be:

[emily]

There are several, but the first and most important is

[sketchyjoe]

Those are the main ones.

[campfirewood1980]

A few entries that loom very large, in order of discovery:

Thriller, Michael Jackson: (circa 1983) Some of my faintest early memories involve listening to this cassette over and over again and singing along with just about every track. This was probably my first sustained exposure to Eddie Van Halen, as my parents were much more locked-in on the "soft rock" side of the dial. It's still a fantastic album, by the way.

I spent most of my childhood listening to whatever my parents selected (lots of Kenny Loggins, Barry Manilow, Christopher Cross, Billy Joel, and Elton John, among others) and a smattering of radio pop hits. Weird Al Yankovic dominated three or four years in the early 90s, but I wouldn't call any of those albums "life changing" (except for maybe In 3-D, but I'm not feeling that generous today.) There was also a serious "cocaine cowboy" phase, minus the cocaine, in which I listened to the Eagles... a lot. I no longer listen to The Eagles, by the way.

Being There, Wilco: (winter 1995) This was the first album I took a risk with, buying it based solely on reviews I'd read and a desire to find something that could be "mine." I loved it from the first spin, and was fortunate enough to see the band two years later, still touring in support of their sophomore effort. This is the album that eventually led me to both Dylan and The Replacements, and it still sounds wonderful today. I bought it on New Year's Eve, 1995... I wonder if that's a signifier for something?

Whatever and Ever Amen, Ben Folds Five: (1997) This record, along with Cake's Fashion Nugget, was like a secret language for my friends and me- if you didn't know why it was hysterically funny to yell "Don't forget to give me back my black t-shirt!" at someone, you probably weren't hanging out with us. Of course, this album also served as a gateway to other artists I now love- Randy Newman and Joe Jackson, among others- but, most importantly, there was something about the less-jokey songs, songs like "Smoke" and "Evaporated" and "Missing the War," that was scary and, as I later found out, very relatable when it came to growing up "male, middle-class, and white" (as Mr. Folds put it in a later release.) Beautiful, sad, funny, and highly tuneful, this was pop music the way I needed to hear it. Strangely enough, an interview with Ben Folds, coupled with the aforementioned Wilco record, resulted in the purchase of Let It Be by the Replacements, which is kind of the more rockin' spiritual sibling to this record.

Achtung Baby, U2: (2001) When U2 made their big "comeback" record, I got kind of curious and went back to a record that I didn't understand when it was originally released. The result was a long stretch of wanting to be the Edge, fiddling about with delay pedals... and a willingness to confront "big issue" records from perspectives I hadn't considered before.

This came in the middle of a period of major discovery for me- records like Graceland, #1 Record/Radio City, Armed Forces (the reason I bought black plastic framed glasses in 1999), Let It Be, Pet Sounds, Heartbreaker, Stankonia, Portishead (my future wife's favorite record), Endtroducing..., Parklife, Blue Trane, The Soft Bulletin, Louder Than Bombs (another Lindsay pick)... so many things that informed my listening habits... and I don't want to drag this on and on, so I'll skip to the last really big one...

Boys and Girls In America, The Hold Steady: (2006) By 2006, I'd been in and out of failed bands, had gotten married, had purchased a house, and had been teaching high school for a few years, all the while wrestling with a lot of the "big issues" that seem to go with growing up. Should I sell my record collection to buy groceries? Get rid of my guitars? Did rock and roll even matter to someone like me anymore? My wife and I went to Denton, TX, to visit a friend working on her masters degree at Texas Women's and, on a whim, bought tickets to go see a band we'd never heard before- the reviews were mentioning Costello and Springsteen and the Replacements, so, for eight bucks a pop, it seemed like a fun night out.

My faith in the transformative power of music and the important role community plays in rock and roll music- and the power that this notion carries with it- was cemented that night. I drank too much beer, wound up in a stage invasion hugging Craig Finn (and later arguing with Finn and Koob regarding their new status as my favorite band ever) and left with the biggest, goofiest smile ever (never mind the fact that we'd fulfilled Koob's description of a Hold Steady audience- drunk dudes with pissed-off girls- to the letter.) I bought Boys and Girls in America and began committing it to memory- the record lived in my car for damn near two years. I knew people like those in the songs- something like "Southtown Girls," for as city-specific as it is, perfectly describes a feeling I get when I think about my hometown, just like "Party Pit" calls up thoughts of people I knew years ago and was beginning to run into again. "Stuck Between Stations," with its lyrics about art, depression, fading youth strewn across the most hopeful blast of rock and roll I could hope for, immediately became my all-time favorite song ever (and I will fight anyone who wants to challenge that.) I felt an inclusiveness in this band and this record and among this audience that I hadn't felt in years. This band could be my life, all right... and I still feel pretty sweet any time I put this record on.

I could keep going, but it occurred to me that I've already carried on a bit much. Just be glad I haven't started drinking yet...

[gushingblood]

The "Tony Hawks Pro Skater" games had as much impact as some of those albums on my list.
They had songs on the soundtrack such as;

The Clash / White Riot
NOFX / The Separation of Church and Skate
Nas / The World is Yours
Queens of the Stone Age / Millionaire
The Ramones / Blitzkrieg Bop
Frank Sinatra / That's Life
The Doors / Break On Through (To The Other Side)
Johnny Cash / Ring of Fire
Ramones / Rock ‘N Roll High School
Sugarhill Gang / Rappers Delight
Jimmy Eat World / Pain
The Stooges /1970
Joy Division / Warsaw
Distillers / Beat Your Heart Out
ACDC / TNT
NWA / Express Yourself
Iron Maiden / The Number of the Beast
The Distillers / Seneca Falls
Rage Against the Machine / Guerrilla Radio

Damn I loved Tony Hawks games. But when they tried going all "Jackass-y" they went really bad.
THPS4 was the best.

[lilhan]

the biggest musical influence on my life is my dad. he knows where it's at and he is a hero.
so many of his favourite records changed my life, they got me into rock 'n' roll and kept me sane. so many of the bands he introduced are now up there with my favourite ever and he loves the steady.

so, my dad is to thank for most of my early musical tastes and some of my later ones (it was he, for example that played 'born to run' when i was 5 years old and got me into springsteen).

legend.

[anniehall]

[brady]

Glassjaw-Everything You Ever Wanted To Know About Silence
Alkaline Trio-Goddamnit
Weezer-Pinkerton
Against Me!-Reinventing Axl Rose
The Hold Steady-Separation Sunday
Jets To Brazil-Orange Rhyming Dictionary

[parock]

[biblesalesman]

Its funny but The Hold Steady didnt change my life in any way. They just reminded me what was missing.
Life Changing?
Europe 72-Grateful Dead
Skullfuck- Grateful Dead
Pet Sounds -The Beach Boys
Rock and Roll Animal - Lou Reed
Rock of Ages-The Band
Born to Run -Springsteen
Blood on the Tracks -Dylan
Second Helping-Lynyrd Skynyrd
Where We All Belong-Marshall Tucker Band
Quadrophenia-The Who
My Aim Is True - Elvis Costello
Remain In Light-Talking Heads
Adventure-Television
Easter -Patti Smith

those were some life changing albums

[john k]

stiff little fingers - inflammable material
undertones - s/t
REM - murmur
husker du - new day rising
pogues - rum sodomy and the lash
jason & scorchers - lost and found
replacements - hootenanny
pixies - surfer rosa
rocket from the crypt - circa now

[campfirewood1980]

Jan 18, 2009 10:52:29 GMT -5 anniehall said:

Have you seen the film?

Also: supposedly, Pete was developing this for the stage...

[deadelectromix]

NoMeansNo - Wrong
Changed the way I thought about how a band can, and should, sound.

O Pioneers!!! - Black Mambas
These guys basically introduced me to all the bands I listen to now, so while it's not the best record ever, I still give it credit.

Against Me! - As the Eternal Cowboy
Saw them play SXSW a few years ago, and this was the first record that really caught my attention.

Jawbreaker - Etc
First record I really got into, introduced me to the rest. Blake Schwarzenbach is possibly the greatest lyricist ever.

Defiance, Ohio - Share What Ya Got
Changed my perspective on politics, social relationships, and acoustic guitars.

And of course,
The Hold Steady - Separation Sunday
No explanation needed.

[yolatengo]

10th Grade - London Calling. I am undeniably a different person than I would have been otherwise. I had never heard someone sing with the kind of compassion and energy that (St.) Joe Strummer sang with.

Sophomore year of college - I start working at the university record store in Gainesville FL. That summer my head explodes. I am exposed to Replacements Let it Be, Husker Du Zen Arcade, Minutemen Double Nickels on the Dime and Meat Puppets II.

Later on I hear Sweetheart of the Rodeo and I realize that country music can be smart and moving. My son is named Gram in honor of Gram Parsons. Since then, luckily, there have been almost too many times to mention. I will second the nominations above of Quadrophenia, Murmur, and Remain in Light.

PS - Campfirewood, that was beautifully written. What do you teach? I teach high school math

[campfirewood1980]

Thanks.

I'm primarily a journalism teacher, though I've got a few social studies certifications (which I've used) and an English accreditation (which I haven't.)

[212margarita]

Bad Religion - Recipe for Hate
Nirvana - Nevermind
Bright Eyes - Fevers and Mirrors
Johnny Cash - Live at Folsom Prison
Wu Tang Clan- 36 Chambers
David Bowie - Ziggy Stardust
The Hold Steady - Seperation Sunday
Radiohead - OK Computer
Tool - Aenima
The Roots - Things Fall Apart

[Evan]

Jan 18, 2009 10:09:48 GMT -5 emily said:

There are several, but the first and most important is

Yes. Oh yes. So many times yes.

And Jonsie--we really need to talk music more, man! If I weren't way too lazy to go find album art images, I would have posted almost all of the ones you did. No joke. Nicely done.

[red]

[motörben]

[motörben]

Oh, and

[toastie]

THS - BaGiA

[theblondette]

You know, I'm not sure any albums have changed my life. Made my life richer, yes, made me think, yes... But I don't think I've been transformed by an album.

Books, though... I could tell you about books that turned me inside out.