Tuesday, March 25, 2008
THE BIG FOUR
In order of appearance, these are the four records that changed everything when introduced to yours truly.
Rod bought me this for Christmas when I was 12. It was my first LP. I immediately became a huge Beatles fan, buying many of their records.
Again Rod, I think he got it as a part of the Columbia record deal that many of us ended up regretting. I did not regret discovering this record. My family, no doubt, must have. I went absolutely mad for Kiss. They dominated my late 70's life.
Once, more, Rod gets the nod. The cover was so fucking cool. The music took me at an instant. I felt it was made for me. I knew, somehow, that there was more music like this out there. It was like a door opening up to a whole new world. I exploded into a vinyl madness that has never abated.
This could have been Rod, or Fred, but it was Tony Alva who plugged me into the Stones. Yet again, I'd go out and buy all their records, but this landmark also ushers in the breaking down of all barriers. Everything was now fair game, genre be damned.
In order of appearance, these are the four records that changed everything when introduced to yours truly.
Rod bought me this for Christmas when I was 12. It was my first LP. I immediately became a huge Beatles fan, buying many of their records.
Again Rod, I think he got it as a part of the Columbia record deal that many of us ended up regretting. I did not regret discovering this record. My family, no doubt, must have. I went absolutely mad for Kiss. They dominated my late 70's life.
Once, more, Rod gets the nod. The cover was so fucking cool. The music took me at an instant. I felt it was made for me. I knew, somehow, that there was more music like this out there. It was like a door opening up to a whole new world. I exploded into a vinyl madness that has never abated.
This could have been Rod, or Fred, but it was Tony Alva who plugged me into the Stones. Yet again, I'd go out and buy all their records, but this landmark also ushers in the breaking down of all barriers. Everything was now fair game, genre be damned.
Comments:
"Everything was now fair game, genre be damned..."
That was the same result following my emersion into the Stones. I credit it to the fact that I began to hear an awful lot of the Stones in everything else I heard in music that came before them (Motown and the Blues), but also their influence on those coming after them. The Stones, and the Sticky Fingers record in particular, showed me that there was a guitar style that was as good, if not better, than the guys who could fly up and down the fret board. It showed me how the guitar could be an accompaniment instrument and sit back in the mix and STILL be cool. It was the key that unlocked Pandora’s Box for me too.
That was the same result following my emersion into the Stones. I credit it to the fact that I began to hear an awful lot of the Stones in everything else I heard in music that came before them (Motown and the Blues), but also their influence on those coming after them. The Stones, and the Sticky Fingers record in particular, showed me that there was a guitar style that was as good, if not better, than the guys who could fly up and down the fret board. It showed me how the guitar could be an accompaniment instrument and sit back in the mix and STILL be cool. It was the key that unlocked Pandora’s Box for me too.
I would have thought "The Unforgettable Fire" would have been on your list... I remember that being a big deal in Md.
It is true that in 84/85 U2 was huge in my world, but by that time I had opened up to a broad spectrum of musical interests. 'Nothing's Shocking' was a big LP for me in 89 as well, but the last time a record pulled me out of a mindset was 'Sticky Fingers'.
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