AKA Records that changed my life. I say records because when I was young that’s what we listened to. I also call my Sirius Satellite Stilleto my ‘walkman’. I am old school like that. This is a list that’s going around on facebook and at first I wasn’t going to participate, but I was thinking about it and there is some music that made me who I am today. These are not necessarily the best albums, but they are the most influential to me.
So, in no particular order (but perhaps chronologically):
1. Hair – The American Tribal Love-Rock Musical (1968 Original Broadway Cast) This is the first record I can remember loving. Seriously, loving. I listened to one side of it until the grooves disappeared, I swear.
2. Cabaret: Original Soundtrack Recording (1972 Film) Broadway, eh? Another recording for the movie made the year I was born. Love, love, love it, although nowadays I also love the original Broadway recording because it has more songs on it and they’re all amazing.
3. Mamas and the Papas Greatest Hits I would listen to this while laying on the sunroom floor with the speakers turned in to face my ears and sing along to California Dreamin’. Then I would sing it over and over with Sheri Campbell.
4.The B-52′s were my favourite band in junior high/early high school. I remember dancing on a picnic table in a snowstorm to Rock Lobster. With John Young.
5. The Innocents by Erasure. My cousin from England visited my family and left the tape at our house and I fell in love with it. Andy Bell’s voice…well, I listened to this tape a lot.
6. Upstairs at Eric’s by Yaz. Someone at camp introduced this to me in about grade 5 and it was game over. Even though I haven’t heard it in at least 15 years I bet I know all the words still.
7. Deep Purple by Donny and Marie. My sister got this album and the dolls for Christmas in 1976 when we still lived on the production chicken farm. Our bull terrier, Spike, ate Marie’s head, but Donny survived for many years. The record didn’t. When I was much older I found a copy of it at Value Village, brought it home and could remember every song. 30 years later, BOOYAH!
8. Prince Charming by Adam and the Ants. We went to England to visit family at the beginning of Adam Ant mania and this album was top of the charts there. It’s pretty good, but Kings of the Wild Frontier is better. My sister actually saw him in concert when she was in grade 7 (I think). Lucky.
9. The Hits/The B-Sides byPrince. It’s impossible for me to pick one album by him, they are all great. My love for Prince is deep and eternal. I’ve seen him live twice! TWICE!
10. Bat Out of Hell by Meatloaf. I terrorized a random woman at a stag and doe by singing along with Paradise by the Dashboard Light. Ali will remember. I think Ali also shit her pants.
11. The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975 Film) Another movie I have watched over and over and over. And listened to the soundtrack in it’s many variations over and over and over.
12. Legend – The Best Of Bob Marley And The Wailers by Bob Marley. Now, this isn’t the actual tape I had originally. That one has disappeared from history, it was a greatest hits that was probably only released in Jamaica years before Bob was popular in Canada. It had no songs on it from Legend, but it was amazing. SO good and natural and rustic sounding. Then I found out Bob Marley died on my ninth birthday and have felt a connection to him since.
13. Live in Berlin 1962 by Ray Charles. The musicianship on this recording is incredible. This is music I will love forever and ever.
14. Quadrophenia by The Who. Did I ever tell you I was a mod-briefly-in highschool? I wore skirts and tights and two tone shoes and I even had a parka…Well, then I realized life’s more fun in jeans because you’re not limited in your mobility. I had this on vinyl with the book inside. I saw The Who live…must have been grade 10. SO good.
15. The Teaches of Peaches byPeaches. Some people don’t like this because it’s electronic music, and looking at this list, I guess you might not peg me as a Peaches fan either. But I love her. She puts on one heck of a show and if you do ever get the chance to see her live, you should do it.
16. Sheik Yerbouti by Frank Zappa. Think about this album: it’s crazy. If you don’t like Zappa I think there must be something deeply wrong with you.
17. Chronicles by Rush. I am a Canadian gal and when I was growing up in the 80′s I had to compete with Rush for love from boys. This is why most girls hate Rush-boys like Rush better. And why? What’s the deal with Geddy Lee’s voice? Or the crazy lyrics? I don’t know. I really don’t, but I do know that as I grew up and realized that boys really don’t like Rush better, I gave them a second chance and now I am a hardcore fan. I’ve never seen them live, but I would LOVE to one day. I also grew up in St.Catharines where Neil Peart-possibly one of the best rock drummers of all time- is from so we have that in common.
18. The Bends by Radiohead. Do you have any breakup albums? The Bends is that one for me. It took years for me to be able to listen to it without crying my eyes out. I like everything by Radiohead, but this one is the important one for me.
19. Pure Guava by Ween. This one was hard to pick, Chocolate and Cheese is so good too, but PG was my introduction to the brothers Ween.
20. Illinoise by Sufjan Stevens. Somewhere, somehow, I read about this album and decided to give it a whirl. Thank goodness. If you’ve never heard it, you should. I am not familiar with the rest of his catalogue, but I promise, this one’s amazing.
21. Six Feet of Chain by Cagney and Lacee. Shannon bought this and we listened to it a lot in 1999-2000. Then things went awry and it took me a long time to replace this cd. It’s short but it’s super good.
22. Ágætis Byrjun by Sigur Ros. This was the only music left at Shannon’s when his hard drive moved to his lawyer’s office. We listened to it every night, all night. It was very comforting during a very difficult, unpleasant time. I will forever associate Sigur Ros with that year.
23. Blood Sugar Sex Magik by Red Hot Chili Peppers. Is this the best album they made? I don’t know. It’s the last one I bought. But I can tell you, in the early 90′s I was Red Hot crazed. My boyfriend at the time was best friends with a guy who wrote for Meat Magazine and Dave got dragged along to a RHCP interview and became pretty good friends with Flea. We ate supper with him twice and he’s one of the nicest people I’ve ever met. He gave us his home phone number!
24. Nevermind by Nirvana. Who’s life wasn’t changed by this? We got an advance copy of it, months before the release date, and were in awe. It’s still good. Nirvana played in Toronto at the Opera House the night before it was released and it’s one of the best shows I’ve ever attended.
25. Led Zeppelin III by Led Zeppelin. Maybe a weird choice as far as Led Zep goes, but it’s my favourite one. Out on the Tiles is a seriously killer song. Wait, whoa. The whole thing is killer. Give it another listen.
