Top 7 Albums

As a bit more of an intro to myself, I’m going to compile some best of or favourites lists. As much as for me as anything as I love a good list debate.

Today we have Music in the form of the humble Album. Now, I was thinking of doing up some Top 5 lists but I’ve really struggled to do that for music so it’s a Top 7 instead. It was a Top 12 at one stage so its been a tough process as I love my music and its been a major part of my life. Not the playing of it (couldn’t even do Baa Baa Black Sheep on a recorder). No, more the listening of it. The appreciation of it. The thinking of it. And most importantly, the moving to it.

So here’s my list of Top 7 albums in chronological order rather than any other meaningful order. They’re not my favourite albums of all time though. Rather, these are the albums that have had the most impact on me at a certain stage or part of my life. So some of them I haven’t actually listened to in a long time but that doesn’t matter. Because at their time, they were there to guide me, entertain me, and in some cases, counsel me.

The Joshua Tree – U2 (1987)

My earliest memory of U2 is watching them belt out Sunday Bloody Sunday at the Wembley Live Aid. I was only 9 at the time but remember the passion being expressed and the chanting chorus to that song. Come 1987, I was a little older and had a bit more maturity (I think) that allowed me to really appreciate this album and the new direction they were going on. I certainly spent a lot of time lying on my bed listening to these songs and reading the inside sheet with all the lyrics.

U2 are a political band, so in a way this was probably the beginning of my understanding that not all was good and happy in the world and that angst and anger did exist. And since then, I’ve been drawn to any music with a message so I guess I have The Joshua Tree to thank for that. Anyway, the hits are there for sure, Where the Streets Have No Name, With or Without You, and I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For, but it was actually the likes of Bullet the Blue Sky, Trip Through Your Wires and Exit that had me.

Favourite track – Exit, but make sure you turn it up, particularly at the beginning

Blood Sugar Sex Magik – Red Hot Chilli Peppers (1991)

I was in Grade 10 when this came out and was increasingly staying up late watching Rage on the ABC every Saturday night. One night, I came across the video for Give It Away Now and thought “this looks a bit strange with all the makeup and weird dance moves but I like it”. Took no note of it though and that was it really. Some six months later and a friend from school is raving about this band and shows me the CD cover. Nothing clicks so I borrow it off him and head home for a listen.

Wow. The first song hits me like a brick and before too long I’m rushing to the stereo to turn it down so Mum doesn’t hear some of the lyrics that follow. As a 15 year old boy, the sexual innuendoes and references to drugs and death throughout the album certainly were an eye-opener. But to this day, the lyrics and rhythms of I Could Have Lied, My Lovely Man and Sir Psycho Sexy in particular still enter my head and I find myself singing along without even knowing it.

Favourite track – My Lovely Man

 

Vs – Pearl Jam (1993)

Being Gen X, I am a child of grunge. Loved it then and still love a bit of it now. Something to do with a reaction against a lot of the 80s music that was popular during my childhood which was all haircuts and keyboards. Now, I also did a lot of listening to the likes of Nirvana, Soundgarden and Stone Temple Pilots, but its this album from Pearl Jam that probably has had the most playing of any album I’ve ever owned. I loved Ten (their first) as well, but Vs was rawer and certainly had a more aggressive bent to it. And perhaps that’s what I needed around that time after my high school girlfriend cheated on me at Schoolies and there was a fair bit of teenage angst and grief going on.

My favourite song on the album is Rearviewmirror and I’ve since heard Eddie Vedder quoted as saying it’s a song about “leaving a bad situation”. No wonder it had such an impact on me at the time. Other great songs on the album are Indifference which I listened to a lot while trying to figure out what the hell I should do with my life, and Animal which is heavy and angry but also seems to tap into something funky and wild which was obviously appealing to a young red blooded male of 18-19 years.

Favourite track - Rearviewmirror

OK Computer – Radiohead (1997)

Perhaps it’s a reflection of a maturing from teenage angsty grunge to more sophisticated alternative music, but this album probably had the most impact on me of any of the albums on this list. I’m sitting here typing this out and struggling to pinpoint why though.  It seemed to say something to me at the time but I now can’t quite work out what it was. What I do know though, is that I played this ad nauseam for months and even hassled a few of my friends by constantly wanting to put it on over at their place, at parties, or in the car. Probably because it was like nothing I’d ever heard before. While dominated by traditional instruments like guitar and drums, the sound comes across almost electronic and atmospheric in nature and the themes of consumerism and modern apathy really comes across through it.

No Surprises has become a bit of a chill out classic, but it’s the likes of Karma Police and Climbing Up The Walls that struck a cord with me as both have various paces that build and then drop and contain mysterious lyrics that engage your thinking in trying to make sense of it all. Anyway, definitely one of my favourite albums as well as one of my most influential. If you haven’t heard it, do yourself a favour (so Molly) and cordon off a room somewhere and 90 odd minutes to sit down and give it a good listen.

Favourite track – Karma Police

Surrender – The Chemical Brothers (1999)

I was living in London when this came out and while OK Computer above had introduced me to electronic sounds, it was this album from The Chemical Brothers that really gave me an appreciation of electronica and house music that has grown and grown since. While it was critically acclaimed in the UK at the time, it certainly wasn’t a massive hit (although Hey Boy Hey Girl was as a single) so it was more of a punt on my behalf in buying it at a little record store in Camden. But what a punt it was as I continue to go back to this album and give it a play whenever I’m looking for a trip down memory lane of my time overseas and in London in particular.

The album starts off pretty heavy with Under the Influence but by the time it gets to Let Forever Be (featuring Noel Gallagher) and Asleep From Day its almost psychedelic and dreamy in nature. But then its back up again with Hey Boy Hey Girl which was obviously the biggest hit and was a mainstay of every nightclub in the world for a year or two after. Nonetheless, Out of Control is my favourite with Bernard Sumner from New Order doing slow, almost talk-like singing over the top of a heavy and consistent beat that makes you want to dance and think at the same time.

Favourite track – Out Of Control

13 – Blur (1999)

Again, this is an album from my days in the UK and another one that broadened and excited my musical tastes that then led me down other paths that I might not have taken otherwise. I was certainly aware of Blur from their Britpop past but this was something that was more cerebral and evocative, even experimental at times, and certainly provides a window into what Damon Albarn was to conjure up in later years with Gorillaz. I’ve also read that the album was written by Albarn after his breakup with Elastica singer Justine Frischmann and many of the songs such as Tender and No Distance Left To Run reflect that and his struggle to move on.

My memories of the album are quite specific as well as I bought it in anticipation of heading to the Reading Festival that year of which Blur were headlining. The album took me in from the very first listen so by the time I saw their set at the festival I knew each song word for word and could air guitar every exact chord. And the set did not disappoint either as I remember standing amongst thousands in a field in southern England on a barmy summers evening and being thoroughly involved in the spectacular light show and live performance from the band. One for my Top 5 list of live gigs perhaps.

Favourite track – Caramel, its worth the trip through the nearly 8 minutes

Odyssey No. 5 – Powderfinger (2000)

I was actually twelve months behind everyone else on this one as I was in the UK when it was released and missed a lot of the hype back here in Australia. A good thing I reckon as I discovered this album for myself and wasn’t influenced by what others had to say or what was being hyped about at the time. Unfortunately some of the songs have now been taken on as FM radio classic rock staples but that shouldn’t diminish from how good those songs are and how good the album as a whole is. Particularly if you listen to it in its entirety from start to finish as it almost comes across as a concept album in a Pink Floyd or The Who manner. Which obviously isn’t the done thing these days in this iTunes, download-a-song-at-a-time era.

Anyway, I’ve seen Powderfinger live about 12 times now (and am off again in a couple of weeks) and have never seen a bad gig from them. They certainly know how to do a live performance of all their songs but it’s the ones from this album that I really enjoy as they take me back to those confusing days in the early 2000s. When I’d returned from nearly three years travelling overseas and was a bit of a lost soul trying to reacquaint myself with the happenings and trappenings of life back here at home in Australia.

Favourite track – Up Down and Back Again

So there you have it. Let us know your top albums as I'm always up for a recommendation or two.

Til then,

EDM.