What albums should i buy?

Cafe Society
1

Im thinking of purchasing some new albums, mainly astral weeks by van morrison and mad season by matchbox 20.

Im also interested in getting something by the stones and perhaps happy/sad by tim buckley (i own grace already by jeff). If anyone could tell me anything about these 3 album and suggest the best album by the stones for a first album, (im quite tempted to get 40 licks for starters. Cheers!

2

Astral Weeks is a superb album. Moondance is a more immediately accessible introduction to Van Morrison, but Astral Weeks is the better record.

  • Happy Sad* is also superb, one of my personal favourites. Buckley père started out making folky albums, then became more poppy for the fine Goodbye and Hello. Happy Sad has more Jazz influences, and includes the superb song “Buzzin’ Fly”. Later he was increasingly influenced by Free Jazz, leading to his masterpiece Starsailor. This is a stunning record, but it is also his most difficult, so is worth saving as a treat for a later day.

For the Stones, one of their singles collections is a good place to start, as they were a superb singles band. They did actually make a number of fine albums too, though. Sticky Fingers, Let It Bleed and Beggars Banquet are good places to start with their proper albums. Their best is Exile on Main Street, but, as with the others, that doesn’t make it the best place to start.

3

If you don’t mind spending a little money, there’s a Stones collection entitled The London Years that has all of their singles up to '72. That’s pretty much everything a casual fan would want.

4

Eh, don’t bother with a Stones’ greatest hits. You’ve heard them all on the radio a thousand times. If you’re going to spend the money, get one of the actual albums, and hear the Stones in a whole new way. Their songs make great singles, of course, but they turn into masterpieces when heard within the context of the album. My favorite is Sticky Fingers. Get that or Let it Bleed for your first one. I agree with Jabba that Exile on Main Street isn’t the best choice for your very first Stones album.

5

As someone who received The London Years as a gift for his first Stones album, I highly recommend it. My only complaint is that it uses the original version of Time Is On My Side instead of the newer version that the Stones have used since then and the version I prefer.

And Mad Season is just fun.

6

I was going to suggest that. All the A’s and B’s of the Stones classic period. You cant go wrong with that. I got the vinyl box a few years ago, at CDnow for around 40 bucks, and it was the best 40 bucks I ever spent. In addition to what everyone else said about Beggars Banquet etc…, Tattoo You and Goats Head Soup are two of the most overlooked albums in the catalog. You can’t go wrong with either one.