I was going through a list of my favorite music albums, and I started noticing that my favorite album of any singer or group usually turned out to be the first album of theirs I listened to:
They Might Be Giants- Flood
Pink Floyd- Dark Side Of The Moon
Alice Cooper- Alice Cooper Goes To Hell
The Beatles- A Hard Day’s Night
The Roches- The Roches
Molly Hatchet- Silent Reign Of Heroes
And so on. Do you find that your favorite album from a particular artist usually turns out to be the first you listened to, or does it change as other albums are heard?
The first full album that I got onto and bought with my own money was Queen’s “News of the World”. Until then, it was 45’s and FM radio. Drove my parents crazy with “We Will Rock You” and “Fat Bottom Girls” when friends came over.
But is it your favorite Queen album?
You might be on to something, Flood, Doolittle by the Pixies, Under the Big Black Sun by X, Key Lime Pie by Camper Van Beethoven were my firsts and favorites.
All the great 1960s bands all started with “Greatest Hits” compilations, none that I would consider my favorite. Besides, my favorite Beatles, Beach Boys, Who, Kinks, and Doors album changes every couple of years. Not because I discover new ones, but because my tastes have changed.
Yes. Definitely, they were at the top of their game at the time. It’s a great album for a rebellious 15 year old, and it’s aged well.
My favorite Queen album was also my first- A Night At The Opera.
That’s my favorite, too, but I think I had the Flash Gordon soundtrack first.
Peter, Paul, and Mary’s album Moving, 1963. It had “Puff the magic dragon” on it and I was 5. Loved that song, and enjoyed the others on the album. It was my first, and my favorite for a loooong time.
I think the first album I ever bought for myself was Bringing it All Back Home. I wouldn’t say it is absolutely my favorite album, or even my favorite Dylan album (that would be Blood on the Tracks) but it is right up there.
Reminder- This thread is about the first album you ever bought from particular artists or groups, not just the very first album you ever acquired.
Heck. It still works out. The first album I ever bought was one by the Carpenters with an awesome cover of “Dead Man’s Curve” on it. It’s still my favorite Carpenters album, since I haven’t bought or listened to any of the others.
It varies. My first and favorite Yes album is Fragile, and my first and favorite Montrose album is their debut. First and favorite Spirit is 12 Dreams Of Doctor Sardonicus. My first Who album was Magic Bus:The Who on Tour, but my favorite is Quadropenia. First Beatles album was Yesterday And Today and my favorite is The Beatles. First Tom Petty album was TP and The Heartbreakers, but my fave is…oh man, so hard to choose between Damn The Torpedoes, Full Moon Fever, Wildflowers and Live Anthology.
In my case not so much:
First Roxette album I bought was Joyride, favorite has alternated between Crash! Boom! Bang!, and Have a Nice Day
First Matthew Good Band album bought - Underdogs, Current favorite The Audio of Being
First Lights album - The Listening, favorite is typically Little Machines or Skin & Earth
Tove Lo - Queen of the Clouds → Lady Wood or Dirt Femme
OTOH, Sarah McLachlan’s Fumbling towards Ecstacy and Tori Amos’ Crucify were my first purchases and still my favorites though I have many of their other albums.
Sometimes. Not always, by any means, but more often than if it were completely random.
Which makes sense, for at least two reasons I can think of (corresponding, I suppose, to the two directions the arrow of causation could point):
- The reason I bought that album first was because I particularly liked the songs I had heard from it, or because its reputation or reviews made it sound like a particularly good album; or
- Because it was the first album of theirs I became familiar with, it holds a special place in my heart. (Even when a first album does not ultimately turn out to be my favorite by a particular artist, I often end up rating it significantly more highly than the general consensus among other fans, critics, and/or the general public.)
Sounds like my theory from 2008:
Peter, Paul, and Mary (debut album) / Peter, Paul, and Mary: [older sister’s]. First and favorite.
If You Can Believe Your Eyes and Ears / Mamas and Papas: [older sister’s] First and favorite.
Sounds of Silence / Simon and Garfunkel: [older brother’s] First and tied for favorite (along with
Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme)
Meet the Beatles / Beatles: First, but not favorite (tied for favorite: Sgt. Pepper and Abbey Road)
The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars / David Bowie: First, but not favorite (favorite: Diamond Dogs)
Dark Side of the Moon / Pink Floyd. First and tied for favorite (along with The Wall and Wish You Were Here)
The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway / Genesis. First and tied for favorite (along with A Trick of the Tail)
Fragile / Yes. First, but not favorite (favorite: Close to the Edge)
Requiem (Deutsche Grammophon recording) / Mozart. Favorite Mozart and favorite requiem.
Beethoven Symphony No. 5 (Deutsche Grammophon recording) / Beethoven. First album by favorite composer, but not favorite symphony or recording. Favorite composer/favorite symphony/ favorite album: Beethoven Symphony No. 9 / Otto Klemperer, conductor.
When I was actively buying records, I didn’t acquire them at random. I would research the artist / group to find out which albums of theirs are most desireable. So, the first album purchases from a particular act would objectively be (as much as art can be) their best works. Only later, and only if I liked the first purchases, would I look into said act’s lesser works (which might still work fine for me). This pretty much muddies the waters of the scenario presented in the OP.
Looking back, my favorite albums by my most favorite acts have fluctuated over the years. So, no, the OP doesn’t apply to me.
My first record album was The Monkees, purchased at a garage sale when I was 5-6 years old for 25 cents. I won’t say it’s my favorite, but it’s got some pretty good songs on it.
(Yes, back in the 1970s, we would be wandering around alone in the neighborhood without supervision. Unthinkable today, I take it.)
On the artists I didn’t do my homework on, for various reasons (mostly for being young):
My first Queen album was The Miracle (which was current at the time). I’d rate it as maybe the third worst album by the band.
My first Kate Bush album was The Kick Inside, which is nowhere near the best Kate album to me.
My first Rush album was Fly By Night, which is surpassed by a dozen albums by them.
My first ZZ Top album was Afterburner, which is pretty lacklustre in retrospect.
My first 10 CC album was Bloody Tourists, which is a very so-so album.
My first AC/DC album was Razor’s Edge (which was current then), which is bettered by a pile of AC/DC albums.
My first Pink Floyd album was The Division Bell, which, while not bad, is not especially good, either.
etc. etc.
I’m not seeing the pattern.
The first album I bought was Sgt. Pepper. My favorite is Abbey Road.
Second album was the Bonzo Dog Band’s Urban Spaceman. Favorite is Tadpoles.
First LZ album was IV; favorite is I.
For Pink Floyd, it’s Ummagumma and Meddle.
For Jethro Tull, it’s Thick as a Brick and Aqualung.
For the Who, it’s Tommy and Who’s Next.