# When it comes to record albums, was your first your favorite? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** music\ **Created:** [January 28, 2023, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-it-comes-to-record-albums-was-your-first-your-favorite/978975 "2023-01-28T23:46:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2023, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-it-comes-to-record-albums-was-your-first-your-favorite/978975/1 "2023-01-28T23:46:14Z")
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? ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2023, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-it-comes-to-record-albums-was-your-first-your-favorite/978975/2 "2023-01-29T00:35:42Z")
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. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2023, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-it-comes-to-record-albums-was-your-first-your-favorite/978975/3 "2023-01-29T00:36:45Z")
But is it your favorite Queen album? ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2023, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-it-comes-to-record-albums-was-your-first-your-favorite/978975/4 "2023-01-29T00:37:16Z")
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. ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2023, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-it-comes-to-record-albums-was-your-first-your-favorite/978975/5 "2023-01-29T00:40:14Z")
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. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2023, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-it-comes-to-record-albums-was-your-first-your-favorite/978975/6 "2023-01-29T00:41:12Z")
My favorite Queen album was also my first- _A Night At The Opera_. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2023, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-it-comes-to-record-albums-was-your-first-your-favorite/978975/7 "2023-01-29T00:43:01Z")
That’s my favorite, too, but I think I had the _Flash Gordon_ soundtrack first. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2023, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-it-comes-to-record-albums-was-your-first-your-favorite/978975/8 "2023-01-29T00:47:12Z")
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. ---
**Author:** ![Fretful\_Porpentine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fretful_porpentine/32/2873_2.png) [@Fretful\_Porpentine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fretful_Porpentine)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2023, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-it-comes-to-record-albums-was-your-first-your-favorite/978975/9 "2023-01-29T00:53:23Z")
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. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2023, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-it-comes-to-record-albums-was-your-first-your-favorite/978975/10 "2023-01-29T00:56:29Z")
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. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2023, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-it-comes-to-record-albums-was-your-first-your-favorite/978975/11 "2023-01-29T00:59:49Z")
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. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2023, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-it-comes-to-record-albums-was-your-first-your-favorite/978975/12 "2023-01-29T01:21:52Z")
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_. ---
**Author:** ![Dancer\_Flight](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dancer_flight/32/7601_2.png) [@Dancer\_Flight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dancer_Flight)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2023, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-it-comes-to-record-albums-was-your-first-your-favorite/978975/13 "2023-01-29T03:17:09Z")
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. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2023, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-it-comes-to-record-albums-was-your-first-your-favorite/978975/14 "2023-01-29T03:25:38Z")
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): 1. 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 2. 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.) ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2023, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-it-comes-to-record-albums-was-your-first-your-favorite/978975/15 "2023-01-29T03:34:01Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > 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: Sounds like my theory from 2008: > [@Law of Initial Exposure... any validity for you?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/law-of-initial-exposure-any-validity-for-you/465226/1): > > When you become a fan of something, the season/CD/film that _makes you a fan_ is the one you generally regard as superior… ---
**Author:** ![Tibby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tibby/32/17030_2.png) [@Tibby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tibby)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2023, 6:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-it-comes-to-record-albums-was-your-first-your-favorite/978975/16 "2023-01-29T06:58:57Z")
_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. ---
**Author:** ![Toxylon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f05b48/32.png) [@Toxylon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Toxylon)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2023, 9:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-it-comes-to-record-albums-was-your-first-your-favorite/978975/17 "2023-01-29T09:55:36Z")
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. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2023, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-it-comes-to-record-albums-was-your-first-your-favorite/978975/18 "2023-01-29T13:21:08Z")
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.) ---
**Author:** ![Toxylon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f05b48/32.png) [@Toxylon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Toxylon)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2023, 1:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-it-comes-to-record-albums-was-your-first-your-favorite/978975/19 "2023-01-29T13:54:45Z")
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. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2023, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-it-comes-to-record-albums-was-your-first-your-favorite/978975/20 "2023-01-29T14:04:20Z")
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._ [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-it-comes-to-record-albums-was-your-first-your-favorite/978975.md?page=2)