I’d pick 1973. First because my beloved Alice Cooper debuted my two favorite albums of theirs, Billion Dollar Babies and Muscle of Love.
Second because it was also Aerosmith’s and Lynard Skynard’s first albums.
Third, for these:
The Eagles – Desperado
Steve Miller Band – The Joker
REO – Ridin’ the Storm Out
Pink Floyd – Dark Side of the Moon
The Rolling Stones – Goat’s Head Soup
Last, there was also plenty of other stuff from folks I enjoy, like Deep Purple, Blue Oyster Cult, Fleetwood Mac, Atlantic Rhythm Section, Chicago, Queen, Rod Stewart and Creedence Clearwater Revival, just to name a few.
Send me back please. Just let me be about nineteen, instead of five.
I should’ve picked the last option, as I really don’t care about music that much. But I chose 1983, because that was my early teenage years and has the strongest musical memories for me. When I go to YouTube for nostalgic music, it tends to often be around the early 80s.
War -------------------------------------- U2 Murmur ---------------------------------- R.E.M. Let’s Dance ----------------------------- David Bowie Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)---- Eurythmics Synchronicity--------------------------- The Police Pancho & Lefty------------------------- Merle Haggard and Willie Nelson Porcupine ------------------------------- Echo & The Bunnymen Speaking in Tongues ------------------ Talking Heads Quick Step and Side Kick/Side Kicks– Thompson Twins True --------------------------------------- Spandau Ballet Listen ------------------------------------- A Flock of Seagulls She’s So Unusual ---------------------- Cyndi Lauper The Hurting ----------------------------- Tears For Fears
*Eliminator * ------------------------------- ZZ Top Punch the Clock ------------------------ Elvis Costello and the Attractions The High Road -------------------------- Roxy Music The Crossing --------------------------- Big Country Infidels ----------------------------------- Bob Dylan Madonna -------------------------------- Madonna Colour by Numbers -------------------- Culture Club Metal Circus ----------------------------- Hüsker Dü Whammy! -------------------------------- The B-52s Hootenanny ---------------------------- The Replacements Madness -------------------------------- Madness Violent Femmes ------------------------- Violent Femmes Reach the Beach ----------------------- The Fixx
*Confrontation *-------------------------- Bob Marley & The Wailers
*Rant N’ Rave with the Stray Cats *------ The Stray Cats State of Confusion ---------------------- The Kinks Soul Mining ------------------------------- The The Under a Blood Red Sky ----------------- U2 Rebel Yell -------------------------------- Billy Idol Hand of Kindness ---------------------- Richard Thompson Labour of Love ----------------------------- UB40 Little Robbers------------------------------- The Motels Swordfishtrombones ---------------------- Tom Waits An Innocent Man --------------------------- Billy Joel Uh-Huh -------------------------------------- John Cougar Mellencamp
*Touch * --------------------------------------- Eurythmics What Makes a Man Start Fires? ------- Minutemen
*Mama Africa *----------------------------- Peter Tosh
Compilations:
Snap!--------------------------------------- The Jam Japanese Whispers -------------------- The Cure Who’s Greatest Hits ------------------- The Who
I chose 1969, because that year Fairport Convention released “What We Did On Our Holidays” recorded in 1968), “Unhalfbricking,” and “Liege and Lief.” Those albums changed my listening habits ever afterwards.
Other great albums from that year were “Abbey Road,” Led Zeppelin,“Led Zeppelin 2,” “Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere,” “Crosby, Still and Nash,” “Tommy,” and “Volunteers.”
Tough call, but I think I’ve got to say '65. Bringing it All Back Home, Highway 61 Revisited, the first two Byrds albums, Rubber Soul, the early Stones … it was a very good year.
Do you think it was an accident that Lucas chose 1962 for American Graffiti?
It was the year the music was everything.
The Twist by Chubby Checker, Soldier Boy by the Shirelles, The Locomotion by Little Eva, Duke of Earl by Gene Chandler, Breaking Up Is Hard to Do (the good one) by Neil Sedaka, Sheila by Tommy Roe, The Wanderer by Dion, Palisades Park by Freddie (Boom Boom) Cannon, Mash Potato Time by Dee Dee Sharp and on and on.
But it wasn’t just rock 'n roll. It had new standards by the likes of Nat King Cole, Ray Charles and Emilo Pericolli.
Even jazz with the likes of Acker Bilk, Kenny Ball and Ace Cannon made the charts in pop.
Jethro Tull came out with TWO full length albums in my birth year (1972): “Thick as a Brick” and “Living in the Past” (which is a DOUBLE ALBUM). So that may have factored into my choice somewhat…
Just out of curiousity, did anyone pick a year after they turned 20? Just curious, it would be interesting to compare the year you chose with your age at the time. I picked the year I was 18 and graduated from high school.
Sadly, like me, you voted for the wrong year - my list is '85. I made a mistake in my vote. So, it looks like 2 of those votes for '84 can count for '85.
I chose - on a wild hair - 1974. There have been some decent arguments that might steer me toward others, but I’d probably still stay in the 70’s. So … why not, I’ll stick with 1974 just to round out the decade.
I was 9 in 1974. I think I’d just graduated from Jackson 5 to KISS at that point.
These would be the albums in heavy rotation for me:
Energized - Foghat
KISS - KISS
Rock ‘n’ Roll Animal - Lou Reed
Twin Peaks - Mountain
What Were Once Vices Are Now Habits - The Doobie Brothers
Pretzel Logic - Steely Dan
Get Your Wings - Aerosmith
Queen II - Queen
Apostrophe - Frank Zappa
The Hoople - Mott the Hoople
Bridge of Sighs - Robin Trower
Shinin’ On - Grand Funk Railroad
Second Helping - Lynyrd Skynyrd
Diamond Dogs - David Bowie
Secret Treaties - Blue Oyster Cult
Son of Dracula - Harry Nilsson
Too Much Too Soon - New York Dolls
Bad Company - Bad Company
Caribou - Elton John
461 Ocean Boulevard - Eric Clapton
So Far - Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
Welcome Back My Friends to the Show That Never Ends … Ladies and Gentlemen - Emerson, Lake and Palmer
Feats Don’t Fail Me Now - Little Feat
Greatest Hits - Alice Cooper
Not Fragile - Bachman-Turner Overdrive
Dancing Machine - The Jackson 5
Nightmares and Other Tales from the Vinyl Jungle - The J. Geils Band
Crime of the Century - Supertramp
Late for the Sky - Jackson Browne
Sneakin’ Sally Through the Alley - Robert Palmer
Walls and Bridges - John Lennon
Streetlife Serenade - Billy Joel
Odds & Sods - The Who
War Child - Jethro Tull
It’s Only Rock and Roll - The Rolling Stones
Hotter Than Hell - KISS
Sheer Heart Attack - Queen
Goodnight Vienna - Ringo Starr
The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway - Genesis
All the Girls in the World Beware! - Grand Funk Railroad
I picked a year when I was 4 (1979). I didn’t get into music of that year until my mid-20s. I don’t think I knew who Wire or Gang of Four were (one of the big reasons for me to pick that year) until I was about 25.
