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Post by Kapitan on Apr 6, 2019 14:58:06 GMT
Simple question: which artists or groups in the history of popular music had the greatest debuts?
I'll kick off with one that will make SJS smile: The Doors. As much as--or maybe more than--any band in history, this album was the fully fleshed-out sound of the band. It had a few true smash hits that have been a part of the classic rock canon ever since 1967. It had some inspired choices of covers (especially "Alabama Song (Whiskey Bar)"). And it was not only the band's own developed sound, but a new sound. This particular combination of blues and psychedelia under a veil of sensual mystery has always felt to me unique and somewhat groundbreaking. I'm nowhere near the biggest Doors fan out there, but this debut is brilliant.
A second strong contender for me depends on the definition of debut. If we can skip limited release / indie output and just go to major label LP debuts then I have to also argue Guns 'n' Roses' Appetite for Destruction. Other than the specific descriptions of the music, almost everything above applies here, too. This band was never more itself than on this album. The raw materials were among the most heavily mined in rock music history, yet this was a unique combination, some secret recipe that was seasoned with the immediately identifiable characters of Axl and Slash. There are at least three songs that became classic rock staples and big hits ("Welcome to the Jungle," "Paradise City" and "Sweet Child of Mine"), and frankly no filler on the entire album. I enjoyed watching them stretch out in subsequent releases, but this jittery, electric blues-rock album is close to a perfect debut, a refined sound right out of the gate.
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Apr 6, 2019 17:23:16 GMT
The Ramones - Ramones
Released in April of 1976, The Ramones debut album was far from the first punk album to be released, but it was one of the most influential. It clocked in at less than a half an hour, but from the opening notes of "Blitzkrieg Bop" to the final chords of "Today Your Love, Tomorrow The World", there was constant flow of back-to-basics raw energy rock & roll that hadn't been heard yet to that extent. This rock and roll was faster, sharper, even funnier. Ramones could go from songs about Nazism to chainsaws to sniffing glue to girlfriends - and that was just Side 1! Much like the influence of The Beatles in 1964 when every teenage boy wanted to buy a guitar and start a band, with The Ramones coming along in 1976, you didn't need a light show, stacks of amps and speakers, or makeup. All you needed was three chords and an attitude. Ramones didn't even crack the Billboard Top 100 album chart; today it consistently makes the All-Time Greatest Albums Top Ten lists. The Ramones recorded 14 studio albums, but never really deviated from the "formula" of that debut album. And that says a lot.
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Post by kds on Apr 7, 2019 2:47:43 GMT
Van Halen - Self Titled - Completely changed guitar rock.
Queen - Sure, they went on to bigger things but the debut is a cracker.
Boston - Self Titled - Possibly the greatest AOR album ever.
Iron Maiden - Self Titled - Steve Harris has rightfully lamented the production, but the songs are great.
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Post by Kapitan on Apr 7, 2019 12:43:41 GMT
Van Halen - I can't believe I forgot that. I mean, in naming just a couple, it's not like I was trying to be all-inclusive, but that VH debut is definitely one of those you should point to as being among the best ever.
They not only set the template for themselves for the next four albums or so, but for a whole subgenre of hard rock music for the next decade!
Two others occur to me this morning.
Jimi Hendrix Experience, Are You Experienced?. It's not perfect--there is some filler--but imagine having a debut album including the songs "Purple Haze," "The Wind Cries Mary," "Fire," the title track, "Hey Joe," "Manic Depression," "Foxey Lady," and "Red House"! Just an astounding lineup of tunes, not to mention the kind of guitar influence that nobody else would introduce for a little over a decade when Eddie Van Halen did it on Van Halen's debut.
Elvis Costello, My Aim Is True. Unlike a lot of the others, this isn't much of a template for Costello's career--he genre-hopped far too much for that. But it is remarkably mature-sounding, a huge batch of tight, memorable songs with a nervous energy. And of course it has one of the all-time rock and roll ballads, "Allison."
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Post by B.E. on Apr 16, 2020 14:40:10 GMT
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Post by kds on Apr 16, 2020 15:30:56 GMT
Do solo debuts count? If so, I'd consider the solo debuts of two ex Sabbath singers
Ozzy Osbourne - Blizzard of Ozz
Dio - Holy Diver
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Post by jk on Apr 16, 2020 15:33:08 GMT
Boston - Self Titled - Possibly the greatest AOR album ever. Really? I love "More Than A Feeling"... Another album to check out! Mine so far would be The Beatles ~ Please Please Me (in the UK) and Santana.
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Post by B.E. on Jul 23, 2020 17:46:07 GMT
Simple question: which artists or groups in the history of popular music had the greatest debuts? I'll kick off with one that will make SJS smile: The Doors. As much as--or maybe more than--any band in history, this album was the fully fleshed-out sound of the band. It had a few true smash hits that have been a part of the classic rock canon ever since 1967. It had some inspired choices of covers (especially "Alabama Song (Whiskey Bar)"). And it was not only the band's own developed sound, but a new sound. This particular combination of blues and psychedelia under a veil of sensual mystery has always felt to me unique and somewhat groundbreaking. I'm nowhere near the biggest Doors fan out there, but this debut is brilliant.
I'm quoting this because I think the same applies to the Eagles' 1972 self-titled debut. "Take It Easy", "Witchy Woman", and "Peaceful Easy Feeling" are all classic Eagles tunes. "Take It Easy", especially, as the lead track and debut single, is beyond impressive. I'd go as far as saying that it's one of the greatest recordings of all-time. And, as you might expect, it's also my favorite Eagles song. I agree wholeheartedly with Bud Scoppa's 1972 Rolling Stone remarks, "it's simply the best sounding rock single to come out so far this year. The first time through, you could tell it had everything: danceable rhythm, catchy, winding melody, intelligent, affirmative lyrics, a progressively powerful arrangement mixing electric guitar and banjo, and a crisp vocal, with vibrant four-part harmony at just the right moments for maximum dramatic effect." The consistency top to bottom is quite remarkable, as well, considering how equitably they spread out the songwriting and lead vocal duties. Songs like "Nightingale", and Leadon's "Train Leaves Here This Morning" and "Earlybird" are other favorites. The only song I could do without is Meisner's "Take The Devil". Personally, I rate the Doors' and Eagles' debuts equally: 8/10. Neither my favorite of the group, I prefer L.A. Woman and Strange Days, and, Hotel California and On The Border, but both are great albums regardless.
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Post by Kapitan on Jul 31, 2020 18:35:28 GMT
Some reasonably good timing, Rick Beato did a top 20 (actually 22, plus honorable mention) on this topic. 22+ albums in 11 minutes, obviously he doesn't go in depth. But it's always interesting hearing others' points of view. (A lot more modern, meaning 90s and later, rock than I would have expected or selected.)
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Post by jk on Aug 1, 2020 10:01:02 GMT
Assuming a band's lone album is technically also its debut, there are a couple I can think of, both self-titled -- The United States of America (1968, here track 1) and Gandalf (1969, here track 6): Both can be found at the top end of this list of albums from the mid '60s to mid '70s, here in a cleaned-up version or here in their original form.
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Post by kds on Aug 1, 2020 11:50:24 GMT
Some reasonably good timing, Rick Beato did a top 20 (actually 22, plus honorable mention) on this topic. 22+ albums in 11 minutes, obviously he doesn't go in depth. But it's always interesting hearing others' points of view. (A lot more modern, meaning 90s and later, rock than I would have expected or selected.)
Interesting list even if he holds alternative in much far regard than me. Is it my imagination, or does Linkin Park get a LOT more praise now after the untimely death of Chester Bennington? I've noticed it especially on some of the metal pages I follow. Before his death, LP was liked about as well as you'd expect an early 00s rap/rock band to be liked on a metal page. But since his death, you're hard pressed to find even an indifferent opinion of them. And I don't think its a show of respect for the deceased because some of the opinions of Kurt Cobain are pretty terrible (I think he's the most overrated musician ever, but I'm not going to dance on the guy's grave).
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Post by Kapitan on Aug 1, 2020 12:20:04 GMT
I think you're right about Linkin Park. I have to admit, I never followed them at all--not when they were new, not now--and actually didn't realize Chester Bennington died (or know who he is in relation to the band). BUT, I have definitely heard them referenced in positive terms pretty regularly in the past few years. So you may have something, there.
Agreed 100% about the show of respect for an artist's work based on his demise: I don't think it makes any sense. (Actually I think that holds true for all people and all facets of their lives, not just judging artists' work.) Like you, I'm not talking belittling people's grief over someone dying, or "dancing on their graves." But I just don't think someone's death changes their life.
Then again, I'm often accused of lacking empathy.
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Aug 1, 2020 12:21:12 GMT
Here's three that got a lot of play on my turntable back in the mid-70's:
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Post by kds on Aug 1, 2020 12:31:45 GMT
I think you're right about Linkin Park. I have to admit, I never followed them at all--not when they were new, not now--and actually didn't realize Chester Bennington died (or know who he is in relation to the band). BUT, I have definitely heard them referenced in positive terms pretty regularly in the past few years. So you may have something, there.
Agreed 100% about the show of respect for an artist's work based on his demise: I don't think it makes any sense. (Actually I think that holds true for all people and all facets of their lives, not just judging artists' work.) Like you, I'm not talking belittling people's grief over someone dying, or "dancing on their graves." But I just don't think someone's death changes their life.
Then again, I'm often accused of lacking empathy.
Unfortunately, I do remember the arrival of LP in that turn of the century shitshow that hard rock and metal was at the time. Bennington was their primary vocalist, who took his life around the same did Cornell did (which is why Beato said the clip of them was sad). But, I can't say I've ever been impressed with his vocals or his band, and his tragic end doesn't change my mind one bit. But, then again (KDS Get off my lawn comment), the bar for male hard rock vocals have been lowered considerably over the last 25 years.
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Post by Kapitan on Aug 1, 2020 12:32:58 GMT
Just as I've said about the Doors, I have a hard time even imagining what it must have been like to hear this debut (also from 1967) for the first time:
The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Are You Experienced?
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