My Very First Album
When I was 9 years old, Michael Jackson "Thriller" had come out just about a month before Christmas, and my parents bought it for me on vinyl that Christmas. A solid six of the nine tracks are songs I still very much love to this day (Wanna Be Startin' Somethin', The Girl Is Mine, Thriller, Beat It, Billie Jean, Human Nature). For a first album, I think I did alright!
Although this album is now almost 34 years old, the songwriting, the musicianship, and the production still stand the test of time.
I didn't know until MANY years later that Steve Lukather and Eddie Van Halen played the guitar on "Beat It" (yes, one listen to that solo now, and it's clearly Eddie, but I was young...).
The First Album I Bought
By about 1984, I was starting to learn to play keyboards and synthesizers, and by 1986, I was also learning to play electric guitar. If there was a crossover moment for me, it had to be the song "Jump" by Van Halen. It was a killer synthesizer song, but it also had amazing guitar playing. (Hey! There's that Eddie Van Halen guy again...)
Now although "1984" by Van Halen was one of the early albums I bought, my first album with my own money was "Ride The Lightning" by Metallica on cassette. I was new to heavy metal, but all of my friends were into it. I had borrowed a small stack of tapes from my good friend Damascus, and "Ride The Lightning" was one that really stood out to me.
This choice would end up setting the pace for my guitar playing for the following 10-12 years, as I became obsessed with Metallica. I eventually bought all of their albums and eventually learned to play all of their songs. For a short period in college, I was even the lead guitarist in a primarily Metallica cover band (we covered a few other bands too, but Metallica was our bread & butter). Coincidentally, "Ride The Lightning" was also the first album I bought on CD!
So what were your first albums and what impact did they have on you?
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