confessions from a self-admitted "the first album is always the best" music snob

runmikeyrun · #1 10-17-2011, 02:43 PM

This little mantra always seems to be repeated in my music habits... I just downloaded Deep Purple's "Shades of Deep Purple" and it's absolutely amazing. While it's not always true (Slayer's Reign in Blood was not their first album) it seems to hold true for me most of the time.

Post your thoughts on bands who you think their first album is their best.

Stick_Player · #2 10-17-2011, 02:48 PM

Banana Splits

tangentmusic · #3 10-17-2011, 02:52 PM

I'm glad you enjoyed "Shades of Deep Purple". While it's an overlooked classic for sure, I dont feel it was their best album.

Led Zeppelin's debut album was always a favorite of mine, but not sure it's their best either.

So many of the great bands seemed to get better as they went along. Maybe 2nd,3rd or 4th LP's were when they were at their best.

So I'll have to go with the first BOSTON album as their best.

TDSLaBassiste · #4 10-17-2011, 02:59 PM

I always felt that Rush's first album was their best. Sorry Neil

**jbybj** · #5 10-17-2011, 03:06 PM

Journey. Gregg Rolie was the vocalist, and they still had a lot of the Santana feel, but with a heavy dose of Prog rock thrown in.

stflbn · #6 10-17-2011, 03:06 PM

LP's used to be difficult to produce, so bands tended to 'prepare' before they tossed stuff out.

Now however all it takes is a laptop a microphone and a sack full of childrens toys and you can produce music.

Bands release stuff now, but they don't necessarily 'prepare' what they release.

Bloodhammer · #7 10-17-2011, 04:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tangentmusic

So I'll have to go with the first BOSTON album as their best.

+1

I'm not really a "first album" snob, though. I actually like bands to evolve. Case in point: Ulver

Valerus · #8 10-17-2011, 04:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bloodhammer

+1

I'm not really a "first album" snob, though. I actually like bands to evolve. Case in point: Ulver

It's hard to fathom that they used to be a black metal band..

Bloodhammer · #9 10-17-2011, 05:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Valerus

It's hard to fathom that they used to be a black metal band..

A friend once asked me to describe "The Marriage of Heaven and Hell" because he hadn't heard it before. I started with "It sounds kinda like......" and then just scratched my head for a minute. Eventually I looked up at him and said "Dude, you're just going to have to hear it!"

"Perdition City" changed my life.

drewfunk · #10 10-17-2011, 08:03 PM

Queens of the Stone Age's self titled first album is unlike anything they produced after that.

duff beer · #11 10-17-2011, 08:50 PM

The Cars

Pearl Jam

Van Halen

The Pretenders

**jmattbassplaya** · #12 10-17-2011, 08:56 PM

Guns N Roses
Velvet Revolver
Audioslave
Rage Against the Machine
Pearl Jam
Iron Maiden

JimK · #13 10-18-2011, 05:31 AM

Caveat: I am also a guy that likes debut albums...that said-

Quote:

Originally Posted by tangentmusic

I'm glad you enjoyed "Shades of Deep Purple". While it's an overlooked classic for sure, I dont feel it was their best album.

Agree. Machine Head was my 1st exposure to Deep Purple. That album, for me, is a band at its high...best line-up, too.
Alice Cooper School's Out was my 1st AC album. Again, IMO, that is a band at thier peak. Pretties For You is something I recently picked up. It's cool for an early snapshot...would have been a major bust for me if I had bought this in 1972, though.

Quote:

Led Zeppelin's debut album was always a favorite of mine, but not sure it's their best either.

Me, too...although for me, IV is special.

Quote:

So many of the great bands seemed to get better as they went along. Maybe 2nd,3rd or 4th LP's were when they were at their best.

The Beatles? Something like Revolver is maybe their 6th album? Of course, when you're putting out 2-3 albums per year...it's not that far removed form the earliest efforts.

Some bands put out an early cluster of "great" albums-
Santana, Abraxas, & Santana III come to mind.
I'm not sure The Doors even put out a "bad" album. Their debut, though, may be their best.

Chicago's 1st album, IMO, is one of the best debuts...no matter the genre.

Bloodhammer · #14 10-18-2011, 12:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jmattbassplaya

Iron Maiden

For real?

Thrust Meatnozl · #15 10-18-2011, 12:46 PM

I used to think this too but the reality is that for every band whos debut album is my favorite, there are a dozen others where it's not the case.

mmbongo · #16 10-18-2011, 01:02 PM

Dada
Blind Melon
Jellyfish

markob · #17 10-18-2011, 01:08 PM

Bad Company
Montrose

JimK · #18 10-18-2011, 01:15 PM

Captain Beyond?

Russell foulkes · #19 10-18-2011, 01:38 PM

Mr. Bungle

a good case in point of a band preparing material, as various songs appeared before this on different demo's.

**jmattbassplaya** · #20 10-18-2011, 01:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bloodhammer

For real?

Fo realz, yo!

But really, that album was one of the main reasons why I got into bass, so I'm going to be slightly biased towards it. That said, my favorite Maiden albums are the first two. While they have a ton of amazing albums, the first two just have an edge to them that Bruce was never able to capture with his vocal style. They also are the only Maiden albums I can listen straight through without skipping a song. Ever album since then seems to have 3-4 killer tracks, 2-3 decent tracks, and then the rest is just filler.