10 Albums you can't live without.

Well, I normally abstain from all sorts of "chain" letters on Facebook, but this one intrigued me. It begged to ask the age-old questions of your personal top ten list of albums that you "couldn't live without". I answered and posted in brief on that site, but I figured my choices screamed for some analysis. So, here they are, in no particular order, whatsoever.

1. Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band - The Beatles (1967)
Obvious choice. This was actually the first compact disc I ever listened to on my first CD boom box. My grandparents had purchased "Anthology 1" and the boom box for my Christmas present in 1995. Strangely enough that same night I listened to my parent's copy of Sgt Peppers, and honestly thought that the weird build-up at the end of "A Day in the Life" was my CD player going haywire and I stopped playback immediately. The next morning I listened to it again and was hooked. I generally go through a Beatles-phase at least once, maybe twice a year, and always begin with this disc.

2. The Dark Side of the Moon - Pink Floyd (1973)
Another obvious choice, and once again, one with roots in my childhood. I remember my brother buying this CD maybe his junior year of high school, in one of his CD buying stages. I made a tape of it (on that same aforementioned boom box) and wore it out. Granted it took a few years for me to listen to the whole thing ad nauseum, but I was immediately drawn to the big singles "Money" and "Time". Flash forward over ten years or so and I think I've purchased DSotM about 10 times, either to replace mine own sore and scratched up copies, or to give away as gifts. One of the albums (along with a few others on this list) that I immediately think of when someone asks for names of albums that everyone should own. Getting to see the whole thing performed in sequence by Roger Waters was a definite highlight.

3. Abbey Road - The Beatles (1969)
Just about my favorite Beatles album, if they hadn't made Sgt Pepper's. Perhaps it's because it's the last true Beatles album, and ends with perhaps one of their best lines (Her Majesty not included, it was supposed to be earlier in the album, was axed, and an intrepid recording tech, instructed to not throw anything away, left it on the album). Some of the Beatles' best moments, in my opinion come from this album. "Something", "Oh, Darling", and "Here Comes the Sun" have each suffered multiple plays every time I pull the album out. If you buy TWO Beatles albums, I think this should be the second.

4. Kind of Blue - Miles Davis (1959)
While not the album that introduced me to jazz as a genre (that title belongs to the Ray Brown Trio's Don't Get Sassy) Kind of Blue did introduce me to what a truly great jazz album could achieve. Nothing on the album feels forced in any way, the ambiance just sits heavy, evoking blue smokey dens, dimly lit. Probably greatest album to listen to while watching the first snow storm of the year, with a great beer handy.

5. Bach Cello Suites - Pablo Casals (recorded 1936-1939)
Not the first collection of my favorite cello literature I purchased, and far from the last, Casals' seminal recordings of a bygone era still manage to fascinate me every time I listen to them. With the suites, each cellist (and you don't have to be one to do this) finds particular cellists' versions that suit their particular taste. While I don't see eye to eye with Pau on every piece, the majority of his interpretations still make me smile. If I could play these like any cellist, it would be like Casals. Granted, every cellist on earth has probably made that claim at least once.

6. Beethoven: The Late Quartets - Emerson String Quartet
I don't think I should have to explain this one. Beethoven truly at his finest, writing quartets in his final years, not for fame or money, but seemingly just for his own amusement and contentment. Let alone that most musicologists agree that some of his best work is here, the fact that when they were premiered, no one really understood them! I like to think of Beethoven, having already perfected the music of his mentors and peers during his lifetime, wanted to show the world just a small hint of what lay in the future for classical music. Emerson, while not always the "best" interpretation (if such a thing exists) is just a good solid jumping off point.

**note, beyond this is where most people would give me the raised eyebrow, but I'm not making a greatest ever list, just my favorite. With that, I'll include my favorite tracks from each album, as each of the aforementioned albums deserve a complete listening every time they spin.

7. Rubberneck - Toadies (1996)
I've often described the Toadies as my "guilty pleasure" band. I say that because while I do love listening to all genres of music, and could quite easily be contented merely listening to all brands of "classical" or "classic rock", I always find myself back to the Toadies when I just want to have a good time, relieve some stress, or just plain drive around in the summer with the windows down. This album, while I don't consider it their best album as a band, is just solid. I can listen to it end to end, back to back, for hours (a feat I'm pretty sure I've done more than a few times). This was the album I listened to the most with my friends and by my lonesome in high school, but it still doesn't sound dated to me. One of the perks, I suppose, of the music not really falling into a sub-genre other than "Alternative Rock". Still one of the best live shows I've ever seen, and this album makes a valiant effort at conveying that. Favorite track: "I Burn"

8. The Battle of Los Angeles - Rage Against the Machine (1999)
This album changed a lot of what I thought about modern bands. I was still in middle school when this came out, and hadn't really ventured far into "modern" popular music. I'd mostly at that point listened to a bit of grunge/guitar pop, but still mostly stayed in my safety zone of Classical/Beatles/Dead/Foo Fighters. When I purchased this it popped that idea that all musicians were aloof from politics since the death of Lennon. Here was an immensely popular band, selling millions of records and seats, but with something to say on top. I hadn't really listened to hip-hop yet (still haven't to an extent), but I was impressed with the musical tightness of the band, Morello's incendiary guitar solos, and Zach De La Rocha's fiery delivery of socio-political propaganda. Now further on my journey I find myself agreeing with more of their lyrics, and once again, one of the best live shows I've seen. Favorite track: "Ashes in the Fall"

9. Rated "R" - Queens of the Stone Age (2000)
Once again, another concept album by a band at it's peak. Already a semi-fan of QotSA, I first heard this album playing on the P.A. just before the first time I saw the Toadies play. I picked up their first album initially, fell in love with their crunchy guitar "robot" rock, with smooth vocal lines, then unabashedly listened to this album constantly for a full summer. Still one of the albums that I can start at the beginning, play til the end, and repeat. Favorite track: "Better Living Through Chemistry"

10. Yankee Hotel Foxtrot - Wilco (2001/2002)
Well, not all my choices entered my life pre-high school graduation. In fact, I was only introduced to this band and album within the past 6 months. It took a bit of work to listen to the whole thing as a complete concept album, but eventually I found I couldn't think of it as anything but. Basically, while I know that the other 9 have stood at least a relative test of time, I feel strongly that this will as well. Must thank Matt for getting me started. Favorite track: "I'm the Man Who Loves You"

Substitutes, in the event that one of the top ten get sick, or have to miss the line-up due to suspension.

*. The Beatles (White Album) - The Beatles
*. Frances The Mute - The Mars Volta
*. Bartok Quartets - Julliard String Quartet

-w-