1999 (Prince)

1999
Prince (1982)

Top Tracks: “1999”, “Little Red Corvette”, “Automatic”

If I could go back in time, I’d do many things. One of them would be to be a little more open about how much I enjoyed Prince during the 1999 era. My friends and I were little rocker kids, and Prince was just too pop to be cool among my immediate peers. I’d been spending most of my time listening to Van Halen and AC/DC and the like, and now here was this incredibly groovy funk/R&B/rock stuff that I loved at the time, and love much more openly now. Prince was a genius and he stayed that way throughout his life. Special memory: playing as the band for our high school’s Jazz Chorale and doing “Little Red Corvette” on synth and vocals with Mike Burns on a very out-of-tune guitar. Good times (May 2020).

52nd Street (Billy Joel)

52nd Street
Billy Joel (1978)

Top Tracks: “Big Shot”, Zanzibar”, “Rosalinda’s Eyes”

This was still at a point where I was getting a lot of my musical exposure through my parents, and 52nd Street was an album that was on in my house a lot in 1978 and 1979. I probably got a big interest in songwriting based on this album’s influence, and I performed “Honesty” at my first guitar recital in December 1980. Note: the most popular track on this album, “My Life”, is probably my least favorite (May 2020).

Abbey Road (The Beatles)

Abbey Road
The Beatles (1969)

Top Tracks: “Come Together”, “Here Comes the Sun”, “I Want You (She’s So Heavy)”

Funny thing that the first Beatles entry on this list (alphabetically) is also perhaps my least favorite. There are points where it feels contrived and that the band is functioning more as a collection of individuals than a cohesive unit (because that’s exactly what was happening). That being said, can I do a Top Albums list and leave off Abbey Road? No, of course not. That would be stupid. Personal note: it was the first Beatles album to come out after I was born (May 2020).

Aja (Steely Dan)

Aja
Steely Dan (1977)

Top Tracks: “Peg”, “Aja”, “Black Cow”

Picking “Top Tracks” for Aja is ridiculous. What, “Josie” isn’t good enough? This was the album more than any other that taught me what could be done with music. I mean, sure, I had Mozart and Beethoven, I was kinda starting to experience jazz, but in 1977, Aja was on the stereo while my parents through swanky parties for their fashion industry friends, and could there be a better soundtrack for that era while growing up in Southern California? I can still listen to it front-to-back today and be as in awe of it as I was when I was eight years old (May 2020).

All The Best Cowboys have Chinese Eyes (Pete Townshend)

All The Best Cowboys Have Chinese Eyes
Pete Townshend (1982)

Top Tracks: “Slit Skirts”, “The Sea Refuses No River”, “Face Dances, Pt. 2”

I was, and remain, a huge Who fan, and I was deeply into this Townshend solo album when it was released just as I was going into high school. He was always a massive influence on me musically; definitely one of the musicians who made me want to push my own music into further levels of complexity than typical rock and pop would have permitted (May 2020).

Band on the Run (Paul McCartney and Wings)

Band on the Run
Paul McCartney and Wings (1973)

Top Tracks: “Band on the Run”, “Jet”, “Bluebird”

It’s funny that both John Lennon and George Harrison beat Paul McCartney to the punch for a really good post-Beatles album. But Band on the Run is very solid and definitely was a huge forerunner to the mellow sounds of the early/mid-70s (May 2020).

Boys in the Trees (Carly Simon)

Boys in the Trees
Carly Simon (1978)

Top Tracks: “You Belong to Me”, “Boys in the Trees”, “Haunting”

This was a mom album… as in, my mom played it often, usually on weekends cranked up on the big stereo while working on her tan in a chaise lounge in the backyard and drinking a beer. I’ve always respected Carly Simon as a writer and a singer, and this smooth late ‘70s sound was definitely a big part of my formative years (May 2020).

Breakfast in America (Supertramp)

Breakfast in America
Supertramp (1979)

Top Tracks: “The Logical Song”, “Goodbye Stranger”, “Take the Long Way Home”

Again, we’re on one of the best albums in history. Hard to criticize in any way. Around 1979, I was on roller skates a lot, and in my headphones was “The Logical Song”. Supertramp is like two bands in one, with the poppy (and sometimes schmaltzy) sounds of Roger Hodgson balanced with the more laid back rock oriented vibe of Rick Davies. I liked them both. And yes, it was very popular at the time, holding the #1 spot on the Billboard albums chart for six weeks in 1979 (June 2020).

Californication (Red Hot Chili Peppers)

Californication
Red Hot Chili Peppers (1999)

Top Tracks: “Scar Tissue”, “Otherside”, “Californication”

I can tell you, I was going through some heavy shit in 1999 when Californication came out. Let’s not get into the details, but having this dark album be a near constant part of the soundtrack of my life then was very fitting for me personally. It holds up too; listening to some tracks in preparation for this list while in the midst of a global pandemic was completely apropos (May 2020).

Candy-O (The Cars)

Candy-O
The Cars (1979)

Top Tracks: “Let’s Go”, “Candy-O”, “Dangerous Type”

What do you do after you make one of the best debut albums in history? You make one of the best sophomore albums in history. I frankly don’t have enough good adjectives to talk about the early output of the Cars. These first two albums helped define an entire era of new wave and power pop, with the brilliant production of Roy Thomas Baker and the songwriting of Ric Ocasek combining for some of the best music of my lifetime (June 2020).

Chicago Transit Authority (Chicago)

Chicago Transit Authority
Chicago (1969)

Top Tracks: “Beginnings”, “Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?”, “Questions 67 and 68”

It was probably pretty short sighted to name your band and first album Chicago Transit Authority… because there’s an actual Chicago Transit Authority that authorizes transit in Chicago (which, to this day, they still do). So that wasn’t going to work out longterm for the band name, so they shortened it to Chicago and all was well after that. This debut album is fucking outstanding, though. Progressive and jazzy but still friendly and pop-oriented, it introduced the signature sound of this band to the world and it still holds up today (June 2020).

Cliff Hanger (Jimmy Cliff)

Cliff Hanger
Jimmy Cliff (1985)

Top Tracks: “Hitting with Music”, ”American Sweet”, “Brown Eyes”

Funny story about this album: it’s not that great. Jimmy Cliff is a great singer and a reggae hall of famer, but I find most of his output on the “lite” side of Jamaican music. What’s he doing here, then? This is a great example of what this blog is all about. In 1985 when this came out, I was spending a lot of time with Michael Gale. We were in a local cover band together and also were buddies for a lot of alcohol and drug-based shenanigans. During my senior year, we had this album on pretty much constantly for things like beach trips and house parties. I couldn’t have left it off the list and felt honest. And yeah, it’s okay. It’s fun. Music can be fun (June 2020).

Combat Rock (The Clash)

Combat Rock
The Clash (1982)

Top Tracks: “Rock the Casbah”, “Should I Stay Or Should I Go?”, “Straight to Hell”

To this day, I turn up the radio (or my computer or whatever) when I run across any track from Combat Rock. First of all, nothing can replicate the vibe of Joe Strummer’s voice. Second, I’m still in awe of how an edgy punk band like the Clash could have made such a radio-friendly, danceable album as this and still remained true to their art and their original fan base. This album was huge when I was a freshman in high school and I loved it. Still do (June 2020).

Court & Spark (Joni Mitchell)

Court & Spark
Joni Mitchell (1974))

Top Tracks: “Help Me”, ”Car on a Hill”, “Just Like This Train”

Ah, yes. Another of the best albums of all time. Picking three songs as my “top tracks” was actually laughable. Almost every song on Court & Spark ranks among my favorite of all time. Personal note: This album was on constantly in my house when I was a kid, and then I rediscovered it as an adult and found I loved it even more (June 2020).

Crimes of Passion (Pat Benatar)

Crimes of Passion
Pat Benatar (1980)

Top Tracks: “Hit Me with Your Best Shot”, “You Better Run”, “Treat Me Right”

I absolutely loved this album, which was one of the very first I bought myself when I got my own stereo system in my room (the other two were Tattoo You and Out of the Blue, also on this list). That separation between albums I’d familiarized via my parents versus things that were new and part of my own generation is important. Pat’s voice was fucking awesome and I enjoyed the hard rock/pop vibe of her early stuff (June 2020).

Crosby, Stills & Nash (Crosby, Stills & Nash)

Crosby, Stills & Nash
Crosby, Stills & Nash (1969)

Top Tracks: “Suite: Judy Blue Eyes”, “Wooden Ships”, “Guinnevere”

God, this is an incredible album. Definitely one of the finest debuts ever, if you can consider the first album of a supergroup to be a debut. You have Steven Stills, fresh out of Buffalo Springfield; David Crosby, who’d walked away (or was fired, I can’t remember) from the Byrds, and kind of the oddball with English musician Graham Nash of The Hollies. And somehow, those voices and vibes blended in a way that really defines this era for me (June 2020).