Ever hear a band or solo artist for the first time and just be blown away? Blown away to the point that, if it's not their first record, you check out the earlier ones?
Most bands have a growing period early in their career, a time to flesh out their sound, for band members to mesh. Some of those early records are documents to that process - and some are very good.
Thinking back, which records jacked up your "Wow" factor the first time you heard them? Which ones made you a lifetime fan, who explored their previous work and also bought their future records?
I have a few:
» The Beatles. Yes, I know this sounds counterintuitive. Who doesn't know the Beatles? But the "White Album" was the first Fab Four record I ever bought. I'd heard all the previous hits but not the album tracks. So back in time I went, all the way back to "Please Please Me." My love of the band has never waned.
Shawn Ryan» Hunters & Collectors. This Australian band is as tough as the middle of the outback. They have to be. In some Australian pubs and clubs, the crowd will pelt you with stuff - sometimes stuff that hurts - if they're not entertained. I picked up on this band with its 1987 album "Fate" (named "What's a Few Men?" in Australia). It's a muscular blast of rock and intensity. I immediately checked out their four previous albums and three EPs.
» Jackson Browne. I'm pretty sure the first song I heard by him was "The Pretender" from the album by the same name in 1976. Bought that one, then went to his previous three albums. Tremendous. I don't believe you'll find a better singer-songwriter album than "Late for the Sky."
» Deep Purple. Sure, I'd heard "Smoke on the Water." Who hasn't? But my first purchase was 1973's "Made in Japan," one of the great live albums. So I went back, back past 1970's "In Rock," the first with vocalist Ian Gillan (he sang "Smoke on the Water"). I ended up at the band's first album, 1967 "Shades of Deep Purple." Different sound, different vocalist, still good. I've stayed with them through 18 albums.
» Train. I'd heard "Meet Virginia" - the one that rhymes "alligator" with "carburetor" (which is kind of genius) - but that was from the band's 1998 debut. They had several hits, won a couple of Grammys after that, but it wasn't until I heard "50 Ways To Say Goodbye" from 2012's "California 37" that I started paying attention. I still don't much care for the hits, but there is some top-notch stuff on their first five records.
Contact Shawn Ryan at mshawnryan@gmail.com.