Newsgroups: bit.listserv.allmusic
Date:         Fri, 9 Oct 1992 08:29:01 MEZ
From:         Paul Hosken <RMCB@DLRVM.BITNET>
Subject:      Epic debut albums - part 2

Hi again,

  In an attempt to kill this topic within 24 hours here's the 2nd.
part of my list of great firsts. But first I must own up to a few
errors in the first list, namely:

Little Feat's first was 'Little Feat'
Madonna's first was 'Madonna' (& should be removed from the list)
Wailers' first was 'Soul Rebel'
Van Morrison's first was 'Blowin' Your Mind'
Rolling Stones first was 'Rolling Stones'
Pink Floyd's first was 'Piper at the Gates of Dawn'
Frank Zappa's first was 'Francis Vincent Zappa Conducts Lumpy Gravy'
  (I had to look this one up, and this is what the book said!)
Was Level 42's first 'Level 42' or 'Early Tapes'?

Now, off we go with part 2:

Cat Stephens - Mona Bone Jakon
Traffic - Mr. Fantasy
Band - Music from Big Pink (I think someone's already mentioned this one)
Beach Boys - Surfin' Safari
J.J.Cale - Naturally
Devo - Q:Are We Not Men? A:We Are Devo
ELP - ELP
Isley Bros - Shout!
Jen-Michel Jarre - Oxygene
Linton Kwesi Johnson - Dread Beat an' Blood
Meatloaf - Bat out of Hell
Steve Miller Band - Children of the Future
Nena - Nena (German version, not the english!)
Tom Petty - *someone mentioned that his first album should be included
            but according to my book it's an album called 'Official Live
            Bootleg' - is this correct, and should it be included here?*
Tears for Fears - *was there first album 'From the Big Chair'?*
Otis Redding - Dictionary of Soul (*this and the Isley's 'Shout!' put much
               of the other offerings to shame!*)
Siouxsie & the Banshees - Scream
Patti Smith - Horses
Rick Wakeman - 6 Wives of Henry VIII
U2 - Boy
Steve Ray Vaughn - Texas Flood (*I've not yet heard this, but I'll assume
                               you lot know what you're talking about*)
Yes - Yes
...and last but not least...
Talking Heads - '77

So, that's about the size of it - I'm glad that's over and done with.

Before I say bye-bye I'd like to mention that I disagree with the following
suggestions that other people have made:
   Black Sabbath - Black Sabbath (I used to have all the early BS albums
                                 and this one was the first that I sold.
                                 If their first had been 'Paranoid' then I
                                 would have agreed).
   The Cars - The Cars (I'm sorry but this could never be in my personal
                       list of good albums. Have you ever tried listening
                       the 'ooh' in the middle of 'Best Friend's Girl'?
                       For me when a singer sings an 'ooh' then it should
                       sound like a spontaneous outburst of feelings - like
                       Robert Plant used to do in Led Zep songs. Instead
                       the 'ooh' in BFG sounds more like the singer's just
                       trodden on a slug! - It rolls me up every time)
   Lene Lovich - Stateless (This album I played once and since then is
                           gathering dust in the corner - it's a matter of
                           taste I suppose)

  This brings me to an interesting side-line; what makes an album 'epic'?
Is it the number of sales, the absolute quality of the music/songs/musicians,
the fact that it contributed a new facet to the many faces of music, or a
combination of these? Take for example the Beatles' debut 'Please Please Me',
this album sold millions, and was the start of a major music event, but
dispite this I don't consider it to be a good album and hardly ever listen
to it. In comparrison to waht was to follow I'd say it's trivial. On the
other hand, J.J.Cale's first most likely didn't break any sales records
when it came out - but it's place on this list is unquestioned.
  In the end I'd say its like most things in music - a matter of personal
taste. I included on the first list Curved Air's 'Air Conditioning', which
in retrospect most likely isn't such a marvelous album, but it played one
hell of a roll in my early youth. This was the record that was always played
at the psycadelic/incense/dope parties in our area, and we'd travel miles
to see Curved Air live. Obviously some albums in the list are true greats
that no one can disagree with, but the other half could well be "the other
man's poison" for some of you (great name for a band, eh). What do you lot
think about this? - I'd be interested in pushing this topic along in this
new direction for a bit.

Paul

PS: I just got a great new idea; how about a list of all groups who's first
    album had the group's name as a title? - Just kidding!

 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Hey little man I could buy you a train or a gun
I'd choose the train, ride away while the battle is won
I would sing this song to earn me the fare
Wouldn't it be nice, for maybe an hour, to not have to care?
                                              HEY LITTLE MAN - Dave Cousins
 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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