“Like Books and Black Lives…”
There is a distinction between simply great-sounding music and life-changing music. What are the albums that changed/affected your life? That's what this series will explore.
Take me, for example. The Best of Earth, Wind & Fire, Vol. 1, Stevie Wonder's Hotter Than July, and Michael Jackson's Off the Wall are three of my favorite albums ever—each deserving its own hallowed spotlight in this (or any) series. But combined, this trinity of albums held a special power over me and my sister as kids. The emphatic listening sessions that we shared, during weekends at our dad's, helped strengthen and solidify our childhood bond—and it all centered around these three classic albums.
Then at age 12, the music of Prince, via his album 1999, would become a mainstay in my life—his funky, defiant sound got me through some awkward teenage years. And in college (art school to be exact), I fell in with a community of devoted Prince misfits who made me feel like I finally belonged somewhere. 1999 introduced me into the Prince universe—and as anyone who knows me can attest, the world of music that he created has been a big part of my identity ever since.
Then in young adulthood, my tastes started becoming more mature, varied...and moody. Massive Attack's classic Protection introduced me to trip-hop, which was a mellowed-out mish-mash of hip-hop, reggae, and electronic sounds. Very quickly, trip-hop became a major part of the soundtrack to my brooding 20s, and was a gateway to so many other styles and artists that defined me.
A lot of great storytelling will come out of exploring "The Albums That Made Us," and I will definitely be expounding on the experiences above, in future essays. Other fellow music lovers have agreed to share some of their own influences, and I can't wait to go down those rabbit holes too!
As an Aside...
In the 2000s, music listening has become more about individual tracks than complete albums. Personally, I embrace this, as it gives me opportunities to create inspiring mixes of my own. (Coming up, I was the guy who was always spending hours crafting precious “mix tapes” for myself and friends—and the digital medium has since allowed me to streamline that process!)
But there's also something about the album format—a prearranged, precurated, prepackaged collection of songs—that's made for experiencing...not simply being listened to. Hopefully, that will also come out in these stories.
“Albums…remember those? Albums still matter. Like books and black lives, albums still matter.” —Prince, 2015 Grammys
Addendum…
When this essay was originally published in October 2022, valued contributor DLT left a number of great comments below. Imagine my horror, after moving this post to its new section on TRH in March 2024, when I discovered all comments had been deleted! But not to worry, I still have the full text of DLT’s commentary—which includes an absolutely inspiring story about Marvin Gaye’s Here, My Dear. It will be published as the second essay in this series…coming soon!
That’s a great segue into the news that, as of March 2024, TRH has been undergoing some cosmetic and content changes…to make for a more visually appealing experience, and to accommodate some of the new content ideas I’ve been cooking up for 2024.
As a labor of love, TRH will always be a work in progress for me. It’s the thing I love tinkering with. So here’s to many more updates, as the site keeps getting better and better. Thanks for your support…and read on!