So I've been working on this music feature for at least six months to a year now. Everything below this paragraph is exactly as it was written when I first finished this post a while back, but I wanted to have at least half of them done before I started posting. I'm not quite to that halfway point, but now I'm thinking about changing this to a different sort of idea, and I needed to at the very least see what the response is to this one before I made that decision, especially after all this time. To note, this post would have been the first in a series, and every post thereafter would be specific to one year, and in those every album I own would be written out with links to every track, while the ones I don't have would just be simply listed at the end. You can see how big it was bu seeing the link hub at the end, which would be updated as they get posted.
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After some internal deliberation, I settled on my newest gigantic music feature being a chronology of my iPod and music wishlists. I figure I'll go through all the years I have on my iPod and list out what I have and what I'm looking to buy. Then I'll choose my favorite album from each year from the stuff I already have. I'll be putting up links to every song on each album (where possible), but to make things look a bit nicer I won't be listing any track names, only numbers. I'll also put some links on everything I reference, so there's a lot linked. Everything should be set up to open in a new tab, so you don't lose this post while you try out a song.
Fair warning: There are well over 1,400 albums in the whole of this feature. I will do my best to provide links to each new installment and update the older ones with new links. It may come off as a LOT to process, and the sheer volume of content will mean this feature will be going on for quote a long while.
To start things off, I decided to combine the first several years on my iPod because there just wasn't enough albums to warrant separate posts for them. I will still count them separately as far as my favorites from each year. Because this one is different, I'm only posting the album art and song links for my favorite choices, and just listing the others. The rest of the posts will be specific to one year's releases, and will have everything done out.
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Classical
The Complete 9 Symphonies of Ludwig Van Beethoven
{1} {2} {3} {4} {5} {6} {7} {8} {9}
& Also "Für Elise" & "Moonlight Sonata"
To start off, figure I should start with the music that was created the earliest. On my iPod, the earliest music I have is the complete nine symphonies of Ludwig Van Beethoven, plus my two favorite non-symphony pieces of his. "Released" between 1800 and 1824, Beethoven's works are masterpieces of musical structure that truly need no excuse or explanation for their inclusion in anyone's music collection. The recordings I have of the symphonies are from the Berlin Philharmonic, conducted by Herbert Von Karajan. The CD collection is obviously much more recent than the sorting here, but I made an exception for this classical era since there are no recordings available from the original artists time. The links I used above are not for the recordings I have, because those aren't on YouTube. But those were good performances as well, so why not?
I am also looking into getting some works by Mozart, Paschelbel, Tchaikovsky, and a bunch of others, but I haven't settled on exactly which recordings to get yet.
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1957
The "Chirping" Crickets by The Crickets
Tracks: {1} {2} {3} {4} {5} {6} {7} {8} {9} {10} {11} {12}
This album marked the album debut for music legend Buddy Holly. Holly started out as a Bluegrass musician in high school, but incorporated Rockabilly into his sound after watching a performance by Elvis Presley, and later molded to Rock & Roll. He formed the Crickets and was fortunate enough to get both his new band and himself as a solo artist signed to record deals with two different companies. Both companies were subsidiaries of Decca, so any conflict between the two was non-existent. As a debut effort, and for its era, this isn't a terrible album. I would be lying if I didn't admit this is only the album of the year for me because there is no competition, but it isn't terrible. This was the only album Holly did with the Crickets.
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1958
Buddy Holly by Buddy Holly
Tracks: {1} {2} {3} {4} {5} {6} {7} {8} {9} {10} {11} {12}
Buddy Holly released both of his solo albums this year. Once again, I don't imagine either album would have kept the top honor of the year if it had any real competition, but the only other release from 1958 that I have is a single from Ronnie & The Red Caps. R&TRC was the first recorded band featuring Ronnie James Dio. The single below doesn't feature him singing, but rather he was playing the bass guitar. The A-Side "Conquest" is an instrumental track, but structurally and audibly this song was heavier than anything that came before it. Having heard quite a bit of Metal, I do believe this song is the genesis of the Metal style, and it's insanely appropriate that it was first written and performed by the God Of Metal himself on the very instrument that makes music heavy. The B-Side isn't a heavy song, and actually fits much more appropriately to the era.
Also released in this year:
- That'll Be The Day by Buddy Holly
Other Notable Singles From This Year:
- "Conquest" by Ronnie & The Red Caps
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1959
Chuck Berry Is On Top by Chuck Berry
Tracks: {1} {2} {3} {4} {5} {6} {7} {8} {9} {10} {11} {12}
1959 is represented on my iPod solely by this Chuck Berry gem. Some of the most essential Berry classics are on here. The album itself served as a collection of these and other singles from 1958, but it speaks to a trend I find ironic of the '50s and '60s that we don't see today. It used to be common that an artist would release singles by themselves, and some of their biggest hits never found their way to a studio album. Even songs as iconic as the Beatles' "Hey Jude" were left off of their canon studio albums. As time went on, performers began to use singles to promote albums instead of just themselves, and very few singles were ever kept off of albums. I find this ironic because today we have technology that would allow bands to release individual songs for download basically at their convenience, yet they still conform to the paradigm of using singles to promote albums. You would think that some band somewhere would realize that they could release one new song every month in between albums that just didn't make the cut for their upcoming releases and make a boatload off their eager and impatient fans. But I'm off topic now. This was Berry's third album, and in my opinion his finest. It's an absolute essential, and would probably have won best album of 1959 even if there was some competition here.
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1960 and 1961 do not have any representation on my iPod.
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1962
Surfer's Choice by Dick Dale
Tracks: {1} {2} {3} {4} {5} {6} {7} {8} {9} {10} {11} {12}
This album is more than just a surfer's choice; it's also the choice of homage obsessed independent directors, video game developers, and, uh, surfers. Background aside, it's easy to see why this is such a highly regarded album. Dick Dale mastered his unique Surf style early on, and this album is start to finish perfection for the genre. The beats are infectious and perfectly tuned to the chill nature of the activity they are associated with.
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1963
Dio At Domino's by Ronnie Dio & The Prophets
Tracks: {1} {2} {3} {4} {5} {6} {7} {8} {9} {10} {11} {12}
This is a very rare "live" album whose main appeal is to hear Ronnie James Dio in a band playing songs appropriate to this late '50s-early '60s era as opposed to the Metal he became known for. Though an earlier version of the band had released a few singles prior, this was the only actual album any version of the band would have. This iteration of the band was also when Ronald Padavona first took on the stage moniker Dio, though he still used his real name for the credits on their singles. Dio was still playing bass, though now he was singing as well. The competition this year was mainly The Beatles, but to be perfectly honest that just don't come close to this album for me in its significance, its sound, or its style.
Also released in this year:
- Please Please Me by The Beatles
- The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan by Bob Dylan
- With The Beatles by The Beatles
Other Notable Singles From This Year:
- "I Want To Hold Your Hand" by The Beatles
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1964
December - Beatles For Sale by The Beatles
Tracks: {1} {2} {3} {4} {5} {6} {7} {8} {9} {10} {11} {12} {13} {14}
While the earlier releases grew Beatlemania with pop-friendly simple song structures, this album was the band's first step to becoming something more than a popular hit-machine. Granted half the album is still cover songs, but you can't expect anyone to rock such a successful boat too much at once. This year featured some strong competition too, with my favorite two songs of the year being on other albums ("House of The Rising Sun" by The Animals and "You Really Got Me" by The Kinks). But overall, this album was the most complete of the year.
Also released in this year:
- A Hard Day's Night by The Beatles
- The Animals by The Animals
- Kinks by The Kinks
Other Notable Singles From This Year:
- "I Feel Fine" by The Beatles
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1965
Rubber Soul by The Beatles
Tracks: {1} {2} {3} {4} {5} {6} {7} {8} {9} {10} {11} {12} {13} {14}
There's a reason it was called BeatleMania, and this is the album that started to move away from that. Though most certainly still the same general archetypes of two to three minute catchy pop tunes, the tracks on this album started to drive its lyrical content away from the expected and began to show signs of satire and a more mature sense of humor. The band began to take some real chances with their sound, and as a result gave each song on the album more weight than the average Beatles song prior. Looking to the competition, it was really close with The Sorrows and The Zombies.
Also released in this year:
- Help! by The Beatles
- Highway 61 Revisited by Bob Dylan
- Having A Rave Up by The Yardbirds
- Take A Heart by The Sorrows
- Begin Here by The Zombies
Other Notable Singles From This Year:
- "We Can Work It Out/Day Tripper" by The Beatles
- "Get Off My Cloud" by The Rolling Stones
- "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" by The Rolling Stones
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1966
Freak Out! by The Mothers Of Invention
Tracks: {1} {2} {3} {4} {5} {6} {7} {8} {9} {10} {11} {12} {13} {14}
After three years of Beatles domination, this album hits me like the best slap in the face I've ever had (and I'm a connoisseur). It's unpredictable, unprecedented, and unrelenting. The world's earliest display of Frank Zappa's satirical genius, this album was not just a masterpiece of psychedelic rock, but a mockery of all Rock and Roll to have preceded it. It's equal parts catchy and terrifying; the exact album you expect to be playing while taking an elevator down a rabbit hole. It pioneered the concept album, stood out as an early notable double album, and succeeds in doing things that no album had ever done before it. Even with some iconic albums releasing in this year, nothing comes close to its greatness.
Also released in this year:
- Aftermath by The Rolling Stones
- Revolver by The Beatles
- Buffalo Springfield by Buffalo Springfield
Albums I Don't Have Yet, But Am Looking To Own:
- 96 Tears by Question Mark And The Mysterians
Other Notable Singles From This Year:
- "Paperback Writer" by The Beatles
- "I Feel Free" by Cream
- "19th Nervous Breakdown" by The Rolling Stones
- "I'm A Boy" by The Who
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Other Years
(Anything without a link hasn't been posted yet, the bold is this post)
----- 1800 to 1966 1967 1968 1969
1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979
1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989
1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
2010 2011 2012 2013
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-BlackArachnid41
-
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