Most of these influenced my life and my writing to some degree. Some of them are just soundtracks for my memories.
In no particular order and numbered only so I will stop at 15...
1. "The Beatles 1967-1970" The Beatles
The first album I ever owned. My mom bought it for me when I was 7 years old and it started a lifelong obsession with The Beatles. I must have played "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" a million times. The opening to "Revolution" made me run around the house like a kid with ADD and no Ritalin. It still makes me push the gas pedal down a little further.
2. "A Hard Day's Night" The Beatles
I was at my grandmother's tiny apartment years ago. I was 8, 9 years old. So I'm looking through her records as she and I talked. She had quite the collection of country and western records. Charley Pride, Hank Williams, George Jones and Tammy Wynette. But tucked in between those records was “A Hard Day’s Night.” I gasped. “Grandma, you have a Beatles record!” She replied, “Oh yeah. Forgot about that. I like that song on there…the Hard Day Nights. I bought that when they were big.” Then silence. Then, “You can have it if you want.” I did. And I still have it. One of my most prized possessions.
3. “Being There” Wilco
Just a great train of a record, going over the hills and far away. I used to drive a lot. Asheville to Charlotte, Asheville to Raleigh, Asheville to everywhere, and no road trip ever took place without this double CD. It was simple yet elegant and Jeff Tweedy’s lyrics reminded me that my own writing should have such melody and flow.
4. “OK Computer” Radiohead
It took a few listens for me to get into this one, but now it’s a favorite. It stoked the poetic possibilities in me with its atmospherics and manic images. Phrases like “hysterical and useless,” “for a minute there, I lost myself,” and “arrest this man, he talks in maths, he buzzes like a fridge, he’s like a detuned radio” made my head spin and my pen write things I’d never even contemplated.
5. “These Days” The Grapes of Wrath
The short version: a long time ago, a girl wrecked herself and took me along for the ride. After she was gone and I worked on healing, I found myself in a Record Exchange in Charlotte near where I went to college. Browsing through the used tapes, I found the Grapes of Wrath. Canadian band. Never heard of them before, but as a Steinbeck fan, the name grabbed me. I bought it without listening and it was the salve my mind needed. Every song had the answer to every question or curiosity I had about the truck that had hit me. The tape never left my reach and helped me recover more quickly than I realized. I always wanted to send them a letter to thank them.
6. “Ten” Pearl Jam
The band and the album that really kicked my writing into gear. There is anger and madness and loss and all the angst-ridden feelings that hit some note inside me, whether I actually felt those feelings or not. In addition to all that, the record fuckin’ rocks. Such power and charge to it. Your head starts to move with it, a rage of some sort building in you just from the rush of the music. My 2nd favorite band behind the Beatles, and another album that got me through college and beyond. Another constant companion.
7. “Cracked Rear View” Hootie and the Blowfish
A “college” album in every sense of the word . They were just about our age and they of all the things college aged kids go through. Love, loss, daydreaming, the unknown, beer and wonder. So many memories with this one. Travis, Doug and I singing a horrible harmony to “Only Wanna Be with You.” Knowing every word to every song and singing along at their concert, soaked from the rain. Lots more somewhere in the back of my head.
8. “Big Red Letter Day” Buffalo Tom
Just put this in my CD player in the car, and like the Hootie album, this is another “college” album. With the rise of grunge and angst rock in the early 90s, some bands took a lighter approach. No less angst-ridden or introspective, these bands still hit the themes that were identifiable, but with less bluster. “Big Red Letter Day” made me feel like I wasn’t alone in feeling alone. And frankly, they’re just great songs.
9. “Time Out of Mind” Bob Dylan
Brilliant. Just brilliant. It started my whole Dylan kick. I’d never been a huge fan, but then I saw him on this tour and that was it. His voice changed…no longer nasally, it’s grit and gravel and real and it made the lyrics just grab you. It’s bluesy, it’s poetic, it’s a long ride on a long, hot, flat road somewhere in the South. He made me think about getting older and what happens and what to make of it all. And “Make You Feel My Love” just might be one of the greatest love songs ever written.
10. “In My Tribe” 10,000 Maniacs
The one good thing, other than a new definition of sanity, that came out of my first real relationship. We played this tape over and over and over. Every song said something to me, even if the subject matter wasn’t exactly relevant. It’s one of the first albums where the music came in colors and the lyrics were a poem. Natalie’s voice and lyrics were perfect, and the cameo by Michael Stipe on “A Campfire Song” made it even better.
There’s five others that somehow influenced the direction of my life. I’m just too lazy to write a bunch about them. That doesn’t diminish their importance.
11. “A Few Small Repairs” Shawn Colvin – You can take “Wide Open Spaces” by the Dixie Chicks…a fine song and all...but for a getaway song, I’ll take “Wichita Skyline” any day.
12. “Lifes Rich Pageant” R.E.M. – "Cuyahoga," "These Days," "Fall On Me," "I Believe," "Just a Touch," "Superman." There's power and poise here that made me want to decipher whatever the hell it was that Michael Stipe was saying to see if it applied to me.
13. “The River” Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band – “Hungry Heart” was the first Springsteen song I remember hearing, coming through the cab window into the back of my stepfather’s rusted yellow truck. One of my top 3 favorite Bruce songs. The album? A reminder of what’s out there.
14. “The Unforgettable Fire” U2 – Before Bono became a meglomaniac. “A Sort of Homecoming” and “Bad” still raise the hairs on the back of my neck.
15. “Grace” Jeff Buckley – “Hallelujah.” Enough said.
