Zonie

"Let's All Sing with The Chipmunks".

Kaffy Mintcake

Me too! The LP with his picture on it.

HannahGreen

First record - The Good, The Bad and The Ugly (lol!)

First album - Van Morrison - Moondance

CarrotCruncher

First Album was Davie Bowie, Let's Dance

First single was Natasha, Iko Iko

Steerpike

How do you guys remember? !!!! Do you still have the receipts?!

I don't remember which was first, but I do remember the first few ...

Wednesday Morning, 3am (Simon and Garfunkel)
Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme (Simon and Garfunkel)
Bridge Over Troubled Water (Simon and Garfunkel)
Candles in the Rain (Melanie)

And then the fun began ... ...
Tubular Bells (Mike Oldfield)
Dark Side of the Moon (Pink Floyd)
Abraxas (Santana)
Foxtrot (Genesis)

I still enjoy all of them today.

On a related note ... weren't albums wonderful?! The physical size allowed for decent sized pictures; you could display them with pride. Cassettes, and later CDs, never had that same 'sense of ownership' to me ... I still have a box of maybe 100 in near mint condition somewhere; one of the few things I brought over with me!

tamms_1965

My mom had that and now it's in my collection alond with ex's Dark Side of the Moon.

MrEmjoy

Oh dear

You brave soul.

SultanOfSwing

1st single (7") - It's The End of the World as we Know It (REM)

1st album (tape) - A Kind of Magic (Queen)

I didn't start buying my own albums and that (at least with my own money, not presents) until I was about 13, up to then I made do with taping my dads records, which I later got on 'permanent loan', or albums that I taped off other people. Neither of the above were new when I bought them in 92/93 though, I think the first brand new album I bought was Definitely Maybe (Oasis), and I didn't buy my first CD until I was 15, which was Out of Time (REM). I remember sitting at about 16 with maybe 11 CDs wondering if I'd ever have a half decent collection, now I have hundreds of the bloody things!

I do agree with Steerpike's comment about LPs and the album art - a big gatefold album cover with lots of artwork was part of the reason I got into vinyl. My dad's old copy of ELO's Out of the Blue springs to mind, with the big spaceship/recording studio inside . At least even CDs can be displayed proudly on a shelf though, I partly resent mp3s for ruining the whole collectible aspect of albums

Oh well. Time to shut up and shuffle along . . .

Bob

It helps if it weren't that long ago

Steerpike

I've recently gone through a bit of a Melanie revival ... I picked up an album from the 90's where she sings her old classics. Her voice has now deepened, but still has that characteristic tone. Her re-do of 'Close to it all', and 'Ruby Tuesday' are absolutely mind blowing! Plus, her original 'Mr. Tambourine Man' is haunting indeed. She simplified the Dylan lyrics which somehow made it more accessible. Thanks to this thread I'm now ordering a DVD of her recent performances ...

I think iTunes/MP3 players in general have changed the nature of music. In the 'good old days', you listened to the selections of others on the radio, encountering music you would not necessarily select yourself. Nowadays, everyone has their own massive collections, and listens to their own selection. Obviously a good thing in many ways, but it would seem to make it much harder to encounter new stuff. Though maybe not - nowadays, any garage band can record a song and post it on the internet for anyone to listen to (if it can be found!).

Touche, dude! My first albums were bought in shililngs and pence!

mayhemuk

I love the new tech means of carrying alot of music around in the iPod etc
I'm also a fan of browsing the real music stores and trying something new just because it had an interesting cover that caught the eye.

I also miss the sleevenotes etc. Because my hearing is a little shady the lyric sheets were always a godsend for clarifying what was being sung.

So long as there's music to be had I'll take it how it comes.

Macca67

Single - Message in a Bottle, (in Green Vinyl) The Police

Album -The Raven, Stranglers

SultanOfSwing

I'm with you on the portability, without a doubt. I haven't had a coat with pockets big enough to hold a CD walkman for years! I did mess with minidiscs for a while but it was really just transferring my CDs or LPs to the minidisc to take with me in a small package.

I own an mp3 player, and I have backed up all my CDs to the computer but even now I still like to have them out so I don't have to fire up the PC or dig out my mp3 player if I want to hear a song or two.

Being a musician I'm torn - one part of me loves to see lots of CDs or LPs when I'm at someone's house, or when I go into my little studio, but at the same time, the mp3 has become invaluable for working on songs because I can just plug my guitar into the computer and jam away.

I'm a hypocrite, arent I

Bob

The joys of Pandora/Last.fm/Groove Shark/Spotify etc...they do a pretty good job of recommending stuff you might like based on what you play or have in your playlists, with a few good surprises thrown in

TimFountain

Dark Side of the Moon. Bought from Andy's records in Cambridge. I played it 'till it wouldn't play no more then bought it again and again. 3 records before the first CD came along and I still have the cover from the first album. Ah the days.

- Tim