What’s your all-time favorite album?
This is a tough question to answer. My mind immediately jumped to two albums with this. But the thing is, neither one of them are my favorites. I thought of them because they are two albums where I don’t skip any songs when I listen to them. Every single song on each one is a banger. I mean, if you can call songs by Garth Brooks and James Taylor “bangers”. Also, does it even really count that they’re both greatest hits albums?
The James Taylor album is on my “relax mode” playlist. Something about his voice is instantly soothing. I remember listening to this album on the plane when I flew to Florida to visit my dad for the first time since he and my mom got divorced. I was nervous about seeing him and this music helped put me at ease as I traveled.
But I wouldn’t necessarily say it’s my all-time favorite. In fact, I can’t think of any recent albums that are favorites. Not whole ones anyway. I have curated various playlists with bits and pieces of albums. Which is what I read is a reason Garth Brooks doesn’t have his discography on Apple Music. Something about the fact that people can pick and choose songs to add to their libraries. He wanted his albums to stay in tact when people listen to them apparently, and didn’t want them to be chopped up. They weren’t meant for that according to him.
Lately though, as I’ve been listening to all of Taylor Swift’s albums in order, I think I might have a favorite album of hers at some point. I just started Reputation and honestly, that will probably become a favorite. I’m only 3 songs deep into it right now though. Her album 1989 might be my favorite of the ones I’ve listened to so far. I just don’t know. She has so much good stuff!
Throwing it way back to my younger days, when it was more time consuming to create mix tapes and c.d.s, there are a few albums that I remember had a hold on me. Actually, I think I have one from every period of my life.
Aside from the New Kids on the Block album that had “Hangin’ Tough” on it—was that the name of the album too?—their Christmas album is one of my favorites. I first discovered it when I was in elementary school around the late 80s. It carried over throughout my whole life. In high school, when I had my own phone line in my bedroom, pre cell phone days, my answering machine at Christmas had the start of one of these songs as my greeting. There’s a song on here that starts with “Peace to the world from the New Kids on the Block we are here…” and then I’d stop the music and jump in and say “well I’m not here right now but please leave your name and number” etc. I wonder if I could still do that for my voicemail… To be honest, I only know the songs on the A side of this cassette. I never listened to the songs on the other side. I don’t know why.
This next album had a chokehold on one of my best friends and me in middle school. We were obsessed with the movie and the soundtrack. I recently tried to find the soundtrack on streaming, and it’s there, but the songs aren’t sung by the original cast members. It’s very weird. So I ordered an old school cd from Amazon and have listened to it in my car over the past couple of weeks. My car is so old it still has a cd player in it.
Then in high school, there were a LOT of albums that I called my favorite. It’s hard to narrow down to one. I’m going to go with Alanis Morrisette though. Her Jagged Little Pill album was and still is one of the best. I remember having this cd on top of the dresser in the room I stayed in when I spent time with my grandparents in Florida one summer in early high school. My grandpa picked it up and shook his head and grumbled something about “album covers these days”.
Glad he didn’t pick up my Snoop Dogg cd. No idea what he would have said about that one. Or Dr. Dre. Didn’t he have an album called The Chronic and it just had a big pot leaf on the cover? Or maybe the leaf was on the actual disc. Regardless, I had that one too. My parents didn’t censor what I watched and they didn’t censor what I listened to either. As evidenced by the clerk at the music store when I put 2Pac’s greatest hits on the counter to buy and the guy looked at my parents and asked if they knew what I was buying. They said “yes” and I went home with a new album for my collection.
I really think I could ramble on and on about various albums that I’ve really enjoyed throughout my life. I can’t honestly say there’s an all-time favorite though. My taste in music is so different and it changes all the time depending on my mood or what’s happening in my life. I might have a favorite country album, or rap, or pop. But not one that stands out above all genres. But who knows, maybe after I hear all of Taylor Swift’s music, one of hers will stand out to me. I’ll have to let you know.
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