More Life Changing Albums

Abbey Road - and on vinyl, too. I didn't take it off side two for weeks. And in the end, right?

Pink Floyd - The Wall. I remember absorbing every song the first time I listened to the cassette thinking how BIG rock music could be; how a complex story and great instrumentation could deliver a life-changing emotional experience.

Grateful Dead - American Beauty. While a couple of tracks are dispensible from this one, the keepers are absolute masterpieces. Box of Rain, Friend of the Devil, the obligatory Truckin', Sugar Mag (though the Europe '72 cut is better). However, the three songs that are the pinnacle of spirituality in music are Brokedown Palace, Attics of My Life and Ripple. These songs, like every one listed, have been with me and carried me through the most amazing times of my life. The lowest and the highest. Thank God for the ability to bang on objects to create organized sound.

The sound of Emmylou Harris' voice.

Geesh, and just exactly how could I forget about The Band's Music At Big Pink? I nearly cried from the first of Robbie Robertson's piercing guitar notes of Tears of Rage to Richard Manuel's piano notes of I Shall Be Released. Man, this album took me through quite a bit, and so long ago, too.