choo-choo-charlie Posted May 25, 2010 Share Posted May 25, 2010 I'm going to steal from the NPR Blog today and put out what I thought was a great topic: do opening tracks matter? And what's the best opening track you ever heard? And what makes it a great opening track? To start, I'm going to say one of the best + one of my favorites is "Drive My Car" from Rubber Soul, just because I've been listening to that record lately. The opening guitar lick is bluesy and just raw enough, and I love the way Paul McCartney's bass blends in. When the drums kick in and the first verse opens up with the John/Paul harmonies, you know it's the start of a great album. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
PopTodd Posted May 25, 2010 Share Posted May 25, 2010 "Rocks Off" - The Rolling Stones (Exile On Main Street)The snare shot heard around the world, and probably the single greatest single snare hit in the history of recorded music:ba-da-ba-ba-ba-ba-ba-da-daPOW!!! "Get Ready For Love" - Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds (Abbatoir Blues)Another, raging opening track... gospel choirs, distorted slide guitar, and Nick's baritone. "Pumpkin Lover" - Shrimp Boat (Cavale)Just the way it falls together, from a skittering, almost tenative guitar riff, to when the rest of the band kicks in, and it all magically falls into place. Magic. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
LouieB Posted May 25, 2010 Share Posted May 25, 2010 Greetings to the New Brunette, Billy Bragg, Talking Poetry with the Taxman... LouieB Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Ghost of Electricity Posted May 25, 2010 Share Posted May 25, 2010 Side one Track ones: Elvis Costello "Uncomplicated" from Blood and Chocolate,R.E.M. "Harborcoat" from Reckoning,Jayhawks "Waiting For the Sun" from Hollywood Town Hall,Violent Femmes "Blister in the Sun" from their debut,Velvet Underground "Candy Says" from their third,Clash "Know Your Rights" from Combat RockTeenage Fanclub "The Concept" from Bandwagonesque just to name a few. And looking at the list, the 80's were a pretty good time for side one, track one. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
MattZ Posted May 25, 2010 Share Posted May 25, 2010 3. Silence Kit by Pavement from Cr Cr4. No Action by EC from This Year's Model5. Welcome to the Working Week by EC from My Aim is True I would've said Rocks Off and Uncomplicated if PopTodd and Ghost of Elec hadn't beaten me to it. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Vacant Horizon Posted May 25, 2010 Share Posted May 25, 2010 Cool topic! Feel Like A Stranger-Grateful Dead: Without A NetAt Least That's What You Said-Wilco:AGIBBlack Dog-Zep: IVOut On The Weekend-Neil Young: HarvestYours Is No Disgrace-Yes: Yes Album I could do this all day! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
choo-choo-charlie Posted May 25, 2010 Author Share Posted May 25, 2010 Side one Track ones: Velvet Underground "Candy Says" from their third, Oooh, that's a good one. "Good Times Bad Times," from Led Zeppelin I"Where the Devil Don't Stay," from DBT's The Dirty South"Nebraska," from Bruce Springsteen's Nebraska (on a lighter note)"Go," from Pearl Jam's Vs."Big in Japan," from Tom Waits' Mule Variations Or to stray from "Someone Else's Song," how about the best opening Wilco track? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
tinnitus photography Posted May 25, 2010 Share Posted May 25, 2010 tom violence - EVOL (sonic youth)schizophrenia - Sister (sonic youth)dirty boots - Goo (sonic youth)teenage riot - Daydream Nation (sonic youth)pattern recognition - Sonic Nurse (sonic youth) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Ghost of Electricity Posted May 25, 2010 Share Posted May 25, 2010 Or to stray from "Someone Else's Song," how about the best opening Wilco track?I was going to mention misunderstood anyway, but i got excited and forgot. IATTBYH is a close second. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
choo-choo-charlie Posted May 25, 2010 Author Share Posted May 25, 2010 "20th Century Man," from The Kinks' Muswell Hillbillies Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Shakey Posted May 25, 2010 Share Posted May 25, 2010 Rocks Off. Then Thunder Road The all the rest. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
MattZ Posted May 25, 2010 Share Posted May 25, 2010 Crap, I forgot Like a Rolling Stone and Tangled Up in Blue. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Ghost of Electricity Posted May 25, 2010 Share Posted May 25, 2010 Replacements "I will Dare" from Let it Be Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ponch1028 Posted May 25, 2010 Share Posted May 25, 2010 1. Like A Rolling Stone2. Astral Weeks Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bleedorange Posted May 25, 2010 Share Posted May 25, 2010 Everything in its Right Place Quote Link to post Share on other sites
PopTodd Posted May 25, 2010 Share Posted May 25, 2010 "Girls & Boys" - Blur (Parklife)"Holidays In the Sun" - Sex Pistols (Never Mind the Bollocks...) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Ghost of Electricity Posted May 25, 2010 Share Posted May 25, 2010 Crap, I forgot Like a Rolling Stone and Tangled Up in Blue. Oh, damn, we've moved on to Bob Dylan. Well, we might as well get it over with: Subterranean Homesick Blues/Brining it all back homeRainy Day Women #12 +35/ Blonde on BlondeGirl From The North Country (with Johnny Cash)/Nashville SkylinePolitical World/Oh MercyThunder on the Mountain/Modern Times there are some others i would have liked to include but for the sake of expediency i didn't Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Shakespeare In The Alley Posted May 25, 2010 Share Posted May 25, 2010 Oh, damn, we've moved on to Bob Dylan. Well, we might as well get it over with: Subterranean Homesick Blues/Brining it all back homeRainy Day Women #12 +35/ Blonde on BlondeGirl From The North Country (with Johnny Cash)/Nashville SkylinePolitical World/Oh MercyThunder on the Mountain/Modern Times there are some others i would have liked to include but for the sake of expediency i didn'tBlonde on Blonde is the best album I've ever heard. But Rainy Day Women is not a good opener. I don't dislike the song, but I do sometimes wish it wasn't on the album. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
calvino Posted May 25, 2010 Share Posted May 25, 2010 I probably have to go with Like A Rolling Stone. Dylan is great for opening tracks, as Ghost wrote. Like Rocks Off but I think Brown Sugar is the better opening track. So What from Kind of Blue should be mentioned, too. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Ghost of Electricity Posted May 25, 2010 Share Posted May 25, 2010 Blonde on Blonde is the best album I've ever heard. But Rainy Day Women is not a good opener. I don't dislike the song, but I do sometimes wish it wasn't on the album.And once again we butt heads on this album...it's all right, i still respect your right to call it flawless even though you wish the opening track weren't on the album. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Shakespeare In The Alley Posted May 25, 2010 Share Posted May 25, 2010 And once again we butt heads on this album...it's all right, i still respect your right to call it flawless even though you wish the opening track weren't on the album. Only sometimes. I suppose if it's gotta be there, I'd prefer it as the opener. That way, it doesn't immediately follow any of the albums classic songs, and it's pretty much forgotten by the time Sad Eyed Lady comes around. But I must clarify; I do not hate, or even dislike Rainy Day Women. It's just a tad out of place. I do still consider Blonde on Blonde the best rock album around. And flawless does still apply. Which is just a testament to how great everything else is on the album. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Ghost of Electricity Posted May 25, 2010 Share Posted May 25, 2010 Only sometimes. I suppose if it's gotta be there, I'd prefer it as the opener. That way, it doesn't immediately follow any of the albums classic songs, and it's pretty much forgotten by the time Sad Eyed Lady comes around. But I must clarify; I do not hate, or even dislike Rainy Day Women. It's just a tad out of place. I do still consider Blonde on Blonde the best rock album around. And flawless does still apply. Which is just a testament to how great everything else is on the album.Hey, I've forgotten about it by the second measure of "Pledging my Time." And when that ends, I promptly forget about it too as "Visions of Johanna" kicks off...etc... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
RainDogToo Posted May 25, 2010 Share Posted May 25, 2010 Tom Waits - "Lie to Me" - OrphansTom Waits - "Big in Japan" - Mule VariationsBob Dylan - "Like a Rolling Stone" - Highway 61 RevisitedDr. John - "Gris Gris Gumbo Ya Ya" - Gris GrisHeartless Bastards - "The Mountain" - The MountainM. Ward - "Posion Cup" - Post- War Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Oil Can Boyd Posted May 26, 2010 Share Posted May 26, 2010 Tangled Up in Blue is probably my all-time favorite, but other good ones include: Airline to Heaven - Billy Bragg/Wilco (MA II)Summer Babe - Pavement (Slanted ...)Bone Machine - Pixies (Surfer Rosa)Little Fury Things - Dinosaur Jr (You're Living All Over Me) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sir Stewart Posted May 26, 2010 Share Posted May 26, 2010 Take Me Away - Ween, Chocolate & CheeseThe Golden Age - Beck, Sea ChangeCherub Rock - Smashing Pumpkins, Siamese DreamRock You - The Roots, PhrenologyLet's Go Crazy - Prince & The Revolution, Purple RainZooropa - U2, Zooropa Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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