Albums That have Shaped Me

With most of the world in isolation, there have been plenty of tags and play-along things doing the rounds on Facebook.

The 10-day music challenge has been one of them.

Luckily I have not been tagged in it yet (I’m sure I will be, however).

It did get me thinking, about which ten albums would I choose.  There are so many.

These are the albums I have selected.  Keep in mind there are many many songs, that have shaped me too.  That, however, will be a blog post for another day.

10 Albums I Love

Peter and the Wolf – Sergei Prokofiev

This is a narrated piece of music.  It’s designed for kids to get them into classical music. It teaches them different musical instruments and what types of sounds they make.

We had this as a vinyl record, and I remember playing it quite often.

The other side of the record was Camielle Saint Saëns Carnival of the animals.  Another excellent piece of classical music for kids, which I also highly recommend.

I don’t remember who narrated the version of Peter and the Wolf we had, but there are versions with Sean Connery and David Bowie out.  Both are excellent.

Sarah McLachlan – Surfacing

My Canadian friend Maryann introduced me to Sarah (who is a Canadian).

Sarah’s music is poetic and emotive.  Her sounds expressed all the feelings I was having while transitioning from High School to Uni.

The Beatles – Sargent Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band

My dad loves the Beatles.  He had a few of their records on vinyl, but I remember when my dad got this album on CD.

As a kid, When I was 64 got played quite often.  It was just happy-go-lucky.

The Benefit of Mr Kite, however, always got skipped.  I just didn’t like it.  Now that I’m older, I actually appreciate Mr Kite.  You could say I’ve grown to like it.

Lucy in the Sky with diamonds has to be my favourite song to sing.

The standout piece of this particular album has to be A Day in the Life.  From its piano introduction to a heavy baseline, which then transitions into the majestic orchestral crescendo.  Then bang, you get a completely different sound with Paul singing.  Then it’s back to an orchestral crescendo, a solid final chord, which drifts into silence, and then at the very end, you get this gibberish.  It’s so random, but it works, and it really is an excellent piece of music.

Take That – Nobody Else

It was the song Back for Good, that made me fall in love with Take That.  They had been around for years prior, but it was this song that got me in hook line and sinker.

Their song Never Forget, I put forward to be the song to sing for my year 12 graduation.  It didn’t get chosen, instead, we sang a song written by one of the students.  I could not tell you what it was called, or a single lyric, even though I was one of the lead singers, it was unforgettable.

Never Forget, will always be my year 12 them.

Of course, they then had to break up.  They rejoined a few years later and in November 2018, they toured Australia, and I was there.  And it was so awesome.

Mariah Carey – Daydream

A friend of my dad’s had loaned him some CDs that he thought I might like.  Mariah Carey’s Vision of Love was one of those albums.  This album began my love of Mariah.

Daydream has to be Mariah’s best album and one of my favourites.

From the dreaminess of Underneath the Stars to the sorrow of One Sweet Day.  

Being a teenager with waves of emotions, and stresses of friendship, the song Looking In, was a song I felt like I could have written about my life at the time.

Les Miserables

I’m pretty sure it was my sister who first introduced me to Les Miserable.  Either way, what a story to tell through song.

A Little Fall of Rain gets me every time.

The layering of music, and voices in One More Day, is incredible.

If you ever decide to go to the theatre, make the effort to see this one.  You will not be disappointed.   Be warned, bring tissues.  You will be moved.

Oasis – (What’s the Story) Morning Glory?

Wonderwall was the song that first introduced me to Oasis.

This album brings back memories of hanging out with my friends, and whimsical fun.

Chantal Kreviazuk – Colour Moving & Still

This album was gifted by long time penpal Maryann.  So when I listen to it I think of her.

It’s easy listening.  Each song tells a story, and it’s quite poetic.  I guess she’s the Canadian version of Jewel (who I also love).

Gladiator Soundtrack – Hans Zimmer & Lisa Gerrard

It was my last year of University.  My housemate and I went to see this movie.  I actually didn’t really want to see it, but I hadn’t been to the movies in forever and well I thought why not?

The movie was thoroughly enjoyable, but the soundtrack.  It really made the movie.  Combined with the haunting worldly voice of (Australian) Lisa Gerrard, you get an epic tale told through music.

It was this movie that really made me notice what else Hans Zimmer had written scores for.  The Power of One, but most recently Inception (how can you forget those horns), and also the TV Series The Crown.

Red – Taylor Swift

Picking just 1 Taylor Swift album is hard.  I love them all.

It was the song “You Belong to Me”, on Taylor’s 2nd album Fearless, that made me fall in love and become a Swifty.

However, Red followed closely by Lover has to be my fav album.

PS.  Yes, this may be an unpopular opinion, but I really don’t like the song “Love Story”.