The Top 31 Debut Albums: Pick # 5

Join Pete Pardo throughout the month of October as he picks his favorite 31 debut albums of all time. Pick yours in the comments below!

[telecaster]

Van Halen - so DLR brought the bottled sunshine and EVH took the guitar on a pyrotechnic left turn that raised the bar sky high for metal players, who now had to master a whole new skillset. Add in AVH on impossible drums and MA with those distinctive backing vocals and you simply had magic. The content of this debut needs no further discussion as many have voted it in already but just for the record, I wore out three vinyl copies of this album before CD arrived...can't say that about many. Yeah!

[SGED]

Alcatrazz
No Parole for Rock and Roll

[BryersMusicShowcase]

Day 27: King Crimson - In The Court Of The Crimson King; Love the album! The musicianship is top notch. On top of that, the album is iconic! 😃

[RaymondCarver-vyuk]

Great album indeed!! Definitely a unique band!! My #5: Picking one that Pete picked a few days ago, and you just can't leave this one out. This band started in 1973 and were at the beginning of what people would eventually call Southern Rock. These guys just kicked some major butt in the 70s!! Talking about Lynyrd Skynyrd - Pronounced Leh-nerd Skin-nerd

[dennisstratton]

Day 5 pick is Are You Experienced by Jimi Hendrix released in 1967 on Reprise. Members were Jimi Hendrix guitars vocals. Noel Redding bass percussion vocals and Mitch Mitchell drums percussion. Best songs are Foxey Lady. Purple Haze. Can You See Me. Wind Cries Mary and my favorite blues song from Jimi which is Red House.

[carl-johanfougstedt]

My pick #5 is Kiss : Kiss ( 1974 ). I absolutely love the debut album from Kiss. At this point Paul, Gene, Ace and Peter were a young and hungry band on a mission. They were a tight unit. I think that the songwriting is overall great on this album. Standout tracks are Black Diamond, Cold Gin, Strutter and Deuce. I´ve listened quite a lot to Chicago, but I haven´t listened to this debut album when they called themselves Chicago Trans Authority.

[JohannesYtterstrom]

Day 27:
The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Are You Experienced? (1967)
Many have picked it and in rock... It could be the most important rock debut ever? I love Hendrix just as the next guy but not one of those that hold him above everyone else automatically. The songs here is speaking for themselves even the longer versions of the album has solid tracks. This album still holds up.

Day 26: Blue Öyster Cult - Blue Öyster Cult (1972)
Day 25: The Doors - The Doors (1967)
Day 24: Aerosmith - Aerosmith (1973)
Day 23: Dio - Holy Diver (1983)
Day 22: Queen - Queen (1973)
Day 21: Wishbone Ash - Wishbone Ash (1970)
Day 20: Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin (1969)
Day 19: Kansas - Kansas (1974)
Day 18: Guns N' Roses - Appetite for Destruction (1987)
Day 17: Steely Dan - Can't Buy a Thrill (1972)
Day 16: Ted Nugent - Ted Nugent (1975)
Day 15: Air - Moon Safari (1998)
Day 14: Toto - Toto (1978)
Day 13: Iron Maiden - Iron Maiden (1980)
Day 12: Steve Morse - High Tension Wires (1989)
Day 11: Kiss - Kiss (1974)
Day 10: The Darkness - Permission to Land (2003)
Day 9: Dire Straits - Dire Straits (1978)
Day 8: Journey - Journey (1975)
Day 7: Warhorse - Warhorse (1970)
Day 6: Curtis Mayfield - Curtis (1970)
Day 5: Judas Priest - Rocka Rolla (1974)
Day 4: Colosseum II - Strange New Flesh (1976)
Day 3: Nestor - Kids in a Ghost Town (2021)
Day 2: Billy Joel - Cold Spring Harbor (1971)
Day 1: Joe Satriani - Not of This Earth (1986)

[Jim-gm]

#5 for me is Alcatrazz – No Parole from Rock and Roll. Graham Bonnet was a successful singer/song writer who had been a member of both Rainbow and Michael Schenker’s group, MSG, but now it was time to put a band together around Graham, a band that was supposed to feature Graham’s voice and songs…and the guitar player they chose was this unknown phenom named Yngwie J. Malmsteen!!! And I don’t think Yngwie shared that same vision for this band as he immediately grabbed ALL of the spotlight for himself 🤣 Highlights include: Jet to Jet, Hiroshima Mon Amour, and Too Young to Die, Too Drunk to Live.

[duncanbleak]

My Top 31 Debut Albums(Rock & Pop)--#5 "Van Halen"

#31 "Foreigner" by Foreigner
#30 "Everybody Else Is Doing It, So Why Can't We?"
by The Cranberries
#29 "Outlandos d'Amour" by The Police
#28 "The Doors" by The Doors
#27 "Bad Company" by Bad Company
#26 "Peter Gabriel 1: [Car]" by Peter Gabriel
#25 "Look Sharp" by Joe Jackson
#24 "Solo in Soho" by Phil Lynott
#23 "French Kiss" by Bob Welch
#22 "The Hurting" by Tears for Fears
#21 "Time and Tide" by Basia
#20 "It's Better to Travel" by Swing Out Sister
#19 "Boston" by Boston
#18 "Are You Experienced?" by The Jimi Hendrix Experience
#17 "Black Sabbath" by Black Sabbath
#16 "Blizzard of Ozz" by Ozzy Osbourne
#15 "Texas Flood" by Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble
#14 "In the Heat of the Night" by Pat Benatar
#13 "Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow" by Rainbow
#12 "Rising Force" by Yngwie Malmsteen
#11 "Dreamboat Annie" by Heart
#10 "Motorhead" by Motorhead
#9 "Blue Oyster Cult" by Blue Oyster Cult
#8 "The Warning" by Queensryche
#7 "Iron Maiden" by Iron Maiden
#6 "Pretenders" by The Pretenders
#5 "Van Halen" by Van Halen

[BobbyGaylor]

Hey Pete. Great Pick! My #5 is the debut album from Van Halen! So many killer songs like... "Runnin' With The Devil" #Jamie's Cryin'" "Little Dreamer" "Atomic Punk" "Ain't Talkin' 'bout Love" and of course "Eruption" Eddie's guitar playing changed the world! Cheers

[paradox]

Bad Company (1974) Released on Swan Song Records. Paul Rodgers and Company knock it put of the Park. Can’t get Enough of your Love- Epic

[Paul_Progressive]

# 5 Heart: Dreamboat Annie
Many true things have already been said during this month about this amazing record (including Pete). For me it was my introduction to hard rock as a teenager, and I’m still happy about the fact that this happened with a band led by two girls. What fascinated me the most (and still does) is the range of Ann Wilson’s voice who could sing snarling rockers like “Sing Child” as well as haunting ballads like “How Deep it Goes” or “The Soul of the Sea”.
# 6 The B-52’s: The B’52’s (Play Loud)
# 7 Riverside: Out of Myself
# 8 Kansas: Kansas
# 9 Nick Drake: Five Leaves Left
# 10 The Alan Parsons Project: Tales of Mystery and Imagination
# 11 Steely Dan: Can’t Buy a Thrill
# 12 King Crimson: In the Court of the Crimson King
# 13 Young Marble Giants: Colossal Youth
# 14 The Doors: The Doors
# 15 Iron Maiden: Iron Maiden
# 16 Jimi Hendrix Experience: Are You Experienced?
# 17 Metro: Metro
# 18 Metallica: Kill ‘em all
# 19 Lake: Lake
# 20 CAN: Monster Movie
# 21 The Police: Outlandos d’Amour
# 22 Black Sabbath: Black Sabbath
# 23 Kate Bush: The Kick Inside
# 24 Sex Pistols: Never Mind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols
# 25 Nina Hagen Band: Nina Hagen Band
# 26 Arcade Fire: Funeral
# 27 Dire Straits: Dire Straits
# 28 Throwing Muses: Throwing Muses
# 29 Patti Smith: Horses
# 30 Led Zeppelin: Led Zeppelin
# 31 Tori Amos: Little Earthquakes

[Drumdude]

My pick for today is, Ozzy Osbourne - Blizzard of Ozz (1980)

[weirddebbiem]

Excellent choice, Pete. I had this album on my list earlier in the month.

5. Jimi Hendrix Are You Experienced? (1967)
Songs:
Hey Joe
Purple Haze
The Wind Cries Mary
Foxey Lady (spelling on US edition)
Fire
Manic Depression

5. Jimi Hendrix - Are You Experienced? (1967)
6. Dio - Holy Diver (1983)
7. Steppenwolf - Steppenwolf (1968)
8. Ozzy Osbourne - Blizzard of Ozz (1980)
9. Van Halen - Van Halen (1978)
10. Bad Company - Bad Company (1974)
11. The Cars - The Cars (1978)
12. Heart - Dreamboat Annie (1975)
13. Rainbow - Ritchie Blackmore’s Rainbow (1975)
14. Stevie Nicks - Bella Donna (1981)
15. Crosby, Stills, and Nash - Crosby, Stills, and Nash (1969)
16. Chris Stapleton - Traveler (2015)
17. Creedence Clearwater Revival - Creedence Clearwater Revival (1968)
18. The Chicago Transit Authority (Chicago) - The Chicago Transit Authority (1969)
19. U2 - Boy (1980)
20. The Pretenders - The Pretenders (1980)
21. Steely Dan - Can't Buy a Thrill (1972)
22. Foreigner - Foreigner (1977)
23. King Crimson - In the Court of the Crimson King (1969)
24. Big Star - #1 Record (1972)
25. Queen - Queen (1973)
26. The Beatles - Please Please Me (1963)
27. The Doors - The Doors (1967)
28. Black Country Communion - Black Country Communion I (2010)
29. Cyndi Lauper - She's So Unusual (1983)
30. Guns N’ Roses Appetite For Destruction (1987)
31. Sheryl Crow - Tuesday Night Music Club (1993)

[gaiaeternal]

Hi Pete & everyone. Dave here. Terrific pick of yours - still to come for me. My pick today is ARE YOU EXPERIENCED by THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE (1967). I was a big pop fan in the 60s, but hearing Purple Haze, a top 3 UK single in 1966, really turned me onto rock music (more than any other song). It's on my CD version of this album, as well as other early hits, Hey Joe and The Wind Cries Mary. Elsewhere, the album's full of rock, blues and experimental tracks, favourites being the riff-driven Fire, the spacey instrumental Third Stone From The Sun, and softer May This be Love. Brilliant, innovative guitar player of course, and a master of creating moods and atmosphere, but Jimi's also an underrated singer, with fantastic phrasing.

[ArcangelofRock]

Pick #5, an easy choice: the LED ZEPPELIN debut album. I initially had some in-depth song review/reflective photo of the band's release & musicianship aka: a description of all the genres included in their repretiore: Hard rock, Delta-blues, Middle-Eastern, Celtic-folk & just a jam band extraordinare....but the album speaks for itself! With songs: Babe, I'm Gonna Leave You/You Shook Me/Dazed & Confused/Communication Breakdown & others.... 2 words come to mind: *Great, *Influential.

[UneasyMonkey]

Love Pete's pick today. It'll show up on my list soon. My pick for today is:
5. Pearl Jam - Ten

6. Weezer - The Blue Album
7. Van Halen - Van Halen
8. Boston - Boston
9. Emerson Lake & Palmer-ELP
10. The Doors - The Doors
11. The Mars Volta - Deloused in the Comatorium
12. The Beatles - Please Please Me
13. Cynic - Focus
14. The Killers - Hot Fuss
15. Rage Against the Machine - S/T
16. Moon Safari - A Doorway to Summer
17. Franz Ferdinand - S/T
18. Guns n Roses - Appetite for Destruction
19. Black Sabbath - S/T
20. Led Zeppelin - S/T
21. Leprous - Tall Poppy Syndrome
22. Spock's Beard - The Light
23. Metallica - Kill em All
24. Haken - Aquarius
25. The Strokes - Is This It
26. Ozzy Osbourne - Blizzard of Ozz
27. Ne Obliviscaris - Portal of I
28. Lynyrd Skynyrd - Pronounced Leh-Nerd Skin-Nerd
29. Linkin Park - Hybrid Theory
30. Television - Marquee Moon
31. Foreigner - Foreigner

[ScottBerry-ynrw]

Day 27 (#5): Black Sabbath - S/T (1970)

6. The Clash - S/T (1977)
7. Boston - S/T (1976)
8. Pretenders - S/T (1980)
9. The Cars - S/T (1978)
10. Dio - Holy Diver (1983)
11. Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble - Texas Flood (1983)
12. Chicago -Chicago Transit Authority (1969)
13. Sugar - Copper Blue (1992)
14. Elvis Costello - My Aim Is True (1977)
15. Ramones - S/T (1976)
16. Allman Brothers Band - S/T (1969)
17. Santana - S/T (1969)
18. The Police - Outlandos de Amor (1978)
19. Talking Heads - Talking Heads: 77 (1977)
20. King Crimson - In The Court of the Crimson King (1969)
21. Jesus and Mary Chain - Psychocandy (1985)
22. Steely Dan - Can’t Buy A Thrill (1972)
23. Heart - Dreamboat Annie (1976)
24. The Band - Music From Big Pink (1968)
25. Peter Gabriel - “Car” (1977)
26. The Doors - S/T (1967)
27. Pearl Jam - Ten (1991)
28. Metallica - Kill ‘Em All (1983)
29. Jeff Beck - Truth (1968)
30. Dire Straits - S/T (1978)
31. Blue Oyster Cult - S/T (1972)

[christophercoles]

Great pick Pete! One of the best debuts of all time.

26) Van Halen - Van Halen (1978)
Released in January of 1978, Van Halen's self-titled LP is a killer Hard Rock record and one of the greatest debut albums ever unleashed.
Eddie Van Halen wields a mean axe throughout each and every cut. The wild world of Rock 'N' Roll is a better place because of innovative Eddie's fast and furious fretboard histrionics.
Eddie's stellar guitar work is backed by the tight rhythm tandem of his brother, hammering drummer Alex and bassist Michael Anthony, along with the loud 'n' proud vocals of David Lee Roth. Together the four band members combined to lay down tight, supremely energized heavy hitters with their first studio release.
The album opens strongly, with the urgent "Runnin' With The Devil" bursting out of the gate, which sets everything in motion. "Eruption" is a volcanic instrumental that influenced guitarists everywhere. The lean 'n' mean one-minute-plus guitar workout segues into a pounding cover of The Kinks classic "You Really Got Me". The uncompromising "Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love" (my favorite VH tune) is a blistering rocker of epic proportions, with a huge, infectious chorus accenting the powerful arena shakin' number. "Atomic Punk", "I'm The One" and the metallic "On Fire" are the remaining heavy cuts on the record.
By contrast, "Jamie's Cryin'" is a melodic party track that changes the pace, yet hangs tough on this molten recording of raging mayhem, while "Little Dreamer" is as close to a ballad as the mighty VH gets. The campy "Ice Cream Man" sets the tone for future loose cuts recorded while Roth was fronting the band. Ted Templeman, the man who turned out the earth-shaking Montrose debut in 1973, deserves big time credit for his production work throughout Van Halen's debut effort. The disc captures early era VH madness, laid down with a hardened edge of rifftastic magic.
Van Halen is a cornerstone recording for any fan of heavy riffs, wild leads and brash Rock 'N' Roll.

1) The Yardbirds - Five Live Yardbirds
2) Crack The Sky - S/T
3) Mott The Hoople - S/T
4) PFM - Storia Di Un Minuto
5) Curtis Mayfield - Curtis
6) J Geils Band - S/T
7) Diamond Head - Lightning To The Nations
8) Budgie - S/T
9) Mothers Of Invention - Freak Out!
10) Be-Bop Deluxe - Axe Victim
11) Pretenders - S/T
12) Cheap Trick - S/T
13) Ted Nugent - S/T
14) Ace Frehley - S/T
15) King's X - Out Of The Silent Planet
16) Haken - Aquarius
17) The Mars Volta - De-Loused In The Comatorium
18) King Crimson - In The Court Of The Crimson King
19) Blood Sweat & Tears - Child Is The Father To The Man
20) Chicago - Chicago Transit Authority
21) Heart - Dreamboat Annie
22) Boston - S/T
23) Jeff Beck Group - Truth
24) Black Sabbath - S/T
25) Jimi Hendrix Experience - Are You Experienced
26) Montrose - S/T
27) Van Halen - S/T

[markwilburn]

5 - The Cars, S/T
Absolutely love this album. Not a bad song on here to me. Still something i can go back to again and again.