My oldest nephew (he was born when I was 17, he'll be turning 15 in November) is really into music, so I always ask my sister which CDs he'd like for his birthday and Christmas. I am always somewhat humbled by his selections, because I've never heard of them! This time, though, I was tickled by the huge contrast between the two. His taste seems to be an uneasy mix of emo and metal.

The emo CD featured an open-faced, friendly-looking young man on the cover and pointed out: "This CD is packaged in recyclable materials, with a carbon footprint of zero!"

The other CD's Album Description on Amazon simply said, "We wanted to make a metal CD you could crank in the car. Rock on!" or something like that. The cover looked a bit like Appetite for Destruction.

So for some reason I got to thinking about my early music. I had those big headphones like you'd wear in a small plane. My sisters gave me Elton John and Madonna to listen to (it was 1984, I was 9) and my brother, fearing they were influencing me too much, got me Born to Run.

Well, now I still listen to Elton John and Madonna. Bruce, not so much, though I count some of the Born in the U.S.A. songs (plus "Tunnel of Love") as guilty pleasures.

What was your first music, and do you still listen to it?

Update: Oddly enough, this post made me miss Born to Run. Now I have "Thunder Road" and "Tenth Avenue Freeze Out" in my head. (I actually hear the latter whenever I go to Tenth Avenue.) Maybe I'll need to get it on CD (I had it on tape back then). I think the tape is still in Massachusetts, but we have no working cassette player.

Comments

Katie said…
I lived in England for the better part of my childhood and it seemed like the only music on heavy rotation at the time was overly synthesized "Euro-trash" techno. I definitely had the Ace of Base cassette tape along with a few others like it. I was mega in to the Spice Girls once we returned to the States. Gosh, I can't believe I'm admitting that!
9:36 PM
Bearette said…
I was into them too :) I spent a summer baking in the sun while listening to, "I'll tell you what I want, what I really really want..."
11:00 PM
Roxanne said…
You know....the Spice Girls are making their big comeback. ;)

I still listen to a lot of my faves from back then. Not only was it good music, but now it's retro (and, like, sooo cool).

I have a picture of myself around 12 or 13, with a pair of those massive headphones on. I'll have to post it sometime just for the entertainment value.
11:33 PM
bdogg_mcgee said…
How funny that you posted about this, because last week I was telling DH about me sitting in my parents' living room, headphones on, Debbie Gibson's "Out of the Blue" in the ol' Walkman, and singing at the top of my lungs.

Those were good times. I also used to be a huge fan of Bon Jovi in middle school. Don't listen to that as much anymore, though...
8:56 AM
Bearette said…
Rox - you definitely should!

Bdogg - I loved "Only in My Dreams"..."as real as it may seeem, it was only in my dreaaaaams..." I wonder what happened to her.
9:52 AM
Roxanne said…
She's been doing broadway for years, I think. And she goes by Debra, not Debbie. I loved the Only in my Dreams too. I still have to sing at the top of my lungs if I hear it on the radio. :)
10:47 PM
Anonymous said…
When I was five, it was the entire Dirty Dancing soundtrack. Then it was Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey. I remember getting my very cassette tapes: Sir Mix A Lot and MC Hammer. Thank goodness the 90s are over!
11:38 AM
Bearette said…
Ah, Sir Mix a Lot...
11:59 AM
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