Welcome To The Album: My Favorite Album Openers
A playlist of 57 of my favorite album openers, with explanations.
The first track on an album is an opportunity to:
Make a thesis statement about the rest of your album: “Hi, we’re Daft Punk and, in this essay, we’re breathing new life into the sounds of the 70s.”
Make a statement about how you’ve changed as a person: “I’m George Harrison, and recently I became incredibly rich, so of course, I’m starting to get a little pissed about taxes. Now listen to this riff!” (I’m also a sucker for an album starting off with a count-in.)
Take a big swing: “Hi, remember how OK Computer was alternative rock? Well, this first song off our next album is an electronic track with no fucking guitars.” (Also, can you imagine that song WITHOUT those first five notes?)
Start small: Bowie’s “Five Years” starts with a quiet fade-in, as if the band has already been playing a bit before we join them. (I like to think of us, the listeners, sitting in a chair while the band emerges from the dark on a platform sliding toward us.)
Start explosive: The first time I heard Kanye’s “On Sight” I literally had to sit down.
Perform a skit and set the tone: GZA’s Liquid Swords comes to mind. Lauryn Hill’s “Intro” is basically a song that does the job of “INT. CLASSROOM – DAY.”
Commit to the theme of your concept album: Janelle Monáe’s sequel space opera album, Electric Lady, begins with a true orchestral overture.
Start with an introduction: “We’re Sgt. Pepper Lonely Hearts Club Band!” I also recommend listening to my favorite example of this: “We” by The Roches.
Start with a re-introduction: “I bet you bitches thought I had nothing left in me after FutureSex/LoveSounds. Well, seven years later, I’m back with some attention-grabbing ascending strings.”
Start with what will end up being some of your best work: “Baba O’Riley”, “Dance Yrself Clean”, “Smells Like Teen Spirit”, “Gimme Shelter.”
Impress us on your first studio album: I’m a big sucker for artists who open their debut studio albums with strong tracks that show off songwriting. I think this can be a statement in itself. (“All I Really Want” by Alanis Morissette. [I originally had “Thinkin’ Bout You” by Frank Ocean as an example before I remembered Channel Orange starts with a 45-second ambient track.])
If I had my way, artists would approach their albums the same way a new screenwriter is taught to approach their script: assume that whoever picks up your screenplay is a low-level studio employee whose sole task that day is to sift through a towering stack of other submissions. You’d better make the first page count.
Behind the paywall, I put 57 songs into 13 categories (lol) so you understand my thought process behind this playlist. To read it and also listen to the playlist, subscribe to Grace Spelman Music Project for $5/month or just $50/year!
If you think I missed a well-known, iconic album opener, let me know in the comments! Just one request: If you suggest one, make your case for why it belongs!