Continuing my run down of my favourite albums from yesterday, here are entries 30 – 1
I GOT 60 ON IT!
30. Hit The Lights – This Is A Stick Up, Don’t Make It A Murder
– This is their first album and their best album. There’s a song on it called “Bodybag.” You know what it’s about. Enough said.
29. Marc Broussard –Must Be The Water EP
– He will reappear on this list with a much lower number next to his name, don’t worry. The only reason I put this one back here is to wet your appetite for his awesomeness and because it was only an EP. It wasn’t quite enough awesomeness to go around, but don’t think I didn’t wear that ass out anyway.
28. Fall Out Boy – Take This To Your Grave
– See? It’s here. Yea, it’s not higher, but it’s because I had so much other music to bless my ears with that I didn’t play it as much as I probably could have. I know, shame on me. Get over it.
27. Maroon 5 – Songs About Jane
– This album got equal (and alternating) air time with Akon’s Trouble. DIVERSIFY YOUR PORTFOLIO, SON! “Shiver” will always be one of my favorite songs.
26. Usher – Confessions
– Who am I kidding? Everyone listened to this album when it was out. How could you not? “Yeah!” is one of the only songs that will literally make me start dancing out of a dead sleep. When I say “dead sleep,” I mean, like, actually dead. It’s that powerful. Oh, and I can hit the high note in “Burn.” You know what one I’m talking about.
25. Nelly – Country Grammar
– I listened to rap before this, but I listened to A LOT more after this. Nelly made his money on party rap, but this was a mix of (semi) gritty lyrics and having a good time. Have you seen him? He’s jacked. He’ll kill you, son! Even if you don’t like this album, you HAVE to like “Tho Dem Wrappas” just cause of its name. You just HAVE to. No excuses.
24. Frank Sinatra – Classic Sinatra
– It’s Frank Sinatra. It should be higher on this list, but this is a compilation album and I couldn’t put it any higher. I’m sorry, Frankie.
23. Anberlin – Never Take Friendship Personal
– Whenever I hear this album I will ALWAYS think of going to San Diego with my brother in 2005. It was another reason why I love this type of music so much. Thinking about that trip it is another reason why I love this album. It’s another reason why I love San Diego. Enough said.
22. Amy Winehouse – Back to Black
– As a general rule, I don’t like female singers. I don’t know why, I can’t explain it. But, she changed the game. If you’re noticing another similar female missing from this list, it’s cause she’s higher. All thanks to this album.
21. NSync – Celebrity
– This won’t be the last time you see them on this list. The least rotated of all three of their albums, making their debut at #21. Be warned. Be ready. Be excited. You know who else is coming up!
20. Michael Jackson – BAD (on cassette)
– Not the last time you’ll see this name either. This came out when I was 6 and would be higher, but it got lost when I was 8. That was the also the first year I became a murderer of people who lose my cassette tapes.
19. Craig David – Slicker Than Your Average
– When writing these down, I expected this to be higher, but I’m glad that it’s not. While I loved this album, it was the last album that I truly loved. And if I’m being honest, I only loved it, at the time, cause it was Craig David. He has (like John Legend, Anthony Hamilton, Akon, Robin Thicke) failed to produce anything better than his debut. Such a shame.
18. Marc Broussard – Carencro
– When I tell people about him, I refer them to this album by default just for them to hear the track “Home.” This track will ALWAYS be my favorite track. Nothing will ever take its place. The problem with this track (there’s not really a problem with this track) is that it starts off an album that fails to truly live up to this track. This is about the grittiest, soulfulest, dirtiest, grimiest, down south bayouest song you’ll hear, but the rest of the album cleans off the dirt this track helps to slap on. That said, I still rotated this just so it would start over and I could hear “Home” again.
17. Adele – 19
– Honestly, I heard this girl sing before people had ever heard her on Grey’s Anatomy. Or, in general. When I first heard her, I said, “She’ll never be better (or more famous) than Amy Winehouse,” which, oddly enough, will probably be true after Amy Winehouse’s death. Had she still been alive, Adele wins this battle, hands down. Oh, and I got to see her live at a 1,000-person 9:30 Club show. Be jealous.
16. Panic! At The Disco – A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out
– Of all the albums on this list, I probably listened to this one the most in the shortest/most concentrated period of time. 24/7, 7DaW this was playing for a good two months. Because of this, I probably burned myself out on it, but it was still enough to land it at #16. That’s impressive.
If you know me, you know what artists are coming up next. Look away if you must.
15. NSync – Nsync
– I remember the day that they premiered “Tearin’ Up My Heart” on TRL. I was so PISSED. “Who the fuck is that kid with the red turtleneck on? Who does he think he is? Nick Carter?! <inserting my eternal allegiance to BSB here> Who is Britney Spears?! I DON’T GIVE A FUCK! LOOK AT THOSE RIDICULOUS CURLS!” And after all that, they still end up at #15 on this list. It’s tearin’ up my heart.
14. Cartel – Cartel
– You’ve been saying, “Jason, you have not one, but two Cartel tattoos! Where were they this whole time and how are they only #14?!” First off, stop yelling. Two, settle the hell down. Three, if you know Cartel, you know their first (and third) albums are better than this, so you’ll have to wait and see. Also, don’t yell at me again or I’ll kill you.
13. Justin Timberlake – Justified
– See: “Who does he think he is? Nick Carter?!” This is the answer to those questions. We won’t get into Futuresex/Lovesounds. His punishment for not making more music is me leaving that album off this list. Chump.
12. Michael Jackson – Dangerous (cassette)
– I got this album (along with Reebok Pumps) the same year I got my yellow Walkman. You know exactly what I’m talking about cause you had the same one. I listened to this album so much that I wore out my rewind/fast forward button on my Walkman.
11. NSync – No Strings Attached
– This album saw the most rotation during my second semester of college. Yes, that is not a typo. I remember driving my family’s big blue Safari van to GMU with my buddy, Ian Bird (another closet NSyncophile). This album enjoys continued success and rotation. If you want to see the dance for “Bye Bye Bye” and “It’s Gonna Be Me,” I got you. Note: This might have gotten more rotations than a few BSB albums, but I’ll NEVER put them above. KTBSPA. Google “KTBSPA” if you need to.
TOP 10, BABY!
10. Cartel – Cycles
– One of my all-time favorite tracks is (and will continue to be) “Let’s Go” off this album. It’s one of the aforementioned tattoos. For that track alone, it could be at #15, but the rest of this album is good enough to move it up another five spots to #10.
9. Marc Broussard – Keep Coming Back
– Definitely my favorite album of his, it’s also his most complete. He’s my favorite artist, but it says something that only two of his albums ended up on this list (Carencro at #18 and this at #10). What it says is, “You need to bring it all the time, son!” What I will say is that I was beyond stoked AFTER this album came out AND I had listened to it. If you’ve been paying attention, you’ll know how I felt when I heard some artists’ second album (see: Craig David, Akon, Anthony Hamilton, John Legend, 50 Cent).
8. Michael Jackson – Thriller (vinyl)
– Just like in real life, the King of Pop must leave us (here). RIP, MJ. I would’ve listened to this more (and maybe I did as a kid and just don’t remember it), but my Pops retired it to the shelves. Over the course of the 30 years I’ve been alive, I’ve probably listened to Michael Jackson more than any other artist. It’s either him or Cartel or Craig David. Eclectic, I know.
7. Backstreet Boys – Backstreet Boys
– BACKSTREET’S BACK! Their debut album marks their debut here. I might’ve listened to this more than Millennium, but I started to not give a WHAT about what people thought of my love for BSB with the birth of Millennium, so it had to leapfrog this album.
6. Josh Groban – Closer
– Who says I’m not refined?! I have JOSH FREAKING GROBAN on my list! Honestly though, he’s one of my favorite artists of all-time because of this album. Of everyone on this list, he has the best voice. Hands down. I have all his other albums, but none of them saw the rotation that this one did. I was this close to being categorized as trilingual because of memorizing the lyrics to this album. That’s some ultra refined type shit!
5. Backstreet Boys – Millennium
– I remember riding in my best friend Mike’s car before school to go to Waxie Maxies to buy this album the morning it came out. We had girls in the car who loved BSB, so we had a cover. The truth is that me and the girls loved BSB and Mike was nailing one of the girls. I DON’T EVEN CARE WHAT YOU THINK THO. Also <Insert unhealthy male infatuation with A.J. McLean here> STILL DON’T EVEN CARE WHAT YOU THINK THO.
4. Michael Buble – Michael Buble
– I am going to (deservedly) take full credit for Michael Buble being as famous as he is now. Christmas of 2003 I asked for this album, got it, listened to it once, and then continued to listen to it for a good 12 months straight. NO CHASER. Soon after getting this album, I saw him at Lisner Auditorium on GW’s campus. Tickets were $25, including tax. We waited by his bus to get an autograph and pictures (something he very often does used to do before he got uber famous). I continued to see him perform live, steadily watching two things 1) him getting more famous and 2) the price of his tickets going up. He now sells out MSG, tickets are $75 before taxes, and he gets his own SNL special. But after one of his early shows, I asked if he was going to maybe write his own stuff (first album was ALL covers). His second album, It’s Time, had the smash hit “Home” – a song he wrote himself. The rest is history. And that’s how I made Michael Buble famous.
3. Cartel – Chroma
– I listened to this for over a year straight. When I say a “year straight,” I mean two full years. This album and this band are THE reasons I listen to pop/punk music. My brother, Josh, who has been a huge musical influence in my life, showed me this band in 2003/2004 and I never looked back. I remember going with Josh and his friends to the 9:30 Club to see Cartel open up for bands I have since forgotten. On the ride there, I learned all the words to “Burn This City” and screamed it at the concert. It was the only song I knew. It is the other Cartel tattoo on my arm. Enough said.
2. Craig David – Born To Do It
– Up until I started listening to Marc Broussard, Craig David was my favorite artist from 1999-2007. He had replaced Michael Jackson back then and no one could touch him. This album redefined/reignited my love for R&B music. I probably listened to this for 12-14 months straight. During that time, he played at the 9:30 Club and I didn’t get tickets. I almost wept. Seriously. I was 20. He remains that only artist that I HAVE to see perform before I kick the bucket. I got to see Michael Jackson play two songs at United We Stand. I’ve also never seen Billy Joel or Elton John, two artists that I love. Should tell you something about how much I love Craig David. Oh, and he invented the “I’m going to spell my name/say my name in every song.” Shut up, Jason DeRulo. Chump.
1. Backstreet Boys – Black and Blue
– This marks the last album of theirs that I put on full blast for a year (or more. Usually more) at a time. The next album, Never Gone, marked the last album with Kevin Richardson and came after a lengthy hiatus/A.J.’s drinking/drugs problem(s). It also marks the last album where A.J. absolutely slays voice booty. He is unbelievable on this album. Steals the show. I had this on repeat for who knows how long. I really don’t know how many times I listened to this album. I initially ranked it as #3, but as I reminisced about it, I realized it was a #1 type album. In the end, you might hate BSB. Actually, you probably do hate them, but if it weren’t for finally admitting that I listened to them, I don’t know what type of music I’d be listening to. I definitely wouldn’t have learned to admit that I like things (mostly music/most music) that other people might loathe.
Honorable Mentions (some singles included)
– Steve Winwood’s Finer Things cause of my mom.
– Oldies But Goodies, Vol. 4 cause of “Chantilly Lace” and occupying the 8 days 6 hours it used to take to get to Emerald Isle, NC as a kid.
– Skee-Lo’s “I Wish” for being a one-hit-wonder sidekick to Montell Jordan. RIP.
– New Edition’s “Hit Me Off.” Just watch the video and thank me later.
– Billy Joel’s “River of Dreams” (single). Thanks, Pops. ** I listen to a TON of Billy Joel now, but they are a Greatest Hits that I made myself, so inclusion not warranted.
– Mark Morrison’s “Return of the Mack.” Just watch the video and thank me later.
– Lil Jon’s “Snap Yo Fingers” – one of my go-to’s during drinking/dancing. Also because I always think of New Year’s Eve when my brother-in-law, Josh (who can’t dance at all), watched his fiancée, Janelle (who can dance), shake her shit to this song while he yelled out, “YOU CAN’T TEACH THAT!”
– “Born In The USA” (single) cause my Pops recorded himself singing it at Kings Dominion and pawned it off as The Boss.
– Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch’s “Good Vibration” for obvious reasons.
– “Whoomp There It Is!” for obvious reasons. Also for the part of the song where they say, “These 3 words mean you’re getting busy, ‘Whoomp there it is!” If you can’t see what I find that funny, we definitely can’t be friends.
– Big Ones by Aerosmith, just for “Love In An Elevator.”
– “Regulate” by Warren G and Nate Dogg. Everyone loves this song and this was my Rap Enlightenment.
– “Smooth” by Rob Thomas feat. Santana.
– “The Real Slim Shady” by Eminem, strictly for the blonde tennis ball haircut I rocked.
– Yung Joc’s “It’s Going Down” cause, like his career, it really was going down. It still bumped.
– Outkast’s “Elevators” and “Skew It On The Bar B.” Can’t believe they didn’t make the list.
– “Renegade” by Eminem and Jay-Z. One of the best rap songs ever and cause “Em just kilt you, on your own shit!”
– Clipse feat. Birdman “What Happened To That Boy?” cause when the bass kicks in, I make a face that would make Rick Ross jealous. It’s that dirty.
