Albums that changed your life

Our friend John Pazdan has today's homework assignment. This is apparently a Facebook meme that's making the rounds.

Think of 15 albums that had such a profound effect on you they changed your life or the way you looked at it. They sucked you in and took you over for days, weeks, months, years. These are the albums that you can use to identify time, places, people, emotions. These are the albums that no matter what they were thought of musically shaped your world.

John adds that you are to do it fast; basically, the first 15 albums that come to mind. I thought that there was no way to come up with 15, but I started to write down a list at work last night and within ten minutes wound up with over 30. I brought the list home, and there's no way I can get it under 25. So I'm cheating a bit by not listing the first 15 that came to mind, and by editing my selections. Yet the albums listed all made an impact on me, either by defining the boundaries of my tastes when I was growing up, or by blowing a hole in them as I got a little older.

Aerosmith, Toys In The Attic
Beatles, Rubber Soul
Beatles, Abbey Road
Clash, Sandinista!
Cream, Disraeli Gears
Derek & The Dominoes, Layla And Other Love Songs
Bob Dylan, Blood On The Tracks
Jimi Hendrix, Are You Experienced?
Robert Johnson, King Of The Delta Blues Singers
Kansas, Leftoverture
King Crimson, In The Court Of The Crimson King
Led Zeppelin, Led Zeppelin II
Lynyrd Skynyrd, Second Helping
Bob Marley & The Wailers, Rastaman Vibration
Elvis Presley, The Sun Sessions
Ramones, Ramones
REM, Murmur
Bob Seger, Live Bullet
Sex Pistols, Never Mind The Bollocks, Here's The Sex Pistols
Bruce Springsteen, Born To Run
Steely Dan, Can't Buy A Thrill
Styx, Equinox
U2, Boy
Who, Who's Next
Neil Young, Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere

If you just go for it, you'll be surprised how quickly you come up with 15. Leave 'em in the comment box.