As a kid, with my parents driving, I heard “November Rain” on the radio. Not my kind of music nowadays, but, man, that was something.
In the summer of 1977, I was 14 and would often fall asleep with the radio on. It was hot and we didn’t have air conditioning, and I had trouble falling asleep, but eventually passed out. I woke up in the middle of the night and I Feel Love was playing. It had just came out and I hadn’t heard it before. The combination of the heat, exhaustion and the song was an actual psychedelic experience.
Classical-- Rite of Spring and the Adagio movement of the Moonlight Sonatas rock's Iron Butterfly and Black Magic Woman by Santana
“I’ve Just Seen a Face” - the kick off of the US Rubber Soul album. I was in grade school (in the 80s) and had some of the early albums, and really only acquainted with the “rock and roll” Beatles. I still remember that song coming on, hearing the intro and thinking that it was so…not what I was expecting. What was this? So yeah, probably not as show stopping as Tomorrow Never Knows or others on this list, but as a kid still discovering The Beatles catalog I remember that stopping me in my tracks.
Van Halen - Unchained In 1981 my friend's older brother was playing it. Up until then I was listening to country and top 40.
Sex Pistols - Pretty Vacant Heard it on the national radio (really) back in 1977 and nothing have been the same...
The song the unforgettable fire from U2 It was so different from the earlier songs on Boy, October and War. The influence from Brian Eno had kicked in,
I was 10 I think. Up to that point my musical knowledge consisted of Disney songs and Euro dance pop that was big in the charts then (Ace of Base, 2 Unlimited, Capella etc.) My brother was watching the MTV top 40 countdown in the living room and I was in the room with him sitting on the floor drawing. The opening bars of "Cornflake Girl" by Tori Amos came on and instantly I looked up. The music video was the strangest, weirdest thing I had ever seen (the black and white Wizard of Oz version), and her voice, the strange indecipherable lyrics, the "you bet your life it is" hook, how the whole song pauses when she sings "peel out the watchword", the long piano solos towards the end, literally every moment of that song something different was happening and I was just awestruck. I couldn't take my eyes off her and I stayed watching the channel for hours hoping it would be played again. I had never experienced a song so complex and varied. My mum bought me the cassette single, and I remember being drawn in by the cover art and the sleeve design, and loved that it had a different song accompanying it (my introduction to the B-side). Tori led me on to Kate Bush and Joni Mitchell. Joni led me onto just about everything else in my life.
Around 1975 Saint James Infirmary - Louis Armstrong All Along The Watchtower - Jimi Hendrix Hurricane - Bob Dylan Then a couple of years after that Changing of the guards - Bob Dylan And almost simultaneously Is This Love - Bob Marley Now That We Found Love - Third World
I was in a Border's back in the late 90's. They would usually have a few CD's in rotation playing over the speakers. I heard this song....by this voice......I said "I must have this right now." Went up to the info desk found out what I was listening to and bought the album. The song was "Side of the Road" from Lucinda Williams from her 3rd album.
Through the 60s, so much great music was coming at me but I think the first time I sort of froze and thought WTF? was discovering Voodoo Chile (Slight Return) on the radio just after Jimi died.
Kiss Them For Me by Siouxie and the Banchees at a house party. It was blasting and never sounded so good (before or since.) I wanted the song to go on forever.
Probably "Nights in White Satin" by the Moody Blues. I would have been about 6 or 7 years old. I was aware of the pop songs that were on AM radio at the time. This song seemed like an avalanche of emotion and gravity, coming from a background of "Sugar, Sugar""Raindrops Keep Falling on my Head" and the like.
Hmmmm...ok, you did say[the first time]so I'll go back to 1961- and the song was[I Wake Up Crying-Chuck Jackson]it still stops me in my tracks to this day!
A Love Supreme My older brother bought this and I don't think he played it more than once or twice. As a 13 yo in '65 it was so arresting and unusual. It was strangely enticing and I listened to it over and over trying to get my head around it.
I could probably list several dating back to January 1963 when I first heard “I Want To Hold Your Hand” as the first time but, the earliest I have a confirmed specific memory for is hearing “Non Alignment Pact” from Pere Ubu in 1982. The opening note and guitar riff pulled me in and I was locked there for the rest of the song. Yeah, I know I was a few years late to the song. The band was practically in my backyard yet I had missed them entirely.
Something by Salif Keita. A friend had it playing in his car which was parked behind the brewpub I was at. Instant fan.
