10 Albums That Definitely Had An Impact On Me
#4 IN LOVING MEMORY OF… by Big Wreck from 1997
I went to Berklee College of Music. Allegedly, John Mayer was there at the same time I was. I’d find that easier to believe if our careers were capable of being compared. After college, when I became aware of John Mayer with everyone else, I was glad that the Berklee name was associated with him because Berklee often means “Jazz” or “Prog rock” and here was good singer-songwriter pop coming out of my alma mater.
I had a similar experience while still at Berklee. Big Wreck’s debut record(this one) had a single called “The Oaf” which ended up at #9 on the Billboard rock chart. I went and bought the cd at a used cd store. It was a promotional version, probably sent out by the record label to radio stations and magazines. Back in the days that cds were being purchased, promo cds were stamped with a “not for resale” message. Used cd stores found a way to market these copies as rare or limited edition and I clearly fell for it because many of the cd’s in my collection bear this stamp.
Anyway, instead of the lyrics and pictures, the packaging had a short bio on the band. I was surprised to see that the band had met at Berklee, where they were all studying at the time. The bio writer must have had the same hangups about a rock band coming out of Berklee because the bio reads…
“But while they were collectively ditching out on theory lectures, something inspiring was actually HAPPENING…”
Cause, you know, it rocks to waste a lot of money.
Listening to “In Loving Memory Of…” I found one of my top 3 favorite songs, ever - “That Song.” (I don’t even have another two set aside. I just know that it’s in the top 3) Why do I love it? It sounds huge, that’s why.
It’s a post-breakup song that doubles as an anthem for people who love particular songs that are tied to particular moments in their life.
-So I always get nostalgic with that song
-But in my room it’s forced. It has to be in some car across the street
You don’t know what song he’s referring to but it doesn’t matter cause you’ve got your own. I’m sure for some people, “that song” is “That Song.” Strangely, “That Song” didn’t do as well on the charts and that was pretty much all she wrote for their American success. They went on to have more success in Canada.
The band is like Van Halen mixed with Soundgarden. Either you see the possibility of that mixture being awesome or you’re wrong(or my parents).
The album is a perfect debut album. The sounds are big and roomy. The vocal cuts through the mess. The energy of what they were doing in the studio made it onto the album. Producers Matt DeMatteo and Chris Wardman and mix engineer, Jack Joseph Puig and Big Wreck got it right!
(I still want to be in a band at some point with the name “Big X.” It combines Big Wreck and King’s X with the bonus being that it’s a character from “The Great Escape.”)
other albums that had an impact are HERE
