Kat's Big Ginormous Amazingly Long Music Poll!

[katallison]

In which you, dear readers, get to advise me extensively and lift me from the crevasse of cultural ignoramushood. The Poll So Big, It Comes In Parts! And On Cutaway!



So, this part of the poll is: Imagine that you have been charged with enlightening someone who has lived in a cave since the mid-70s about the music of the past 30 years.

[Background: The living-in-a-cave part is not much of an exaggeration. I more or less stopped listening to popular music about the time vinyl went out, due to a combination of changing tastes and amazing lack of income. Most of my music collection of the late 70s through the late 90s grew out of a very primitive form of piracy, consisting of:
(1) Go to the library and check out LPs (almost exclusively classical or older jazz);
(2) Dupe them onto cassette tapes;
(3 Return LPs to library, listen to cassette tapes on crappy tape player.

When CDs came to the fore, I looked at them, thought, "Huh. Boy, *those* are pricey," contemplated my amazing lack of income, and passed them by. I also didn't have a car, so the input mode of driving around listening to random shit on the radio wasn't happening. And so, with one thing and another, I basically had no connection with any music that hit the airwaves between, say, 1975 and the present day.]

But now that I have the amazing resources of Our Glorious Intrawebs (in the form of a Rhapsody subscription--Rhapsody rocks!--as well as iTunes et al.), and even some actual income, I am taking on the project of actually trying to listen to current music (for a broad definition of "current") and figure out what I like. So your question is:

What five albums/artists (random number, feel free to contract or expand it) are essential for me to check out, representing music without which Jeezus Keerist, Kat, your life has been a barren wasteland spent in a cave!? (Note: this is just a reply-in-comments kind of poll, devoid of ticky-boxes, because the limitations of LJ's Poll Creator for text boxes frustrates me.)

Part II: So, When/Where/How Do You Listen to Music, Anyway?

[Background: OK, this will sound funny and pathetic to most of you, but one of the things that hinders my plunge back into the realm of music appreciation is that I've simply gotten out of the habit of having music on. Driving around in the car is about it, but I don't drive much, and the rest of my life is basically background-music-free. So really, I'm just curious about how everyone else manages to work this into their lives.]

[Poll #462147]

ETA: Thanks so much for all the great ideas so far!
And although, as noted in the comments, part of my intent was to not restrict your suggestions within the framework of my pre-existing preferences, still I realize a few directional markers might be helpful. So, just a short list of some of the (very few) CDs I have actually purchased and dug:
David Bowie, Ziggy Stardust
Dylan, Blood on the Tracks, Blonde on Blonde
Liz Phair, Exile in Guyville
Cowboy Junkies, Trinity Sessions
Talking Heads, Stop Making Sense
REM, Automatic for the People
Rolling Stones, Exile on Main Street
The Donnas, Spend the Night
Bonnie Raitt, Luck of the Draw
...to the extent that this provides any help whatsoever. *g*

Comments

[molly-o.livejournal.com]

Hey there,

You don't really know me, but this is the kind of thing I can't resist. There are so many great recs here already, these are just a few I haven't seen listed yet:

The Beta Band, Hot Shots II
Macy Gray, [either of her albums, I can't remember the titles]
The Smiths, The Singles
Introducing ... the Outkast
Madonna's Immaculate Collection

I'd also recommend soundtrack albums as a way to sample a variety of artists: Grosse Point Blank I and II are wonderful for Brit-influenced '80s music; High Fidelity also has a great soundtrack. I like the Trainspotting soundtracks as well.

I have music on constant shuffle at work, but that's stuff that's been loaded from CDs, so it's music I've already found. For a while there, I had kinda stagnated -- picking up recommendations here and there from friends, but mostly listening to stuff I already knew -- and then I started watching VH-1's top 20 videos (airing Saturday and Sunday mornings), and it's been a wonderful way to get a sense of What The Kids Are Listening To. There's plenty of stuff that's not to my taste, but I've also found some things I really enjoy.

[katallison.livejournal.com]

Thanks very much -- I shall indeed check these out! And thanks also for suggesting the VH-1 programming; it's something I wouldn't have thought of, but it would indeed constitute a good quick exposure to what's current. Thanks again!