The Top 30 Greatest Album Openers

1. New Order - Dreams Never End [from Movement, 1981]
2. Big Star - O My Soul [from Radio City, 1974]
3. Prince - Sign 'O' the Times [from Sign 'O' the Times, 1987]
4. The Clash - Janie Jones [from The Clash, 1977]
5. Orbital - The Girl With The Sun In Her Head [from In Sides, 1996]
6. The Smiths - The Queen Is Dead [from The Queen Is Dead, 1986]
7. The Who - Baba O'Riley [from Who's Next, 1971]
8. Rolling Stones - Rocks Off [from Exile on Main St. 1972]
9. Can - Future Days [from Future Days, 1973]
10. Love - Alone Again Or [from Forever Changes, 1967]
11. The Velvet Underground - Who Loves The Sun [from Loaded, 1970]
12. Al Green - Let's Stay Together [from Let's Stay Together, 1972]
13. Ramones - Blitzkrieg Bop [from Ramones, 1976]
14. Teenage Fanclub - The Concept [from Bandwagonesque, 1991]
15. R.E.M. - Radio Free Europe [from Murmur, 1983]
16. The Pixies - Debaser [from Doolittle, 1989]
17. Roxy Music - Do The Strand [from For Your Pleasure, 1973]
18. My Bloody Valentine - Only Shallow [from Loveless, 1991]
19. Mazzy Star - Halah [from She Hangs Brightly, 1990]
20. The Stooges - 1969 [from The Stooges, 1969]
21. David Bowie - Five Years [from The Rise & Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, 1972]
22. Sly & The Family Stone - Stand! [from Stand! 1969]
23. Spiritualized® - Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating In Space [from Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating In Space, 1997]
24. Beach Boys - You Need A Mess Of Help To Stand Alone [from Carl and the Passions-So Tough, 1972]
25. Caravan - If I Could Do It All Over Again, I'd Do it All Over You [from If I Could Do It All Over Again, I'd Do it All Over You, 1970]
26. The Kinks - Victoria [from Arthur (Or The Decline and Fall of the British Empire) 1969]
27. Mercury Rev - Holes [from Deserters Songs 1998]
28. Harry Nilsson - Gotta Get Up [from Nilsson Schmillson, 1971]
29. Television - See No Evil [from Marquee Moon, 1977]
30. Zombies - Care of Cell 44 [from Odessey and Oracle, 1968]

Inspired by a friend who listed his favourite albums of the past 30 years and I happened to comment that Dreams Never End is my all time favourite Side 1 Track 1. It got me thinking what would be in my Top 20, and so I went about compiling it. As always with me and lists, things got out of hand - 20 became 25 then 30 and could have easily become 50 before I saw sense.

I think you can tell how much you're going to like an album by the opening track, and it's probably no coincidence that each and every album highlighted here is an all time fave of mine. And of course there'll be omissions (no Beatles, Dexy's, Traffic, Scott Walker) but for now, I'm happy with this!

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