Great Album Openers
 

As a newbie i thought i would get something out there, here are (in my opinion!) 3 great album openers:

Budgie - Breadfan (Never turn your back on a friend 1973)
Metallica - Battery (Master of puppets 1986)
Ben Folds - Anne Waits (Rockin the suburbs 2001)

Not the best 3 as that would be very hard to decide..but 3 good ones. Any opinions?

The Cat

Aracarsenal- At the Drive-In (Relationship of Command)
There is a war going on for your mind- Flobots (Fight with tools) [Sadly the best song on the album]
Five Years- David Bowie (The rise and fall..)
Cygnus...Vismund Cygnus-The Mars Volta (Frances the Mute)
Spirit of the Radio- Rush (Perm Waves)
Death on Two Legs- Queen (Night at the Opera)
Miseria Cantare- AFI (Sing the Sorrow)
Prison Song- System of a Down (Toxicity)
Church Mouth- Portugal. The Man (Church Mouth)

Tha Mobb - Lil Wayne (Tha Carter 2)
Out There - Dinosaur Jr. (Where You Been)
I Ain't No Joke - Erik B. and Rakim (Paid in Full)
Rhymin and Stealin - Beastie Boys (Licensed to Ill)
The Wolf is Loose - Mastodon (Blood Mountain)
MC Chris is Dead - mc chris (MC Chris is Dead)
Steamrock Fever - Scorpions (Taken By Force)
I Was a Lover - TV On the Radio (Return to Cookie Mountain)
Seven Nation Army - White Stripes (Elephant)
Blue Orchid - White Stripes (Get Behind Me Satan)
Baba O'Riley - The Who (Who's Next)

Alone Again Or- Love (Forever Changes)
Care of Cell #44- The Zombies (Odessey & Oracle)
David Watts- The Kinks (Something Else by the Kinks)

Neighbourhood#1 (Tunnels) - Arcade Fire (Funeral)
Needle In The Hay - Elliot Smith (Elliot Smith)
Black Sabbath - Black Sabbath (Black Sabbath)
Just Like Honey - The Jesus & Mary Chain (Psycocandy)
Allison - Slowdive (Souvlaki)
Teen Age Riot - Sonic Youth (Daydream Nation)
2112 - Rush (2112) (Yes all 20+ minutes!)
Debaser - Pixies (Doolittle)
Singapore - Tom Waits (Rain Dogs)
Inbetween Days - The Cure (The Head On The Door)
Black Dog - Led Zeppelin (IV)

Alone again or, Awesome 'Forever Changes' has to be one of the best albums evre made IMO

I never thought that Tom Waits' openers were anything spectacular , still don't, he fills out the middle of his albums with awesomeness though. Rain Dogs makes up for it with just about the most brilliant closer ever.

One Of These Days - Meddle (Pink Floyd)
What's Going On? - S/T (Marving ***e)
Only Love Can Break Your Heart - Singles:Best of (Saint Etienne)
Angel Of Death - Raining Blood (Slayer)

the only one that springs to mind as punching you in the face is 'the Classical' from the Fall's ...you know the bloody album

And Sweet Leaf from Masters of Reality. At one time I genuinely thought that was about a nice lady :o:

Furreal though.

If I'm In Luck I Might Get Picked Up - Betty Davis (Betty Davis)
Hangin' On The Telephone - Blondie (Parallel Lines)
Needle in The Camel's Eye - Brian Eno (Here Come the Warm Jets)
Changes - David Bowie (Hunky Dory)
Five Years - David Bowie (The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust an the Spiders from Mars)
Break On Through - The Doors (The Doors)
New Big Prinz - The Fall (I Am Kurious Oranj)
The Boy With Perpetual Nervousness - The Feelies (Crazy Rhythms)
Vicious - Lou Reed (Transformer)
You're Gonna Need Someone on Your Side - Morrissey (Your Arsenal)
Personality Crisis - New York Dolls (New York Dolls)
Rock N Roll Star - Oasis (Definitely Maybe)
Gloria: In Excelsis Deo - Patti Smith (Horses)
To Bring You My Love - PJ Harvey (To Bring You My Love)
Precious - The Pretenders (Pretenders)
We Will Rock You - Queen (News of the World)
Do the Strand - Roxy Music (For Your Pleasure)
This Town Ain't Big Enough For the Both of Us - Sparks (Kimono My House)
Down on the Street - The Stooges (Fun House)
Metal Guru - T.Rex (The Slider)
See No Evil - Television (Marquee Moon)
I Will Follow - U2 (Boy)

Solo Dancers - The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady (Charles Mingus)
The Host of Seraphim - The Serpents Egg (Dead Can Dance)
Maggot Brain - Maggot Brain (Funkadelic)
Folsom Prison Blues - At Folsom Prison (Johnny Cash)
Overkill - Overkill (Motorhead)
Papa Won't Leave You, Henry - Henry's Dream (Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
Khmer - Khmer (Nils Petter Molvaer)

Hellz yeah.

I always LOVED the way Swordfishtrombones opens. The stuff of genius, and sets the tone for the rest of what is one of the best albums ever recorded.

Earth Died Screaming and Big In Japan are where it's at.

Still no match for 16 Shells from a 30.6, In the Neighborhood, Frank's Wild Years & Just Another Sucker on the Vine. I'm not saying his album openers are necessarily bad but Tom transitions into his album material severely and doesn't leave much room for the listener to get acclimated to the album. I've always enjoyed the other material on them (especially Swordfishtrombones).

I did forget about Bone Machine though, The Earth Died Screaming is absolutely glorious.

I like "Singapore" a lot but overall I agree with you, his opening tracks are frequently some of the weakest on the album (I'm looking at you "Big in Japan"). It's like he wants to lower expectations before hitting you with the good shit.

Ooh, how about "Angel" from Massive Attack's album Mezzanine for one of the great album openers? Not only is the menacing mood of this song a great way to kick off the album but the dynamic of the song is so amazing for bringing you into the album. It starts with a simple, sort of mellow, beat and slowly turns into a ferocious monster stalking you from the shadows as you walk to your car in a secluded parking lot late at night.

Agree. That album just gets better all the time. It's rare that I will call an album a masterpiece but Mezzanine definitely is one. A desert island disc for sure.

I still think it's a cool song, maybe it's just me tho. I think it sets the mood for the rest of the album pretty well.

1 more i forgot to mention was
I Wanna Be Adored - The Stone Roses (The Stone Roses)

For that matter, how about Breaking Into Heaven (Second Coming)? Some of that album is hit-or-miss but that track is absolutely brilliant.

Yup i agree there :) great track, but it prob is the best track on the album. Second Coming's not actually too bad as an album itself, but really they were never going to top their debut.

Well, off the top of meine head;

Love - Alone Again Or [Forever Changes]
Blur - For Tomorrow [Modern Life Is Rubbish]
Steel Pulse - Chant a Psalm [True Democracy]
David Bowie - It's No Game 1 [Scary Monster]
Joe Jackson - Another [Night and Day]
Patti Smith - Gloria [Horses]
UNKLE - Guns Blazing [Psyence Fiction]
New Order - Regret [Republic]
AC/DC - Riff Raff [If You Want Blood You've Got It]

And so on...

Tautou - Deja Entendu

One of my favourite openers for sure.

Stacked Actors - Foo Fighters (Nothing left to lose)
21st Century Schizoid Man - King Crimson (In the court)
Anthem - Rush (Fly by Night)
Dead and Bloated - Stone Temple Pilots (core)
Cherub Rock - The Smashing Pumpkins (Siamese Dream)
Transfiguration - The Screaming Trees (Even if and especially when)

Brand New... very nice. I second this.

Beat that My Heart Skipped- Dan Le Sac Vs. Scroobius Pip (Angles)
Like I Said... - The Blend (After What Came Before)
Open Mind- Blackfield (Blackfield)
Good Morning- Amyas (State of Mind)
I Wanna Be In The Calvary- Corb Lund (Horse Solider! Horse Solider!)
Dolls- Dark Lunacy (Devoid)
Truth- Devin Townsend (Infinity)
Born Dead Buried Alive- Hypocrisy (The Arrival)
Movin' On- The Interpestuals (ReviveR)
Ghosts of the Sun- Katatonia (Viva Emptiness)
T.I.A.- K'Naan (Troubador)
Lowtide- O'Death (Broken Hymns, Limbs, and Skin)
Five Seconds- Peeping Tom (Peeping Tom)
WhT Do U WnT FRM Me?- Rehab (Graffiti The World)
My Dear Little Angle- The Smalls (My Dear Little Angle)
Humble Narrator- Two Cow Garage (Speaking in Cursive)
Year of the Car Crash- Warsawpack (Gross Domestic Product)

Thunder Road - Born To Run (Bruce Springsteen)
Black Dog - Led Zeppelin IV
Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts I-V) - Wish You Were Here (Pink Floyd)

There's A War Going On For Your Mind isn't even a song, let alone the opener for the album. Anne Braden's the opener.

You DL must have screwed then, because...

Metallica - Hit The Lights (Kill Em All)
Megadeth - Holy Wars (Rust In Peace)
Hope of The States - The Black Amnesias (The Lost Riots)
The Music - The Dance (S/T)
The Stooges - Down On The Street (Fun House)
Cooper Temple Clause - Did You Miss Me? (See This Through and Leave)
Faith No More - From Out Of Nowhere (The Real Thing)
Guns n Roses - Welcome To The Jungle (Appetite For Destruction)
Tricky - Overcome (Maxinquaye)
Manics - Sleepflower (Gold Against The Soul)

And loads more, but I'm tired.

Definitely, there couldn't be a better way to kick off the album.


Another of my fav openers is Brainstorm from Hawkwind's Doremi Fasol Latido. What a fantastic no-bullshit way to embark on a cosmic journey!

Oh, and Starless and Bible Black Sabbath from Acid Mothers Temple. ;)

We Dance Wowee Zowee by Pavement
Teenage Riot Daydream Nation by Sonic Youth
Act Won (Things Fall Apart) Things Fall Apart The Roots
Pink Moon Pink Moon Nick Drake
I Will Dare Let It Be The Replacements
Hardcore UFOs Bee Thousand Guided by Voices
Speed of Life Low David Bowie
Accidents Will Happen Armed Forces Elvis Costello
Thunder Road Born to Run Bruce Springsteen

100% on Sonic Youth's Dirty.

That's a great one, though I think "Land of Sunshine" from Angel Dust is even better. I love how abruptly it starts.

Animal Collective- "In The Flowers" (Merriweather Post Pavillion)
Arcade Fire- "Neighborhood #1" (Funeral)
Beach Boys- "Our Prayer/Gee" (Smile)
Beck- "Devil's Haircut" (Odelay)
David Bowie- "Five Years" (Ziggy Stardust)
Clash- "Safe European Home" (Give Em Enough Rope)
Deerhunter- "Cover Me (Slowly)" (Microcastle)
Bob Dylan- "Like A Rolling Stone" (Highway 61 Revisited)
Fall- "The Classical" (Hex Enduction Hour)
Richard Hell- "Love Comes In Spurts" (Blank Generation)
Joy Division- "Disorder" (Unknown Pleasures)
Modern Lovers- "Roadrunner" (s/t)
My Bloody Valentine- "Only Shallow" (Loveless)
Neutral Milk Hotel- "Song Against Sex" (Avery Island)
Nirvana- "Serve the Servants" (In Utero)
Pavement- "Silence Kit" (Crooked Rain)
Pixies- "Debaser" (Doolittle)
Radiohead- "Airbag" (OK Computer)
Replacements- "I Will Dare" (Let It Be)
Rolling Stones- "Rocks Off" (Exile on Main Street)
Sex Pistols- "Holiday In The Sun" (Nevermind the Bollocks)
Smashing Pumpkins- "Cherub Rock" (Siamese Dream)
Soft Boys- "I Wanna Destroy You" (Underwater Moonlight)
Sonic Youth- "Teen Age Riot" (Daydream Nation)
Swell Maps- "H.S. Art" (A Trip to Marineville)
Television- "See No Evil" (Marquee Moon)
T. Rex- "Metal Guru" (The Slider)
Velvet Underground- "Sunday Morning" (VU&Nico)
Who- "Baba O'Reilly" (Who's Next)
Weezer- "My Name is Jonas" (Blue Album)
X- "The Once Over Twice" (Wild Gift)

Off the top of my head:

Like a Rolling Stone - Bob Dylan (Highway 61 Revisited)
Lust for Life - Iggy Pop (Lust for Life)
Purple Haze - Jimi Hendrix (Are You Experienced?; re-release)
Beetlebum - Blur (Blur)
Sunday Morning - The Velvet Underground (VU & Nico)
Astronomy Domine - Pink Floyd (The Piper at the Gates of Dawn)
Sympathy for the Devil - The Rolling Stones (Beggar's Banquet)
Dead Leaves on the Dirty Ground - The White Stripes (White Blood Cells)

Yeah, but how much more awesome would The Real Thing be if they opened with Surprise, You're Dead! instead of From Out of Nowhere? The bell intro and overcharged tempo is a great attack.

My Favorites, in no particular order:

Everything in It's Right Place - Radiohead (Kid A)
A Salty Salute - Guided By Voices (Alien Lanes)
Care of Cell 44 - The Zombies (Odessy and Oracle)
London Calling - The Clash (London Calling)
Nebraska - Bruce Springsteen (Nebraska)
Alone Again Or - Love (Forever Changes)
Sunday Bloody Sunday - U2 (War)
In the Flesh? - Pink Floyd (The Wall)
Where the Streets Have No Name - U2 (The Joshua Tree)
A Minor Place - Bonnie "Prince" Billy (I See A Darkness)
Randy Described Eternity - Built to Spill (Perfect from Now On)
Suzanne - Leonard Cohen (Songs of Leonard Cohen)
Bring Da Ruckus - The Wu Tang Clan (Enter the Wu Tang, 36 Chambers)
Gimme Shelter - The Rolling Stones (Let it Bleed)
Time Has Told Me - Nick Drake (Five Leaves Left)
Torn Foam Blue Couch - Grand Archives (The Grand Archives)
Two of Us - The Beatles (Let it Be)
Dry the Rain - The Beta Band (The Three EPs)
Maggot Brain - Funkadelic (Maggot Brain)
Pink Moon - Nick Drake (Pink Moon)
Summer Babe - Pavement (Slanted and Enchanted) <-- I am not a huge fan of this band or this album even though it is so praised, but I really liked the first song on the album.
The Queen is Dead - The Smiths (The Queen is Dead)

That could've been a cool way to start it too, although the rest of the album might have sounded like kind of a letdown after that. I always liked they kind of built up to that song.

Speaking of the track order on that album, I never understood why they moved "Edge of the World" to the end of the album on the CD. I liked it so much better coming right after "Zombie Eaters".