How often do you memorize an album, front to back?
 

You always hear stories of musicians (mostly) who fall in love with particular albums where they end up listening to it countless times and memorizing everything about it, from melodies to lyrics. So I was wondering, how often do YOU guys memorize albums? How good does an album have to be for you to memorize it? What notable albums have you memorized?

About once a year I run into an album I love so dearly that I play the everloving crap out of it. So, maybe 6 albums so far I've done this with.

I don't generally memorize an album front to back, mostly for the fact that a lot of albums I listen to have songs on the album that I don't particularly like or listen to as often as others. But for the question sake, I will say that it's very rare to memorize an entire album. Two that come to mind would have to be Porcupine Tree's Deadwing release and Thrice's Alchemy Index (Water) release.

Great question...

Almost every album that I pick up. I've always been more of an album listener than a song listener, and I would have guessed that most people here are the same way, but maybe not.

I usually give each album a 2-week trial, where I listen to it pretty much non-stop. If nothing comes out after two weeks, it will probably never come off the shelf again, but even after two weeks of an album that I don't care for, I can mostly sing every song and hum its music, so I would consider that front to back.For albums that really hit home, I keep them in my regular rotation for much longer, and I continue to grab for them off the shelf because they're memorable. And, I try to listen to an album all the way through while reading the lyrics at least once-- that's kind of my final litmus test.

For me, albums are like books. Avid readers normally finish books even if they're not great. For me, finishing an album is learning it front to back, and like a reader, I like to finish albums.

With all that being said, there are still different levels. For my top bands: Rush, Yes, Tull, etc., I would say I know their albums on an even more intimate level-- reading liner notes, articles, and so on.

There's only a few albums that I can completely memorise, which is mainly because I don't lke overlistening to albums. I like to give the experience of listening to a good album a touch of freshness therefore I rarely listen to an album back to back or twice on the same day.

Albums that I can memorise include Dark Side, Avalon, and The Queen is Dead among a few others (mostly Roxy Music albums ;P).

I agree with RMR in that I tend to listen to whole albums as well, and finish them regardless of how I feel within the first 10 minutes. I usually put my headphones on, crank up the volume, and listen to the whole thing while playing my favorite video game.

Oh lord...I've memorized TONS of albums over the years...when an album really resonates with me I can listen to it endlessly, and I invariably pick up every little bit of it. One of the first I ever did this with was Dead Kennedys' 'Plastic Surgery Disasters/In God We Trust, Inc.'

Other notables include Tool's Aenima & Lateralus, Melt-Banana's Cell-Scape, Brand New's Deja Entendu, the Repo! The Genetic Opera Soundtrack, and probably roughly eight million others.

On a semi-related note, last year I went on a road trip with my girlfriend at the time, down to California, and I was digging through her cds and found the first Hoobastank album. I hadn't heard that album in probably...eight years or so. I threw it on for the hell of it, and to my shock (and mild horror) I recalled every. single. lyric. And all the music came back to me instantly.

Why can I remember that sort of crap, but half the time I can't remember to turn the light off in my goddamn bedroom before I leave the house?

i don't memorise by just listening alone

i memorise by being able to play the entire album and sing it

i learnt all the guitar parts and lyrics to Metallica's Black Album

so i guess that's the sole album i memorised in its entirety

Not really sure... 30, maybe 40 albums I can memorize from beginning to end?
Something like that.
I'm not really sure if an album has to be good to be memorized. It just needs to be good enough to be played a lot on a higher volume (not in the background). I also easily memorize albums when I'm driving.

I am the exact same way. My wife will ask me to do something, and 2 minutes later I can't for the life of me remember what it is, but I can recite pretty much every lyric to every album in my collection-- which my wife brings up when I forget everything she asks of me.... "You know the lyrics to hundreds of songs, but you can't remember to put the laundry in the dryer." I hear it all the time.

When "learning" an album, I also look to see who the individual players are... for me it adds to the album, and knowing who the players are gives me a more personal connection or album, or at least it feels that way.