Albums you HATED when you bought but became favorites

[salad 419]

For me, this is in two parts:

The Screamin' Cheetah Wheelies
Magnolia
It took me almost three months of listening to it at least once a day to "get it". Since then, it is definately one of my favorites.

Frank Zappa
You Can't Do That on Stage Anymore VOL 6
Got it as a birthday present because I liked Joe's Garage Album (although the first time I saw Zappa on Saturday Night Live I thought he sucked and that wasn't good music, you know how it is when you're raised on Top 40)
Anyway, I listened to it once. Hated it. Let it sit for a year, pulled it out and wow, there was actually some good stuff musically. Listened to it non-stop for quite awhile and then it was always in the rotation. This started my "Zappa phase" where I bought at least two Zappa albums a week.

Name some albums that fit in this category for you.

[nobody]

I'm tryin to think of something, but frankly I usually at least have heard something off an album before I pick it up unless its one of my favorite artists. SO, I can't really remember the last time I bought something I hated.

Now, the first Manitoba disc was somethng I heard a lot of hype about and didn't really like much first time through that grew on me over time to be something I now hold in high regard, but that's about as close as I can think of.

[PeruvianSkies]

THE VERVE's URBAN HYMNS

When I bought this I thought the only song that was decent was the overplayed STREET SYMPHONY and couldn't really get into the rest of the album...then some time went by and I decided to revisit the album after feeling like an idiot for buying it for one song. Then I realized that the entire album is incredible and the worst song is the one I bought it for.

[3-LockBox]

Hhmmm...hated? I dunno 'bout hated...didn't grab me at first, yeah, I got that...Well, back in the '80s I bought XTC's Skylarking CD cuz of the song Dear God, but my heavy metal palate wasn't prepared for that album, so it sat around forever, until I started going through a Beatles phase, then I heard another song from Skylarking that inspired me whip it out (the CD) and I really began to dig the album and next came Oranges And Lemons and so on and so on...

Recently I got Izz's latest CD, My River Flows and I wasn't thrilled with it at first, same with the latest OSI effort, Free, but darned if I hadn't taken a likin to both.

[emorphien]

It's a tough call. My taste goes in cycles and I'll buy something and maybe not really get in to it for a couple years. Probably the one group I really did that to was Days of The New.

And oddly right now I'm not really listening to Zeppelin much but will probably go nuts over it in a couple years if I follow my usual trend.

[Dusty Chalk]

Talking Heads, Remain in Light

Yes, really -- I just didn't "get it" right away. Returned it to the friend who lent it to me. We talked, he suggested I hear it again, so I borrowed it again. Still didn't get it, returned it to him again. Found myself mentally replaying some tracks, so I went out and bought myself my own copy.

It's now one of my favourite albums, and whenever the "best record side" discussion comes up, I can almost always trump with side one.

I still haven't forgiven him for that. I got even by lending him Laurie Anderson's Big Science and King Crimson's Discipline.

[kexodusc]

IQ's "The Wake" and anything by Marillion. Couldn't get into that 80's stuff until I was a few years older.

[Dave_G]

I never hated them but didn't like it, too bland and fudd. I like them more now but they ain't way up on the list, ya know.

REM - Automatic for the People. I did hate REM until my girlfriend played this cd for me. It's pretty darn good, actually. Very mellow.

The Rolling Stones - they always annoyed me but I bought Some Girls used and it's pretty good, too.

Regards,

Dave_G

[richmon]

Just last weekend I was schleeping a pile of disc's to the used CD joint and gave one last listen to Day Shift's Imaginary Menagerie.

****efire, I've been listening to it in my car all week, I seriously misjudged this, it's like a blend of Anathema and Blackfield, but maybe better than both of them.

Here's a review from sombody else;
http://www.dprp.net/reviews/200558.html#dayshift

[Jack in Wilmington]

I got Renaissance's "Novella" for my birthday when it came out and didn't like it at all. Didn't have the heart to tell my cousin since she got it for me. Years later picked it up on CD and loved it.
Genesis's "Foxtrot" is another one. I would listen to "Watcher of the Skies" and get up and take the album off the turntable and put it away. Bought the CD a couple of months ago and it's in my heavy rotation pile. Just ordered it on vinyl yesterday.

[Dusty Chalk]

...Day Shift's Imaginary Menagerie...Hey, dude. Where ya been?

Will have to check it out.

[-Jar-]

Ok, this is kind of stupid from when I was a kid, 2 or 3 of you might appreciate this, but here it goes:

Michael Schenker Group - BUILT TO DESTROY.

I had heard a few MSG songs, but not much.. I knew Michael was Rudy's brother, Rudy was in the Scorpions, so I figured MSG would be heavy too. The guy on the cover (presumably Michael) was smashing his Flying V into a Mercedes or something, so I figured that was pretty cool... I was 13 or 14 remember.

Anyway, got it home, put it in my boom box and was very disappointed to hear lots of keyboards and not much guitar, and definately not much cranking heavy guitar. (Looking back on it, they were probably being influenced by Rush's SIGNALS)

I was pretty sad, I even was thinking of a way to lie and say it was defective so I could return it and get some Saxon or something.

But over time, the damn tape grew on me. The songs were decent, and a few of the songs kind of rocked in their own way. The tape died years ago, but I even picked up a bargain bin copy of the vinyl. So there. Album that I hated, grew to a favorite. Though I later also bought the album called MSG, which is a superior album.

-jar

[Mr MidFi]

One of my all-time, desert-island, top-10 faves was a real disappointment to me the first few times I heard it.

REM's Reckoning just sounded pointless and boring to me, especially after the fun "Chronic Town" EP and the college-rock classic, Murmur. But after I made myself listen to it again (and again), it snagged something in my head and started to gain traction. It continued growing on me for a couple of years thereafter, and stands today as my favorite REM release (and I own their entire catalog).

So let that be a lesson to you young 'uns out there. You gots to listen with open eyes, and see what you can hear in there. Or something.