4/23/2004 08:27:02 PM|||Britt|||I am rebuilding my music collection to include the most prominent and influential music I’ve enjoyed my adult life. Why adult life and not those crazy teen years? (Can you say Ted Nugent worshipper?) Other than embarrassment, I was under the influence of two older brothers, the oldest having a large, and good, rock-and-roll collection. Those years were filled with Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, (saw the original band live), Journey, Boston, etc.

Being a skateboarder during those years, I was exposed to different music through the magazines and started listening to new wave and punk. I remember when my friend’s brother sent him the first Black Flag album. We couldn’t get enough of it.

Once I moved to Southern California and discovered Lou’s Records in Encinitas, I was hooked. I developed a relationship with several of the coolest record store clerks ever (Toby, Stephen, and Danielle). Whenever I walked in the door, they would fire off recommendations. My collection grew and included bands that most people, save cool record store clerks, have never heard: The Abecedarians, The Apartments (an all-time favorite), A Certain Ratio, etc. That’s just the A’s. It was the eighties.

I’ve recently been roaming the web digging up some lost treasures. In some cases, I’m anxious to receive a CD only to be disappointed after it arrives. It is rare to find a band with staying power. There are some bands that are musical viagra. I will be distilling them into a list of my top forty over the next few weeks.

If time permits, I will try to post an mp3 sample, cover art, and links to info about the bands.|||108277727021366115|||Top forty after forty