TEAM VINYL

The Cure - KISS ME, KISS ME, KISS ME

I love music across almost every genre and it’s hard for me to pick a true favorite album because it just depends on the day,. But, when I think about bands and albums that stand out in my life, The Cure is one of them. I loved Robert Smith growing up and was very into alternative music. This was my first concert (that I went to with friends on my own, thinking I was super cool and fully independent at just 13) Many years later, I took my daughter, Ashlee, to her first concert and The Cure was in the lineup. It was a full circle moment for me for sure.

Craig David - Born To Do It

This album came out at a very pivotal time for me personally. I had just turned 20 years old and was living on a couch in a recording studio in Stockholm. This was a huge album at the time in Europe and when I hear songs from it I am taken back to such a fun and exciting time in my life.

U2 - THE JOSHUA TREE

I've always been a fan of U2, however this was one of the first albums that seemed to flow and tell a story to me from track to track. I remember reading that Bono arranged the entire album in a very specific listening order, and that the first song on side B was meant to follow the last song on side A.

I had a part-time job during high school selling concert t-shirts. On November 17th, 1987, I was one of the lucky ones who got to sell shirts at the booth for their return leg of the Joshua Tree Tour. Since we arrived early, we got to hear their soundcheck, which was surreal. Imagine hearing the Edge warm up his guitar at full volume in an empty arena! We walked right up to the stage and said hello. In my senior year, my friends and I performed a lip sync to “Where the Streets Have No Name.” I picked up a guitar, put on a hat, and performed as The Edge. So many amazing memories of this band!

Tom Misch & Yussef Dayes - WHAT KINDA MUSIC

I share a love of music across a variety of genres—classical, gospel, hip hop, rap, R&B, the blues, rock n' roll, jazz—pretty much any and everything. When listening to my favorite artist and drummer, Yussef Dayes, and songwriter and producer, Tom Misch, "The Real" resonates with me. They sampled Aretha Franklin's "Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing" brilliantly, which is a childhood favorite of mine, and the lyrics remind me of every person that has told me that there is nothing that I can't do.

The Beach Boys - Surfin Safari

I grew up listening to this album with my dad. Typical Californian stuff. Did I become an excellent surfer? No, but that would be a good story.

Grateful Dead - SHAKEDOWN STREET

It’s not my favorite album but it’s an iconic album that defines a time in my life. When I think about this album and the songs on it, it makes me smile

Fleetwood Mac - RUMOURS

When I was 8 I got a walkman for Christmas from my parents. With that walkman, I got my first album in the form of a cassette tape. It was Rumours by Fleetwood Mac. My dad picked it out. He told me that If I was going to start listening to music, he was going to point me in the direction of something good. That day it became my favorite album, and always will be.

Radiohead - Kid A

I think Kid A by Radiohead changed music forever through its songwriting and sound design, and it certainly changed me. This album can completely transport me to a different place and bring me from a peaceful reflection to high intensity synth jams that get me up and moving. Every time I listen I’m still amazed humans can make something so good.

Motorhead - Ace of Spades

“Remember guitar solos?”

Harry Styles - Fine Line

Harry Style's Fine Line is the best album ever created. My opinion or fact? Hmm... Just like Harry's biggest rock legend influences, this is unlike anything else you hear for this time, and he is here to be the next legend and bring rock and roll back.

Creedence Clearwater Revival - COSMO'S FACTORY

When I was a kid my dad and I used to listen to vinyl’s a lot and this was the one that was played the most (definitely his favorite). I still love listening to CCR and only connect good memories with it.

Halsey - MANIC

This album only came out a few years ago, but I have had it on repeat ever since. She is deeply soulful & original, and the girl has pipes! I have never had an artist strike such a chord with me and inspire me with their artistry.

Miley Cyrus - PLASTIC HEARTS

I’ve stood by Miley during every phase. I’ve grown up with her and have always admired her living her current truth, no matter what it looked like. Humans are everchanging, and she’s confidently danced through each personal evolution. On this album, she expressed her authenticity on a different level. I feel like she’s found the genre that is her, while tipping her hat to Stevie in the process. I always try my best to stay true to my present and hope to find my home like she did in this album.

Stick Figure - SET IN STONE

I produced a live show for Stick Figure a few years ago. They were still up and coming so it was exciting to be a part of discovering great talent and watching them succeed. It was one of the highlight shows of that year. We sold out the venue and it was such a good vibe and experience. When I hear the album now, I reminisce on the times living on the central coast of California and all the summer beach barbeques with my best friends.

Prince - PURPLE RAIN

Prince was so "off the wall" and I felt that this album described the heart and soul of Prince. When I listen to this album, I am brought back in time to when I was a kid with so many unbridled ideas. At Go West, I try to be a kid with an open mind.

Taylor Swift - Folklore

I have always loved Taylor Swift as an artist. Breaking boundaries in the Country Genre early on before merging into pop. For Taylor, leaving country music to pursue pop was the smartest decision in my opinion. This album came out right during the middle of the pandemic/lockdown and I had it on repeat every single night in my apartment… most nights with a glass of wine, Ha. I feel like being a little more shut out from the world due to the pandemic with this album made me gravitate towards it more than anything else. Her lyrics. The vulnerability. I was instantly obsessed.

Newsboys - Shine the Hits

Growing up, CCM was all I listened to. And the Newsboys were my favorite band. This album has all of their "classic" hits (from the 1990's aka my childhood). This was the first album I purchased on CD, and it's in my CD collection to this day. 20+ years later they still rock! I was able to see the original band lineup during their "NEWSBOYS UNITED" reunion tour twice in 2018

Juice WRLD - Death Race for Love

I love Juice Wrld's creativity and flow. His lyrics are full of purpose. The way he can make instant classics in the span of 20-30 minutes is beyond comprehension.

Ben Rector - Magic

Magic by Ben Rector is the kind of music that makes me want to drive with the windows down, singing along loudly. He writes about the magic moments in everyday life and it is a reminder to see the beauty and joy in the mundane and chaotic days of life.

Luke Combs - What You See Is What You Get

When I think of an album that epitomizes what I love about country music, my go-to streamed album is 'What You See Is What You Get' by Luke Combs. Even just from the title alone, you can see that this album delves into a feeling of authenticity and embraces who you are. In this album specifically, Combs unearths his childhood memories and lifestyle through an authentic country sound. I love listening to this album as a pick-me-up during my day when I simply want to reminisce about the little things that matter in life.

The Head and the Heart - Let’s Be Still

I chose this album is because it reminds me to slow down and enjoy the simple things around me which sometimes are more beautiful than the large extravagant things.

Mt. Joy - Rearrange Us

“May you always look forward, and may all your love be returned” – Bug Eyes

My second week after moving to Tennessee, this album came on while I was walking my dog through the quiet moonlit streets of East Nashville. This album will forever be cemented in my memory because it became the soundtrack for finding home in a new place.

Kick - INXS

Each time I listen to Kick, I feel a sense of nostalgia and catharsis wash over me. My parents raised me on this album, and it makes me feel close to them, even when I am 580 miles away. This album used to play on repeat in the CD player in my mom's old car, before people switched to streaming from their phones with Bluetooth. I never knew the song names as they came up as the track number, but my mom did a Pom Poms routine to one song in high school in the 80s and we also share a song that we still duet to every time it plays.

Red Hot Chili Peppers - Californication

The truth is this has just always been my favorite album. It's one of my dad’s favorite bands so I began listening to them when I was pretty young, and still today I probably listen to at least 1 song off the album everyday, sometimes the entire thing.

Five Iron Frenzy - All the Hype that Money Can Buy

The band Five Iron Frenzy played a significant part of my life in my late high school/early college years. My best friend of 30+ years introduced me to this band. This album, All the Hype That Money Can Buy, released in April of 2000. It was an album I played over and over again. This band is known for having a lot of goofy, silly, stupid songs on their albums as well as having songs that deal with social issues, songs that make you think deeply about what matters, and where hope comes from. Plus, how can you not laugh at the cover? It’s ridiculous!

Jawbreaker - Unfun

During my childhood, my musical preferences revolved exclusively around crust and 80s punk. The turning point came at the age of 14 when I first encountered Jawbreaker, a band that introduced me to the world of pop punk. Since then, pop punk has become my preferred genre, expanding my musical horizons to embrace a variety of styles. Unfun marked the initiation of my Jawbreaker LP collection, preceding an era dominated by a single recorded cassette of their songs Kiss the Bottle and Shield Your Eyes. I still own that album and make it a point to go see them play live whenever possible.

Zac Brown Band - You Get What You Give

This was an album I grew up on and has so many classics. I always listened to that album on the way to the beach along with other country classics on the way to the beach with family. Plus, the title is a great mantra!

Jon Bellion - Glory Sound Prep

This album is full of inspiration. There is a song in this album for every aspect of life and Jon Bellion brings each lyric and every message to life in such a powerful way.

Strength In Numbers - Telluride Sessions

My uncle showed me this album when I was a young fiddle player and it absolutely shaped how I play! I refer to The Telluride Sessions a lot when tracking and writing and often listen to it on rainy days and long drives. It's my have-to-have if I were to ever get stuck on a desert island that somehow had power and a record player but no way to find help. It amazes me that you can communicate so much emotion without using a single word, which is a lesson I've taken with me throughout my life.

Billie Eilish - When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?

I find her music so incredible because of the unique mix of disconcerting feeling, yet also calming at the same time. This album has a good range of slightly more upbeat, songs, ballads and her own unique sounds, you can't help but having it on repeat.

Norah Jones - Come Away With Me

I love this album because it brings me peace. I love to grab a blanket, dim the lights, light some candles, put Norah on and turn off the world.

Backseat Lovers - Waiting To Spill

The vinyl that means the most to me is Waiting to Spill by the Backseat Lovers. The album is about a coming-of-age story. It is about coming to terms with who you are and where you are in life. This album came at such a great time in my life because I recently moved from Orlando to Nashville and had to restart my life and really sit with who I was. Somehow the Backseat Lovers took the words out of my head and created the perfect soundtrack to my life.