You don’t get a second chance at a first impression.
That’s something each artist in the list below of the Top 35 Opening Songs on Debut Albums knows all too well. The first song on that first album is one of the most important decisions an artist can make. One wrong turn could derail a career before it even had a chance.
These tracks, selected by the UCR staff, set moods, tones and narratives; they can make or break an entire album and career. Many of rock’s biggest names are here and for good reason. From the start, they surveyed the landscape and set their marks. They took their chances and then made music history.
35. Meat Loaf, “Bat Out of Hell” (From Bat Out of Hell, 1977)
Meat Loaf had already recorded an album with singer Shaun “Stoney” Murphy, appeared in The Rocky Horror Picture Show and sang on Ted Nugent’s Free-for-All album before he made his solo debut with 1977’s Bat Out of Hell. Working closely with songwriter Jim Steinman, the pair conceived a sprawling concept album that became a multiplatinum hit. The title track runs nearly 10 minutes, its ambition igniting the story.
34. Sex Pistols, “Holidays in the Sun” (From Never Mind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols, 1977)
Music fans were already familiar with Sex Pistols when “Holidays in the Sun” arrived in October 1977, two weeks before the release of their debut album, the foundation-shifting Never Mind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols. It was their fourth single, after the pivotal “Anarchy in the U.K.” and “God Save the Queen,” which made them England’s biggest newsmakers. As the LP opener, the song took on new significance.
33. The Specials, “A Message to You Rudy” (From The Specials, 1979)
“A Message to You Rudy” isn’t a Specials original; the song was written and first recorded by Dandy Livingstone in 1967 as “Rudy a Message to You.” Twelve years later, the 2-Tone band the Specials retitled and covered the song as their second single, a week ahead of their self-titled debut album. As the LP’s lead track, “A Message to You Rudy” placed the multiracial group firmly at the forefront of the U.K.’s ska revival.
32. Nine Inch Nails, “Head Like a Hole” (From Pretty Hate Machine, 1989)
When “Head Like a Hole” was released as the opening track on Nine Inch Nails’ debut album, Pretty Hate Machine, in 1989, the alternative music revolution was still a couple of years away from its breakthrough moment with Nirvana. But the pulsating song — abrasive electronic industrial music — was on the cusp of the new decade’s open-minded approach to new sounds. In five disquieting minutes, NIN predicted a future.
31. Living Colour, “Cult of Personality” (From Vivid, 1988)
Beginning with a quote from Malcolm X’s “Message to the Grass Roots” and sprinkled with samples from speeches by John F. Kennedy and Franklin D. Roosevelt, Living Colour’s breakthrough song bleeds the lines between politics and celebrity, the personal and the public. Lifted by a sizzling guitar riff, “Cult of Personality” elevated the group from the initial “Black hard-rock band” press angle to esteemed Grammy winners.
30. Television, “See No Evil” (From Marquee Moon, 1977)
In its earliest days, punk music blurred the lines of expectations, dodging the simple and easy clarification that usually greeted new artists. From the start, Television defied punk’s rules by having two guitar players who stretched out their solos and recording songs that broke the three-minute limit expected of the genre. Debut album Marquee Moon is a cornerstone record from the period, with “See No Evil” its nervous opener.
READ MORE: Top 40 Album-Opening Songs
29. Asia, “Heat of the Moment” (From Asia, 1982)
Formed after the collapse of Emerson, Lake & Palmer and Yes, Asia carried the concept of the supergroup into the ’80s with their self-titled debut album. ELP drummer Carl Palmer and Yes guitarist Steve Howe teamed up with latter-day Yes member Geoff Downes and former King Crimson bassist and singer John Wetton for a streamlined approach to progressive pop. “Heat of the Moment” served as their introduction.
28. Duran Duran, “Girls on Film” (From Duran Duran, 1981)
“Girls on Film” became Duran Duran’s first Top 10 U.K. single in the summer of 1981, helping stir interest in their recently released debut album around the same time. The song originated during an earlier lineup for the band when singer Andy Wickett was still part of the group. With Simon Le Bon at the microphone, “Girls on Film” received a near-total makeover and gave the fledgling quintet the commercial boost they needed.
27. Bon Jovi, “Runaway” (From Bon Jovi, 1984)
Bon Jovi famously got their start after their namesake frontman, who performed odd jobs at Power Station recording studio owned by his cousin, was given studio time to record a few of his demos with session musicians. “Runaway” was one of his original recordings from those 1981 sessions. Two years later, with his band in tow, Jon Bon Jovi rerecorded “Runaway,” their first single, a Top 40 hit, and LP’s opening track.
26. Traveling Wilburys, “Handle With Care” (From Traveling Wilburys Vol. 1, 1988)
The Traveling Wilburys got together for their first time to record a B-side to a George Harrison single. “Handle With Care” went so well that soon Harrison, Bob Dylan, Jeff Lynne, Roy Orbison and Tom Petty were in studio making an entire album. Mostly a Harrison song with aid by others, “Handle With Care” recalls best of his ’70s post-Beatles music ably assisted by his fellow legends every step of way.
25. Pink Floyd, “Astronomy Domine” (From The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, 1967)
The first two singles by Pink Floyd celebrated their unconventional approach to pop music but opening song on their debut album showed different side altogether. Held together by organ slide guitar and dual vocal between Syd Barrett and Richard Wright, “Astronomy Domine” displayed textural depth of The Piper at Gates of Dawn, opening itself to various live interpretations over decades.
24. The Go-Go’s, “Our Lips Are Sealed” (From Beauty and Beat, 1981)
When Go-Go’s’ Beauty and Beat reached No. 1 on Billboard albums chart in March 1982 eight months after its release it seemed like vindication for all-female Los Angeles group. Paying dues in city’s male-dominated punk scene they were first to have commercial success. Cowritten by band’s Jane Wiedlin along with Terry Hall of Specials “Our Lips Are Sealed” opened door and album.
23. Elvis Costello, “Welcome to Working Week” (From My Aim Is True, 1977)
At less than minute and half as B-side to second single “Alison,” “Welcome to Working” has privileged distinction opening Elvis Costello’s debut album. With cold-open start featuring only Costello and guitar “welcome” in title song plays like prologue bigger things to come.Your Aim Is True trusts its punk new wave pop mix this song manages contain all them.
