When the first song you hear by a band is atypical of their sound and misdirects your opinion on them

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I remembered the other day that my introduction to the Clash was when a friend played Straight to Hell for me. For a few months I thought the Clash were an experimental 80's group who toyed with electronics and beats, etc. Also, my introduction to the Velvet Underground was Candy Says, and it made me think all that talk about the band's controversy was either wrong or dated (this ended when I heard Heroin for the first time). I was about fourteen then.

Any similar tales of you being totally wrong about a band because of the introduction?

― Cunga (Cunga), Wednesday, 15 June 2005 22:26 (twenty-one years ago)

I was TOLD I was wrong about the Clash when I first heard "Train In Vain" on Top 40 radio in America, but it turned out to be more-or-less what they were about. shrug.

Teena Marie's "Lover Girl" has to be the winner here. I had no idea of her great pre-history with Rick James.

― donut e-goo (donut), Wednesday, 15 June 2005 22:34 (twenty-one years ago)

For a few months I thought the Clash were an experimental 80's group who toyed with electronics and beats, etc.

Weren't they though? They did a lot of stuff like Straight to Hell.

― walter kranz (walterkranz), Wednesday, 15 June 2005 23:57 (twenty-one years ago)

They did experiment a lot but they're not famous for that specific sound at all (at least not to the average music fan I wouldn't think)...

― Cunga (Cunga), Thursday, 16 June 2005 00:37 (twenty-one years ago)

Not that these songs are all atypical, but when I first heard Thin Lizzy ("The Boys are Back in Town"), Judas Priest ("Living After Midnight"), Accept ("Balls to the Wall"), Wire ("Eardrum Buzz") and Joy Division ("Love Will Tear Us Apart"), I didn't want to bother hearing anything else, and really liked all these bands once I did (esp. Thin Lizzy and Accept).

― Pangolino 2, Thursday, 16 June 2005 00:40 (twenty-one years ago)

When I first heard Smash Mouth's "Walking on the Sun," I mistakenly thought I would like them. It was atypical of their sound because it was good.

― Joseph McCombs (Joseph McCombs), Thursday, 16 June 2005 03:15 (twenty-one years ago)

I was TOLD I was wrong about the Clash when I first heard "Train In Vain" on Top 40 radio in America, but it turned out to be more-or-less what they were about. shrug.

"Train in Vain" by the Clash and "Once in a Lifetime" by the Talking Heads were both songs I'd heard on the radio without knowing who they were, and then was shocked to stumble across them in the context of their respective albums (both of which I love). I guess neither is especially "atypical" though.

― sleep (sleep), Thursday, 16 June 2005 18:02 (twenty-one years ago)

My friend Sara bought Nothing's Shocking by Jane's Addiction after I put "Jane Says" on a mix tape for her years ago. Suffice to say, she was unpleasantly surprised to find that "Jane Says" was not at all representative of their usual sound.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Thursday, 16 June 2005 18:06 (twenty-one years ago)

for me it would be the song 'grief' by khanate. i was disappointed to learn that this song was in no way indicative of their overall sound.

― ugly and mean, Thursday, 16 June 2005 20:51 (twenty-one years ago)

I remembered the other day that my introduction to the Clash was when a friend played Straight to Hell for me.

That is nothing. The first Clash track I heard was "This Is Radio Clash" :-)

"The Lovecats" introduced me to The Cure. I didn't dislike it in any way, but I know by now it isn't representative in any way. Also, I guess there appeared to be more to David Bowie than "Cat People (Putting Out Fire), which was a huge hit here in Norway by the time I was 11 years old.

Also, after hearing "Buddy Holly", I actually though Weezer were good.

― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Thursday, 16 June 2005 21:14 (twenty-one years ago)

West End Girls, with its semi-rapped verses, turned me off to the Pet Shop Boys for a couple years.

― schwantz, Thursday, 16 June 2005 21:33 (twenty-one years ago)

XTC "Dear God"... 'nuff said.

― donut e-goo (donut), Thursday, 16 June 2005 21:42 (twenty-one years ago)

The only Blur song I'm familiar with is "Sing," on the Trainspotting soundtrack, and I like it a lot. But DV and others have told me that the rest of their music doesn't really sound like this, so I haven't gotten anything else by them. I should probably hear for myself.

― Rock Hardy (Rock Hardy), Thursday, 16 June 2005 22:20 (twenty-one years ago)