How often do you memorize an album, front to back?
 

You always hear stories of musicians (mostly) who fall in love with particular albums where they end up listening to it countless times and memorizing everything about it, from melodies to lyrics. So I was wondering, how often do YOU guys memorize albums? How good does an album have to be for you to memorize it? What notable albums have you memorized?

About once a year I run into an album I love so dearly that I play the everloving crap out of it. So, maybe 6 albums so far I've done this with.

I don't generally memorize an album front to back, mostly for the fact that a lot of albums I listen to have songs on the album that I don't particularly like or listen to as often as others. But for the question sake, I will say that it's very rare to memorize an entire album. Two that come to mind would have to be Porcupine Tree's Deadwing release and Thrice's Alchemy Index (Water) release.

Great question...

Almost every album that I pick up. I've always been more of an album listener than a song listener, and I would have guessed that most people here are the same way, but maybe not.

I usually give each album a 2-week trial, where I listen to it pretty much non-stop. If nothing comes out after two weeks, it will probably never come off the shelf again, but even after two weeks of an album that I don't care for, I can mostly sing every song and hum its music, so I would consider that front to back.For albums that really hit home, I keep them in my regular rotation for much longer, and I continue to grab for them off the shelf because they're memorable. And, I try to listen to an album all the way through while reading the lyrics at least once-- that's kind of my final litmus test.

For me, albums are like books. Avid readers normally finish books even if they're not great. For me, finishing an album is learning it front to back, and like a reader, I like to finish albums.

With all that being said, there are still different levels. For my top bands: Rush, Yes, Tull, etc., I would say I know their albums on an even more intimate level-- reading liner notes, articles, and so on.

There's only a few albums that I can completely memorise, which is mainly because I don't lke overlistening to albums. I like to give the experience of listening to a good album a touch of freshness therefore I rarely listen to an album back to back or twice on the same day.

Albums that I can memorise include Dark Side, Avalon, and The Queen is Dead among a few others (mostly Roxy Music albums ;P).

I agree with RMR in that I tend to listen to whole albums as well, and finish them regardless of how I feel within the first 10 minutes. I usually put my headphones on, crank up the volume, and listen to the whole thing while playing my favorite video game.

Oh lord...I've memorized TONS of albums over the years...when an album really resonates with me I can listen to it endlessly, and I invariably pick up every little bit of it. One of the first I ever did this with was Dead Kennedys' 'Plastic Surgery Disasters/In God We Trust, Inc.'

Other notables include Tool's Aenima & Lateralus, Melt-Banana's Cell-Scape, Brand New's Deja Entendu, the Repo! The Genetic Opera Soundtrack, and probably roughly eight million others.

On a semi-related note, last year I went on a road trip with my girlfriend at the time, down to California, and I was digging through her cds and found the first Hoobastank album. I hadn't heard that album in probably...eight years or so. I threw it on for the hell of it, and to my shock (and mild horror) I recalled every. single. lyric. And all the music came back to me instantly.

Why can I remember that sort of crap, but half the time I can't remember to turn the light off in my goddamn bedroom before I leave the house?

i don't memorise by just listening alone

i memorise by being able to play the entire album and sing it

i learnt all the guitar parts and lyrics to Metallica's Black Album

so i guess that's the sole album i memorised in its entirety

Not really sure... 30, maybe 40 albums I can memorize from beginning to end?
Something like that.
I'm not really sure if an album has to be good to be memorized. It just needs to be good enough to be played a lot on a higher volume (not in the background). I also easily memorize albums when I'm driving.

I am the exact same way. My wife will ask me to do something, and 2 minutes later I can't for the life of me remember what it is, but I can recite pretty much every lyric to every album in my collection-- which my wife brings up when I forget everything she asks of me.... "You know the lyrics to hundreds of songs, but you can't remember to put the laundry in the dryer." I hear it all the time.

When "learning" an album, I also look to see who the individual players are... for me it adds to the album, and knowing who the players are gives me a more personal connection or album, or at least it feels that way.

I can definetly relate to RMR. Albums that I really like, I tend to memorize from start to finish, from every piece of lyrics to every single note. It just happens. I have very good memory for sounds and music, but, like RMR, am rather forgetful when it comes to practical everyday stuff ;)

When I'm on the buss or otherwise doing something while not mentally occupied, I tend to think about (or remember) music. As I'm a drummer, I'm often tapping my hands, fingers and feet to the music playing in my head.

edit :

As for how often .. Hm, this year has been a bit slow for me musically. I've listened to a lot, but I haven't explored so much new, so I've probably (fully) memorized three albums or so this year.

I am with RMR in one way. If I get into an album (like the Unknown Mortal Orchestra release) I can listen to it many times in a week/day and just learn it by heart, but most albums I listen to once or twice and basically remember the songs I really liked.

Hardly ever. But I have memorised loads back to front ;)

In all seriousness, not very often. I can think of 6 on the spot. I tend to focus more on individual songs myself.

One. System of a Down - Toxicity, but only because of my brother. I rarely listen to entire albums. I usually skip around to get a feel for each song, and only transfer the ones I like most to my iPhone. I don't listen to much music at home.

I've memorized a few albums over the years but it was all entirely due to wanting to learn how to play the songs on a guitar, buying the tab book, then spending weeks listening to the album and playing along to it over and over again.

Blood Sugar Sex Magik (RHCP) is by far the most memorized album in my brain. Hell I even wore out the cd after wearing out the tape. Superunknown and Badmotorfinger (Soundgarden) are pretty close. There's a regular full length of material from Melon Collie and The Infinite Sadness (Smashing Pumpkins) up there as well.

I honestly don't know. Sometimes I can listen to a mediocre album once, and have the whole thing memorized. Then a fantastic album consistently, and it still surprises me if I haven't listened to it for awhile. Sometimes it's the opposite though, I'll forget a mediocre album, and remember every faucet of a work of genius.

It's really kind of random what I remember, and what I don't.

Albeit, I can tell you, I remember every faucet of Hydrogroingem sonically, but can't spell, pronounce, or remember 95% of Ruins song titles. Unless they're 'speedball'.

I feel like that about of Montreal a lot of the time.

We Were Born the Grotesque Animals in an Eluardian Heildalisgate With a Labrynthian Nubile Bliss.

Screw you Kevin Barnes.

There are hundreds of albums that I know musically by heart, I know every note and beat that's coming. Lyrics, not so much but I will hum the song at perfect pitch :P. There are several that I do know 100%, especially ever since I took on singing, any Pink Floyd album from 1971-79 is engraved in my brain and ready to play.