Led Zeppelin I - The Greatest Debut Album Of All Time?

Led Zep is up there. Might not be #1, but it's in the running.

A few others that are in the running:

The Beatles - Please Please Me
The Who - My Generation
Jimi Hendrix Experience - Are You Experienced?
The Mama's and Papa's - If You Can Believe Your Eyes and Ears (set up the SoCal sound for years)
Boston (self-titled)
Ramones (self-titled)
Black Sabbath (self-titled)
R.E.M. - Murmur (arguable, but rather than making a huge immediate impact, it was more of a slow burn in changing the direction of rock, and single-handedly created the 'college music' or 'alternative') genre).
Elvis Presley (self-titled) (how can this one be left out???)
Steely Dan - Can't Buy a Thrill (thanks for the reminder nailer)

Many bands left a huge impact on rock, but it can't be said that they did it with their debut album. Case in point: Nirvana. No one would argue the legacy they left, but their '89 debut album, 'Bleach', was largely ignored until the release of '91's 'Nevermind'. Only then did people decide to mine that vein to see what else may lurking in those shadows.
 
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Consider that Zeppelin I and II were almost released as one (as their debut album).
I forget what happened...logistics, timing, etc. but this fun fact still blows me away.
 
Led Zeppelin (1) was so great because they were supercharged with all this material, energy, and chops from the 1960's Yardbirds. Then they went from great to good to mediocre to suck.

The Doors is the debut that comes to mind as possibly the greatest.
 
Gears of Fire? Is that a double album?

Don't you mean, Fresh Gears of Fire?

I mean Cream-Gears of Fire (double album), a second run of the same master on the same equipment. Original recording, second run. The covers are messed up and collectors wouldn't buy them, so elusive disc is selling them for $19.99 !

Got mine on order already.....it might be fresh gears of fire, don't remember exactly !
 
I think Van Halen I deserves consideration for how it presented a new sound and influenced other bands to emulate.

Van Halen's debut was the best period IMO for a debut lp

Black Sabbath's gets an honorable mention also
 
The Pretenders first album, My Aim Is True by Elvis Costello and Marshall Crenshaw's debut were all great first albums.

That Pretenders album from beginning to end is great!

Hoodoo Man Blues by Junior Wells, and a then relatively unknown guitarist by the name of Buddy Guy is an outstanding debut album.

Freak Out by Frank Zappa is a great debut album and one if not thee first double albums.

Right Time by The Mighty Diamonds is a roots reggae classic.
 
I am in the agree camp with LZ 1, what put me over the edge was when I was a young man I saw a stripper strip to "You shook me". At a time when all of the songs were from Poison etc.. Ya that was cool.
 
Glyn and Jimmy...

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Loved the mighty Zep when I was a teenager and still like them (along with other music formats)
Greatest? Hard to say. From a recording engineers view, maybe so.


Just wish I could have seen them around '69 and '70...
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