Music History Events: Debut Albums
November 16, 2001 Havana's National Theatre debuts Se Seco el Arroyito (The Brooklet Dried Up), a musical written by Cuba's veteran "sonero," Compay Segundo.
August 28, 2001 With nu-metal still alive and well, Puddle Of Mudd release their debut album, Come Clean. It sells over 3 million copies thanks to the hits "Blurry," "Control," and "She Hates Me."
June 29, 2001 Dream A Little Dream: The Almost-True Story of the Mamas & the Papas, a stage musical penned by former Papas member Denny Doherty, premieres in Toronto.
June 5, 2001 Twenty-year-old Alicia Keys releases her debut album, Songs In A Minor, featuring her breakthrough hit, "Fallin'."More
May 8, 2001 Sum 41 release their debut studio album, All Killer, No Filler.
March 26, 2001 Gorillaz release their debut self-titled album, which becomes a surprise chart success in the US. Although the band's vocalist, Damon Albarn, is well known in Europe through his band Blur, he is virtually unknown in the States, leading to low expectations for the release. The album eventually sells over a million copies in America and peaks at #14.
October 24, 2000 Nelly Furtado, 21, releases her debut album, Whoa, Nelly!, which includes the self-written hits "Turn Off The Light" and "I'm Like A Bird."
August 14, 2000 Nineteen-year-old Craig David releases his first album, Born To Do It, which debuts at #1 on the UK Albums chart and becomes the fastest-selling debut album by a British male solo act.
August 24, 1999 18-year-old Christina Aguilera releases her self-titled debut album, which includes three #1 hits: "Genie in a Bottle," "What a Girl Wants" and "Come On Over Baby (All I Want Is You)." It ushers in a new era of teen pop alongside her former Mickey Mouse Club star, Britney Spears.
July 1, 1999 Jennifer Lopez releases her debut album, On The 6, with the hit single "If You Had My Love."
February 4, 1999 In a daring move, Rykodisc becomes the first music label to give its stamp of approval to MP3, the controversial Internet-based music distribution format that struck fear into the hearts of many music industry executives.
May 9, 1998 Brian Wilson plays his first ever solo concert (no Beach Boys) at a show in St. Charles, Illinois.
July 15, 1997 Missy Elliott releases her debut album, Supa Dupa Fly, with lead single "The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)," a reworking of the Ann Peebles song "I Can't Stand The Rain." Guests on the album include Ginuwine, Busta Rhymes and Aaliyah, all artists Elliott has produced.
April 14, 1997 Creed release their debut album, My Own Prison, on their own label, Blue Collar Records. When a local radio station in Tallahassee puts the title track in rotation, they earn a deal with Wind-Up Records, which re-issues the album in August.
June 25, 1996 Jay-Z issues his debut album, Reasonable Doubt, as the first release on his own label, Roc-A-Fella Records. The first track is "Can't Knock the Hustle," which features Mary J. Blige and tells the story of Jay's come-up in Brooklyn. Roc-A-Fella later partners with Def Jam Records, which appoints Jay-Z president in 2004.
April 9, 1996 Bluegrass duo Gillian Welch and David Rawlings release their debut album, Revival.More
August 29, 1995 Junior M.A.F.I.A. release their debut album, Conspiracy. The group is led by The Notorious B.I.G. and also features newcomer Lil' Kim, one of the few female rappers to be part of a group. Two hits emerge from the album: "Player's Anthem" and "Get Money."
August 15, 1995 Garbage release their self-titled debut album, adding a much-needed female voice (Shirley Manson) to the alternative rock scene. Hits from the album include "Queer" and "Only Happy When It Rains."
July 4, 1995 Foo Fighters release their self-titled debut album. It's essentially a Dave Grohl solo project - he wrote, produced, and played all the instruments except for some guitar on "X-Static" by Greg Dulli.
October 11, 1994 Korn release their self-titled debut album, a furious set of songs that deal with lead singer Jonathan Davis' demons - a common theme in their lyrics. The album gets little attention at first but goes on to sell over 2 million copies as the band builds a fanbase.
November 9, 1993 The Dave Matthews Band release their first album, a mostly live collection called Remember Two Things that includes early versions of "Ants Marching" and "Satellite." The band is already signed to RCA Records but they release the album independently, with their major-label debut, Under The Table and Dreaming, coming a year later.
April 22, 1993 The Broadway play Tommy, based on The Who's album, opens at St. James Theater.
November 3, 1992 Rage Against The Machine release their self-titled debut album. It's filled with incendiary protest songs that take on topics like media manipulation ("Bullet In The Head"), oppression of indigenous people ("Freedom") and government warmongering ("Know Your Enemy").More
October 5, 1992 Spin Doctors release their first single, "Little Miss Can't Be Wrong."More
August 11, 1992 The Mall of America opens in Bloomington, Minnesota, with Ray Charles performing "America The Beautiful."
November 19, 1991 Paul McCartney's first classical piece, Liverpool Oratorio, is performed in America for the first time, at New York's Carnegie Hall.
October 22, 1991 Black Sheep release their debut album, A Wolf In Sheep's Clothing, with the classic "The Choice Is Yours." The hip-hop duo are part of the Native Tongues collective along with De La Soul and A Tribe Called Quest.
August 13, 1991 Cypress Hill introduce a new strain of West Coast gangsta rap with the release of their self-titled debut album. The lead single is "How I Could Just Kill A Man," a song that deals with gang life in their stomping grounds of South Gate, California.
November 4, 1990 The musical tribute Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story opens on Broadway.
March 27, 1990 Digital Underground, a rap collective that later includes Tupac Shakur, release their debut album, Sex Packets. It's a concept album about a drug that simulates the experience of having sex.More
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