What album/song makes you want to grab your guitar/keyboard/drums and play along

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I know that occasionally when I'm listening to an album a song will come on that will make me holler "WHOA" and send me running for my guitar so I can play along. This happened to me when I was in a record store today and the guy behind the counter threw on the new remastered version of Uncle Tupelo's Anodyne. I was enjoying it until "Long Cut" came on, and then I wished I had a guitar handy.

What songs or albums give you the itch to pick up your musical instrument and play along, whether you're good at playing along with it or not? And what do you do if you hear that song and your instrument isn't around?

― Sean Carruthers (SeanC), Sunday, 13 April 2003 01:44 (twenty-two years ago)

I found myself fingering chords with my left hand and strumming my hip with my right hand, by the way; I was trying to be as discrete as I could but I'm sure I looked like a dink anyhow.

― Sean Carruthers (SeanC), Sunday, 13 April 2003 01:46 (twenty-two years ago)

I'm originally a guitar player but I usually end up doing hip drums.

― Jon Williams (ex machina), Sunday, 13 April 2003 01:48 (twenty-two years ago)

I used to be a drummer (albeit, not a good one) and a hard rock fan.

The cheesy thing I would do back in those teenaged "halcyon" days was try and play drums like Lars Ulrich, even going so far as to try and bang on the drums as close as possible an approximation to the sound as I could get it to the Metallica songs I would be listening to at the time. If I couldn't get to a drum kit, I would bang on a poor defenseless writing tablet with two pencils (brand-new unsharpened ones -- that was the trick).

Geez, that was so long ago. I've already forgotten what you call those doodads, save for the cymbals and the snare drum. And the bass drum. Ok, so maybe I haven't forgotten as much as I thought I did. Just don't call on me to be an expert or anything. ;) As for playing hard rock -- no, not me. Not anymore. I couldn't headbang anymore if my life depended on it. 'Tis the life of an aging 23-year-old.

― Dee the Lurker (Dee the Lurker), Sunday, 13 April 2003 02:02 (twenty-two years ago)

The Clean "Tally Ho!"
Dead Kennedies "Holiday in Cambodia"
Jesus Lizard "Boilermaker"
Trans Am "Shady Groove"
Hot Snakes "Our Work Fills the Pews"
Lightning Bolt "Dracula Mountain"
Pavement "Two States"
The Fall "Gut of the Quantifier"
Oneida "Each One Teach One"
Silver Jews "Let's Not and Say We Did"

― Famous Athlete, Sunday, 13 April 2003 02:26 (twenty-two years ago)

About the only songs I can play along with are early punk songs; Ramones, Black Flag, Descendents. That's bass.

I can drum along to most basic stuff, and do so constantly--probably to the irritation of my friends.

― Ian Johnson (orion), Sunday, 13 April 2003 02:36 (twenty-two years ago)

Ian: let's start a percussion based band!

― Jon Williams (ex machina), Sunday, 13 April 2003 02:39 (twenty-two years ago)

For most people, when they pick up a bass, it doesn't take long for them to think, "Hey, I bet I could play My Sharona!"

― David Allen, Sunday, 13 April 2003 04:55 (twenty-two years ago)

Roadrunner!

― SplendidMullet (iamamonkey), Sunday, 13 April 2003 11:28 (twenty-two years ago)

Ben Folds Five - Jackson Cannery
Jackson Browne - Somebody's Baby
Prince - I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man
Elton John - Tiny Dancer
Goo Goo Dolls - Name
New York Dolls - Personality Crisis
The Alarm - Sold Me Down the River
Rocky Horror Picture Show - Time Warp
Squeeze - Tempted

That's all I can think of.

― My name is Kenny (My name is Kenny), Sunday, 13 April 2003 15:27 (twenty-two years ago)

i was jamming along on the synth to Goldfrapp's 'Tiptoe' just last week, just adding bloops and glissandos (i think thats what its called)

― stevem (blueski), Sunday, 13 April 2003 15:30 (twenty-two years ago)

"Tommy Gun" by the Clash makes air-drum furiously and "Kennedy" by the Wedding Present" makes me wear a big hole on the pocket of my jeans from frantic air-strumming (ooh err).

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Sunday, 13 April 2003 16:44 (twenty-two years ago)

either Marquee Moon or the first two Big Star records. Whenever I play them, I end up turning on my amp and playing along (poorly).

― hstencil, Sunday, 13 April 2003 16:56 (twenty-two years ago)

the Pretenders - The Wait
Springsteen - Badlands, Born To Run
Ramones - everything on the 1st 5 records
the Who - Baba O'Riley, Won't Get Fooled Again, I Can See For Miles
Rolling Stones - Street Fighting Man, Satisfaction, Start Me Up, Midnight Rambler
Acid Mothers Temple - Speed Guru
Uncle Tupelo - Whiskey Bottle, d. Boon
Flaming Lips - Drug Machine In Heaven, God Walks Among Us Now
Count 5 - Psychotic Reaction
Green Fuz - Green Fuz (also Cramps)

― John Bullabaugh (John Bullabaugh), Sunday, 13 April 2003 20:26 (twenty-two years ago)

harry pussy and dead C made me pick up my imaginary guitar today!

― Julio Desouza (jdesouza), Sunday, 13 April 2003 20:36 (twenty-two years ago)

Basically, every song I like and many songs I dislike/tolerate make me want to sing along with them (including instrumentals).

― Dan Perry (Dan Perry), Sunday, 13 April 2003 20:38 (twenty-two years ago)

White Stripes - It's getting harder to be a gentleman
Rolling Stones - Brown Sugar
Dandy Warhols - Bohemian like you
Smashing Pumpkins - Jellybelly / Where boys fear to tread / almost everything else as well

― JP Almeida (JP Almeida), Sunday, 13 April 2003 21:35 (twenty-two years ago)

the Pretenders - The Wait

Excellent choice. Might I add "She Sells Sanctuary" by the Cult, mostly for the righteous twelve-string "ka-chung-chung" in the middle of the chorus.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Sunday, 13 April 2003 21:42 (twenty-two years ago)

Oh my god, every song ever does this to me. It's an actual fact. You can put on like "9 to 5" and I have a routine for it. The worst is that I tried to learn the drums once, so I think that I'm like Keith Moon on the air drums, when obviously I've got no clue what I'm doing with the, you know, pencils and, um, table.

I've even air-DJed once. Working the invisible turn table, oh yeah.

― Ally (mlescaut), Sunday, 13 April 2003 23:05 (twenty-two years ago)

"Won't Get Fooled Again," "Loaded," and "Fools Gold" on the drums, "Last Night" and "Hard to Explain" on the guitar.

― Evan (Evan), Sunday, 13 April 2003 23:36 (twenty-two years ago)

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