John 5 Names His 5 Favorite Records of All Time

During a new episode of AXS TV’s Vinyl Obsession podcast, John 5 named his five favorite records of all time.

The podcast creators challenged John 5 to choose his five favorite vinyl records at The Record Parlour in Los Angeles for the special. Most of the records the guitarist chose were ones he heard when he was very young, thus they had a long-lasting impact on his life and career.

Based on his picks, John 5’s tastes range from hard rock to progressive rock, with some folk sprinkled in between. He thoroughly explained why each of his picks mean so much to him, so keep scrolling to see what he chose. We provided some quotes from him underneath each album cover.

The Monkees, The Monkees (1966)

One of the first albums John 5 recalls being a fan of was the debut eponymous release by The Monkees because he loved the television show as a kid. His version of the record was a mail-away.

“Just seeing these guys — they were my heroes,” the rocker said smiling, adding that he got to see Peter Tork and Micky Dolenz in person many years later.

Pink Floyd, The Wall (1979)

Pink Floyd’s rock opera The Wall, which was their eleventh studio album, was John 5’s second pick.

“This gives you a different sense, a different feeling. The production, the writing — everything is very visual with me because I loved TV,” he explained.

His experience seeing the film adaptation of The Wall (1982) was quite a memorable one, however. The rocker recalled being “freaked out” by the movie and also not feeling well at the same time, ultimately throwing up when he returned home from the theater.

John 5 also noted the simplicity of the album’s cover, but suggested that the album itself is so meaningful that it doesn’t need extravagant artwork.

Joni Mitchell, Blue (1971)

John 5 recalled hearing Joni Mitchell’s Blue when he was a kid because his sisters listened to it, and he was drawn in by the melodies and the lyrics in the songs. He particularly loved the songs “California” and “My Old Man.”

READ MORE: Sebastian Bach Names Some of His Favorite Rock Albums (And Why)

“All these songs were things that happened in her life… It’s unbelievable,” he praised.

KISS, Love Gun (1977)

John 5 was only seven years old when KISS released their sixth album Love Gun in June of 1977, and he explicitly remembered seeing a promotional display for it inside a Sears store. He didn’t know who KISS even were at the time, but the record display was so mesmerizing that he wanted the record.

“A lot of musicians I know did the same thing, it was Destroyer though for them,” the rocker said.

The guitarist also shared an adorable thought that he had as a kid, which was that anytime he heard KISS on the radio, that the band was actually performing the song live from the radio station.

Van Halen, Van Halen (1978)

Van Halen’s self-titled debut album was another record that John 5 purchased solely because the cover mentioned that Gene Simmons had worked on it.

“I think maybe this record was the one that gave me the biggest shock because of the sound,” he admitted.

John 5 had already picked up the guitar himself by the time he listened to Van Halen, but Eddie Van Halen’s guitar playing really made a mark on him.

“Without these four guys, it wouldn’t be the same.”

To hear what else John 5 had to say about these five particular artists, check out the video version of the podcast episode below.

John 5 Names His 5 Favorite Records of All Time