4 influential albums

As a guitar player, I began playing along with Hendrix, Van Halen, and all the usual guitar heros. But when it came time to forming a band and writing my own songs, these 4 albums really shaped the kind of music that I created over the last decade. They might not be my favorite albums, but I can't deny the mark they've left on me:

• Dance Hall Crashers - "Lockjaw": When I first heard the song "Enough" on the radio when I was in high school, my first reaction was "Oh my gosh. Someone has made what I want to create." The super simplistic guitar solos and the dual vocals would forever change my songwriting style.
  
• NOFX - "Punk In Drublic": This isn't even my favorite NOFX album, but it is the one that really hooked me. I can't count how many times I've played "Linoleum" on my guitar. This album taught me how to play pop-punk.
  
• Sublime - "40 oz. To Freedom": The funny thing about this album was that the first time I listened to it in the store I didn't like it. It wasn't until several years later that I picked it up, learned every song by heart, and even ended up covering several of the songs in one of the bands I played in.
  
• Skankin' Pickle - "Skankin' Pickle Fever": Skankin' Pickle was an independent band, but in my own 16-year-old-world, they were the ultimate rockstars. They introduced me to a world of music that I couldn't hear on mainstream radio. And, if nothing else, the fact that I often write silly/simple lyrics is a tribute to them.