Led Zeppelin - Stairway To Heaven, It was like being drawn from my conscious being into an oblivious or even an unconscious state. The solo to this song made me decide to devote my life to music. To this day, I still feel that twitch up my chest.
Yngwie Malmsteen - Never Die, Seventh Sign - I was petrified, no other way to describe how I felt. That encounter for me was the realization of speed and the neo-classical style of playing which has influenced me a lot.
Joe Satriani - Down down down, The aching bends were nearly unbearable.
Al Di Meola - Song To The Pharoah Kings (Manhattan Sessions), The first time I heard this song I thought the song sounded so strange (I still do), the timing, various directions taken, I guess that was my first encounter with fusion, its like seeing things from a higher place, enlightenment as it were. I've already heard about his speed (and I thought I was prepared for it until Race with devil on spanish highway), but the intensity and the angularity of the playing and the way the theme was worked on was the thing that got me. Phrasing more than technique.
Danny Gatton - Funhouse, The first time I heard this song, I couldn't get off the chair. The ripping double-stops and chicken picking was just crazy, it made me realize what else could be achieved.
Hmmm what else...
