Montrose - Montrose (1973)

Way before Van Halen, around the time Led Zeppelin were starting to hit the big time, there was Montrose.

Led by guitarist Ronnie Montrose, a showman in the tradition of Jimmy Page and Ted Nugent who honed his skills playing with Van Morrison and Edgar Winter, the group (Bill Church on bass, Denny Carmassi on drums and a young Californian singer named Sammy Hagar) came charging out of nowhere with this ballsy hard-rock showcase that many regard as the first true heavy metal album by an American band. It's "chicks, cars and caviar" rock 'n roll! Brazen and brutish as hell... a rip-roaring blast from the past!