When I think back on my favorite Christmas gift ever, it was when I was a kid. And it's not what you might imagine.

It was a gift from my late grandfather, who I miss very much. This gift was not something that was a family heirloom, although I have had plenty of those handed down through my family. The most memorable gift was one that jumpstarted my love for music, and made me a lifelong fan of one of my favorite groups.

One of my most memorable Christmas gifts? The cassette tape (remember those? Get a refresher from Wikipedia) of "Rock 'N Soul: Greatest Hits Part 1" from Hall & Oates. Find out more about this great album on its own Wikipedia page.

You can call me a very serious fan and not at all in an ironic sense. It was a collection of their 'Greatest Hits' up to the point of its release in 1983. It was a good "starter kit" to get me into the famous duo. It introduced me to songs like "Maneater", "Private Eyes" and "I Can't Go For That (No Can Do)", as well as some older classics from the '70s. They've put out a lot of 'Greatest Hits' collections over the years, including another one you can read about on Wikipedia, because they've had a lot of great hits.

My grandpa knew he was onto something because the next couple of years I received the Hall & Oates "Voices" tape as well as "Big Bam Boom", the first "new" H & O cassette I received when it came out, in 1984 (when I was 7). As you might have guessed, I've been a music and Hall & Oates fan from a very young age. I will never forget the first gifts that made it happen, nor the man who gave them to me.

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