In modern times, our society is partially shaped by widely praised albums, brilliantly executed works of art that reflect, or even reshape, the direction of our culture.

But the effect of music on individuals is more nuanced, and broad generalizations don't always apply.

A life-changing album could come from anywhere if the timing is right, such as the beginning or end of a relationship or maybe the last year of high school or college or after a cross-country move or the death of a loved one.

Even mediocre albums can seem life-altering if they catch us at the right time.

Also, music has a way of teaching us about ourselves in unpredictable, and improbable, ways and under circumstances you couldn't predict. A melody might hit you from another car at a red light, you could inadvertently be moved by a voice while flipping through TV, or you might even become obsessed with a snippet of a song used in the background of a video on social media.

This week on "How We Heard It," your hosts - music journalists Wayne Bledsoe and Chuck Campbell and producer/musician John T. Baker - talk about their discovery of albums that impacted them in unexpected ways, albums that opened their ears and even changed their lives ... sometimes against all odds.