 | The Velvet Underground by The Velvet Underground
Buy new: £2.98 / Used from: £2.97 'What goes on' is often my favourite song. And this is full of gentle gems. Very atmospheric
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 | Street Legal by Bob Dylan
Buy new: £4.24 / Used from: £5.38 After a while of being underwhelmed by Dylan albums, I heard this. Very grudgeful in mood. Look beyond the obvious 'changing of the guards' & 'senor', which I think are two of the poorer tracks.
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 | Sleeps With His Guitar by Pat MacDonald
Buy new: £6.72 / Used from: £2.98 I thank amazon for introducing this to me thorugh some rave reviews. Very driven, great tone and cohesion and full of clever poetry.
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 | Police And Thieves by Junior Murvin
Buy new: £3.97 / Used from: £6.68 These songs get stuck in my head all day! Unique voice. Again, look beyond the hit (the title track). 'Solomon' is just gorgeous
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 | Mock Tudor by Richard Thompson
Buy new: £4.98 / Used from: £2.89 My favourite artist, whom I was reared on. This is a good place for the uninitiated to start, strong and rocky. And try n' hear 'Hard on me' live!
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 | The Black Swan by The Triffids
Buy used from: £51.10 Just excellent music, eclectic and broad-ranging.
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 | Tago Mago by Can
Buy used from: £20.99 Halleluhwah. Simple as that. Have a quote: "Every member of Can is a hero, a wizard and a truestar"
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 | First album (feat.Alex Chilton) by Big Star
Buy new: £7.49 Get it paired with 'Radio City' cuz then you get 'September Gurls' too. But this is their best I think. Jangly, powerful pop, running between excitement, frustration, delicacy and dolour
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 | Mezzanine: Limited Edition by Massive Attack
Buy new: £4.98 / Used from: £1.98 I like it largely for the first four tracks, which are a bit peerless. 'Toy-like people make me boy-like' indeed
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 | You Me Us by Richard Thompson
Buy new: £9.98 / Used from: £1.67 More from the world's best singer-songwriter and best guitarist. I could do without 'razor dance' but there are some excellent tracks here. 'She cut off her long silken hair' etc
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 | Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness by Smashing Pumpkins
Buy new: £8.86 / Used from: £4.98 I debated whether I could put this so high up based on the strength of disc 2 (1 is a bit too trash-rocky for my taste, and I also don't think 1979 is great). I decided I could.
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 | Pink Moon by Nick Drake
Buy used from: £5.44 His best album, very spare and stark. I'd love to hear Thom Yorke cover 'Road'
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 | MTV Unplugged In New York by Nirvana
Buy new: £4.98 / Used from: £2.09 Nirvana were my first great musical discovery. I've grown out of them a bit (or just played them to death), but there's no growing out of this.
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 | Kick Out the Jams by MC5
Buy new: £4.72 / Used from: £4.57 Very raw and I like the interaction with the audience. 'I want you right now' and 'Starship' close it off brilliantly
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 | Reveal by REM
Buy new: £6.19 / Used from: £0.98 Yes I have listened to the IRS years, but this is my favourite R.E.M. album. Grand and comforting
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 | Kid A by Radiohead
Buy new: £4.98 / Used from: £2.59 A huge step forwards, but let it grow into you. I got rid of this once before buying it again. These tracks sound great live, too.
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 | Emperor Tomato Ketchup by Stereolab
Buy new: £6.19 / Used from: £4.49 'Cybele's Reverie' is sublime. Great, catchy electronica throughout. Don't be like my mum and say it's "too European for my taste"...! Ah well, she likes the Velvet Undergound.
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 | After the Gold Rush by Neil Young
Buy new: £4.49 / Used from: £2.29 This has some good ones, to be sure. My favourite tracks are actually the two shortest (sub two-minute) ones
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 | Live in Zagreb by Fall
Buy new: £18.47 / Used from: £9.89 The Fall are probably my favourite rock band, and this is great, a very strong set.
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 | Bone Machine by Tom Waits
Buy new: £4.98 / Used from: £4.50 I listen to this more than 'Rain Dogs' and 'Swordfishstrombones'. Gothic, rusted, disturbed...(just stealing words form another review there)
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 | Pour Down Like Silver by Richard Thompson
Buy new: £41.44 / Used from: £14.31 And some earlier Thompson. Listen to 'Beat the Retreat' live and acoustic. I dream about him recording that while someone smashes glass bottles in the background...
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 | Trailer Park by Beth Orton
Buy new: £4.56 / Used from: £1.00 Very nice, my favourite female singer-songwriter. Tender and bouncy...like a kangaroo, almost
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 | Astral Weeks by Van Morrison
Buy new: £4.49 / Used from: £2.44 This is one that's slipped out of my top 10, but it's still his masterpiece. Got a great mood to it, bright and dark at once
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 | Compact Disc by Public Image Limited
Buy new: £34.99 / Used from: £95.93 I like post-punk too! An album of short song titles and swirling guitar, with Lydon's trynottobenice voice. 'Round' and 'Ease' are my favourites
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 | Only Life by Feelies
Buy used from: £16.01 Making up the numbers on this list, and expensive at the moment, but a very nice album. And they cover 'What goes on', which brings me round in a neat circle.
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