Best Albums.

[Herlock Sholmes]

Bowie - Low
Bowie - Young Americans
Bowie - The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars
St Vincent - Masseduction
The Smiths - The Queen Is Dead
The Cure - Disintegration
Kate Bush - The Kick Inside
Kate Bush - Hounds of Love
Kendrick Lamar - Good Kid, Maad City
Guns n Roses - Appetite for Destruction
Beck - Odelay
Pavlov's Dog - Pampered Menial
NWA - Straight Outta Compton
Velvet Underground and Nico
The Cramps - Off The Bone
Nick Cave - No More Shall We Part
Bauhaus - The Sky's Gone Out
Led Zeppelin - IV
PJ Harvey - Let England Shake
Phoenix - United

Of course, I will now think of more and kick myself!!

Well, well. I wouldn’t have expected Pavlov’s Dog to have made any list. David Surkamp’s has a bit of a Marmite voice but as a heavy metal fan I’m used to helium powered vocals. Bauhaus too. I remember hearing Bella Lugosi Is Dead years ago and loving it. My brother was a big fan (he might even have seen them) Good to see Led Zep making the cut. Some great stuff there Ms D. I’ll have to check out St. Vincent and Phoenix as I’ve never heard them.

[Herlock Sholmes]

I am not familiar with this work, but wow! that's a great title!

It’s jazz but very modern and atmospheric.

[Ms Diddles]

Well, well. I wouldn’t have expected Pavlov’s Dog to have made any list. David Surkamp’s has a bit of a Marmite voice but as a heavy metal fan I’m used to helium powered vocals. Bauhaus too. I remember hearing Bella Lugosi Is Dead years ago and loving it. My brother was a big fan (he might even have seen them) Good to see Led Zep making the cut. Some great stuff there Ms D. I’ll have to check out St. Vincent and Phoenix as I’ve never heard them.

Yes, the Pavlov's Dog thing is a bit left-field, but I discovered them via a pal's way cooler older brother when I was a teenager in Germany.

I think they had a bit of a following there at the time.

Some of their other albums aren't of the same standard (although The Sound of the Bell is pretty good).

Yes, I was a big Zep fan growing up. When I was a child I thought Stairway to Heaven was the most profound thing EVER written and I have fond memories of driving round immediately after passing my driving test at 17 with Zep 3 (Whole Lotta Love etc) blaring out!!

Bauhaus re-form and tour every so often.

I saw the full line up around 20 years ago.

Now it's often just Peter Murphy on his own, which isn't quite the same but still pretty good.

St Vincent is kind of art school pop with a bit of electro. She's extremely cool and very talented.

Phoenix are v poppy and funky (pretty French boys. Say no more!!)

[Herlock Sholmes]

This is a dangerous topic to subject me to (this, Brexit, Apple and convicted felon Donald Trump) .


I don't think I can give a list of "top 10, 20 Top X" records without thinking about WHY I like them and if I actually listen to them often or not. The list below will contain records that I hardly listen to these days and this is probably due changes in HOW I listen to and WHERE I listen to music these days.

For example, one of my favourite records from my formative years (early nineties) would be Ministry, Mind... However I think I haven't listened to it sober until 2003 or 4 . These days, most of my music listening is in my loft with my work laptop and on the sofa. so I still listen to it, occasionally. But not turned up to 11.

There are many records that I can listen from beginning to end and carry on with my work. Then there are records that make me stop and listen to SOME of the songs and then I move on becasue although great, they are too distracting to listen to them for extended periods. The list below contains examples of both as well as records from my formative years in the early nineties.


A. Listen to all of it:
Feetwood Mac - Rumours
ZZ Top - Tres Hombres
Marilyn Manson - Pale Emperor
Yello - Touch Yello
Soundgarden - Superunknown
Audioslave - Audioslave
Pearl Tam - Ten
Billie Eilish - Happier Than Ever
The Levellers - Levelling The Land
Alice In Chains - Black Gives Way To Blue
Chicane - Far From The Maddening Crowd (Evolution Mixes)

B. Listen to some of it:
Killing Joke - [2003]
Ministry - The Mind Is A Terrible Thing To Taste
Nine Inch Nails - The Fragile
Tool - Fear Inoculum
Peter Gabriel - So

C. Definitely top 20 but rarely listen to it these days:
Skinny Puppy - Too Dark Park
Frontline Assembly - Tactical Neural Implant
Senser - Stacked up
Front 242 - Tyranny For You

There are many other records that I listen to more regularly than the category C or even B above (David Grey, Delerium, Seal, etc) but they are not the kind of records that demand your attention like a "Top 20" record does. The list above exclusively contains records that you put on the platter (or CD player) and you need to deal with what's coming out of the speakers. Few records can do this and not every listener wants this. It just depends on WHY you listen to music in the first place and this will probably greatly influence your musical choices.

So I'll have a look at all the other lists to see what I forgot (existed) or what is worth looking into.

Cheers.

Some great choices there too Svensson. In your first group there are 4 bands that I’ve seen live - Soundgarden, Audioslave, Pearl Jam and The Levellers. I live the Ministry album too. I haven’t heard Fear Inoculum by Tool but I’ll check it out. When Tool are mentioned it’s usually Laterelus.

[Herlock Sholmes]

I guess I'll be outing my nerd/geek status when I say.....anything by Mozart or Puccini?

If I really try to drag myself into a more recent time I'd nominate albums by The Beegees, Paul Simon, Don Mclean and James Taylor.

When I look at your lists I wonder.....what language are these guys speaking. My wife often asks me where I have been for the last 50 years.

Cheers, George

Nothing wrong with classical music George. I love it, especially baroque. It maybe a bit strange as I’m not a religious person but I love religious music. It’s why I included the Thomas Tallis boxed set. I love Palestrina and Hildegard Von Bingen too. And Bach.

Nothing wrong with your choices at all. But come on George where are the Aussie bands?

[Herlock Sholmes]

Two more bands that I wish I’d have fitted into my list are Steely Dan and Supertramp.

[Al Bundy's Eyes]

Nothing wrong with classical music George. I love it, especially baroque. It maybe a bit strange as I’m not a religious person but I love religious music. It’s why I included the Thomas Tallis boxed set. I love Palestrina and Hildegard Von Bingen too. And Bach.

Nothing wrong with your choices at all. But come on George where are the Aussie bands?

They wouldn't make anyone's list I reckon but I love a bit of Cosmic Psychos, Aussie punk pub rock at it's best. Rumour has it that our own Dave Adams wrote their lyrics. He's neither confirmed nor denied this to date.

[Christian]

My selection in no particular order
Happy Monday’s-Pills thrills & bellyaches
Rolling Stones-Now
Manfred man-Five faces of manfred man
Stone Roses-stone roses
Happy Monday’s-Bummed
Yardbirds-five live yardbirds
Artwoods-art gallery
Small faces-small faces
Oasis-definitely maybe
Rolling Stones-aftermath
Krs1- return of the boom bap
Boogie Down Productions- criminal minded
Oasis-dig out your soul
Imagination-in the heat of the night
Smiths-the smiths
Charlatons-then
Primal Scream-screamadelica
Otis Redding-pain in my heart
Beatles-abbey Road
Kinks-kinks
That’s all folks!!!

[Geddy2112]

I'm just pleased no one has mentioned any Queen stuff, got to be one of the most over rated groups ever... terrible camp rock.

[barnflatwyngarde]

I'm just pleased no one has mentioned any Queen stuff, got to be one of the most over rated groups ever... terrible camp rock.

The thing that has always struck me about Queen, is how very dated their music sounds now.

[Herlock Sholmes]

My selection in no particular order
Happy Monday’s-Pills thrills & bellyaches
Rolling Stones-Now
Manfred man-Five faces of manfred man
Stone Roses-stone roses
Happy Monday’s-Bummed
Yardbirds-five live yardbirds
Artwoods-art gallery
Small faces-small faces
Oasis-definitely maybe
Rolling Stones-aftermath
Krs1- return of the boom bap
Boogie Down Productions- criminal minded
Oasis-dig out your soul
Imagination-in the heat of the night
Smiths-the smiths
Charlatons-then
Primal Scream-screamadelica
Otis Redding-pain in my heart
Beatles-abbey Road
Kinks-kinks
That’s all folks!!!

Good selection Christian. Looks like the 60’s and the 80’s/90’s are your eras. Good to see the Yardbirds, the Small Faces and Manfred Mann getting a mention.

[Herlock Sholmes]

The thing that has always struck me about Queen, is how very dated their music sounds now.

I was never a massive Queen fan but I like some of their stuff. What used to annoy me, being a rock fan, was how many people would rave about Freddy’s voice as it was extraordinary in some way. He had a great voice but I can name so many rock singers who most haven’t heard of with far better voices.

Have these people never heard Messiah Marcolin?

[Ms Diddles]

I'm just pleased no one has mentioned any Queen stuff, got to be one of the most over rated groups ever... terrible camp rock.

You see Geddy!

I love Queen precisely because they are rock and they are camp!
They didn't make my final cut, but I totally rate them.

I have that kind of ambivalence to U2 and The Police.

People love them.

I just don't get it.

I think I just can't separate the music from the knobbery of their lead singers!

[Lewis C]

Some great choices there Lewis. A few more albums to add to my ‘check it out’ list.

The Band were definitely on my radar for my own list and the two Dylan albums are great with Blonde On Blonde narrowly missing out to Blood On The Tracks (Visions Of Johanna is one of my favourite Dylan songs) The Who could easily have made my list along with London Calling.

Thanks, Herlock. "Visions of Johanna" is my favorite song from Blonde on Blonde, and probably my favorite song from 1966.

If you or anyone should check out Graham Parker's Howlin' Wind and find that you really like it, then check out his Heat Treatment album too. It's stylistically similar to Howlin' Wind, and almost as good. I'm sure some would say even better. Squeezing Out Sparks, on the other hand, is a rather different album.

[Svensson]

I have and like Queen's Greatest Hits (1&2). I like Police's Greatest Hits (no "2" needed here ).

You won't find me dead with a U2 record

@ Herlock, around 20 years ago, I was surrounded by Tool fanatics but I never took a liking to it. Too disorganised/hectic for my taste. This is where Fear Inoculum is different. It's a relatively calm record (by Tool standards) which gives some of thier other qualities some more space to breathe.

If you liked Sundgarden/Pearl Jam in the day, you should really check out the Alice in Chains. I think it's their best work to date despite having to re-jig the vocalists and the recording itself sounds like a million bucks. It's probably the best sounding record I have.