All The Records I've Ever Owned

                                                                                     Year Released: 1972 Label: RCA Year Bought: 2005 (although listened to mum's vinyl a lot before this) I got into Bowie when I was in my mid-teens, loving Hunky Dory in particular.  I remember being reluctant to listen to Ziggy Stardust in case it wasn't as good. Of course I was wrong. It's probably better. From the opening drums of Five Years to the closing cacophony of Rock 'n' Roll Suicide, Bowie takes us on a journey through his fantastical imagination, smeared with glitter and garish eyeshadow. Mick Ronson is an absolute starman on this album. That solo at the end of Moonage Daydream is one for the ages. There's not a bad song on it. There's no...

                                                                             Year Released: 2003 Label: Hand Me Down Year Bought: 2005 This is when Kings of Leon were great. Could you tell what Caleb was saying? No, but who cared. It all added to the mystery. The group looked like they'd stepped out of a Louisiana swamp (yes I know they're from Tennessee) and were doing it all purely for their own enjoyment. Red Morning Light is a great opener and then Happy Alone just ups the pace and incomprehensibility. The whole album bounces along with such a tightness and simplicity. All the guitar lines are straight to the point. There's nothing particularly inventive about the production and recording. The record wears its influences on its plaid shirt sleeves - you can...

  Year Released: 1997 Label: Hut Records / Virgin Records Year Bought: Can't remember It's hard to critique this album as it's just one of those albums that everyone universally considers to be great. I'll be honest, I've never really listened to it properly. The singles are ace, and I'm sure I gave it a spin way back when, but when it came out I was still on my Oasis trip, and then shifted to Radiohead and Jeff Buckley, so Urban Hymns just sort of lived in my peripheral vision. I knew the singles, that was enough for me. As album openers go, Bittersweet Symphony is up there with Smells Like Teen Spirit on Nevermind and Rock n Roll Star on Definitely Maybe as the perfect encapsulation of a band's ethos. It's the perfect headline. You can read on, but it tells you everything you need to know. When I saw Richard Ashcroft playing this at Wembley last year supporting Oasis, the whole stadium got to their feet like it's the national anthem. Let's be h...