Thursday, May 17, 2007

Last Night A DJ Saved My Life

As seen over at The Tomahawk Kid's site: The 100 Most Important Records of All Time

Mojo magazine recruited a panel of musicians to nominate the records that moved the earth for them and published the top 100, which I have reproduced below.

In the style of the 100 Books meme, copy the list to your own blog, bold or highlight the records you have in your collection or your iTunes library, then add a record that changed your life that didn't make the list. After you've finished come back and leave a comment, it would also be nice if you linked back to here from your post.

100 Gnarls Barkley : Crazy : single
99 The Stone Roses : The Stone Roses : album
98 Iron Maiden : Iron Maiden : album
97 Television : Marquee Moon : album
96 Donna Summer : I Feel Love : single
95 Green Day : Dookie : album
94 The Libertines : Up The Bracket : album
93 Nina Simone : To Be Young Gifted & Black : single
92 The Strokes : Is This It : album
91 Louis Armstrong & His Hot Five : West End Blues : single
90 Phuture : Acid Tracks : single
89 Oasis : Definitely Maybe : album
88 Queen : Sheer Heart Attack : album
87 Radiohead : The Bends : album
86 The Animals : The House Of The Rising Sun : single
85 Sonic Youth : EVOL : album
84 The Shadows : Apache : single
83 The Cure : Pornography : album
82 The Jesus & Mary Chain : Psychocandy : album
81 The Band : Music From The Big Pink : album
80 The Smiths : This Charming Man : single
79 Pixies : Surfer Rosa : album
78 Nick Drake : Five Leaves Left : album
77 Gang Of Four : Entertainment! : album
76 Big Youth : Screaming Target : album
75 R.E.M. : Murmur : album
74 Carole King : Tapestry : album
73 T. Rex : Get It On (Bang A Gong) : single
72 Bruce Springsteen : Born To Run : album
71 Public Image Ltd : Public Image : album
70 The Kingsmen : Louie Louie : single
69 MC5 : Kick Out The Jams : album
68 Brian Eno : Discreet Music : album
67 Billie Holiday : Strange Fruit : single
66 Love : Love : album
65 Joni Mitchell : Blue : album
64 David Bowie : Low : album
63 Marvin Gaye : What's Going On : album
62 Can : Tago Mago : album
61 N.W.A. : Straight Outta Compton : album
60 John Coltrane : My Favourite Things : album
59 The Upsetters : Blackboard Jungle Dub : album
58 Fairport Convention : Liege & Leif : album
57 The Byrds : Sweetheart Of The Rodeo : album
56 Pink Floyd : Arnold Layne : single
55 John Lennon : John Lennon : Plastic Ono Band : album
54 Chic : Good Times : single
53 Neil Young : Everyone Knows This Is Nowhere : album
52 Buddy Holly : That'll Be The Day : single
51 Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band : Trout Mask Replica : album
50 Stevie Wonder : Innervisions : album
49 The Doors : The Doors : album
48 The Rolling Stones : Sympathy For The Devil : album track
47 Sam Cooke : You Send Me : single
46 Joy Division : Unknown Pleasures : album
45 The Ronettes : Be My Baby : single
44 The Who : My Generation : single
43 Miles Davis : Kind Of Blue : album
42 Various : Nuggets : album
41 Link Wray : Rumble : single
40 The Beatles : Revolver : album
39 New York Dolls : New York Dolls : album
38 Lonnie Donegan : Rock Island Line : single
37 Jeff Buckley : Grace : album
36 The Stooges : Fun House : album
35 Davy Graham With Alexis Korner : 3/4AD : EP
34 Bob Marley & The Wailers : Exodus : album
33 Michael Jackson : Thriller : album
32 Jimmie Rodgers : Blue Yodel #1 (T For Texas) : single
31 David Bowie : The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars : album
30 Hank Williams : Move It On Over : single
29 Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five : The Message : single
28 Patti Smith : Horses : album
27 Nirvana : Smells Like Teen Spirit : single
26 Charlie Parker : Koko : single
25 Black Sabbath : Black Sabbath : album
24 The Clash : London Calling : album
23 Howlin' Wolf : The Rocking Chair Album : album
22 Ramones : Ramones : album
21 The Beach Boys : Pet Sounds : album
20 Led Zeppelin : IV : album
19 The Rolling Stones : (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction : single
18 Aretha Franklin : I Never Loved A Man The Way I Love You : album
17 Bob Dylan : Like A Rolling Stone : single
16 The Beatles : Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band : album
15 James Brown : Papa's Got A Brand New Bag : single
14 The Jimi Hendrix Experience : Purple Haze : single
13 Woody Guthrie : Dust Bowl Ballads : album
12 Chuck Berry : Johnny B. Goode : single
11 Frank Sinatra : In The Wee Small Hours : album
10 Sex Pistols : God Save The Queen : single
9 Ray Charles : What'd I Say : single
8 Various : Anthology Of American Folk Music : album
7 The Velvet Underground And Nico : The Velvet Underground : album
6 Robert Johnson : King Of The Delta Blues Singers : album
5 Kraftwerk : Autobahn : album
4 Bob Dylan : The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan : album
3 Elvis Presley : Heartbreak Hotel : single
2 The Beatles : I Want To Hold Your Hand : single
1 Little Richard : Tutti Frutti : single

There are a few records that have changed my life that don't appear in this list, including the Super Furry Animals' second album Radiator and The Beatles' White Album. But I think I'd have to choose I Am The Walrus by The Beatles.

I first became aware of the track by means of Oasis' cover when I was around 16, and asked a friend to put the original on a cassette for me.

I would listen to it over and over again, rewinding and replaying the tape so much that it eventually wore out. Even now, there's no other track that sounds like it - the unusual arrangement, the swooping strings, John Lennon's gibberish lyrics, the incorporation of cut up pieces of radio dialogue and the way it practically stops before starting afresh. It showed me that, 30 years before I started listening to music, The Beatles were already light years ahead of the cream of Britpop.

1 comment:

the tomahawk kid said...

Nice choice of track Jock!