The first album I ever bought

1
Beth Ditto – ‘Greatest Hits’, The Mamas & The Papas

Beth Ditto – ‘Greatest Hits’, The Mamas & The Papas. “I was probably about 10 and I listened to it daily, over and over and over again. I was really obsessed with Mama Cass for obvious reasons, but my mom was really into the harmonies and once she realised I could sing, she used it to teach me how to sing the right way.”

2
Freddie Cowan (The Vaccines) – ‘Surfer Rosa’, The Pixies

Freddie Cowan (The Vaccines) – ‘Surfer Rosa’, The Pixies. “When I was growing up I used to like skate videos because all the older kids I knew were skaters, and there was this one where they used ‘Where Is My Mind?’ and it just got me. I never realised it was a seminal record or anything. But I remember thinking it was great.”

3
Chino Moreno (Deftones) – ‘Songs From The Big Chair’, Tears For Fears

Chino Moreno (Deftones) – ‘Songs From The Big Chair’, Tears For Fears. “I heard a couple of songs on the radio and bought it, and was surprised at how many good songs it had on it.”

Advertisement

4
Jamie Smith (The xx) – ‘Dummy’, Portishead

Jamie Smith (The xx) - <a href='Dummy', Portishead"/>

Jamie Smith (The xx) – ‘Dummy’, Portishead. “Well, I can’t say if it’s my definitively favourite album, but I guess it influenced a lot of the stuff that I’ve done to date, and it was one of the first electronic albums that inspired me. I must have been about 10 when I got it.”

5
Miles Kane – ‘(What’s The Story) Morning Glory?’, Oasis

Miles Kane – ‘(What’s The Story) Morning Glory?’, Oasis. “I bought it in Woolworths when I was a wee boy. They were at their peak and they were everywhere. I can’t remember how old I was, but that was the first Oasis record I bought and the first record I went out to buy, and it blew me away.”

6
Jenny Lee Lindberg (Warpaint) – ‘Disintegration’, The Cure

Jenny Lee Lindberg (Warpaint) - <a href='Disintegration', The Cure"/>

Jenny Lee Lindberg (Warpaint) – ‘Disintegration’, The Cure. “I was in eighth grade. Me and my friend danced to the singles collection ‘Staring At The Sea’ for four hours one afternoon, and I got obsessed with them. I couldn’t believe a band like this existed. I actually lost my virginity to ‘Pictures Of You’.”

7
Blaine Harrison (Mystery Jets) – ‘Pure Moods’, Various Artists

Blaine Harrison (Mystery Jets) – ‘Pure Moods’, Various Artists. “It was like a prototype chill-out record, sort of new age, that came out on Virgin in 1997. At the time I lived in France, and the tape got stuck in my mum’s car, so it was all we listened to for about a year ’til my mum sold the car. It had Enya, David Byrne, Morricone… so it was a pretty weird mix.”

Advertisement

8
John Lydon – Ken Dodd And The Diddymen

John Lydon – Ken Dodd And The Diddymen. “I can’t remember the name but it was great fun. The tunes were kind of perverse. The whole thing with that goofy comedian was that he was a little on the dark side. But all done quite innocently, though.”

9
Alisa Xayalith (The Naked And Famous) – ‘Tragic Kingdom’, No Doubt’

Alisa Xayalith (The Naked And Famous) – ‘Tragic Kingdom’, No Doubt’. “I was in primary school when it was released. It was 1995: I purchased it on tape and used to play ‘Just A Girl’ over and over. I was part of a group that thought Gwen Stefani’s bindis were mega cool. We used to take little stickers and put them on our foreheads and dance around.”

10
Anand Wilder (Yeasayer) – ‘Please Please Me’, The Beatles

Anand Wilder (Yeasayer) – ‘Please Please Me’, The Beatles. “My mom and I bought all The Beatles’ albums in chronological order in the ’80s. I have distinct memories of using cutlery to drum along on my high-chair at dinner.”

11
Joe Mount (Metronomy) – ‘The California Raisins Sing The Hit Songs’, The California Raisins

Joe Mount (Metronomy) – ‘The California Raisins Sing The Hit Songs’, The California Raisins. “It was the cover with the raisins singing that got me. To an eight-year-old it was probably the best album in the world.”

Advertisement

12
Victoria LeGrand (Beach House) – ‘In Utero’, Nirvana

Victoria LeGrand (Beach House) – ‘In Utero’, Nirvana. “Kurt Cobain died right around the time I was going into high school. It was that whole era of chain-wallets and being mad at your dad, and I was totally into all of that.”

13
Jack Barnett – Queen, ‘Greatest Hits’

Jack Barnett – Queen, ‘Greatest Hits’. “I think it’s the only bad album I’ve ever bought in my life. I remember singing songs like ‘Fat Bottomed Girls’, which is obviously a nuanced and emotionally charged piece of music. I think it’s mainly Brian May that gets on my nerves – guitar-soloing everywhere.”

14
Richard Hawley – Elvis Presley, ‘The Sun Sessions’

Richard Hawley – Elvis Presley, ‘The Sun Sessions’. “My dad had all the 78s, and I think he was tired of me wearing them out, so he got me my own version. That Christmas, I also got a spoken-word album by Stanley Unwin – the guy who muddled up his words in an Edward Lear fashion and did the intros on the Small Faces’ ‘Ogden’s Nut Gone Flake’.”

15
Jamie Reynolds – ‘Bad’, Michael Jackson

Jamie Reynolds - <a href='Bad', Michael Jackson"/>

Jamie Reynolds – ‘Bad’, Michael Jackson. “I saved up my pocket money, rollerskated to the local garage and bought a copy. I was just completely obsessed with it. I just remember coming back to my room and dancing to it for days. It was just the complete image of rebellion, wearing wild leather geat and hanging out with a gang looking super cool.”

16
Simon Pegg – ‘I Feel For You’, Chaka Khan

Simon Pegg – ‘I Feel For You’, Chaka Khan. “I was 12 and I was into my breakdancing, and the video for the title track was so cool. It’s a Prince song, so it’s just a brilliant tune. I recorded the video on VHS as you could in the early ’80s, when that was a novelty, and just watched it over and over again.”

17
Janelle Monae – ‘The Miseducation Of Lauryn Hill’, Lauryn Hill

Janelle Monae – ‘The Miseducation Of Lauryn Hill’, Lauryn Hill. “I was about seven years old, and I just thought that she was speaking from so many angles – she tied in love, she tied in her love for hip-hop, and it was the first time I saw a black woman who was absolutely cheering to listen to, putting an album together that was classic, and that every young girl should listen to.”

18
Harry McVeigh (White Lies) – ‘HIStory’, Michael Jackson

Harry McVeigh (White Lies) – ‘HIStory’, Michael Jackson. “I think it was on like four old-school tapes or something. I listened to it to death. I even enjoyed the second half of the album which was not the greatest hits bit.”

19
Jonathan Higgs (Everything Everything) – ‘Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band’, The Beatles

Jonathan Higgs (Everything Everything) - <a href='Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band', The Beatles"/>

Jonathan Higgs (Everything Everything) – ‘Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band’, The Beatles. “I asked for it for my birthday. I remember waking up in a bunk bed at Chester Zoo and my mum gave me the tape. I loved it. It was the first thing I remember really wanting.”

20
Daniel Blumberg (Yuck) – Mr. Boom

Daniel Blumberg (Yuck) - Mr. Boom

Daniel Blumberg (Yuck) – Mr. Boom. “He was this Scottish one-man band who lived on the moon and got children to play the triangle and other basic instruments. We listened to that over and over again in the car.”

Advertisement
Advertisement