#1079 Queen – Sheer Heart Attack

Arguably this is Queen’s best album. Controversial, n'est-ce pas? It’s often overlooked, because Night Of The Opera and Day At The Races came next, but it’s the one where all their styles and strengths first came together. They look fabulous on the cover, and they sound fabulous within. It manages to deliver heavy rock, rock-opera, …

#856 The Moody Blues – Days of Future Passed

I played this last week to my 13 month old nephew and he absolutely loved it. It is orchestral rock or progressive pop? Who knows? Who cares! It’s just great music. A highwater mark in the increasing maturity and creativity of late 60s British pop, recorded in the months following the release of The Beatles' …

#612 Bo Hansson – Lord Of The Rings

I bought this for a couple of euros at a record fair in the Netherlands. I’d never heard of the artist and was attracted to it purely by the album cover and the concept. I love concept albums, just the concept of them is great. It’s the difference between the album as a novel telling …

#1208 Soft Machine – The Soft Machine Vol. One

One of several bands who have taken inspiration from William S Burroughs. Whether that puts you off, or turns you on is a matter of taste, but for lovers of psychedelia, jazz-rock or early progressive rock, Soft Machine’s first album, the ambitiously titled Volume One, offers a smorgasbord of each, effortlessly sandwiched together in a …

#542 Genesis – Foxtrot

Supper’s Ready was my first introduction to Genesis. I’ve already mentioned that awakening briefly when the randometer turned up Nursery Cryme early on. It was a life-defining moment when I realised that there was a world of creative sound-making that went way beyond what one generally heard on the radio and might trouble the Top …

#967 Pink Floyd – Wish You Were Here

This album is a little like Queen’s A Day at the Races in comparison to A Night at the Opera, often considered the poorer cousin of the previous album’s greatness, but this is as wrong for Pink Floyd as it is for Queen. A Dark Side of the Moon was always going to be a …

#705 King Crimson – In The Court of the Crimson King

This is one of the most striking and extraordinary debut albums ever. Arguably never bettered by the band, and standing the test of time as an exciting and progressive piece of music. It also sports one of the best album cover designs, looking utterly splendid (and quite terrifying) in gatefold sleeve. I first came across …