Observer Music Monthly

Greatest British Albums (June 2004)

See Also:  100 Greatest British Rock Albums
                  NME 100 Greatest British Albums
                  Observer Music Monthly British Albums
                  Kerrang 100 British Rock Albums

“OMM polled 100 critics, industry figures and pop stars asking each for a list of the 10 records they consider the best of British, excluding compilations”.

1. Stone Roses – Stone Roses
2. Beatles – Revolver
3. Clash – London Calling
4. Morrison, Van – Astral Weeks
5. Beatles – Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band
6. Beatles – Beatles (White Album)
7. Rolling Stones – Sticky Fingers
8. Rolling Stones – Exile on Main Street
9. Massive Attack – Blue Lines
10. PIL – Metal Box
11. Bowie, David – Rise & Fall of Ziggy Stardust & the Spiders from Mars
12. Rolling Stones – Beggars Banquet
13. Clash – Clash
14. Sex Pistols – Never Mind the Bollocks, Here’s the…
15. Soul II Soul – Club Classics Vol 1
16. Drake, Nick – Five Leaves Left
17. Specials – Specials
18. Joy Division – Closer
19. Oasis – Definitely Maybe
20. My Bloody Valentine – Loveless
21. Smiths – Smiths
22. Bush, Kate – Hounds of Love
23. Roxy Music – For Your Pleasure
24. Radiohead – OK Computer
25. Pink Floyd – Piper at the Gates of Dawn
26. Roxy Music – Roxy Music
27. Fairport Convention – Unhalfbricking
28. Beatles – Abbey Road
29. Roxy Music – Stranded
30. Joy Division – Unknown Pleasures
31. Dury, Ian & the Blockheads – New Boots & Panties!
32. Beatles – Rubber Soul
33. Talk Talk – Spirit of Eden
34. Stewart, Rod – Every Picture Tells a Story
35. Drake, Nick – Bryter Layter
36. Wyatt, Robert – Rock Bottom
37. Smiths – Queen is Dead
38. Echo & the Bunnymen – Ocean Rain
39. Bowie, David – Low
40. Led Zeppelin – II
41. Radiohead – The Bends
42. ABC – Lexicon of Love
43. La’s – La’s
44. Happy Mondays – Bummed
45. Lennon, John/Plastic Ono Band – Plastic Ono Band
46. Martyn, John – Solid Air
47. Smiths – Hatful of Hollow
48. Led Zeppelin – IV
49. Eno, Brian – Here Come the Warm Jets
50. Small Faces – Ogden’s Nut Gone Flake
51. Yes – Yes Album
52. Steel Pulse – Handsworth Revolution
53. Bunyan, Vashti – Just Another Diamond Day
54. Dexys Midnight Runners – Searching for the Young Soul Rebels
55. Gang of Four – Entertainment!
56. Jam – All Mod Cons
57. Kinks – Village Green Preservation Society
58. Slits – Cut
59. Verve – Urban Hymns
60. Tricky – Maxinquaye
61. Costello, Elvis – My Aim is True
62. Smiths – Meat is Murder
63. Pink Floyd - Dark Side of the Moon
64. Bowie, David – Aladdin Sane
65. New Order – Power, Corruption & Lies
66. Kinks – Something Else
67. Morrison, Van – Moondance
68. Primal Scream – Screamadelica
69. John, Elton – Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
70. Oasis – (What’s the Story) Morning Glory
71. T. Rex – Slider
72. Teenage Fanclub – Grand Prix
73. Thin Lizzy – Jailbreak
74. Who – Quadrophenia
75. Streets – Original Pirate Material
76. Blur – Parklife
77. Springfield, Dusty – Dusty in Memphis
78. Rolling Stones – Let it Bleed
79. Jones, Nic – Penguin Eggs
80. Bowie, David – Station to Station
81. Portishead – Dummy
82. Pentangle – Basket of Light
83. Who – My Generation
84. Young Disciples – Road to Freedom
85. Bowie, David – Hunky Dory
86. Dexys Midnight Runners – Don’t Stand Me Down
87. Fall – This Nation’s Saving Grace
88. Bowie, David – Young Americans
89. Wings – Band on the Run
90. Police – Regatta de Blanc
91. Led Zeppelin – Physical Graffiti
92. Black Sabbath – Paranoid
93. Coldplay – Parachutes
94. Pet Shop Boys – Behaviour
95. Dizzee Rascal – Boy in da Corner
96. Human League – Dare
97. Cocteau Twins – Heaven or Las Vegas
98. Cole, Lloyd & the Commotions – Rattlesnakes
99. Manic Street Preachers – Holy Bible
100. Eurythmics – Sweet Dreams



Individual Top Tens

(Let’s see who couldn’t understand the ‘no compilations’ rule - hello, Will Young, Pete Tong, Mick Jones & Terry Hall. Various excuses are given for putting the likes of Hendrix & AC/DC in, too tedious to mention here.)

Terry Hall

1. Bowie, David – Young Americans
2. Clash – Clash
3. Roxy Music – Roxy Music
4. XTC – White Music
5. Essex, David – Greatest Hits
6. Blur – Parklife
7. Boyle, Pete – Songs from the Bathtub Vol 1
8. 10cc – Sheet Music
9. Be Bop Deluxe – Modern Music
10. Bowie, David – Pin Ups

Justin Hawkins (The Darkness)

1. Queen – Jazz
2. Led Zeppelin – I, II, III, IV or Houses of the Holy
3. Fleetwood Mac – Rumours
4. John, Elton – Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
5. Pink Floyd – Dark Side of the Moon
6. Rolling Stones – Exile on Main Street
7. Foreigner – 4
8. AC/DC – Powerage
9. Beatles – (any)
10. Hyman, Dick – Moog

Emma Bunton

1. Rolling Stones – Sticky Fingers
2. Beatles – Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band
3. Soul II Soul – Club Classics Vol 1
4. Stansfield, Lisa – Affection
5. Tears for Fears – Songs from the Big Chair
6. Lennox, Annie – Diva
7. Police – Regatta de Blanc
8. John, Elton – Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
9. Wham! – Fantastic
10. Beautiful South – Welcome to the…

Mick Jones

1. Kinks – Sunny Afternoon*
2. Bovell, Dennis ‘Blackbeard’ – I Wah Dub
3. Winkies – Winkies
4. Cream – Disraeli Gears
5. Mott the Hoople – Wildlife
6. Rolling Stones – Exile on Main Street
7. Beatles – Magical Mystery Tour
8. Hendrix, Jimi Experience – Smash Hits
9. Who – Who’s Next
10. Bowie, David – Rise & Fall of Ziggy Stardust & the Spiders from Mars

* a single, equivalent album would be Face to Face

Brian May

1. Beatles – Abbey Road
2. Led Zeppelin – Led Zeppelin (I ?)
3. Free – Fire & Water
4. Temperance Seven – Temperance Seven
5. Bream, Julian – Gloriana: the Courtly Dances
6. Mayall, John – Blues Breakers with Eric Clapton
7. Beck, Jeff – Truth
8. Black Sabbath – Black Sabbath
9. Spooky Tooth – It’s All About
10. Mott the Hoople – Mott

Mike Skinner (the Streets)

1. Beatles – Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band
2. Stone Roses – Stone Roses
3. Dizzee Rascal – Boy in da Corner
4. London Posse – Gangster Chronicles
5. Oasis – (What’s the Story) Morning Glory
6. Streets – Original Pirate Material
7. Prodigy – Music for the Jilted Generation
8. Coldplay – Parachutes
9. Portishead – Dummy
10. Smiths – Queen is Dead

Rick Wakeman

1. Deep Purple – Shades of…
2. Bowie, David – Hunky Dory
3. Sting – Dream of the Blue Turtles
4. Led Zeppelin – Led Zeppelin (I ?)
5. Osbourne, Ozzy – Ozzmosis
6. King Crimson – In the Court of the Crimson King
7. Beatles – Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band
8. Buggles – Age of Plastic
9. Pink Floyd – the Wall
10. Hedja – Hedja

Will Young (Pop Idol)

1. Armatrading, Joan – Love & Affection
2. Eurythmics – Be Yourself Tonight
3. Sade – Stronger than Pride
4. Beatles – Abbey Road
5. Rolling Stones – Sticky Fingers
6. Bowie, David – Let’s Dance
7. Massive Attack – Blue Lines
8. Cure – Staring at the Sea: the Singles
9. Stone Roses – Stone Roses
10. Pink Floyd – Echoes: Best of

Tim Burgess

1. Kinks – Something Else
2. Jam – All Mod Cons
3. Happy Mondays – Bummed
4. New Order – Power, Corruption & Lies
5. Dexys Midnight Runners – Searching for the Young Soul Rebels
6. Clash – London Calling
7. Small Faces – Ogden’s Nut Gone Flake
8. Morrison, Van – Hard Nose the Highway
9. Smiths – Queen is Dead
10. Rolling Stones – Exile on Main Street

Phil Manzanera

1. Beatles – Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band
2. Rolling Stones – Exile on Main Street
3. Pink Floyd – Dark Side of the Moon
4. Led Zeppelin – II
5. Radiohead – The Bends
6. Bowie, David – Rise & Fall of Ziggy Stardust & the Spiders from Mars
7. Roxy Music – For Your Pleasure
8. Lennon, John – Imagine
9. Pulp – Different Class
10. Wyatt, Robert – Schleep

Nitin Sawhney

1. Brooke, Michael & Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan – Mustt Mustt*
2. Led Zeppelin – Physical Graffiti
3. 4 Hero – Two Pages
4. Massive Attack – Protection
5. Portishead – Dummy
6. Young Disciples – Road to Freedom
7. Radiohead – OK Computer
8. Verve – Urban Hymns
9. Streets – Original Pirate Material
10. Coldplay – Parachutes

James Dean Bradfield

1. McCarthy – I Am a Wallet
2. Cole, Lloyd & the Commotions – Rattlesnakes
3. Simple Minds – Empires & Dance
4. June Brides – 6 Million Stories*
5. Skids – Scared to Dance
6. Cure – Seventeen Seconds
7. Badfinger – No Dice
8. Jam – Setting Sons
9. Big Flame – Rigour ’83–‘86
10. Happy Mondays – Bummed
* I thought this was titled ‘There are 8 Million Stories’, but, I’m sure the guy knows his albums.

Tony Parsons

1. Stewart, Rod – Every Picture Tells a Story
2. Stone Roses – Stone Roses
3. Clash – Clash
4. Small Faces – Ogden’s Nut Gone Flake
5. Rolling Stones – Some Girls
6. Smiths – Hatful of Hollow
7. Danny Wilson – Meet…
8. Oasis – Definitely Maybe
9. Bowie, David – Station to Station
10. Who – Who’s Next

Ozzy Osbourne

1. Beatles – Revolver
2. Beatles – Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band
3. Wings – Band on the Run
4. Gabriel, Peter– So
5. Pink Floyd – Dark Side of the Moon
6. Beatles – Abbey Road
7. Lennon, John – Imagine
8. Osbourne, Ozzy/Randy Rhoads – Blizzard of Ozz
9. Led Zeppelin – Led Zeppelin (I ?)
10. Deep Purple – Machine Head

Stuart Murdoch

1. Felt – Poem of the River (EP)
2. Cocteau Twins – Victorialand
3. Felt – Forever Breaths the Lonely Word
4. Orange Juice – You Can’t Hide Your Love Forever
5. Clash – London Calling
6. Smiths – Smiths
7. Specials – Specials
8. Pop Group – Y
9. Raincoats – Raincoats
10. Young Marble Giants – Colossal Youth

Morrissey

1. Roxy Music – For Your Pleasure*

Morrissey claims he can only think of one truly great British album and that this is it.

Robert Del Naja (3D of Massive Attack)

1. Beatles – Abbey Road
2. PIL – Metal Box
3. Clash – Clash
4. Primal Scream – Screamadelica
5. Talk Talk – Spirit of Eden
6. Radiohead – OK Computer
7. Pink Floyd – Meddle
8. Pretty Things – Pretty Things
9. Soul II Soul – Club Classics Vol 1
10. Adam & the Ants – Dirk Wears White Sox

Trevor Horn

1. Beatles – With the Beatles
2. Stewart, Al – Year of the Cat
3. Yes – Yes Album
4. 10cc – Sheet Music
5. Led Zeppelin – IV
6. John, Elton – Captain Fantastic & the Brown Dirt Cowboy
7. Bowie, David – Hunky Dory
8. Beatles – Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band
9. Pink Floyd – Dark Side of the Moon
10. Beatles – Help

Pete Tong

1. Beatles – Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band
2. Pink Floyd – Dark Side of the Moon
3. Rolling Stones – Beggars Banquet
4. Morrison, Van – Astral Weeks
5. Bowie, David – Aladdin Sane
6. T. Rex – Electric Warrior
7. New Order – Substance (compilation!)
8. Massive Attack – Blue Lines
9. Clash – London Calling
10. Goldie – Timeless

The OMM Team

1. Rolling Stones – Sticky Fingers
2. Stone Roses – Stone Roses
3. Morrison, Van – Astral Weeks
4. Massive Attack – Blue Lines
5. Primal Scream – Screamadelica
6. Clash – London Calling
7. Beatles – Revolver
8. Streets – Original Pirate Material
9. My Bloody Valentine – Loveless
10. Beatles – Beatles (White Album)