I don’t know if it’s post-Christmas blues, a pressure to start over or something else entirely, but every January, I find myself irritated hearing the same music on the radio that was played continuously throughout the previous year. I get it, just because we decided that the 1st of January signals the start of a new year, that doesn’t mean everything in the world resets, but for me it can feel as though I’m stuck, particularly at a time of year where everyone, everywhere is trying to start anew.
It’s not just mainstream radio playlists that are guilty of it. I do it too. Ever since I started at my current workplace over three years ago, I have been gradually building up a playlist of songs I have heard primarily on 6music and Spotify weekly playlists. But that’s all I ever seem to listen to, it’s forever downloaded on my phone for when I get on a plane and it’s always what I sync my car to when on a long journey - I have heard each of these songs at least 50 times.
I like to think of myself as a music fan. I grew up in a house where my mum always had the radio on in the kitchen, we always had sing-alongs in the car from Elton John to Don McLean, and my sister and I have played music since we were around 10-years-old. But as you get older, people start talking about the so-called “seminal” albums. And this is where my “music-fan” status starts to feel a little fraudulent.
So this year, jolted by a need to give myself a musical education (or as a reaction to the fact that Spotify tells me not one but TWO of my most listened to songs last year were recent All Saints album tracks), I have decided to start working my way through those key albums, as conveniently documented in a chunky book called “1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die”. I’m not going to do this in any particular order, I will start off with a few recommendations from friends, some I’ve always wanted to listen to and then hopefully power through the list, not necessarily sticking to it either. This is not going to be a collection of reviews - I don’t expect to love everything and some I already own on multiple formats - but rather a few musings and hopefully discovering a few new/old favourites along the way.
Wish me luck and do send in your suggestions. Plus, if you’re interested in doing your own exploring, this particular list has since been updated online to incorporate more recent albums - go have a look and enjoy feeling incredibly old when you realise that album you bought in Woolworths on cassette is turning 30 this year. Enjoy.
