Kris
Available in weeks, not months
New Order - Blue Monday (1983)
I was only six when this was first released but I still remember being mesmerised by the bass drum beat, Peter Hook's pounding bass and the addictive synth riff. It's a shame the song has been somewhat diluted by its many reworkings and re-releases but it remains a classic early house record.
Pet Shop Boys - West End Girls (1985)
My love affair with the world's greatest duo started right at the beginning. The intro, with those haunting wailing chords, remains a spine-tingling moment. And the song, arguably the most off-the-wall single release in the PSB back catalogue despite it being their first, still sounds fresh nearly 25 years on.
Neneh Cherry - Manchild (1989)
I liked Buffalo Stance but for me this is her finest single. Not too dissimilar to West End Girls in the sense that it combines elements of hip hop with an eerie chord sequence. An underrated gem and I've always loved the line "You'd sell your soul for a tacky song like the ones you hear on the radio" for some reason.
Dubstar - Stars (1995)
I was revising for my A-Level exams when, all of a sudden, this song came on Radio 1 and stopped me in my tracks. I knew from the moment the synth-strings hit my ears and Sarah Blackwood's haunting vocal cut in that I was addicted. For me, this, and the band's other sizeable hit, Not So Manic Now, are the two most moving pop records of the 1990s. "Is it asking too much to be given time?" Not at all, Sarah.
Crescendo - Are You Out There? (1995)
Combining classical strings with pounding house rhythms and eerie vocals, this is probably the most innovative dance record I've ever heard. The single edit is great but the 20-minute full version is utterly mind-blowing. As far as I know, Crescendo have never released anything else, which is a big shame.
Robert Miles - Children (1996)
Talking of dreamy house music, this record grabbed me so much on its first listen (at the weekly student union ****-up called Shipwrecked) that I actually had to go up to the DJ and ask who it was by. A rare classic that sounds great whether on the home stereo or on the dancefloor.
The Verve - The Drugs Don't Work (1997)
Another song that stopped me in my tracks on the first hearing. This time I was in HMV and I must have looked weird just standing there and intently listening to Richard Ashcroft's heart-wrenching vocal. A truly beautiful record - just a shame Urban Hymns was so disappointing.
Melanie C - Northern Star (1999)
Yes, really. On the coach home from Nottingham to Northampton to visit my mum, I was listening to Radio 1 and on came this record with its lush strings, dreamy synths and anthemic chorus. But hang on, the singer sounds like Sporty Spice. Surely not?! It was. I don't think I'd been that shocked by a pop record since Kylie Minogue released the awesome Confide In Me a few years earlier. I even subsequently bought Mel C's album of the same name, which was also surprisingly good. And a damn sight better than Urban Hymns.
Hellogoodbye - Here In Your Arms (2007)
Occasionally a song comes along and moves me for no other reason than being, well, bloody gorgeous. Everything about it works to perfection – even the somewhat sparse and slightly banal lyrics are given a surreal poignancy and warmth by the vocodered vocals. The layers of guitar and synth overlap one another beautifully, while the melody is irresistable. Even if the song and the band have one-hit wonder written all over them, this record is one of the finest this side of the 21st Century so far.
Kate Monster ( from the musical Avenue Q) - It's A Fine, Fine Line (2007)
For some reason, this song has me in tears every time I hear it, much to my girlfriend's amusement. Even worse, when watching Avenue Q, it was the last song before the interval and I desperately needed a ****. So, I had to compose myself to avoid looking like even more of a big girl's blouse than I already was. Maybe the fact that every song which had preceded it had a jovial, riotously-funny tone and Fine Line caught me off guard. "How can you cry at a song sung by a puppet?" my other half asked me. God knows. But it's an incredibly touching song, nevertheless.
I was only six when this was first released but I still remember being mesmerised by the bass drum beat, Peter Hook's pounding bass and the addictive synth riff. It's a shame the song has been somewhat diluted by its many reworkings and re-releases but it remains a classic early house record.
Pet Shop Boys - West End Girls (1985)
My love affair with the world's greatest duo started right at the beginning. The intro, with those haunting wailing chords, remains a spine-tingling moment. And the song, arguably the most off-the-wall single release in the PSB back catalogue despite it being their first, still sounds fresh nearly 25 years on.
Neneh Cherry - Manchild (1989)
I liked Buffalo Stance but for me this is her finest single. Not too dissimilar to West End Girls in the sense that it combines elements of hip hop with an eerie chord sequence. An underrated gem and I've always loved the line "You'd sell your soul for a tacky song like the ones you hear on the radio" for some reason.
Dubstar - Stars (1995)
I was revising for my A-Level exams when, all of a sudden, this song came on Radio 1 and stopped me in my tracks. I knew from the moment the synth-strings hit my ears and Sarah Blackwood's haunting vocal cut in that I was addicted. For me, this, and the band's other sizeable hit, Not So Manic Now, are the two most moving pop records of the 1990s. "Is it asking too much to be given time?" Not at all, Sarah.
Crescendo - Are You Out There? (1995)
Combining classical strings with pounding house rhythms and eerie vocals, this is probably the most innovative dance record I've ever heard. The single edit is great but the 20-minute full version is utterly mind-blowing. As far as I know, Crescendo have never released anything else, which is a big shame.
Robert Miles - Children (1996)
Talking of dreamy house music, this record grabbed me so much on its first listen (at the weekly student union ****-up called Shipwrecked) that I actually had to go up to the DJ and ask who it was by. A rare classic that sounds great whether on the home stereo or on the dancefloor.
The Verve - The Drugs Don't Work (1997)
Another song that stopped me in my tracks on the first hearing. This time I was in HMV and I must have looked weird just standing there and intently listening to Richard Ashcroft's heart-wrenching vocal. A truly beautiful record - just a shame Urban Hymns was so disappointing.
Melanie C - Northern Star (1999)
Yes, really. On the coach home from Nottingham to Northampton to visit my mum, I was listening to Radio 1 and on came this record with its lush strings, dreamy synths and anthemic chorus. But hang on, the singer sounds like Sporty Spice. Surely not?! It was. I don't think I'd been that shocked by a pop record since Kylie Minogue released the awesome Confide In Me a few years earlier. I even subsequently bought Mel C's album of the same name, which was also surprisingly good. And a damn sight better than Urban Hymns.
Hellogoodbye - Here In Your Arms (2007)
Occasionally a song comes along and moves me for no other reason than being, well, bloody gorgeous. Everything about it works to perfection – even the somewhat sparse and slightly banal lyrics are given a surreal poignancy and warmth by the vocodered vocals. The layers of guitar and synth overlap one another beautifully, while the melody is irresistable. Even if the song and the band have one-hit wonder written all over them, this record is one of the finest this side of the 21st Century so far.
Kate Monster ( from the musical Avenue Q) - It's A Fine, Fine Line (2007)
For some reason, this song has me in tears every time I hear it, much to my girlfriend's amusement. Even worse, when watching Avenue Q, it was the last song before the interval and I desperately needed a ****. So, I had to compose myself to avoid looking like even more of a big girl's blouse than I already was. Maybe the fact that every song which had preceded it had a jovial, riotously-funny tone and Fine Line caught me off guard. "How can you cry at a song sung by a puppet?" my other half asked me. God knows. But it's an incredibly touching song, nevertheless.
