This was an absolute gold mind for music addicts like myself. In 2003, Bowie hand selected 25 essential albums. Everything after this paragraph is from the mouth of David Bowie himself.
There is really no way to do a list of my favorite albums
with any rationality. I do only have about 2,500 vinyls. There is a
possibility there. I’ll look through the albums and pull together a list
of those I have re-bought or am in the process of re-buying on CD. I
have little time, and there are just too many to sort through. So, I’ll
keep pulling stuff out blindly, and if it’s too obvious (Sgt. Pepper,
Nirvana) I’ll put it back again till I find something more interesting.
A lot of the rock stuff I have is the same as everyone else’s, and I
have so many blues and R&B albums that it would topple over into
trainspotter world if I went that route.
O.K., no rules then. I’ll just make ’em up as I go along.
I’d say half of this list below is now on my CD racks, but many are
finding impossible to trace. The John Lee Hooker album, for instance, or
The Red Flower of Tachai Blossoms Everywhere. I have done
the only thing possible and burned them to CD myself, reduced the cover
art down to size, and made reasonable simulacrums of the originals.
If you can possibly get your hands on any of these, I
guarantee you evenings of listening pleasure, and you will encourage a
new high-minded circle of friends, although one or two choices will lead
some of your old pals to think you completely barmy. So, without
chronology, genre, or reason, herewith, in no particular order, 25
albums that could change your reputation.
The Last Poets
The Last Poets
(1970, Douglas)
Shipbuilding
Robert Wyatt
(1982, Rough Trade)
The Fabulous Little Richard
Little Richard
(1959, Specialty)
Music for 18 Musicians
Steve Reich
(1978, ECM)
The Velvet Underground & Nico
The Velvet Underground
(1967, Verve)
Tupelo Blues
John Lee Hooker
(1962, Riverside)
Blues, Rags and Hollers
Koerner, Ray and Glover
(1963, Elektra)
The Apollo Theatre Presents: In Person! The James Brown Show
James Brown
(1963, King)
Forces of Victory
Linton Kwesi Johnson
(1979, Mango)
The Red Flower of Tachai Blossoms Everywhere: Music Played on National Instruments
Various Artists
(1972, China Record Company)
Banana Moon
Daevid Allen
(1971, Caroline/Virgin)
Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris
Cast Album
(1968, CBS)
The Electrosoniks: Electronic Music
Tom Dissevelt
(1960, Vendor Philips)
The 5000 Spirits of the Layers of the Onion
The Incredible String Band
(1967, Hannibal)
Ten Songs by Tucker Zimmerman
Tucker Zimmerman
(1969, Regal Zonophone/EMI)
Four Last Songs (Strauss)
Gundula Janowitz
(1973, DG)
The Ascension
Glenn Branca
(1981, 99Records)
The Madcap Laughs
Syd Barrett
(1970, Harvest/EMI)
Black Angels
George Crumb
(1972, Cri)
Funky Kingston
Toots & the Maytals
(1973, Dragon)
Delusion of the Fury
Harry Partch
(1971, Columbia)
Oh Yeah
Charles Mingus
(1961, Atlantic)
Le Sacre du Printemps
Igor Stravinsky
(1960, MFP/EMI)
The Fugs
The Fugs
(1966, ESP)
The Glory (????) of the Human Voice
Florence Foster Jenkins
(1962, RCA)
-Bowie/Novak