Britpop: Top 25 Albums

Britpop: The Top 25 Albums

Britpop was a genre which emerged in the early ‘90s in the United Kingdom. It grew out of the British indie music scene and was characterized by its guitar-driven pop sound. This list was compiled by aggregating the results of 22 sources. Those albums which made at least 3 lists were ranked by overall Dave’s Music Database points and then the top 25 were ranked based on the aggregate of Britpop albums. Check out other best-of-genre/category lists here. 1. Oasis (What’s the Story) Morning Glory (1995) 2. Pulp Different Class (1995) 3. The Verve Urban Hymns (1997) 4. Blur Parklife (1994) 5. Oasis Definitely Maybe (1994) 6. Suede (aka “London Suede”) Suede (1993) 7. The Stone Roses The Stone Roses (1989) 8. Blur The Great Escape (1995) 9. Blur Modern Life Is Rubbish (1993) 10. Radiohead The Bends (1995) 11. Radiohead OK Computer (1997) 12. Suede (aka “London Suede”) Dog Man Star (1994) 13. Manic Street Preachers Everything Must Go (1996) 14. The La’s The La’s (1990) 15. Oasis Be Here Now (1997) 16. The Verve A Northern Soul (1995) 17. Manic Street Preachers The Holy Bible (1994) 18. Coldplay A Rush of Blood to the Head (2002) 19. David Bowie The Man Who Sold the World (1970) 20. Teenage Fanclub Bandwagonesque (1991) 21. Coldplay Parachutes (2000) 22. Blur Blur (1997) 23. Keane Hopes and Fears (2004) 24. Kaiser Chiefs Employment (2005) 25. The Libertines Up the Bracket (2002) Resources and Related Links: Dave’s Music Database: “Britpop: Top 50 Songs” Dave’s Music Database: other best-of-genre lists First posted 9/2/2024.

Q Magazine's Top 100 Albums of All Time

First posted 2/28/2011; updated 8/12/2020.

Q Magazine: The Top 100 Albums

Q magazine is a British magazine that has been around since the mid-‘80s. While its U.S. counterparts seem dead-set on always putting a scantily clad babe on their covers or shoving in non-musical content that supposedly fits the same demographic, Q is all music. Over the years, they’ve put out a number of best-of-all-time album lists. I’ve aggregated 16 of them (see the links at the bottom of the page) for a ranking you won’t find in any of their magazines. Also, check out annual picks for album of the year. 1. Radiohead OK Computer (1997) 2. Oasis Definitely Maybe (1994) 3. The Stone Roses The Stone Roses (1989) 4. The Verve Urban Hymns (1997) 5. Primal Scream Screamadelica (1991) 6. Blur Parklife (1994) 7. Oasis What’s the Story Morning Glory (1995) 8. Radiohead The Bends (1995) 9. Nirvana Nevermind (1991) 10. U2 Achtung Baby (1991) 11. The Smiths The Queen Is Dead (1986) 12. Sex Pistols Never Mind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols (1977) 13. Massive Attack Blue Lines (1991) 14. The Beatles Revolver (1966) 15. The Clash London Calling (1979) 16. Pink Floyd Dark Side of the Moon (1973) 17. U2 The Joshua Tree (1987) 18. R.E.M. Automatic for the People (1992) 19. David Bowie The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars (1972) 20. Coldplay A Rush of Blood to the Head (2002) 21. Manic Street Preachers Everything Must Go (1996) 22. Pulp Different Class (1995) 23. The Beatles Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967) 24. Jeff Buckley Grace (1994) 25. Kate Bush Hounds of Love (1985) 26. The Rolling Stones Let It Bleed (1969) 27. Guns N’ Roses Appetite for Destruction (1987) 28. Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin IV (1971) 29. Manic Street Preachers The Holy Bible (1994) 30. Velvet Underground & Nico Velvet Underground & Nico (1967) 31. David Bowie Hunky Dory (1971) 32. Nirvana In Utero (1993) 33. The Prodigy Fat of the Land (1997) 34. Prince Sign ‘O’ the Times (1987) 35. Portishead Dummy (1994) 36. Public Enemy It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back (1988) 37. The Strokes Is This It (2001) 38. The Beatles The Beatles (aka “The White Album”) (1968) 39. Bob Dylan Blood on the Tracks (1975) 40. The Rolling Stones Exile on Main Street (1972) 41. Van Morrison Astral Weeks (1968) 42. Coldplay Parachutes (2000) 43. The Beach Boys Pet Sounds (1966) 44. Chemical Brothers Dig Your Own Hole (1997) 45. Alanis Morissette Jagged Little Pill (1995) 46. Depeche Mode Violator (1990) 47. Madonna Ray of Light (1998) 48. Pearl Jam Ten (1991) 49. Beck Odelay (1996) 50. Stereophonics Word Gets Around (1997) 51. The Beatles Abbey Road (1969) 52. Radiohead Kid A (2000) 53. The Beatles Rubber Soul (1965) 54. Queen A Night at the Opera (1975) 55. Joy Division Unknown Pleasures (1979) 56. The Pixies Doolittle (1989) 57. Joy Division Closer (1980) 58. Red Hot Chili Peppers Californication (1999) 59. Smashing Pumpkins Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness (1995) 60. Fleetwood Mac Rumours (1977) 61. Pink Floyd: Wish You Were Here (1975) 62. Michael Jackson Thriller (1982) 63. Led Zeppelin Physical Graffiti (1975) 64. The Who Who’s Next (1971) 65. The Specials The Specials (1979) 66. Marvin Gaye What’s Going On (1971) 67. Pink Floyd The Wall (1979) 68. Muse Origin of Symmetry (2001) 69. The Human League Dare! (1981) 70. The Jam All Mod Cons (1978) 71. The Cure Disintegration (1989) 72. The Prodigy Music for the Jilted Generation (1994) 73. Happy Mondays Pills ‘N’ Thrills and Bellyaches (1990) 74. Leftfield Leftism (1995) 75. Travis The Man Who (1999) 76. Metallica Metallica (aka “The Black Album”) (1991) 77. Moby Play (1999) 78. R.E.M. Out of Time (1991) 79. PJ Harvey Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea (2000) 80. The Rolling Stones Sticky Fingers (1971) 81. Arctic Monkeys Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not (2006) 82. Muse Black Holes & Revelations (2006) 83. Gorillaz Demon Days (2005) 84. The White Stripes White Blood Cells (2001) 85. Roxy Music For Your Pleasure (1973) 86. Radiohead In Rainbows (2007) 87. Pink Floyd The Piper at the Gates of Dawn (1967) 88. The Jimi Hendrix Experience Electric Ladyland (1968) 89. The Libertines Up the Bracket (2002) 90. Bob Dylan Highway 61 Revisited (1965) 91. Nick Drake Bryter Layter (1970) 92. Amy Winehouse Back to Black (2006) 93. The Small Faces Ogden’s Nut Gone Flake (1968) 94. Bruce Springsteen Born to Run (1975) 95. Eminem The Marshall Mathers LP (2000) 96. Rage Against the Machine Rage Against the Machine (1992) 97. My Bloody Valentine Loveless (1991) 98. David Bowie Low (1977) 99. Oasis Be Here Now (1997) 100. Dexy’s Midnight Runners Searching for the Young Soul Rebels (1980) Resources and Related Links: January 1995: In Our Lifetime: Q’s 100 Best Albums Critics picked 99 and readers picked the 100th. Link has an incomplete list; only 88 titles are listed. February 1998: All Time Top 100 Albums Readers’ poll. June 2000: The 100 Greatest British Albums Ever Writers’ picks. October 2001: The Best 50 CDs of the Last 15 Years Readers’ poll covering the lifetime of Q magazine, 1986-2001. January 2003: Readers’ 100 Greatest Albums Ever January-March 2004: The Music That Changed the World 3 special editions in January (covering 1954-69), February (covering 1970-1979), and March 2004 (covering 1980-2004). Each featured a top 20 album list and a top 20 song list. July 2004: 50 Best British Albums Ever! April 2005: Ultimate Music Collection Featured lists of must-have albums (from 4 to 11 picks) and tracks (roughly 50) in multiple genres including rock, pop, punk, rap, country, blues, soul, metal, reggae, jazz, folk, electronic, and indie. February 2006: Best Albums Ever Readers’ poll. Top 100 list. November 2006: Top 20 Albums and Singles of the Lifetime of Q Magazine Covers 1986-2006, the first 20 years of Q magazine’s existence. November 2007: 21 Albums That Changed Music 21st anniversary issue. List is chronological. March 2008: 50 Years of Great British Music Chronological listing with 10 tracks and 10 albums for each decade (no album list for the ‘50s). May 2008: Best British Albums (Readers’ poll) February 2011: 250 Best Albums of Q’s Lifetime Readers poll of best albums from 1986-2011. In celebration of Q Magazine’s 25th anniversary.

The Verve Urban Hymns released

Urban Hymns The Verve

Released: September 30, 1997 Peak: 23 US, 112 UK, 15 CN, 9 AU Sales (in millions): 1.3 US, 3.3 UK, 11.0 world (includes US and UK) Genre: Britpop

Tracks: Song Title (Writers) [time] (date of single release, chart peaks) Click for codes to charts. Bitter Sweet Symphony [5:58] (6/28/97, 12 US, 2 UK, 22 AR, 4 MR) Sonnet [4:21] (5/30/98, 74 UK) The Rolling People (The Verve) [7:01] The Drugs Don’t Work [5:05] (9/13/97, 1 UK) Catching the Butterfly (The Verve) [6:26] Neon Wilderness (Nick McCabe, The Verve) [2:37] Space and Time [5:36] Weeping Willow [4:49] Lucky Man [4:53] (12/6/97, 7 UK, 16 MR) One Day [5:03] This Time [3:05] Velvet Morning [4:57] Come On (and hidden track Deep Freeze) (The Verve) [15:15] Songs written by Richard Ashcroft unless noted otherwise. Total Running Time: 75:57 The Players: Richard Ashcroft (vocals, rhythm guitar, keyboard) Nick McCabe (lead guitar) Simon Tong (second lead guitar, keyboard) Simon Jones (bass) Peter Salisbury (drums)

Rating: 4.105 out of 5.00 (average of 27 ratings) Quotable: “A rich album that revitalizes rock traditions without ever seeming less than contemporary” – Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

About the Album: “Not long after the release of A Northern Soul, the Verve imploded due to friction between vocalist Richard Ashcroft and guitarist Nick McCabe. It looked like the band had ended before reaching its full potential, which is part of the reason why their third album, Urban Hymns — recorded after the pair patched things up in late 1996 — is so remarkable. Much of the record consists of songs Ashcroft had intended for a solo project or a new group, yet Urban Hymns unmistakably sounds like the work of a full band, with its sweeping, grandiose soundscapes and sense of purpose.” AMG “The Verve have toned down their trancy, psychedelic excursions, yet haven’t abandoned them — if anything, they sound more muscular than before, whether it's the trippy Catching the Butterfly or the pounding Come On. These powerful, guitar-drenched rockers provide the context for Ashcroft’s affecting, string-laden ballads, which give Urban Hymns its hurt.” AMG “The majestic Bitter Sweet Symphony and the heartbreaking, country-tinged The Drugs Don't Work are an astonishing pair, two anthemic ballads that make the personal universal, thereby sounding like instant classics. They just are the tip of the iceberg — Sonnet is a lovely, surprisingly understated ballad, The Rolling People has a measured, electric power, and many others match their quality.” AMG “Although it may run a bit too long for some tastes, Urban Hymns is a rich album that revitalizes rock traditions without ever seeming less than contemporary. It is the album the Verve have been striving to make since their formation, and it turns out to be worth all the wait.” AMG

Resources and Related Links: DMDB encyclopedia entry for The Verve AMG All Music Guide review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine WK Wikipedia First posted 4/7/2008; last updated 10/2/2023.

 

The Verve released “Bitter Sweet Symphony”

Bitter Sweet Symphony The Verve

Writer(s): Richard Ashcroft (see lyrics here) Released: June 16, 1997 First Charted: June 28, 1997 Peak: 12 US, 22 RR, 8 A40, 3 AA, 22 AR, 4 MR, 2 UK, 5 CN, 11 AU, 1 DF (Click for codes to charts.) Sales (in millions): 0.5 US, 1.28 UK, 2.24 world (includes US + UK) Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 1103.7 video, 901.07 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: “Bitter Sweet Symphony” was the lead single from Urban Hymns, the third album from the British alternative rock group The Verve. With its “Phil Spector-ish density,” AMG it became “one of the defining songs of the Britpop era.” WK While the group had other hits in the UK, this was their only song reach the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the U.S. It might not have charted at all if it weren’t for its use in a Nike commercial which prompted radio statios and MTV to add the song. SF Lyrically, it takes “a somber look at the ennui of everyday life.” SF Lead singer Richard Ashcroft said the song is a reflection on how money and happiness were not synonymous. Rolling Stone and NME each named it the Single of the Year. It was nominated for a Brit Award for Best British Single and a Grammy Award for Best Rock Song. It also garnered MTV Video Music Award nominations for Video of the Year, Best Group Video, and Best Alternative Video. The Verve’s lead singer Richard Ashcroft is shown walking down a London sidewalk in one continuous motion, an homage to the “docu-fiction music video” for Massive Attack’s ‘Unfinished Sympathy.” WK The Guardian’s Francesca Perry called it one of the best music videos about city life. WK The song created legal controversy because the opening strings, which are sampled from a 1965 orchestral recording by Andrew Loog Oldham of the Rolling Stones’ song “The Last Time.” Although the Verve got permission from Decca Records, which owned the Oldham recording, they didn’t know they also needed permission from ABKCO, which owned the original publishing for the song. The company’s owner, Allen Klein, was a former manager with the Rolling Stones and forced them into a very lopsided contract which gave him publishing rights to all the songs the band had recorded through 1969. He employed similarly cruel tactics in paying Ashcroft a flat fee of $1000 and forcing the band to sign over 100% of the publishing. SF Resources: DMDB encyclopedia entry for The Verve AMG All Music Guide SF Songfacts WK Wikipedia Related Links: First posted 2/2/2021; last updated 8/24/2023.