#Top31DavidBowie Unwrapped There was so much good stuff behind the scenes of December's Bowie-Fest that I had to write about it. Lots of extra stats, plus why it was my favourite #MusicChallenge yet, and what's coming in 2026 👇 #MusicSky

On Illinois, Sufjan Stevens takes you, the listener, on a comprehensive journey worth centuries of history, swathes of cultural icons, and personal mementoes linked to the Prairie State. It is one of the most ambitious albums ever made. #MusicSky

#365PerfectSongs 2/365 Every day in 2026, I'll be playing and sharing a song that I think is perfect. No extra commentary. No notes. Just the song. Today's song is David Sylvian's 'Nostalgia'. #MusicSky

#70sTop30 29 🗣️ The Beach Boys 🎶 Surf's Up 🗓️ August 1971 The closing title track to my favourite Beach Boys album. Darkness descends on the former surf band, and the storm clouds show no sign of disappearing while this song looms large. I've always loved the company of misery, after all.

#RadioheadTop30 29 💿 The King Of Limbs 🎶 Bloom Only one album has more picks than TKOL, which is a misunderstood masterpiece as far as I'm concerned. That much is cemented from the opening track.

#Top30FirstAlbumFirstTrack 29 🗣️ Nenah Cherry 💿 Raw Like Sushi 🎶 Buffalo Stance A stone cold classic song to kick off a stone cold classic album to kick off a stone cold classic career. They don't often make 'em like Nenah Cherry.

All #Top31DavidBowie playlists 👇 Ultimate open.spotify.com/playlist/2Cc... Album Tracks open.spotify.com/playlist/4EA... 1967-1975 open.spotify.com/playlist/1eg... 1976-1980 open.spotify.com/playlist/3Wc... 1981-1993 open.spotify.com/playlist/4YE... 1995-2016 open.spotify.com/playlist/1U4...

#2026AlbumDiscoveries 1. Big Star | #1 Record (1971) The only place I wanted to start, an album that I should have heard before now, and no finer nor more apt way to start the New Year. Every song here is undoubtedly great, and it's a travesty this didn't sell well on release.

#365PerfectSongs 1/365 Every day in 2026, I'll be playing and sharing a song that I think is perfect. No extra commentary. No notes. Just the song. Today's song is Talk Talk's 'After The Flood'. #MusicSky

First record of the year, and it's Lisa's choice. A mighty fine one too. On some days, Madonna's debut is my favourite Madonna. #MusicSky #VinylSky

#RadioheadTop30 30 💿 Karma Police B-Side 🎶 Meeting In The Aisle The first of 10 B-Sides in my Top 30, but the only instrumental (sorry, Hunting Bears). It sounds like crippling anxiety feels. The main character energy I exuded listening to this as a teenager is nothing short of hilarious.

#70sTop30 30 🗣️ Serge Gainsbourg 🎶 Cargo Culte 🗓️ March 1971 The dramatic closer to Histoire de Melody Nelson, Cargo Culte takes everything that came before on the record and merges it together to create a piece that leaves an impression and a half.

#Top30FirstAlbumFirstTrack 30 🗣️ The Beloved 💿 Happiness 🎶 Hello From Tommy Cannon and Bobby Ball to Salman Rushdie and Charlie Brown, The Beloved kicked off with a We Didn't Start The Fire-esque jam that never fails to put a smile on my face.

#Top31DavidBowie One legend. Four era-defining playlists ⚡ To Ziggy and Beyond open.spotify.com/playlist/1eg... Before, Berlin and After open.spotify.com/playlist/3Wc... The Mainstream Years open.spotify.com/playlist/4YE... Post-Imperial Era open.spotify.com/playlist/1U4... #MusicSky

All the absolutely incredible music I've listened to this year - 365 new-to-me albums, swathes of excellent records, both new and old. And the final song of 2025 I'm hearing is being sung by Ronan Keating...😂 At least I'm representing #Top31DavidBowie ⚡

#Top31DavidBowie Of course, we all know the big hits But here are the 50 most popular songs from the challenge that were never released as singles. And the playlist is available on Spotify 👇 #MusicSky open.spotify.com/playlist/4EA...

#Top31DavidBowie You voted 'Life On Mars?' your favourite David Bowie track, narrowly beating 'Ashes To Ashes', 'Heroes', 'Sound and Vision, and 'Station To Station' to top spot. The full playlist and results are below, and there's plenty more to come 👇 open.spotify.com/playlist/2Cc... #MusicSky

#70sTop30 Honourable Mention 17/17 🗣️ Genesis 🎶 Supper's Ready 🗓️ September 1972 I had miscounted my honourable mentions so this is my seventeenth and final to just miss the cut. An epic by every measure, but just not enough to break my Top 30.

Thanks to absolutely everyone who's taken part in #Top31DavidBowie. I'll be tallying up the final scores this evening, and there will be plenty of playlists and results to enjoy in 2026. And remember, #Top30FirstAlbumFirstTrack starts tomorrow 🎶😁 Happy New Year, everyone.

#Top31DavidBowie 1 💿 Diamond Dogs 🎶 Sweet Thing/Candidate/Sweet Thing (Reprise) The sweetest suite known to man, an absolute cacophony of genius wrapped up in 8 minutes. The rest of my list was closely packed, but this was always my undisputed number 1.

#Top31NewToMeAlbums2025 1 🗣️ Tom Waits 💿 Rain Dogs Not just Rain Dogs, but absolutely every album, song, and piece of music this great man has ever made. I can't pick three favourites as I love them all - Rain Dogs was my gateway to Waits, and a lifetime of listening awaits.

#70sTop30 Honourable Mention 16/18 🗣️ Peter Gabriel 🎶 Indigo 🗓️ June 1978 My favourite of Gabriel's 70s output, but he really reached his best in the 80s, so it's just a near-miss for this one after the high placing of Biko before.

#70sTop30 Honourable Mention 15/18 🗣️ Wire 🎶 Map Ref 41 Degrees N 93 Degrees W 🗓️ September 1979 Three absolutely incredible punk/post-punk albums in the 70s from Wire, and 154 is probably just about my favourite of the bunch. And from that, this is my favourite song. Still doesn't make the cut.

On Pink Moon, the only overdub is the staggered piano of the title track. Besides that, all the magic and melancholy comes from Nick Drake's vocals and his signature guitar sound. But that delicate piano is just as effective at evoking emotions from me. #MusicSky

#Top31DavidBowie 2 💿 ...Ziggy Stardust... 🎶 Five Years One of the most affecting album openers of all time, this is a powerful song that builds and builds to an immense climax. It's Bowie at his absolute best. Well, nearly...

#Top31NewToMeAlbums2025 2 🗣️ John Cale 💿 Paris 1919 From The Velvet Underground to an incredible album from one of many insanely epic alumni. This is a baroque masterpiece, a genuinely perfect record. Favourite songs: - The Endless Plain Of Fortune - Paris 1919 - Andalucia

#70sTop30 Honourable Mention 14/18 🗣️ XTC 🎶 All Along The Watchtower 🗓️ January 1978 Most people, including Bob Dylan, say that Jimi Hendrix made the ultimate cover of All Along The Watchtower. Those people are wrong... Okay, maybe not. But this is still absolutely terrific.

#NowPlaying Cocteau Twins | Treasure One of the most appropriately named albums of all time. Each track is an ethereal gem, blinding the senses of every mortal being who dares open the chest. First spin of this ridiculous record, four whole days on from unwrapping it. #MusicSky #VinylSky

#70sTop30 Honourable Mention 13/18 🗣️ Dire Straits 🎶 Sultans Of Swing 🗓️ June 1978 All too often, I avoid a band's obvious choices out of hipster stubbornness. But despite so many great songs on the two 70s Dire Straits albums, I can't choose anything other than this deliciously addictive hit.

#Top31DavidBowie 3 💿 Low 🎶 Subterraneans The most ecliptic ending to one of the finest and bravest albums ever made. No actual words can do this masterpiece justice, so I'm just going to bathe in its glory for the umpteenth time.

#Top31NewToMeAlbums2025 3 🗣️ The Velvet Underground 💿 The Velvet Underground & Nico One of the most important albums ever made. Beyond influential, a classic for very good reason. Favourite songs: - Venus In Furs - I'm Waiting For The Man - All Tomorrow's Parties

#70sTop30 Honourable Mention 12/18 🗣️ Steely Dan 🎶 Home At Last 🗓️ September 1977 Absolutely spoilt rotten for choice with Steely Dan, but none able to crack my Top 30.

Squid | Cowards This is what Geese's 'Getting Killed' wants to be. Only joking, but the similarities are multiple. And for my money, this pulls them off better. Regardless, my #5albums25 is nearly closed off, so there's no room for this splendid sociopolitical album. #NowPlaying #MusicSky

#NowPlaying Tom Waits | At The Terminal The greatness of having family who know what you'd like for Christmas is counterbalanced by the need for an empty house before you can play it. My first live Waits record on vinyl, and it's Waits at his whisky-soaked best. #MusicSky #VinylSky

#70sTop30 Honourable Mention 11/18 🗣️ Nico 🎶 Janitor Of Lunacy 🗓️ December 1970 From Throbbing Gristle to an album that was covered in full by the post-punkers. The opener to Desertshore is ethereal and terrifying.

#70sTop30 Honourable Mention 10/18 🗣️ Public Image Ltd. 🎶 Poptones 🗓️ November 1979 I was certain that I'd find space for this in my Top 30. It's surely far too good to leave out. Unfortunately not, but with a gun to my head, this may well be 31st.

#Top30FirstAlbumFirstTrack Starts 1st January 2026.

Mavis Staples | Sad And Beautiful World Without a shadow of a doubt, this will be in my #5Albums25. It's the final album of 2025 that I knew I needed to listen to, and I'm so glad I made the time. A wealth of brilliant artists help 86-year-old Staples to make a sublime record. #MusicSky #NP

#NowReading BBC Radiophonic Workshop | William L. Weir (33 1/3) One of the most fascinating 33 1/3s I've had the pleasure of reading, about so much more than the Retrospective album. A deep dive into the hugely influential Radiophonic Workshop - absolutely fascinating. #MusicSky #BookSky

Andy Bell | Pinball Wanderer Another revisit for #5albums25, and conversely to how most of those have gone, this isn't quite as good as I remember. Genuinely exciting on release, it's still a sonic joy, but it can go on a bit too much at times. #NowPlaying #NP #MusicSky

#70sTop30 Honourable Mention 9/18 🗣️ Throbbing Gristle 🎶 Still Walking 🗓️ December 1979 Coming right at the end of the decade, and only just missing out on a place in my Top 30 too. What a remarkable album this is.

#Top31DavidBowie 4 💿 Young Americans 🎶 Win One of his least celebrated 70s records, but when it's good, it's beyond brilliant. The soul on Win is anything but plastic. Rather, it is spine-tinglingly incredible, and those sax licks my favourite such of any Bowie song.

#Top31NewToMeAlbums2025 4 🗣️ Joni Mitchell 💿 Hejira Choosing just one Joni album is a near-impossible task. But gun to my head, Hejira is the pinnacle of one of the most wonderful artists to ever exist. Favourite songs: - Amelia - Hejira - Refuge Of The Roads

Chameleons | Arctic Moon Coming more than 40 years after their stellar debut, this isn't bad all things considered. But the brevity of their discography means it's a quick comedown from their greatest work, but still in contention for my #5albums25. #NowPlaying

#70sTop30 Honourable Mention 8/18 🗣️ Neu! 🎶 Hallogallo 🗓️ March 1972 One of the standout tracks from the Krautrock scene. Another has made it into my Top 30, but this one just misses out.

bdrmm | Microtonic An absolutely fine effort, and it's good that the boys from Hull aren't resting on their laurels by keeping to a tried and tested formula. But it's desperately lacking something to take it above good for me. And in a great year, it won't make my #5albums25.

#70sTop30 Honourable Mention 7/18 🗣️ Pharoah Sanders 🎶 Love Is Everywhere 🗓️ 1973 Try as I might, and have, and continue to do, I just can't find a place for Sanders in my Top 30. If there's ever a 60s challenge, he'll be right at the top mind you.

#ItsOnlyWords Today's lyric: "Then one fine mornin' she puts on a New York station You know, she couldn't believe what she heard at all She started shakin' to that fine fine music You know her life was saved by rock 'n' roll"

Schafer would get his students to sing their tone of 'prime unity'. His European students sang at G-Sharp, while American students were at B Natural. This is because electrically powered items hum at these tones in the respective regions. The drone of western civilisation... #MusicSky

#70sTop30 Honourable Mention 6/18 🗣️ King Crimson 🎶 Starless 🗓️ October 1974 The epic and enthralling closer to Red, it's ridiculous that this 12 minute behemoth can't find a way into my main list.