My Life In Records

My Life In Records by Luke Abbott

Reviewing album after album after album means that once one reaches the ‘done’ pile, it tends to collect a lot of dust. Occasionally though, there are records like Luke Abbott’s masterful Holkham Dornes which actually stop you getting to the next one up for evaluation, even though you might be long done with the review. Basically Ragged Words cannot stop listening to the Norwich man’s debut so it was fitting that we asked Luke what exactly makes him tick.

The Band - The Band (Capitol, 1969)

I grew up listening to a lot of 1960’s music thanks to my dad. There are so many amazing records that he's passed on to me that it's really hard to select one, but this one feels like the most personal for some reason. Such an amazing sense of craftsmanship that comes across in this album, it feels loved and cared for.

Naughty By Nature - 19 Naughty III (Tommy Boy, 1993)

This was the first album I bought - I think I was about 14.  Hip hop was something new to me and I was totally enamoured with the rhythms and the swearing.

Mansun - Attack Of The Grey Lantern (Parlophone, 1997)

When I was a teenager this was pretty much my favourite record. I was listening to a lot of indie rock in the 90’s because that's what there was, but this album stood out because it was so ambitious and complicated.

Portishead - Dummy (Go! Discs, 1994)

Like magic coming out of your speakers, it's such a seminal record. I think it was played at every party I went to when I was young.

Squarepusher - Music Is Rotted One Note (Warp, 1998)

I bought this when I went to see the Apocalypse show at the Royal Academy, they had a few Warp things in the shop because of the Chris Cunningham film that was shown in the exhibition. Listening to Squarepusher made me realise that you can find a lot of freedom if you work by yourself. His music is so imaginative and playful, it makes me want to work harder.

Team Doyobi - Cryptoburners (Skam, 2001)

I discovered Team Doyobi accidentally after buying one of their records because I liked the picture on the cover, I still think that that's a good way to find new music. This album is so full of ideas, and it's such wonderful mess. I listened to it more than anything else when I was at university.

The Pharcyde - Labcabincalifornia (Delicious Vinyl, 1995)

A friend of mine once said to me "some times you just need healing", and this is my record for that. Also, it's one of the (few) records that me and my girlfriend agree about so it gets played a lot in our house.

Philip Glass - Glassworks (CBS/Sony, 1982)

One of the greatest things I've ever heard. It teaches you so much more about repetition than techno ever could. I saw Philip Glass in concert last year, it was just him and a piano… mostly he played his Etudes stuff, but he did ‘Opening’ from this record as an encore.

Oscar Peterson Trio - Night Train (Verve,1962)

I think this album catches jazz at just the right moment, it isn't cheesy or snooty like some jazz can be. It's one of those albums that has a feeling about it that you can live with. That might not sound like much praise, but i think it's a very rare quality. It's a good headphone record too.

Holden - The Idiots Are Winning (Border Community, 2006)

It's quite rare to be so excited by a record that it changes your perspective on music. And I'm not just trying to suck up to James here, this record genuinely blew my mind when I heard it. It's the reason I sent a demo to Border Community, so it has quite literally changed my life.

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