There's still another bunch of albums to get through, but I desperately want to include a couple that would otherwise be excluded owing to some songs I've chosen. Therefore, I reserve the right to make a few last-minute changes to my 50 songs list to allow me to have the albums I want. Cheating? Perhaps, but hey, we all make mistakes right?
To be honest, the list of songs that didn't make the final 50 is pretty awesome in itself, so by making these changes, I'm not really causing a dip in quality. It's like replacing Lionel Messi with Luis Suarez, or something.
So the three I'm losing are:
Velvet Roof by Buffalo Tom
Sheela-Na-Gig by PJ Harvey
Green And Grey by New Model Army
And in their place...
The Story Of The Blues (pt. 1) by Wah!
John Peel once said: "Most artists spend a lifetime trying to write a classic. Pete Wylie's written five!" He was right, some of Wylie's songs are just pure genius. I don't know why I never became obsessed with him. I remember hearing The Story Of The Blues on a chart compilation record I bought in 1982; I would have been 11. It remains one of the finest examples I know of how perfect pop music can be. I know the purists will berate me for not having the full version here, but let's be honest - the first half (or 'pt. 1') is all you really need.
London Can You Wait by Gene
I can remember once writing Gene off as poor Smiths imitators. I hadn't heard London Can You Wait at that stage. In fact, I still hadn't heard it until after the band released their second album, which was when they won me over. I went back and listened to their early stuff properly and realised what a numpty I'd been. London Can You Wait, Sick, Sober & Sorry and Speak To Me Someone were neck-and-neck in their bid to be included here, but I went for the former because it's the song I most associate with Gene. It's just wonderful, every little aspect of it.
Seether by Veruca Salt
So OK, I can't answer this question: how the flippin' heck did this one not make the original 50? Sorry, my bad. Seether was one of the great singles of the 90s. If Kim Deal hadn't written Cannonball, she would have given her right arm to have written this song. And maybe half a leg too. Veruca Salt were awesome, especially that first album. Seether was always going to be impossible to top, but they came pretty close: All Hail Me, Forsythia, Volcano Girls, etc. Even last year's comeback album was more than decent. But Seether is the one, unquestionably. I can sleep easily now.
