Welcome to our new feature in which we ask the great and good of the music industry - from independent record shop owners and staff to artists and more - for the five records that make their lives complete.
This month we're thrilled to welcome Dr Jennifer Otter Bickerdike, rock 'n' roll cultural historian and author, to share her top five. Read all about Jennifer's choices below, and join in the conversation on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram using the hashtag #5records!
Five Records I Can't Live Without - Dr Jennifer Otter Bickerdike
Jennifer has spent her life dedicated to the mistress that is rock 'n' roll. With more than 25 years of experience in the culture industries, ranging from her time as a former music industry executive in the US to surviving three waves of the dot-com bubble bursting in the Silicon Valley, Jen brings a unique perspective to the discussion of contemporary music and media. Her bestselling book, Why Vinyl Matters, is a manifesto about the importance of vinyl as a cultural object, and features interviews with a variety of fans, including Tim Burgess, Henry Rollins and Fatboy Slim.
Hotter Than July by Stevie Wonder
"I find myself trying to recreate the record collection of my parents, and the albums I grew up with. This one was in constant rotation in the childhood home, and deserves to be played at least once a day."
Kick by INXS
"A perfect album. Even after all this time, I still find new and intricate parts to songs or lyrics that I have not heard the ten million other times that I have listened to it. Top 5 album."
Private Eyes by Hall & Oates
"This is a record where even the ‘album tracks’ are so stellar, they could have been singles, too. I forget which ones were international smashes and which ones are big hits just in my own mind."
Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars by Edie Brickell &New Bohemians
"The quintessential high school album for me. Three decades later, I find that my English husband was on the other side of the world also blasting this during his teenage years in the UK. We danced to a track from this at our wedding."
The Best of the Doobies by The Doobie Brothers
"Again, a record that clearly shows I am stuck in the 70s / 80s of California. Nothing sounds better on a hot summer day with a cold one in your hand."
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