Picks Of The Year 1982 - 2022: The Video Playlists
[Updated 27/01/2023 to include the playlist for 2022.]
At least one of the links below tells you the full story, so I won't go through it all again. But in brief: since 1982, I've been producing an annual series of Pick Of The Year compilations, collating my favourite tracks from that year's music releases. From 1982 to 1989, they were gargantuan twin-tape affairs: between 1993 and 1997, they were single 90 minute cassettes: and since 1998, I've been burning them onto CDs. (I didn't make compilations at the time for 1990-1992, but two decades later I created some CD-length ones as a best-guess approximation with the benefit/hindrance of hindsight.)
1998 was the year that I started writing about these compilations on the interwub, as they were being produced. The years before then have been subsequently been documented on this site, with a lot of ironic pointing and laughing at the sort of junk I used to listen to. Put all that together, and you've got a hefty collection of tracks covering my musical interests from 1982 to the present day.
And thanks to YouTube, you can hear most of them right now. The playlists below aren't complete, inevitably: some artists are less happy than others about letting their product be heard for free. But the vast majority of the songs I've chosen are there in some form or other - from official record company videos, to slapdash fan-made tributes consisting of a single still image with the song playing over the top. (I guess my own Felix Project videos fall somewhere in between those two stools.)
Anyway, you've got a couple of days' worth of music here that I've liked at one time or another. And I'll be updating this page each time I produce a new POTY compilation. Enjoy.
For those of you who don't want to look at videos, there are also Spotify playlists available for each year, although many of them have at least one track missing. See the relevant pages covering the years 1982-1989, 1990-1999, 2000-2009 and 2010-2019. And if you make it all the way to the bottom of this page, you'll be rewarded with a single 773-song, 62 hour playlist of the whole damn lot (though the widget only displays the first hundred tracks, the coward).
Singles: ABC, Yazoo, Frank Zappa, Elvis Costello, Madness, The Gist, Cruella De Ville, John Otway & Wild Willy Barrett, Nick Nicely, After The Fire, Graham Parker, Big Country, The Beat, New Order, Dire Straits
Albums: Moving Hearts, Scritti Politti, Not The Nine O'Clock News, Peter Gabriel, Magazine, Elvis Costello, Kate Bush, League Unlimited Orchestra, Dire Straits, ABC, New American Orchestra, Status Quo
1983
Post-Apollonian, Pre-Dionysian
New Order, The Human League, Big Country, The Flying Pickets, Soft Cell, The Durutti Column, Pete Shelley, ABC, Cocteau Twins, Cruella de Ville, David Sylvian & Ryuichi Sakamoto, Peter Gabriel, Howard Devoto, U2, Monty Python, Fun Boy Three, Mark Knopfler, The Chameleons, David Bowie, Culture Club, Heaven 17, The Smiths, Red Guitars, The Police, After The Fire, Billy Bragg, Wah!, This Mortal Coil, Pink Floyd, Moving Hearts, Paul Young, Genesis, Echo And The Bunnymen, Flash And The Pan, Joboxers, Frankie Goes To Hollywood, Elvis Costello, Robert Wyatt, Malcolm McLaren, Aztec Camera
Frankie Goes To Hollywood, Bronski Beat, Colourbox, Mark Knopfler, Red Box, Scritti Politti, Ennio Morricone, Simple Minds, Prefab Sprout, 23 Skidoo, U2, Propaganda, Red Guitars, Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark, The Flying Lizards, Echo And The Bunnymen, Joe Jackson, The Alarm, The Art Of Noise, Indians In Moscow, Tears For Fears, Yip Yip Coyote, Mike Oldfield, The Weather Girls, Lloyd Cole & The Commotions, New Order, Mike Harding, 3 Mustaphas 3, Thomas Dolby, The Smiths, Elvis Costello, Billy Bragg, George Kranz, Cocteau Twins, Shannon, Aztec Camera
1985
Deadhead Sticker On A Cadillac
New Order, Tears For Fears, Godley And Creme, Cocteau Twins, Elton John & Millie Jackson, David Bowie & Pat Metheny Group, Don Henley, Red Box, The Dukes Of Stratosfear, The Art Of Noise, Echo And The Bunnymen, Peter Gabriel, The Chameleons, The Commodores, The Jesus And Mary Chain, Richard Stilgoe & Peter Skellern, Grace Jones, The Waterboys, Prefab Sprout, Artists United Against Apartheid, Propaganda, Big Daddy, Michael Nyman, Lloyd Cole And The Commotions, Eurythmics, The Smiths, Moving Hearts, The Flying Pickets, Paul Young, Andrew Poppy, Billy Bragg, Ry Cooder, Kirsty MacColl, The Communards, Scritti Politti, Fascinating Aida, Kate Bush, Sting, The Pogues
1986
Girls, Boys, Art, Pleasure
David Bowie, The Pogues, Big Audio Dynamite, The Communards, The Art Of Noise, The Men They Couldn't Hang, Elvis Costello, The Redskins, The The, Cocteau Twins, Joe Strummer, Andy White, Half Man Half Biscuit, Rory McLeod, The Chameleons, Jerry Dammers, Peter Gabriel, Sly Fox, Sting, Run DMC, Red Box, New Order, 3 Mustaphas 3, The Smiths, Pet Shop Boys, Ennio Morricone, The Housemartins, Black Britain, Nick Cave, Billy Bragg, Trouble Funk, Marianne Faithfull
1987
Put It On 8-Track, Put It On Cassette
U2, Beastie Boys, Christy Moore, Trouble Funk, Hurrah!, 3 Mustaphas 3, MARRS, The Pogues, Laibach, Eric B & Rakim, Billy Bragg, New Order, The Proclaimers, The Redskins, Justified Ancients Of Mu Mu, Tom Waits, Philip Glass, Abigail Mead & Nigel Goulding, Mary Coughlan, Pet Shop Boys, Yello, Andrew Poppy, Steinski And Mass Media, The Smiths, Joe Jackson, Fat Boys, Communards, Sly And Robbie, Ennio Morricone, Sting, Siouxsie And The Banshees, Pink Floyd, Trevor Jones & Courtney Pine
1988
A Londoner Rich With Complaint
Nasty Rox Inc, Morrissey, Big Audio Dynamite, Tom Waits, Jesus And Mary Chain, Sinead O'Connor, Prefab Sprout, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Stump, Billy Bragg, The Smiths, The Pogues, Voice Of The Beehive, U2, Prince, Deacon Blue, The Primitives, Van Morrison & The Chieftains, Public Enemy, Heidi Berry, Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds, Joe Jackson, The Wedding Present, The Blow Monkeys, Tanita Tikaram, Bomb The Bass, Scritti Politti, Pet Shop Boys, Siouxsie & The Banshees, The Proclaimers, Miles Davis & Marcus Miller
1989
Tie You Down, Pretend You're Madonna
Danny Elfman, Prince, Sam Brown, Extreme Noise Terror, The Durutti Column, The The, Madonna, The Pixies, Pet Shop Boys, The Wedding Present, Les Negresses Vertes, Van Morrison, Neneh Cherry, The Sundays, Prefab Sprout, Elvis Costello, New Order, Kate Bush, Glenn Branca, The Pogues, Napalm Death, A.R. Kane, Marc Almond, Jesus And Mary Chain, Christy Moore, Tin Machine, The Cure, Electronic, 3 Mustaphas 3, Damon Evans, The Stone Roses, Joe Jackson, Deacon Blue, Gipsy Kings, De La Soul, Real Sounds Of Africa, Don Henley, Peter Gabriel, Art Of Noise
1990
Little Souvenir Of A Colourful Year
Pet Shop Boys, Hoodlum Priest, The Waterboys, EnglandNewOrder, The Sundays, Cocteau Twins, Mary Coughlan, Kirsty MacColl And The Pogues, Prefab Sprout, The Beloved, Fatima Mansions, Jolene Jowett, P-Funk All Stars, Carter The Unstoppable Sex Machine
1991
You Would Die For Flintlock
Public Enemy, Kirsty MacColl, The Wedding Present, Massive Attack, REM, Electronic, Voice Of The Beehive, Carter The Unstoppable Sex Machine, Nirvana, Marc Almond, 808 State, Billy Bragg, Curve, Crowded House, Half Man Half Biscuit, Elvis Costello, The Justified Ancients Of Mu Mu, The Balanescu Quartet
Morrissey, Prince And The New Power Generation, The Adventure Babies, Disposable Heroes Of Hiphoprisy, Beautiful People, Piano Circus, Johnny Marr & Billy Duffy, Sophie B Hawkins, The Cure, Prefab Sprout, Peter Gabriel, The KLF
World Party, Aimee Mann, Pulp, Blur, New Order, Suede, Kate Bush, Bjork, Rage Against The Machine, Elvis Costello & The Brodsky Quartet, John Hegley, The The, Pet Shop Boys, Gavin Bryars & Tom Waits
1994
And You Sure As Hell Can't Sing
Transglobal Underground, The Stone Roses, Tricky, Shane MacGowan & The Popes, Frente, G Love & Special Sauce, Oasis, Blur, Van Morrison, Soul Coughing, Terry Hall, Public Enemy, Portishead, Spearhead, Jimmy Page & Robert Plant, Neil Young, Suede, The Divine Comedy
1995
Make A Cup Of Tea, Put A Record On
The One World Orchestra, Bjork, Ash, Sub Sub, Supergrass, Tricky, Oasis, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Radiohead, Pulp, Scott Walker, The Chemical Brothers, Edwyn Collins & Bernard Butler, Black Grape, PJ Harvey, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Elastica, Saint Etienne, Weezer
1996
We Are The Kids And We're Out Of Our Heads
Pet Shop Boys, The Divine Comedy, REM, Primitive Radio Gods, Nearly God, White Town, Shane MacGowan & The Popes, The Chemical Brothers, Underworld, Nick Cave & PJ Harvey, Lush, Fugees, Goldbug, Patra, The Cure, The Blue Nile, Suede
1997
Nothing But Total Respect For Annie Lennox
Propellerheads, The Verve, Prodigy, Radiohead, Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Divine Comedy, Roni Size & Reprazent, Lamb, Coldcut, David Bowie, Bjork, Pet Shop Boys, Oasis, Mary Coughlan, Half Man Half Biscuit, The Chemical Brothers
1998
Damn Your Black Heart, Barbra Streisand
Pulp, Craig Armstrong, Cornershop, REM, Stardust, The Divine Comedy, Vic Reeves, Propellerheads, Garbage, The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Robbie Williams, Dubstar & Sacha Distel, Noel Gallagher, Vitro & South Park Cast
The Clash, Dido, Pet Shop Boys, Supergrass, Scritti Politti, Air, Lamb, The Chemical Brothers, Craig Armstrong, South Park Cast, Madness, Macy Gray, Tom Waits, Suede, Underworld, Red Hot Chili Peppers
Deltron 3030, A Perfect Circle, Otis Lee Crenshaw, Andreas Johnson, Eminem & Dido, The Waterboys, Radiohead, Kirsty MacColl, Ute Lemper, Moloko, Fatboy Slim & Macy Gray, Kelis, Saint Etienne, Bjork
2001
In Relation To Me Getting Out Of Bed
Manchild, Tanpopo, Ed Harcourt, Cerys Matthews & The Blockheads, Bjork, I Monster, Ewan McGregor & Alessandro Safina, Ash, Garbage, The Avalanches, Lamb, The Divine Comedy, Love Psychedelico, Prefab Sprout, Spiritualized, Radiohead, Half Man Half Biscuit
2002
Here's A Picture Of Me Bum
Craig Armstrong, Morning Musume, Elvis Costello, Doves, Billy Bragg & The Blokes, The Ukrainians, Badly Drawn Boy, Eminem, Yuki, Ian Dury & The Blockheads, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Truth Hurts, Love Psychedelico, Freelance Hellraiser, The Streets, The White Stripes, The Polyphonic Spree, Ringo Shiina
Moloko, Electric Six, Joe Jackson, Junior Senior, Paddy McAloon, Amiel, I Monster, Frenzal Rhomb, Johnny Cash, Tatu, The White Stripes, Machine Gun Fellatio, The Roots, Outkast, Ringo Shiina, Michael Franti & Spearhead, Dizzee Rascal, David Bridie
2004
Above The Beat And The Sub-Bass
The Kleptones, Tom Waits, Tokyo Jihen, The Streets, Ed Harcourt, The Divine Comedy, Love Psychedelico, DJ Danger Mouse, Jon Brion, Nouvelle Vague, PJ Harvey, Plus-Tech Squeeze Box, Sufjan Stevens, Ash, The Polyphonic Spree, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Machine Gun Fellatio, Badly Drawn Boy
2005
The Line Between Stupid And Fun
7 Seconds Of Love, The Go! Team, Cousteau, The Chemical Brothers, Half Man Half Biscuit, Gorillaz, Gogol Bordello, The White Stripes, R Crumb & His Cheap Suit Serenaders, Kid Carpet, Lemon Jelly, Saul Williams, The Blue Van, Sufjan Stevens, The Legendary K.O., Jaga Jazzist, Nizlopi
2006
You Wouldn't Think That I Was 43
Youngblood Brass Band, Bruce Springsteen, The Divine Comedy, Ed Harcourt, Jarvis Cocker, Keito Blow, Lou Rhodes, Killing Joke, Panic! At The Disco, Regina Spektor, Morrissey, Pet Shop Boys & Rufus Wainwright, Arctic Monkeys, I'm From Barcelona, Tom Waits, Badly Drawn Boy, Michael Franti & Spearhead, 65daysofstatic
Ringo Shiina X Neko Saito, Cornelius, Dizzee Rascal, Richard Hawley, Kate Nash, Dan le Sac vs Scroobius Pip, Amiina, Gogol Bordello, Kid Carpet, Feist, Halfby, Lou Rhodes, Candie Payne, The Real Tuesday Weld, Yoda's House, Rachel Unthank & The Winterset
2008
These Beats Are 20 Years Old
The Last Shadow Puppets, Monkey: Journey To The West, 7 Seconds Of Love, Camille, Coldplay, Superfly, Portishead, The Raconteurs, Dan le Sac vs Scroobius Pip, Kiyoshi Hikawa, Fight Like Apes, Lykke Li, David Byrne & Brian Eno, Glasvegas, Sonny J, Elbow, Dizzee Rascal, Spiritualized
2009
Every Day Is F***ing Perfect
Mumford And Sons, They Might Be Giants, Regina Spektor, Prefab Sprout, Jay-Z, Florence & The Machine, Arctic Monkeys, The Unthanks, Madness, Kate Miller-Heidke, The BPA, Dizzee Rascal, Doves, The Lonely Island, The Duckworth Lewis Method, Soil&”Pimp”Sessions, Jarvis Cocker, Ringo Shiina, Joe Gideon & The Shark
2010
On Your Way To Somewhere Else
Tokyo Jihen, Underworld, Blur, Sara Forestier, Gil Scott-Heron, Vanilla Beans, Massive Attack, Sufjan Stevens, Kid Carpet, Jaga Jazzist, Baba Brinkman, Cee-Lo Green, The Divine Comedy, Janelle Monae, The Chemical Brothers, Peter Gabriel
2011
You've Done An Awesome Job Kevin
Amiina, Bjork, Lamb, Half Man Half Biscuit, Peter Gabriel, Elbow, Tokyo Jihen, Billy Bragg, Andrew Rannells & Josh Gad, Kate Bush, PJ Harvey, The Go! Team, Zoey Van Goey, The Waterboys, Tom Waits, The Lonely Island, The Unthanks, Imaginary Flying Machines
Richard Hawley, Vanilla Beans, Jack White, Bjork, The Ting Tings, Kate Miller-Heidke, Kyary Pamyu Pamyu, The Unthanks with Brighouse & Rastrick Brass Band, Pet Shop Boys, Madness, The North Sea Scrolls, The Chemical Brothers, David Byrne & St. Vincent, Limited Express (has gone?), Sufjan Stevens
2013
Hanging Out With Various Riff-Raff
Prefab Sprout, Youngblood Brass Band, Petula Clark, Dizzee Rascal, The Duckworth Lewis Method, Kate Miller-Heidke, Billy Bragg, David Byrne & St Vincent, Jaga Jazzist & Britten Sinfonia, Pet Shop Boys, Love Psychedelico, Kyary Pamyu Pamyu, David Bowie, Dan le Sac vs Scroobius Pip, Deltron 3030 feat. Jamie Cullum, Devon Sproule & Mike O’Neill, Daft Punk
Soil&"Pimp"Sessions, Kate Tempest, Ylvis, The Unthanks, Ringo Shiina, Lamb, Harp & A Monkey, David Bowie, Lykke Li, Rubberbandits, Elbow, Robert Plant, The Roots, Jimi Goodwin, Kyary Pamyu Pamyu, Ed Harcourt, Eno*Hyde
Public Service Broadcasting, Kendrick Lamar, The Young'uns, Simon Love ft. Stewart Lee, Paul Hartnoll ft. The Unthanks, Roisin Murphy, Kid Carpet, The Men That Will Not Be Blamed For Nothing, Max Richter & Grace Davidson, New Order, Sufjan Stevens, The Chemical Brothers ft. Beck, Bjork, Everything Everything, Ghostpoet ft. Paul Smith, FFS
Kate Bush [video not available], David Bowie, Kid Carpet, Ruth Theodore, Riz MC, Ylvis, Pet Shop Boys, Saul Williams feat. Emily Kokal, Massive Attack feat. Hope Sandoval, Underworld, Billy Bragg & Joe Henry, The Divine Comedy, ABC, Kate Tempest, Donna Lynne Champlin, Kojey Radical, Enkel
2017
His Sonic Experiments With Robert Fripp
La La Land Cast, Miyavi, The The, Ghostpoet, Kid Carpet, Cousteaux, Kyary Pamyu Pamyu, The Divine Comedy, Mik Artistik's Ego Trip, Mogwai, Dizzee Rascal, Gabrielle Ruiz, Jarvis Cocker & Chilly Gonzales, Gorillaz, Ringo Shiina, Public Service Broadcasting, Everything Everything, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Michael Legge & Owen Parker
2018
First Let's Kill All The Tailors
Kamasi Washington, The Go! Team, They Might Be Giants, Enkel, Noëp, Ylvis, Dan Le Sac, Marianne Faithfull, Youngblood Brass Band, Kojey Radical, Half Man Half Biscuit, GoGo Penguin, Young Fathers, Janelle Monae, Ed Harcourt, Burl Moseley, Max Richter & Dinah Washington, "Weird Al" Yankovic
2019
Fearless. Ruthless. Cheerless. Clueless.
Joe Jackson, Ringo Shiina, The Cinematic Orchestra ft. Roots Manuva, The Specials, Kojey Radical, The Divine Comedy, Lamb, Lloyd Cole, Kate Tempest, Kate Miller-Heidke, Junior Brother, She Drew The Gun, Harp And A Monkey, Ocean Wisdom ft. Dizzee Rascal, Leonard Cohen, The Chemical Brothers, Hanawa, The Waterboys
2020
The Devil Set My Takkies On Fire
Jim Bob, The Rubberbandits, Fiona Apple, Elvis Costello, Mary Coughlan, Black Bra, Sufjan Stevens, The Waterboys, Jarv Is..., Ghostpoet, Nick Cave, Joe Gideon, Pet Shop Boys, Sparks, Everything Everything, Roisin Murphy, Eels, The Kunts
Sparks, The Chemical Brothers, Billy Bragg, Kyary Pamyu Pamyu, Emma-Jean Thackray, Melt Yourself Down, Kojey Radical, Idles, Kristjan Jarvi, Sons Of Kemet, The Specials, Tom Jones, Black Country New Road, Little Simz, First Aid Kit, Jarvis Cocker, The Polyphonic Spree
Rahul Sipligunj, Kala Bhairava & M.M. Keeravani, The Divine Comedy, Young Fathers, Regina Spektor, Telefís, Kae Tempest, Meitei, Yard Act, Caroline Polachek, Black Country New Road, Simon Love, Kendrick Lamar, Half Man Half Biscuit, Kojey Radical, Abel Selaocoe, xPropaganda
Really nice article. I am looking forward to more interesting stuff. Keep it up.
Posted by: europe cruise | January 26, 2010 at 06:09 AM
Thanks for your continued support, mariazero1@gmail.com ! Hope that mentioning your email address in plain text doesn't open you up to endless amounts of worthless spam or something like that.
Posted by: SpankTM | January 26, 2010 at 12:46 PM
Did you ever expect a corporation to have a conscience,when it has no soul to damned,and no body to be kicked?Do you understand?
Posted by: lacoste shoes 2010 | July 23, 2010 at 08:16 AM
What competition ?
er that wasn't my answer by the way............
Posted by: Suuuuuuuzzzzzzzzze | January 29, 2013 at 11:18 AM
Go to the 'More details' page for 2012, you'll find it there.
Posted by: SpankTM | January 31, 2013 at 08:26 AM
Don't know if you caught this mornings breakfast telly but Wilko Johnson was on, who apparently has terminal pancreatic cancer. He is embarking on an immediate farewell tour (which is sold out) rather than do chemo.
Posted by: Suuuuuuuzzzzzzzzze | February 15, 2013 at 09:13 AM
Yeah, the news broke last month. He's been in incredibly good form in the various interviews he's done since, but I think the atmosphere of *finality* at those farewell gigs could make them a bit uncomfortable. Not that I got the chance to feel uncomfortable, as they sold out pretty much instantly.
If nothing else, his tour has confirmed that ticket agencies are lower than pond scum. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-essex-21368844
Posted by: SpankTM | February 16, 2013 at 09:21 AM
Pond Scum indeed.
A couple of years ago we wanted tickets for Status Quo at Wembley, and the best ones avaialable from Ticketmaster were £45 each right at the back of the arena. However their subsidiary 'Get Me In' could give us same face value tickets in the front block for £120 each (and this is legal ?). I just point blank refuse to buy anything like this now as it only serves to keep this corrupt industry going. Perhaps one day like horsemeat ........
Anyway over the last couple of years I have felt a bit older when childhood Manchester City heroes from those great teams of the early Seventies (Mike Doyle, Neil Young and Malcolm Alison) passed away. Obviously Wilko isn't helping with this.
Posted by: Suuuuuuuzzzzzzzzze | February 16, 2013 at 10:00 AM