Hugh, 58, was the singer and guitarist with The Stranglers, one of the biggest New Wave bands to emerge in the Seventies, scoring a string of hits with songs such as Golden Brown and No More Heroes. Now solo, he and his band toured last year.
SOFT MACHINE: TURNS ON [VOL 1] (VOICEPRINT) This was the first Soft Machine album and it�s the greatest rock album ever. It embodies everything that rock music should be. It�s like a live performance: it�s got great songs, it�s played with so much energy and gives the impression they�re having a lot of fun.
ANTONIO CARLOS JOBIM: WAVE (A&M) Jobim is the Brazilian singer/songwriter who wrote The Girl From Ipanema and this album � of what could be dubbed easy-listening songs � is absolutely stunning. A lot of the tracks are instrumentals. Despite not being that well-known an album, it too has stood the test of time.
BOB DYLAN: BLONDE ON BLONDE (SONY) Dylan is a master and has made some great albums. However, this has got my favourite song on it, Stuck Inside Of Mobile With The Memphis Blues Again; almost a happy-go-lucky song. It shows a lot of different sides of Dylan.
MOSE ALLISON: MOSE ALLISON SINGS AND PLAYS (PRESTIGE) A mixed-race jazz pianist and singer from America�s Deep South. Every year he plays a series of gigs at the Pizza Express jazz cafe in Soho and is just fabulous. He�s got a great voice and is an amazing instrumentalist and this anthology is a great introduction to the man.
THE VELVET UNDERGROUND: LOADED (RHINO) THE last album Lou Reed recorded with The Velvet Underground and, in my view, it easily tops The Velvets� best-known record; the 1967 album they made with Nico. This album is just a constant reminder of Lou Reed�s great songwriting and features the classic track Sweet Jane.
JIMMY GIUFFRE: THE TRAIN & THE RIVER (FUSE) Giuffre is an American jazz composer and saxophonist who�s been making music since the Forties but is sadly no longer performing. This album features just a tenor sax, guitar and bass but I love the sparseness of its sound.
