Channel4 - 100 Greatest Albums

The Human League - Dare! (1981)
An avant-garde pop masterpiece featuring the two new female recruits Phil Oakey discovered in a Sheffield nightclub. After its breakthrough single, Don't You Want Me, more hits followed with Love Action and Open Your Heart.
Ian Dury - New Boots and Panties!! (1977)
This platinum selling album stayed in the charts for 90 weeks and was remade as Brand New Boots and Panties! in 2001, with stars including Robbie Williams, Paul McCartney and Billy Bragg paying tribute to the late rocker.
The Jam - All Mod Cons (1978)
All Mod Cons mixes punk anger with 1960s guitars and was The Jam's largest commercial success. It also marked a turning point in The Jam's career, as their sound became more pop-orientated. Includes David Watts and Down in the Tube Station at Midnight.
James Brown - Sex Machine (1963)
This live album is maybe not as live as it seems. Recorded half-live and half in the studio, the tracks were doctored with audience applause. Still regarded by many as his best, the Godfather of Soul gives it up and turns it loose.
Jeff Buckley - Grace (1994)
The only completed studio album from the singer with the four-octave voice before his tragic and untimely death aged just 30.
Jimi Hendrix - Are You Experienced? (1967)
Jimi's girlfriend Kathy Etchingham is said to have inspired several of the songs on this recording. Hendrix had to hastily write in between gigs - resulting with the hugely influential Foxy Lady, Hey Joe and Purple Haze.
John Coltrane - A Love Supreme (1964)
After battling back from severe heroin addiction and the brink of death, Coltrane created this spiritual jazz masterpiece as his thanks to God. The album is widely regarded as the one which defined free jazz.
John Lennon - Imagine (1971)
Recorded at home in Lennon's estate in Berkshire, visitors to the house during the recording of the album included Jack Nicholson, Andy Warhol and Miles Davies. Imagine contains an alleged bitter attack on Paul McCartney called How Do You Sleep, along with the hits Imagine and Jealous Guy.
Joni Mitchell - Blue (1971)
The cover depicts the famous haunting image of Joni Mitchell's shadowed face in blue. Partly inspired by giving up her baby for adoption, this album covers love, loss and heartbreak. With contributions from Stephen Stills and James Taylor, this is Joni Mitchell at her most honest and raw.
Joy Division - Closer (1980)
Seen by some as an Ian Curtis' suicide note, Curtis hanged himself before the release of Joy Division's finest album which chronicles the inner demons of Curtis' guilt of his affair and his struggle with epilepsy.
Kate Bush - Hounds of Love (1985)
Produced entirely by herself at her own home studio, the album produced hits such as Running Up That Hill and Cloudbusting, the video for which starred Donald Sutherland.
Kraftwerk - Trans-Europe Express (1977)
Arguably the Godfathers of Electronica, Kraftwerk searched for a sound that would be considered uniquely German by looking to the industrial world around them for inspiration. Their robotic sound was an influence on many new wave synth acts to come.
Lauryn Hill - The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill (1998)
This debut solo album by the former Fugee swept the Grammy Awards, setting new records for black women, female hip hop artists and women in general. Hits include Doo Wap (That Thing).
Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin IV (1971)
The cover bears no title, there are no band photos - the music speaks for itself. Bearing the classics Stairway to Heaven, and Rock and Roll, this is possibly Led Zeppelin's best effort, and having sold over 22 million copies since, the record buying public seem to agree.
The Libertines - The Libertines (2004)
The Libertines' second album, produced by punk icon Mick Jones (formerly of The Clash). The front cover shows band members Pete Doherty and Carl Barat displaying their 'Libertine' tattoos on the night Pete was released from prison. Hits: Can't Stand Me Now and What Became Of The Likely Lads.
Lloyd Cole and the Commotions - Rattlesnakes (1984)
This critically acclaimed debut album had a low-key production which gave it a slight 1960s feel. Many say that Lloyd Cole was ahead of his time with hits like Perfect Skin.
Lou Reed - Transformer (1972)
Produced by David Bowie, this album pays homage to the characters who hung out in Warhol's New York when CBGB was at its coolest. The photo of Reed on the sleeve remains the iconic image of the man who paved the way for glam punk to follow.
Love - Forever Changes (1967)
When writing the album, Arthur Lee thought he was going to die. This album deals with the dark side of the LA hippy scene in the late 1960s, with Lee himself ending up living through the drug crazed troubles he once saw from afar.
Madness - One Step Beyond� (1979)
The Nutty Boys begin their journey of a thousand miles with a single step. The cover has them doing their crazy two-tone dance and the hits include One Step Beyond, My Girl and Night Boat to Cairo.
Madonna - Like a Prayer (1989)
Madonna's change in hair colour marked a change in tone to her songwriting. Madonna autobiographically expresses herself through songs about her father, her religion and her Catholic upbringing.
Marvin Gaye - What's Going On (1971)
Inspired by his brother returning from Vietnam, this album is a document of America and the civil rights riots at that time. Marvin Gaye stopped being the smart-suited Motown pin-up and became a cool, edgy artist, incurring the wrath of Motown supremo Berry Gordy on the way.
Massive Attack - Blue Lines (1991)
Key figures in the Bristol 'trip-hop' scene, Massive Attack took influences from hip-hop, jazz, reggae and blues. The classic single was Unfinished Symphony with Shara Nelson.
Meat Loaf - Bat Out of Hell (1977)
A big man, a big voice and one of the biggest albums of his generation. Bat out of Hell still sells about 200,000 copies per year and has sold an estimated 34 million copies worldwide, 16 million in the US alone.
Michael Jackson - Off the Wall (1979)
A veteran artist at the age of just 20, this was his first adult solo album. On the cover his drainpipe trousered and white socked legs recline against a wall. The album produced global hits including Don't Stop til you Get Enough, Rock With You and Off the Wall.
Michael Jackson - Thriller (1982)
Still the biggest-selling album in the world, this contains the classics Thriller, Beat It, Billie Jean, Human Nature: the list of hits just goes on and on.