Critics Roundup 1989

1989 was one of those rare years when most of the megastar big guns (Springsteen, Jacko, R.E.M., U2, and – apart from the blurred ‘Batman’ effort – Prince) choose to sit it out at least in vinyl terms, so that there was all the more room for genuine diversity and individuality to flourish and that always makes for interesting listening.

Reliables like Elvis Costello, The Pogues, David Byrne, Hoodoo Gurus, Prefab Sprout, The Neville Brothers, Squeeze, XTC, The B52’s and The Triffids (especially The Triffids) all produced excellent albums. And old reliables such as Lou Reed, Bob Dylan and, most potently of all, Neil Young also came up trumps.

Apart from the usual twist sand turns, there weren’t really any new trends or styles but there were enough singularly great records to remind everyone that the only trend worth following is the making of singularly great records. Take, for example, They Might Be Giants’ ‘Lincoln’, Bob Mould’s ‘Work Book’, The Blue Nile’s ‘Hats’, ’Til Tuesday’s ‘Everything’s Different Now’, Kirsty MacColl’s “Kite’, Hugo Largo’s ‘Mettle’, the Pixies ‘Doolittle’, The Jesus And Mary Chain’s ‘Automatic’ and Maria McKee’s crystalline debut. And that really is only the half of it.

And the best records of 1989? Well, for me, the most lyrical, intense and majestic musical moments of the year were provided by two Irishmen, Pierce Turner and Cathal Coughlan; Turner with his ricocheting ‘The Sky And The Ground’ and Coughlan (ably assisted by his Fatima Mansions) with the apocalyptic ‘Against Nature’. Two classics by anyone’s standards.