Saturday Deluxe / 7 January 2017

First Saturday Deluxe of the year! I know this is a reissue blog but I thought I’d start the year by listing SDE’s favourite NEW albums of 2016.

They are, in order:

• 1. David Bowie / ★ (Blackstar) 
  Superb and moving. A triumphant farewell.
• 2. Christine and the Queens / Chaleur Humaine
  Not a weak track on this stunning mix of pop, beats and believe-in-yourself attitude.
• 3. Suede / Night Thoughts
  Suede remind the world how to do ‘an album’. This near career-high overshadowed slightly by the global shock of Bowie’s death.
• 4. Paul Simon / Stranger to Stranger
  Beautiful record. Simon’s lyrics, rhythms and pop nous unmatched by his peers (or anyone else).
• 5. Stranger Things / Soundtrack to the Netflix TV series
  Anyone who watched the series, will know how good Kyle Dixon and Michael Stein’s synth soundscapes are. Stunning.
• 6. Norah Jones / Day Breaks
  Norah is the real deal. An album full of highlights including Flipside, the title track and her cover of Neil Young’s Don’t Be Denied.
• 7. Radiohead / A Moon Shaped Pool
  Not as good as In Rainbows, but Radiohead continue to do whatever they want and in this case casually deliver a stunning ninth album.
• 8. The Getaway / Red Hot Chilli Peppers
  Was expecting this to be a bit average, but the Danger Mouse produced album has been in regular rotation on the SDE stereo all year long. 
• 9. Barry Gibb / In The Now
  Barry Gibb now stands alone but his brothers would be proud of some of the work on this record, including the achingly sweet and melodic Star Crossed Lovers 
• 10. Luke Haines / Smash The System
  These days you pop out to buy a pint of milk and buy the time you return the inimitable Haines has put out a new album. Pop culture references abound on Smash The System including Hong Kong Phooey and Ulrike Meinhof.

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Wedding anniversary?

In other news, the band denied it last year when I put it to them, but is Duran Duran‘s 1993 self-titled album, better known as The Wedding Album, being prepped for a 2LP vinyl reissue in February? Amazon USA have it listed for a 10 Feb release and US book retailer Barnes and Noble concur, with a pre-order listing for the same date. I should stress it still may not happen but you’d have to say that it’s looking good…