Ian McHugh

The new Blues is the Truth is live. Ian McHugh brings you Smokin’ Joe Kubeck and Bnois King, BB King, Larkin Poe, Mississippi MacDonald, Buddy Guy and more. Supported by the Tuesday Blues Jam at the Rising Sun.

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115/500 Kendrick Lamar-Good Kid Maad City. My overall impression of this is not a strong one in that it left little behind, though I feel the balance was more to the positive I remember so little. There were Aime moments of interesting rhythmic interplay #500best2020 #BestAlbums

116/500 The Cure-Disintegration. Want a typical dose of the Cure? This is a good one… artsy but still surprisingly song driven. #500best2020. #BestAlbums.

117/500 Kanye West-Late Registration. If you’re looking for proof of Kanye’s supposed genius this is about as close as you can get. The genius on here is mainly provided by others like Ray Charles. For Ye on this he seems at least relatively well adjusted. For Ye. #BestAlbums #500best2020

118/500 Eagles-Hotel California. There’s no denying that this is definitive, classic songs, great performances. There’s no wonder you know that title track so well. Don’t be fooled by how ubiquitous it is. It’s worth the time to revisit. #500best2020 #BestAlbums

119/500 Sly and the Family Stone-Stand. If you want an example of Sly’s genius you’d be hard put to find a better one. Fun, groovy, deep, political and all while being as funky as you could want. Truly wonderful. #500best2020 #BestAlbums

120/500 Van Morrison-Moondance. Understated beautiful moving music. It could not be much better than this if it tried #500best2020 #BestAlbums

121/500 Elvis Costello-This Years Model. Intelligent songwriting and an ear for a hook. The performances are memorable and it’s generally a good time. Give it a listen. #500best2020 #BestAlbums

122/500 Nine Inch Nails-The Downward Spiral. Industrial, mechanical, nihilistic and edgy. It sounds like the noise of the robot uprising combined with heavy depression. Is it odd that I kind of like it? #500best2020 #BestAlbums

123/500 LED Zeppelin II. It’s a glorious thing this. I sometimes forget how much I enjoy this record and then I listen. Yes there are steals from the old blues guys, but the energy and power doesn’t get much more exciting than this. #500best2020 #BestAlbums

124/500 U2-Achtung Baby. For me this is where art and music collide well it’s definitely stylised arty and thought out. But there are good tunes and songs that have rawness and edge. It doesn’t stray too far from what music is about. It’s a bit too high up the list though. #BestAlbums #500best2020

125/500 Beastie Boys-Paul’s Boutique. I don’t like the beastie boys as much as say de la soul but this intelligent and clever hip hop is streaks ahead of the dross that is all about guns and money. Love working out the samples too! #500best2020 #BestAlbums

126/500 Mary J Blige-My Life. For the most part a decent album that sort of is neo soul with a touch of hip hop. It’s spoiled by a couple of interludes that have no place there and the fact that I already am forgetting it. #500best2020 #BestAlbums

127/500 Ray Charles-Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music. Some absolutely stunning songs and performances on here and worth at least a listen, even if it doesn’t have much to do with country, and the over the top use of massed choirs that makes italo too slick. #BestAlbums #500best2020

128/500 Queen-A Night at the Opera. Over theatrical and overblown it’s all very over the top and a bit silly. In its way it’s wonderful but don’t come looking for subtle. #500best2020 #BestAlbums

Blues is the Truth 789 by Blues is the Truth on hearthis.at | Blues

A new Blues is the Truth is up now, hosted by Ian McHugh. A really varied show this week with music from The Reverend Shaun Amos, Snooks Eaglin, Robert Johnson, Mississippi MacDonald, Ian Siegal, Buddy Guy, Keb’ Mo’ and plenty more.

Listen here
hearthis.at/ian-mchugh/b...

129/500 Pink Floyd-The Wall. It could do with being half as long, and without the interludes of radio 4 reject voice acting, in favour of shine on you crazy diamond and only playing the wall once. So close to being a great album of songs, but they manage to pop it up its own bum in favour of art.

130/500 Prince-1999. God it’s funky. It opens with two of the greatest singles of the decade if not ever,and the standards barely drop from there. Sexy, groovy and individual. Love it. #500best2020 #BestAlbums

131/500 Portishead-Dummy. When I first heard this album I loved it. It hasn’t changed. Deep dark and dense. Full of groove and depth and special in a way that meant something to me. Love it. #590best2020 #BestAlbums

132/500 Hank Williams-40 Greatest Hits. Hank Williams is great. Most of these songs are too. This is everything wrong with compilations though. A collection of quite samey sounding songs never meant to be together as one pretty much becomes noise. Doesn’t belong. #bestalbums #500best2020

133/500 Joni Mitchell-Hejira. Songs of big skies and open spaces, songs of intimacy and deep personal connection. Joni is a wonder and this album is one of the reasons why. #500best2020 #BestAlbums

134/500 Fugees-The Score. Some stunning grooves on here, and interesting covers of classics. Pity its bright down by that sort of rapping that is filled with ego and no substance. When it’s good it’s great, when it’s not it’s really not. #500best2020 #BestAlbums

My name is up on the long list for the UK Blues Awards broadcaster of the year. Happy to be included in a stellar list of shows and that the thing I had no idea how to do 800 or so shows ago has become something other folks enjoy as much as I do!

135/500 U2-The Joshua Tree. These days U2 have it hard. It’s cool not to like them and it’s their own fault. However for a period they had a series of great records of which this is one. It’s well worth a spin even for a bit of nostalgia. #500best2020 #BestAlbums

Blues is the Truth 788 by Blues is the Truth on hearthis.at | Blues

A new Blues is the Truth is out now, hosted by Ian McHugh. A really relaxed episode with music from Gary Clark Jr, Gregg Allman, Buddy Guy, Muddy Waters, Taj Mahal, BB King and more. Settle in and enjoy
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136/500 Funkadelic-Maggot Brain. Funk gets deep and groovy and awesome. Genuinely a superb album that you really should listen to. In fact do it now. #500best2020 #BestAlbums

137/500 Adele-21. Adele lays it all on the table here, singing of the end of a torturous relationship, but somehow it doesn’t cut. The edges have all been dulled, perhaps by the omnipresence of the music, perhaps by it all being a touch too polished and worked out. #BestAlbums #500best2020

138/500 Madonna-The Immaculate Collection. It doesn’t matter that this is filled with some of the 1980s greatest pop bangers or that Madonna, love or hate her music, is an iconic figure. It’s still a compilation and it doesn’t belong. #500best2020 #BestAlbums

139/500 Black Sabbath-Paranoid. Almost all your favourite sabbath songs on a single album and it’s not a greatest hits, it’s not a compilation, it flows and tells a story. What’s not to like? #500best2020 #BestAlbums

140/500 Bob Marley and the Wailers-Catch a Fire. It is a great record, fun, deep, groovy, unfussy and quite frankly awesome. Listen. Skip the greatest hits. Listen to this. #500best2020 #BestAlbums