Jade's Music Blog

The Coral released the sublime Roots and Echoes, a slice of Hoylake sextet’s impossibly laidback, innovative, imaginative sounds and perfect, blissful harmonies.

The first single, Who's Gonna Find Me was a stomping soulful celebration of Liverpool’s musical heritage.

The heavenly Jacqueline and Bring The Sun Back encapsulated summer days sitting outside with guitars. You could almost smell the festival wood smoke.

The joyful side of The Coral we’ve missed since their 2001 self-titled debut was back, and they were better than ever.

The Wombats Proudly Present A Guide To Love, Loss And Desperation was bright, bouncy and bittersweet – everything we hoped it would be - and packed with witty, radio-friendly songs from the heart.

Backfire at the Disco tells of a date that goes wrong at – you guessed it – the disco, Let’s Dance to Joy Division is an ironic ode about their return to Liverpool. Stardom beckons for the mighty marsupials.

One of the most eagerly anticipated albums of the year and certainly one that’s had some serious air play over the preceding months, Mark Ronson’s Version made covers cool again.

A departure from his rap influenced debut, as the title suggests, this set of covers of indie anthems, infectious pop songs and country gems covered by contemporary acts in his trademark jangly, Spector-esque style.

Arctic Monkeys’ second album, Favourite Worst Nightmare, was everything we hoped the Sheffield darlings would do next. Recorded at the Motor Museum on Lark Lane, and woven with magic by Mike Crossey, they made it sound so easy.

This year, Klaxons took their debut record, Myths of the Near Future, to No 2 in the UK, on a sold-out world tour and - after winning the Mercury Prize - to the CD changers of dads’ cars across the land.

Opera-trained, larger than life Mika burst onto the scene with Life in Cartoon Motion - a big, bold statement of pop intent. Grace Kelly, Big Girls and Love Today became instant party staples.

The music industry was sent into a panic when Radiohead's seventh album In Rainbows was delivered as a download, which fans could pay as much as they liked for.

Rufus Wainwright returned, more flamboyant than ever, with his first self-produced album, Release the Stars, embracing a richly theatrical sound, often inflated with orchestras and gospel choirs, that made most other pop feel limp and moribund beside it.

Made Of Bricks by Kate Nash, inspired a whole generation of girls with whiney London accents to write songs complaining about their boyfriends. That girl has a lot to answer for.
Meanwhile, in between court appearances, Pete Doherty produced a great LP with Shotter's Nation, and reminded us all just how talented he is.

Both Sugababes (with Change) and Girls Aloud (with Tangled Up) consolidated their positions as the pre-eminent girl groups of our time, while Britney Spears shocked everyone by releasing passable Blackout.

What do you think? What have been your favourite and least favourite releases of 2007? Leave your comments below...