1001 7" Records You Must Own No.18 The Raconteurs - Steady, As She Goes / Store Bought Bones

At this point Jack White hadn’t spread himself around quite like he has these days, The Raconteurs were a one-off side project and promises of similarities to Nirvana and The Beatles were made. So when this debut double A-Side was released expectations were high. ‘Steady As She Goes’ surpassed all expectations, delicious harmonies, massive guitars, surely a one-off, except ‘Store Bought Bones’ is just as good with an even darker side, overall I preferred their second album but this 7” was the perfect start.

1001 7" Records You Must Own No.17 Queens Of The Stone Age - The Lost Art Of Keeping A Secret / Ode To Clarissa

I haven’t been into QOTSA stuff as much after the Songs for the deaf album, there’s been a few good singles but the albums seemed to be a little worse for ware, this is Queens in their prime from the exceptional ‘Rated R’ album. ‘The Lost Art Of Keeping A Secret’ is easily one of the best tunes from that album and alone would have been good enough to make this list, but the pounding drums and thrilling guitar riff on ‘Ode To Clarissa’ makes this a 7” everyone needs in their collection

1001 7" Records You Must Own No.16 Placebo - 36 Degrees / Dark Globe

On their first two albums Placebo could do no wrong, unfortunately I’ve not been so enamoured by their later work but especially the self-titled debut is a must for any indie rock fan. ’36 Degrees’ is a re-recording of their debt single and sounds much better here, but as usual it’s the b-side that makes the list. A beautiful stripped back cover of Syd Barrett’s ‘Dark Globe’ I’ve heard many a band cover this song but Placebo’s takes it to another level so emotional and cracked it’s definitely worth picking up.

1001 7" Records You Must Own No.15 Oasis - Some Might Say / Talk Tonight

Yet another band with countless amazing 7” records under their belt, early Oasis b-sides were often as good as the singles if not better. ‘Some Might Say’ is one of the better singles from the bands second album along with ‘Roll With It’ I personally got sick of hearing Wonderwall and Don’t Look Back In Anger, but what really makes this record on the list is the beautiful ‘Talk Tonight’ a classic example of how Noel could churn out classics in his sleep during this era.

1001 7" Records You Must Own No.14 Nirvana - Sliver / Dive

Another band who will be making this list more than once, rarely has there been a band that captured the magic of melody and chaos like Nirvana, they rarely put a step wrong and Sliver was the bridge from the early days to the major label days. ‘Sliver’ itself is a song I played countless times in my teens, just over 2 minutes of chaotic bliss backed by the equally thrilling ‘Dive’ you shouldn’t need to check this single out you should know it off by heart.

1001 7" Records You Must Own No.13 Mudhoney - Touch Me I'm Sick / Sweet Young Thing Ain't Sweet No More

Another classic debut release, Mudhoney proved to be one of the longest standing bands from the grunge era, outlasting all their peers and still putting out brilliant records to this day, ‘Touch Me I’m Sick’ is where it all started and still sounds as fresh today as it did back in ’88. All fuzzed up guitars, with Mark Arm’s shrieking vocals taking centre place. Backing this up is the slower paced but still outstanding  ‘Sweet Young Thing Ain’t Sweet No More’ this would the first in a long line of great 7” records put out by this band and not the last to feature in this list

1001 7" Records You Must Own No.12 The Libertines - What A Waster / I Get Along

Solid proof that a band should cut their teeth working the circuit and gigging where they can before putting out any material, The Libertines in various forms and names had been working at it for a few years before this single dropped and it was well worth the wait. ‘What A Waster’ is as catchy as anything they’ve ever done, ramshackle while keeping a tight melody and a filthy mouth, as debut singles go this is up there as a classic. B-side ‘I Get Along’ has a harder edge and veers even more chaotically throughout, while much has been made of the bands personal lives and strife’s, you can’t deny they wrote some amazing catchy songs and this was the start of it all.

1001 7" Records You Must Own No.11 Kula Shaker - Grateful When You're Dead/Jerry Was There / Another Life

People sometimes forget that Kula Shaker weren't just all about the hippy Tattva and Govinda stuff, when they wanted to be, they could be quite the rock beast of a band. 'Grateful When You're Dead' is evidence of such with it's fast spiky guitar lines and huge chorus, it's what propelled them to the heights they achieved and really they deserved even better. Segueing into the hippier 'Jerry Was There' it lulls you into a relaxed cosmic state just in time for 'Another Life' to come and slap you back into reality you filthy hippy. It might kid you for around 45 secs of softness but when it kicks in it reminds you that Kula Shaker's early b-sides were some of their best work and it's another belter of a song

1001 7" Records You Must Own No.10 The Jesus Lizard & Nirvana - Puss / Oh, The Guilt

What i loved about this split single is not only does it contain the best Jesus Lizard song ever, but it also contains an exclusive Nirvana track which is also outstanding. Now fans of Nirvana's softer stuff would likely balk at this single, first you have Jesus Lizard screaming maniacally "Give Me Something to Stop the Bleeding" and other hard to understand warbling over a heavy as hell guitar pummeling. Then we move onto Nirvana with the excellent and screamy 'Oh, The Guilt' with a great stop start time rhythm, how it never got more radio play i'll never know, oh yeah it was released on an independent label, that might be why.

1001 7" Records You Must Own No.9 Iggy & The Stooges - Raw Power / Search & Destroy

Originally released in Japan only back in '73, this 7" contains the best 2 songs from the 'Raw Power' album, finally re-released in 2013 in the US you can now get it for a much decent-er price. A-side the title track from the album is as good as anything from The Stooges which means very good indeed, however it's the B-Side here that makes this record so worth getting, 'Search And Destroy' is pretty much as good as music can get, it's a song i will never tire of listening to, so ramshackle yet held together by the skin of it's teeth, it paved the way for so many bands and should be held up as the classic song that it is.

1001 7" Records You Must Own No.8 Hurricane #1 - Just Another Illusion / Touchdown

Hurricane #1? Surely not, well have you ever actually sat and listened to this bands first album and b-sides, if not you can shut it! Hurricane #1 had Andy Bell's excellent songwriting and guitar playing mixed with Alex Lowe's soulful vocals, something which he has never had the full praise for that he deserved. Anyway 'Just Another Illusion' kicks off their debut album and is all John Squire spirally guitar mixed with Charlatans keys and swagger, love it to bits, but it's the b-side 'Touchdown' that could have been a single itself on a 1-sided etched 7" and still made this list, more rocking than the A-side and a song i used to have on constant rotation in the late 90's, it's only 72p on discogs, what are you waiting for!

1001 7" Records You Must Own No.7 Girls Against Boys - Super-Fire / IfGlamourIsDead

Unless your in your mid 30's like me or a bit older you might not realize that in the mid 90's magazines like Kerrang! used to be great for finding new bands, there was barely any internet then so it was a lot harder to find them. Two bands i got into through reading reviews in said magazine were Redd Kross and Girls Against Boys, also watching Clerks was a good introduction to this bands laid back groove ridden rock, this was the single taken from their last independent album before a disastrous jump to a major. Super-Fire is all creepy atmospherics and spirally riffs twirling through GVSB's own version of melody, there really was no-one quite like them and hasn't been since. B-side 'IfGlamourIsDead' is more of the same and highlights just how at the peak of their power they couldn't even do a dodgy outtake.

1001 7" Records You Must Own No.6 Feeder - Stereo World / My Perfect Day

Ahhhh, Feeder, the band that started so amazing and went downhill so fast after their first album, they showed so much promise in these days, i remember catching them at Leeds Duchess Of York and being blown away by how good they were, even their early b-sides were amazing. So good in fact that it was a hard choice for their entry here, but 'Stereo World' is such an amazing song, hard rocking yet melodic and sing along as is b-side 'My Perfect Day' if only they could have kept the quality to this standard as they went on, for a moment in time, they were damn near perfect.

1001 7" Records You Must Own No.5 Embrace - All You Good Good People / My Weakness Is None Of Your Business

If there was one label in the UK that championed up and coming bands and put out their first or their early recordings it was Fierce Panda, a label like Sub Pop that will likely have a few records in this list. Most people know both these songs, both epics from the bands first album presented here in early form, 'All You Good Good People' is an anthem that never got the attention it deserved, and at over 6 minutes it really is an absolute anthem. As usual backing this up is the equally sublime 'My Weakness Is None Of Your Business' a beautiful piano led comfort blanket of a song, makes you feel warm inside.

1001 7" Records You Must Own No.4 Dwarves - Drug Store / Detention Girl / Astro Boy / Motherfucker

Sometimes you need a nice bit of indie rock like the next record that will be on this list, sometimes though, just sometimes, you need a record sleeve with naked chicks and a dwarf covered in blood, and four songs that smash through your brain in about 5 and a half minutes, Drug Store is such a record. Released on one of the best labels ever Sub Pop Dwarves deal in no frills straight up punk rock, 'Drug Store' is one of their best early songs full of energy yet strangely melodic, 'Detention Girl' hit you like a battering ram to the left while 'Astro Boy' slaps you in the face from the right, all crash landing into the finale of 'Motherfucker' which is as good as it's title suggests with a brilliant rip from 'Surfin' Bird' love it.

1001 7" Records You Must Own No.3 Cave In - Anchor / Minus World

A lot was made of Cave In taking a more commercial direction, but what everyone seems to forget is that they were already headed this way with the amazing Jupiter album before they signed to a major. Regardless this is their first single on a major and in my opinion it's a a future classic, not recognized nearly enough for it's huge melodies and pummeling guitar. Now as usual that's just not enough to make it on this list, luckily they backed this up with the (could'vebeenasingleitself) Minus World (or Harmless Armless) depending on which copy of this record you have, the RCA one came out first so it's Minus World to me, it comes off like an unreleased Nirvana song and they never did crap rarities. Such an under-appreciated band and album, shame!

1001 7" Records You Must Own No.2 Beck - Loser / Alcohol / Fume

The a-side here is a classic to any fan of MTV in the early to mid 90's, it was on constant rotation and is a bonafide classic song off an even more impressive album, what we also get here is 2 unreleased b-sides 'Alcohol' is a laid back little bonus ending in a mess of noise but it's Fume that makes this record onto this list. An expletive ridden story about nitrus oxide, that's catchy as hell and when it's about to end it ramps back up again into a metallic beast of a song, i remember playing this to death in my teens.

1001 7" Records You Must Own No.1 AC/DC - Highway To Hell / If You Want Blood (You've Got It)

Inspired by the book with the albums you must own (some of which i agreed with, some of which i did not!) I've started my own list of 1001 7" records i feel people should own, disagree if you want but these are one's i love. To make it clear this is not a list of my favorite singles, this is a list of my favorite 7" records, a tale of two halves where the b-side needs to be equally as good and at times even better than the a-side. To kick things off I've decided to go with an absolute classic.

AC/DC - Highway To Hell / If You Want Blood (You've Got It)

Both songs taken from the album 'Highway To Hell' an album by a band at the peak of their career, a stone cold classic album and the best two songs from it are found here. Everyone knows Highway To Hell it's a staple of any rock soundtrack and probably the bands biggest single next to 'Back In Black' but the reason this record makes the list is the b-side, a track i'd never paid that much attention to, until i watched Empire Records. Now Empire Records is a lame but lovable comedy about people who work in a music shop, and it's soundtrack introduced me to many a decent song but If You Want Blood is easily my favorite of the lot, huge riffs that bring to mind The Who's guitar style at their rockiest with a massive fuck off chorus that you'll chant for days. i'd go as far to say it's better than Highway To Hell and is probably my favorite AC/DC song, so good they named a live album after it, yet didn't include it on said album, weird!