Jamie Atkins
Recent articles by Jamie Atkins
These 15 classic rock albums would be perfect – if it weren't for one terrible song
Even the greatest artists have songs which make us reach for the skip button sometimes
21 rock icons with criminal records (No. 7 turned up at Elvis's house with a loaded gun)
Big hits, bad behaviour. We introduce 21 rock legends with a rap sheet
What were they thinking? 21 famous albums with really bad covers
Lapses of judgement, signs of the times or just bad taste? These fine albums were let down by disappointing, or just plain bizarre artwork
The British are coming: 7 UK bands that blew up in the US
Many British acts try to make it in the US, but not many truly manage it. And no one did it more quickly or explosively than these 7
When singer-songwriters ruled: the 17 greatest albums of the 1970s
Introspective, politically conscious, authentic? The singer-songwriters of the 1970s were some or all of these things
'Blatant': 15 songs that sparked moral panic (one prompted a two-year FBI investigation)
Pop songs can be powerful things, challenging society’s norms, causing outrage and even inspiring positive change
These 11 extraordinary albums became goodbyes – some intended, some totally unexpected
These musicians saved the best till last, whether by design or for tragic reasons
We picked the best double live album of the ’70s – and it’s not by the Stones or Led Zeppelin
The 1970s were the decade when double live albums reigned supreme. Here are the sets that have endured the best
How did THAT become a hit? 13 of the weirdest songs ever to reach the Top 10
From gnomes and techno oddities to spoken-word sermons and Vietnam protests, these unlikely songs somehow became massive mainstream hits
The 1970s guitar icon who became a Pentagon adviser – and 10 other unlikely career moves
These rock stars all enjoyed surprising career moves when they stepped out of the spotlight
The classic album recorded in a haunted mansion – plus 10 more strange recording locations
Why record in a studio when you can make music on a yacht, theatre or log cabin?
The band who created an alter-ego to trash-talk themselves – and 10 more of rock's weirdest side projects
The weird and wonderful side hustles of rock music’s great and good
These 11 songs actually make the end of the world sound like a good time
From science fiction to climate crisis warning shots, these songwriters have all got their take on what happens as the world burns
Kate Bush turned down James Bond – and Johnny Rotten once wrote her a song about parrots
Think you know everything there is to know about the pop visionary? These Kate Bush facts may surprise you…
She vanished from the public eye. And THEN Kate Bush made her defining album
In 1983, Kate Bush retreated from public view, and emerged two years with Hounds Of Love. Over 40 years on, nothing else sounds like it
‘The most idiotic song I've ever written’: the unlikely track that rescued Neil Young’s career
‘This Note’s For You’ was Neil Young’s furious challenge to big business. It wasn’t the last time he’d take on The Man
1970: this cult visionary makes his masterpiece. But it flops – and within five years, he’s dead
Tim Buckley’s second album of 1970, Starsailor is a life-affirming blast of musical freedom that is still blowing minds today
How America’s worst behaved band made one of the 1980s' greatest albums
The Minneapolis troublemakers’ third album, Let It Be, should have made them stars… but as ever, the allure of the self-destruct button was powerful
How the Eagles invented California rock… in freezing, miserable London
Their sound defined mid-70s California, but they perfected it during a residency as a ski lodge house band and a drizzly British winter
'I knew if I didn't fire him, I'd probably die': the troubled making of one of rock's greatest albums
Wilco were falling apart, then they were dropped by their record label. But when Yankee Hotel Foxtrot was finally released, it was an instant classic
Why Keith Richards hates Donald Trump – and 14 more wild Rolling Stones facts
They're one of the most celebrated rock bands of all time, but even hardcore Stones fans might get some satisfaction from these little-known stories
We ranked the 18 greatest rock soundtrack moments of the 1990s
The perfect song can make a great movie scene unforgettable, as these classic tracks prove
15 legendary songs their own bands walked away from (and the surprising reasons why)
From superstition to simply hating the song, these artists all had reasons to stop playing their most loved songs
The heartbreaking story behind one of rock's most beautiful albums
David Crosby's 1971 album 'If I Could Only Remember My Name' was his masterpiece. But he had to go through a lot of pain to get there
