Ian McHugh
@tonemonkey.bsky.social
I’m a blues musician and DJ, host of Blues is the Truth and compère at the Ealing Blues Festival. Currently working my way through listening to Rolling Stone magazine’s top 500 albums of all time and sharing my opinions which are many.
145/500 Eminem-The Marshall Mathers LP. At times I think it’s funny, others it’s deep, undoubtedly it was a hit factory. It is puerile nonsense for a large amount but when it hits it’s amazing. #500best2020 #BestAlbums
January 22, 2026 at 8:59 AM
145/500 Eminem-The Marshall Mathers LP. At times I think it’s funny, others it’s deep, undoubtedly it was a hit factory. It is puerile nonsense for a large amount but when it hits it’s amazing. #500best2020 #BestAlbums
146/500 Pretenders-Parallel Lines. So many songs you know it almost feels like a greatest hits, but no, this is one of those rare albums where every song could be a single, and many of them were and massive hits. Great. #500best2020 #BestAlbums
January 21, 2026 at 8:51 AM
146/500 Pretenders-Parallel Lines. So many songs you know it almost feels like a greatest hits, but no, this is one of those rare albums where every song could be a single, and many of them were and massive hits. Great. #500best2020 #BestAlbums
147/500 Jeff Buckley-Grace. So much more than hallelujah though that stands as a masterpiece, there’s rage and beauty and love and lust. Lover you should have come over has been in my head since I listened , and I don’t want it to leave. #500best2020 #BestAlbums
January 20, 2026 at 3:02 PM
147/500 Jeff Buckley-Grace. So much more than hallelujah though that stands as a masterpiece, there’s rage and beauty and love and lust. Lover you should have come over has been in my head since I listened , and I don’t want it to leave. #500best2020 #BestAlbums
148/500 Frank Ocean-Channel Orange. It’s one that’s hard to put your finger on. I like it, a lot, but I’m not sure entirely why. Is that a bad thing? No. It just makes it hard to tell you about it on here. Just go listen. #500best2020 #BestAlbums
January 19, 2026 at 8:53 AM
148/500 Frank Ocean-Channel Orange. It’s one that’s hard to put your finger on. I like it, a lot, but I’m not sure entirely why. Is that a bad thing? No. It just makes it hard to tell you about it on here. Just go listen. #500best2020 #BestAlbums
149/500 John Prine-John Prine. Definitely more obscure than he should be at least in the UK this is an album filled with clever songs and witty lyrics abound. Telling politically. I don’t think everyone learned the lessons though. #500best2020 #BestAlbums
January 18, 2026 at 9:14 AM
149/500 John Prine-John Prine. Definitely more obscure than he should be at least in the UK this is an album filled with clever songs and witty lyrics abound. Telling politically. I don’t think everyone learned the lessons though. #500best2020 #BestAlbums
Back to the regular groove on Blues is the Truth, hosted by Ian McHugh. All the usual features and a great spread of blues from Junior Watson, BB King, Buddy Guy, John Primer, Sugaray Rayford, Muddy Waters and more. Settle in and enjoy
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hearthis.at/ian-mchugh/b...
Blues is the Truth 786
by Blues is the Truth on hearthis.at | Blues
hearthis.at
January 17, 2026 at 8:21 PM
Back to the regular groove on Blues is the Truth, hosted by Ian McHugh. All the usual features and a great spread of blues from Junior Watson, BB King, Buddy Guy, John Primer, Sugaray Rayford, Muddy Waters and more. Settle in and enjoy
hearthis.at/ian-mchugh/b...
hearthis.at/ian-mchugh/b...
150/500 Bruce Springsteen-Nebraska. Not the biggest or most in your face of Bruce’s albums, but a beautiful one. A soundtrack worthy of big skies and endless roads, just as it should be. #500best2020 #BestAlbums
January 17, 2026 at 10:09 AM
150/500 Bruce Springsteen-Nebraska. Not the biggest or most in your face of Bruce’s albums, but a beautiful one. A soundtrack worthy of big skies and endless roads, just as it should be. #500best2020 #BestAlbums
151/500 George Michael-Faith. An album I didn’t give much time to as a kid, but now, beyond the odd put on gruff vocal think is pretty damn good. Finding your feet outside of teeny pop blandness is rarely so well executed. #500best2020 #BestAlbums
January 16, 2026 at 8:50 AM
151/500 George Michael-Faith. An album I didn’t give much time to as a kid, but now, beyond the odd put on gruff vocal think is pretty damn good. Finding your feet outside of teeny pop blandness is rarely so well executed. #500best2020 #BestAlbums
152/500 Pretenders-Pretenders. I’ve always quite liked this lot, the style, the mildly punky attitude mixed with ability to write a song and play an instrument. This has left me a little nonplussed. The excitement didn’t start for me until Brass in Pocket and that’s right at the end. #BestAlbums
January 15, 2026 at 8:57 AM
152/500 Pretenders-Pretenders. I’ve always quite liked this lot, the style, the mildly punky attitude mixed with ability to write a song and play an instrument. This has left me a little nonplussed. The excitement didn’t start for me until Brass in Pocket and that’s right at the end. #BestAlbums
153/500 PJ Harvey-Rid of Me. Not a comfortable listen, but it’s not meant to be. Harsh in places, gritty and honest. Not one for the darker days? No. Perfect for the darkest ones. #500best2020 #BestAlbums
January 14, 2026 at 3:27 PM
153/500 PJ Harvey-Rid of Me. Not a comfortable listen, but it’s not meant to be. Harsh in places, gritty and honest. Not one for the darker days? No. Perfect for the darkest ones. #500best2020 #BestAlbums
154/500 Aretha Franklin-Amazing Grace. Gospel music is wonderful stuff. It almost makes me want to be religious. Gospel music made by this woman could just about do the job. Sublime and moving in every possible way. I am still not religious though. #500best2020 #BestAlbums
January 13, 2026 at 10:21 AM
154/500 Aretha Franklin-Amazing Grace. Gospel music is wonderful stuff. It almost makes me want to be religious. Gospel music made by this woman could just about do the job. Sublime and moving in every possible way. I am still not religious though. #500best2020 #BestAlbums
155/500 Jay Z-The Black Album. What started out interesting and with hope ended with the old trope of I’m the best drug dealer there ever was. Not one for me. Music at is best is universal. It connects. This does not for me. #500best2020 #BestAlbums
January 12, 2026 at 9:10 AM
155/500 Jay Z-The Black Album. What started out interesting and with hope ended with the old trope of I’m the best drug dealer there ever was. Not one for me. Music at is best is universal. It connects. This does not for me. #500best2020 #BestAlbums
156/500 The Replacements-Let it Be. The opening song is great but the rest, for me, don’t match it. I don’t hate it, a long way from it, but it’s one of those records that needs another couple of magic moments which I just didn’t find. #500best2020 #BestAlbums
January 11, 2026 at 1:26 PM
156/500 The Replacements-Let it Be. The opening song is great but the rest, for me, don’t match it. I don’t hate it, a long way from it, but it’s one of those records that needs another couple of magic moments which I just didn’t find. #500best2020 #BestAlbums
Reposted by Ian McHugh
Best of 2025 vibes on Blues is the Truth, hosted by Ian McHugh. A year of great blues distilled into one show with music from Andrew Duncanson and Emma Wilson alongside some absolute favourites from the last 12 months. Dive in and enjoy
hearthis.at/ian-mchugh/b...
hearthis.at/ian-mchugh/b...
Blues is the Truth 785 Sort of Best of 2025
by Blues is the Truth on hearthis.at | Blues
hearthis.at
January 10, 2026 at 8:03 PM
Best of 2025 vibes on Blues is the Truth, hosted by Ian McHugh. A year of great blues distilled into one show with music from Andrew Duncanson and Emma Wilson alongside some absolute favourites from the last 12 months. Dive in and enjoy
hearthis.at/ian-mchugh/b...
hearthis.at/ian-mchugh/b...
Best of 2025 vibes on Blues is the Truth, hosted by Ian McHugh. A year of great blues distilled into one show with music from Andrew Duncanson and Emma Wilson alongside some absolute favourites from the last 12 months. Dive in and enjoy
hearthis.at/ian-mchugh/b...
hearthis.at/ian-mchugh/b...
Blues is the Truth 785 Sort of Best of 2025
by Blues is the Truth on hearthis.at | Blues
hearthis.at
January 10, 2026 at 8:03 PM
Best of 2025 vibes on Blues is the Truth, hosted by Ian McHugh. A year of great blues distilled into one show with music from Andrew Duncanson and Emma Wilson alongside some absolute favourites from the last 12 months. Dive in and enjoy
hearthis.at/ian-mchugh/b...
hearthis.at/ian-mchugh/b...
157/500 Oasis-(What’s the Story) Morning Glory. Look at me and you might think I enjoyed this in a wave of nostalgia. The only memories it brought up was thinking how people were falling for this derivative half competently played bollocks. Really not my thing. #500best2020 #bestalbums
January 10, 2026 at 8:23 AM
157/500 Oasis-(What’s the Story) Morning Glory. Look at me and you might think I enjoyed this in a wave of nostalgia. The only memories it brought up was thinking how people were falling for this derivative half competently played bollocks. Really not my thing. #500best2020 #bestalbums
158/500 Erykah Badu- Mama’s Gun. It’s hard to know how to describe this record. It’s jazz,soul, funk, neo soul. Part confessional and part palace of groove. Without borders. Wonderful. #500best2020 #BestAlbums
January 9, 2026 at 10:21 AM
158/500 Erykah Badu- Mama’s Gun. It’s hard to know how to describe this record. It’s jazz,soul, funk, neo soul. Part confessional and part palace of groove. Without borders. Wonderful. #500best2020 #BestAlbums
159/500 The Police-Syncronicity. A couple of great singles on this, but also some trying to be clever musicianship and some banal lyrics about dinosaurs that only serve to make you realise why the singles were chosen. There are better albums from the Police. #500best2020 #BestAlbums
January 8, 2026 at 12:29 PM
159/500 The Police-Syncronicity. A couple of great singles on this, but also some trying to be clever musicianship and some banal lyrics about dinosaurs that only serve to make you realise why the singles were chosen. There are better albums from the Police. #500best2020 #BestAlbums
160/500 Pearl Jam-Ten. Memories of hearing this for the first time and thinking it was pretty damn cool. My opinion hasn’t changed that much. It’s reasonably groovy, it rocks, the songs are decent. What’s not to like really? #500best2020 #Bestalbums
January 7, 2026 at 7:38 PM
160/500 Pearl Jam-Ten. Memories of hearing this for the first time and thinking it was pretty damn cool. My opinion hasn’t changed that much. It’s reasonably groovy, it rocks, the songs are decent. What’s not to like really? #500best2020 #Bestalbums
161/500 Crosby, Stills and Nash-Crosby, Stills and Nash. Brilliant. The harmonies, performance, songwriting and execution all sublime. It’s really clever without sounding anything more than some guys in a room playing songs, and therein lies its brilliance. #500best2020 #BestAlbums
January 6, 2026 at 10:24 AM
161/500 Crosby, Stills and Nash-Crosby, Stills and Nash. Brilliant. The harmonies, performance, songwriting and execution all sublime. It’s really clever without sounding anything more than some guys in a room playing songs, and therein lies its brilliance. #500best2020 #BestAlbums
162/500 Pulp-Different Class. The best of Brit pop, if you must give them that label. Songs that were clever and spoke to me, talking of my life and characters I recognise . Much more than Oasis or Blur these feel like real people with flaws and ambitions. I listened twice. #BestAlbums #500best2020
January 5, 2026 at 10:26 AM
162/500 Pulp-Different Class. The best of Brit pop, if you must give them that label. Songs that were clever and spoke to me, talking of my life and characters I recognise . Much more than Oasis or Blur these feel like real people with flaws and ambitions. I listened twice. #BestAlbums #500best2020
163/500 Various-Saturday Night Fever. A soundtrack that showcases the best and worst of the disco phenomenon. Pure pop from the BeeGees, excitement in the shape of Disco Inferno and some dross in the shape of hooked on classics style instrumentals. #BestAlbums #500best2020.
January 4, 2026 at 9:45 AM
163/500 Various-Saturday Night Fever. A soundtrack that showcases the best and worst of the disco phenomenon. Pure pop from the BeeGees, excitement in the shape of Disco Inferno and some dross in the shape of hooked on classics style instrumentals. #BestAlbums #500best2020.
164/500 Johnny Cash-Live at Folsom Prison. A great live album, Cash is on form, having fun, and performing something with an edge. If only modern country musicians would realise that this is where it’s at… #500best2020 #BestAlbums
January 3, 2026 at 4:36 PM
164/500 Johnny Cash-Live at Folsom Prison. A great live album, Cash is on form, having fun, and performing something with an edge. If only modern country musicians would realise that this is where it’s at… #500best2020 #BestAlbums
165/500 REM-Murmur. Artful but it doesn’t let the clever get in the way of a decent tune. I’m never sure if this is my favourite REM album but it’s generally in the top two. #500best2020 #BestAlbums
January 2, 2026 at 3:59 PM
165/500 REM-Murmur. Artful but it doesn’t let the clever get in the way of a decent tune. I’m never sure if this is my favourite REM album but it’s generally in the top two. #500best2020 #BestAlbums
166/500 Buddy Holly-20 Golden Greats. Despite this having some great songs , including a real favourite (Well Alright) it’s a compilation and therefore does not belong. #500best2020 #BestAlbums
January 1, 2026 at 11:03 AM
166/500 Buddy Holly-20 Golden Greats. Despite this having some great songs , including a real favourite (Well Alright) it’s a compilation and therefore does not belong. #500best2020 #BestAlbums