MY SIX BEST ALBUMS

PALOMA FAITH, 36, has had hits with Picking Up The Pieces, Never Tear Us Apart and Only Love Can Hurt Like This. She also reached No 1 with Changing, a collaboration with Sigma. The Architect Summer Tour starts on May 26 at Bath Festival. palomafaith. com MARVIN GAYE: What’s Going On ( Motown) This inspired me to write the album The Architect which is about the demise of community.

We live in a generation where people are apolitical and over- sensitive so it was difficult to start a political conversation without alienating people.

This was the benchmark album for me because he does it in an inclusive and ambiguous way. NINA SIMONE: Baltimore ( Sony) This conjures up memories of my youth. I was raised by my mum who’s quite a free spirit. She has no rhythm whatsoever but she was so beautiful singing out of time to this.

Simone spoke about social/ political subjects and was an empowering symbol for a young girl – intelligent and talented. ERYKAH BADU: Mama’s Gun ( Universal/ Island) I’d always loved R& B then the neo- soul movement happened. It was inspiring because it had a depth to it, like the soul I’d grown up listening to.

She spoke about issues that appealed to me. MILES DAVIS: Kind Of Blue ( Sony) My dad was a jazz fanatic and every weekend I’d go to his house and he’d ask me to choose a letter. Then he’d go to that section in his massive vinyl collection. We always returned to this one. It defined my relationship with my father but I came to understand it in a musical way. TRACY CHAPMAN: Tracy Chapman ( Rhino) I used to do a lot of road trips with my mum and my stepdad as a kid. We’d often play this. I remember laying on the back seat, feeling the movement of the car and knowing this word for word. AMY WINEHOUSE: Back To Black ( Island) Amy is almost the thread that ties my musical influences together. She had the right mix of what we love from a bygone era and a contemporary style of writing.

I’ve tried, but she was the only one who could sing about having a kebab and make it sound romantic. She left us with a perfect album.