Elvis Costello's 500 Must Own 500 Albums – F – H

By Iman Lababedi / June 29, 2013

In my search for a story about Bobby “Blue Bland” I found myself on a “Vanity Fair” page with Elvis Costello’s 500 Albums essential To A Happy Life, which I dumbed down to Must Own. Reading it through it is a bit of a cheart, way too many Greatest Hits and some frankly baffling choices (if you must own any Marianne Faithful album, own a Greatest Hits or Broken English) and a huge whole where hip hop should be. I am not a Jay-Z fanatic but cmon, where is Reasonable Doubt and Hark Knock Life, Vol 2??

However, his Costello’s list not mine so…

Duke Ellington

Anatomy Of A Murder(1959)

Haupe

…And His Mother Called Him Bill(1968)

Blood Count

The Centennial Edition: The Complete RCA Victor Recordings(boxed set; 1999)

East St. Louis Toodle-oo

In A Sentimental Mood

Tonk

Duke Ellington with Charles Mingus and Max Roach

Money Jungle(1962)

Wig Wise

Eminem

The Marshall Mathers LP(2000)

The Way I Am

The Bill Evans Trio

Waltz For Debby(1961)

Waltz For Debby

The Gil Evans Orchestra

Out Of The Cool(1960)

Where Flamingos Fly

The Everly Brothers

It’s Everly Time(1960)

Sleepless Nights

The Fairfield Four

I Couldn’t Hear Nobody Pray(1997)

There Must Be A City

Marianne Faithfull

Blazing Away(1990)

Strange Weather

Georgie Fame

Sound Venture(1966)

Funny How Time Slips Away

Gabriel Fauré

L’Horizon Chimérique (baritone: Gerard Souzay; 1999)

Morton Feldman

Madame Press Died Last Week At Ninety (1991) (conductor on “American Elegies”: John Adams)

Ella Fitzgerald

Ella Fitzgerald Sings The Cole Porter Songbook(1956)

Miss Otis Regrets

Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong

The Complete Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong on Verve(1997)

Let’s Do It

Fleetwood Mac

Greatest Hits(1971)

Man Of The World

The Flying Burrito Brothers

The Gilded Palace Of Sin(1969)

Juanita

The Four Tops

Anthology(1974)

Seven Rooms Of Gloom

Aretha Franklin

I Never Loved A Man The Way I Love You(1967)

Do Right Woman-Do Right Man

Dr. Feelgood (Love Is A Serious Business)

Soul Serenade,” etc., etc.

Aretha’s Gold(1969)

I Say A Little Prayer

Chain Of Fools

(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman

Amazing Grace (1972)

Bill Frisell

Quartet(1996)

Egg Radio

Fugees

The Score(1996)

Ready Or Not

Funkadelic

One Nation Under A Groove (1978)

Marvin Gaye

Super Hits(1970)

The End Of Our Road

What’s Going On (1971)

Let’s Get It On (1973)

Here, My Dear(1979)

When Did You Stop Loving Me, When Did I Stop Loving You

Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell

Greatest Hits(1970)

You Ain’t Livin’ Till You’re Lovin’

Stan Getz

Stan Getz Plays(1952)

Stella By Starlight

Stan Getz and Astrud Gilberto

Getz/Gilberto(1963)

Desafinado (Off Key)

Dizzy Gillespie

Perceptions(1961)

The Sword Of Orion

Allen Ginsberg

The Lion For Real (1989)

Graham Central Station

Release Yourself (1974)

Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five and the Sugar Hill Gang

Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five vs. the Sugar Hill Gang(1997)

Grateful Dead

Workingman’s Dead(1970)

Dire Wolf

American Beauty(1970)

Box Of Rain

Europe ’72(1972)

Wake Of The Flood(1973)

Stella Blue

Al Green

Call Me (1973)

You Say It! Raw! Rare! And Unreleased!(1990)

I’m A Ram

Edvard Grieg

Lieder (soloist: Anne Sofie von Otter; 1993)

Haugtussa

Charles Haden and Hank Jones

Steal Away(1995)

Hymn Medley: Abide With Me, etc

Merle Haggard

The Best Of The Best Of(1972)

No Reason To Quit

George Frideric Handel

Marian Cantatas (mezzo-soprano: Anne Sofie von Otter; 1994)

Heroes(countertenor: Andreas Scholl; 1999)

“Ombra mai fu” from Serse

Tim Hardin

Tim Hardin(1966)

How Can We Hang On To A Dream?

Slim Harpo

The Best Of Slim Harpo(1997)

I’m A King Bee

Emmylou Harris

Elite Hotel(1976)

One Of These Days

PJ Harvey

Rid Of Me(1993)

50 Ft. Queenie

Coleman Hawkins

Body And Soul (1988)

Rainbow Mist(1993)

Yesterdays

Joseph Haydn

Complete Piano Sonatas (Alfred Brendel; 1987)

String Quartets (Quatuor Mosaïques; 1990)

Tubby Hayes

Tubby’s Groove(1959)

Embers

Richard Hell and The Voidoids

Blank Generation(1977)

New Pleasure

Jimi Hendrix

Smash Hits(1968)

The Wind Cries Mary

Electric Ladyland(1968)

Crosstown Traffic

Live At Woodstock(1994)

Star Spangled Banner

The Heptones

Night Food(1976)

I’ve Got The Handle

Dan Hicks & His Hot Licks

Last Train To Hicksville . . . The Home To Happy Feet(1973)

It’s Not My Time To Go

Lauryn Hill

The Miseducation Of Lauryn Hill(1998)

Ex-Factor

Johnny Hodges

Passion Flower(1995)

Day Dream

Billie Holiday

Lady In Satin(1958

Glad To Be Unhappy)

I’m A Fool To Want You

The Billie Holiday Story(1972)

The Man I Love

Body And Soul

The Complete Decca Recordings(1991)

Don’t Explain

The Hollies

The Best Of The Hollies(1978)

Look Through Any Window

Howlin’ Wolf

His Best(1997)