THE bash to announce the short list for the Mercury Music Prize is always a bit of a laugh, more so if you do a bit of insider trading and place some smart money with the bookies on the eventual winner. The Mercury, which is the industry's answer to the Booker prize, is awarded to the best British or Irish album released in the previous 12 months.
When this year's nominees were announced, we were already heading out to put everything we had (£17 as it happens) on Oasis (for What's The Story) but then the impossible and improbable happened the Help album, a charity compilation, got a nomination. The award, and the £25,000 prize, is now as wide open as some people's mouths were when one of our British colleagues announced that anybody who put money on Help and won, should donate it all to the relevant Bosnian relief charity. While rock journalists may be bastards, you see, they are not total bastards she overall winner will be announced at a televised event on September 10th. Here's the short list
1. Oasis (What's The Story) Morning Glory? Funny to think, about all the decidedly lukewarm reviews this album received on release especially when compared to Blur's bog standard The Great Escape. Coming down with sing along lager anthems like Wonderwall, Don't Look Back In Anger and Some Might Say, this would have been a shoe in if it weren't for Help. 2-1.
2. Pulp Different Class Again, stuffed full with hit singles, Jarvis Cocker and Co put 12 years of indie obscurity behind them with this evocative and accomplished collection of pervy English urban/suburban life. Close, but no cigar at 3-1.
3. Various Artists Help There have been some woeful charity compilation albums over the years (remember the Bangladesh disaster), but this snapshot of Britpop during its heyday last year is a robustly cohesive affair, featuring some to die for tracks like Radiohead's Lucky, The Manic Street Preacher's brilliant cover of Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head and Suede doing Shipbuilding. A very good bet at 6-1.
4. Mark Morrison Return Of The Mack You'll know the single, but there's some other good stuff here as well. Very much a representation of re-vamped British soul/swing beat, which (to be honest) explains a lot about its nomination. It's not going to do I at 7-1.
5. Manic Street Preachers Everything Must Go It's great to see the Manics in here, not least because they're the most intelligent lyricists of all the nominees. They've excelled themselves on songs like A Design For Life and the title track and the whole album is shot through with all sorts of wondrous, guitar driven melodies. A good dark horse bet at 8-1.
6. Black Grape It's Great When You're Straight ... Yeah! If the Manic came back from serious personal/personnel problems, Black Grape did a similar Houdini trick with Shaun Ryder getting it together to write and record a stirring series of funked up, dance floor friendly tunes. Hasn't a chance at 9-1 but it's good to see it here all the same.
7. Underworld Second Toughest In The Infants A deserved nomination for the neo-dance band who have always veered towards the more intelligent end of the genre. Also at 9-1 and an equally improbable winner.
8. Norma Watterson Norma Watterson A veteran of the folk circuit but a bit too cool ever to put her finger in her ear and sing about dead sailors. Norma Watterson is a highly respected interpreter of other people's songs and here she shows off her talent to full effect on work by Elvis Costello, Billy Bragg and Jerry Garcia. A very pleasant album but it hasn't a hope at 10-1.
