The prestigious Mercury Prize has come around again, designed to celebrate artistic excellence and provide a snapshot of the meritable music of the moment.
Granted, not every winner will be unanimously agreed upon for such a subjective activity, but looking back since the award’s inception in 1992, there’s certainly been some surprises. Here’s an album that was overlooked for every Mercury Prize.
Don’t mistake me for Kanye at the 2009 VMAs or causing some grand fuss. This isn’t about punching down; merely a look at who else could and, in some cases should, have won. Thankfully, if you ever feel a moment of ire in reading some of the more surprising omissions, just remember: we live in a world where you still get to listen to the one who didn’t win. And what a marvellous thing that is.
1992 – Saint Etienne, Foxbase Alpha (Winner: Primal Scream, Screamadelica)
Saint Etienne, Foxbase Alpha
Okay, so we admittedly begin with the fact that Primal Scream’s Screamadelica is certainly a worthy winner. With one of the most instantly recognisable album covers – from Creation Records’ Paul Cannell, who was inspired by seeing a damp patch while on acid – this album has stood the test of time. Perhaps the Mercury Prize creators, Jon Webster and Robert Chandler, put in a special effort for the award’s first year to pick a strong winner; nonetheless, judging by the rest of the list, you feel Saint Etienne’s superb Foxbase Alpha would have won it in a different year.
1993 – PJ Harvey, Rid Of Me (Winner: Suede, Suede)
PJ Harvey, Rid Of Me
I’m not exactly covering myself in glory here. The self-titled debut from one of the pioneers of Britpop was equally a worthy winner. I didn’t say they’d always get it wrong… but still, PJ Harvey’s Rid Of Me would have been a solid champion. Maybe the organisers had some pre-emptive foresight into the success she’d later have – as the only artist to win the Mercury twice – and were simply saving her successes for down the line.
1994 – Blur, Parklife (Winner: M People, Elegant Slumming)
Blur, Parklife
Here we go. The first real upset. For many, Blur’s Parklife, with its titular rowdy single, was the embodiment of an era. But the win went to M People’s Elegant Slumming – a decent album to play in the background to a dinner party but whether it’s had a timeless memorability is very questionable. Spare a thought for Justine Frischmann of Elastica, who was Damon Albarn’s girlfriend at the time. “There goes my fridge freezer,” she apparently said at the time the award was announced. We hope she got it eventually.
1995 – PJ Harvey, To Bring You My Love AND Oasis, Definitely Maybe (Winner: Portishead, Dummy)
PJ Harvey, To Bring You My Love
I’ve already mentioned the Mercury Prize founder’s foresight regarding PJ Harvey, though it’s still odd that overall it would be her album To Bring You My Love, which for many is her best, that didn’t pick up a win. The bigger surprise is that the album which announced Oasis to the world and included singles ‘Supersonic’ and ‘Rock n’ Roll Star’ didn’t win. That said, Portishead’s seminal trip-hop record Dummy was well-worth the win at the time, minimising the surprise.
1996 – Oasis, What’s The Story (Morning Glory)? AND Underworld, Second Toughest In The Infants (Winner: Pulp, Different Class)
Oasis, What’s The Story (Morning Glory)?
And yet… if Oasis didn’t win for their debut, you feel they at least should have bagged the victory for their huge follow-up, which remains one of the best-selling albums of all time. It’s not all about sales, of course, and, led by Jarvis Cocker, Pulp are hard to dislike or feel grievance towards. Still, the fact the Gallagher brothers haven’t won a Mercury Prize is something of a snub. Underworld’s Second Toughest In The Infants is also an absolute peach and, though maybe a bit esoteric for the win, still deserves a shoutout.
1997 – Radiohead, OK Computer (Winner: Roni Size / Reprazent, New Forms)
Radiohead, OK Computer
Now the confusion sets in. Oasis not winning a Mercury is one thing, but Radiohead never having won is quite another. With all due respect to Bristol legend Roni Size, for an award to claim it’s “the music equivalent to the Booker Prize for literature and the Turner Prize for art” and not present Radiohead with at least one win – for which their angsty, technophobic OK Computer was worthy – is like snubbing Ishiguro or Atwood, Hirst or Emin.
1998 – Massive Attack, Mezzanine (Winner: Gomez, Bring It On)
Massive Attack, Mezzanine
Appreciating all the work Gomez’ Tom Gray has done with the Broken Record campaign, highlighting the failings in the age of streaming, Massive Attack’s Mezzanine has almost certainly had a greater legacy than Bring It On. A good album? Yes. A great album? I wouldn’t say so. That accolade can be bestowed upon the eerie, atmospheric Mezzanine, though.
1999 – Blur, 13 AND Faithless, Sunday 8PM (Winner: Talvin Singh, OK)
Blur, 13
It’s not always great to criticise the underdog; sometimes, it’s worth lifting them up. I get that. But can you say Talvin Singh’s OK is a better album than Blur’s 13 with a straight face? Or even Faithless’ wonderfully varied Sunday 8PM? I think not. If you beg to differ, you have my email: teddy@whynow.co.uk. I dare you.
2000 – Coldplay, Parachutes AND Doves, Lost Souls AND MJ Cole, Sincere (Winner: Badly Drawn Boy, The Hour Of Bewilderbeast)
MJ Cole, Sincere
I’m a big fan of Damon Gough, aka Badly Drawn Boy. The Dunstable multi-instrumentalist’s The Hour Of Bewilderbeast is a lengthy, alluring affair. But Doves’ Lost Souls could have been a contender; MJ Cole’s Sincere could have won as a way of kickstarting the 21st century, whilst paying homage to the 90s; and, hear me out, forget the anodyne output you associate them with, but Coldplay’s Parachutes is actually a very enjoyable record.
2001 – Zero 7, Simple Things AND Radiohead, Amnesiac AND Gorillaz, Gorillaz (withdrew) (Winner: PJ Harvey, Stories From The City, Stories From The Sea)
Zero 7, Simple Things
PJ Harvey’s first Mercury win was for a respectable album. But you wonder if Gorillaz hadn’t dropped out of the running, citing the award as “like carrying a dead albatross round your neck for eternity”, what the end-result would have been. Zero 7’s easy-to-listen-to debut Simple Things might have been a leftfield but commendable choice. And, just to reiterate, how Radiohead still weren’t awarded a Mercury (even if Amnesiac is by no means their best) remains a mystery.
2002 – The Streets, Original Pirate Material (Winner: Ms. Dynamite, A Little Deeper)
The Streets, Original Pirate Material
In fairness, not only is Ms. Dynamite’s A Little Deeper a respectable album, the singer and rapper also donated her £20,000 winnings away – to the NSPCC, to a charity helping children with sickle cell disease and to the Caribbean studies department of the Metropolitan University where her mum did her degree, which was facing closure at the time. Fair play indeed; but you have to say, The Streets’ Original Pirate Material has stood the test of time far better.
2003 – Radiohead, Hail To The Thief (Winner: Dizzee Rascal, Boy In Da Corner)
Radiohead, Hail To The Thief
Another fully-deserved winner. If you observe this list and the rest of the nominees, you can see the strands of influence and evolution in sounds. Dizzee Rascal’s Boy In Da Corner was a seminal record for bringing mainstream exposure to grime music – and remains as fresh listening today as it did twenty years ago.
2004 – Amy Winehouse, Frank AND The Streets, A Grand Don’t Come For Free (Winner: Franz Ferdinand, Franz Ferdinand)
The Streets, A Grand Don’t Come For Free
Another snub for The Streets. A Grand Don’t Come For Free remains one of the best acts of storytelling in album of the 21st century. Equally, Amy Winehouse’s debut – named after one of her greatest influences, Frank Sinatra – should absolutely have won over Franz Ferdinand’s self-titled album.
2005 – Bloc Party, Silent Alarm (Winner: Antony And The Johnsons, I Am A Bird Now)
Bloc Party, Silent Alarm
Not a major fuss here. Antony And The Johnsons’ gorgeous I Am A Bird Now is an arresting album that, to its credit, received the biggest jump in sales upon winning the Mercury Prize in the award’s history. Still, it would be a shame to exclude a year on account of the winner actually being spot-on, so Bloc Party’s Silent Alarm could have realistically won for very different sonic reasons – perhaps if the judges were feeling a bit more rambunctious on the day.
2006 – Hot Chip, The Warning (Winner: Arctic Monkeys, Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not)
Hot Chip, The Warning
I’m not one to criticise Arctic Monkeys, whose ever-shifting catalogue is one of the best in recent times. And if their latest single is anything to go by, we’re in for yet another gem of an album. Hot Chip’s The Warning, however, still has the ability to get people grooving, over and over and over and over and over… like a… you get the reference. 2006 was a decent year for music.
2007 – Jamie T, Panic Prevention (Winner: Klaxons, Myths Of The Near Future)
Jamie T, Panic Prevention
Yes, the warbling of Klaxons’ ‘Golden Skans’ is an instantly recognisable timestamp of the mid-to-late-noughties, but Jamie T’s Panic Prevention is arguably a more complete album in total, whilst still containing the odd singular, British banger like ‘Sheila’ and ‘If You Got The Money’. It’s close, but if I had my way, Jamie T would have won it.
2008 – Burial, Untrue AND Laura Marling, Alas I Cannot Swim AND Radiohead, In Rainbows AND Adele, 19; (Winner: Elbow, The Seldom Seen Kid)
Adele, 19
Last chance to moan about Radiohead not winning a Mercury. Now that’s over, Adele might now be an award-winning machine, but she wasn’t when her debut came out – and it’s a fantastic record, capturing her life and spirit before she went major. Laura Marling’s Alas I Cannot Swim is easily on-par, if not better than, Elbow’s winning album, whilst Burial’s Untrue remains an album with cult status (though in truth it’s probably too abstruse to have won).
2009 – Florence + the Machine, Lungs AND La Roux, La Roux AND Friendly Fires, Friendly Fires (Winner: Speech Debelle, Speech Therapy)
Florence + the Machine, Lungs
Among the winners, Speech Debelle is probably the artist to have benefitted the least from winning the Mercury Prize. Though her album Speech Therapy is worth a listen (the track ‘Searching’ creeps up on you in a powerful way), to say it was superior to the debut albums from Florence + the Machine, La Roux, or Friendly Fires’ equally eponymous record is about as close to an objective inaccuracy as you can make in music.
2010 – Foals, Total Life Forever AND Laura Marling, I Speak Because I Can (Winner: The XX, The xx)
Laura Marling, I Speak Because I Can
We’re back to a bit of common sense here. Though Laura Marling’s I Speak Because I Can and Foals’ Total Life Forever are very strong contenders, The XX’s glorious debut, with its ‘Intro’ that you couldn’t escape from, had that incredibly novel quality, like nothing you’d quite heard before.
2011 – Metronomy, The English Riviera AND James Blake, James Blake AND Ghostpoet, Peanut Butter Blues and Melancholy Jam (Winner: PJ Harvey, Let England Shake)
James Blake, James Blake
PJ Harvey’s second win – and I won’t criticise the Queen of Mercury for a moment. But whether her Let England Shake album was worth the victory of James Blake’s jittery self-titled debut is grounds for debate. (And then, in its totality, why that won and not To Bring You My Love, is equally eyebrow-raising).
2012 – Michael Kiwanuka, Home Again (Winner: Alt-J, An Awesome Wave)
Michael Kiwanuka, Home Again
Another complaint-free Mercury, with the win going to quirky Leeds outfit alt-J, whose debut, true to its name, hits you with a wave of intricate sonic pleasure. But if Michael Kiwanuka’s Home Again had won, there would likely have been few complaints.
2013 – Arctic Monkeys, AM AND Jon Hopkins, Immunity (Winner: James Blake, Overgrown)
Arctic Monkeys, AM
Thankfully James Blake has deservedly picked up at least one gong from Mercury. That said, Arctic Monkeys’ AM and even Jon Hopkins’ complexly-produced Immunity could have taken the victory on another day – especially considering the other albums on the list to have won.
2014 – FKA Twigs, LP1 AND Royal Blood, Royal Blood (Winner: Young Fathers, Dead)
FKA Twigs, LP1
The main talking point here is not that Young Fathers weren’t deserving of the win – although FKA Twigs’ LP1 and Royal Blood’s eponymous debut could quite conceivably have won too – but the fact they perhaps haven’t kicked-on as much as they could have done since their win. The Edinburgh trio have everything: energy, depth and a real live stage presence. But they arguably haven’t developed as much as fans would have hoped since winning the Mercury Prize for DEAD. Maybe the award was more of a burden than a propellant.
2015: Jamie xx, In Colour AND Wolf Alice, My Love Is Cool (Winner: Benjamin Clementine, At Least For Now)
Jamie xx, In Colour
Benjamin Clementine no doubt has one of the best stories to tell among the Mercury Prize winners. Having been homeless before being discovered busking in Paris, the elegant artist had an album full of torment derived from trying to get by. Nonetheless, Jamie xx’s debut solo record, having split from his previous Mercury Prize-winning troupe, is a surprising album not to have won.
2016: David Bowie, Blackstar (Winner: Skepta, Konnichiwa)
David Bowie, Blackstar
David Bowie, one of the greatest artists of all time, died two days after the release of his final record. With notable references to the prospect of death – especially in the track ‘Lazarus’ (“Look up here, I’m in heaven”) – you would have thought an album made in such a context, which also happens to be good (granted, not Bowie’s best, but give him a break), would be odds-on to win the prize. You shouldn’t award it just for the fact of someone’s dying, of course, but this would have been an opportune moment to both celebrate and add to the legend’s legacy. Instead, Skepta’ decent Konnichiwa won. It’s still a puzzling one.
2017: J Hus, Common Sense AND Blossoms, Blossoms AND Stormzy, Gang Signs & Prayer (Winner: Sampha, Process)
Stormzy, Gang Signs & Prayer
The Guardian’s Alexis Petridis certainly had a point when writing that the judging panel in 2017 were playing it somewhat safe with their nominations, which ranged from big names like Sleaford Mods and Laura Marling, to the more interesting output of Jane Weaver or Actress. Still, Sampha’s Process wasn’t a terrible win – even if it did somewhat surprisingly beat Stormzy in the process.
2018: Sons of Kemet, Your Queen is a Reptile AND King Krule, The Ooze; Arctic Monkeys, Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino (Winner: Wolf Alice, Visions Of A Life)
Arctic Monkeys, Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino
Wolf Alice improved on their 2015 album, honing their songwriting, their sound and went from making a good record to a great record – one that was certainly worthy of its gong at the Mercury awards in 2017. Still, King Krule’s The Ooze and Arctic Monkeys’ Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino, even if it divided fans, could have scooped the top prize.
2019: IDLES, Joy as an Act of Resistance; slowthai, Nothing Great About Britain (Winner: Dave, Psychodrama)
IDLES, Joy as an Act of Resistance
More sense here. Dave’s Psychodrama was, as its title suggests, both immensely introspective whilst still managing to tackle wide-ranging issues. Its reportage-style circularity makes it an album that will be returned to for the foreseeable (even if that might still be a bit too early to tell). Still, slowthai’s Nothing Great About Britain might have won another year – and you hope IDLES pick up a Mercury at some point in the future.
2020: Charli XCX, how i’m feeling now (Winner: Michael Kiwanuka, KIWANUKA)
Charli XCX, how i’m feeling now
Michael Kiwanuka should always have at least one Mercury Prize to his name; something you feel his superb debut Home Again could have brought him. But if the Mercury Awards are a lookback and reflection of the times, then Charli XCX’s how i’m feeling now, made during lockdown with the help of fans, would have been a brilliant surmising of those strange days we all went through.
2021: Celeste, Not Your Muse; Sault, Untitled (Rise) (Winner: Arlo Parks, Collapsed In Sunbeams)
Celeste, Not Your Muse
Arlo Parks was certainly not the most undeserving winner of all-time. Having got to the end of this list, you’ll know that much is clear. But Celeste’s Not Your Muse or Untitled (Rise) from the anonymous yet brilliant Sault could quite easily have won last year.
We await to see who the judges will pick this time round…
