#131 Portishead, 'Dummy' (1994)

Previously #419

One of the most interesting and exciting records of the ‘90s, ‘Dummy’ is the debut album by Bristol Trip Hop act, Portishead. Members, Geoff Barrow and Beth Gibbons, who met on a course in 1991 first started putting their ideas together in Neneh Cherry’s kitchen while Barrow worked on her album, Cameron McVey’s record, ‘Homebrew’ (this is the second time Cherry has popped up on this list without actually having a record include; third if you count the fact that her father, Don Cherry was on Ornette Coleman’s ‘The Shape Of Jazz To Come’). While Portishead didn’t invent Trip Hop, they certainly pioneered and popularized it. This record brought elements of Hip Hop such as sampling and scratching together with electronic music with Gibbons’s stunningly haunting vocals floating on top of the music. I can’t quite put my finger on it, but Portishead is like nothing I’d ever heard, nor heard since. It has its own unique sound a feel. Incredibly ‘90s, yet still so fresh.

The album opens with ‘Mysterons,’ a ghostly sounding song with great drumming played by Jazz drummer, Clive Deamer. Once we get to the second track, ‘Sour Times,’ it’s on. This song grabbed me the first time I heard it, which was probably around 1996 or 1997, I’d say. Into ‘Strangers’ before slowing down at ‘It Could Be Sweet.’ Gibbons’s voice sounds amazing on this track. ‘Wandering Star’ features my favourite sample on the record, War’s ‘Magic Mountain.’ ‘Numb,’ the first single from the record, is another highlight. Once again, Gibbons shines on ‘Road.’ Portishead saved the best for last in the case of ‘Glory Box,’ the final track on the record, truly one of the greatest songs of the ‘90s bringing all the best parts of the album together in one track. The album won the Mercury Music Prize in 1995 beating out Oasis’s ‘Definitely Maybe’ (#217). The critically acclaimed record has sold in excess of 3.6 million copies.

#rs500albums