1000 albums to hear before you dieMusic This article is more than 16 years oldArtists beginning with O
This article is more than 16 years oldO Brother, Where Art Thou?
OST (2000)
The Coen brothers' comedy, released in 2000, ended up sparking a huge revival of interest in "old-time" music, thanks to its soundtrack, produced by T-Bone Burnett. Burnett drew upon US folk music history, with bluegrass, blues and gospel, excerpts from Alan Lomax's field recordings and appearances by Gillian Welch, Alison Krauss and John Hartford.
Mary Margaret O'Hara
Miss America (1988)
Toronto singer-songwriter O'Hara is many things (most of them prefaced by the words "enigmatic" or "eccentric"), but a prolific maker of records she isn't. Miss America remains her only proper album to date - but what an absorbing listen it still is, her distinctive vocal phrasing shimmering with beauty.
The O'Jays
Back Stabbers (1972)
Produced by Gamble & Huff, with string arrangements by Thom Bell, Back Stabbers is a landmark of uptempo Philly Soul, with the title track and Love Train the hardy proto-disco perennials. But on Who Am I and Listen to the Clock on the Wall, the vocal group reached new deep-soul heights.
Oasis
Definitely Maybe (1994)
"It's just rock'n'roll," snarled Liam Gallagher repeatedly at the end of the opening track, Rock'n'Roll Star. And so it was. But it was brilliant rock'n'roll that ignited and defined a generation with its ambition, its swagger and, particularly, its tunes. Few debuts are better.
Phil Ochs
Rehearsals for Retirement (1969)
"You're not a singer, you're a journalist," was Dylan's put-down of militant buddy Ochs in 1965. By 1969,though, Ochs - who took Vietnam and Nixon very personally - was writing the more poetic odes to the death of the American dream. The title was no gag, either - one more album and he was gone.
Ohio Players
Skin Tight (1974)
The seventh album by the Dayton, Ohio, funk-soul brothers represented a turning point as the R&B band incorporated jazz and disco elements. But mainly they excelled at Family Stone/Funkadelic-style dirty funk jams, enhanced by synths and horns.
Omni Trio
The Deepest Cut (1995)
During the mid-90s, drum'n'bass's quest for new sounds moved as fast as its hyper-agile rhythms. Jazz odysseys swiftly followed, but Omni Trio's Rob Haigh maintained a love for the helium rush of rave. His collection of early singles wraps rattling beats(the key track is called Renegade Snares) and timestretched vocals in lush, bittersweet textures.
One Blood
In Love (1981)
Long-forgotten purveyors of early 80s London Lovers Rock, Blackheath's One Blood here produced an acknowledged classic from a genre usually notorious for great 12-inch sides. But with All in the Game and the dub-lite version of Bacharach/David's A House Is Not a Home, this was a consistently fine album of rocksteady romance.
The Only Ones
The Only Ones (1978)
Frontman Peter Perrett was living the Pete Doherty lifestyle long before the Libertine, but found time to add his trademark narcotic drawl to John Perry's skyscraping fretwork in songs as stratospheric as Another Girl, Another Planet. If Babyshambles sounded like this, they'd fill stadiums.
Orange Juice
You Can't Hide Your Love Forever (1982)
The missing link between Buzzcocks and the Smiths, Orange Juice forged a new kind of forlorn, funk-inflected, romantic guitar-pop, with singer Edwyn Collins a new kind of fey, self-debunking male indie frontman. This follow-up to the groundbreaking jangle-singles for the Postcard label was by turns sad and soaring, but always brilliant.
The Orb
The Orb's Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld (1991)
The Orb's debut saw Alex Paterson justify his reputation as the stoned mad scientist of acid house via a two-hour comedown journey through dub, Chicago house beats and quirky samples. Little Fluffy Clouds was sublimely trippy, but it was Back Side of the Moon that tipped the necessary wink to Pink Floyd.
Roy Orbison
Love Songs (2001)
Although Roy Orbison's classic 1960s weepies are rerecorded in late-1980s versions on this double CD, the passing years hadn't dimmed the Big O's quavering voice or weakened the power of his emoting. Features duets with KD Lang and Emmylou Harris, career-resurrecting hits You Got It and I Drove All Night, plus rarities.
Orchestra Baobab
Specialist in All Styles (2002)
Until the arrival of Youssou N'Dour and his frantic mbalax style in the 80s, Orchestra Baobab dominated the Dakar music scene with their fine harmonies and blend of Latin and African styles. Invited to reform after a break of 16 years, they sounded as fresh and engaging as ever - and this time around, the quality of their recordings was vastly improved.
Orchestral Manouevres in the Dark
Architecture and Morality (1981)
After Enola Gay, the perkiest song about a nuclear holocaust ever written, OMD's third album was a grander affair, full of blissfully stylish, futuristic pop. Vocal drones, icy synthesizers and the warm tones of a mellotron swung the mood between eerie dystopian futurism and heightened euphoria.
Original Dixieland Jazz Band
Sensation! (1994)
Historic first-ever jazz recordings (the earliest are from 1917), from the young white New Orleans band that absorbed early black jazz and documented it. It's brash, raucous, and the novelty effects are dated. That said, the ODJB does sound like a bunch of talented what-the-hell youths sensing they're on to something amazing.
Orpheus
Orpheus (1971)
Originally proteges of producer Alan Lorber, Boston's Orpheus had escaped the limitations of Lorber's self-styled "Bosstown Sound" by their final album: songs such as I'll Be There are less soft-pop trifles than companions to the swooning existential balladry of Scott Walker's early solo albums.
Beth Orton
Central Reservation (1999)
Known as the "comedown queen" thanks to her tripped-out Chemical Brothers collaborations, Beth Orton's second solo record prioritised Brit folk over her previous dalliances with electronica. Opener Stolen Car is a perfect rough-and-ready counterpart to the dreamy Pass in Time and alt.country-tinged Love Like Laughter.
Os Mutates
Everything Is Possible:The Best Of (1999)
Two Brazilian brothers called Sergio and Arnaldo fall for the Beatles and develop their own wobbly, bossa-tinged brand of psychedelic pop. They get Rita Lee to sing, they plug their guitars through sewing machines, they cause riots, they go mad. David Byrne's compilation of their 1968-72 peak is the glorious result.
Mike Osborne
Outback (1970)
Alto saxist Osborne's searing tone, distraught-sounding upper register ascents and sudden freefalls made him the English Eric Dolphy or Jackie McLean. Outback catches his tense vitality on a teeming, tumbling, sometimes ferocious session, featuring fiery South Africans Louis Moholo on drums, Chris McGregor on piano and Harry Miller on bass.
Greg Osby
Banned in New York (1998)
Restlessly dynamic saxophonist Osby was in on the 80s free-funk M-Base movement, and has also checked out hip-hop and rap. This punchy set includes a young Jason Moran on piano, and follows a jazz line from Ornette Coleman back to Charlie Parker, with Parker and Sonny Rollins themes among the classic materials trenchantly reworked.
Shuggie Otis
Inspiration Information (1974)
At 15, Shuggie Otis jammed with Al Kooper on the Super Sessions. By 22, he had retired from music. Three of those years were spent writing, arranging, performing and singing every note of this psychedelic masterpiece himself. A strange, beautiful trip worthy of Sly Stone, Stevie Wonder or George Clinton.
OutKast
Stankonia (2000)
The fourth album by this Atlanta, Georgia duo, comprising archetypal playa-hustler Big Boi and alien androgen Andre 3000, was a veritable cornucopia of rap and funk delights. The hit singles So Fresh, So Clean, Ms Jackson and B.O.B. (Bombs Over Baghdad) were just the start of this 24-track hip-hop odyssey.
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaKWlqLake5FpZ3BnnqTDcH6QaGhpaGCpvKmxwKuZnp6fp7K6u9SdoJ5q