Records
British people of my generation grew up on music. It nourished us. We followed the ups and downs of the weekly hit parades quite religiously, keeping a close eye on albums as well as singles. We were born after World War II and witnessed a society that was transitioning from old-fashioned austerity and propriety into a modern world that had colour, greater flexibility and also a world in which the young had some clout. We could dream of a better future, hopefully devoid of war. We had money to buy singles and if we saved enough we might even buy albums. Most of us can remember the very first records we bought. My first single was "Return to Sender" by Elvis Presley (December 1962) and amongst the next few were "Scarlet O'Hara" by Jet Harris and Tony Meehan (April 1963) , "Hurdy Gurdy Man" by Donovan Leitch (May 1968) "Both Sides Now" by Judy Collins (October 1968) and "Albatross" by Fleetwood Mac (November 1968) . I know the...