Oasis were part of my teenage years and Live Forever was a key track for the group. Their third single, it was also the first to hit the UK Top 10.

7 Seconds sees Youssou N’Dour singing in both French and Wolof (a West African language). Neneh Cherry sings entirely in English.

Courtney Love worked on Doll Parts 1991 and it captured her insecurity, her desire for Cobain but also her lack of belief that he could be interested.

Your Ghost is a haunting piece, seeing Kristin Hersh singing of a mysterious ghost that she rouses from slumber by dialling their number.

Confide in Me marked a key point in Kylie Minogue’s career as she sought to be taken more seriously as a pop star.

Connection is a fast-paced and brief number which garnered a lot of attention for Elastica but initially for the wrong reasons.

End of a Century is concerned with young relationships and slipping into a mundane routine in front of the television as the millennium draws to a close.

Inner City Life has minimal lyrics and is more focused primarily on the music, with Goldie combining jungle with drum and bass accompaniments.

Lyrically complex, full of metaphor, literary and cultural references, It Ain’t Hard to Tell boasts three intricate verses from Nas with no chorus.

10,000 Maniacs’ cover of Because the Night made a handful of changes to the lyrics for their live performance.

Ching soortukchulerining yryzy translates as Song of the Caravan Drivers and slots into the favoured subject matter of the group which is concerned with traditional folk tales

C.R.E.A.M. is nothing to do with the pleasant accompaniment to many a dessert. Instead it stands for “Cash Rules Everything Around Me”.

Cannonball has been interpreted in different ways by fans. In one interview Kim Deal said the song was inspired by the Marquis de Sade.

Possession was written by Sarah McLachlan as a way of coping with letters from obsessive fans that left her feeling far from safe.

Open Up had the music put together first, a painstaking process as Leftfield wanted something worthy of John Lydon’s time.

Laid was a surprise choice on the 1001 song list for me. It’s a great song but I can name better ones by James.

Despite Bruce Springsteen’s reservations, Streets of Philadelphia would be a huge success, reaching the Top 10 in many countries.

In Rid of Me, PJ Harvey unburdens some pent up emotions as she tells us the heartrending story of a relationship that sounds doomed.

Into Dust from Mazzy Star is a poignant account from a morose woman about how her life and the moments she lives are all fading into oblivion.

In French Disko, Stereolab beseech us not to retreat but to stand and to fight for the world and for one another, to make it a better place.