Mercury Music Prize - Definition and Overview

The Mercury Music Prize is a music award given annually for the best British album of the previous 12 months. It was established in 1992 as an alternative to the industry dominated Brit awards. It was originally sponsored by the now-defunct telecoms company Mercury, followed in 1998 by Technics and starting 2004 the Nationwide Building Society.

Previous Winners

• 2004 -- Franz Ferdinand – Franz Ferdinand
• 2003 -- Dizzee Rascal - Boy In Da Corner
• 2002 -- Ms. Dynamite - A Little Deeper
• 2001 -- P J Harvey - Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea
• 2000 -- Badly Drawn Boy - The Hour Of Bewilderbeast
• 1999 -- Talvin Singh - OK
• 1998 -- Gomez - Bring It On
• 1997 -- Roni Size/Reprazent - New Forms
• 1996 -- Pulp - Different Class
• 1995 -- Portishead - Dummy
• 1994 -- M People - Elegant Slumming
• 1993 -- Suede - Suede
• 1992 -- Primal Scream - Screamadelica

Shortlists

2004

• Basement Jaxx – Kish Kash
• Belle & Sebastian – Dear Catastrophe Waitress
• Franz Ferdinand – Franz Ferdinand
• Jamelia – Thank You
• Keane – Hopes And Fears
• Snow Patrol – Final Straw
• Joss Stone – The Soul Sessions
• The Streets – A Grand Don't Come For Free
• Ty – Upwards
• Amy Winehouse – Frank
• Robert Wyatt – Cuckooland
• The Zutons – Who Killed... The Zutons

2003

• Athlete - Vehicles and Animals
• Eliza Carthy - Anglicana
• Coldplay - A Rush of Blood to the Head
• The Darkness - Permission to Land
• Dizzee Rascal - Boy In Da Corner
• Floetry - Floetic
• Soweto Kinch - Conversations with the Unseen
• Lemon Jelly - Lost Horizons
• The Thrills - So Much for the City
• Martina Topley-Bird - Quixotic
• Radiohead - Hail to the Thief
• Terri Walker - Untitled

2002

• Guy Barker - Soundtrack
• The Bees - Sunshine, Hit Me
• David Bowie - Heathen
• The Coral - The Coral
• Doves - The Last Broadcast
• The Electric Soft Parade - Holes In The Wall
• Gemma Hayes - Night On My Side
• Beverley Knight - Who I Am
• Roots Manuva - Run Come Save Me
• Joanna McGregor - Play
• Ms. Dynamite - A Little Deeper
• The Streets - Original Pirate Material

2001

• Basement Jaxx - Rooty
• Elbow - Asleep at the Back
• Goldfrapp - Felt Mountain
• Gorillaz - Gorillaz (withdrawn at the request of the band)
• Ed Hardcourt - Here Be Monsters
• P J Harvey - Stories From The City, Stories From The Sea
• Tom McCrae - Tom McRae
• Radiohead - Amnesiac
• Susheela Raman - Salt Rain
• Super Furry Animals - Rings Around the World
• Turin Brakes - The Optimist LP
• Zero 7 - Simple Things

2000

• Richard Ashcroft - Alone with Everybody
• Badly Drawn Boy - The Hour of Bewilderbeast
• Coldplay - Parachutes
• MJ Cole - Sincere
• Death in Vegas - The Contino Sessions
• The Delgados - The Great Eastern
• Doves - Lost Souls
• Helicopter Girl - How to Steal the World
• Leftfield - Rhythm and Stealth
• Nicholas Maw - Violin Concerto
• Nitin Sawhney - Beyond Skin
• Kathryn Williams - Little Black Numbers

1999

• Thomas Adès - Asyla
• Denys Baptiste - Be Where You Are
• Black Star Liner - Bengali Bantam Youth Experience!
• Blur - 13
• Chemical Brothers - Surrender
• Faithless - Sunday 8pm
• Manic Street Preachers - This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours
• Beth Orton - Central Reservation
• Kate Rusby - Sleepless
• Talvin Singh - OK
• Stereophonics - Performance and Cocktails
• Underworld - Beaucoup Fish

1998

• 4-Hero - Two Pages
• Asian Dub Foundation - Rafi's Revenge
• Eliza Carthy - Red Rice
• Catatonia - International Velvet
• Cornershop - When I was born for the 7th time
• Gomez - Bring It On
• Massive Attack - Mezzanine
• Propellerheads - Decksandrumsandrockandroll
• Pulp - This is Hardcore
• John Surman - Proverbs & Songs
• The Verve - Urban Hymns
• Robbie Williams - Life Thru a Lens

1997

• The Chemical Brothers - Dig Your Own Hole
• Beth Orton - Trailer park
• Primal Scream - Vanishing Point
• The Prodigy - The Fat of the Land
• Radiohead - OK Computer
• Roni Size/Reprazent - New Forms (Talkin' Loud)
• The Spice Girls - Spice
• Suede - Coming Up
• John Tavener - Syvati
• Mark-Anthony Turnage - Your Rockaby

1996

• Artists for War Child - Help
• Black Grape - It's Great When You're Straight
• Peter Maxwell Davies/The BBC Philharmonic - The Beltane Fire / Caroline Mathilde
• Manic Street Preachers - Everything Must Go
• Mark Morrison - Return of the Mack
• Oasis - (What's the Story) Morning Glory
• Courtney Pine - Modern Day Jazz Stories
• Pulp - Different Class
• Underworld - Second Toughest In The Infants
• Norma Waterson - Norma Waterson

1995

• Guy Barker - Into The Blue
• Elastica - Elastica
• PJ Harvey - To Bring You My Love
• Leftfield - Leftism
• James MacMillan - Seven Last Words From the Cross
• Van Morrison - Days Like These
• Oasis - Definitely Maybe
• Portishead - Dummy
• Supergrass - I Should Coco
• Tricky - Maxinquaye

1994

• Blur - Parklife
• M People - Elegant Slumming
• Ian McNabb - Head Like A Rock
• Shara Nelson - What Silence Knows
• Michael Nyman - The Piano Concerto and MGV
• The Prodigy - Music for the Jilted Generation
• Pulp - His'n'Hers
• Take That - Everything Changes
• Therapy? - Troublegum
• Paul Weller - Wild Wood

1993

• Apache Indian - No Reservations
• The Auteurs - New Wave
• Gavin Bryars - Jesus' Blood Never Failed Me Yet
• Dina Caroll - So Close
• PJ Harvey - Rid of Me
• New Order - Republic
• Stereo MC's - Connected
• Sting - Ten Summoner's Tales
• Suede - Suede
• Stan Tracey - Portraits Plus

1992

• Barry Adamson - Soul Murder
• Jah Wobble - Rising Above Bedlam
• Jesus & Mary Chain - Honey's Dead
• Bheki Mseleku - Celebration
• Primal Scream - Screamadelica
• Saint Etienne - Foxbase Alpha
• Simply Red - Stars
• U2 - Achtung Baby
• John Tavener & Steven Isserlis - The Protecting Veil
• Young Disciples - Road To Freedom

External links

• Official Site (http://www.mercurymusicprize.com/)
• Alternate listings (http://www.rocklist.net/murcurytechnics.htm)
• Mercury Music Prize @ (http://www.music-wiki.org/Mercury_Music_Prize) MusicWiki