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Welcome to an ever-changing world of sound and music …

Never in the history of the music industry have we enjoyed such a state of flux. The digital download revolution has created a sense of adventure and uncertainty in equal measure. More significant than that is the fact that it has actually opened up further avenues that allow for the greater discovery of music. The recent polemic among artists and the industry, however, has led to a debate as to whether the art form of the album is dead. Within that there are those who believe that it is and that tracks have superseded collected bodies of work, and then there are the zealots who maintain that no meaningful musical statement can be made without a full exposition of an artist’s talent. In truth, both parties are right and have precedents to prove it.

In the case of the Track-ites (as we shall call them), they need but point to the fecund world of early blues and R&B to showcase the fact that short, sharp commercial statements have also been hugely important in the development of popular music. The Album-ites however can point to music’s most fertile period of 1965 to 1985, during which the long-player held sway and produced some of the defining statements in popular culture. Either way, the key within all of this is the quality of the music, and that’s where The MOJO Collection comes in.

Essentially the weighty tome you hold in your hand was conceived over a long period of time, the initial conversations dating back to 2000. The first volume of the book was commissioned and edited by MOJO’s very own Jim Irvin, who meticulously and expertly created a basis of this encyclopaedia. Since then music has of course refused to sit still, hence the revisions and additions that have been made throughout the various editions and which brings us to this very latest volume.

Of course, even as I write there are a number of albums that spring to mind as worthy inclusions (I could list them, but the list would be too long). Then there’s the manner in which we should probably incorporate tracks and singles. These, however, are philosophical debates that are bound to run and run and revisions that we will continue to make as the book continues to grow and evolve.

Despite all this and regardless of any sea changes that may occur in the manner in which music is consumed, The MOJO Collection should provide you with a sound basis on which to build the best music collection in the world. And should you need more recommendations, then do join us in our monthly celebration of music that is MOJO magazine, or via the message-boards of www.mojo4music.com, where boasting about music is actively encouraged.

Until the fifth edition, then, friends …

PHIL ALEXANDER

Editor-In-Chief MOJO

London, England

September, 2007