Nick Knowles reveals his six favourite albums ahead of his debut album
NICK KNOWLES, 55, is the TV presenter best known for DIY SOS and Who Dares Wins.
Nick Knowles has an eclectic taste in music, with a number of varied favourites
He is also a keen musician.
His debut album, Every Kind Of People, is out now.
THE BLACK EYED PEAS: Monkey Business (Polydor)
Will.i.am is an amazing creative force and proves you don’t have to be writing songs about shooting policemen or how rich you are to make good music.
When my son played it first, I didn’t get it but now it’s a permanent fixture in my car.
It has energy and originality.
Will.I.Am's songwriting is a step away from traditional hip hop
He could sing the back of a Kellogg’s Rice Krispies box and you’d listen
RADIOHEAD: The Bends (EMI)
Anybody who plays guitar has to have a place for Radiohead.
They love discord, as I do.
Songs such as Fake Plastic Trees are just poetry.
On top of that, you’ve got Thom Yorke who has an extraordinary voice and wails better than anybody.
Radiohead's unforgettable sound is at its best in The Benz
CAT STEVENS: Tea For The Tillerman (Polydor)
I’m a huge fan of Cat Stevens, as my older brother was.
I’ve covered Where Do The Children Play? on my album because it’s as relevant today as it was when this came out.
He uses his guitar as a percussion instrument which makes his music particularly interesting.
Cat Stevens' use of his guitar as percussion makes his music particularly interesting
TALK TALK: Spirit Of Eden (EMI) I liked their stuff but this was so out there that I think people got turned off them.
I urge people to revisit it.
It’s ethereal and orchestral but using modern instruments.
It’s as if Gabriel and Peter up by the pearly gates had fallen in love with rock music but were trying to make something that would be OK by God.
Biffy Clyro are capable of really blowing a crowd away
BIFFY CLYRO: Only Revolutions (14th Floor)
Biffy produce a massive sound.
I saw them at Hammersmith and they blew the place away.
I discovered them when I bumped into them at a Soho hotel before the NME Awards and helped them load the van.
I said if they won, I’d buy them a drink.
Later on, we ended up playing guitar together.
Rag n Bone Man employs a very new, grizzly voice to wow listeners
RAG ’N’ BONE MAN: Human (Columbia)
This lad, who sounds like the inheritor of Howlin’ Wolf, has come out of nowhere.
He has an amazing voice.
He could sing the back of a Kellogg’s Rice Krispies box and you’d listen.