Where to start with The Haçienda Sound

The Haçienda Sound is a music scene from Manchester, UK, 1982–1997. Its principal artists include Happy Mondays, The Stone Roses, New Order and 808 State. This issue covers 8 essential albums and 14 dated events.

Start here

1
The Stone Roses
The Stone Roses · 1989
Original release: Silvertone Records · ORE LP 502 · 12″ Vinyl · UK 1989
It built the template for indie jangle meeting dancefloor groove that defined Madchester's crossover into the mainstream.
2
Bummed
Happy Mondays · 1988
Original release: Factory · RTD 94 · 12″ Vinyl · Germany 1988
It shows the shambling, proto-baggy chaos that laid the template for indie-dance fusion at the scene's rougher edge.
3
Pills 'n' Thrills and Bellyaches
Happy Mondays · 1990
Original release: London Records 90 · Digital Media · 1990
It shows where the scene ended up commercially, turning Madchester into platinum-selling pop at its peak.

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4
Ninety
808 State · 1989
Original release: ZTT · 246 461-2 · CD · Europe 1989
"Pacific State" proved acid house could be ambient and anthemic at the same time, reaching number ten on the UK charts and carrying the Haçienda sound into living rooms nationwide.
5
Some Friendly
The Charlatans · 1990
Original release: Beggars Banquet · 2411-2-H · CD · US 1990
The only Madchester-era album to hit number one, driven by organ-heavy baggy grooves and "The Only One I Know," a top-ten single that defined the scene's organ sound.
6
Life
Inspiral Carpets · 1990
Original release: Mute · Digital Media · UK 1990
The Farfisa-driven baggy album peaked at number two, epitomizing Madchester's retro-psychedelic aesthetic and launching future Oasis roadie Noel Gallagher's career on the side.

For the obsessed

7
Gold Mother
James · 1990
Original release: Fontana · 846 189-2 · CD · UK 1990
Manchester's art-school outsiders rode the Madchester wave on this 1990 record; the 1991 re-recording of "Sit Down" became the scene's biggest hit at number two, and outlasted the movement itself.
8
Second Coming
The Stone Roses · 1994
Original release: Geffen · GED-24503 · CD · UK 1994
John Squire's turn toward blues-rock divided critics after five years of legal limbo with Silvertone Records; "Love Spreads" reached number two, but the album signaled both the scene's exhaustion and the band's impending collapse.

The stories behind every record are in The Haçienda Sound, a members' issue.