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The first song I was captivated by
My earliest memory is entering a space at preschool where they were playing Yellow Submarine by the Fab Four. I was captivated by the audio textures, and John Lennon yelling: “Full speed ahead!” When it got to the chorus, I remember thinking: “This must be music!”

The inaugural 45 I acquired
When I was eight years old, I was victorious in a competition at school to pick a brand new vinyl to play at the weekly dance party we had on Friday afternoons. My teacher took me to Woolworths, and I picked out Come Back My Love by Darts. The first single I purchased with my own allowance was Mull of Kintyre by Paul McCartney's Wings from a record shop in Lancashire. It was topping the charts at the time, and I chose it when my dad mentioned that it was by one of the Beatles.

The tune I sing at karaoke
I frankly cannot stand karaoke and dodge it at all costs. But if I had to, I’d choose Summer Wind by Frank Sinatra.

The song I oddly recite all the words to
I recently discovered that I know pretty much the entire lyrical content to The Boy in the Bubble, You Can Call Me Al, and each track on Graceland by Paul Simon.

The perfect track to blast at a soirée
It hinges on the point of the party you are at. Early doors it would most likely be I Heard It Through the Grapevine by Marvin Gaye. As the party deepens, I’d transition into Prince, the Rolling Stones and David Bowie, and when it hits its peak, Phat Planet by the electronic act, Born Slippy .NUXX by Underworld, and Ascension by the virtual band, which is an absolute banger.

The number I can no longer listen to
I inexplicably cannot stand Mr Brightside by the Las Vegas band.

The ideal track to have sex to
Come Together by John, Paul, George, and Ringo.

The record that altered my perspective
When I was 12 and just learning to study the six-string, I’d only listen to 1950s rock and roll, and was consumed by The King, the rock pioneer, the killer, Fats Domino, the glasses-wearing icon and Eddie Cochran. Then my childminder brought round Let There Be Rock by AC/DC. It was still rock’n’roll, but it was powerful rock ’n’roll. As soon as he placed the record on the record player, I was hooked.

The tune that gets me up in the morning
What’d I Say parts 1 & 2 by Ray Charles.

The song that brings me to tears
Virtually any music makes me touched. Aretha Franklin, The Chairman of the Board, Elvis and the Beatles all make me cry because of the melody and pure brilliance of the voices. But The Ocean by Richard Hawley gets me going every time.

The song I’d like performed at my funeral
Elvis. If I’m given a cremation, I’ll have Burning Love. If I’m laid to rest in the ground, I’ll have Way Down.