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The first song I fell in love with
My first memory is stepping into a space at kindergarten where they were blasting Yellow Submarine by the Fab Four. I was enthralled by the sonic landscape, and John Lennon yelling: “Full speed ahead!” When it reached the refrain, I remember thinking: “This must be music!”

The first record I acquired
When I was eight, I won a competition at school to pick a new vinyl to play at the mini disco we had on Friday afternoons. My instructor took me to a local store, and I picked out Come Back My Love by Darts. The first single I purchased with my own pocket money was Mull of Kintyre by Paul McCartney's Wings from a record shop in Lancashire. It was No 1 at the time, and I selected it when my father noted that it was by a former member of the Beatles.

The track I do at karaoke
I candidly do not enjoy karaoke and dodge it at all costs. But under duress, I’d select Summer Wind by Ol' Blue Eyes.

The song I oddly recite every lyric to
I just discovered that I can recall almost every word to The Boy in the Bubble, You Can Call Me Al, and the entire album on Graceland by the legendary songwriter.

The perfect song to blast at a party
It depends on which phase of the evening you are at. For the beginning it would probably be I Heard It Through the Grapevine by the soul legend. As the party deepens, I’d work through the Artist, the Stones and Bowie, and when it hits its peak, Phat Planet by Leftfield, Born Slippy .NUXX by the techno pioneers, and Ascension by the virtual band, which is an undeniable hit.

The number I can never hear
I inexplicably loathe Mr Brightside by the Las Vegas band.

The ideal track to make love to
Come Together by the Beatles.

The LP that altered my perspective
When I was 12 and beginning to learn the six-string, I’d only listen to early rock ’n’roll, and was obsessed with Elvis, Chuck Berry, the killer, the New Orleans legend, Buddy Holly and the rockabilly star. Then my childminder brought round Let There Be Rock by AC/DC. It was still rock’n’roll, but it was high voltage rock music. Instantly after he dropped the vinyl on the record player, I was captivated.

The track that motivates me in the AM
What’d I Say in its full glory by The Genius.

The song that makes me cry
Virtually any music makes me moved. The Queen of Soul, Frank Sinatra, Presley and the Fab Four all make me cry because of the harmony and utter perfection of the singing. But The Ocean by Richard Hawley gets me going every time.

The track I’d like played at my memorial service
Elvis. If I’m given a cremation, I’ll have Burning Love. If I’m buried, I’ll have Way Down.