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The earliest tune I fell in love with
My earliest recollection is walking into a space at nursery school where they were spinning Yellow Submarine by the Beatles. I was captivated by the sound effects, and John Lennon yelling: “Full speed ahead!” When it reached the chorus, I remember thinking: “This must be music!”

The inaugural 45 I bought
When I was eight years old, I won a competition at school to choose a brand new record 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 the group Darts. The first single I bought with my own savings was Mull of Kintyre by Paul McCartney's Wings from a music store in Lancashire. It was No 1 at the time, and I selected it when my father noted that it was by one of the Beatles.

The track I perform at karaoke
I candidly actively avoid karaoke and steer clear at all costs. But under duress, I’d select Summer Wind by Ol' Blue Eyes.

The piece I inexplicably remember each line to
I recently became aware 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 Paul Simon.

The best track to blast at a gathering
It hinges on which phase of the party you are at. At the start it would most likely be I Heard It Through the Grapevine by Marvin Gaye. As the evening progresses, I’d work through the Artist, the Rolling Stones and David Bowie, and when it hits its peak, Phat Planet by the electronic act, Born Slippy .NUXX by the techno pioneers, and Ascension by the virtual band, which is an massive track.

The song I can never bear
I inexplicably cannot stand Mr Brightside by the Killers.

The ultimate track to make love to
Come Together by John, Paul, George, and Ringo.

The LP that altered my perspective
When I was twelve and beginning to study the six-string, I’d only listen to 1950s rock ’n’roll, and was fixated on The King, the rock pioneer, Jerry Lee Lewis, Fats Domino, the glasses-wearing icon and Eddie Cochran. Then my babysitter played Let There Be Rock by AC/DC. It was still rock’n’roll, but it was high voltage rock music. As soon as he dropped the record on the turntable, I was hooked.

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

The song that brings me to tears
All music makes me emotional. The Queen of Soul, The Chairman of the Board, Elvis and the Beatles all make me cry because of the tune and pure brilliance of the vocals. But The Ocean by Richard Hawley strikes a chord without fail.

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.