And now we go live to the nominations for the 2026 Mercury Prize (all right, it happened yesterday, but it doesn’t matter, does it?):
Dave: The Boy Who Played the Harp
Dove Ellis: Blizzard
Florence + the Machine: Everybody Scream
Jade: That’s Showbiz Baby
Knats: A Great Day in Newcastle
Kojey Radical: Don’t Look Down
Nia Archives: Emotional Junglist
Olivia Dean: The Art of Loving
Paul McCartney: The Boys of Dungeon Lane
Raye: This Music May Contain Hope
Suede: Antidepressants
War Child Records: Help(2)
As ever, the fucked-up world of social media, as well as sections of the mainstream media, has found – or should I say invented? – some criticism of the list. Apparently, some people say it’s “woke”, presumably because – SHOCK! HORROR! – women and black people are among the nominations and others moan about the fact that many of these artists are “unknown”. Well, yes. The list reflects what we are now obliged to refer to as diversity, but then music does come from a variety of sources. I cannot pretend to know all the albums – I have all of one of them: Macca’s The Boys Of Dungeon Lane – and I am keen to listen to the rest, with the exception of Florence and her dreadful wailing Machine. I have to draw the line somewhere.
I rather like the idea that at 84 Macca gets his first ever nomination for the Mercury Prize, alongside the likes of Newcastle’s Knats, who I actually saw in concert last year, featuring as Eddie Chacon’s backing band for his UK tour. They were absolutely incredible and while their own music might not be everyone’s cup of tea, they are undoubtedly brilliant musicians and just imagine how excited they must be about being on the list and maybe even meeting an actual Beatle?
A reason why The Boys Of Dungeon Lane has been nominated is for one reason only and that reason is not that it’s by Paul McCartney. Well, it is made by Macca, but the actual reason for its inclusion is that the album is fantastic in its own right, his finest work in decades. That’s the reason all the acts have been selected.
The Guardian points out that there are some surprising omissions from the nominations. They include: Harry Styles, Boards of Canada, Gorillaz, Sienna Spiro, Lola Young, Ed Sheeran, Kneecap, James Blake, the Cribs, Celeste, Cat Burns, the Last Dinner Party, Robert Plant, Joy Crookes, Fakemink, Dry Cleaning and My New Band Believe. I can think of a few more worthy artists whose albums deserve to be on the list, but unless you want to turn the short list into a very long one, I guess the line has to be drawn somewhere.
Most of me wants Macca to win. I appreciate that I feel that way in both my heart and in my head. There is a certain emotion attached to it. I feel so lucky to have been alive at the same time as Macca and his fellow Beatles. Like them or not, The Beatles changed music for the better and forever. And if you don’t like The Beatles, I cannot help you. But whoever wins, the whole shebang will be a glorious celebration of the best in music.
Last year, Sam Fender’s stellar People Watching was a deserved winner, fighting off the brilliance of Fontaines DC, Wolf Alice and CMAT among others. 2025 was a great year for music, 2026 is great, too. Celebrate good times, come on, as they say. I’ll certainly be doing that on October, whoever wins.
