A Lot Of Livin' To Do (Live On The Ed Sullivan Show, March 4, 1962)

1972 was a monumental year for albums. From the The Rolling Stones to Stevie Wonder, Aretha Franklin to Big Star, there was an abundance of artists releasing career-defining and redefining music. Here we make our case for ten of the best.

Can we imagine Guru without DJ Premier and De La Soul without Prince Paul? Behind every iconic rapper and cult group, there is a visionary producer who learned from his predecessors and developed his own sound. From the pioneer Marley Marl, who laid the foundations for modern production by showing what could be done with the first samples, to the shooting star J Dilla who, before his death at the age of 32, managed to leave a lasting mark on the genre, not to forget Bomb Squad’s sonic revolution and Dr Dre’s undisputed dominance on the West Coast. Here’s an overview of the studio masters that have ruled the hip-hop world for thirty years.

It's not easy to elbow your way through the macho Music City scene, the birthplace of country music, when you're a woman. Over the years, some of them have nevertheless managed to shift lines and attitudes, like these ten pioneers and revolutionaries who have put – even stamped – their boots on Nashville's table.