10 Albums From 1989 That Are Better Than The Stone Roses

This week saw people get their knickers in a twist about a Stone Roses reunion. Again. Now don't get me wrong, I think The Stone Rosess is a really good album, but it certainly has its fair share of filler - and don't forget Elephant Stone wasn't even on the original album. FAIL.
So time for a bit of perspective. Here's a list of albums that also came out in 1989 and are better than the Roses' debut. It also inadvertently helps to illustrate some of the gaping holes in the Spotify catalogue - only five of these full albums are on there. Pah!
So in no particular order...

Lou Reed New York - no one was expecting Lou Reed to come back with an album this good, abunch of sketches about the city and various NY characters. Romeo Had Juliette, Dirty Blvd, Busload Of Faith - the Lou Reed album I still play most.

Ministry The Mind Is A Terrible Thing To Taste - in 1989 I thought Al Jourgensen was a genius - he'd worked or went on to work with Jello Biafra and Ian MacKaye, Skinny Puppy, Cabaret Voltaire and Revolting Cocks amongst others. Who knew it'd all go downhill after one more album. This still sounds pretty intense.

De La Soul 3 Feet High And Rising - 1988-1990 was when skinny white boys like me* 'got' hip-hop, pretty much thanks to this album and...

Beastie Boys Pauls Boutique - At the time, the overlooked follow up to 'Licensed To Ill'. Now acknowledged as the classic it is.

Nirvana Bleach - this debut is rough and ready but that's its charm. The riff from School, Swap Meet, Been A Son, About A Girl. Fuckin' A. At the time I thought this was a better album than...

Pixies Doolittle - with hindsight, a better album than Bleach. Is it a better album than Surfer Rosa? I think so. It's definitely better than The Stone Roses. Even the sleeve's better.

Rapeman Two Nuns And A Pack Mule - Get past the controversial name and it's an awesome album. Also features one of the best cover versions EVER in Just Got Paid (ZZ Top). I wish Albini had done another album more like this rather than the first Shellac album.

Pop will Eat Itself This is the day..The hour..This is. - scrappy grebo band embrace sampling culture to great success. Wake Up...Time To Die, Can U Dig It, Wise Up Suckers!', Def Con One. All brilliant.

The Cure Disintegration Their last great album. Lovesong, Fascination Street, Pictures Of You, need I say more? Even casual fans should own this one.

Fugazi 13 Songs - OK, this one is a bit of cheat as it's a compilation of their first two vinyl EPs, but if you only own one record on this list, I'd suggest it should be this. Still sounds like the most exciting thing ever committed to tape.

That's the definitive list as of this morning. Have I missed anything off?

*yeah, I was skinny in 1989