We thought it might be interesting to discover what NZ Music (and music in general!) Wellingtonians liked to listen to in 2014 so we crunched some numbers and came up with the most popular Adult CD titles for the year based on the 2014 circulation statistics across all 11 WCL branches (excluding Classical titles and the YA collection). As there are more than one copy of some titles, the circulation figures for each copy were added together to arrive at an overall figure.

Most of these Top 10 lists will be going up over on our News Blog (coming soon!), but we thought maybe it might be an interesting insight to put up the New Zealand music Top 10 here, as well as the Across Genres Top 10, since NZ music (and some Welilngton music!) features highly on it.

These lists make an interesting read. Of course, what is represented here is only an indicator, as popular titles that hit the shelves later in the year were at a disadvantage as they had less time to circulate. However, it is fascinating to see local artists like Tiny Ruins outstripping perennial favourites such as Grace Jones (ditto regarding the re-release).

The NZ chart features everything from 60’s band The Fourmyula to perennial bluesman Midge Marsden to Wellington underground legends, Mr Sterile Assembly and Terror of the Deep…and it’s hard not to smile to see ‘Words : the Very Best of Sharon O’Neill’ alongside Orchestra of Spheres’ ‘Vibration animal sex brain music’! Also great to see Sola Rosa getting the popularity they deserve.

Ten NZ artists on the ‘Across Genres’ Top 30 is pretty good going for local music and the fact that all of them, apart from The Bats, Fat Freddy’s Drop, Shihad and Liam Finn, are young women is remarkable……and please excuse me, but I can’t resist the opportunity to say to Lorde, Tiny Ruins, Broods, Aldous Harding, Tami Nielson, Kimbra, and the new Oz star, Iggy Azalea …. ….”You go girl!”

NZ Top 10

1. The Phoenix Foundation / Tom’s lunch
2. David Kilgour / End times undone
3. Delaney Davidson / Swim down low
4. Robert Scott / The green house
5. Flip Grater / Pigalle
   VA / The great New Zealand songbook : souvenir edition
6. The Phoenix Foundation / Fandango
   Shayne Carter / Last train to Brockville
7. Louis Baker / Louis Baker
   Midge Marsden / Back to the well
   Neil Finn / Dizzy heights
   Neil Finn / Goin’ your way
   Aaradhna / Treble & reverb
8. Ladi6 / Automatic
   The Topp Twins / The very best of from 1981-2014
   Eb & Sparrow / Light years & the hearts arrow
   Greg Johnson / Some other place, some other time
9. Sola Rosa / Magnetics
   Delaney Davidson / Sad but true : Volume 3, Juke-box b-sides
   Lorde / The Love Club EP
   Crowded House / The very very best of Crowded House
10. Jonathan Crayford / Dark light
    The Fourmyula / Inside the Hutt : New Zealand’s pop-psych kingpins
    Katchafire / On the road again
    Sola Rosa / Refreshed
    Terror of the Deep / Terror of the Deep
    Mr Sterile Assembly / Transit
    Shihad / The meanest hits
    The Great North / Up in smoke
    Orchestra of Spheres / Vibration animal sex brain music
    Sharon O’Neill / Words : the very best of Sharon O’Neill

Top 30 Across Genres

1. Jack White / Lazaretto.
2. Coldplay / Ghost stories
3. Damon Albarn / Everyday robots.
4. Lorde / Pure heroine.
5. Beck / Morning phase.
6. Brian Eno & Karl Hyde / Someday world
7. Ed Sheeran / X.
8. Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young / CSNY 1974
9. Passenger / Whispers.
10. Tiny Ruins / Brightly painted one.
11. Broods / Evergreen.
    The Black Keys / Turn blue
12. Lykke Li / I never learn.
    The War on Drugs / Lost in the dream
    Led Zeppelin / Led Zeppelin Remastered
13. Grace Jones / Nightclubbing.
14. Lana Del Rey / Born to die : the Paradise edition.
    Led Zeppelin / Led Zeppelin III Remastered
15. Lana Del Rey / Ultraviolence.
16. Neil Young / A letter home.
17. Royksopp & Robyn / Do it again
    Chrissie Hynde / Stockholm.
18. VA / Now that’s what I call music 44.
    Iggy Azalea / The new classic
19. Blondie / Greatest hits ; Ghosts of download.
    Conor Oberst / Upside down mountain.
20. Tom Petty / Hypnotic eye
    Bruce Springsteen / The collection 1973-1984.
21. Ben Watt / Hendra.
    Natalie Merchant / Natalie Merchant.
    First Aid Kit / Stay gold.
22. Sharon Van Etten / Are we there.
    Parquet Courts / Sunbathing animal.
    Leonard Cohen / The complete studio albums collection.
    Morrissey / World peace is none of your business.
23. Tami Neilson / Dynamite!.
    The Bats / The Bats. Volume 1.
    Pink Floyd. The dark side of the moon
    R. E. M / Unplugged 1991 & 2001
24. VA / Now that’s what I call music 45.
    Fat Freddy’s Drop. / Blackbird
    Shihad / FVEY.
25. Bob Mould / Beauty & ruin.
    Paolo Nutini / Caustic love.
    Oasis / Definitely maybe [deluxe edition].
26. Jolie Holland / Wine dark sea.
    Kirsty MacColl / All I ever wanted : the anthology.
27. Brian Eno & Karl Hyde / High life
    Aldous Harding / Aldous Harding.
    Liam Finn / The nihilist.
    London Grammar. / If you wait
    Lily Allen / Sheezus.
    Slint. / Spiderland – Remastered
    Pharrell Williams / Girl.
28. VA /Now that’s what I call 21st century.
    Beyonce / Beyonce
29. Sam Smith / In the lonely hour.
30. Chet Faker / Built on glass.
    Miles Davis / Take off : the complete Blue Note albums.
    Kimbra / The golden echo.

Image of CDs by Flickr user Ryan, used under CC BY 2.0 license.