Reflecting on the big beat as it was delivered over the last 12 months I’m conscious less of a list of albums than of a series of events.

Vinyl-wise, quality varied in 1985 as much as in any other year, and yet momentous seems not an inappropriate word to describe much of what happened in rock’n’roll since January last.

Live-Aid dominated of course and justifiably so, but the Sun City, anti-apartheid project was of real significance too – a gaggle of rock icons, inspired by the very wonderful Miami Steve Van Zandt, confirmed that political sanity is not confined to the independent charts; it can flourish amidst the glamour and the glitter too. (And, yes, the record was a cracker).

At home, the concert as event provided a couple of landmarks by which 1985 will be instantly recognisable across the distance of time. A vivid sound-and-picture image of Bruce Springsteen singing ‘The River’ before hushed thousands on the bands of the Boyne is locked in my mind – but even that excellent show was surpassed just weeks later by U2’s homecoming in Croke Park.

U2’s concert was simply the most extraordinary rock gig I’ve ever seen, not just for the intrinsic power of the band’s performance but as much – even more so – for the tangible sense of community that linked artists and audience, 55,004 people did ‘Pride In The Name Of Love’ that day and it was so far removed from dodgy rock concepts of ‘audience participation’ and fatuous ‘we are all one’ sloganeering as to be part of a different world. And in a way it was. U2’s homecoming was a uniquely Irish experience – I don’t believe that that special affinity, that shared celebration, could have happened anywhere else – and if any other rock concert is to come close to matching it in the foreseeable future, I’ll wager that the principal players in the drama will just happen to be U2 and their massive Irish supporters club.

But just to prove that the Dublin fourpiece travels well, I should also state that the track I’ve played more often than any others in 1985 is the live version of ‘Bad’ from ‘Wide Awake In America’. The quality of this one is perhaps best illustrated by the fact that a friend of mine, who doesn’t possess a single U2 record, left Croke park early and generally finds the band less than wonderful, is prone, when visiting my palatial residence to playing ‘Bad’ three times in a row. Bad not bad!

Speaking of which … Madness made one of the most unexpectedly lovely records of 1985. I’d pretty much had them down as a singles band who would never make a better album than their greatest hits collection but ‘Mad Not Mad’ laid that theory to rest quite effectively.

Other fave raves: John Fogarty’s ‘Centrefield’, Talking Heads’ ‘Road To Nowhere’, Light A Big Fire ‘C.I.A.’, The Blades’ first and last album, a whole lot of other stuff and, oh yes, the Kit-Kat ad on the telly, which always bring Nik Kershaw to my mind!

Hopeful prediction for 1986; the return of Warren Zevon. I want some red meat in my diet again!