Roxy Music by Roxy Music, released on Island Records, 1972, value £50

ROXY Music was one of the most highly regarded and influential UK rock bands of the seventies, formed by former art student and short lived teacher Bryan Ferry, who wrote all the songs, writes MICHAEL BROOKS. This was Roxy Music's self titled 1972 debut album for Island records, acclaimed as one of the finest debut albums of the decade. What makes this unique is that it was recorded and produced in a single week. The band at that time, did not have a record deal, but after offering it to Island Records, a contract was offered; it was released on June 16, 1972.

The content is a superb collection of Ferry's fascination for old black and white films: 2HB was Ferry's tribute song to Humphrey Bogart which quoted the famous line "Play it again, Sam" from the classic 1942 film Casablanca; the song Chance Meeting was inspired by David Lean's Brief Encounter and Remake/Remodel (CPL593H) was alleged to be the license number of a car spotted by Bryan Ferry, driven by an attractive woman. He also had an affection for stylish 1950s glamour images; the model on this album cover was Kari-Ann Muller, who also graced the 1974 album by Mott The Hoople. She later married Chris Jagger, brother of Mick Jagger. Following the success of the album, they released the single Virginia Plain, often referred to as their finest recording (not included on the album) combining Ferry's cinematic interests and love of surrealistic art.

During their rise to fame, Ferry began a parallel solo career beginning with a selection of cover albums of old songs inspired by American songbook classics taken from his love of old films. These Foolish Things was issued in 1973, followed by Another Time, Another Place, As Time Goes By and Dylanesque, featuring covers of Bob Dylan songs. All these albums are collectable but only have a small value.

In 1976, Bryan Ferry dissolved Roxy Music and concentrated solely on his own musical career which has been successful, selling a total of 30 million records. He is currently preparing to embark on a world tour beginning in 2019, which will include many hits from his Roxy Music days. Roxy Music left a body of work that was not only original and inventive but highly influenced other bands throughout the seventies.