Premio Mercury
# Premio Mercury

El Premio Mercury (en inglés Mercury Prize), antes conocido como Premio Musical de Mercurio y actualmente conocido como el "Hyundai Mercury Prize" debido a razones de patrocinio, es un premio anual de música al mejor álbum del Reino Unido o Irlanda. Fue establecido por la Asociación Británica de Discográficas y BARD en 1992 como un alternativo a los premios Brit. Originalmente fue patrocinado por Mercury Communications (ahora caduco) y más tarde por Technics, de 2002 a 2004 por Panasonic, de 2004 hasta 2008 por Nationwide Building Society y desde marzo de 2009 por Barclaycard.

Normalmente la entrega del Premio Mercury tiene lugar en septiembre, aunque los álbumes candidatos se anuncian en julio. A menudo los grupos que son candidatos o que ganan el premio tienen un gran aumento en ventas de su álbum y esto ocurre, en particular, en cuanto a los candidatos menos conocidos. Las nominaciones son elegidas por un panel de músicos, periodistas y otras figuras de la industria musical del Reino Unido e Irlanda.

Hasta la fecha, PJ Harvey es la única artista que ha ganado este premio en más de una ocasión (en 2001 y en 2011). También fue la primera solista femenina en recibir el premio.

## Ganadores y candidatos

| Año | Ganador | Candidatos |
| - | - | - |
| 1992 | Primal Scream – Screamadelica | Barry Adamson – Soul Murder Jah Wobble – Rising Above Bedlam The Jesus and Mary Chain – Honey's Dead Bheki Mseleku – Celebration Saint Etienne – Foxbase Alpha Simply Red – Stars U2 – Achtung Baby John Tavener & Steven Isserlis –The Protecting Veil Young Disciples – Road to Freedom |
| 1993 | Suede – Suede | Apache Indian – No Reservations The Auteurs – New Wave Gavin Bryars – Jesus' Blood Never Failed Me Yet Dina Carroll – So Close PJ Harvey – Rid of Me New Order – Republic Stereo MCs – Connected Sting – Ten Summoner's Tales Stan Tracey – Portraits Plus |
| 1994 | M People – Elegant Slumming | Blur – Parklife Ian McNabb – Head Like A Rock Shara Nelson – What Silence Knows Michael Nyman – The Piano Concerto and MGV The Prodigy – Music for the Jilted Generation Pulp – His 'n' Hers Take That – Everything Changes Therapy? – Troublegum Paul Weller – Wild Wood |
| 1995 | Portishead – Dummy | Guy Barker – Into the Blue Elastica – Elastica PJ Harvey – To Bring You My Love Leftfield – Leftism James MacMillan – Seven Last Words from the Cross Van Morrison – Days Like This Oasis – Definitely Maybe Supergrass – I Should Coco Tricky – Maxinquaye |
| 1996 | Pulp – Different Class | Artists for War Child – Help Black Grape – It's Great When You're Straight... Yeah Peter Maxwell Davies/Orquesta Filarmónica de la BBC – The Beltane Fire / Caroline Mathilde Manic Street Preachers – Everything Must Go Mark Morrison – Return of the Mack Oasis – (What's the Story) Morning Glory? Courtney Pine – Modern Day Jazz Stories Underworld – Second Toughest in the Infants Norma Waterson – Norma Waterson |
| 1997 | Roni Size/Reprazent – New Forms | The Chemical Brothers – Dig Your Own Hole Beth Orton – Trailer Park Primal Scream – Vanishing Point The Prodigy – The Fat of the Land Radiohead – OK Computer Spice Girls – Spice Suede – Coming Up John Tavener – Svyati Mark-Anthony Turnage – Your Rockaby |
| 1998 | Gomez – Bring It On | 4hero – Two Pages Asian Dub Foundation – Rafi's Revenge Eliza Carthy – Red Rice Catatonia – International Velvet Cornershop – When I Was Born for the 7th Time Massive Attack – Mezzanine Propellerheads – Decksandrumsandrockandroll Pulp – This Is Hardcore John Surman – Proverbs & Songs The Verve – Urban Hymns Robbie Williams – Life thru a Lens |
| 1999 | Talvin Singh – Ok | Thomas Adès – Asyla Denys Baptiste – Be Where You Are Black Star Liner – Bengali Bantam Youth Experience! Blur – 13 The Chemical Brothers – Surrender Faithless – Sunday 8PM Manic Street Preachers – This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours Beth Orton – Central Reservation Kate Rusby – Sleepless Stereophonics – Performance and Cocktails Underworld – Beaucoup Fish |
| 2000 | Badly Drawn Boy – The Hour of Bewilderbeast | Richard Ashcroft – Alone with Everybody Coldplay – Parachutes M. J. Cole – Sincere Death in Vegas – The Contino Sessions The Delgados – The Great Eastern Doves – Lost Souls Helicopter Girl – How to Steal the World Leftfield – Rhythm and Stealth Nicholas Maw – Violin Concerto Nitin Sawhney – Beyond Skin Kathryn Williams – Little Black Numbers |
| 2001 | PJ Harvey – Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea | Basement Jaxx – Rooty Elbow – Asleep in the Back Goldfrapp – Felt Mountain Gorillaz – Gorillaz (nomination withdrawn at the request of the band) Ed Harcourt – Here Be Monsters Tom McRae – Tom McRae Radiohead – Amnesiac Susheela Raman – Salt Rain Super Furry Animals – Rings Around the World Turin Brakes – The Optimist LP Zero 7 – Simple Things |
| 2002 | Ms. Dynamite – A Little Deeper | Guy Barker – Soundtrack The Bees – Sunshine Hit Me David Bowie – Heathen The Coral – The Coral Doves – The Last Broadcast The Electric Soft Parade – Holes in the Wall Gemma Hayes – Night on My Side Beverley Knight – Who I Am Roots Manuva – Run Come Save Me Joanna MacGregor – Play The Streets – Original Pirate Material |
| 2003 | Dizzee Rascal – Boy in da Corner | Athlete – Vehicles and Animals Eliza Carthy – Anglicana Coldplay – A Rush of Blood to the Head The Darkness – Permission to Land Floetry – Floetic Soweto Kinch – Conversations with the Unseen Lemon Jelly – Lost Horizons The Thrills – So Much for the City Martina Topley-Bird – Quixotic Radiohead – Hail to the Thief Terri Walker – Untitled |
| 2004 | Franz Ferdinand – Franz Ferdinand | Basement Jaxx – Kish Kash Belle & Sebastian – Dear Catastrophe Waitress Jamelia – Thank You Keane – Hopes and Fears Snow Patrol – Final Straw Joss Stone – The Soul Sessions The Streets – A Grand Don't Come for Free Ty – Upwards Amy Winehouse – Frank Robert Wyatt – Cuckooland The Zutons – Who Killed...... The Zutons? |
| 2005 | Antony and the Johnsons – I Am a Bird Now | Bloc Party – Silent Alarm Coldplay – X&Y Hard-Fi – Stars of CCTV Kaiser Chiefs – Employment KT Tunstall – Eye to the Telescope M.I.A. – Arular Maxïmo Park – A Certain Trigger Polar Bear – Held on the Tips of Fingers Seth Lakeman – Kitty Jay The Go! Team – Thunder, Lightning, Strike The Magic Numbers – The Magic Numbers |
| 2006 | Arctic Monkeys – Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not | Isobel Campbell and Mark Lanegan – Ballad of the Broken Seas Editors – The Back Room Guillemots – Through the Windowpane Richard Hawley – Coles Corner Hot Chip – The Warning Muse – Black Holes & Revelations Zoe Rahman – Melting Pot Lou Rhodes – Beloved One Scritti Politti – White Bread Black Beer Sway – This Is My Demo Thom Yorke – The Eraser |
| 2007 | Klaxons – Myths of the Near Future | Arctic Monkeys – Favourite Worst Nightmare Basquiat Strings con Seb Rochford – Basquiat Strings Bat for Lashes – Fur and Gold Dizzee Rascal – Maths + English Maps – We Can Create New Young Pony Club – Fantastic Playroom Fionn Regan – The End of History Jamie T – Panic Prevention The View – Hats Off to the Buskers Amy Winehouse – Back to Black Young Knives – Voices of Animals and Men |
| 2008 | Elbow – The Seldom Seen Kid | Adele – 19 British Sea Power – Do You Like Rock Music? Burial – Untrue Estelle – Shine The Last Shadow Puppets – The Age of the Understatement Laura Marling – Alas, I Cannot Swim Neon Neon – Stainless Style Robert Plant & Alison Krauss – Raising Sand Portico Quartet – Knee Deep In The North Sea Radiohead – In Rainbows Rachel Unthank and the Winterset – The Bairns |
| 2009 | Speech Debelle – Speech Therapy | Bat for Lashes – Two Suns Florence and the Machine – Lungs Friendly Fires – Friendly Fires Glasvegas – Glasvegas Lisa Hannigan – Sea Sew The Horrors – Primary Colours The Invisible – The Invisible Kasabian – West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum La Roux – La Roux Led Bib – Sensible Shoes Sweet Billy Pilgrim – Twice Born Men |
| 2010 | The xx – xx | Biffy Clyro – Only Revolutions Corinne Bailey Rae – The Sea Dizzee Rascal – Tongue n' Cheek Foals – Total Life Forever I Am Kloot – Sky at Night Kit Downes Trio – Golden Laura Marling – I Speak Because I Can Mumford & Sons – Sigh No More Paul Weller – Wake Up the Nation Villagers – Becoming a Jackal Wild Beasts – Two Dancers |
| 2011 | PJ Harvey – Let England Shake | Adele – 21 Anna Calvi – Anna Calvi Elbow – Build a Rocket Boys! Everything Everything – Man Alive Ghostpoet – Peanut Butter Blues & Melancholy Jam Gwilym Simcock – Good Days at Schloss Elmau James Blake – James Blake Katy B – On a Mission King Creosote & Jon Hopkins – Diamond Mine Metronomy – The English Riviera Tinie Tempah – Disc-Overy |
| 2012 | Alt-J – An Awesome Wave | Ben Howard – Every Kingdom Django Django – Django Django Field Music – Plumb Jessie Ware – Devotion Lianne La Havas – Is Your Love Big Enough Michael Kiwanuka – Home Again Plan B – Ill Manors Richard Hawley – Standing at the Sky's Edge Roller Trio – Roller Trio Sam Lee – Ground of Its Own The Maccabees – Given to the Wild |
| 2013 | James Blake – Overgrown | Arctic Monkeys – AM David Bowie – The Next Day Disclosure – Settle Foals – Holy Fire Jake Bugg – Jake Bugg Jon Hopkins – Immunity Laura Marling – Once I Was an Eagle Laura Mvula – Sing to the Moon Rudimental – Home Savages – Silence Yourself Villagers – Awayland |
| 2014 | Young Fathers – Dead | Anna Calvi – One Breath Bombay Bicycle Club – So Long, See You Tomorrow Damon Albarn – Everyday Robots East India Youth – Total Strife Forever FKA twigs – LP1 GoGo Penguin – V2.0 Jungle – Jungle Kate Tempest – Everybody Down Nick Mulvey – First Mind Polar Bear – In Each and Every One Royal Blood – Royal Blood |
| 2019 | Dave - ‘Psychodrama’ | Anna Calvi - ‘Hunter’ Black Midi - ‘Schlagenheim’ Cate Le Bon - ‘Reward’ Foals - ‘Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost - Part 1’ Fontaines D.C.- ‘Dogrel’ IDLES - ‘Joy as an Act of Resistance’ Little Simz - ‘Grey Area’ NAO - ‘Saturn’ SEED Ensemble - ‘Driftglass’ slowthai - ‘Nothing Great About Britain’ The 1975 - ‘A Brief Inquiry into Online Relationships’ |

## Controversias

Este galardón tiene fama de otorgarse a candidatos sorpresa más que a los favoritos. Los ganadores en 1994 fueron M People, una decisión controvertida cuando se considera que la preselección de candidatos incluyó álbumes de Paul Weller, Blur, Pulp y The Prodigy.

Otros periodistas musicales que fueron críticos de los premios dijeron que el premio de 2005 no debería haber sido dado a Antony and the Johnsons porque son un grupo con base en los Estados Unidos, aunque nacieron en el Reino Unido. En 2006 el álbum de Mark Lanegan y Isobel Campbell, Ballad of the Broken Seas fue incluido en la preselección de candidatos, aunque Lanegan no es británico, y varios miembros de los Guillemots, que fueron candidatos en 2006, fueron de Brasil y Canadá.

La presencia de grabaciones de música clásica, música folclórica y jazz ha sido citada por algunos como anómala, exponiendo que comparar estas grabaciones con otros candidatos puede ser injusto. Los candidatos clásicos han incluido John Tavener, Peter Maxwell Davies, Gavin Bryars y Nicholas Maw. Ninguno ha ganado, y no ha habido un álbum clásico en la preselección de candidatos desde 2002.

