Lily Allen’s new album, West End Girl , released last week , is already a break-up album for the ages. Written at the messy end of her relationship with actor David Harbour, it’s a no-holds-barred exposé on heartbreak and infidelity that sent the world into a tizzy.

It’s the latest in one of music’s most hallowed traditions: the devastation turned triumphant catharsis of the break-up album. But who are the best to ever do it? Get your tissues ready.

Before the list proper, some honourable mentions: Pet Sounds by The Beach Boys (1966); Tapestry by Carol King (1971); Distintegration by The Cure (1989); Rid Of Me by PJ Harvey (1993); The Boatman’s Call by Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds (1997); For Emma, Forever Ago by Bon Iver (2008); Red by Taylor Swift (2012); and Bleeds b

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