I’ve long been fascinated with the musical and pop cultural period of the late ‘70s to the early ‘80s.
Punk rock verging into post-punk, disco, second-wave ska, new wave, and good old fashioned muscular rock and roll all take on fantastical forms during this era.
1979 is a particularly fun slice, so I’ll get out of the way and let you get to the best 17 albums from 1979 ever (as pulled from the best 1,000 albums ever). Each one includes a pull quote from the associated best 1,000 albums ever piece.
1) The Specials – The Specials (#82 of the best 1,000 albums ever)
It’s a perfect ska record, classic and iconic from end to end.
2) The Clash – London Calling (#150)
This is The Clash transitioning from a great first-wave punk rock band into one of the most eclectic and rangy bands of all time.
For example, I can’t get enough of how the anthemic punk rock of “London Calling” transitions into the rockabilly of “Brand New Cadillac” and then the groovy rock of “Jimmy Jazz.”
3) Buzzcocks – Singles Going Steady(#237)
I can easily say that the Buzzcocks have produced two of my absolute favorite punk rock songs of all time in “Ever Fallen in Love” and “What Do I Get?” And overall, Singles Going Steady is among the very best collections of music produced during punk rock’s initial and explosive wave in the 1970s.
4) The Raincoats – The Raincoats(#330)
When I discovered The Raincoats for myself, I was blown away by how unique the sound of this female “experimental post-punk band” out of the UK is, and yet how fresh and relevant it remains some four-plus decades after its release in 1979.
5) Led Zeppelin – In Through the Out Door (#349)
In Through the Out Door has a slightly different feel from other Led Zeppelin material due to bassist and keyboardist John Paul Jones taking over most of the production duties. There’s a soft and sensual feel to the album that makes it unique. That’s not to say that the band hadn’t achieved a similar sound in the past, such as on the masterpiece “Kashmir,” off of Physical Graffiti, but on In Through the Out Door the tone is even brighter and plays consistently throughout.
6) The B-52’s – The B-52’s (#382)
Over the years, “52 Girls” has become of my most favorite B-52’s songs. I love Ricky Wilson’s stutter-y, angular guitar riffs, and Kate Pierson and Cindy Wilson’s vocals have never sounded as gorgeous or ebullient.
7) Electric Light Orchestra – Discovery (#401)
As with much of Electric Light Orchestra’s material, “Don’t Bring Me Down” has a miraculous buoyancy and optimism to its sound, which I can fully imagine helped teens in the U.S., UK, and beyond get through those gloomy late ‘70s years. And “Don’t Bring Me Down” has a pleasing, relentless propulsion to it that I can’t get enough of.
8) Elvis Costello – Armed Forces (#428)
“Accidents Will Happen” reminds me how talented Costello is at crafting and delivering a melody. There are also wonderful little change-ups in terms of the tempo and other musical dynamics that show off the meticulous craftsmanship and musical production at work.
9) The Knack – Get the Knack (#472)
“My Sharona” feels timeless to me simply from the standpoint that I can recall listening to it and enjoying it from my youngest little ‘un days, but then I realize it bridges the divide splendidly between guitar-driven power pop of the 1970s and the emerging new wave sounds of the ‘80s. And then of course there’s that all-time, crushing hook, and the perfect way the melody starts out staccato with each line before landing on the glorious repetition of SHARONA.
10) Pink Floyd – The Wall(#499)
It’s a sprawling, weird, unsettling, eclectic, exciting, and moving smorgasbord.
11) The Romantics – The Romantics (#594)
There’s something wonderfully timeless about “What I Like About You,” while at the same time it’s a perfect new wave song representing the 1970s cresting into the ‘80s. And meanwhile it’s also a perfect power pop song. In short, I can sum it up with the clinical assertion of man, it’s great.
12) Neil Young & Crazy Horse – Rust Never Sleeps (#644)
“My, My, Hey Hey (Out of the Blue)” is one of my all-time favorite Neil Young songs. I kind of bucket it with the fabulous “Rockin’ in the Free World,” which came out 10 years later on Freedom in 1989.
13) Donna Summer – Bad Girls (#827)
The one-two opening punch of Bad Girls is hard to top, whether we’re talking disco (oh, and we’re talkin’ disco here, dig?), non-disco, whatever. “Hot Stuff” and then the title track, “Bad Girls,” are an incredible combo.
14) Gang of Four – Entertainment! (#847)
“Damaged Goods” crackles with punk energy and an eclectic, intelligent atmosphere that calls to mind the best of The Clash. And man, what an incredible song title, with oblique lyrics about sex that can be interpreted in any number of ways.
15) The Slits – Cut(#944)
The Slits’ cover of Marvin Gaye’s “I Heard It Through the Grapevine” is both super unique and super kind of amazing all at once, a bizarro reggae punk meets experimental rock voyage that rocks and grooves like the best song by The Clash that never existed but with female vocals that are again incredibly unique. It’s out there and it’s freaky and it’s punk and it rocks and it all works marvelously well.
16) Stiff Little Fingers – Inflammable Material (#952)
If you’re in the mood to throw on some old school punk, it’s hard to imagine anything more pleasing and satisfying than “Suspect Device.” Like The Clash, Stiff Little Fingers show off real musicianship and dynamics and like the Sex Pistols, they produce unadulterated and authentic passion and the angst that makes great punk music truly punky.
17) Madness – One Step Beyond…(#957)
This album walks a tightrope, one in which you sense it could have easily been a laughable train wreck. Except it all (mostly) works, making it all the more impressive. We could be laughing at these wacky, hooligan-y English blokes from the oddball year of UK ska revival in 1979, but instead we laugh with them. It’s ska, bringing in the Caribbean influences of roots reggae and rocksteady, but making it its own British thing; again, this could have gone all kinds of badly but instead it works. And then factor in other influences ranging from punk to new wave to pop, all performed with the extreme exuberance and confidence of youth and with tongues firmly planted in cheeks.
And I guess you can only describe it as Madness.