My Top 50 Albums of 1979
Here's the Spotify playlist with one track from each album:
1. The Clash - London
Calling
2. The B-52's - The B-52's
3. Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers - Damn The Torpedoes
4. Fleetwood Mac - Tusk
5. Michael Jackson - Off The Wall
6. AC/DC - Highway To Hell
7. Talking Heads - Fear Of Music
8. Elvis Costello & The Attractions - Armed Forces
9. Donna Summer - Bad Girls
10. The Raincoats – The Raincoats
11. Prince – Prince
12. Rufus featuring Chaka Khan - Masterjam
13. The Specials - The Specials
14. Van Halen - Van Halen II
15. The Police - Reggatta de Blanc
16. Gang Of Four – Entertainment!
17. Cheap Trick - At Budokan
18. Gary Numan – The Pleasure Principle
19. Public Image Ltd – Metal Box / Second Edition
20. Graham Parker - Squeezing Out Sparks
21. Sparks – No. 1 In Heaven
22. Motorhead - Overkill
23. Joe Jackson - Look Sharp!
24. Electric Light Orchestra - Discovery
25. Devo - Duty Now For The Future
26. Pink Floyd - The Wall
27. Supertramp - Breakfast In America
28. David Bowie – Lodger
29. Robert Palmer - Secrets
30. The Cure - Three Imaginary Boys
31. Rickie Lee Jones - Rickie Lee Jones
32. Lowell George - Thanks, I'll Eat It Here
33. XTC - Drums And Wires
34. The Ramones - It's Alive
35. Neil Young and Crazy Horse - Rust Never Sleeps
36. Led Zeppelin - In Through The Out Door
37. Chic – Risque
38. Roxy Music – Manifesto
39. The Cars - Candy-O
40. Merle Haggard – Serving 190 Proof
41. Patti Smith Group – Wave
42. Nick Lowe - Labour of Lust
43. Little Feat - Down On The Farm
44. Wire - 154
45. Blondie - Eat To The Beat
2. The B-52's - The B-52's
3. Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers - Damn The Torpedoes
4. Fleetwood Mac - Tusk
5. Michael Jackson - Off The Wall
6. AC/DC - Highway To Hell
7. Talking Heads - Fear Of Music
8. Elvis Costello & The Attractions - Armed Forces
9. Donna Summer - Bad Girls
10. The Raincoats – The Raincoats
11. Prince – Prince
12. Rufus featuring Chaka Khan - Masterjam
13. The Specials - The Specials
14. Van Halen - Van Halen II
15. The Police - Reggatta de Blanc
16. Gang Of Four – Entertainment!
17. Cheap Trick - At Budokan
18. Gary Numan – The Pleasure Principle
19. Public Image Ltd – Metal Box / Second Edition
20. Graham Parker - Squeezing Out Sparks
21. Sparks – No. 1 In Heaven
22. Motorhead - Overkill
23. Joe Jackson - Look Sharp!
24. Electric Light Orchestra - Discovery
25. Devo - Duty Now For The Future
26. Pink Floyd - The Wall
27. Supertramp - Breakfast In America
28. David Bowie – Lodger
29. Robert Palmer - Secrets
30. The Cure - Three Imaginary Boys
31. Rickie Lee Jones - Rickie Lee Jones
32. Lowell George - Thanks, I'll Eat It Here
33. XTC - Drums And Wires
34. The Ramones - It's Alive
35. Neil Young and Crazy Horse - Rust Never Sleeps
36. Led Zeppelin - In Through The Out Door
37. Chic – Risque
38. Roxy Music – Manifesto
39. The Cars - Candy-O
40. Merle Haggard – Serving 190 Proof
41. Patti Smith Group – Wave
42. Nick Lowe - Labour of Lust
43. Little Feat - Down On The Farm
44. Wire - 154
45. Blondie - Eat To The Beat
46. Joni Mitchell - Mingus
47. Stevie Wonder - Stevie Wonder's Journey Through "The Secret Life of Plants"
47. Stevie Wonder - Stevie Wonder's Journey Through "The Secret Life of Plants"
48. The Eagles - The
Long Run
49. Parliament – Gloryhallastoopid (Or Pin The Hall On The Funky)
50. Cheap Trick - Dream Police
49. Parliament – Gloryhallastoopid (Or Pin The Hall On The Funky)
50. Cheap Trick - Dream Police
I finished doing albums and singles lists for every year of the '80s a few months ago (see below), and I've been really excited to get started on the '70s. It's always interesting to me to see how the arbitrary point where one decade ends and another begins does feel in some ways like the dividing point of musical eras. A lot of bands who thrived throughout the '70s finally started to wind down as if like clockwork around 1979 (Led Zeppelin, The Eagles, Parliament, Little Feat, Patti Smith Group) while other artists were coming to the end of their classic period (Stevie Wonder, Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, ELO). On the flipside, there was an enormous amount of new energy making things exciting in the late '70s, and a lot of the albums here foreshadow who would spend most of the '80s making great records (Michael Jackson, Prince, Tom Petty, The Cure, XTC).
Previously:
This entry was posted
on Wednesday, June 28, 2023 at 8:00 AM.
You can skip to the end and leave a response.
Post a Comment