The Indie Years 1978

This is the second blog in the series The Indie Years - I am going to create one blog and playlist for each year.  Inspired by the original punk bands there was an explosion of new talent that embraced the D.I.Y. ethos and didn't see lack of musicianship as a reason not to get up and perform.
The term post punk was used as a catch-all phrase as the new bands playing the most interesting music were all heading in different directions and leaving the limited pure punk behind.

The Indie Years 1978

The Indie Years 1978 Spotify Playlist

1) Shot By Both Sides - Magazine
In Manchester, Howard Devito had left the Buzzcocks and formed Magazine in 1977.  This is their classic first single which reached the dizzy heights of #41 in the UK Charts in January 1978. 



2) (White Man) In Hammersmith Palais - The Clash
This song showcases a remarkable progression the The Clash had made since their debut album the previous year.  The lyrics are savage - they were no longer predicting a riot, they were documenting the decline of the country.

3) The Saints Are Coming - Skids
The third single by these Scottish punks was later a world-wide hit when covered by U2 and Green Day.   Southampton FC used to play this before emerging on the pitch at St Mary's Stadium.

4) Hong Kong Garden - Siouxsie and the Banshees
Oriental tinged post punk ditty in homage to their favourite Chinese takeaway.



5) Alternative Ulster - Stiff Little Fingers (Rough Trade)
Northern Ireland's best punk band were the Stiff Little Fingers who found shot to fame after John Peel played their debut single Suspect Device on high rotation.  Island Records paid for the recording of their debut album but refused to release it as they didn't think it would sell.  Their manager then walked off with the master recordings and they were mixed and released on Geoff Travis' independent Rough Trade label. Inflamable Material became the first independent album to chart reaching #14 the following year.

6) Ever Fallen In Love (With Someone You Shouldn't Have) - Buzzcocks
Pete Shelly took control of Manchester's Buzzcocks and had a big hit pairing the energy of punk rock with the winning pop subject matter of unrequited teenage love.  It is a sub-three minute masterpiece.

7) Another Girl, Another Planet - The Only Ones
In the same vein is this gem from an otherwise forgotten band who released three albums between 78-81.  They gained a cult following so may be worth some investigation but I haven't found the time yet.

8) Teenage Kicks - The Undertones
Another Norther Irish punk band and this song was beloved by Radio 1 Indie champion John Peel.  They had a bit of a rivalry with the Stiff Little Fingers who they accused of exploiting the conflict of Northern Ireland.  In return the Stiff Little Fingers accused The Undertones of ignoring it.


9) Down In The Tube Station At Midnight - The Jam

Paul Weller's social commentary and storytelling was at its peak with mid period The Jam.  This was a single taken from their third album in under two years which shows either the unstoppable work ethos or lack of quality control.  This tells a tale of a young man who gets a late night kicking from some thugs in an underground station.

10) Solitary Confinement - The Members
It's a joy to discover songs as fresh and funny as this four decades later.  A punk rock story of a lad who moves to the big city for the excitement but the dream doesn't live up to expectations.  Includes a spoken verse that would later become the trademark of Jarvis Cocker.

11) Digital - Joy Division (Factory)
Joy Division's first release was on the debut release from Tony Wilson's Factory Records on a double seven inch released in December 78.    

12) Part Time Punks - Television Personalities
One of my favourite songs about indie snobbery - sneering at the trend following rich kids.

13) Okay - The Shoes
This is a long way from punk - A sweet power pop song by a US outfit with a sound that would be adopted by a number of indie bands in the 1980s.


14) Walk On By - The Stranglers
A cover of Dionne Warwick's 1964 R&B pop song.  The Stranglers version has dirtier guitars and the punk vocal delivery.  However The Stranglers were never a real punk band and had been touring the pub circuit for most of the decade.  Doubling the length of the original with packing it with long winded organ solos reveals their true prog rock pretensions.



15) Because Of The Night - Patti Smith Group 
Patti Smith's biggest hit was partially written by Bruce Springsteen whilst he was in a dispute with his record company and unable to record his own material.  Patti Smith finished off the lyrics recorded it as a rock ballad to worldwide approval.

16) Take Me To The River - Talking Heads (Sire)
Another cover - This one was originally by Al Green and the Heads make it their own with this stripped down take.

17) Hanging On The Telephone - Blondie
Blondie's broke into the mainstream with a series of classic singles in 1978-79.  Hanging On The Telephone was written by a LA band called The Nerves and it was this pile-driving cover that helped Blondie crack the UK top ten.

18) Be My Girl, Sally -The Police
An early album track, with another spoken word interlude, telling the tale of Sting's passionate relationship with a blow up doll.  You won't find this on any of the later coffee table compilations!


19) You Can't Put Your Arms Around A Memory - Johnny Thunders
Ex New York Doll's member Johnny Thunders with backing support from Peter Perrett of The Only Ones.

20) Public Image - Public Image Limited
The Sex Pistols had imploded after their first album.  Sid Vicious had murdered his girlfriend and died of a heroin overdose whilst of bail. Johnny Rotten had reverted to his real name of John Lydon and formed Public Image Limited in 1978.  This was their debut single.

Further Reading...
The Indie Years 1977
The Indie Years 1979
The Indie Years 1980
The Indie Years 1981
The Indie Years 1982
The Indie Years 1983
The Indie Years 1984
The Indie Years 1985
The Indie Years 1986

The Indie Years 1977

This will be the first of a series of blogs focusing on the best alternative / independent records from each year.  I have started forty years ago in 1977 when punk rock went mainstream in the UK.  The first handful of UK punk records were released in '76 and I have previously blogged about those here.

For each year I will provide a playlist on Spotify restricted to twenty tracks from 20 different acts. Most years will necessitate hard decisions to select the tracks.  For other years I was struggling to reach 20 so have gone exploring the internet for hidden gems which has also been rewarding unearthing new (old) music.

The Indie Years 1977

The Indie Years 1977 Spotify Playlist

                                                   
1) God Save The Queen - Sex Pistols (Virgin)
Released during the month of the Queen Elizabeth's Silver Jubilee this became the biggest hit of the punk scene. The single was immediately banned by the BBC and many other British radio stations which resulted in it shooting to the top of the charts.  The official charts were rumoued to have been tampered to ensure it did not reach the top spot. The band were arrested as they attempted to play this song from a barge on the River Thames during the royal celebrations.  Despite being published by Richard Branson's Virgin Records, this didn't stop the Queen from knighting Branson years later.



2) Love Comes In Spurts - Richard Hell & The Voidoids (Sire)
A snotty US punk rocker from whom Malcolm McLaren copied the look for the Sex Pistols.  Richard Hell had stints in both The Heartbreakers and Television before releasing the Blank Generation album from which this spunky song was the lead track.


3) Teenage Lobotomy - Ramones
One of the original US punk bands formed in Queens, New York in 1974 and the new punk rock sounds were in such contrast to the predominant prog rock that they changed the game and inspired the first UK punk bands.  This track is one of their most famous and was taken from their second album Rocket to Russia.

4) Psycho Killer - Talking Heads (Sire)
New York's Talkin' Heads first hit was a live recording of this unhinged murder ballad.

5) Boredom - Buzzcocks (New Hormones)
English punk band from Bolton who issued their early singles on their own record label and was produced by Manchester legend Martin Hannett.  Original member Howard DeVito soon became bored with the limitations of the punk movement and quit shortly after this release - later to form Magazine.

6) Motorhead - Motorhead
Lemmy was a member of the space prog rock band Hawkwind during the early 1970s.  When he was arrested for drug charges on a US tour, he was kicked out of the band.  He formed Motorhead and mixed hard rock with the trash and speed of punk inventing the Trash Metal genre.  This song was later covered by Primal Scream on their Vanishing Point album.

7) Chinese Rocks - Johnny Thunders & The Heartbreakers
Richard Hell announced to Dee Dee Ramone that he was going to write a drug song better than Lou Reed's "Heroin".  Inspired Dee Dee wrote Chinese Rocks but the rest of the Ramones said it was too obviously about drugs to include in their set.  They obviously were feeling a bit paranoid for some reason!  Richard Hell helped finish the song and it was eventually recorded by the Heartbreakers after Richard Hell had left the band.  The Ramones later recorded their own version. Presumably after they had hidden their stash.


8) Uptown Top Ranking - Althea and Donna
A Jamaican reggae song with a couple of teenage girls freestyling over an old 1960s song called Three Piece Suit by Trinity.  Uptown Top Ranking was played accidentally by legendary indie champion DJ John Peel on his radio show and ended up topping the UK singles charts.

9) Marquee Moon - Television
Richard Hell had been kicked out of Television following arguments with Tom Verlain due to musical differences - but this was the lead single from their second album.  At over ten minutes long and full of intricate guitar licks it stands out from the short sharp shock of the traditional punk song.



10) The Passenger - Iggy Pop
The Stooges front man went solo after hanging out in Berlin with David Bowie and created most of his best songs on the two albums he released in 1977 (The Idiot and Lust For Life).

11) Oxygene Pt.2 - Jean-Michel Jarre
Spaced out electronic melodies from the French composer.  My Dad used to play this album whilst I would stargaze out from the car window.


12) Natural Mystic - Bob Marley & The Wailers (Island)
Bob Marley relocated to London after he survived an assassination attempt in Kingston, Jamaica where he stayed in self exile for a couple of years.  Bob Marley & The Wailers became International stars after the success of the Exodus album.



13) Police and Thieves - The Clash
The Clash infused their punk rock with reggae influences including covers.  This album track from their debut album was originally recorded the previous year by Jamaican singer Marvin Junior and the lyrics fit with their outlaw image.  "Police and Thieves in the street, fighting the nation with their guns and ammunition".
Live footage of The Clash's debut single is below as a bonus.

14) No More Heroes - The Stranglers
Pub Rockers who jumped on the punk nihilist bandwagon but still incorporated an organ solo to rival The Door's Light My Fire and penned the immortal lyrics, "Whatever happened to Leon Trotsky?  He got an ice pick that made his ear's burn."  Classic!

15) Three Girl Rhumba - Wire
English band Wire released their first album Pink Flag in 1977.  This was influential on many groups that followed including Elastica who ripped off the opening of Three Girl Rhumba on their  1994 single Connection.



16) World Wide World - Wreckless Eric (Stiff Records)
A punk unrequited love song.

17) In The City - The Jam
The debut single from Paul Weller's first band.  The mod/punk trio was the vehicle for Weller's songwriting.  They didn't dress like punks and donned suits and ties.  The Jam's sincerity and style were later questioned in the mocking lyrics of The Clash's (White Man) In Hammersmith Palais.  "The New Groups Are Not Concerned With What There Is To Be Learned, They've got Burton Suits, They Think It's Funny, Turning Rebellion Into Money".



18) My Mistake - Split Enz (Mushroom Records)
Before Crowded House, Tim and Neil Finn were members of the theatrical cabaret pop Split Enz who released many albums over ten years but struggled to find success outside of New Zealand and Australia. My Mistake was their first single to bother the charts.

19) I Feel Love - Donna Summer
A worldwide disco hit produced by Giorgio Moroder.  The high tempo, mechanical beats and icy synths resulted in a highly influential record in dance music, 80's synth pop and later techno.

20) Two Sevens Clash - Culture
Playing out with some classic Rastafarian roots reggae.

Further Reading...

The Indie Years 1978
The Indie Years 1979
The Indie Years 1980
The Indie Years 1981
The Indie Years 1982
The Indie Years 1983
The Indie Years 1984
The Indie Years 1985
The Indie Years 1986

Mixtape July 2017

July is here and so are twenty new songs carefully handpicked to soundtrack the middle of the year.

Generic Stock Picture Festival 2017

1) Cloud 9 by Baker Boy - Debut release from this awesome Indigenous Aussie rapper from the Northern Territory - looking forward to hearing more.



2) Everything Now by Arcade Fire - It's just too good to be true - can't take my eyes off of you.

3) Notion by Tash Sultana - This song has wormed its way into my head over several months - another extremely talented Aussie.

4) Holding On by The War On Drugs - Two new songs this year so it looks like an album is imminent.   At nearly six minutes, this is the shorter of the two.  The other is over eleven minutes long.  Did these guys never hear of punk rock?

5) Man of War by Radiohead -  One of three Radiohead tracks that were culled from OK Computer but are now found on the 20th anniversary re-release of the album.

6) Put Your Life On It by Kasabian - Kasabian's latest album closer builds to a singalong anthem of epic proportions with a gospel vibe akin to Blur's Tender.

7) Paved With Gold by Sampa The Great - Smoothness and dope beats.

8) Jacket Weather by Sam Gellaitry - Cool bleeps produced by this young Scottish DJ.

9) Enter Sandman by Cookin' On 3 Burners -  Australian Hammond organ jazz trio provide an instrumental cover of Metallica.  Sounds better than it looks on paper - but only just!

10) Blue Sun by Vanilla - It's great when you imagine a genre in your head and then discover it exists and is flourishing.  This happened to me recently with Chill-Hop and this is a fine example of what to expect if you want to take a detour in that direction.

11) Chariot by Beach House -  Keeping things on a blissed-out trip are Baltimore's Beach House with their first dreamy soundscape for a couple of years.

12) Can't Help Falling In Love by Beck - Taken from the soundtrack of The Man In The High Castle, Beck croons this epic ballad.   But when is his new album coming out?

13) Believe (triple j Like A Version Cover) by DMA's - Melbourne's DMA's cover Cher's 1998 disco hit and make it tolerable.


14) Snow by Angus & Julia Stone - Rejoice! Angus and Julia Stone have recorded a fourth album and this is the lead single.

15) How To Boil An Egg by Courtney Barnett - New catchy song from Melbourne's undisputed Queen of Glum.

16) Monkey Disco by The Babe Rainbow - Sixties hippy throwbacks have released their debut album including this funky monkey French disco number.

17) Wall Of Glass by Liam Gallagher - Liam is back singing other people's songs again with a backing band that sounds like Oasis during the excesses of the Be Here Now.  Liam brings his trademark attitude but to what end?  To shatter a wall of glass?  All Surface, No Feeling.  

18) Dive by Saint Etienne - Classic St Etienne handbags disco number.

19) Wait (Non Electric) by The Kills - Acoustic version of an album track from their excellent debut album Keep On Your Mean Side originally released back in 2003.  Just love her gravelly vocal here.

20) My Name Is Thunder by Jet & The Bloody Beetroots - A collaboration between The Bloody Beetroots and Aussie rockers Jet. Very Acca-Dacca!