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Top 10 Side 1/Track 1’s 1977
This is a list of my favorite Side 1/Track 1’s from 1977 (expect similar lists for later years in coming weeks). 1976 might have been the year that punk broke, but ’77 is the year that it started to be widely captured on record. This list is chock full of fantastic songs from artists that are still widely revered to this day. These men changed the face of music in a profound way that we can still hear the influences of in most of our present favorites. With the exception of the Television track, I was able to find live video from 1977 (or ’76 in a few cases) of the bands performing the songs on this list. I know that the list is about LP tracks. However, I just thought that it would be more interesting to watch some of these videos. Watching all of them made me insanely jealous of those that were able to see all, or some, of these bands live. To watch band after band tear through these reckless, dangerous, absolutely blistering tracks is to get just a little taste of the excitement that must have been brewing at the birth of punk rock.
Other tracks that I considered posting were; Cheap Trick – “Hot Love” from Cheap Trick, David Bowie – “Speed of Life” from Low, Elvis Costello – “Welcome To the Working Week” from My Aim Is True, Ramones – “Cretin Hop” from Rocket To Russia, Richard Hell & The Voidoids – “Love Comes In Spurts” from The Blank Generation, The Stranglers – “Sometimes” from Rattus Norvegicus, Talking Heads – “Uh-Oh, Love Comes To Town” from Talking Heads: ’77, Vibrators – “Into The Future . . .” from Pure Mania, and Wire – “Reuters” from 1977. What did I get wrong? What did I get right? As always, your feedback is both welcomed and encouraged.
Dead Boys – “Sonic Reducer”
from Young, Loud, & Snotty
The Saints – “(I’m) Stranded”
from (I’m) Stranded
The Clash – “Janie Jones”
from The Clash
Ramones – “Glad To See You Go”
from Leave Home
Television – “See No Evil”
from Marquee Moon
The Damned – “Neat Neat Neat”
from Damned Damned Damned
Heartbreakers – “Born Too Loose”
from L.A.M.F.
Sex Pistols – “Holidays In the Sun”
from Never Mind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols
Iggy Pop – “Lust For Life”
from Lust For Life
The Jam – “The Modern World”
from This Is the Modern World
