If you lived through 1976, you know it was just plain crazy. Saturday Night Live, in its second year on the air, actually was given credit by some for putting Jimmy Carter in the White House. I’m not sure if that’s true, I think Watergate may have played a larger role, but it does give a measurement to the power of pop culture at the time. 1976 was the year of the bicentennial, one of the biggest hypes of the time. The first rumblings of punk were being heard in London after tours by the New York City punk bands. And, disco was beginning to wane a bit, at least until next year.
1976 was my second full year in which I was immersed in popular music. Once again, Casey Kasem’s program was my biggest influence, but I had discovered rock magazines with color photographs AND great writing especially Creem magazine with the great Lester Bangs and Lisa Robinson influencing my next level of discoveries. I was also in my full throttle KISS days, but I also moved toward Queen, Rush and Parliament that year. And everywhere you went, Peter Frampton was on the radio, turntable or in an 8-track tape player.
But, did you know who somewhat quietly had big years in the music world? Boz Scaggs and Bob Seger. Scaggs unwittingly started the whole nutty genre of yacht rock with his brilliant mix of West Coast cool, mild disco beats, brilliant white-soul vocals and slick production work. And Seger, that hardworking journeyman rocker from the Detroit music scene finally broke nationally.
In retrospect, it appears that many of the rock songs from this year have become the basis for classic rock radio. From “Bohemian Rhapsody” to Boston’s debut album, 1976 is loaded with rock classics. Unbeknownst to me at the time would be that I would never again escape many of these songs, for better or for worse.
Perhaps most importantly, I officially joined the ranks of being a teenager that year, and with that came all the craziness of the teen years. It was also the year when my parents’ marriage imploded. So while anger and hormones were raging through my body, music became my refuge. All this means that today’s list represents a moment in time when my life changed in oh so many ways, ways that I continued to battle throughout my adult life.
What does all of this say? Basically, this is a list of songs that essentially were three-minute therapy sessions. Some others may have been discovered later in my life, allowing me to rewrite history somewhat. Brace yourself because here are my 100 favorite songs of 1976.
100. “Afternoon Delight” – Starland Vocal Band
99. “Keep on Knocking” – Death
98. “New Kid in Town” – Eagles
97. “Summer” – War
96. “You Don’t Have to Be a Star” – Marilyn McCoo & Billy Davis Jr.
95. “Takin’ It to the Streets” – The Doobie Brothers
94. “Things We Do for Love” – 10 c.c.
93. “Back in the Saddle” – Aerosmith
92. “Travelin’ Man/Beautiful Loser (live)” – Bob Seger
91. “The Pretender” – Jackson Browne
90. “Keep It Comin’ Love” – KC & the Sunshine Band
89. “Let ‘Em In” – Wings
88. “The First Cut Is the Deepest” – Rod Stewart
87. “Something He Can Feel” – Aretha Franklin
86. “You Are the Woman” – Firefall
85. “Beth” – KISS
84. “Isn’t She Lovely” – Stevie Wonder
83. “Take the Money and Run” – Steve Miller Band
82. “You’re My Best Friend” – Queen
81. “Life in the Fast Lane” – Eagles
80. “If You Leave Me Now” – Chicago
79. “Carry On Wayward Son” – Kansas
78. “I Wish” – Stevie Wonder
77. “Baby I Love Your Way (live)” – Peter Frampton
76. “Rock’n Me” – Steve Miller Band
75. “Livin’ Thing” – Electric Light Orchestra
74. “Shake Your Booty” – KC & the Sunshine Band
73. “New Rose” – The Damned
72. “2112” – Rush
71. “So Into You” – Atlanta Rhythm Section
70. “Devil Woman” – Cliff Richard
69. “I’m Your Boogie Man” – KC & the Sunshine Band
68. “Police and Thieves” – Junior Murvin
67. “Roxette” – Dr. Feelgood
66. “X-Offender” – Blondie
65. “It’s a Long Way to the Top” – AC/DC
64. “Do Ya” – Electric Light Orchestra
63. “Just to Be Close to You” – Commodores
62. “Smoke from a Distant Fire” – Sanford/Townsend Band
61. “Get Up and Boogie” – Silver Convention
60. “Love So Right” – Bee Gees
59. “Enjoy Yourself” – The Jacksons
58. “Fool to Cry” – The Rolling Stones
57. “Detroit Rock City” – KISS
56. “Turn Your Beat Around” – Vicki Sue Robinson
55. “Year of the Cat” – Al Stewart
54. “Dazz” – Brick
53. “Silly Love Songs” – Wings
52. “Love Hangover” – Diana Ross
51. “Show Me the Way (live)” – Peter Frampton
50. “Car Wash” – Rose Royce
49. “Crazy on You” – Heart
48. “Kiss and Say Goodbye” – The Manhattans
47. “Fly like an Eagle” – Steve Miller Band
46. “Tonight’s the Night” – Rod Stewart
45. “Still the One” – Orleans
44. “The Rubberband Man” – The Spinners
43. “(I’m) Stranded” – The Saints
42. “Shake Some Action” – The Flamin’ Groovies
41. “Telephone Line” – Electric Light Orchestra
40. “More, More, More” – Andrea True Connection
39. “Mainstreet” – Bob Seger
38. “Do You Feel like I Do (live)” – Peter Frampton
37. “Don’t Leave Me This Way” – Thelma Houston
36. “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart” – Elton John & Kiki Dee
35. “Long Time” – Boston
34. “Night Moves” – Bob Seger
33. “Play that Funky Music” – Wild Cherry
32. “Dancing Queen” – ABBA
31. “Somebody to Love” – Queen
30. “I’ll Be Good to You” – Brothers Johnson
29. “Shout It Out Loud” – KISS
28. “Here Comes Those Tears Again” – Jackson Browne
27. “Cherry Bomb” – The Runaways
26. “Teenage Depression” – Eddie & the Hot Rods
25. “Magic Man” – Heart
24. “You Should Be Dancing” – Bee Gees
23. “So It Goes” – Nick Lowe
22. “Dream On” – Aerosmith
21. “Lido Shuffle” – Boz Scaggs
20. “Breakdown” – Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers
19. “Blitzkrieg Bop” – Ramones
18. “Moonlight Feels Right” – Starbuck
17. “Rich Girl” – Daryl Hall & John Oates
16. “American Girl” – Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers
15. “Lowdown” – Boz Scaggs
14. “Boogie Nights” – Heatwave
13. “Anarchy in the U.K.” – Sex Pistols
12. “(Don’t Fear) The Reaper” – Blue Öyster Cult
11. “Turn the Page (live)” – Bob Seger
10. “Sir Duke” – Stevie Wonder
9. “Couldn’t Get It Right” – Climax Blues Band
8. “Saturday Night” – Bay City Rollers
7. “She’s Gone” – Daryl Hall & John Oates
6. “Blinded by the Light” – Manfred Mann’s Earth Band
5. “The Boys Are Back in Town” – Thin Lizzy
4. “More Than a Feeling” – Boston
3. “Go Your Own Way” – Fleetwood Mac
2. “Hotel California” – Eagles
1. “Bohemian Rhapsody” – Queen
If My Records Could Talk 