Author: ifmyalbumscouldtalk

Back in May 1981, I was graduating from high school, preparing for my last three months of living at home before arriving at the Ball State campus, and facing the world as a young adult. Personally, I was ready to leave my little community of family, friends and a whole stifling world of people in the hopes of becoming part of some sort of educational-based intellectualism. Unfortunately, outside of my classes, I left college disappointed by the experience. Sure, I chose my alma mater for three reasons: (1) the science department was every bit as good as Indiana or Purdue’s for the life sciences, (2) I was going to be a “preferred walk-on” on the Cross Country and indoor and outdoor Track teams, and (3) the size was big enough to be “lost in” while small enough to gain some valuable leadership experiences. Well, reasons 1 and 3 remain great, while number 2 was just plain stupid. I should have known that I was no longer in love with running, at least in the way to be success at the collegiate level.

Yet, I was leaving high school as an academic underachiever, who had a firm grasp of scientific concepts, grammatical and writing skills and a knowledge base in history/government/economics/political science that may have exceeded a majority of my peers, mainly because I was constantly reading all kinds of material, from Karl Marx to Ayn Rand, from the Bible to the Qur’an. This is not an attempt to brag, but to give you a bit of my background. During my two-year confirmation coursework in my Lutheran church, I became enamored with Matthew 25:31-46, in which Jesus directs Christians to care for those who have less, since you never know when that person you are aiding could be God, Himself. First off, I am a terrible hypocrite when it comes to living these verses out-load; yet, I do try, especially during my teaching career. It was when I read that section of the Bible back in the seventh grade, I thought if you were to extrapolate those verses into the political realm, then the liberal political view, with all of its faults, would be the most Godlike. So, sorry fellow Hoosiers, I am a liberal. I know most of you believe that makes me dumb, Godless, and the like. And, I understand that my educational background seems to make me out to living in some ivory tower that I have never seen, even figuratively. Oh, and I will not change my beliefs.

But, one area in which college did not disappoint was in the development of my love of music. Slowly, I found some like-minded musical souls with whom I shared our love. I also got involved with a group of young men who encouraged me to become a member of their college bowl team as a pop music specialist. So, not only was I added to this team for my scientific background but because of my prodigious knowledge in popular music. Thus, this blog would have never existed without that group of seniors who noticed something in me. My career in the college bowl was short-lived when I got involved with an intramural basketball team, which I needed as an outlet.

Now, 1981 was a pretty good year for music. By 1981, punk rock had evolved into new wave, hardcore (like Black Flag, Hüsker Dü and the Dead Kennedys), goth (Bauhaus, the early Cure and Siouxsie & the Banshees) and new wave (Devo, The B-52’s and all the popular forms of a left field type of pop music). The synthesizer was the instrument of choice of the early Eighties and was being incorporated by all forms of music, including even by heavy metal and southern rock artists. Although my Top 40 was diverse, the use of the synthesizer was prevalent. Yet, it was the music that shone through, not the synthesizers.

So, let’s dive back into 1981. Sure, the songs were all about “Celebration,” “Looking for Love,” and “Physical.” Yet, it was the albums in which had the real music. So, here is my Top 40 Albums of 1981.

1. Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers – Hard Promises
2. Brian Eno and David Byrne – My Life in the Bush of Ghosts
3. Daryl Hall & John Oates – Private Eyes
4. Rush – Moving Pictures
5. The Police – Ghost in the Machine
6. Squeeze – East Side Story
7. The J. Geils Band – Freeze-Frame
8. Tom Tom Club – Tom Tom Club
9. Phil Collins – Face Value
10. Stevie Nicks – Bella Donna
11. Rick James – Street Songs
12. Prince – Controversy
13. The Rolling Stones – Tattoo You
14. Electric Light Orchestra – Time
15. Billy Squier – Don’t Say No
16. Genesis – Abacab
17. The Moody Blues – Long Distance Voyager
18. Journey – Escape
19. Lindsey Buckingham – Law and Order
20. Duran Duran – Duran Duran
21. Elvis Costello & the Attractions – Trust
22. Foreigner – 4
23. The Human League – Dare!
24. Loverboy – Get Lucky
25. Billy Joel – Songs from the Attic
26. Joan Jett & the Blackhearts – I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll
27. Rickie Lee Jones – Pirates
28. Triumph – Allied Forces
29. The Go-Go’s – Beauty and the Beat
30. Dan Fogelberg – An Innocent Man
31. Devo – New Traditionalists
32. Hanoi Rocks – Bangkok Shocks Saigon Shakes Hanoi Rocks
33. The Cars – Shake It Up
34. Debbie Harry – Koo Koo
35. AC/DC – For Those About to Rock We Salute You
36. Pretenders – Pretenders II
37. Pat Benatar – Precious Time
38. Rick Springfield – Working Class Dog
39. Saga – Worlds Apart
40. Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band – Nine Tonight

And, that’s 1981 to me these days, not so much my political views which I continue to hold on to. I’d much rather discuss rock & roll, science (especially microbiology), and the arts, but I do have strong political views that are not based on emotion but on a pragmatically studied views gained from The Bible, Qur’an and political studies. Let’s go rock and roll!

Whew! Man, have the past six or so days been crazy! My step-father had hip replacement surgery, so with Mom being incapacitated with her condition, that left me to be his “coach.” And, what they mean by “coach” is that I am in charge of his diet, meds and exercises, meaning insurance no longer covers the eldery’s rehabilitation under the guise of “research says…” So, why is it that I am so cynical when it comes to healthcare? Well, I worked in hospital labs during my first eight years after college. Plus, I was once told by an arrogant insurance man back in the mid-Eighties that insurance companies would and should be taking over healthcare because costs were becoming too high. Since I had a healthcare economics class just in the months leading up to this conversation, I felt ready to tell the man that I hoped he would NEVER have an insurance company refuse to cover treatments. Ironically, within a decade, that is exactly what happened to this man’s family, forcing them to do several fundraisers in order to pay for treatments for his grandchild. But, us Americans just totally believe that the volatile stock market is the best way to control costs, though the reality is those very costs have exponentially skyrockets since the Eighties when this very belief was implemented. It’s simple math, but what do I know.

Well, I do know music, especially music from arguably the greatest decade, the 1980s. Over the course of the next two weeks, I will be presenting my 40 favorite albums for each year from 1980 through 1989. Today, allow me the honor to present my Top 40 albums for the great year 1980.

1980 just happened to be a pretty strong year for quality albums. It was such a good year that good albums by the likes of Van Halen, Split Enz, Pat Benatar, Cheap Trick, Jackson Browne, The Cure, The English Beat, John Cougar and Bob Seger. Yet, the albums on this list are of the highest quality, so let’s get this party started. On with the countdown!

1. Talking Heads – Remain in Light
2. Peter Gabriel – Peter Gabriel (III: Melting)
3. AC/DC – Back in Black
4. David Bowie – Scary Monsters (And Super Creeps)
5. The Police – Zenyatta Mondatta
6. Bruce Springsteen – The River
7. Daryl Hall & John Oates – Voices
8. Prince – Dirty Mind
9. Daryl Hall – Sacred Songs
10. Queen – The Game
11. The Jam – Sound Affects
12. The J. Geils Band – Love Stinks
13. The Romantics – The Romantics
14. Pretenders – Pretenders
15. Elvis Costello & the Attractions – Get Happy!!!
16. Dexys Midnight Runners – Searching for the Young Soul Rebels
17. Various Artists – Times Square OST
18. Judas Priest – British Steel
19. Rush – Permanent Waves
20. The Clash – Sandinista!
21. The Vapors – New Clear Day
22. Donnie Iris – Back on the Streets
23. Ramones – End of the Century
24. The Jacksons – Triumph
25. Dire Straits – Making Movies
26. The Cars – Panorama
27. John Lennon & Yoko Ono – Double Fantasy
28. Billy Joel – Glass Houses
29. The B-52’s – Wild Planet
30. Blondie – Autoamerican
31. Ozzy Osbourne – Blizzard of Ozz
32. Stevie Wonder – Hotter Than July
33. Dead Kennedys – Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables
34. The Alan Parsons Project – The Turn of a Friendly Card
35. Devo – Freedom of Choice
36. Joy Division – Closer
37. Kurtis Blow – Kurtis Blow
38. REO Speedwagon – Hi Infidelity
39. Paul Simon – One Trick Pony
40. Squeeze – Argybargy

And, there you have it! My Top 40 albums of 1980. Let the discussion begin!

Back in 1985, Prince ruled the rock and pop culture world. It had been something of a whirlwind during the previous three years. Toward the end of 1982, Prince released his 1999 album which caught the fancy of the world at the same time during which Michael Jackson’s vision of a unity of races would occur in the aftermath of his world-shaking Thriller album. Together, Prince and Michael signified a changing of the guard in the music world. This was now a brave new world, ready for Generation X to begin its grapple with society. And these two African-American musicians were breaking down racial barriers with their musics blending of pop, R&B, rock, funk, jazz and any other form of music into something completely new and exciting. Where the two men diverged was in their lyrical content and musicianship. Where Micheal stuck to the PG-world of lyrical content while using some of the finest musicians available to him in the world to bring his songs to life, Prince was totally self-contained, crude and blunt. In other words, Michael was safe, while Prince was dangerous. Totally ironic when thinking about how their adult lives developed in the aftermath of their isolating mega-celebrity.

So, in 1985, with Prince being the restless musical soul that we learnt over the next few years that he was, he was attempting to expand upon Rick James’ vision of expanding his musical empire beyond just his music. Prior to this year, Prince had written and performed the music for a funk band that would become he alter-ego to be called The Time. This funk band would be the purely black side of his personality and would be fronted by his good friend Morris Day. Prince then surrounded Day with the best musicians around Minneapolis, Prince’s hometown, that were not part of Prince’s band, The Revolution. In addition to Day, Prince added a keyboardist by the name of Jimmy Jam and a bassist Terry Lewis. Those two would go on to spread the “Minneapolis Sound” beyond the state of Minnesota as they helped Prince define the sound of the Eighties as they produced, among other, Janet Jackson and The Human League. When you read the notes on The Time’s first two albums, you will not find any reference to Prince, but you will see that the albums were “Written, Performed and Produced by Jamie Starr,” a pseudonym used by Prince.

After the release of The Time’s second album, What Time Is It? in 1982, Prince put together a girl group trio headed by his then-girlfriend Vanity, which he dubbed Vanity 6. This group’s eponymous debut album was released during that pivot year of 1982, making a total of three highly successful albums that Prince had created in one year. Then the three bands went out on tour and killed audiences everywhere.

Then the defections started, just as Prince was prepping for the release of all thing surrounding Purple Rain. Jam and Lewis were fired for doing production work on the side while on tour. And, Vanity left the fold to go solo on Motown. The Time easily replaced their fired duo, but second keyboardist Monte Moir left to work with Jam and Lewis. Still, new hires kept The Time afloat. Replacing Vanity, Prince’s love interest in the movie Purple Rain was much more daunting. He settled upon Apollonia, who looked fantastic but just could not sing. So, instead of giving the renamed Apollonia 6 great material, Prince gave that batch of music for his newest love interest, Sheila E., which ended up on her 1984 debut album The Glamorous Life. So, in 1984, Prince had released a movie and album of the same name, an album by The Time, one by the newly refurbished Apollonia 6 (with Revolution bandmates Wendy and Lisa’s vocals doubling around Apollonia’s to cover her singing shortcomings), and the aforementioned Sheila E. album.

But, the ever-restless yet creative soul that Prince was, he decided that his new girlfriend, Susannah Melvoin, Revolution guitarist Wendy Melvoin’s twin sister, needed a band. So, in lieu of marriage, Susannah was put into a band with saxophonist Eric Leeds and former members of now defunct Time: drummer Jellybean Johnson, Day’s former sideman Jerome Benton and keyboardist/vocalist Paul “St. Paul” Peterson. The quintet was filled out with musicians from the world of Prince, in addition, of course, the man himself. Prince dubbed this band The Family.

Unfortunately, The Family could only hold things together for one album, an eponymous-titled debut. On this obscure album, which, for some reason, I purchased shortly after it arrived in the record stores while I was still in Medical Technology School. I was NOT ready at all for the sounds that came from this album. It was full of sophisticated R&B, steeped in a Prince-ly state of jazz that was like nothing I had heard before. However, it did prepare me for Prince’s 1986 masterpiece of sophisticated funk, Parade.

Ironically, over the years, The Family has been the peripheral Prince album that has aged the best. I am very comfortable with its sound, as it is no longer the jarring musical change of direction that it was in 1985. It’s mix of soft funk and jazz progressions totally paved the way for D’Angelo’s last album, the sound of the last couple of albums by Kendrick Lamar, Beyoncé last two masterpieces, Kamasi Washington’s brilliant jazz forays, the music of the great Thundercat, among so many others today. But, we are talking about an album for 1985. That was 33 years ago!

At the time, The Family was so far ahead of things that the album barely registered a blip on the charts. However, “The Screams of Passion” did peak in the Top 20 of the R&B Chart of Billboard magazine. Additionally, this album is notable for it containing the first commercially released version of one of Prince’s most famous compositions, “Nothing Compares 2 U.” This was the song that Sinead O’Connor had heard and influenced her to record her stripped down version that became a world-wide hit in 1990. Until just within the past six months, The Family’s version of “Nothing Compares 2 U” was believed to have been the original recording of the song. However, archivists cataloging music found in the late artists’ infamous Vault discovered the original demo of the song that Prince record back during the creation of the Purple Rain album. Imagine that: arguably Prince’s greatest composition was thrown aside for something “greater.” The newly discovered version is floating around the internet right now and can be downloaded from iTunes. Plus, you can order a picture disc seven-inch single from the official Prince website. Still, The Family will continue to remain of Prince collectors’ “Holy Grails,” if for nothing else but that great song.

Like I said, The Family only stuck around for one album, then everyone split. However, in 2011, four-fifths of The Family, minus Jerome who rejoined the original members of The Time under the new name The Original 7even, got back together under the name of Fdeluxe. Under their new name, the band have continued their original sound and have released three independent studio albums, along with an EP and a live album. All of Fdeluxe’s albums can be found as electronic downloads on bandcamp.com.

So, matter whether they go by the Prince-owned name of The Family or the recently rechristened moniker Fdeluxe, you are hearing a band that was at one time thirty years ahead of musical trends. So, now that the music world has caught up, maybe this quartet can find some success. They were much more than five pretty faces.

Well, folks, I thought I would give you a quick update about new releases thus far in 2018. Simply put, there’s a drought going on. Oh, sure, there are some singles that are selling; however, if they had been released during a normal year for music, most would have been just minor hits. Thus is the state of the music industry. It is very much akin to the US steel industry: once mighty, powerful and creative, but now, it is simply another passing mention in history books. Thanks to Napster, we no longer have companies running the show, which should be a good thing, right Prince? (He fought throughout the Nineties to regain control of his music, the very same freedom most artists have today.) Thanks to a lack of vision at the record companies, they allowed their industry to implode. Now, artists are no longer getting the proper guidance they need while young, so with few people in their lives to tell them some of their musical ideas are crap, the artists release them and are left wondering why they are not selling their product. You would have thought that artists would have figured out the proper manner in which to survive the current climate, but, generally speaking, they have not.

An artist who has figure out today’s system is the great Kendrick Lamar, today’s finest rap artist. First, Lamar has released three consecutive transcendent albums that have both pushed the boundaries of hip hop while racking up this forgotten word – sales. Then, there’s Chance the Rapper who does NOT release any physical forms of his music, totally relying upon mp3s, which appeals to the millennials and younger, but sometimes us old fuddy duddies just want your music on vinyl or CD. We love the artwork and the recording information and lyrics. But, the young people don’t care, so why should the talented Chance follow the old paradigm? Unfortunately, neither of these talented men have released albums this year.

And, to be honest, I have only purchased five new CDs this year: Kai Danzberg, MGMT, Greta Van Fleet, Janelle Monáe and Leon Bridges. Other than those, I have been buying old vinyl. Yet, these five albums are easily the best of 2018.

If you remember, several weeks ago, I spent a whole blog entry pimping Kai Danzberg’s latest CD, the independently released Pop Up Radio. That album has remained a mainstay in my CD player, as I still dig his brand of power pop, which follows the impeccable trail once blazed by my beloved Jellyfish.

Then, one of the finer bands of the late 2000 (or The Aughts, right Bond?), MGMT, released their first album in five years. On the album titled Little Dark Age, the duo stepped away from the psychedelic rock excursions of their previous two albums, rediscovered that Eighties Casio keyboard they threw in the closet after the surprise success of their debut album, only to release another new wave-influenced gem like their debut. Unfortunately, this album only hearkens back to the heady days of their debut album’s success, as it lacks the spontaneity of that classic album with its series of unparalleled singles.

Next up is a new Michigan band who is being favorably compared to Led Zeppelin. I about talking about Greta Van Fleet, who actually released their debut EP, From the Fires, back in November 2017. Unlike all the Zeppelin wannabes of the Eighties, such as Whitesnake, Greta Van Fleet actually has grasped Jimmy Page’s ghost without any guitar references from Eddie Van Halen showing up. This band is a nice little band whom I cannot wait to see how they develop. These guys sound as if they grew up with me listening to much of the same pre-punk music I listened to, such as Grand Funk, Jethro Tull and Aerosmith. They have learned the moves, now I am ready for them to those moves their very own.

The fourth album that has caught my ear this year is the great retro-soul artist Leon Bridges, with his newly released album Good Thing. Back in 2015, Bridges burst on the scene sounding as if the ghosts of Otis Redding and Sam Cooke had impregnated Erykah Badu, upon the release of his magnificent debut album Coming Home. Now, on the new album, Bridges sounds less of a revivalist and more like the innovator he showed himself to be when he performed on SNL a couple years ago. On Good Thing, Bridges has become his own artist, by making the music that sounds more like him and less like his heroes. This is the type of growth you like to hear a new artist make.

Finally, how is Janelle Monáe NOT a superstar? I mean, come on now! This is her third straight flat-out classic album, yet, this woman has NEVER had a Top 10 single. She has the right pedigree, with her association with the guys in Outkast AND her friendship with Prince. Like those artists, she transcends their sounds to make her musical statement. On her new album, Dirty Computer, Miss Monáe, fresh off her critically acclaimed performance in the movie Hidden Figures, finally created the album that her previous two kept promising. From the opening salvo of the title track she created with the Beach Boys’ Brian Wilson, to the Prince-soundalike hit “Make You Mine,” this album is stuffed full with potential hits, if radio would just play them. C’mon radio programmers, pretend as if it is 1982 (still not a great year for radio programming, but much better than today) and add Monáe’s songs to your playlist like you once did for a young Prince. The world NEEDS her music if we are ever going to heal from Prince’s untimely death.

As we finally enjoy the warmth of spring here in the month of May, I give to you five albums that have made this year worth suffering through all of the other drivel dropped on us thus far. Here’s to hoping we get some better music sent our way over the next seven months. I have little hope, as there seems to be a lack of new music being released by my heroes this year. Keep your fingers crossed that 2018 picks up, but don’t hold your breath. I have been reading the upcoming releases for this year, and the pickings look slim. Of course, Willie Nelson just released another album. But, when was the last time he released a good album?

I decided to do a quick wrap up of my favorite albums from the Seventies, that decade of polyester leisure suits, high-heeled sneakers and acting like a queen (my apologies to Cheech & Chong). So, here it is! My Top 200 Albums of the Seventies.

1. The Clash – London Calling (1979)
2. Bruce Springsteen – Born to Run (1975)
3. Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers – Damn the Torpedoes (1979)
4. Cheap Trick – At Budokan (1979)
5. Big Star – #1 Record (1972)
6. Queen – A Night at the Opera (1975)
7. The Rolling Stones – Some Girls (1978)
8. Kiss – Destroyer (1976)
9. Ramones – Ramones (1976)
10. Queen – A Day at the Races (1976)
11. Elvis Costello & the Attractions – Armed Forces (1979)
12. Ramones – Rocket to Russia (1977)
13. The Rolling Stones – Sticky Fingers (1971)
14. Elvis Costello – My Aim Is True (1977)
15. Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers – Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers (1976)
16. Talking Heads – Fear of Music (1979)
17. Stevie Wonder – Songs in the Key of Life (1976)
18. Boston – Boston (1976)
19. The Rolling Stones – Exile on Main Street (1972)
20. Cheap Trick – In Color (1977)
21. Joy Division – Unknown Pleasures (1979)
22. Fleetwood Mac – Rumours (1977)
23. Alice Cooper – School’s Out (1972)
24. The Clash – The Clash (1977)
25. Ramones – Road to Ruin (1978)
26. Sex Pistols – Never Mind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols (1977)
27. Simon & Garfunkel – Bridge over Troubled Water (1970)
28. Raspberries – Raspberries (1972)
29. Led Zeppelin – IV (1971)
30. Kiss – Alive! (1975)
31. The Knack – Get the Knack (1979)
32. Daryl Hall & John Oates – Abandoned Luncheonette (1973)
33. Pink Floyd – Dark Side of the Moon (1973)
34. Marvin Gaye – What’s Going On (1971)
35. Rush – 2112 (1976)
36. The Stooges – Funhouse (1970)
37. Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young – Déjà Vu (1970)
38. Daryl Hall & John Oates – Daryl Hall & John Oates (1975)
39. David Bowie – Station to Station (1976)
40. Thin Lizzy – Jail Break (1976)
41. The Who – Who’s Next (1971)
42. Van Halen – Van Halen (1978)
43. Led Zeppelin – III (1970)
44. Big Star – Radio City (1974)
45. Pink Floyd – The Wall (1979)
46. Elton John – Goodbye Yellow Brick Road (1973)
47. Paul Simon – Still Crazy After All These Years (1975)
48. The Who – Quadrophenia (1973)
49. Heart – Dreamboat Annie (1976)
50. Cheap Trick – Heaven Tonight (1978)
51. Talking Heads – 77 (1977)
52. Lynyrd Skynyrd – One More from the Road (1976)
53. Raspberries – Starting Over (1974)
54. Boz Scaggs – Silk Degrees (1976)
55. The Jam – In the City (1977)
56. David Bowie – “Heroes” (1977)
57. Parliament – Mothership Connection (1975)
58. Various Artists – Saturday Night Fever OST (1977)
59. Steely Dan – Can’t Buy a Thrill (1972)
60. The Cars – The Cars (1978)
61. Electric Light Orchestra – Face the Music (1975)
62. Blondie – Parallel Lines (1978)
63. John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band – John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band (1970)
64. Bruce Springsteen – Darkness on the Edge of Town (1978)
65. Randy Newman – Good Old Boys (1974)
66. Meat Loaf – Bat Out of Hell (1977)
67. Carole King – Tapestry (1971)
68. Alice Cooper – Billion Dollar Babies (1973)
69. Bob Dylan & the Band – The Basement Tapes (1975)
70. Queen – Jazz (1978)
71. Bruce Springsteen – The Wild, the Innocent & the E Street Shuffle (1973)
72. Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers – You’re Gonna Get It! (1978)
73. David Bowie – The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars (1972)
74. Michael Jackson – Off the Wall (1979)
75. Talking Heads – More Songs About Buildings and Food (1978)
76. Lynyrd Skynyrd – Street Survivors (1977)
77. Fleetwood Mac – Fleetwood Mac (1975)
78. The Jam – All Mod Cons (1978)
79. Daryl Hall & John Oates – X-Static (1979)
80. Queen – Sheer Heart Attack (1974)
81. Elvis Costello – This Year’s Model (1978)
82. Iggy & the Stooges – Raw Power (1973)
83. The Police – Regatta de Blanc (1979)
84. The Band – The Last Waltz (1978)
85. Devo – Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! (1978)
86. Nick Lowe – Jesus of Cool (1978)
87. The Police – Outlandos d’Amour (1978)
88. Chic – Risqué (1979)
89. Neil Young – After the Gold Rush (1970)
90. Van Morrison – It’s Too Late to Stop Now (1974)
91. Steely Dan – Aja (1977)
92. Funkadelic – One Nation Under a Groove (1978)
93. Chic – C’est Chic (1978)
94. Elton John – Captain Fantastic & the Brown Dirt Cowboy (1975)
95. Todd Rundgren – Something/Anything? (1972)
96. Jimmy Cliff and Others – The Harder They Come OST (1972)
97. Van Morrison – Moondance (1970)
98. Led Zeppelin – In Through the Out Door (1979)
99. Supertramp – Breakfast in America (1979)
100. AC/DC – Highway to Hell (1979)
101. The B-52’s – The B-52’s (1979)
102. Billy Joel – The Stranger (1977)
103. Lynyrd Skynyrd – (pronounced ‘Lĕh-‘nérd ‘Skin-‘nérd) (1973)
104. Todd Rundgren – Runt: The Ballad of Todd Rundgren (1971)
105. Paul Simon – There Goes Rhymin’ Simon (1973)
106. Kraftwerk – The Man Machine (1978)
107. Elton John – Tumbleweed Connection (1970)
108. David Bowie – The Man Who Sold the World (1970)
109. Richard Hell & the Voidoids – Blank Generation (1977)
110. Bee Gees – Main Course (1975)
111. Lynyrd Skynyrd – Second Helping (1974)
112. Marvin Gaye – Let’s Get It On (1973)
113. Bob Dylan – Blood on the Tracks (1975)
114. Stevie Wonder – Fullfillingness’ First Finale (1974)
115. Pink Floyd – Wish You Were Here (1975)
116. Bob Dylan & The Band – Before the Flood (1974)
117. Elton John – Madman Across the Water (1971)
118. Electric Light Orchestra – Eldorado (1974)
119. Joni Mitchell – Blue (1971)
120. Sly & the Family Stone – There’s a Riot Goin’ On (1971)
121. Van Morrison – Saint Dominic’s Preview (1972)
122. Bob Marley & the Wailers – Natty Dread (1974)
123. Black Sabbath – Paranoid (1970)
124. Grateful Dead – Workingman’s Dead (1970)
125. Todd Rundgren – Runt (1970)
126. T. Rex – Electric Warrior (1971)
127. Laura Nyro – Gonna Take a Miracle (1971)
128. Elton John – Honky Chateau (1972)
129. David Bowie – Aladdin Sane (1973)
130. Boz Scaggs – Silk Degrees (1976)
131. Gram Parsons – GP (1973)
132. Raspberries – Fresh (1972)
133. Elton John – Caribou (1974)
134. Bill Withers – Just as I Am (1971)
135. Randy Newman – Sail Away (1972)
136. The Band – Stage Fright (1970)
137. Stevie Wonder – Talking Book (1972)
138. Al Green – Let’s Stay Together (1972)
139. The Beach Boys – Surf’s Up (1971)
140. Stevie Wonder – Music of My Mind (1972)
141. Marvin Gaye – Trouble Man (1972)
142. Creedence Clearwater Revival – Cosmo’s Factory (1970)
143. Chic – Chic (1977)
144. Parliament – The Clones of Dr. Funkenstein (1976)
145. Todd Rundgren – A Wizard, a True Star (1973)
146. Jackson Browne – Late for the Sky (1974)
147. Patti Smith – Horses (1975)
148. Derek & the Dominos – Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs (1970)
149. Eagles – Hotel California (1976)
150. Iggy Pop – Lust for Life (1977)
151. Daryl Hall & John Oates – War Babies (1974)
152. The Rolling Stones – It’s Only Rock ‘n’ Roll (1974)
153. Elton John – Elton John (1970)
154. Raspberries – Side 3 (1973)
155. Gram Parsons – Grievous Angel (1974)
156. The Rolling Stones – Get Yer Ya-Ya’s Out! (1970)
157. The Doobie Brothers – What We Once Vices Are Now Habits (1974)
158. Paul McCartney & Wings – Band on the Run (1973)
159. Electric Light Orchestra – A New World Record (1976)
160. The J. Geils Band – The Morning After (1971)
161. Steve Miller Band – Fly like an Eagle (1976)
162. The Runaways – The Runaways (1976)
163. The Isley Brothers – 3+3 (1973)
164. David Bowie – Low (1977)
165. The Allman Brothers Band – At Fillmore East (1971)
166. Paul Simon – Paul Simon (1972)
167. New York Dolls – New York Dolls (1973)
168. Rufus featuring Chaka Khan – Rufus (1975)
169. The Kinks – Muswell Hillbillies (1971)
170. The Who – Live at Leeds (1970)
171. David Bowie – Young Americans (1975)
172. Flamin’ Groovies – Shake Some Action (1975)
173. Badfinger – Straight Up (1971)
174. Rush – Rush (1974)
175. Dwight Twilley Band – Sincerely (1975)
176. Black Sabbath – Black Sabbath (1970)
177. Neil Young – Harvest (1972)
178. Blondie – Blondie (1976)
179. The Flamin’ Groovies – Shake Some Action (1976)
180. Shuggie Otis – Inspiration Information (1974)
181. Neil Young – On the Beach (1974)
182. Kiss – Kiss (1974)
183. The O’Jays – Ship Ahoy (1973)
184. Feelgood – Down by the Jetty (1975)
185. The Flamin’ Groovies – Teenage Head (1971)
186. Led Zeppelin – Houses of the Holy (1973)
187. Bob Seger – Live Bullet (1976)
188. Kiss – Love Gun (1977)
189. The Band – Rock of Ages (1972)
190. David Bowie – Hunky Dory (1971)
191. The Doobie Brothers – The Captain and Me (1973)
192. Iggy Pop – The Idiot (1977)
193. AC/DC – If You Want Blood You’ve Got It (1978)
194. Neil Young & Crazy Horse – Rust Never Sleeps (1979)
195. Todd Rundgren – Hermit of Mink Hollow (1978)
196. Cheap Trick – Dream Police (1979)
197. Blondie – Eat to the Beat (1979)
198. Doobie Brothers – Minute by Minute (1978)
199. Ace Frehley – Ace Frehley (1978)
200. Styx – Pieces of Eight (1978)

Well, ladies and gentlemen. That’s the Seventies according to the folks at If My Albums Could Talk. Monday, it’s back to the present, though the week my be short on entries. I will be taking some time away from the blog at the end of the week and into the following week as some elderly relatives will need some assistance from us. Keep on rockin’ in the free world!

When I think back to 1979, I literally smile at the memories. Musically, for me, 1979 was a terrific year. In my little world, 1979 is as important to my musical tastes as 1977 is to rock history. We are talking about a seismic year. The music that got me the most excited, punk, had completed its metamorphosis into the more pop-oriented new wave, thus beginning a five-year pop music run that was a thing of beauty. Of course, 1979 being the final chapter of the Seventies, I figured 1979 would be a predictor of what the Eighties would sound like.

1979 also saw the unraveling of disco. As with most things that reach a saturation point, people will be awaiting its demise. And like most other musical revolutions, this one was buckling under its own weight caused by all of those who jumped on the bandwagon in the aftermath of the Saturday Night Fever explosion. By the middle of the Summer of 1979, when Chicago DJ Steve Dahl sponsored a “Disco Demolition Night” between games of a Chicago White Sox doubleheader. As patrons entered old Comiskey Park that night, they would drop off their disco records for Dahl’s stunt. Between games, with Dahl in centerfield, next to a large pile of hundreds of disco records. Upon Dahl’s signal, someone pushed a button which caused the pile to explode. In the aftermath, a melee began, which, along with the destroyed area of the outfield, caused the cancellation of the night cap game in the form of a forfeiture by the Sox. And, although disco never really died, it simply went underground, while also being absorbed by rap and new wave. Shortly afterwards, disco re-emerged under the banner of dance music, as it was known throughout the Eighties. Then, the Gen X-ers of the Nineties headed a small disco revival scene that lasted for a short period of time. Yet, of all the genres of popular music that exist, the most powerful remain to be disco and punk, along with metal, hip hop and bubblegum.

Ultimately, 1979 stands as a transition year. Some of the biggest artists of the Seventies released albums during the year, such as Led Zeppelin, Eagles, Pink Floyd and Fleetwood Mac, while some hard-working second tier bands such as AC/DC and Supertramp were finally getting their time in the sun as they struck platinum with their mega-hit albums Highway to Hell and Breakfast in America. respectively. 1979 was also the year when some fresh young talent began to hit their stride, as Cheap Trick, The Knack and The Cars all had albums in the Top 10. 1979 was so crazy that even Frank Zappa had a hit album. Finally, one of the most critically-acclaimed albums of all-time was released in 1979 by The Clash, and that album is known as London Calling.

To me, all of this pointed to the fact that music was healthy and every bit as vital as it was in the Sixties. So, let’s take a look at my countdown.

1. The Clash – London Calling
2. Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers – Damn the Torpedoes
3. Cheap Trick – At Budokan
4. Elvis Costello & the Attractions – Armed Forces
5. Talking Heads – Fear of Music
6. Joy Division – Unknown Pleasures
7. The Knack – Get the Knack
8. Pink Floyd – The Wall
9. Michael Jackson – Off the Wall
10. The Police – Regatta de Blanc
11. Daryl Hall & John Oates – X-Static
12. Chic – Risqué
13. Led Zeppelin – In Through the Out Door
14. Supertramp – Breakfast in America
15. AC/DC – Highway to Hell
16. The B-52’s – The B-52’s
17. Ramones – Rock ‘n’ Roll High School OST
18. The Jam – Setting Sons
19. David Bowie – Lodger
20. Fleetwood Mac – Tusk
21. Neil Young & Crazy Horse – Rust Never Sleeps
22. Cheap Trick – Dream Police
23. Blondie – Eat to the Beat
24. The Cars – Candy-O
25. Earth, Wind & Fire – I Am
26. Gary Numan – The Principle Pleasure
27. Utopia – Adventures in Utopia
28. Buzzcocks – Singles Going Steady
29. Rickie Lee Jones – Rickie Lee Jones
30. Marianne Faithfull – Broken English
31. Prince – Prince
32. Joe Jackson – Look Sharp!
33. Bram Tchaikovsky – Strange Man, Changed Man
34. The Kinks – Low Budget
35. Nick Lowe – Labour of Lust
36. Van Halen – Van Halen II
37. Frank Zappa – Sheik Yerbouti
38. Donna Summer – Bad Girls
39. Molly Hatchet – Flirtin’ with Disaster
40. Bob Dylan – Slow Train Coming

And, there you go! That is the best I can do with 1979. Unfortunately, I have tens of more albums that could have been in this list. I left off albums by The Boomtown Rats, The Records, 20/20, Paul Collins’ The Beat, Queen, Blackfoot, Journey, Pat Benatar, among so many others. Oh well! That’s what happens when everyone releases great albums in a single year.

That’s a wrap on the Seventies. Next week, I will get back to album reviews before I jump into the Delorean for a trip through the Eighties in a week.

I have just finished re-editing my list for 1978 because of the depth of great music. Of course, this is not a 1977-type year, but those seismic years are few and far between. Yet, this year remains something of a milestone year in rock music for this writer.

During the Summer of 1978, while the movie Grease was packing teens in the movie theaters, I was running with a couple of high school teammates and another runner from another school in a 1600-meter relay team in the old AAU state tournament. I was doing this in preparation for my running in a national track meet to be held in Fort Collins, Colorado, at Colorado State University. And, I was doing all of that running workouts while playing Babe Ruth baseball, where I made the All-Star team but turned down the honor in order to run in the AAU State Championships before my trip out west. Just for giggles, I was playing basketball in our high school basketball summer open gym workouts. Yet, for some reason, the basketball coach was very upset that I was running in those two big meets at the time. I mean, come on! I had a chance to run in a couple of meets that most kids would never get the opportunity to do just to remain at home for two weeks so I could be playing basketball. Little did Coach know, but I ran my race early in the week, then played basketball with high school and college players from all around the United States. In other words, I was playing against better competition out in the Rockies than back home. Plus, I actually met and shook hands with the great Jesse Owens while at this event. And, that, my friends, is the greatest non-family event to have occurred in my life. I have never been able to describe what is different in the person that makes them able to achieve greatness, but whatever it is, Mr. Owens had it oozing from every pore in his body; yet, he was the most humble and down-to-earth gentleman. And, it was my honor to have met him. And, that happened in 1978!

Additionally, in 1978, I made one of the greatest album purchases in my high school days. I remember going to the local independent record store called The Browser. This place sold music, of course, but also young men’s clothing. Still, I walked in the store after cashing my paycheck from detassling corn, and walked out with three terrific albums, all that remain as favorites to this day. The albums were The Rolling Stones’ Some Girls, Bat Out of Hell by Meat Loaf AND REO Speedwagon’s You Can Tune a Piano, but You Can’t Tuna Fish. To this day, it remains one of my greatest days of purchasing music.

1978 will be remembered for disco music reaching its peak in popularity, while punk was morphing into a more accessible form known as new wave. And soundtracks were everywhere: Grease, Sgt. Pepper, Thank God It’s Friday, FM, to list a few. Arena rock was beginning to ascend in popularity. In many ways, 1978 was a transition year. Regardless, it was a solid year with much diversity.

With that in mind, let’s take a look at the 40 albums that I still enjoy today. Start the countdown!

1. The Rolling Stones – Some Girls
2. Van Halen – Van Halen
3. Cheap Trick – Heaven Tonight
4. Ramones – Road to Ruin
5. The Cars – The Cars
6. Blondie – Parallel Lines
7. Bruce Springsteen – Darkness on the Edge of Town
8. Queen – Jazz
9. Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers – You’re Gonna Get It!
10. Talking Heads – More Songs About Buildings and Food
11. The Jam – All Mod Cons
12. Elvis Costello – This Year’s Model
13. The Band – The Last Waltz
14. Devo – Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo!
15. Nick Lowe – Jesus of Cool
16. The Police – Outlandos d’Amour
17. Jackson Browne – Running on Empty
18. Funkadelic – One Nation Under a Groove
19. Chic – C’est Chic
20. Kraftwerk – The Man Machine
21. AC/DC – If You Want Blood You’ve Got It
22. Todd Rundgren – Hermit of Mink Hollow
23. Doobie Brothers – Minute by Minute
24. Ace Frehley – Ace Frehley
25. Styx – Pieces of Eight
26. Roadmaster – Sweet Music
27. Thin Lizzy – Live and Dangerous
28. Daryl Hall & John Oates – Along the Red Ledge
29. Neil Young – Comes a Time
30. Big Star – Third/Sister Lovers
31. REO Speedwagon – You Can Tune a Piano, but You Can’t Tuna Fish
32. The J. Geils Band – Sanctuary
33. Patti Smith Group – Easter
34. Little Feat – Waiting for Columbus
35. The Jacksons – Destiny
36. Warren Zevon – Excitable Boy
37. Fotomaker – Fotomaker
38. Bob Seger – Stranger in Town
39. Dire Straits – Dire Straits
40. Commodores – Natural High

I really do feel bad for the artists whose albums were left off this list. Besides the many soundtracks that I listed earlier, The Clash, Boston, Parliament, Faith Band, Peter Gabriel, Genesis, Foreigner, Willie Nelson and Wings. However, I stand by my list, and I hope you found it a little bit interesting.

I have been so very excited about this list, that it has been difficult for me to contain myself. You see, in the history of rock music, there have been a handful of magical years that seem to capture the imagination of people who lived through it. Ask anyone who lived through 1957 and 1967, especially those who came of age during those years. 1957 had landmark music being released by the true Mt. Rushmore of Rock and Roll, with all the first year inductees into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame dropping this music: Elvis, Buddy, Little Richard, Ray Charles, James Brown, The Killer Jerry Lee Lewis, Chuck Berry, the Everly Brothers, Fats Domino and Sam Cooke. Then, 1967 came along with the Summer of Love, which began with The Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper, and continued with classic music being released by Jimi Hendrix, The Doors, Cream, Pink Floyd, The Who, The Byrds, Bob Dylan, Jefferson Airplane, the Stones, The Kinks, The Velvet Underground, among so many others, made that year arguably the second important year in the rock era. And, with that in mind, along came 1977. Unfortunately, if you were like me, and grew up in the Midwest of the United States, then you had to dig hard on your own to discover the greatness of this year, since unlike the aforementioned two years which were blasted over radios throughout the country.

See, I transitioned from an eighth grade hotshot to a high school freshman low man on the totem pole. So, as I became more and more bored with the latest music by Neil Diamond or Foreigner being played on the radio, I began to take album reviews in magazines more seriously by adding some of those recommendations to my budding album collection. By the start of my high school years in the Fall of 1977, I was a highly regarded distance running prospect, and my album collection numbered in the 50s. What I remember the most about 1977 was the summer was dominated by Fleetwood Mac’s run of singles from their Rumours album, along with a novelty song by Alan O’Day, “Undercover Angel,” being played seemingly on the hour all summer long. And, in the fall, they gave way to a song by Debbie Boone, “You Light Up My Life,” which never sounded good to me, but for some reason convinced females all over the country to love this song. And, then by the winter, we got yet another album, a great album nonetheless, that captured society’s imagination like the soundtrack to the movie Saturday Night Fever did.

Yet, while the commercial charts were showing this stuff being popular, disco and punk were rich pools of musical standards. Look, these artists DEBUTED in 1977: Elvis Costello, Sex Pistols, The Jam, The Damned, The Clash, Cheap Trick, Blondie, Talking Heads, Meat Loaf, Television, a solo Peter Gabriel, and Beach Boys drummer Dennis Wilson. Talk about a murderer’s row of rock artists! All in one year! So, when I say that 1977 was a rich year for music, I am actually underselling it. And, honestly, I could have gone 75 or 80 albums deep and still not have lost any artistry in the albums. So, yes, I probably have left off your favorite album my list. Sorry! It more than likely deserved to be listed. Bottom line: 1977 was a great year for great music, despite what were hits on American Top 40.

So, let’s see what’s on my list! Let it roll!

1. Elvis Costello – My Aim Is True
2. Ramones – Rocket to Russia
3. Cheap Trick – In Color
4. Fleetwood Mac – Rumours
5. The Clash – The Clash
6. Sex Pistols – Never Mind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols
7. Talking Heads – 77
8. The Jam – In the City
9. David Bowie – “Heroes”
10. Various Artists – Saturday Night Fever OST
11. Meat Loaf – Bat Out of Hell
12. Lynyrd Skynyrd – Street Survivors
13. Steely Dan – Aja
14. Billy Joel – The Stranger
15. Jackson Browne – Running on Empty
16. Richard Hell & the Voidoids – Blank Generation
17. Chic – Chic
18. Iggy Pop – Lust for Life
19. David Bowie – Low
20. Kiss – Love Gun
21. Iggy Pop – The Idiot
22. Parliament – Funkentelechy vs. the Placebo Syndrome
23. The Rubinoos – The Rubinoos
24. Johnny Thunders & the Heartbreakers – L.A.M.F.
25. Pink Floyd – Animals
26. Bob Marley & the Wailers – Exodus
27. Electric Light Orchestra – Out of the Blue
28. Styx – The Grand Illusion
29. Queen – News of the World
30. The Damned – Damned, Damned, Damned
31. Television – Marquee Moon
32. Cheap Trick – Cheap Trick
33. Randy Newman – Little Criminals
34. Dennis Wilson – Pacific Ocean Blue
35. Kraftwerk – Trans Europe Express
36. AC/DC – Let There Be Rock
37. Blondie – Plastic Letters
38. Rush – A Farewell to Kings
39. Ramones – Leave Home
40. Peter Gabriel – Peter Gabriel (aka I)

Oh no! I left off Heart, The Vibrators, The Saints, Earth Wind & Fire, ABBA and so many other great albums by great artists. But, can you really believe this happened in one year? I just feel so lucky to have experienced it while it was going on.

I am not a musician. But, this post has made me interested if classical music or jazz ever experienced years such as 1977 where it seemed as if everything released that year was classic? Or, is this a symptom of buy-buy-buy economy?

1976 was a year that had been hyped up so much during our years in elementary school, that there was no way the United States’ two-century birthday celebration was ever going to live up to that hype. The country’s dominant political and economic powers were still being wielded by the pre-Elvis generation, so there was no way a rock band would be on the list of performers for the celebrations in DC and in NYC that July 4th. Oh sure, they might have gotten crazy and invited the Beach Boys, but they were a nostalgia act by then. And, Johnny Cash was invited, I’m sure, as long as he stuck with his non-controversial country hits. Oh, the powers-that-be probably booked the Osmonds and Up with People, but that was the extent of a nod toward perhaps the most American of twentieth century music, right after jazz, the blues and country musics. But, I did not watch the celebration.

Instead, I took to the cul-de-sac, or as the kids called it “The Circle,” to watch a couple of martini-sipping middle-aged men with blowtorches, light all of the fireworks us twenty kids had purchased for our own celebration. Back in 1976 in Indiana, Hoosiers were not allowed to buy firecrackers, bottle rockets and any other explosive fireworks any teenaged boy would love to blow up. However, someone from the neighborhood was always traveling to Tennessee the week before Independence Day in order to buy illegal fireworks, so we were never without. Still, my favorite memories remain the men’s shaky hands doing the lighting by the end of the evening; the neighbor’s military-trained dog successfully several firecrackers and M80s before exploding; and, getting in a little hand-holding and kissing with a neighbor girl.

But, it was Casey Kasem’s special Fourth of July American Top 40 Countdown of the most popular songs from past July 4th countdowns during the rock era. That four-hour radio program was one of the most enjoyable history lessons that I ever took part in (I wrote it down…DUH!). But, my album of choice that summer was the classic album Destroyer by Kiss. No album before it had ever given me such a rush. It was nearly comparable to winning a Cross Country race or getting a double win in the half-mile and mile runs in track or making some great catch in centerfield in baseball. That album was a life-changer for me. And, 1976 had many more good albums. But, everything that was happening as a set-up for the seismic shift that would take place next year in the form of punk rock. Still, that was brewing in New York City and London, far away from some skinny would-be athlete from the middle of Farmland USA.

So, would you join me in my countdown of my 40 favorite albums from the bicentennial year of 1976, which the celebrations that year went off like popgun, while the music was more like a bazooka. Rock on everyone!

1. Kiss – Destroyer
2. Ramones – Ramones
3. Queen – A Day at the Races
4. Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers – Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers
5. Stevie Wonder – Songs in the Key of Life
6. Boston – Boston
7. Rush – 2112
8. David Bowie – Station to Station
9. Thin Lizzy – Jail Break
10. Heart – Dreamboat Annie
11. Lynyrd Skynyrd – One More from the Road
12. Boz Scaggs – Silk Degrees
13. Parliament – The Clones of Dr. Funkenstein
14. Eagles – Hotel California
15. Electric Light Orchestra – A New World Record
16. Steve Miller Band – Fly like an Eagle
17. The Runaways – The Runaways
18. Blondie – Blondie
19. The Flamin’ Groovies – Shake Some Action
20. Bob Seger – Live Bullet
21. AC/DC – Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap
22. Daryl Hall & John Oates – Bigger Than Both of Us
23. Eddie & the Hot Rods – Teenage Depression
24. Alice Cooper – Alice Cooper Goes to Hell
25. Kiss – Rock and Roll Over
26. Styx – Crystal Ball
27. Aerosmith – Rocks
28. The Alan Parsons Project – Tales of Mystery and Imagination of Edgar Allan Poe
29. Bee Gees – Children of the World
30. Bob Dylan – Desire
31. Elton John – Blue Moves
32. Bob Seger – Night Moves
33. The Rolling Stones – Black and Blue
34. Peter Frampton – Frampton Comes Alive
35. Wings – Wings over America
36. Southside Johnny & the Asbury Jukes – I Don’t Want to Go Home
37. The J. Geils Band – Blow Your Face Out
38. Manfred Mann’s Earth Band – The Roaring Silence
39. Klaatu – 3:47 EST
40. The Modern Lovers – The Modern Lovers

That is the year of 1976 according to my taste in music. Stay tuned for the of the Seventies as the week progresses. Rock on!

1975 is actually a line in the sand in my life. It was the year during which I discovered that I was a decent distance runner. I also remember telling my father, the old basketball coach himself, that I wanted to learned to make basketball moves that would make me a better player. And, I discovered my new hobby of all things pop and rock music, whether taping songs off my transistor radio, buying and reading every line in Creem, Circus and Hit Parader magazines. I choose them, especially Creem, because they had photos I could cut out and hang in my room, right next to my posters of Johnny Bench, The Cincinnati Reds, The Indiana Pacers and Julius “Dr. J” Erving. Eventually, my adolescent “Wall of Fame” would come to include posters of Farah Fawcett, Cheryl Tiegs, Debbie Harry and Linda Ronstadt. Additionally, I was writing down every list of Top 40 songs from Casey Kasem’s American Top 40 show on the old Muncie, Indiana AM radio station, WERK. Of course, forty songs and artists were not challenging for me to put to memory. Why bother with mathematics concepts? Oh, it was there too, I was just lazy about pulling it out of my brain. That was my ADHD winning the chemically-depleted battle in my brain.

In 1975, thanks to a high school basketball player who was dating the older sister of a friend down my street, I was introduced to Kiss Alive! Quite possibly no other album impacted my life than that album. I literally became a rock music student after hearing that album, along.” with its transcendent single “Rock and Roll All Nite.” Quite literally, that album was my gateway into so much of the music that has enriched my life over the past 43 years. That basketball player would play one-on-one games, while listening to that 8-track tape. My basketball game kept improving due to him taking me under his wing, much to the chagrin of his then-girlfriend, my friend’s sister.

Unbelievably, Kiss opened my musical world to so much music, as did Casey Kasem’s weekly radio show and the musings in Creem magazine. Music helped me deal with my shortcomings as a teen boy with limited interests and difficulty relating with others my age. But, I could put Elton John’s Rock of the Westies, close the door to my room and escape my shortcomings as a human teen. But, thanks to rock music, I was able to work through the shortcomings over the next decade thanks to Kiss and all the other music that followed. And, this all began in 1975, though much of the groundwork was laid over the previous half-decade.

So, it is my pleasure to introduce forty albums that represent a year that remains special to me. Maybe, it wasn’t a year that was as deep with fantastic music like 1972 or 1973, as I covered last week. Nor is it as deep as a few years that are coming up in the next few days and weeks. But, it is a special year to me. Let’s do this countdown thing!

1. Bruce Springsteen – Born to Run
2. Queen – A Night at the Opera
3. Kiss – Alive!
4. Daryl Hall & John Oates – Daryl Hall & John Oates
5. Paul Simon – Still Crazy After All These Years
6. Parliament – Mothership Connection
7. Elton John – Captain Fantastic & the Brown Dirt Cowboy
8. Electric Light Orchestra – Face the Music
9. Heart – Dreamboat Annie
10. Bob Dylan & the Band – The Basement Tapes
11. Fleetwood Mac – Fleetwood Mac
12. Bee Gees – Main Course
13. Bob Dylan – Blood on the Tracks
14. Pink Floyd – Wish You Were Here
15. Patti Smith – Horses
16. Rufus featuring Chaka Khan – Rufus
17. David Bowie – Young Americans
18. Flamin’ Groovies – Shake Some Action
19. Dwight Twilley Band – Sincerely
20. Feelgood – Down by the Jetty
21. Elton John – Rock of the Westies
22. The Isley Brothers – The Heat Is On
23. Roxy Music – Siren
24. Aerosmith – Toys in the Attic
25. Led Zeppelin – Physical Graffiti
26. The O’Jays – Family Reunion
27. Neil Young – Zuma
28. War – Why Can’t We Be Friends?
29. Various Artists – The Rocky Horror Picture Show OST
30. Jeff Beck – Blow by Blow
31. Brian Eno – Another Green World
32. Willie Nelson – Red Headed Stranger
33. Alice Cooper – Welcome to My Nightmare
34. Donna Summer – Love to Love You Baby
35. ABBA – ABBA
36. Earth, Wind & Fire – That’s the Way of the World
37. Earth, Wind & Fire – Gratitude
38. The Staple Singers/Curtis Mayfield – Let’s Do It Again OST
39. AC/DC – T.N.T.
40. Kiss – Dressed to Kill

So, there you go. That’s 1975 according to my tastes. I hope this will kick up some memories for you.

One last thing: I am over the Pacers’ final loss of the season, knowing they had overachieved with the current roster. Yet, I watched as the two young men the team traded Paul George for as they showed that they, along with Myles Turner, are three brilliant players to build around. Now, if we could find a player in the mold of Draymond Green, who is a solid defender/rebounder/scorer. That, and some bench depth. It will be an interesting off-season for one of the youngest teams in the NBA.