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Today in rock history: On this date in 1979, Singles Going Steady, a compilation album from Manchester, England’s finest punk-rock band, Buzzcocks, was released. After a handful of stupendous albums and singles that were released in the U.K. only, this collection was specifically designed by its American record label in order to help the band become established in the States. Featuring a series of songs released as English singles, this compilation also included the fine b-sides from those singles as well. Regularly referred to as the best singles band of the U.K. punk-rock explosion, this collection showed the band’s incredible skill in writing concise, compact, melodic, powerful songs. Later released in England as a type of greatest hits album, Singles Going Steady is often referred to as the very best singles compilation of the punk-rock era and continues to serve as a strong testament of this fine band’s many skills.
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Today in rock history: On this date in 1979, influential British rock band Gang of Four released its stellar, essential debut album, “Entertainment!”. Commonly regarded as one of the most important and vital records of the post-punk era, this politically charged album has been cited as a major influence on a countless number of musicians and songwriters. Thanks to the band’s uncanny ability of mixing punk-rock fundamentals with styles as diverse as funk, reggae and dance music, Gang of Four sounded like no other band at the time. Containing a dozen fantastic songs without a bum track in the bunch, Entertainment! boasts the essential tracks “Anthrax,” “Ether,” “Not Great Men” as well as “Damaged Goods,” which was a dance club hit in the United States and “At Home He’s a Tourist” which was the band’s highest-charting single in its native England. Emerging from the freedoms punk rock brought to the state of music, Entertainment! is a landmark album and, thanks to its raw and unadulterated power, will forever remain an essential and necessary part of any record collection.
Today in rock history: On this date in 1982, The Psychedelic Furs released their third album, Forever Now. The British new wave group received rave reviews and accolades for its first pair of albums but Forever Now proved to be its breakthrough hit. Previously working with renowned record producer Steve Lillywhite on its earlier releases, it was suggested to the Furs that the band work with genius musician, songwriter, arranger and producer Todd Rundgren for its third release. While some new wave purists scoffed at the idea that seemingly paired the innovative, new band with someone that was characterized as a dinosaur in the business, the pairing led to massive attention being showered on the band. The album’s standout track and single, the new wave classic “Love My Way,” was instantly recognized as a signature song for the band and proved to be a huge alternative dance club smash. Other singles from the sparkling album included “Run and Run” and “Danger,” which helped the album chart respectably in both the U.S. and in England. In a curious record company decision, the album’s original cover, as featured on the European release, was drastically changed for the American market. A less imaginative and somewhat generic cover was designed for the U.S. release, which some feel was created to remind record buyers of the artwork from the band’s outstanding 1981 album, Talk Talk Talk.
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Today in rock history: On this date in 1967, California rock and roll band The Doors released a sophomore album, the bold and adventurous Strange Days. The album featured a wealth of strong tracks and some of chief lyricist Jim Morrison’s best and most memorable work including “You’re Lost Little Girl” and “My Eyes Have Seen You” as well as the essential Doors tracks “People are Strange” and “Love Me Two Times,” which were both released as singles and cracked the Top 30 on Billboard’s pop singles chart. The band’s self-titled debut album was released only eight months before Strange Days and was still riding high on sales charts when this follow-up album was released; it eventually climbed to No. 3 on U.S. sales charts. The album’s closing number, the epic, eleven-minute “When the Music’s Over” is one of the greatest accomplishments the band ever achieved and is a fitting ending to this outstanding album. Featuring a series of street performers on its cover, Strange Days was critically lauded and well-received upon its release and is still considered to be one of the very best Doors albums to be released during the band’s tenure.
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This article appears in Sep 20-27, 2018.
