453. The Specials

The Specials
The Specials
1979

Tracks
1. A Message To You Rudy 
2. Do The Dog 
3. It's Up To You 
4. Nite Klub 
5. Doesn't Make It Alright 
6. Concrete Jungle 
7. Too Hot 
8. Monkey Man 
9. (Dawning Of A) New Era 
10. Blank Expression 
11. Stupid Marriage 
12. Too Much Too Young 
13. Little Bitch 
14. You're Wondering Now

This is the last album of the 1970s.  I just looked back in the archives and apparently I started the 1970s in 2012.  Have I really been listening to 70s music for the last four years? That's a rather startling statistic.  Hopefully, I will pick up speed on this project a bit.  Anyway, this should be a celebratory paragraph, not a paragraph that contemplates my own mortality.  We can do that later when I listen to the Dead Kennedy's.

I didn't think I knew who the Specials were, but I recognized the song "A Message To You Rudy" as soon as it started playing.  I think I saw the music video in a class once.  Anyway, it is catchy as hell with an interesting political message.  Unfortunately, none of the other songs quite live up to that one (although "Doesn't Make It Alright" was close).  In fact, the dip in lyrical quality was quite surprising.  Were the other songs covers or something?  We went from an intelligent comment on Jamaican street life to lyrics like "all the girls are slags and the beer tastes just like piss."

I suppose I should say a word or two about the seventies, since you are all obviously clamoring for me to make a speech.  I know I complain (A LOT) but honestly, I really enjoy this project, even though some of the albums want to make me pull my hair out.  I suppose you could say it is the Special albums that make it all worth it.  

I am feeling generous today, so I will go with four stars, just because of the brilliance of the first track.  Too bad they couldn't keep it up.

RATING: 4/5

452. The Pleasure Principle

The Pleasure Principle
Gary Numan
1979

Tracks
1. Airlane 
2. Metal 
3. Complex 
4. Films 
5. M.E.
6. Tracks
7. Observer
8. Conversation 
9. Cars 
10. Engineers

Wow, the last few albums have been decidedly lackluster.  I hope we are not spiraling into a suck streak.  Tomorrow's album is The Specials...with any luck, it will be special.  HA!  It's my humor and wit that keeps my readers hooked.

I have come to realize that most of the albums on this List are extremely pretentious, so I should stop rolling my eyes and try to work with the music instead.  Still, I struggled with this one.  I felt like I was listening to a guy in his basement playing with his keyboard.  I expect some of the lyrics were supposed to be haunting, but none really stood out to me.  "Films" in particular was obnoxious.

Decidedly not my thing.  Hopefully, either the albums will get better from here or I will get more patient.

RATING: 2/5

451. Machine Gun Etiquette

Machine Gun Etiquette
The Damned
1979

Tracks
1. Love Song
2. Machine Gun Etiquette
3. I Just Can't Be Happy Today
4. Melody Lee
5. Anti Pope
6. These Hands
7. Plan 9 Channel 7
8. Noise Noise Noise
9. Looking At You
10. Liar
11. Smash It Up (I)
12. Smash It Up (II)

I keep thinking we are done with this genre and getting disappointed when another punk album comes along.  I just have to accept that I will never be done with this type of music; in fact, a punk album will probably play at my funeral.  I don't hate the genre, but by 1979 it is certainly a case of been there, done that.

So it is pretty much exactly what you expect from a punk band.  Lots of noise...noise, noise.  I suppose the lyrics were a bit more specific than the usual "everything is terrible and there is nothing we can do about it" spiel you get from these albums.  "Anti Pope" took on organized religion while "These Hands" are about clown stranglers.  Well, that last one might be open to interpretation. 

Two more albums until we are done with the seventies!

RATING: 3/5

450. Off the Wall

Off the Wall
Michael Jackson
1979

Tracks
1. Don't Stop Till You Get Enough
2. Rock With You
3. Working Day And Night
4. Get On The Floor
5. Off The Wall
6. Girlfriend
7. She's Out Of My Life
8. I Can't Help It
9. It's The Falling In Love
10. Burn This Disco Out

Michael Jackson always creeped me out, but this feeling has been amplified ever since I saw footage of the 1996 Brit Awards.  I still think it is a bit weird that our society continues to worship a child molester, but I suppose Off The Wall wasn't too bad.  It was also wasn't spectacular, so it is quite confusing why people refuse to let this guy go.

I was most familiar with the song "Don't Stop Till You Get Enough" which is annoyingly catchy; I haven't been able to get it out of my head since I listened to this.  His vocals never impressed me either.  I always wished he was more authentic instead of relying on the strange noises he can make with his mouth.  I have been trying to come up with an onomatopoeia for them.  Would "tsch" be accurate?

I suppose this is fun music to dance to, but I don't think it is worth the feeling of ickiness that comes with anything Michael Jackson.

RATING: 3/5

449. Metal Box

Metal Box
Public Image Ltd.
1979

Tracks
1. Albatross
2. Memories
3. Swan Lake
4. Poptones
5. Careering
6. No Birds
7. Graveyard
8. Suit
9. Bad Baby
10. Socialist
11. Chant
12. Radio 4

I feel like we might have time traveled back to the mid seventies with these last two albums.  This is technically "post punk" but it sounds more like good old fashioned punk than...um...post.

One of the most famous things about this album was the bizarre packaging.  Apparently, it was sold in a film canister and the individual discs were hard to remove without scratching them.  Thankfully, I listened to this album on YouTube.  Should you really be punishing people for trying to listen to your music?  I guess we should be thankful they abandoned the sandpaper idea.

I don't have a lot to say about this album; it left with an overwhelming feeling of "meh."  No stand out songs, no stand out lyrics.  Not offensively bad, but just kind of dull.

RATING: 3/5

448. The Wall

The Wall
Pink Floyd
1979

Tracks
1. In The Flesh?
2. Thin Ice 
3. Another Brick In The Wall Pt. 1
4. Happiest Days Of Our Lives 
5. Another Brick In The Wall Pt. 2
6. Mother 
7. Goodbye Blue Sky 
8. Empty Spaces 
9. Young Lust 
10. One Of My Turns 
11. Don't Leave Me Now 
12. Another Brick In The Wall Pt. 3
13. Goodbye Cruel World
14. Hey You
15. Is There Anybody Out There 
16. Nobody Home
17. Vera
18. Bring The Boys Back Home 
19. Comfortably Numb 
20. Show Must Go On 
21. In The Flesh 
22. Run Like Hell 
23. Waiting For The Worms 
24. Stop 
25. The Trial 
26. Outside The Wall

Should an album really be an hour and twenty minutes long?  I know I gave Fleetwood Mac a pass yesterday (Tusk clocked in at around an hour and fifteen minutes), but those guys can get away with anything.  Also this one is longer by a whole five minutes.  So, you know...not a hypocrite.

I really don't like rock operas.  I didn't like it when the Who did it and I don't like it now.  I know I am supposed to worship all things Pink Floyd, but this album really seemed like a dip in quality from Wish You Were Here.  There were a few standout tracks (with "The Trial" being my favorite) but most of the songs sounded like filler.  I think that is why I hate rock operas so much.  Inevitably, there will be songs that are simply there to push the story along and don't really add that much artistic value.

Too long and too pretentious.  I know Pink Floyd can do better than this.

RATING: 2/5

447. Tusk

Tusk
Fleetwood Mac
1979

Tracks
1. Over & Over 
2. The Ledge 
3. Think About Me 
4. Save Me A Place
5. Sara 
6. What Makes You Think You’re The One 
7. Storms 
8. That’s All For Everyone 
9. Not That Funny 
10. Sisters Of The Moon 
11. Angel 
12. That’s Enough For Me 
13. Brown Eyes Never Make Me Cry 
14. I Know I’m Not Wrong
15. Honey Hi 
16. Beautiful Child
17. Walk A Thin Line 
18. Tusk 
19. Never Forget

Everybody's biggest complaint about Rumours seems to be that it is overplayed.  No one can really say that about Tusk; in fact, I was only familiar with a few of these songs.  So find something else to complain about, nerds!  I am sure you will.

I was quite nervous for Fleetwood Mac before I listened to this album (because, obviously, if I didn't like it they would be quite upset).  It is an hour and fifteen minutes long.  I was unsure if the band could fill that time without sounding like they were stalling.  Thankfully, not one track sounded like filler.  All of the songs were beautiful; it just doesn't get better than Stevie Nicks.

It's hard to pick the best tracks off this album, but I would probably go with "Angel" or "Beautiful Child" (because you asked).  It's strange that more people don't know about this album, as it is just as good as Rumours.

RATING: 4/5

446. Cheap Trick At Budokan

Cheap Trick At Budokan
Cheap Trick
1979

Tracks
1. Hello There
2. Come on, Come On
3. Lookout
4. Big Eyes
5. Need Your Love
6. Ain't That a Shame
7. I Want You to Want Me
8. Surrender
9. Goodnight
10. Clock Strikes Ten

I really don't like live albums.  I think the benefit of listening to an album at home should be that you don't have to hear the crowd cheering.  That's my curmudgeon thought of the day. Actually, I ended up enjoying this, so maybe I have to amend my cranky stance.

I am sure most people are familiar with the song "I Want You To Want Me," although I didn't realize that it was Cheap Trick until I heard this album.  To me it was just one of those songs that played at eighties dances.  It is definitely one of the best songs on the album, with "Surrender" and "Ain't That a Shame" competing for second.

It was just fun; they weren't necessarily doing anything innovative but they did come up with some catchy songs.  With all the exhausting, avant garde albums on the List, this kind of thing can be quite refreshing.

RATING: 4/5

445. Entertainment!

Entertainment!
Gang of Four
1979

Tracks
1. Ether
2. Naturals Not In It
3. Not Great Men
4. Damaged Goods
5. Return The Gift
6. Guns Before Butter
7. I Found That Essence Rare
8. Glass
9. Contract
10. At Home He's A Tourist
11. 5.45
12. Anthrax

The Gang of Four...isn't it too soon in 1979?  Apparently not.

Punk has really been transforming and progressing in exciting ways with our recent albums (with the exception of The Slits, which took us back a few steps).  Lyrically, Entertainment! is just as angry as our previous hard core entries.  "Anthrax" condemns bands that only sing about the subject of love, while "Not Great Men" talks about the corruption of leaders.  I felt like the band was more interested in relating their messages intelligently to their audience, rather than just screaming naive complaints at us.

I appreciated the lyrics of the album far more than the music as I have to admit that not one melody really grabbed me.  Still, I am glad I listened to it and it is definitely worth hearing.

RATING: 4/5

444. Rust Never Sleeps

Rust Never Sleeps
Neil Young and Crazy Horse
1979

Tracks
1. My My Hey Hey (Out Of The Blue)
2. Thrasher 
3. Ride My Llama 
4. Pocahontas 
5. Sail Away 
6. Powderfinger 
7. Welfare Mothers 
8. Sedan Delivery 
9. Hey Hey My My (Into The Black)

I was really hyping up this album in my head.  While it wasn't a complete disappointment, I still think it came across as an attempt from a slightly washed up artist to try to appear relevant.

Young's signature voice is still magnificent here, but it is angrier and rougher than we have ever heard before.  I suppose this is his own attempt to progress past punk, but I still prefer his old sound (although I can hardly fault him for innovating).  But to me, his voice simply doesn't work with this kind of music.  The album was, on the whole, cohesive, but at times it bordered on repetitive.

The songwriting is still incredibly, with his lyrical talent displayed beautifully in "Pocahontas." Not what I was expecting or hoping for, but I am not sure that is a bad thing.

RATING: 4/5

443. Armed Forces

Armed Forces
Elvis Costello And The Attractions
1979

Tracks
1. Accidents Will Happen
2. Senior Service
3. Oliver's Army
4. Big Boys
5. Green Shirt
6. Party Girl
7. Goon Squad
8. Busy Bodies
9. Sunday's Best
10. Moods For Moderns
11. Chemistry Class
12. Two Little Hitlers

Man, did I need this after The Slits.  Who knew a song called "Two Little Hitlers" would make me so happy?

I think everyone can agree that his songs are damn catchy.  Costello has a unique voice that sounds rougher than most pop artists'.  I suppose this album would be categorized as art punk or new wave, but a few of these songs sounded very infectious and poppy ("Green Shirt" comes to mind). My personal favorite was "Accidents Will Happen."  Or maybe "Oliver's Army."  Really, you can't go wrong with any of these tracks.

I believe this is the third Costello album on the List and it is fascinating watching him improve each time as most artists tend to plateau.

Neil Young tomorrow, ladies and gentlemen.  It's been awhile.

RATING: 5/5

442. Cut

Cut
The Slits
1979

Tracks
1. Instant Hit
2. So Tough
3. Spend Spend Spend
4. Shoplifting
5. FM
6. Newtown
7. Ping Pong Affair
8. Love und Romance
9. Typical Girls
10. Adventures Close To Home

This is technically classified as post punk, but when I think "post punk," I think innovation.  This sounded like any other classic punk album: lots of screaming and very little talent.

I usually get excited when there is more female representation on The List, particularly in a genre that is typically dominated by males.  But oh dear lord, the shrieking.  I was ready to punch my screen, which might of have been the point of the album.  I mean, down with consumerism right?  At least, I think that is what their point was.  It's hard to penetrate the artistic truth behind the lyrics "Do a runner, run.  I've pissed in my knickers."

Brutal to get through.  Up next...ELVIS!

RATING: 1/5

441. Broken English

Broken English
Marianne Faithfull
1979

Tracks
1. Broken English 
2. Witch's Song 
3. Brain Drain 
4. Guilt 
5. Ballad Of Lucy Jordan 
6. What's The Hurry 
7. Working Class Hero 
8. Why D'Ya Do It?

I am quite behind on this blog, which I am blaming on Marianne Faithfull.  Do I like her?  Do I not like her?  I can't decide.  Damn you, Marianne.  Or maybe bless you...

Faithfull has a really odd voice.  She reminds of Amy Winehouse, in that you suspect her vocal uniqueness comes from the effects of chain smoking and less from natural talent.  It is still intriguing to listen to, although apparently she bombs live.

Strangely enough, her voice isn't the weirdest thing about this album.  The lyrics are quite shocking, particularly in "Why D'Ya Do It?"  The song is from the point of view of a man and relates the angry tirade his girlfriend went on after he cheated on her.  I'm not sure why this would be on Faithfull's album, unless she just wanted an excuse to say cock a lot.

In the end, I liked the energy of the album.  Not everything worked, but enough did to make it worth its place on The List.

RATING: 4/5

440. The Quiet Life

The Quiet Life
Japan
1979

Tracks
1. Quiet Life
2. Fall In Love With Me
3. Despair
4. In Vogue
5. Halloween
6. All Tomorrow's Parties
7. Alien
8. Other Side Of Life

I might jinx us here, but we are officially on a streak of amazing albums.  Look at me, getting cocky.  This album wasn't quite as good as yesterday's, but a four star album is nothing to sneeze (or do something equally gross) at.

Synth pop isn't exactly my thing and I expected to be overwhelmed at the band's pretension.  Especially given their...image.  But the music was actually very tangible and easy to tap into.  I have to give it four stars because it does falter toward the end.  Still, the beginning more than makes up for it.

I always sort of loathe the expression "ahead of their time" but the description kind of fits here.  Tomorrow: Broken English.

RATING: 4/5

439. London Calling

London Calling
The Clash
1979

Tracks
1. London Calling
2. Brand New Cadillac 
3. Jimmy Jazz 
4. Hateful 
5. Rudie Can't Fail 
6. Spanish Bombs 
7. Right Profile 
8. Lost In The Supermarket 
9. Clampdown 
10. Guns Of Brixton 
11. Wrong 'em Boyo 
12. Koka Kola 
13. The Card Cheat 
14. Lover's Rock
15. Four Horsemen 
16. I'm Not Down 
17. Revolution Rock 
18. Train In Vain

Two five stars albums in a row?  This might be unprecedented.  Hopefully we can keep the streak going with Japan tomorrow.  We have Neil Young and Elvis Costello coming up soon as well so I am optimistic.

Where to begin with one of the most famous albums of all time?  I think we have all heard "London Calling" which is a great song, despite the fact that some might find it overplayed.  I didn't know what to expect with the other tracks, but there is truly not a bad song on this album.  It's smart too; as the songs cover a wide range of topics including unemployment, drug use, and, of course, how hard it is to adult.  It does have punk roots, after all.

Really, what am I going to say about this album that hasn't been said before?  There is so much talent behind this that it is almost overwhelming.  Definitely something everyone should listen to before they die.

RATING: 5/5

438. The Undertones

The Undertones
The Undertones
1979

Tracks
1. Family Entertainment
2. Girls Don't Like It
3. Male Model
4. I Gotta Getta
5. Wrong Way
6. Jump Boys
7. Here Comes The Summer
8. Billy's Third
9. Jimmy Jimmy
10. True Confessions
11. She's A Runaround
12. I Know A Girl
13. Listening In
14. Casbah Rock

This is the first piece of writing I am doing today, so I promise you won't get the usually complaint that I am burnt out from writing movie reviews.  This is largely because the movie I am going to watch today hasn't loaded yet, but hey.  It still counts.

There have been some good albums lately but I have held back on giving any the full five star rating, mostly because I have commitment issues.  This was absolutely fantastic, though, so I have to go all the way.  It is odd that this is classified as punk, as it actually seemed quite poppy to me.  I mean, there were songs about girls on it!  They weren't even angry, which was refreshing.  I love the song "She's A Runaround" as I found the lyrics particularly relatable, given my current situation.  I also enjoyed "I Know A Girl," which was actually a really sweet song.  Can I call a punk band sweet?

Overall, an amazing album.  My only complaint was that it was so short ("Casbah Rock" was only 50 seconds), but I suppose it's not a bad thing to leave wanting more.

RATING: 5/5

437. Risque

Risque
Chic
1979

Tracks
1. Good Times 
2. Warm Summer Night 
3. My Feet Keep Dancing 
4. My Forbidden Lover 
5. Can't Stand To Love You 
6. Will You Cry (When You Hear This Song) 
7. What About Me

I think this may be the last disco album on the List, which is a shame as I was really getting into it.  While I didn't enjoy this as much as the previous Chic entry, I still had a great time with this.

I am sorry if this seems a bit rushed, but I only have a short time to write this and I am so close to getting caught up on all my blogs.  Once again, the album blog is shortchanged.  Truly the middle child of the group.  This is a fun album, although I didn't feel like every track was impressive like I did with C'est Chic.  For me, the best track was "Warm Summer Night" but I know people are more familiar with "Good Times" (which I thought was merely okay).

Goodbye disco.  It had a short, but memorable, life.

RATING: 3/5

436. Unknown Pleasures

Unknown Pleasures
Joy Division
1979

Tracks
1. Disorder
2. Day Of The Lords
3. Candidate
4. Insight
5. New Dawn Fades
6. She's Lost Control
7. Shadowplay
8. Wilderness
9. Interzone
10. I Remember Nothing

I put off writing the review of this album, as I was writing approximately 5906 movie reviews and didn't have time.  I might have waited a bit too long, as the specifics of this one are kind of fading from my memory.   Still, I really enjoyed it so I will do my best.

I was a bit wary of this one, as the band name is a bit...odd.  Apparently, the band is named after the groups of Jewish women kept in concentration camps for the sexual pleasure of the Nazis.  So is this just a deliberate attempt to be perverse?  I am not sure I get it and even more unsure if I want to.

But, like I said, I enjoyed this album.  It's certainly a depressing album, but it is not upsetting to listen to; in fact, some of the songs were downright catchy.  My favorite was "She Lost Control" but really, there is no bad track in this album.

Almost to the eighties!

RATING: 4/5

435. Fear of Music

Fear of Music
Talking Heads
1979

Tracks
1. I Zimbra 
2. Mind
3. Paper
4. Cities
5. Life During Wartime 
6. Memories Can't Wait 
7. Air 
8. Heaven 
9. Animals 
10. Electric Guitar 
11. Drugs

It's hard not to be disappointed by a band that is as hyped as Talking Heads.  While I wouldn't call it bad by any means, I couldn't help thinking when it finished: that's it?  Maybe my expectations were too high after "More Songs About Buildings and Food."

My favorite song is easily "Air," which is basically a protest that people don't understand that even something as simple as breathing can be difficult for someone suffering from depression.  Or, at least, that's what I got out of it.  I was able to glean some larger meaning from that song, but I confess I was not as successful with the others (i.e. "Paper").

I am not sure how many more Talking Heads albums there are on The List, but I hope if there are more the lyrical quality will improve somewhat.  Still, a perfectly fine album.

RATING: 3/5