There was a world of great new music in 1979, more that I can remember or place. To be honest, I had to do a little research to find out exactly when some of this music came out. Some of it was easy to place when it was tied to things that happened in my life. Other songs are only brought back to memory by seeing them in a track listing of a New Wave hits compilation. I’ve tried to keep this blog true to how I remember the music and how it fit into my life, so I don’t want to start cheating now! Which means I have to fess up. Of course I wasn’t exclusively into New Wave music. Sure there was other great music out there, like the Heartland Rock of Tom Petty, Bob Seger, John Cougar and the Boss. There was Styx’s Corner Stone and and Supertramp’s Breakfast in America.
There was even Pablo Cruise’s Love Will Find a Way. Yeah, you heard me right. I was on wayward path of Yacht Rock (Look it up on iTunes :) ), at least until Toal put me to rights. I can still remember - there I was in the cafeteria at Eustace, sporting my brand new Pablo Cruise belt buckle, when Toal let me have it. “Pablo Cruise?!? They don’t make music, they just make noise!” How could I defend that? Sure the band members were accomplished musicians and the song had a Cabernet-soaked smooth groove, but it was song out of time. Although, you might catch me listening to it now, as long as Toal’s not around! New Wave: Defined!
The one song (and one artist) that has always defined New Wave for me has always been (What’s so Funny ‘bout) Peace Love and Understanding? by Elvis Costello. Costello was certainly something new. With his Buddy-Holly glasses and his twitchy delivery, he was like an anti-Rock Star. The song itself is great, written by Nick Lowe and produced with a Phil Spector-like wall of sound behind it, it muscled it’s way on the charts. I had a hard time placing this in time, mostly because of it’s odd release history. It was originally a B-Side of the 1978 Nick Lowe song American Squirm, before being added to Costello’s own album Armed Forces in 1979. The song itself was brutally honest and stinging without being bitter. Consider how it stacks up lyrically against the hippie anthems like the Youngblood’s Get Together or Share the Land by The Guess Who. While those songs are idyllic and romantic, Lowe’s song is neither.
And as I walked on
Through troubled times
My spirit gets so downhearted sometimes
So where are the strong
And who are the trusted?
And where is the harmony?
Sweet harmony.
There are real problems in Lowe’s world, but the singer has hope as long as he holds true to his values of Peace, Love and Understanding. Costello delivers the song with such ferocity that the question can’t be ignored. What’s so funny ’bout that?
The unanswered titular question is what lifts the song to greatness. A while ago I was reading someone else’s insights about art and I came across something that struck a chord with me. The songs, movies and art that invokes the greatest emotions and stay with us the longest are the ones that end with a question. Sometimes, it is literally a question, other times it is an ambiguity that begs to be discussed and resolved. Each generation responds with it’s own ever-changing answer and the art becomes experience, becomes great. That is why Lowe’s lyrics, in Costello’s hands are so so great.
Along with Lowe and Costello, Dave Edmunds and Joe Jackson helped bring the new genre to the forefront. It’s no wonder a lot of these folks hit the scene around the same time, since they all shared some significant history. Lowe and Edmunds were together in the UK Roots/Power rock band Rockpile. Along with Costello, they wrote songs for each other, produced each other's work and played on each other's albums. Costello wrote Edmunds' hit Girls Talk, Lowe produced Costello’s first 5 albums. The interrelations formed a sort of UK version of New York’s famous Brill Building and they cranked out hit after hit and set the bar for the genre.
Joe Jackson, though not as intimately involved with his other country mates, crafted one of the most defining albums of the New Wave Era and one of my favorite albums to this day. Jackson’s first hit from this album was the quirky lament Is She Really going out with Him? (Look - a song in a form of a question! Have you been paying attention?!) This song almost always shows up on any New Wave compilation. The song itself had great lyrics “Pretty women out walking with gorillas...” and a nifty little call and response section: Look Over there! (Where?) THERE!
It always plays well when I play this song out. Musically, the song borrowed heavily from the more underground Ska movement that was strong in the UK, with it’s distinctive, scratchy guitar track. Later, after I learned how to play guitar, I would come back to this album often. I thought it was impressive that Jackson, a piano player, had created one of the greatest guitar albums of all time. The ringing, jangly tones of Gary Sanford’s guitar and the thunking, percussive bass of Graham Maby sound wonderful throughout the album. Sanford also cranks up the overdrive on the albums first two track: One More Time and Sunday Papers. Jackson is sparing and extremely effective in his use of the piano here, especially on Is She... and the title track Look Sharp! In the mid eighties, when I spent more than a few nights at the infamous Jail House on Drexel’s campus, the DJ would play the entire first side of this album as the place was filling up. Great music to listen to and dance to (and drink to!).
One more thing - I think Look Sharp! was one of the few albums I owned from that time. I don’t remember if it was a lack of funds, or some other reason, but the New Wave was more about singles than albums. I taped most of the songs I liked from that time off the radio, and bought some singles, but not too many albums, except for this one. Looking back I guess it was a bit odd, but over time I would pick up some of the albums (or cassettes) from this time. Unfortunately, by the time I had more financial ability to really build up my collection, a lot of the music from this time was out of print and didn’t make the transition to CD. There are so many songs from that time I am still looking for!
Nick Lowe’s Cruel to Be Kind is probably second only to What’s So Funny... in defining the New Wave for me. It is distinctively a Lowe song, full of his off center sense of humor. As with the Costello tune, the production evokes Phil Spector’s Wall of Sound here and it’s been a long time favorite for me. His "Best of" collection - Basher is one of my favorite CDs. I have been a big fan of Nick Lowe and was lucky to see him once in concert - opening up for Tom Petty
I Don’t Like Mondays by the Boomtown Rats was on the radio in the summer of 1979. Though never really hitting in big here, the song was chart topping and award winning back in the UK. I remember a bit of controversy surrounding this song, which is inspired by Bob Geldof’s reactions to a news story about a school yard shooting that took place in San Diego. I have no memory of that actual event, though maybe my parents do, but I do remember the controversy surrounding the US release of the song. The shooting took place in January of 1979 and the song was released a played live only a few months later, including an awkward and uncomfortable performance on American Bandstand where Geldof appeared to be thumbing his nose at Dick Clark and his American audience. I thought the song was simply fantastic and was quite a jolt to my imagination. Geldof does a great job portraying the confusion and hopelessness of the parents and even our society in wake of a senseless tragedy. The line And he can see no reason, cause there are no reasons...
has always resonated with me. It strikes at our hearts and minds because we always want to understand something like this and find causes and point the finger of blame. But sometimes there simply are no answers, except “I don’t like Mondays.”
Okay. I don’t want to end on a down note, so I’ll mention one more song that has stuck in my memory from this time. It was almost a lost classic until I was able to find it on compilation CD a few years ago at Tower Records in Cherry Hill. Back of My Hand (I've Got Your Number) by the Jags was as bright and bouncy as the New Wave got. A guitar driven gem and a one-hit wonder, I always cranked this one up whenever it came on the radio. I can still remember working in the back yard while this song was blasting out of the stereo speakers I had propped up in my bedroom windows. To this day, I still can’t figure out some of the lyrics to this one, to be honest even some of the ones I do understand where puzzling - but I got it. A relationship on the rocks that could be saved if only he knew that he had her number written on the back of his hand!
I found this song on a collection called Starry Eyes: UK Pop 1978-1979. If you are a fan of New Wave music, I strongly recommend that you pick this up (if it’s even still in print). Unlike the K-tel collections I wrote about, this wasn’t a contemporary hits compilation, but rather a nostalgic retrospective. I think this was released around 1993 as part of the larger D.I.Y. series by Rhino Records. I picked it up purely for the Jags song, which I thought I would never see in print again. I could hardly believe that someone else remembered it enough to put on a compilation, much less attribute any sense of importance to it. By the time I picked up this up I was only familiar with a handful of tunes here. After listening to this disc, though I was sorry I missed most of this music the first time it came around. I would bet Baxter and Romasco would have been able to tell me about song of this music back in 1979! Here are the tracks, with some comments.
Ever Fallen in Love? Buzzcocks
- I was familiar with the FIne Young Cannibals cover of this, song but the original by the Buzzcocks (only a UK band could get away with that name!) was infinitely better and louder.
Get over You The Undertones
Yachting Types The Yachts
- Girl runs off with preppy kid and breaks the boys heart! Old story updated for the New Wave!
Is She Really Going Out With Him? Joe Jackson
Schooldays Starjets
Girl of My Dreams Bram Tchaikovsky
- This is just a great song.
This Is Airebeat Squares
- Peculiar and quirky, but great.
Life Begins at the Hop XTC
- XTC’s first hit. I liked them from the time they hit big with English Settlement and songs like Senses Working Overtime, and Dear God. But this one didn't do too much for me, though. There’s a little story about me & XTC, but that comes later on!
Up the Junction Squeeze
- I think Squeeze will merit their own entry on my next blog, but this is a great story song from them.
Back of My Hand (I've Got Your Number) Jags
Let's Talk About the Weather The Radiators
Starry Eyes The Records
- This song was frequently played on WXPN in the early 1990’s.
Mourning Star Zones
Millions Like Us Zones
- Two great songs by a band I never heard of!
Time Goes by So Slow Distractions
Hearts in Her Eyes The Searchers
- Another great song!
Where's the Boy for Me? Revillos
White Mice Mo Dettes
- These two songs reminded me more of LA’s Missing Persons than the rest of the UK Pop on this disc.
So Good to Be Back Home Again The Tourists
- Last, but not least - an OK song, but notable for the Band’s singer: Annie Lennox.
Alright, I think that’s enough for now. I know there’s still a lot of music that I’ve left on the table, but it’s almost time to move on to THE 80s, with one short detour.
NEXT: The Soundtracks of The Soundtrack of My Life
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