It was way back in early 2020 when I first expressed excitement to someone about starting punk rock. Two years later, I finally got to delve into the late 70s scene. And boy did it not disappoint! Around every corner, I found punk and its predecessor new wave to be powerful, consistent, and incredibly enjoyable.
Although I neglected to do an artist list, a few of my favorite artists of the year include Talking Heads, Lou Reed, The Ramones, Wire, and John Mellencamp. Talking Heads were only one album short of having a perfect run. By me, the rest of their albums were all B+'s or better. For early blues and country artists, my favorites include Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker, Bob Wills, Jimmie Rodgers, The Carter Family, and Hank Snow.
My favorite artist of the year was undoubtedly the Clash. From their raw punk debut to their hard rocking sophomore LP Give 'Em Enough Rope to their tour de force double album London Calling to their ambitious, action-packed triple album Sandinista!, the Clash has perhaps the greatest four album start in history. Sandinista!, at 16th, was the only one of the four to miss my top 15 albums. Without question, the songwriting team of Joe Strummer and Mick Jones should be spoken about in the same breath as Lennon-McCartney and Jagger-Richards. They were not only as consistent but they were wildly prolific, releasing six LPs of breathtaking work in only three years. Their evolution from talented, scrappy London punks to masterful storytellers and studio magicians was equally incredible.
All the while, they took shit from no one. They fought hard against the record label to release London Calling as a double LP and fought even harder to release Sandinista! as a triple LP. To release the latter at an affordable price, the band even took a 50% cut in royalties. Identifying as a socialist, Strummer always remembered his past as a poverty-stricken immigrant from Turkey. In fact, never has anyone written so passionately and beautifully for the working class. Perhaps the most powerful example comes from the title track to their third album: "the ice age is coming, the sun is zooming in/Meltdown expected, the wheat is growin' thin/Engines stop running, but I have no fear/Cause London is drowning and I live by the river." A lot more literate than "God save the Queen/She ain't no human being," isn't it? Strummer even took an interest in US politics. He condemned the US's imperialist involvement in Nicaragua with "Washington Bullets" and named the album after the Nicaraguan rebels, the Sandinistas.
I'm not terribly certain how 2023 will turn out for my music listening. I have a good idea about the artists I'll cover but I doubt it will be as strong as previous years. I've mostly finished the first generation of country artists and the second generation doesn't nearly have as many stars. It will may be hard to find motivation to power through them. Also, I've recently started a more effective regiment to get through the last few 60s and 70s artists I have remaining. As you might expect though, they won't be nearly as interesting as the big names I've already covered. After that, I'll have to start moving on to the 80s. I'm fairly worried about it, I've done almost no research on those artists yet! Fortunately, there are many great blues artists I have yet to cover. I wouldn't bet on it but I finish them fast enough, I'll move on to my rockabilly list.
