1979 was an interesting year. There is an interesting change in the air. Listening to this mix back it feels so disjointed in many ways.
20. Train in Vain (Stand by Me) by The Clash
I'm not the biggest Clash fan, but this is a great song.
19. Love in a Void by Siouxsie and the Banshees
Back in 1979 I had no idea music like this existed. I wouldn't discover Siouxsie for another 7 years.
18. Cruisin' by Smokey Robinson
This song seems ideal for 1979 as it feels like the end of the R&B era that carried over from the 60's. We'll see as we get into 1980, but it all does seem to be changing.
17. Good Times by Chic
One of the changes I see coming is reflected in music like this song from Chic. This is heavily influenced by the funk movement happening in the 70's which has been very underground and also artists like Sly & the Family Stone. Those influences will continue to be very important as we move forward.
16. Cars by Gary Numan
I bought this 45 back in 1979. Little did I know this was seen as one of the early steps toward new wave.
15. Three Imaginary Boys by The Cure
The debut album from The Cure. Another band I would discover in 1986.
14. I Wanna Be Your Lover by Prince
This song would be Prince's first number 1 song on the R&B chart and it went all the way to 11 on the US chart.
13. We Are Family by Sister Sledge
This song is 1979.
12. Ladies Night by Kool & the Gang
I loved this song in 1979.
11. London Calling by The Clash
Like I said I'm not the biggest Clash fan, but this song is The Clash and so you can't just ignore it.
10. The Logical Song by Supertramp
If I were to pick an album of the year from 1979 it would probably be this Supertramp album, Breakfast in America. I really liked this song then and still listen to it all the time now.
9. The Devil Went Down to Georgia by The Charlie Daniels Band
I always thought this single came out sooner than 1979. Another 45 I bought.
8. I Can't Tell You Why by Eagles
This is probably my favorite Eagles song. I may have already said that about another one, but I really do like this song. So pretty.
7. Rock With You by Michael Jackson
This song always makes me think of one of our fellow fifth graders doing a dance routine to this song for the whole class.
6. Breakfast in America by Supertramp
Great song.
5. Is She Really Going Out With Him? by Joe Jackson
This is another great song. So iconic to me.
4. Deja Vu by Dionne Warwick
OK I had completely forgotten about this song until I was doing this exercise. I loved this song in 1979 and it still sounds fantastic today.
3. Rainbow Connection by Kermit
Ah the Muppet Show, the Muppet Movie. Such great memories from 1979.
2. Images by Saga
For a long time this was my favorite song by Saga. Just love the sound of it. Maybe no other song represents their early work better than this song.
1. Sailing by Christopher Cross
This is one of my all time favorite songs.
Woodland by Gillian Welch and David Rawlings
Sometimes the Morning is Different by Family Stereo
Smoke & Fiction by X
What Happened to the Beach? by Declan McKenna
Me Again by Sasha Alex Sloan
I discovered Sasha Alex Sloan back in 2022 along with Alec Benjamin and introduced both artists to my daughter. Back in the summer she saw where Alec Benjamin and Sasha Alex Sloan were performing back to back in Seattle in October and wanted to buy tickets with her money. So this last month she and I flew to Seattle and went to back to back concerts on a Saturday and Sunday night.
Since this is a review of this Sasha Alex Sloan album I'll just say she was fantastic live. It was a small venue and instead of a warm up act they had karaoke, which was a lot of fun. With that said what about this album.
It is a pretty dark album. Not angry dark but dark in the sense that she is obviously dealing with some tough issues in her life. She managed to write an album around all of these emotions. What drew me to her in 2022 are on full display on this album. She is a very good singer, but an exceptional songwriter. On I Blame the World there was a sense of humor along with her darker moments, but here the humor is really gone. It's 13 songs, but only 39 minutes long so falls right into the sweet spot for me on album length and there isn't any wasted space.
If you are feeling the need to be introspective then this would be a good album to put on. Like I said it's dark but not in a negative way. We have a song like "Highlights" on here, the video I linked above. That song deals with a parent who is not around except when things are good. Then there is "Kids" a song about a parent who was always there and now it's the child's turn to be there for the parent. We have relationships where things are good, where things are falling apart. There is a lot happening here and it's all very thoughtful and well put together.
