Tuesday Top Ten: Favorite '70s Punk Songs

As I have been going through the various songs I wanted to include in this Rocktober dedicated to the '70s, it became clear that there are way too many great songs across many genres to possibly include, so instead of having to choose to exclude some songs over others, I decided, shit, I can post a Tuesday Top Ten and knock ten great songs out in one post. Damn that was a long sentence.  

Anyway, punk rock was one of those genres where my sphincter was clenching whenever I'd think about which songs I would include or exclude.  Relax, my friend, because the problem is solved.  Hence, this is my Tuesday Top Ten with my favorite punk songs from the '70s.

Admittedly, I was way late to the punk game. Sure, I was born the day after Never Mind the Bollocks was released (whatevs), but growing up, I was always more into hard rock and metal, and those genres were certainly more readily accessible in the mid '80s to mid '90s, when my musical tastes were blossoming. Of course, there was always kind of a punk vs. metal thing (like the later grunge vs. hair band thing). You weren't allowed to like both, which is ridiculous, but that's just how it was. Thankfully, at some point, I realized you CAN listen to and like both types of music without being shunned. So it took me a while, but I came around and have grown to enjoy me some punk.

So here are my ten favorite '70s punk songs, although I'm limiting this to one song per artist.  The term "punk" is kind of as amorphous as "new wave."  I'm going to try to be true to the term and steer clear of proto-punk (Stooges, Velvet Underground, New York Dolls, The Dictators, etc.) or bands that get lumped into the punk scene or that played at CBGB, but aren't really "punk" (Television, Talking Heads, etc.).  Even then, it's all kind of wishy-washy.  But here we go.  These are in no particular order, other than reverse alphabetical by third letter from the end of the song title.

1.  "Judy is a Punk" by The Ramones (1976)
Picking a Ramones song was the toughest part of this list.  I went with "Judy is a Punk" in a close race over "53rd & 3rd," "Today Your Love, Tomorrow the World," and "Cretin Hop," if for no other reason that it was featured in a scene in Royal Tenenbaums where Gwyneth Paltrow is naked and making out with another chick. Also, I really like how Joey Ramone pronounces "ice capades."


2.  "Alternative Ulster" by Stiff Little Fingers (1979) 
I'm actually going to see SLF tomorrow night, so this is timely for me.  The band is from Northern Ireland, and their songs were largely influenced by (and discussed) The Troubles.  "Alternative Ulster" is no exception.  It might be my favorite punk song.  


3.  "New Rose" by The Damned (1976)
Released one year and one week before I was born (whatevs), this is considered to be the first single ever released by a British punk band, and it's a punk classic.  Beginning with the spoken-word "is she really going out with him?" -- riffing on "The Leader of the Pack" by The Shangri-Las -- the song then quickly announces the arrival of British punk.  And the drummer's name was Rat Scabies, which is one of my favorite rock pseudonyms.


4.  "Ça plane pour moi" by Plastic Bertrand (1977)
Is this punk or a parody of punk?  I don't know, but this hooky, nonsensical French-language song by Belgian musician Plastic Bertrand -- although sung by the song's producer, Lou Deprijck -- was an international hit, reaching #1 in France and Switzerland, going top 10 in six other countries, and even hitting #47 on the Billboard Hot 100, which was rare for a punk song.  It means "It's gliding for me," by the way.


5.  "Clash City Rockers" by The Clash (1977)
A lot of the songs The Clash released in the '70s (and '80s, for that matter) aren't necessarily "punk."  My favorite song of theirs is "Train in Vain," but that's really just a pop song, so I couldn't include it.  Hell, half of London Calling isn't really "punk."  That's not to say it isn't great -- it is -- but I decided to go back to the band's eponymous debut album (released six months and 21 days before I was born -- whatevs).  Anyway, the first track off that album is "Clash City Rockers," and it's a fine punk song with a great riff.


6.  "Blank Generation" by Richard Hell & The Voidoids (1977)
After quitting Television and Johnny Thunders & The Heartbreakers (see below), Richard Hell formed his own group, the Voidoids -- which included Marc Bell, who would become Marky Ramone.  They put out a classic punk album, Blank Generation, which was released about a month before I was born (whatevs), and the title track is representative of how those coming of age in the late '70s may have felt a little lost, but that they could make themselves into whatever they wanted.

7.  "Orgasm Addict" by Buzzcocks (1977)
Buzzcocks were a hell of a good band that doesn't get much publicity outside the punk world.  I could have gone with many of their songs, but why not the one that's blatantly about yanking your own chain?  Plus, it was released six days after I was born.  Whatevs.


8.  "Chinese Rocks" by Johnny Thunders & The Heartbreakers (1977)
A confluence of musicians quitting famous CBGB bands resulted in the formation of Johnny Thunders & The Heartbreakers.  Thunders and Jerry Nolan quit the New York Dolls the same week Richard Hell quit Television.  They got together and formed a band.  Hell left, but the others recorded the band's only studio album, 1977's L.A.M.F. (released 26 days before I was born -- whatevs), which stands for "Like a Mother Fucker."  Very punk.  It's a really good album.  My favorite song off the album is "Chinese Rocks," a song co-written by Hell and Dee Dee Ramone about heroin addiction.


9.  "Where Eagles Dare" by Misfits (1979)
Released on Halloween 1979 (two years and two days after I was born -- whatevs), this song's chorus is one of the best lines in punk history:  "I ain't no goddamn son of a bitch / You better think about it, baby!"  Even my kids know and love this one.

10.  "Pretty Vacant" by Sex Pistols (1977)
Picking a Sex Pistols song to include on this list was tough.  It's not that there is a ton to choose from -- after all, they only had one studio album -- but they're all good.  It was between "Pretty Vacant" and "Bodies," but I went with "Pretty Vacant," a punk classic.  I've always appreciated how Johnny Rotten emphasizes the "cunt" in "vacant."