Punk / New Wave Favourite 7"Singles from 1977 - 3 choices

[Burn e 77]

Pick your top three Punk / New Wave 7" singles from 1977 (I've included a 12") try and include a brief description of relevant memories of where they were bought and why you liked them at the time in the halcyon days of '77.

1) XTC - 3D EP: Bought in London Petticoat Lane Market (at the time a punk clothing and music hangout and place to easily score speed) my mate and I were there buying 6 pleat "Pegs" (mine were bright neon blue) and mohair jumpers (bright red and very fluffy ultra long sleeves and very fuckin expensive) While trying on a pair of transluscent blue plastic "Jellies" I looked over the road at a record shack playing the Pistols,
two Punkettes were posing there and one was holding this 12" single, plain white background spattered with electric red and green dashes. Chatted up the girls, Liz and Cheryl both nurses from St Mary's hospital in Stratford and bought the XTC single. Stayed with Liz for the whole summer of '77 happy days!

2) Sex Pistols - God Save The Queen: Bought in Virgin records New Oxford Street London. Went to check out if they had any decent import Jamaican Dub LP's on King Tubby label. While listening to the reggae in store during my work lunch break bought God Save The Queen and Augustos Pablo Dub album.

3) MIB - NMH: Again during work lunch break in Virgin records New Oxford Street (a staff member there used to get some top nepalese hash which we scored every pay day) loved their 1st album and bought this single, never looked back after that.


PS. Liz bought Silver Lady by David Soul one afternoon in Petticoat Lane market in London, she had to go... Funnily enough after Liz my other girlfriends during the
punk period all had names beginning with "L" Linda (into Jean Michelle Jarre & fuckin David Soul) and Leslie (David Bowie & Ultravox) followed Liz...





































3) Stranglers - No More Heroes: :

[Bobinblack]

No Damned??

I wasn't aurally mature in 1977 so I feel a fraud choosing

[Burn e 77]

No Damned??

I wasn't aurally mature in 1977 so I feel a fraud choosing

Damned didn't get a look in, until their 3rd album for me (although I loved their 1st batch of singles) Didn't really prefer XTC - 3D EP (specifically Science Friction) over No More Heroes (a perfect snapshop redolent of the times) It was mainly due to the cicumstances surrounding it's procurement, the girls and mainly the artwork, guess that sounds weird. Go ahead Bob, lets see your top 3 from '77

[Bobinblack]

Mate, it's not right as I don't remember hearing them in 1977... so no Closest I got to hearing 'punk' was almost definitely Talking Heads!

And 'Black Betty' and 'Don't Believe A Word'

[evonx]

1. Stranglers: Heroes

Saw them on Dutch tv show Top Pop. I was totally blown away by that song and the week after I also read about the infamous Amsterdam gig with the Hells Angels. Got the single at our local shop and life was never the same again!

2. Sex Pistols: Pretty Vacant

That summer our family went on holiday in England (south coast, Swanage, staid in a little hotel, it was a very warm summer if I'm not mistaken). I bought two singles from my pocket money - this one and Brian Ferry's Tokyo Joe..... How punk! Remember, I was only 10 at the time

3. Clash : White Riot

Only bought this two or three years later so doesn't really count but for me one of the definitive athems of that era (and I didn't want to put two strangssingles in the top 3)

[strangledinAuch]

certainly remember buying/borrowing/stealing out of woolies

Pistols-holidays in the sun,GSTQ,pretty vacant

Clash-the album more so than the singles

Elvis Costello-watching the detectives (still a great song,"she's filing her nails,while they're dragging the lake",great line)

Ian Dury-Sex & Drugs & Rock N' Roll

but Peaches has to be the all time best of '77,the lyrics & weather just made this already great song fit in so well at that time

[MULLY]

Early in my record collecting days I had always spent my money on LPs (thinking they were better value), but quickly discovered the 'different' non-album tracks on (particularly) Stranglers 7"s caused a u-turn on that idea.

Therefore, for different reasons I have split my three choices into Stranglers singles and others.

STRANGLERS

1. A&M US IMPORT 'PINK VINYL' E.P.

Was totally unaware of this record until walking upstairs into Good Vibrations Records and seeing it displayed on the rack behind the counter. Mostly due to the 'oddity' value rather than the track-listing, this was my first Starngler 7" purchase.

2. PEACHES FREE4

During the STranglers' 10 Tour, I had bussed it over from Belfast to Birmingham to stay with an old Uni mate living in Wolverhampton and to attend the Hummingbird gig. Staying a few days with him and his wife, I had to make do with my own company during the day(s) as both were working. Travelling into Wolverhampton town centre to seek out the local record shops, I walked into the first (name long since forgotten) and perused the Punk/New Wave section. Finding nothing new or off interest, I looked around and noticed a Stranglers Peaches 'demo' on display. Wondering could it really be the radioplay version I asked the owner if I could listen to the record. As soon as 'Oh no', 'what a summer' and 'bikini' were heard I asked the price - Five quid. Never had I handed over a fiver so quickly

3. LET ME INTRDUCE YOU TO THE FAMILY

Once I discovered that there were two different reverse sleeve designes - hearts &/or guns - I had to have both versions. I had exhausted my local record stores (which to be honest I was lucky to find even one copy of the single nevermind different copies!!). On a jaunt over to London to stay with another mate and take in a Strangler gig (not sure when this would have been) and take in the record collector shops, etc... I came across the version I didn't have in Rock On, Camden (??). Another fiver well spent.

OTHERS

1. RUDI - BIG TIME

What can I say about this - my favourite local band's debut record on my local record label (and it was it's first single release too!!). Probably the best three minutes of punk power-pop with a killer b-side to boot.

2. SEX PISTOLS - GSTQ

1977 in Belfast was a city torn apart by opposing poliitical and social issues. To add a different dimension (hard to believe today) this single release created further schizms - was it anti-royal, pro-monarchist, defacing the picture of the Queen, ad finitum. As a sixteen year-old going into a shop on a Saturday afternoon in the town centre and asking for this particular record was as brave as it was foolish - but a purchase I had to make. Although, the purchase didn't cause much furure for me that particular afternoon.

3. KILLING JOKE - WARDANCE

Sitting on the floor of The Ulster Hall, cradling a bottle of Coke (spiked with Vodka) awaiting the next band on the bill (probably RUDI !!) of The First Punk and New Wave Festival, I was alerted to the strains of a previously unheard and otherworldly tune played over the house PA. Fuck me, what was that? Someone told me the name of the track but not the band. Next trip into Good Vibes and the single was mine. Great track but an even better flip.

[Rockula]

Picking my three favourite singles from 1977 is totally impossible.

I'll just pick three from the hundreds.

Don't Dictate - Penetration
First saw them as a 'support act' at the Marquee in June '77. Left before the main band 'cause they were a bunch of long-haired old hippy types. We went down the Scala all night cinema and watched a Ray Harryhausen season instead. We spent a lot of nights down the Scala before there was all-night transport. Out in the morning in time for first Tube.
Penetration 'blew me away', as they say. Still listening and going to their shows to this day. I just wish they'd get that new album out. The one they've been working on since 2007.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJ1vBb3GKXc

Runnin' Riot - Cock Sparrer
Don't really like much this band has done since. But I heard this wafting in out of the airwaves from a punk show on Radio Luxembourg. Next day I took a bus ride down to Small Wonder records in Walthamstow to buy it. Bought about 10 other singles that day as well. I'd just started work and about half my wages went on 7" vinyl for the next 4 years or so. Probably regarded as an 'Oi!' band since the 80's but this was before all that.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FZsvYnyIvr4

Questions - Suburban Studs
Another one I bought at Small Wonder. We used to take the bus ride there at least once every two weeks or so. Buy records, go in the pub, go home and play the records, go in another pub. You have to have plan. These guys only had three singles, one album and a compilation appearance during their lifetime. I last saw them when they played in 1996 with a different line-up but missed the reunion of the original line-up last year.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4H7VaWPGeec

[Rockula]

PS. Liz bought Silver Lady by David Soul one afternoon in Petticoat Lane market in London, she had to go...

My sister was a David Soul fan. I shot one of her albums with an air-rifle and got a slap from my Dad. Worth it though. :)

[Jon the Impaler]

Not nesessarrily my favourites - but close and all worth a mention , just to give an idea of the quality of punk singles in '77 .
Adverts - Gary Gilmore's Eyes
ATV - Love Lies Limp
Boomtown Rats - Looking after No 1
Buzzcocks - Spiral Scratch
You Better Believe me - Celia and Mutations ( heard of them sometwhere )
Chelsea - High Rise Living .....one of my favourite bands .
Cortinas - Fascist Dictator
Clash - various
Dead Boys - Sonic Reducer
Eater - Lock it up
Jam- various
Damned - various
Saint - this perfect day
Slaughter- Bootboys

It was a good year . That lot without the Pistols or Stranglers ( or Vibrators , Ramones etc etc )

[Burn e 77]

PS. Liz bought Silver Lady by David Soul one afternoon in Petticoat Lane market in London, she had to go...

My sister was a David Soul fan. I shot one of her albums with an air-rifle and got a slap from my Dad. Worth it though. :)

Haha... Excellent fella... Love it!

[T.F.P.R.H.G]

1st up grip purchased in probe liverpool anyone who knows there punk has herd of probe records.
pete(you spin me round like a fuckin record)burns served me and said why are you buying this shite for.
2nd new rose the damned probe again
3rd iggy the passenger yes its probe again .girl i knew was into bowie and iggy i borrowed the lust for life
album off her and she never got it back scousers eh.