Music Gourmets Presents 60 Years of Great Music - 1976

[Zeeba Neighba]

Busy day! Sorry I'm so late to post the next year. Take all week to post your album choice

Indeed it is the next year in the MG's "60 Years of Great Music" series.
And here we are already at 1976

Here's the rules:

Each Friday, I'll introduce a new year from 1957 through 2016. Each member selects an album released in that year with a few lines (or more) on why you picked it/enjoy it. Your selection does not have to be the most important release or the most admired release of that year (though it certainly can be), simply an album that grabs you and that you really love.

However, once an album is selected by a member, you must choose a different album.

Together we will compile quite the canon of "Great Music" and, who knows, maybe inspire each other to check out some new artists (or to revisit old forgotten classics).

This week - the albums of 1976

 

[Zeeba Neighba]

And since Axo's offline perhaps asleep, I'll give him a break this week:

RYM Top Album List for 1976:

https://rateyourmusic.com/charts/top/album/1976

With the extra time you have now, Axo, I expect posts on my 5000 Songs thread

 

[patrikc325]

I was going with one of the Live albums the Bicentennial year offered but I couldn't pass up this gem!

 

[Unsomnambulist]

Tangerine Dream - Stratosfear



Only introduced to this in the last year.

 

[Mattafett]

Easy. There are a ton of great albums put out during the year of my birth, but this blows all of them out of the water.
Rush - 2112

 

[Postalboy]

Many worthy choices, so I'm going with one that deserves more love: Sincerely - Dwight Twilley Band

 

[LeslieC]

Songs in the Key of Life - Stevie Wonder

Was going to go with a different album, but had to change my mind when I saw this one.

 

[Old Uncle Toe]

An interesting year, 1976, containing the very first Led Zeppelin album I didn't so much care for (although I did go to see the movie), several freshman releases, and lots of top 40 rock that *everyone* in my crowd seemed to have, and played to death and made me sick of them. But aside from the Stevie Wonder release, nothing that really stood out until I got to the page with #161-200. And then there were two. And as much as I hate to keep re-branding myself with blues guitar albums, I picked...

Otis Rush - Right Place, Wrong Time.

I like Otis Rush because he often (but not always) plays West Side Chicago blues, which is a little more melodic than South Side, having a little bit of jazz influence. This is a standout album for Otis.

 

[axolotl]

^^^ For Postalboy, b/c he cares:

 

[lpfreak1170]

Tough year.

Ramones - S/T

 

[Zeeba Neighba]

Tough year.

Ramones - S/T

Ha Ha! Things are falling in place exactly as planned :nunja:
Alright, actually I'm been meaning to post the Ramones debut for two days but keep getting sidetracked. Everyone knows I love that one anyway. It does open things up for me to choose another fave....

Which I'll do later - gotta run

 

[lpfreak1170]

Ha Ha! Things are falling in place exactly as planned :nunja:
Alright, actually I'm been meaning to post the Ramones debut for two days but keep getting sidetracked. Everyone knows I love that one anyway. It does open things up for me to choose another fave....

Which I'll do later - gotta run

I waited a few days for a couple of my choices to fall, which they never did.

 

[axolotl]

I waited a few days for a couple of my choices to fall, which they never did.

Forgive us this day our falling shorts.

 

[Zeeba Neighba]

David Bowie - Station to Station (1976)

Ramones would clearly be my first choice. As much as I enjoy Turnstiles, Warren Zevon's debut, and Shake Some Action, gotta go with the return of the Thin White Duke for my pick. After Ziggy and Hunky Dory, this would be my third favorite Bowie album. Though many see it as a transition album to his upcoming "Berlin Trilogy" with Brian Eno, I enjoy this one better (and that's saying something because the trilogy is pretty great). The opening title track is 10+ minutes (Bowie's longest studio work) of escalating coked-out energy (I enjoy the live version on Stage even more). Throw in the funky "TVC15" and "Stay" (the latter showcases a great funky guitar lick) as well as two beautiful ballads, the existential "Word on a Wing" and "Wild is the Wind" (a Johnny Mathis original, believe it or not, though the Nina Simone version is definitive), and you've got yourself one helluva album.
Thank you LPFreak for choosing Ramones and allowing me to showcase this one

 

[lpfreak1170]

Forgive us this day our falling shorts.

You are forgiven, my child.

 

[axolotl]

You are forgiven, my child.

Wow, I thought I was old.

 

[Ojai Sam]

Max Romeo & The Upsetters - War Ina Babylon

Easy pick for me. Marley got all the ink but this hard-edged political album from a guy better known for sexy fluff like “Wet Dream” still has the power to inspire. I need not add that Lee “Scratch” Perry’s brooding sound and The Upsetters’ relentless groove make every beat a joy.

 

[Worm]

I think I'll have a few hms for this year, but my pick is by a home-grown band. When I first heard More Than a Feeling on the radio at work, I went crazy. I called my best friend and screamed about how awesome this song was and had she heard it yet, and who were these guys and when could we see them in concert. We never got to see them live until after the second album came out, but they were worth the wait.

 

[Nickyboy]

I think I'll have a few hms for this year, but my pick is by a home-grown band. When I first heard More Than a Feeling on the radio at work, I went crazy. I called my best friend and screamed about how awesome this song was and had she heard it yet, and who were these guys and when could we see them in concert. We never got to see them live until after the second album came out, but they were worth the wait.

You were just "dancin' in the streets of Hyannis"!

 

[axolotl]

David Sancious and Tone ~ Transformation (The Speed of Love)




I had to reach down to #344 to find this. It is probably my most frequently-played album from 1976, apart from some already named.

Spoiler

If you think I might be scraping the bottom of the barrel, try these'uns out for size:

Peter Frampton's Frampton Comes Alive! fell to #487, while Bad Company's Runnin' with the Pack sank to #501.