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The 100 Greatest Songs Of 1978 #1. Werewolves of London (1 Viewer)

Zeppelin said:
Let him finish the list first. 
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I first took this as a defense of my selections thus far. 
But then I realized that what you meant is that you agree with Shuke that I should be permanently banned, but only after the thread has been completed. 

 
timschochet said:
94. Sweet “Love Is Like Oxygen” (from Level Headed) 

https://youtu.be/zRgWvvkSvfk

Throughout the 1970s, Sweet had one great single after another, including this one, but none of their albums are anything special. I’ve tried. Since I’m a fan of their singles I figured that surely there are some hidden gems out there, forgotten catchy tunes that I would enjoy as well and could add to one of my playlists: There aren’t. At least I haven’t heard it: Each of the albums I’ve sampled, including this one, contains that one memorable song- and then blah. 
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They had about five good-sized radio hits over about a five year period and no two of them sound like they even came from the same band, which is amazing for a hits-based group. It probably also hurt them from gaining more traction. 

"Little Willy" is the Ramones, two years early

"Ballroom Blitz" could be a Queen record

"Fox On The Run" would fit in on Alice Cooper's Greatest Hits

"Action" is sanded-down Clash

"Love Is Like Oxygen" is what the love child of 10CC & Roxy Music would sound like. If fact, I thought it WAS Roxy the first dozen times I heard it

A greatest hits package is probably the best long-form way to listen to Sweet, though the album with "Action" on it was pretty good, IMO.

 
Uruk-Hai said:
They had about five good-sized radio hits over about a five year period and no two of them sound like they even came from the same band, which is amazing for a hits-based group. It probably also hurt them from gaining more traction. 

"Little Willy" is the Ramones, two years early

"Ballroom Blitz" could be a Queen record

"Fox On The Run" would fit in on Alice Cooper's Greatest Hits

"Action" is sanded-down Clash

"Love Is Like Oxygen" is what the love child of 10CC & Roxy Music would sound like. If fact, I thought it WAS Roxy the first dozen times I heard it

A greatest hits package is probably the best long-form way to listen to Sweet, though the album with "Action" on it was pretty good, IMO.
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This is an excellent summary.

 
timschochet said:
94. Sweet “Love Is Like Oxygen” (from Level Headed) 
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Would be in my Top 10 for this year pretty easily. Glad it made the countdown all the same.

Don't want to spotlight (though apparently you're not going to take it) ... but there is one other nice tune on Level Headed -- though not on "Love is Like Oxygen"'s level.

 
Uruk-Hai said:
They had about five good-sized radio hits over about a five year period and no two of them sound like they even came from the same band, which is amazing for a hits-based group. It probably also hurt them from gaining more traction. 

"Little Willy" is the Ramones, two years early

"Ballroom Blitz" could be a Queen record

"Fox On The Run" would fit in on Alice Cooper's Greatest Hits

"Action" is sanded-down Clash

"Love Is Like Oxygen" is what the love child of 10CC & Roxy Music would sound like. If fact, I thought it WAS Roxy the first dozen times I heard it

A greatest hits package is probably the best long-form way to listen to Sweet, though the album with "Action" on it was pretty good, IMO.
Click to expand...


I am not in full agreement with most of your comparisons...

Ramones were never that schlocky commercial sounding, or at least that I remember hearing.

Sorry, I just can't picture Freddie Mercury doing Ballroom Blitz. 

"Fox" is in the glam category like most of Alice Cooper's stuff and would not be out of place in the same radio set list as "I'm Eighteen," so arguably, yeah, but I don't think Cooper's vocals would be well suited to the song.

I don't think Action reminds me of anything the Clash did, as it is too calculatingly commercial, which the Clash never were.

"Love Is Like Oxygen" sounds almost out of the 10cc songbook. Don't hear the Roxy connection, but Roxy was so experimental and tried many different styles I won't dispute that comparison. 

The influence of 10cc on "LILO" is really obvious if you listen to an alt take released in 2009 (which I actually like better)

Love Is Like Oxygen (Rare Studio Version)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_VGPffyQRjQ

 
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squistion said:
I am not in full agreement with most of your comparisons...

Ramones were never that schlocky commercial sounding, or at least that I remember hearing.

Sorry, I just can't picture Freddie Mercury doing Ballroom Blitz. 

"Fox" is in the glam category like most of Alice Cooper's stuff and would not be out of place in the same set list as "I'm Eighteen," so arguably, yeah, but I don't think Cooper's vocals would be well suited to the song.

I don't think Action reminds me of anything the Clash did, as it is too calculatingly commercial, which the Clash never were.

"Love Is Like Oxygen" sounds almost out of the 10cc songbook. Don't hear the Roxy connection, but Roxy was so experimental and tried many different styles I won't dispute that comparison. 

The influence of 10cc on "LILO" is really obvious if you listen to an alt take released in 2009 (which I actually like better)

Love Is Like Oxygen (Rare Studio Version)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_VGPffyQRjQ
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We must use different ears, but that's ok. 

 
93. Village People “Y.M.C.A.” (from Cruisin’) 

https://youtu.be/CS9OO0S5w2k

I suspect that most of the people who weren’t so thrilled with my first few picks aren’t going to be in love with this one either. Sorry in advance. But it an all time disco classic, a gay rights tongue in cheek anthem, and my kids know the dance. It may be a scary thought, but if I had to choose one song from this list that will be remembered in the year 2078…this is probably the one. 

 
Uruk-Hai said:
We must use different ears, but that's ok. 
Click to expand...


More like different tastes in music. I detested the Ramones, don't ever recall buying an Alice Cooper record (although I thought he was OK) and the only thing ever I liked from The Clash was Should I Stay Or Should I Go. 

But, as Sly Stone said, "Different strokes for different folks."

 
I thought "Ballroom Blitz" was Queen for a while as a teenager (I was introduced to it through Wayne's World), so count me among those using Uruk's ears for a moment, or at least for that song. 

 
squistion said:
More like different tastes in music. I detested the Ramones, don't ever recall buying an Alice Cooper record (although I thought he was OK) and the only thing ever I liked from The Clash was Should I Stay Or Should I Go. 

But, as Sly Stone said, "Different strokes for different folks."
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It was many years after the fact, but I came to appreciate what the Ramones were doing - guys who had very little ability playing some of the most ornate music ever made (girl groups, Beach Boys, Drifters, etc....). The music they were playing was sped-up Brill Building stuff like Springsteen was doing at the same time - they just didn't have the chops to make it work. They overlaid some "shocking" lyrics, but the music and spirit was straight out of 1963. I like their influences a lot more than their take on them. I don't think we're that far apart here. Sweet's record was better at being the Ramones than the Ramones were. 

Alice Cooper was awesome and I bought all of his 1970s records. We will have to duel at dawn over this.

I'm "meh" on the Clash, Queen. 10CC, & Roxy Music. I think Sweet's takes on their kinds of music were better, and they did it either first or better.

 
rockaction said:
I do not think "Little Willy" sounds like the Ramones, though. That might be a stretch. Or just not the Ramones. 
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It's not a stretch to me, but I long ago reconciled to myself that what I hear doesn't make sense to most. I know I'd lose a poll on this and I'm ok with that.

 
timschochet said:
93. Village People “Y.M.C.A.” (from Cruisin’) 

https://youtu.be/CS9OO0S5w2k

I suspect that most of the people who weren’t so thrilled with my first few picks aren’t going to be in love with this one either. Sorry in advance. But it an all time disco classic, a gay rights tongue in cheek anthem, and my kids know the dance. It may be a scary thought, but if I had to choose one song from this list that will be remembered in the year 2078…this is probably the one. 
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This, "Old Time Rock & Roll", and "Love Shack" were the Wedding Reception Trinity in the 80s & 90s. Every. Damned. One.

 
Uruk-Hai said:
 I'm "meh" on the Clash, Queen. 10CC, & Roxy Music. I think Sweet's takes on their kinds of music were better, and they did it either first or better.
Click to expand...


Wait, what? Are you saying Sweet did the type of music Queen did either first or better?   :mellow:

I don't think Sweet was in the same league as Queen (maybe you would have to have seen Freddie Mercury live as I did when Bohemian Rhapsody first came out to fully appreciate the band).

And I wouldn't talk about them in the same breath as 10cc or Roxy either. Don't get me wrong, they did some good commercial pop rock, but they only approached brilliance IMO when they channeled 10cc on Love Is Like Oxygen. 

 
squistion said:
Wait, what? Are you saying Sweet did the type of music Queen did either first or better?   :mellow:

I don't think Sweet was in the same league as Queen (maybe you would have to have seen Freddie Mercury live as I did when Bohemian Rhapsody first came out to fully appreciate the band).

And I wouldn't talk about them in the same breath as 10cc or Roxy either. Don't get me wrong, they did some good commercial pop rock, but they only approached brilliance IMO when they channeled 10cc on Love Is Like Oxygen. 
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Ears. Different.

Ok. It is.

Worry. Don't.

Backwards talking I'm now. Either, decades in drugs done haven't I.

 
Uruk-Hai said:
They had about five good-sized radio hits over about a five year period and no two of them sound like they even came from the same band, which is amazing for a hits-based group. It probably also hurt them from gaining more traction. 

"Little Willy" is the Ramones, two years early

"Ballroom Blitz" could be a Queen record

"Fox On The Run" would fit in on Alice Cooper's Greatest Hits

"Action" is sanded-down Clash

"Love Is Like Oxygen" is what the love child of 10CC & Roxy Music would sound like. If fact, I thought it WAS Roxy the first dozen times I heard it

A greatest hits package is probably the best long-form way to listen to Sweet, though the album with "Action" on it was pretty good, IMO.
Click to expand...
I see the Sweet bat signal went up. 

You are talking about the US Hits. They were massive in the UK and Australia. Big stars of the Chinn/Chapman stable.

Their pre Chinny/Chap material is mainly flower power kinda stuff like Funny Funny. Once under Chinny Chap the hits poured out. Early fluff like Coco, Poppa Joe and Little Willy are forgettable but were hits. Alexander Graham Bell has a moment on it where the lights seem to switch on. Wig Wam Bam was their first glam sounding song, and it was a big hit. Followed by the amazing Blockbuster, Hell Raiser, Ballroom Blitz, The Six Teens run of hits.

Somehow a cover of the Joey Dee and the Starlighters hit Peppermint Twist made it to number one in Australia. Great cover. Wasnt released anywhere in the world that I can see. 

Then we get Fox on the run and Action. Action in particular was very influential on the hair metal acts of the mid to late 80s

After this they stunk it up until Love is like Oxygen. 

Like @timschochet said their albums are a hard listen. Get one of the singles compliations. I’d recommend The Ballroom Blitz & More Sweet Hits. 20 tracks, 12 worth listening to, 2 ok. 6 garbage (Jeanie, Chop Chop, Stairway to the Stars, Spotlight, Little Willy, Funny Funny)

 
John Maddens Lunchbox said:
I see the Sweet bat signal went up. 

You are talking about the US Hits. They were massive in the UK and Australia. Big stars of the Chinn/Chapman stable.

Their pre Chinny/Chap material is mainly flower power kinda stuff like Funny Funny. Once under Chinny Chap the hits poured out. Early fluff like Coco, Poppa Joe and Little Willy are forgettable but were hits. Alexander Graham Bell has a moment on it where the lights seem to switch on. Wig Wam Bam was their first glam sounding song, and it was a big hit. Followed by the amazing Blockbuster, Hell Raiser, Ballroom Blitz, The Six Teens run of hits.

Somehow a cover of the Joey Dee and the Starlighters hit Peppermint Twist made it to number one in Australia. Great cover. Wasnt released anywhere in the world that I can see. 

Then we get Fox on the run and Action. Action in particular was very influential on the hair metal acts of the mid to late 80s

After this they stunk it up until Love is like Oxygen. 

Like @timschochet said their albums are a hard listen. Get one of the singles compliations. I’d recommend The Ballroom Blitz & More Sweet Hits. 20 tracks, 12 worth listening to, 2 ok. 6 garbage (Jeanie, Chop Chop, Stairway to the Stars, Spotlight, Little Willy, Funny Funny)
Click to expand...
I do like Little Willy though. Guilty pleasure. 

 
John Maddens Lunchbox said:
I see the Sweet bat signal went up. 

You are talking about the US Hits. They were massive in the UK and Australia. Big stars of the Chinn/Chapman stable.

Their pre Chinny/Chap material is mainly flower power kinda stuff like Funny Funny. Once under Chinny Chap the hits poured out. Early fluff like Coco, Poppa Joe and Little Willy are forgettable but were hits. Alexander Graham Bell has a moment on it where the lights seem to switch on. Wig Wam Bam was their first glam sounding song, and it was a big hit. Followed by the amazing Blockbuster, Hell Raiser, Ballroom Blitz, The Six Teens run of hits.

Somehow a cover of the Joey Dee and the Starlighters hit Peppermint Twist made it to number one in Australia. Great cover. Wasnt released anywhere in the world that I can see. 

Then we get Fox on the run and Action. Action in particular was very influential on the hair metal acts of the mid to late 80s

After this they stunk it up until Love is like Oxygen. 

Like @timschochet said their albums are a hard listen. Get one of the singles compliations. I’d recommend The Ballroom Blitz & More Sweet Hits. 20 tracks, 12 worth listening to, 2 ok. 6 garbage (Jeanie, Chop Chop, Stairway to the Stars, Spotlight, Little Willy, Funny Funny)
Click to expand...
Well, yeah - I was talking about the US hits. When those records came out, I had a job - being a kid in the United States. I do remember "Wig Wam Boom", though, and I appreciate you mentioning it.

 
timschochet said:
99. Bob Seger “Old Time Rock n Roll” (from A Stranger In Town) 

https://youtu.be/W1LsRShUPtY

So a lot of folks consider this an all time classic: after all it was written by the legendary George Jackson, it uses the Muscle Shoals rhythm section, it’s featured in one of the most iconic movie scenes ever, and it’s reportedly Seger’s favorite song. 
But despite all that I find it kind of boring. I don’t hate it (I don’t hate any song on this list, obviously). It’s fine, it’s a good rock song, the piano playing is excellent…but it doesn’t really do anything or go anywhere. 
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I can't stand this song, and not only because it was used in a ubiquitous horrendous movie scene. The lyrics are incredibly cliched and the music is by-the-numbers. It's also completely ripped off from a far superior song. 

It might make my list of worst songs from 1978. And there was a LOT of horrific copycat disco that year. 

 
wikkidpissah said:
No longer care enough to count the number of Peter Gabriel, PFunk, Tom Waits & Television songs will sit on the sidelines so Lola can be a showgirl and Golden Girls can have a theme song.
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I can understand skipping Television in '78, but when Tim skips them in '77, oh boy... 

 
timschochet said:
93. Village People “Y.M.C.A.” (from Cruisin’) 

https://youtu.be/CS9OO0S5w2k

I suspect that most of the people who weren’t so thrilled with my first few picks aren’t going to be in love with this one either. Sorry in advance. But it an all time disco classic, a gay rights tongue in cheek anthem, and my kids know the dance. It may be a scary thought, but if I had to choose one song from this list that will be remembered in the year 2078…this is probably the one. 
Click to expand...
The Top 100 Songs from 1978 That Are Still Played At Weddings Today

 
timschochet said:
93. Village People “Y.M.C.A.” (from Cruisin’) 

https://youtu.be/CS9OO0S5w2k

I suspect that most of the people who weren’t so thrilled with my first few picks aren’t going to be in love with this one either. Sorry in advance. But it an all time disco classic, a gay rights tongue in cheek anthem, and my kids know the dance. It may be a scary thought, but if I had to choose one song from this list that will be remembered in the year 2078…this is probably the one. 
Click to expand...


I'm surprised you had this so low.  Strongly agree with your last sentence which should probably put it in the top half of you list at a minimum.

 
timschochet said:
92. Toto “Hold the Line” (from Toto)

https://youtu.be/htgr3pvBr-I

Toto is one of those bands made up of musicians that other musicians revere, or so I’ve been told. I personally don’t know that much about them- what I DO know is that this is the song they were best known for prior to “Africa”. And it’s a pretty good song; I like it. 
Click to expand...


Probably my favorite tune of theirs that I can recall at the moment as I was not a fan of Africa or Rosanna.

Please tell me that 1978 gets better.

 
Uruk-Hai said:
They had about five good-sized radio hits over about a five year period and no two of them sound like they even came from the same band, which is amazing for a hits-based group. It probably also hurt them from gaining more traction. 

"Little Willy" is the Ramones, two years early

"Ballroom Blitz" could be a Queen record

"Fox On The Run" would fit in on Alice Cooper's Greatest Hits

"Action" is sanded-down Clash

"Love Is Like Oxygen" is what the love child of 10CC & Roxy Music would sound like. If fact, I thought it WAS Roxy the first dozen times I heard it

A greatest hits package is probably the best long-form way to listen to Sweet, though the album with "Action" on it was pretty good, IMO.
Click to expand...
Love is Like Oxygen sounds like a ELO song to me.  It could be on the album with Fire on High.

 
timschochet said:
92. Toto “Hold the Line” (from Toto)

https://youtu.be/htgr3pvBr-I

Toto is one of those bands made up of musicians that other musicians revere, or so I’ve been told. I personally don’t know that much about them- what I DO know is that this is the song they were best known for prior to “Africa”. And it’s a pretty good song; I like it. 
Click to expand...
Outstanding song that has held up over time.  

 
timschochet said:
99. Bob Seger “Old Time Rock n Roll” (from A Stranger In Town) 

https://youtu.be/W1LsRShUPtY

So a lot of folks consider this an all time classic: after all it was written by the legendary George Jackson, it uses the Muscle Shoals rhythm section, it’s featured in one of the most iconic movie scenes ever, and it’s reportedly Seger’s favorite song. 
But despite all that I find it kind of boring. I don’t hate it (I don’t hate any song on this list, obviously). It’s fine, it’s a good rock song, the piano playing is excellent…but it doesn’t really do anything or go anywhere. 
Click to expand...
I’m a big Seger fan, seen him twice in concert.  I despise this song.  
 

Nice job putting this low.  

 
Love me some Toto way more than I should.  Such catchy hooks and underrated musicianship.

Their stuff holds up amazingly well for me as I continuously celebrate the catalog.

Africa, Rosanna, Hold the Line….so many bangers!  For my money, Africa is one of the greatest pop tunes ever.

Toto is a national treasure.

 
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