I’m featuring late 1970s-early 1980s punk/new wave and ska songs, stuff I got into during my college days, plus a segment, near the end of the set, of one-hit wonder type material of the kind one used to find on compilations from record labels like K-tel. I’ve done full shows of one-hit wonder stuff in the past, likely will do so again at some point.
This show includes Reunion’s Life Is A Rock (But The Radio Rolled Me), which famously name-checks myriad artists, songs and record companies, and Blue Swede’s Hooked On A Feeling, aka the Ooga-Chaka song (Ooga-Chaka Ooga-Ooga Ooga-Chaka Ooga-Ooga Ooga-Chaka …). The Blue Swede song returned to prominence via its presence in the first Guardians Of The Galaxy movie and as lead cut on the soundtrack, in 2014.
Sugarloaf, meantime, was at least a two-hit wonder. Besides what I’m playing, Don’t Call Us, We’ll Call You, the group’s Green-Eyed Lady was an even bigger hit. And Hot Chocolate, represented in the set by the song Emma (you may recall the lyric Emma, Emmalene…a sad song, actually) had many hits in the UK and North America, including You Sexy Thing, Every 1’s A Winner, You Could Have Been A Lady (a North American hit single for April Wine) and Brother Louie, which American band Stories turned into the North American chart-topping version I’m playing on the show.
I’ve got a double dip of Flash and The Pan because I think those two, similar songs, Walking In The Rain from the first album and the title cut from the second release, Lights In the Night, are something of a piece, to my ears anyway.
1. Madness, One Step Beyond
2. The Selecter, On My Radio
3. The Clash, Revolution Rock
4. Dead Kennedys, Too Drunk To Fuck
5. Devo, (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction
6. Blondie, I Know But I Don’t Know
7. Ramones, I Just Want To Have Something To Do
8. The Specials, Rat Race
9. Flash and The Pan, Walking In The Rain
10. Flash and The Pan, Lights In The Night
11. Elvis Costello, Waiting For The End Of The World
12. Joe Jackson, Throw It Away
13. Teenage Head, Brand New Cadillac
14. Graham Parker and The Rumour, The Heat In Harlem
15. Talking Heads, The Overload
16. The Police, Deathwish
17. Nick Lowe, Big Kick, Plain Scrap!
18. Split Enz, What’s The Matter With You
19. Ian Dury, There Ain’t Half Been Some Clever Bastards
20. Pretenders, Private Life
21. The Boomtown Rats, Up All Night
22. The Cars, You Can’t Hold On Too Long
23. The Motels, Take The L
24. XTC, Ten Feet Tall
25. Reunion, Life Is A Rock (But The Radio Rolled Me)
26. Stories, Brother Louie
27. Sammy Johns, Chevy Van
28. Redbone, Come And Get Your Love
29. Sugarloaf, Don’t Call Us, We’ll Call You
30. Hot Chocolate, Emma
31. Blue Swede, Hooked On A Feeling
32. Billy Swan, I Can Help
33. Hot Butter, Popcorn