There's an acute irony that a year best remembered for social, economic and political conflict in the UK was characterised by a multicultural musical harmony not witnessed before or since.
The biting Winter of Discontent saw the government at loggerheads with trade unions and private business with strikes dominating the news agenda and our daily lives.
But on the music front, the country was coming together in ways we'd never seen. A melting pot was coming to the boil.
Rich and compelling evidence of this was staring us right in the face every Thursday evening on Top of the Pops, a weekly music show featuring performances or videos from artists currently starring in the charts. A national institution, 1979 saw it reach its highest ever audience of 19 million (thanks in part to an ITV strike which saw the rival station come off air).
That year, families all over the country were treated to a dazzling array of punk (Sex Pistols, The Damned, Generation X), new wave (Skids, The Ruts, XTC), disco (Earth, Wind & Fire, Chic, Sister Sledge), 2 Tone (The Specials, Madness, The Selecter), reggae (Bob Marley, Dennis Brown, Janet Kay), heavy rock (Thin Lizzy, UFO, Judas Priest) and, of course, pop (ABBA, The Nolans, The Dooleys).
There was even a dash of country (Lena Martell), mod (Secret Affair), electronica (Tubeway Army) and early hip hop (The Sugarhill Gang). Not to mention, a calorie busting helping of the weird and the wonderful - Sparks, the mysterious M telling us about Pop Muzik and Chas and Dave introducing non-Cockneys to the world of Gertcha.
Best of all was the still incomprehensible sight of all-female dance troupe Legs & Co shaking their stuff to the Sex Pistols' Silly Thing. That was 1979 all over.
It was almost as if the 70s were trying to cram in as much as they possibly could before the imminent arrival of the frilly-collared 80s.
With so much on offer, it is perhaps little surprise that 1979 became the record year for sales of 7-inch singles. It really was a special time and a great reminder that difference is there to be celebrated - in all walks of life.
Brilliant read again kid.
1979 was probably the year I really got into music. I was 12 and remember vividly buying my first 7” singles from Martins in Poulton - Up the Junction & Masquerade!!
But it was watching Are Friends Electric on TOTP that really changes things and I moved on from Showaddywaddy to something a bit better 😃
A great article. Yes, great times musically. I especially remember Message to you, Rudi by the Specials and Are Friends Electric? by Tubeway Army. Hugely influential but just another couple of post-punk oddities at the time. I also remember a school trip to London during which we had to walk through Soho to a theatre. The teachers asked us to be careful about rats (a long rubbish-collectors strike was still on) and punks, who also lurked on every street corner.