I know there are people – many people – who hate this prime fillet of cod reggae. They probably hate cricket too. In both cases they are mistaken.

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I really tried quite hard to like Nina Hagen, the so-called Godmother of German Punk. She was beautiful, glamorous and a little bit frightening – like a grown-up Toyah.

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Here is some rare footage of the last time Sting took public transport, way back in 1978, before The Police had had a hit single, and before Sting bought a lute.

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Oh how I love this single, from the opening keyboard run to that rat-a-tat-tat drum figure… and Julian Cope’s exuberant vocal. Then the breakdown with the burbling bassline and skittering hi-hats when he sings “It’s true.”

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Cornel Campbell’s sweet quaver of a voice was first noticed in the church choir when he was a young boy, and as one of the finest falsettos in reggae, it never really changed.

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Like so many punk groups, The Ruts were inspired to become a band after singer Malcolm Owen saw The Sex Pistols, but as their short career progressed, they increasingly incorported reggae into their sound.

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Buzzcocks had evolved far beyond the primitive proto-punk and two-note guitar solos of Spiral Scratch by the time they released their third album in 1979. A Different Kind Of Tension was a game-changer of two halves: the first side an unremarkable set of short sharp pop-punk songs.

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Like so many of the great reggae and soul stars, Alphonso “Al” Campbell started singing in church, initially to raise funds for his preacher father.

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One of the few punk bands I never got to see, Swell Maps still left a mark with their Peel sessions and two excellent albums of DIY punk experimentalism.

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Released in October 1978, this was the song that showed The Jam had left their punk roots far behind. As did their third album, All Mod Cons, from which it was taken.

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