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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I don’t know if psychedelic drugs were involved in the making of this song but I would be highly surprised if they weren’t. Then again, just listening to it is a mind-bending trip.

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Los Angeles soul trio Sly, Slick & Wicked are one of two obscure vocal groups to name themselves after a 1970 single by The Lost Generation.

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This is one of the first – maybe even the very first – songs I played for my children when they were very small.

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I first heard the name Leroy Smart when Joe Strummer name-checked him in the lyric of The Clash’s best single, White Man In Hammersmith Palais, in 1977.

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I’ve never heard of Betsy Legg before and I bet you haven’t either. This eponymous album – “Betsy” – is, as far as I know, her only record.

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This was apparently the first punk single to reach the Top 20 anywhere in the world, when it reached No.17 in the Irish charts in May 1977.

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Looking back at the landmark albums released in 1979, it’s hard not to conclude that it was the best year for music. One of them was Fear Of Music by Talking Heads.

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