Yes.
Yes.
Yes.

Lou Ann Barton - Old Enough

Barton caught the ear of producer Jerry Wexler, who envisioned her in the same mold as Aretha Franklin on Lady Soul. The album was recorded at the legendary Muscle Shoals Sound Studios, with a band that included David Hood, Jimmie Vaughn, Jimmy Johnson, Glen Frey, and the Muscle Shoals Horns. The album failed commercially, which was pretty much a given considering it was old school R&B in the age of diagonal zip suits, and Barton went back to the Texas bars in short order.



Catholic Girls - s/t

The cover makes you expect the worst, but this is a surprisingly strong debut album that hasn't dated much at all over the years. Led by Gail Peterson, the songs kept one foot in 60s girl groups and the other in skinny tie new wave power pop, and managed a sly sort of feminism in the lyrics. "Boys Can Cry" is a song I've used on many mixes over the years, and probably many more in the future.



Kate Bush - The Dreaming

By far my favorite Kate Bush album, and it might be the only Kate Bush album that I truly like. After this one she fell into an Adult-Contemporary coma, but on The Dreaming she still had some unsanded edges. It doesn't exactly rock, of course, but it pushes the envelope in a few different directions that she'd never been before nor would she ever revisit. The title track itself is worth the price of admission.



Orange Juice - You Can't Hide Your Love Forever

Make no mistake, without Orange Juice the very existence of the Smiths would have been in serious jeopardy. Edwyn Collins' fey vocals and the band's earnest jangle were the foundation upon which Morrisey's career was built. As such, it's especially difficult to separate the influence of the band from the actual quality of their recordings. You Can't Hide Your Love Forever, from its title on down, was a direct challenge to the post-punk nihilism so fashionable in the early 80's underground. At the time the sweet pop of Orange Juice sounded like a revolutionary gesture. 20 years later that gesture has long since lost its significance, but we're gratefully left with the sweet pop. Pleasant listening for anyone who secretly wished the Smiths were a little less about mopey white boy angst and a little more about the funk.

in addition to just learning this, i also just found out he's the uncle of one sheila e.

Also the brother of Mario Escovedo of the Dragons, and Javier Escovedo of the Zeros (he also has a great solo album called City Lights). And his other bros Pete and Coke (Coke!) recorded and toured with Santana.

I wish I knew a dude named Coke Escovedo.

Well, you're half right. Most of it isn't rap, but it's still good party-time dance/b-boy music. "She's Fresh" and "It's Nasty" are solid but IMO the best cut is the electro gem "Scorpio." Also, if you want to cheat, you can snag the UK version of the LP which also contains "The Adventures of Grandmaster Flash on the Wheels of Steel" which influenced just about every DJ and turntablist ever since.

Lots of good stuff already mentioned, like Gun Club (I do like the debut best but this is a damn fine album as well), Bad Brains (I wore that cassette out within the first year or so of owning it), Prince, Flipper, Grandmaster Flash, Stray Cats, etc...

I'll toss out a few more.


FEAR: The Record
One of the greatest hardcore albums ever. Funny, offensive and way better musically than most of its peers. Great album and an essential document of the style.


The Minutemen: What Makes A Man Start Fires?
Probably the first thing they put out that showed just how far they could take their sound. Great batch of songs and an overlooked gem that like much of their catalog is so often unfairly over-shadowed by Double Nickels.


Dexy's Midnight Runners: Too-Rye-Aye
I just always like to bring this one up because I think it's one that get overlooked in favor of just trotting out the same single over and over. These guys may go down to many as one-hit-wonders, but this is a really solid album from start to finish. You could take Come On Eileen off it and it would still be a great album. Fantastic blend of soul music with traditional Irish sounds.


Afrika Bambaataa: Planet Rock
OK, it's a 12" not an album. But lots of the most important early hip hop records weren't albums and the albums that did come out early on were often a track or two with a ton of filler (like the previously mentioned Grandmaster Flash album). But, this was a landmark record for hip hop and the future of electronic music. Zulu Nation.

YES!!!!


Also totally agree. I was surprised when I finally gave this one a full listen, as to just how good it is, front-to-back.

Also...


The Gap Band: IV
Any album with early in the Morning and You Dropped the Bomb on Me deserves mention, even if a lot of the rest is filler.

Oh...and one more and I'll stop:


The Jam: The Gift
Just because anything they put out deserves a listen. And this one includes some of my favorite Jam songs, Ghosts, Town Called Malice, Precious, Just Who Is the 5 O'Clock Hero, Carnation...another great one.

Really an excellent year with a ton of great records not yet mentioned, like releases by X, The Time, Plasmatics, Grace Jones Eek-A-Mouse (Wa Do Deem is an all time favorite of mine), and more. I even liked The album The Who put out in '82, It's Hard, although I think it was roundly panned. But, Eminence Front is worth it to me.

If we have another kid, and another boy, Coke LooGAR sounds like a great naming option.

Also, severe lack of links in this thread, boys.

Ahhhh 1982. The era of Survivor, Toto, Eddie Money, and Loverboy. Also, NIGHT TRACKS on the Superstation and Atari.

Clearly I was a young buck in this year so I don't have a ton to add but here are a couple:




Just because it's always listed in the "best of" lists for this year doesn't mean it doesn't deserve a place. If you haven't heard it then you should. The story is well told. Basically he had achieved success but as a new waver and not a serious musician and this is the album that he aimed to change that with. It's incredibly dense and layered. A kitchen sink album but it's hooky and melodic as hell. Tin pan alley and other classic pop but also modern. It's one of the few Rhino re-releases where i enjoyed listening to the 2nd disc with the raw demos. He clearly went to great lengths to get it to sound the way it did. So much detail.

Seems like it's actually a pretty divisive album among Elvis fans due to the scope of it. Maybe his finest achievement musically.




This EP on the other hand is not layered. It is not dense. It's sloppy and a total mess but awesome. Possibly the first sign that they were going to shit all over their entire career. Still, worth a listen if you're a Mats fan.





Probably part nostalgia and part my age at the time but I got this through one of those Pay a Penny Get 10 Tapes type of deals through whoever was doing them back them. I played the shit out of this and I still love Side A with the title track, "(I'm Gonna) Runaway", "Love Is Pain", "Nag", "Crimson and Clover" and "Victim of Circumstance" on side B.


But, if I'm totally honest, this was probably playing out of my dad's stereo or truck at the time:

While shifting away from the glam british rock days of Virginia Plain to a more suave, lush sound, the band lost some fans, but gained a shitload of new ones. This has a bit of sentimental value for this was the record my band supported Roxy as their opener on The High Road Tour in '83



Major label debut. John & Exene. Nuff said.



Pre-Calexico spaghetti western organ surf for all the new wave kids. There's a story floating around of how Stan Ridgeway was talking with some dude listening and comparing their music to Spector's Wall of Sound, and the guy commented that it was more like a Wall of Voodoo, and the name stuck.

ALso, where is Dumpjack or billyg to talk about this mongfest:

i'm a bit thin on '82 in my collection actually.




and thanks, thread, for reminding me to move beyond Double Nickels on the Dime finally....good stuff.

If you[re goin' past Double Nickels, I'd recommend What Makes A Man as well as Buzz and Howl Under the Influence of Heat and Three-Way Tie for Last. Project Merch is good too. Hell, I like the whole catalog.

Oh...and I find Combat Rock under-rated. Sure, everyone's sick of Should I Stay or Should I Go and Rock the Casbah, and there's some filler. But, Know Your Rights is a great lead track, Straight to Hell is great and I actually quite enjoy most of side 2 with all it's moody meanderings.

Basically, get all three Post-Mersh comps.

Damn, didn't know that you opened for them. I absolutely love Avalon. I think it was probably my highest ranked album from the 80's on my last listmania.

The few I like that I haven't noticed posted:



Orange Juice - Rip It Up

I only recently stumbled upon a used copy of this. My first impression is that it's not the equal of "You Can't Hide Your Love Forever" but that it is still really good and also from 1982.



Elvis Costello & The Attractions - Imperial Bedroom

I alternate between this and "My Aim is True" as my favorite EC album.



Marshall Crenshaw - S/T

Great power pop



Orchestra Baobab - Pirates Choice

Seminal Afropop

I like What Makes A Man more than Double Nickels. Good stuff here.

Mission of Burma VS



edit: damn, missed contradiction mentioned Vs. (I searched for mission of burma).. anyhow, the picture helps:)

I haven't heard this, but clearly I must.

Also second the Night Tracks on TBS. And second on the Marshall Crenshaw.

I almost posted this but I guess it didn't actually come out until '87.

TEH Machine is a braver man than I. I'll stand by both of the early 70's Wyman solo albums I've heard being really good but I've not heard this and really have no interest in hearing it or any other solo recordings or Stones albums from the 80's or later.



Warren Zevon - The Envoy

Maybe the third best Zevon album.



Squeeze - Sweets From a Stranger

I finally got around to buying this a few years ago and am still learning the deeper cuts. Black Coffee in Bed is the most well known track on this but like most early Squeeze, it's all pretty good pop.



Haircut 100 - Pelican West

Very Light Pop with dated 80's productions. I wouldn't argue that anyone who hasn't heard it should now, but I've got a sentimental soft spot for it.

Some reggae:


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Gregory Isaacs - Night Nurse
Peter Broggs - Rastafari Liveth
Yellowman - Mister Yellowman

Agree on both these counts as well. 'Love Plus One' has the unnerving effect of making me happy.

This is the only Gabriel album I have, but I like it. This version of "I Have the Touch" is so good, much better than the version that was later on the Shaking the Tree comp.