WATERLOO BY ABBA

     It just wouldn't be the 70s without ABBA, and in 1974 they burst onto the music scene with their massive debut hit, "Waterloo".  The song hit #1 in many countries, and became a top ten hit in the US.  "Waterloo" would eventually sell over 6 million copies, making it one of the most successful songs ever.  This is classic ABBA and the start of an amazing career and legacy by the European supergroup.  The song is also a definitive representation of Europop at its finest.  But then again, pretty much all of ABBA's songs are.

SUMMER BREEZE by SEALS AND CROFTS

     It's just not summertime without hearing Seals and Crofts mega-hit from 1972, "Summer Breeze".  This song instantly evokes a lazy, hazy summer day in the 70s- you can feel and even smell the 70s with this song.  This is classic mellow 70s pop.  AM gold at its finest!

   

LOVE TO LOVE YOU BABY BY DONNA SUMMER

     Disco legend Donna Summer started her amazing and influential career in August of 1975 with the release of her first single, "Love To Love You Baby".  The song became an instant smash in the clubs, especially the gay clubs.  The single would be certified gold, and was one of the first singles to help popularize the new 12" format. It would be the first of many disco smashes from Donna, and it perfectly captures the essence of the 70s in all their glory.

SPACE ODDITY BY DAVID BOWIE

     Words don't really do David Bowie justice.  He's just so far ahead of his time that until we truly catch up to him, it's best just to let his stuff speak for itself.  Although technically released in 1969, David Bowie's haunting track "Space Oddity" was a taste of what was in store for the world as the new decade was approaching .  Heavily inspired by Stanley Kubrick's masterpiece, "2001: A Space Odyssey", it's still one of Bowie's best known and loved songs, and remains as fresh and bizarre today as it must have sounded back then.

COME SAIL AWAY BY STYX

     For me as a child, one of the strongest memories of the 70s is hearing the mega-awesome "Come Sail Away" by Styx.  Released in 1977 off their seventh studio album The Grand Illusion, "Come Sail Away" would help bolst the album to multi-platinum sales, and become one of Styx's biggest hits.  It's such a visual song, and much to ponder for those Ancient Aliens enthusiasts...  "Come Sail Away" would make it all the way to #8 on the Billboard charts.  This is classic rock- it's theatrical, over-the-top, and beautiful.  This song  simply must be played loud.  And check out this video!

DOCTOR'S ORDERS BY CAROL DOUGLAS

     One of the pioneering tracks of disco, released in 1974, was "Doctor's Orders" by Carol Douglas.  The song became hugely popular by the end of '74, making it all the way to #11 on Billboard's Top 100 chart and #2 on Billboard's recently launched disco chart.  By 1975, global sales of "Doctor's Orders" by Carol Douglas totaled one million units.  It's irresistible disco, and downright impossible not to sing along with Carol- why she didn't have more hits is beyond me.  "Doctor's Orders" is a personal favorite.  It's a gem!

MOVIN' BY BRASS CONSTRUCTION

     Brass Construction were a disco/funk group of the 1970's who scored a Top 20 hit in 1976 with the irresistibly funky "Movin".  Although only scoring one other Top 20 hit in the US, they were much more successful on the dance charts, including "Movin", which would become a #1 dance smash.  Brass Construction never quite became household names, but that doesn't necessarily mean they weren't influential.  The Bucketheads would sample the tune with their 1995 smash "Got Myself Together", and had other tunes sampled by the likes of Jill Scott and N.W.A.  It is impossible to sit still while listening to this song, and this is quintessential 70s disco/funk. Love it!

HELLO, IT'S ME BY TODD RUNDGREN

     "Hello It's Me" was a Top 5 smash for Todd Rundgren in 1972, and it's a perfect example of the laid back and mellow vibes of the 70's.  It would be Todd's only major pop hit, but the song has become a bona fide pop classic.  Popular enough in fact to be used on tv's "That 70's Show" in the ending of that show's series finale.

DARK SIDE OF THE MOON by PINK FLOYD

Although originally released in 1973, Pink Floyd's epic "Dark Side Of The Moon" is currently still the most successful album of all time.  Unbelievably it remained on Billboard's Hot 200 album chart for an amazing 15 years straight, having sold over 40 million copies worldwide.  It is said that one in every 20 people under the age of 50 owns a copy of this album.  It has truly transcended genres, and remains a timeless piece of work.  Long considered an experience much more than a mere album, "Dark Side Of The Moon" is the ultimate symbol of the spaced-out 70's.  Just about every person who bought this album at one point or another lit some candles, turned off the lights, smoked a doob, and with some good headphones truly went to a far off place somewhere in their mind.  Listening to this album is like an acid trip, and continues to this day to delight and astound newcomers to the band.  Like Stanley Kubrick's tripped-out masterpiece "2001: A Space Odyssey", "Dark Side Of The Moon" became one of the ultimate celestial vehicles for self-awareness and discovery in the 70's, as if all the mysteries of our existence are hidden among the lyrics and music.  

Many words come to mind when"Dark Side Of The Moon" is mentioned- spaced-out, trippy, deep, ethereal, obscure. The album is simply as far as you can get from traditional rock or pop.  Pink Floyd, very much like The Grateful Dead, made up their own rules as they went along.  "Dark Side Of The Moon" is odd in that the songs on it don't seem to work by themselves near as well as they do together- the album works much better as one piece of music.   If you can leave behind the Top40 mentality and decide to take a journey through space and time and open your mind as never before- this is one of the best albums to do it with.  There really isn't much to say about "Dark Side Of The Moon" that hasn't already been said.  The music and the cult speak for themselves.  Rare is the album that has the uncanny power to completely transcend time and remain as modern and fresh over 30 years after its release.  This is art, this is epic- you don't just hear Pink Floyd's "Dark Side Of The Moon" for the first time, you experience it.  The album has permeated pop culture as an icon of classic 70's concept albums, and will never stop selling.  This is highly recommended for those music lovers who realize that music is not relevant to styles or genres.  This album is a rite of passage, and it's impossible to think of the 1970's and not think of Pink Floyd or this strange but brilliantly innovative album.  If we were ever to jettison into space a time capsule to represent art and culture from planet Earth, Pink Floyd's "Dark Side Of The Moon" most certainly belongs inside it.

Sometime in the 90's, it became popular to watch "The Wizard Of Oz" but with the Pink Floyd album playing instead of the film soundtrack.  Amazingly, although the band has said that this was total coincidence, many times throughout the album and the movie mesh extremely well together.  It's as if Pink Floyd purposely designed the  album to flow with the "The Wizard Of Oz".  It has become almost an urban legend at this point, only adding to the album's overall mystique.  Overall, this is a must for music lovers of any genre.  It is a masterpiece of experimentation and creativity.  One of the most classic and beloved concept albums of all time, "Dark Side Of The Moon" remains consistently cool.  This album still has the power to reduce me to chills at times.  It truly is a total head trip, and is so associated with the psychedelic culture that even today I instantly smell pot and incense whenever Pink Floyd is mentioned.

THE CARS DEBUT ALBUM

     The Cars are hands down one of my all-time favorite bands.  To me, they personify the essence of summer, of parties on Saturday nights and cruising down the strip.  I grew up in the late 70's and 80's, and music like this was the soundtrack to my life.  I instantly loved The Cars the first time I heard them as a kid- they were the epitome of coolness.  And still are.  They have their own unique sound and it's timeless.

     The Cars released their classic debut album "The Cars" in 1978, which would spawn the excellent singles "Just What I Needed", "My Best Friend's Girl", "You're All I've Got Tonight", "Moving In Stereo", and "Good Times Roll". The Cars became hugely popular as one of the front runners of the new sound in rock.  Music was changing from the easy vibes of the early 70's to a more cutting edge, futuristic sound. Led Zeppelin and KISS were cooling, and bands such as Blondie, The Pretenders, and The Cars looming on the horizon.  Merging hard driving 70's rock with futuristic 80's synth, they created a sound and genre all their own.
     Generally hailed as a rock masterpiece, "The Cars" debut album has deservedly earned being named one of Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums Of All Time. "Moving In Stereo" is hands down one of the hottest rock songs of all time, partly because of the 80's teen classic "Fast Times At Ridgemont High", which used The Cars sizzling "Moving In Stereo" in such a memorable scene that it's impossible to hear the song and not think of Phoebe Cates slowly un-doing her bikini top in slow motion.  And that scene perfectly sums up the music of The Cars.  There isn't a bad song on the album, and it doesn't seem dated one bit today.