Off the Wall
| Released: | August (Epic) |
| Produced by: | Quincy Jones |
| Billboard 200: | 3 |
| CashBox 200: | 2 |
 |
| Billboard, August 18, 1979, p. 62 |
 |
| CashBox, August 18, 1979, p. 15 |
 |
| Record World, August 18, 1979, p. 1 |
| U.S. Billboard charted singles: | Hot 100 | AC | R&B | Disco |
| Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Rock with You | 1 | 21 | 1 | 2 |
| Off the Wall | 10 | 5 | ||
| She's Out of My Life | 10 | 4 |
Top 3 Tracks
"Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough"
"Workin' Day and Night"
"Rock with You"
This was the first of Jackson's big three with producer Quincy Jones. I can't overstate the importance of Quincy Jones to Jackson's work. Jackson would have made it big, but I doubt he would have become the international superstar without Jones' musical genius.
Check your pulse if you can sit still during "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough." It's a good thing they put "Rock with You" in the #2 spot because going directly from "Don't Stop..." to "Workin' Day and Night" might be too exhausting to listen to back-to-back. And I have to admit that I like "She's Out of My Life," even though the voice cracking at the end is a bit much.
Speaking of "Rock with You," it reminds me of 8th grade: I had a crush on a brunette that loved the song, so of course I had to love it as well in a weak effort to gain favor. Turns out she liked it only because she liked another boy who said "Rock with You" was his favorite.
Check your pulse if you can sit still during "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough." It's a good thing they put "Rock with You" in the #2 spot because going directly from "Don't Stop..." to "Workin' Day and Night" might be too exhausting to listen to back-to-back. And I have to admit that I like "She's Out of My Life," even though the voice cracking at the end is a bit much.
Speaking of "Rock with You," it reminds me of 8th grade: I had a crush on a brunette that loved the song, so of course I had to love it as well in a weak effort to gain favor. Turns out she liked it only because she liked another boy who said "Rock with You" was his favorite.
Get The Knack
| Released: | June (Capitol) |
| Produced by: | Mike Chapman |
| Billboard 200: | 1 |
| CashBox 200: | 1 |
 |
| Billboard, June 16, 1979, p. 82 |
 |
| CashBox, June 16, 1979, p. 60 |
 |
| Record World, June 23, 1979, p. 25 |
| U.S. Billboard charted singles: | Hot 100 |
| My Sharona | 1 |
| Good Girls Don't | 11 |
Top 3 4 Tracks
"My Sharona"
"(She's So) Selfish" or "Frustrated"
"Good Girls Don't"
It's mostly one note that jumps up and down an octave. Still, "My Sharona" is catchy as hell and I'm not the only one who thought so: it topped the charts in Billboard for six weeks, CashBox for six weeks, Record World for five weeks, and Radio & Records for for three weeks. It was the song of the summer and had a great album to back it up. A most successful debut, it went gold in 13 days and platinum in 2 months, eventually selling 6 million copies. Like much power pop, the songs have aged well.
As a freshman in high school, I had a huge crush on a junior named Connie. We both played trumpet in the school band and were active in the drama club so I was around her quite a bit outside of school hours. She was way out of my league, but tolerated me like a little brother. One day in the summer of 1980 or 1981 (probably after a summer band practice), Connie and I piled into her Pontiac Sunbird and went to Sonic for a drink. Unsure of how much money we had, I spent most of the drive digging between the seats for spare change (no seat belt laws!), probably so we could add an extra flavor to our soda (now I'm craving a cherry Sprite). Connie had this cassette (maybe 8-track?) playing in the car and I remember her singing along to "(She's So) Selfish."
As a freshman in high school, I had a huge crush on a junior named Connie. We both played trumpet in the school band and were active in the drama club so I was around her quite a bit outside of school hours. She was way out of my league, but tolerated me like a little brother. One day in the summer of 1980 or 1981 (probably after a summer band practice), Connie and I piled into her Pontiac Sunbird and went to Sonic for a drink. Unsure of how much money we had, I spent most of the drive digging between the seats for spare change (no seat belt laws!), probably so we could add an extra flavor to our soda (now I'm craving a cherry Sprite). Connie had this cassette (maybe 8-track?) playing in the car and I remember her singing along to "(She's So) Selfish."
Rise
| Released: | September (A&M) |
| Produced by: | Herb Alpert & Randy "Badazz" Alpert |
| Billboard 200: | 6 |
| CashBox 200: | 6 |
 |
| Billboard, October 6, 1979, p. 72 |
 |
| CashBox, September 29, 1979, p. 17 |
 |
| Record World, October 6, 1979, p. 1 |
| U.S. Billboard charted singles: | Hot 100 | AC | R&B | Disco |
| Rise | 1 | 1 | 4 | 17 |
| Rotation | 30 | 23 | 20 | 45 |
| Street Life | 104 | 41 | 65 |
Top 3 Tracks
"Rise"
"Street Life"
"Rotation"
I bought this album in the early summer of 1980 so, I consider this to be a "summer album." Like most boys my age, I would mow yards to pick up a little spending cash. At this point, it was usually around $10 per yard - more than enough to buy an album. I would think of the album I was going to buy the entire time I was mowing, motivating myself. (On a slightly related note, I recently moved into a garden home that has been completely xeriscaped and therefore no lawn to mow. And it is glorious.) This album was listened to quite a bit after I bought it that summer of '80 with lawnmowing monies and spun it often in subsequent summers.
I've read that 3M loaned A&M records one of their newfangled digital recorders and this album is the result of Alpert and his nephew Randy "Badazz" playing around with the capabilities of the new technology. Being a naïve 13-year-old, I pronounced Badazz as "buh-DAZZ" (rhymes with "jazz"). Face palm. I had just recently taken up the trumpet, so I loved all the tracks. The studio was obviously more of a lab at that time, but I didn't know any better so I thought having pedal steel guitar in a bad calypso arrangement of Procol Harum's Gary Brooker's tune "Angelina" was a perfectly normal thing to do.
When I mention this album, I always post pics of my copy of the title track's sheet music so people can see that lyrics were written for the piece. Feel free to use at your next "Seventies Singalong" party:
"The pinnacle of the disco era" - 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die
"The best Chic album ever recorded" - My Favorite Decade, 1976-85
These are my personal top 50 albums released in 1979. The following criteria was used on a very slippery sliding scale:
I've read that 3M loaned A&M records one of their newfangled digital recorders and this album is the result of Alpert and his nephew Randy "Badazz" playing around with the capabilities of the new technology. Being a naïve 13-year-old, I pronounced Badazz as "buh-DAZZ" (rhymes with "jazz"). Face palm. I had just recently taken up the trumpet, so I loved all the tracks. The studio was obviously more of a lab at that time, but I didn't know any better so I thought having pedal steel guitar in a bad calypso arrangement of Procol Harum's Gary Brooker's tune "Angelina" was a perfectly normal thing to do.
When I mention this album, I always post pics of my copy of the title track's sheet music so people can see that lyrics were written for the piece. Feel free to use at your next "Seventies Singalong" party:
 |
 |
We are Family
| Released: | January (Cotillion) |
| Produced by: | Nile Rodgers & Bernard Edwards |
| Billboard 200: | 3 |
| CashBox 200: | 3 |
 |
| CashBox, February 24, 1979, p. 17 |
 |
| Record World, February 10, 1979, p. 48 |
| U.S. Billboard charted singles: | Hot 100 | AC | R&B | Disco |
| He's the Greatest Dancer | 9 | 1 | 1 | |
| We are Family | 2 | 30 | 1 | 1 |
| Lost in Music | 58 | 35 |
Top 3 Tracks
"We are Family"
"He's the Greatest Dancer"
"Lost in Music"
"The pinnacle of the disco era" - 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die
"The best Chic album ever recorded" - My Favorite Decade, 1976-85
I Am
| Released: | May (ARC) |
| Produced by: | Maurice White |
| Billboard 200: | 3 |
| CashBox 200: | 4 |
 |
| Billboard, June 9, 1979, p. 96 |
 |
| CashBox, June 9, 1979, p. 17 |
 |
| Record World, June 9, 1979, p. 1 |
| U.S. Billboard charted singles: | Hot 100 | AC | R&B | Disco |
| Boogie Wonderland | 6 | 2 | 14 | |
| After the Love Has Gone | 2 | 3 | 2 | |
| In the Stone | 58 | 23 | ||
| Star | 64 | 47 |
Top 3 Tracks
Please don't ask me to choose
Even though it doesn't contain my favorite EWF song ("September"), this remains my all-time favorite EWF album. David Foster is given a few writing credits and, while he doesn't get a producer credit here, his hand is all over this album. This soul/funk is highly polished and smooth. When I say that I listen to this album quite often, I'm not exaggerating. It's almost always within reach.
I'll listen to all 9 tracks here without skipping. "In The Stone" is one of the best album openers of all-time and sets the tone for the rest of the album. Also on side one is "After The Love Is Gone," one of the best ballads of the '70s. Other top tracks include the top ten hit "Boogie Wonderland," "Let Your Feelings Show," "Star," and "Rock That!"
I think I originally got this album as part of a Columbia House 12 albums for 1¢ promotion. While everybody knows that deal is ultimately a rip-off, it can't be too bad if Earth, Wind & Fire music shows up in your mailbox.
Ask yourself: "Should I listen to more Earth, Wind & Fire?" Inevitably, the answer is yes.
I'll listen to all 9 tracks here without skipping. "In The Stone" is one of the best album openers of all-time and sets the tone for the rest of the album. Also on side one is "After The Love Is Gone," one of the best ballads of the '70s. Other top tracks include the top ten hit "Boogie Wonderland," "Let Your Feelings Show," "Star," and "Rock That!"
I think I originally got this album as part of a Columbia House 12 albums for 1¢ promotion. While everybody knows that deal is ultimately a rip-off, it can't be too bad if Earth, Wind & Fire music shows up in your mailbox.
These are my personal top 50 albums released in 1979. The following criteria was used on a very slippery sliding scale:
- How often I enjoyed the album at the time of release
- How often I've enjoyed the album over the past 30+ years
- Overall quality of the album
