Jon.M wrote:Oh dear.
Looks like I'll have to defend punk.
It may not have been sweet or pretty (Pretty Vacant maybe) but it shook up the stale pop music industry of the day and lead directly to new wave. At least it meant the end of many MOR groups like The Rubettes. And for that we should be grateful.
Jon
I totally agree with you there, Jon. I stepped aside from what would be called pop music at about age 14 anyway, preferring things like Van Der Graaf Generator, EL&P, Yes and such like. But I do remember how bad the British popular music scene got, both homegrown and imported - around 1976, how many more Motown-derivative male vocal quartets could there be ? There were some bands that briefly sparked my interest, such as Queen, though I must say if I never heard another of their songs ever again, it wouldn't bother me. Supertramp were and still are a favourite
Then came punk which, as you rightly say, shook the music industry, not to mention the Joe Public and the media. After the shock wore off ( and the dross that accompanied it- bye bye Bill Grundy's career ) we were left with something we otherwise would never have had. Look at all the punk and post-punk bands that came into being; Sham 69, The Clash, The Strangers, The Damned, Joy Division, Siouxsie and the Banshees etc etc. Coupled with the coming of electronics that meant somebody could record a song in their back bedroom, and so the rise of the small independent labels, it was the best thing that could have happened.
I didn't realise my musical taste was quite so diverse.. T-Rex on one end and Focus on the other 
