So , so hard to choose. I'll toss the first names that come offa the top of my head:

Clash - Give 'Em Enough Rope (Or The Clash, or London Calling)
The Blasters awe-inspiring first LP
Squeeze - Argybargy
Never Mind the Bollocks, of course
Heartbreakers LAMF
Television - Marquee Moon
any of the first 3 Ramones LPs
Stiff Little Fingers - Inflammable Material
Bad Brains s/t
....hell, I could do this all day. What an era!

What do you think about :

Joy Division "Unknown Pleasures" 1979 (post-punk - cold wave)
The Exploited "Punk's Not Dead" 1981 (heavy trash punk)

Yeah, the Pagans!! Forgot about them. I have that cd somewhere! Nocount said:

The Saints - Stranded. One of a few records that I could listen to from beginning to end, over and over.
X-ray Spex - Germ Free Adolescents. The lyrics are pure poetry, but the sound, it still gets me. The Cramps - Songs the Lord Taught Us - Talk about a sonic revelation. Dead Boys - Young Loud and Snotty - 'Nuff said An honorable mention to The Pagans - Everybody Hates You, a disk put out by Crypt Records some years later of the material from that era. The Adverts - Crossing the Red Sea with The Adverts - Catchy melodies, that burrow under your skin for endless supply of exquisite torture. Buzzcocks - Singles Going Steady - I know, i know, Not really an album. So what. It sure felt like one when I got my gready mitts on it some 30 years ago.

The Saints - Stranded. One of a few records that I could listen to from beginning to end, over and over.
X-ray Spex - Germ Free Adolescents. The lyrics are pure poetry, but the sound, it still gets me.
The Cramps - Songs the Lord Taught Us - Talk about a sonic revelation.
Dead Boys - Young Loud and Snotty - 'Nuff said
An honorable mention to The Pagans - Everybody Hates You, a disk put out by Crypt Records some years later of the material from that era.
The Adverts - Crossing the Red Sea with The Adverts - Catchy melodies, that burrow under your skin for endless supply of exquisite torture.
Buzzcocks - Singles Going Steady - I know, i know, Not really an album. So what. It sure felt like one when I got my gready mitts on it some 30 years ago.

oh OK Ill add the adverts at least, and the x ray sepx Lenny Helsing said:

au contraire friend, yes you are entitled to your opinion but it ain't mine dat for sure...you simply cannot deny the genius present in the first Damned LP, also first two Saints LPs, Johnny Moped, Wire, The Adverts, Eater and at least the first 4 Ramones LPs...The Gun Who? Ivy Wha? PAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!! oooo that'll get some ears flappin eh, ha ha...

Eastwood said:

Theres only really... the first Ramones record... The Adolescents First record... The Gun Club's First album....
yeeeeeaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh... The Ivy Green LP too

Yeah that era was certainly one of those ultra-special ones like the orig. r'n'r period, and the beat-into-garage-psych movement... MATT GALLUCCI said:

The good news I see from reading lots of the posts is that five year period had TONS of great music. Lots of opinions and lots of great records!!!!!!!!!

Lenny Helsing said:

Yeah cool Matt, that very Neil Young LP fits the bill, and though not regarded as punk stuff like Tonight's The Night can fit the bill...well if the Fun Club can be punk then so can Neil Young and The Electric Prunes and The Crawdaddys and The Chesterfield Kings...yeah I love the Dolls and Heartbreakers too...I guess even stuff like the early Wipers counts too right? But when you start getting into Gun Club territory then well the 'Mary Chain and early Shop Assistants and the like gotta be included too, and then it's just a hop skip and spit to the newer garage 60s fiends like The Tell-Tale Hearts and while I'd never cite them as punk, unless we mean 60s garage punk R&B-fixated stuff, they are way more true soul of what punk was is and ever should be...than a million others that some folks bring into the picture...but Hey ain't it true that's all just opinions...and we all have them...C'est la vie poonk luvvers

MATT GALLUCCI said:

The Ramones got me started down the path, so those first 4-5 records that fit the '76-'80 time frame are my favs. Really off the wall, but if you crank the electric tunes you might agree (or not), but Live Rust by Neil Young I think fits. I know, I know, the extended guitar parts don't fit the mold, but punk music isn't about fitting a mold, it's about energy!!! And Neil had it during that period. Live, none better!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Add to my list The New York Dolls and anything solo from its band members. Real Sex and Drugs and R & R!!!!!!!!

The good news I see from reading lots of the posts is that five year period had TONS of great music. Lots of opinions and lots of great records!!!!!!!!! Lenny Helsing said:

Yeah cool Matt, that very Neil Young LP fits the bill, and though not regarded as punk stuff like Tonight's The Night can fit the bill...well if the Fun Club can be punk then so can Neil Young and The Electric Prunes and The Crawdaddys and The Chesterfield Kings...yeah I love the Dolls and Heartbreakers too...I guess even stuff like the early Wipers counts too right? But when you start getting into Gun Club territory then well the 'Mary Chain and early Shop Assistants and the like gotta be included too, and then it's just a hop skip and spit to the newer garage 60s fiends like The Tell-Tale Hearts and while I'd never cite them as punk, unless we mean 60s garage punk R&B-fixated stuff, they are way more true soul of what punk was is and ever should be...than a million others that some folks bring into the picture...but Hey ain't it true that's all just opinions...and we all have them...C'est la vie poonk luvvers

MATT GALLUCCI said:

The Ramones got me started down the path, so those first 4-5 records that fit the '76-'80 time frame are my favs. Really off the wall, but if you crank the electric tunes you might agree (or not), but Live Rust by Neil Young I think fits. I know, I know, the extended guitar parts don't fit the mold, but punk music isn't about fitting a mold, it's about energy!!! And Neil had it during that period. Live, none better!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Add to my list The New York Dolls and anything solo from its band members. Real Sex and Drugs and R & R!!!!!!!!

That's my record collection!!!! :O) Gringo Starr said:

My list without The Clash, The Sex Pistols or The Specials would be uninformed at best and stupid at the very least. Whatever your personal tastes may be, English bands of this era played a huge part in the vast scheme of things + dismissing the 2 Tone thing is just not right. Once again:

Nuggets: Original Artyfacts From the First Psychedelic Era 1972
New York Dolls 1973
The Dictators Go Girl Crazy! 1975
Patti Smith Horses 1975
Ramones 1976
Dead Boys Young Loud And Snotty 1977
Television Marquee Moon 1977
Suicide 1977
Damned, Damned, Damned 1977
The Saints I'm Stranded 1977
Never Mind the Bullocks Here's the Sex Pistols 1977
The Clash 1977
The Jam This Is the Modern World 1977
Can't Stand The Rezillos 1978
Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo 1978
X Ray Specs Germ Free Adolescents 1978
Crossing the Red Sea with the Adverts 1978
The Undertones 1979
The Specials 1979
The Buzzcocks Singles Going Steady 1979
Dawn Of The Dickies 1979
The Crawdaddys Crawdaddy Express 1979
The Cramps Songs The Lord Taught Us 1980
X Los Angeles 1980
Dead Kennedys Fresh Fruit For Rotting Vegetables 1980
Talking 'bout Thee Milkshakes 1981
The Gun Club Fire of Love 1981

Zoe von Doll said:

I like your list without the Clash, Sex Pistols, Specials...saw you mention the Bags somewhere too...izza goed.

Gringo Starr said:

This thread just won't die -- So for all of you that missed it, here is my list previously posted on page 3 (I think):

Nuggets: Original Artyfacts From the First Psychedelic Era 1972
New York Dolls 1973
The Dictators Go Girl Crazy! 1975
Patti Smith Horses 1975
Ramones 1976
Dead Boys Young Loud And Snotty 1977
Television Marquee Moon 1977
Suicide 1977
Damned, Damned, Damned 1977
The Saints I'm Stranded 1977
Never Mind the Bullocks Here's the Sex Pistols 1977
The Clash 1977
The Jam This Is the Modern World 1977
Can't Stand The Rezillos 1978
Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo 1978
X Ray Specs Germ Free Adolescents 1978
The Undertones 1979
The Specials 1979
The Buzzcocks Singles Going Steady 1979
Dawn Of The Dickies 1979
The Crawdaddys Crawdaddy Express 1979
The Cramps Songs The Lord Taught Us 1980
X Los Angeles 1980
Dead Kennedys Fresh Fruit For Rotting Vegetables 1980
Talking 'bout Thee Milkshakes 1981
The Gun Club Fire of Love 1981

Yeah cool Matt, that very Neil Young LP fits the bill, and though not regarded as punk stuff like Tonight's The Night can fit the bill...well if the Fun Club can be punk then so can Neil Young and The Electric Prunes and The Crawdaddys and The Chesterfield Kings...yeah I love the Dolls and Heartbreakers too...I guess even stuff like the early Wipers counts too right? But when you start getting into Gun Club territory then well the 'Mary Chain and early Shop Assistants and the like gotta be included too, and then it's just a hop skip and spit to the newer garage 60s fiends like The Tell-Tale Hearts and while I'd never cite them as punk, unless we mean 60s garage punk R&B-fixated stuff, they are way more true soul of what punk was is and ever should be...than a million others that some folks bring into the picture...but Hey ain't it true that's all just opinions...and we all have them...C'est la vie poonk luvvers MATT GALLUCCI said:

The Ramones got me started down the path, so those first 4-5 records that fit the '76-'80 time frame are my favs. Really off the wall, but if you crank the electric tunes you might agree (or not), but Live Rust by Neil Young I think fits. I know, I know, the extended guitar parts don't fit the mold, but punk music isn't about fitting a mold, it's about energy!!! And Neil had it during that period. Live, none better!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Add to my list The New York Dolls and anything solo from its band members. Real Sex and Drugs and R & R!!!!!!!!

au contraire friend, yes you are entitled to your opinion but it ain't mine dat for sure...you simply cannot deny the genius present in the first Damned LP, also first two Saints LPs, Johnny Moped, Wire, The Adverts, Eater and at least the first 4 Ramones LPs...The Gun Who? Ivy Wha? PAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!! oooo that'll get some ears flappin eh, ha ha... Eastwood said:

Theres only really... the first Ramones record... The Adolescents First record... The Gun Club's First album....
yeeeeeaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh... The Ivy Green LP too

The Ramones got me started down the path, so those first 4-5 records that fit the '76-'80 time frame are my favs. Really off the wall, but if you crank the electric tunes you might agree (or not), but Live Rust by Neil Young I think fits. I know, I know, the extended guitar parts don't fit the mold, but punk music isn't about fitting a mold, it's about energy!!! And Neil had it during that period. Live, none better!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Add to my list The New York Dolls and anything solo from its band members. Real Sex and Drugs and R & R!!!!!!!!

The Damned and The Saints LPs RULE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Lachlan William Richardson said:

There was some pretty brilliant albums released in that time frame, favourites, that I can't put in order:

Johnny Thunders & The Heartbreakers - LAMF
Richard Hell & The Voidoids - Blank Generation
The Saints - Eternally Yours
The Damned - Damned Damned Damned
Sex Pistols - Never Mind The Bollocks
Ramones - Rocket To Russia

Never really dug the Clash that much...

The thing is, even those of us who professed to be real proper punks got pretty wrapped up in the whole image of being a punk, and that was our faashion for better or worse, whether it was ripped and torn shirts, or home-made bondage gear; straps and D rings everywhere, not to mention a whole heap of zips everywhere. Great for those of us who couldn't afford to go to any of the London boutiques or send off £££ to these outlets advertised in NME. Oh yeah I did send off once for a pair of their cheap n nasty PVC trousers to go with my blue suede brothel creepers. Mind you all that attention seeking fall out from the punk fashion had its obvious drawbacks, like walking back from a late night gig or something... Lenny Helsing said:

Yeah Andy I know what you mean but nonetheless Punk was turned into a fashion thing for lots of folks through some heavy media presence, including some utter rubbish printed in the likes of the Daily Mirror in summer of '77 including an article showing Ten Easy Steps On How To Be A Punk Rocker, and ludicrous stuff like that...and then of course all the teenie magazines of the time who were covering all the previous pop, and glam groups earlier on in the 70s began to feature loads of punk groups posing in all their finery too...so like it or not, fashion did indeed play its part in the punk rock scene, for better or worse... take it from someone who was very much there at the time, even if, admittedly, I wasn't right there at the very dawn of it all. But in around '77-'80 I saw the likes of The Buzzcocks, The Clash with Suicide, The Jam, The Damned with The Dead Boys, The Radiators From Space (supporting Thin Lizzy), Siouxsie and the Banshees with Spizz Oil, Adam and the Ants, 999, Dr Feelgood with Mink Deville, The Cure, Ultravox, The Slits, Subway Sect, Magazine and Bauhaus, The Fall with The Cramps, The Monochrome Set...not to mention some of our very own Scottish groups like Matt Vinyl and The Decorators, the Scars, TV Art (soon to become Josef K), the Dirty Reds (soon to become the Fire Engines), and of course The Skids, Bee Bee Cee, The Prats and a whole heap more too...

Andy Climax said:

Oi! Punk etc. All the same moniker really. Just a reaction to the shit that was happening in Britain at the time. I believe the same shit was happening in New York and Detroit at the same time. Oi! was born of the skinhead/suedehead movement, and was more racially motivated. The skinheads came directly from the old punks who were totally disillusioned with the commercial crap that the clash and the pistols etc were eventually comin out with. So its all punk really. Like the hippy thing in the 50's and 60's, punk was'nt and is'nt a fashion thing, its a way of life and thinking

Theres only really... the first Ramones record... The Adolescents First record... The Gun Club's First album....
yeeeeeaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh... The Ivy Green LP too

What's not to like about that first Clash LP...pure garage punk of its time...and quite marvellous on stage too, yeah...but aside from the odd few cuts throughout their career, none of their other LPs even came close to that barrage of cool... Lachlan William Richardson said:

There was some pretty brilliant albums released in that time frame, favourites, that I can't put in order:

Johnny Thunders & The Heartbreakers - LAMF
Richard Hell & The Voidoids - Blank Generation
The Saints - Eternally Yours
The Damned - Damned Damned Damned
Sex Pistols - Never Mind The Bollocks
Ramones - Rocket To Russia

Never really dug the Clash that much...

Yeah Andy I know what you mean but nonetheless Punk was turned into a fashion thing for lots of folks through some heavy media presence, including some utter rubbish printed in the likes of the Daily Mirror in summer of '77 including an article showing Ten Easy Steps On How To Be A Punk Rocker, and ludicrous stuff like that...and then of course all the teenie magazines of the time who were covering all the previous pop, and glam groups earlier on in the 70s began to feature loads of punk groups posing in all their finery too...so like it or not, fashion did indeed play its part in the punk rock scene, for better or worse... take it from someone who was very much there at the time, even if, admittedly, I wasn't right there at the very dawn of it all. But in around '77-'80 I saw the likes of The Buzzcocks, The Clash with Suicide, The Jam, The Damned with The Dead Boys, The Radiators From Space (supporting Thin Lizzy), Siouxsie and the Banshees with Spizz Oil, Adam and the Ants, 999, Dr Feelgood with Mink Deville, The Cure, Ultravox, The Slits, Subway Sect, Magazine and Bauhaus, The Fall with The Cramps, The Monochrome Set...not to mention some of our very own Scottish groups like Matt Vinyl and The Decorators, the Scars, TV Art (soon to become Josef K), the Dirty Reds (soon to become the Fire Engines), and of course The Skids, Bee Bee Cee, The Prats and a whole heap more too... Andy Climax said:

Oi! Punk etc. All the same moniker really. Just a reaction to the shit that was happening in Britain at the time. I believe the same shit was happening in New York and Detroit at the same time. Oi! was born of the skinhead/suedehead movement, and was more racially motivated. The skinheads came directly from the old punks who were totally disillusioned with the commercial crap that the clash and the pistols etc were eventually comin out with. So its all punk really. Like the hippy thing in the 50's and 60's, punk was'nt and is'nt a fashion thing, its a way of life and thinking

There was some pretty brilliant albums released in that time frame, favourites, that I can't put in order:

Johnny Thunders & The Heartbreakers - LAMF
Richard Hell & The Voidoids - Blank Generation
The Saints - Eternally Yours
The Damned - Damned Damned Damned
Sex Pistols - Never Mind The Bollocks
Ramones - Rocket To Russia

Never really dug the Clash that much...

In no order - and from what I thought at the time...

Crass - Stations of the Crass
The Fall - Live at the Witch Trials
Gang of Four - Entertainment!
Ramones - Ramones
Sex Pistols - Never Mind The Bollocks
Moterhead - Motorhead


Yeah - Motorhead... well my mates and I thought it was punk: so much faster, rougher, more aggressive and generally noisy than metal at the time...

Devo - Are We Not Men?
The Slits - Cut
PIL - Metal Box

And yeah some are post-punk, but that sort of came as a retrospective tag for me.

And what was all the fuss about the Clash?

Angry Samoans - Inside My Brain
The Cramps - Songs the Lord Taught Us
Dead Boys - Young Loud & Snotty
The Germs - G.I.
Ramones

aye aye sir... Andy Climax said:

i think it was 'Clockwork orange' haha

Oi! Punk etc. All the same moniker really. Just a reaction to the shit that was happening in Britain at the time. I believe the same shit was happening in New York and Detroit at the same time. Oi! was born of the skinhead/suedehead movement, and was more racially motivated. The skinheads came directly from the old punks who were totally disillusioned with the commercial crap that the clash and the pistols etc were eventually comin out with. So its all punk really. Like the hippy thing in the 50's and 60's, punk was'nt and is'nt a fashion thing, its a way of life and thinking

i think it was 'Clockwork orange' haha

what movie was that? Andy Climax said:

'A funny thing happened to me on the way to the forum', as the old movie title once said. This is a great wee place as we are all here not by accident but because of our love for all things punk, past and future. Facebook et al are worldwide platforms for the wonderful and the sad, this site i think is a wee bit more sublime than that. Theres no one-upmanship or point gaining, and yes i think we are all a bit 'Anorak', but only because we have a real passion for this kinda thing, to the extent that it transcends the music and art and then becomes a lifestyle choice. 'Art for Arts Sake' as one shitty Brittish band once lauded. Like the Muppets, we welcome all people here coz we know you live and love the same air we do. Zoe yer an absolute star. As King Jello Biafra once said, 'Keep it real, and be prepared!!!

oh man, the Ramones of course!!!! everything from them i could reach for, but It ´s alive is the best ever!!!! Rami LTX said:

for me back then...
The Cramps - songs the lord taught us
The Sex Pistols - never mind the bollocks here´s
Johnny Thunders & the Heartbreakers - like a mother fucker
The Dead Kennedys - fresh fruit for the rotting vegetables
The Misfits - legacy of brutality/walk among us/1978 Static Age sessions
Stray Cats - 1st
The Meteors - In Heaven
The Polecats - are go!
Various artists - Let them eat jellybeans
Tenpole Tudor - 1st & Let the four winds blow

for me back then... The Cramps - songs the lord taught us The Sex Pistols - never mind the bollocks here´s Johnny Thunders & the Heartbreakers - like a mother fucker The Dead Kennedys - fresh fruit for the rotting vegetables The Misfits - legacy of brutality/walk among us/1978 Static Age sessions Stray Cats - 1st The Meteors - In Heaven The Polecats - are go! Various artists - Let them eat jellybeans Tenpole Tudor - 1st & Let the four winds blow