Thank goodness for punk rock music. The songs are like those cupping massages. They’re harsh and bring the blood to the surface of your body so you can perform throughout your day better. And in the 1970s, the music was at the height of its power thanks to big-name bands like The Clash and Ramones.
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Here below, we wanted to explore three punk rock songs from that era that are bound to excite any listener. A trio of tracks with such energy that collectively they could knock down houses made of straw, sticks, and bricks. Take that, Big Bad Wolf. Indeed, these are three essential 1970s punk rock songs that will get your blood pumping.
“I Wanna Be Sedated” by Ramones from Road to Ruin (1978)
The New York City-born punk rockers known as the Ramones knew how to take electric guitars and play them in a way that got your body moving before you even knew it was happening. They speed you up! Which makes it ironic that perhaps their most famous song is one about being sedated. Sure, drugs are part of the holy trio of sex, drugs, and rock ‘n’ roll, but for this band to put so much energy into lethargy is next-level smart. And on the song, lead vocalist Joey Ramone sings,
20, 20, 24 hours to go
I wanna be sedated
Nothin’ to do, nowhere to go, oh
I wanna be sedated
Just get me to the airport, put me on a plane
Hurry, hurry, hurry before I go insane
I can’t control my fingers, I can’t control my brain
Oh no, oh, oh, oh, oh
“London Calling” by The Clash from London Calling (1979)
The Clash are one of those bands who have critical, commercial, and cult acclaim. Seriously, the fans of the band are fervent. But there’s good reason—they helped define a sound and helped to unify a certain type of music fan all around the world. Their 1979 track “London Calling” may be their most beloved song for its apocalyptic imagery and future fortune telling. Beware nuclear arms. Indeed, lead vocalist Joe Strummer sings over a four-on-the-floor beat,
London calling to the faraway towns
Now war is declared, and battle come down
London calling to the underworld
Come out of the cupboard, you boys and girls
London calling, now don’t look to us
Phoney Beatlemania has bitten the dust
London calling, see we ain’t got no swing
Except for the ring of that truncheon thing
“God Save the Queen” by Sex Pistols from Never Mind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols (1977)
A sarcastic song about politics, this thick, energetic song from the British-born band known as the Sex Pistols will get you snarling as much as it will get you dancing your frustrations away. From the band’s sole album, the 1977 LP Never Mind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols, this track gets your blood boiling as it decries fascism and political control. Indeed, lead vocalist Johnny Rotten sings,
God save the queen
The fascist regime
They made you a moron
A potential H bomb
God save the queen
She’s not a human being
and There’s no future
And England’s dreaming
Photo by English/Mirrorpix/Getty Images
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