Every year, new rock bands make their debuts and try to leave their mark on the music scene right off the bat. In 1978, those debut records seemed to be a bit more momentous than in the average year.
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Here are four songs from 1978 that appeared on the debut albums of rock bands. As you’ll see, the songs are now considered classics, and the rock bands that recorded them in 1978 have since reached legendary status.
“Just What I Needed” by The Cars
Although The Cars released their self-titled debut album in 1978, Ric Ocasek and Ben Orr, essentially the founders of the group, had been playing together in different collectives for much longer than that. They cycled through several styles of music in that stretch. By the time they connected with Elliot Easton, Greg Hawkes, and David Robinson, they had streamlined their sound. “Just What I Needed” epitomized their approach as their debut single. Every instrumental part is precise and placed for maximum impact. None of the players go out of their way to show off. And Orr, singing lead on the track, delivers the content with power but without histrionics. Those eighth notes at the beginning of the track still pack a punch.
“Runnin’ With The Devil” by Van Halen
Van Halen actually released a cover of The Kinks’ “You Really Got Me” as the debut rock single from their 1978 self-titled album. And you can kind of understand the logic in going with a well-known track in an effort to break the band. The strategy worked in its way, as “You Really Got Me” made it to the Top 40 on the pop charts. But “Runnin’ With The Devil”, the second single released by VH, gave everyone an idea of what they could do with original material. Much of what made the band so special is in place right from the jump. There’s an unforgettably iconic opening. The rhythm section rocks and swings. David Lee Roth struts and whoops unapologetically. And Eddie Van Halen lets loose with a sizzling guitar solo as icing on the cake.
“Sultans Of Swing” by Dire Straits
Dire Straits entered the rock music world as if they were grizzled veterans. They led with substance over flash. And they also came from the pub-rock scene, a movement that rewarded instrumental chops and songwriting, quite the alternative to the thrashing, attitude-driven punk scene. To make the connection even stronger, Dire Straits’ first single paid tribute to a bunch of instrumentalists playing for the love of music and not the glory. The so-called “Sultans Of Swing”, the band within the song that’s the title track of their debut LP, gets little reaction from the crowds when they ply their trade. But Dire Straits certainly wowed rock fans with both their playing skill and the top-notch songwriting of Mark Knopfler.
“Roxanne” by Sting
Few people remember The Police’s debut single, the non-album track “Fall Out”, which was released in 1977. That effort came before Andy Summers even joined the band and featured more punky energy than what you might not associate with the band. With Summers in tow with Sting and Stewart Copeland for their debut album (Outlandos d’Amour), they chose “Roxanne” to introduce this new lineup to the world. You can hear evidence of the band’s musical dexterity on the track, as there’s an undeniable ska influence on it. And you can hear Sting’s willingness to go off the beaten path for a song topic. “Roxanne” tells the story of a guy falling for a prostitute and hoping to convince her to leave the oldest profession behind.
Photo by Chris Walter/WireImage
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