Ambiorix Top 40 – 1975-11

Finally, the moment has arrived!! Patti Smith, the godmother of punk, releases her debut album Horses on November 10th, 1975 according to most sources! Others claim it was on December 5th, 1975! Either way, the album ushered in a new era. What you see and what you hear is what you get—straightforward and uncompromising! The fact that la dame had already showcased poetry in her earlier work earned her the status of a true original in New York, and soon after, across the entire world! She became one of the biggest inspirations for the art-punk/new wave boom in America in the second half of the seventies.

“Gloria: In Excelsis Deo” (#1) is the album’s opening track and was also released as a single in the States in early ’76. The song is based on the Them classic from the sixties. Patti freewheels mercilessly through it, just as she does on the other songs of the album!

The rest of the top 10 consists exclusively of first-rate heavyweights: The Kinks (#2), Kraftwerk (#3), Queen (#4), Pink Floyd (#5), Roxy Music (#6), Bob Dylan (#7), David Bowie (#8), Bruce Springsteen (#9), and Electric Light Orchestra at #10! Honestly, each one of them is an artist with a résumé worthy of a deep bow!

Five times “Flanders above” this month: Raymond at #34 with the album track “Mijn Schoolgaande Jeugd”, the much-praised (and in my opinion somewhat overrated) Tim by Wim De Craene at #30, “Als Je Weggaat” (#13) by Kris De Bruyne, and finally two Kandahar-related tracks: at #11 we find “Thinking It Over”, the opening track from From Dusk Until Dawn by Karel Bogard, together with Jeff De Visscher—the two turbo engines of the band. Kandahar themselves also appear at #26 with “Song For Catharina”. Damn fine music, sounding just as impressive as it did half a century ago!

This month there are only two songs that I had not yet discovered back in 1975: the British band Beggars Opera with the catchy “Beggars Can’t Be Choosers” (#21) and “Trenchtown Billy” (#32), a playful reggae-ska trifle by Judge Dread from the album Bedtime Stories. The rascal keeps popping up everywhere!

(Jan VH)

Playlist

1. Patti Smith – Gloria / In Excelsis Deo
2. The Kinks – Schooldays
3. Kraftwerk – Radio Activity
4. Queen – Love of My Life
5. Pink Floyd – Have a Cigar
6. Roxy Music – End of the Line
7. Bob Dylan – Hurricane
8. David Bowie – Golden Years
9. Bruce Springsteen – Backstreets
10. Electric Light Orchestra – Strange Magic
11. Karel Bogard – Thinking It Over
12. Alexander Curly – Aggesus
13. Kris De Bruyne – Als Je Weggaat
14. Barclay James Harvest – Titles
15. Van der Graaf Generator – The Sleepwalkers
16. Elvin Bishop – Fooled Around & Fell in Love
17. John Cale – I Keep a Close Watch
18. Eagles – Take It to the Limit
19. Eno – I’ll Come Running
20. Neil Young & Crazy Horse – Lookin’ for a Love
21. Beggars Opera – Beggars Can’t Be Choosers
22. Rainbow – Still I’m Sad
23. Procol Harum – The Final Thrust
24. Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel – Black or White
25. John Fogerty – Almost Saturday Night
26. Kandahar – Song for Catherina
27. Supertramp – Lady
28. Richard & Linda Thompson – For Shame of Doing Wrong
29. Steeleye Span – Black Jack Davy
30. Wim De Craene – Tim
31. 10cc – Art for Art’s Sake
32. Judge Dread – Trenchtown Billy
33. The Who – Squeeze Box
34. Raymond van het Groenewoud – Mijn Schoolgaande Jeugd
35. Walker Brothers – No Regrets
36. Nektar – Recycle Countdown
37. Fleetwood Mac – Warm Ways
38. ABBA – Mamma Mia
39. The Tubes – What Do You Want from Life
40. The Troggs – (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction

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