Hooks Supreme: Power Pop in 1979

Hooks Supreme: Power Pop in 1979

Image is of a vintage Rickenbacker guitar headstock. Photo: PactoVisual on Pixabay.

I’ve been a huge fan of power pop since back in the day, and since 1979 was such an amazing year for the genre, I wanted to celebrate a few selections from that time. Here are a few of my favorite power pop (or power pop adjacent) songs from ’79 — what a year for music!

“Girl of My Dreams” — Bram Tchaikovsky

A truly underrated gem. This infectious, blissful blast of pure, guitar-driven power pop never, ever gets old. You immediately want to hit repeat as soon as it ends!

“Dream Police” — Cheap Trick

I love this majestic, rousing rocker just as much today as my fifteen-year-old self did. It’s genius, and definitely one of my favorite songs of all time.

“Starry Eyes” — The Records

One of the OGs of classic power pop. Those shimmering, chiming guitars and sublime vocal harmonies are simply joyous — Beyond catchy.

“Dreaming” — Blondie

Clem Burke’s fabulous drumming (RIP), combined with Debbie Harry’s stellar vocals, makes for a beautiful, propulsive, and excellent pop/rock confection. It’s my favorite Blondie song.

“Let’s Go” — The Cars

I’m a native Bostonian, and I adore The Cars. They brought something unique and fresh to the table. I loved their debut album, as well as this sophomore offering. This fantastic tune is a shining example of their distinctive staccato-like style and cool power pop prowess.

“Good Girls Don’t” — The Knack

Rawk doesn’t get much better than this. The craftsmanship here blows my mind, and it’s another one of my all-time fave songs. I actually adore this entire album — the production is outstanding. If you’d like to see my track-by-track review, I’ll link it here.

[embed]Why I’m Still “Getting The Knack” Reflections on The Knack’s debut album, ‘Get The Knack’medium.com

Big thanks to the PubBeat publication and to Buddy Gott for giving me an opportunity to talk about the music I love! This “Fave Songs by Year” Challenge is fun!

If you’d like to hear more of my music musings, please feel free to follow me on Bluesky Social at powerpop.bsky.social.

Thank you very much for reading! What are some of your favorite power pop songs of ‘79?