Rough Trade - Rough Trade Album Review

Counter Culture 1976
Rough Trade
Album Review

Rough Trade make an annual habit of releasing a compilation of the best of the year's sonic offerings, and with the 1976 version, they take a step back in time to look at the year before punk broke in the UK. What can you say about a selection of tracks from Blondie, the Ramones, Patti Smith and the like that hasn't been said before though?

In terms of artistic vision, integrity and longevity these are true winners, although in 1976 who'd have thought so? Who would have thought in 76 that a band like the Ramones could have gone on to influence a million punk rock kids the world over, or that Debbie Harry would have a musical career extending into the 21st Century?

As a retrospective compilation though it's not really clear who would purchase this offering. The 'there at the time' folks don't need this stuff, and the current crop of alternative youths is too busy looking for the next big thing to realise the cyclical nature of music. Maybe they should look backward occasionally, for fear of missing gems such as this.

Richard Edge