Ian Dury and the Blockheads : Inbetweenies
On May 23, 1979 Ian Dury and the Blockheads had high hopes for their follow-up to New Boots And Panties!, especially because Do It Yourself was released in the wake of the chart topping "Hit Me with Your Rhythm Stick". That song did not appear on the original version of the album and neither did the U.K. #3 hit "Reasons To Be Cheerful, Part 3". Nevertheless, the album reached number 2 on the album charts and sold 200,000 copies, enough to reach platinum status in the U.K. The album was released with 32 different covers each featuring a different kind of wallpaper.
The sessions were not especially easy as Dury's drinking and addiction to pills led to wild mood swings and difficult moments among band mates. Still, most of The Blockheads would hang on for at least another year
The Records : Teenarama
Thanks to one of the greatest power pop singles ever recorded the British band The Records scored a record deal with Virgin who released their debut Shades in Bed in May of 1979. "Mutt" Lange, who also produced AC-DC's Highway to Hell and The Boomtown Rats' Fine Art of Surfacing this year, only helped record a few songs before moving on to another project. The album didn't chart in the U.K but peaked at #41 in the United States on the strength of "Teenarama"and "Starry Eyes" . Americans preferred the original single recording over the U.K. album's polished version.
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