Favorite Songs of 1976

During 1976, I grew to enjoy German pioneer techno-rock band Kraftwerk's Autobahn and Radioaktivität, which had come out previously. The same can be said for Elton John's hit Someone Saved My Life Tonight, a long, slow, emotion-laden piece. Al Stewart hit the big time with the release of his Year of the Cat album, which contained several good tracks, notably Lord Grenville, On the Border, Broadway Hotel, and One Stage Before. But earlier in the year, his historical epic Roads to Moscow introduced me to this talented, creative musician with frequent album-rock station airplay. Michael Murphey's Carolina in the Pines was, to me, a better song than his previous release Wildfire. The Canadian band Heart had my favorite of theirs with Crazy on You. The Dutch band George Baker Selection had a pleasant, upbeat summer hit with their Paloma Blanca. The Steve Miller Band went "far out" in terms of imagery and consciousness-raising with their Fly Like an Eagle. Andrea True Connection's More More More was my favorite disco song of the year. Right behind on the dance music scene was Vicky Sue Robinson's boisterous Turn the Beat Around. Judy Collin's Send in the Clowns, another slow, emotional piece, has continued to grow on me through the years. Even more so has George Harrison's sweet, compelling You, becoming one of my all-time top favorite songs now. Emerging superstar Billy Joel, with his Turnstiles album, had two very good songs in 1976: Summer Highland Falls and my #3 favorite song of the year (as I lived through it), his refreshing and exciting piano show-off piece Angry Young Man. John Miles, who briefly had some small fame on the album rock stations, had his best song (and my #2 favorite of the year) with Music, a long "epic", orchestrated piece that more than anything simply expresses the artist's love for his craft. Electric Light Orchestra's Strange Magic was a pleasant diversion early in the year, but they made a big impact on me later on with the release of their New World Record album, and from it, the beautiful single Livin' Thing (my top favorite song of 1976).