Various 1978 The Year The UK Turned Day-Glo (3-CD)

(Cherry Red Records) 81 tracks, paper sleeves in cardboard slipcase
48-page detailed booklet with liner notes, rare photos and short biographies of each band

On three wonderful CDs, packed to the brim, the sounds of 1978 are explored, when the original punk template splintered into a dazzling day-glo riot of sub-genres: New Wave, Post-Punk, Proto-Oi, Power-Pop, Punk Poets, the Mod Revival, Ska-Punk, synth-oriented electronic/industrial music and a whole lot of additional sounds that over forty years later still have to be assigned to the fifth state, the fourth column or even the Third Reich.

Various regional scenes are documented, with a special focus on Manchester, Scotland and especially Northern Ireland, where the arrival of punk was a life-affirming liberation from the horrors of everyday life.

From well-known names (The Jam, The Stranglers, The Cure, Public Image Ltd.) to groups that could barely get beyond their own bedrooms, from major label careerists to DIY enthusiasts, from loners (led by the blessed Jilted John) to songs specially conceived as hit singles - every aspect of a vibrant, multi-faceted scene is represented in the four-hour, 79-track marathon anthology.

Accommodated in a capacity wallet, 1978: The Year The UK Turned Day-Glo contains a 48-page booklet containing key information on each track. Full of verve and vigour, it is another essential acquisition for anyone with even a passing interest in the British music scene of the late 1970s.