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Imagine one more Beatles album, it isn’t hard to do

In 1969, after ten whirlwind years together living their lives in a bubble, touring and recording, The Beatles were just plain sick and tired of each other.

They were no longer giddy 19-year-olds, they were married 29-year-olds. They’d done it all — world tours, movies, an incredible run of #1 hits and albums, 220 songs in all. They’d rewritten the rules on the impact that music could make on popular culture. But they were spent, and you couldn’t blame them for deciding to call it a day.

But… what if?

Just for fun, let’s pose this question: What if Lennon, McCartney, Harrison and Starr had taken a well-needed break — six months, nine months, maybe a year — and then reconvened to assemble one last fabulous album?

Take a good look at the singles and albums each Beatle member released in the 18 to 24 months immediately following the band’s breakup. There are some really outstanding tracks to be found there — some of them obvious hits, others less well known — but they stand up pretty damn well when compared to the songs the Beatles wrote and recorded as Beatles in 1968 and 1969.

As good as these first solo songs might have been, there’s little doubt that they would have sounded even better mixed together in a compelling sequence. Let’s face it, a McCartney song usually sounds better when followed by a Lennon song rather than another McCartney song — and vice versa, of course. Add in the great stuff Harrison was writing at that time, and you’ve got the ingredients for an outstanding album.

(By way of comparison, consider how much better Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young songs sounded when you could hear them shuffled together instead of hearing a dozen Nash songs, or a dozen Stills songs, etc., on individual albums.)

For the sake of argument, let’s agree that a fantasy “Lost Last Beatles Album” would in fact have been a double album, with two dozen tracks. To qualify for inclusion, the recordings would have had to be written and/or released in 1970 and 1971, the first two years after the breakup. And in the interests of fairness and reason, let’s also agree that Paul would get eight tracks, John would get eight, George would get six, and Ringo, not remotely in the same class as the other three songwriters, would get two.

Selecting which tracks should make the cut is a very subjective thing, to be sure. I have my favorites from “McCartney,” “Ram,” “Plastic Ono Band,” “Imagine,” “All Things Must Pass” and the singles of that period — some were huge hits, while some were deep album tracks you may not recognize. I’ve arranged them in an order I think would segue nicely, despite the broad range of styles, tempos and arrangements. Think of “The White Album” and its eclectic cornucopia of different influences.

For what it’s worth, here are my choices and sequence of songs. Follow along on the Spotify playlist at the end.

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“Give Peace a Chance”

Lennon’s simplistic chant, recorded in a Montreal hotel room with an acoustic guitar and tambourine and a chorus that included John and Yoko, Tommy Smothers and other hangers-on, is the obvious choice as the album’s opener. No doubt he was pleased when it was adopted by peace demonstrators during antiwar rallies of that time, but he couldn’t have known how iconic and lasting the song would still be many decades later.

“My Sweet Lord”

This lush production by Phil Spector, which stands in stark contrast to the previous track, merges George’s overt spiritual lyrics with a joyous melody and a chorus of voices that sent the song to #1 in a dozen countries. The fact that Harrison was later successfully sued for “unconsciously plagiarizing” from the 1962 girl-group hit “He’s So Fine” takes nothing away from the track’s sheer brilliance.

“Every Night”

One of my favorite solo Paul tracks is this compelling tune from his “McCartney” debut LP. Its lyrics hint at the problems he was having coming to grips with the dissolution of the Beatles, when he fell into a bad habit of drinking heavily and staying in bed…and yet, the music is upbeat, bright and memorable.

“Oh My Love”

Lennon was primarily known for his rockers, but he was certainly capable of writing tender ballads as well. This delicate love song to Yoko from the “Imagine” album tugs at the heartstrings in the same way as “Julia,” his ode to his mother from “The White Album.”

“It Don’t Come Easy”

This likable song from Spring 1971 features Ringo on vocals and drums, plus an all-star cast (presaging his “All-Starr Band” concert tours of more recent years) including Stephen Stills, Klaus Voorman, Jim Keltner, Ron Cattermole and Gary Wright. Although it’s known as Ringo’s song, the track is largely the work of George Harrison, who produced it, arranged it, played guitar on it, and co-wrote it with Starr, but never took a songwriting credit for it.

“Long-Haired Lady”

McCartney claimed his wife Linda helped him write and arrange the majority of the songs on “Ram” and she received public credit for having done so, although many observers were skeptical of how much she actually contributed. In any event she was certainly the “long-haired lady” who inspired this track, and that’s her providing backing vocals. McCartney used members of the New York Philharmonic to flesh out the arrangement with strings and horns.

“Awaiting On You All”

Harrison conceded 30 years later that producer Phil Spector went a bit overboard with his echo-y “wall of sound” approach on the “All Things Must Pass” LP, mentioning this song in particular. Musically, “Awaiting On You All” is one of the better tracks, with a rollicking rock structure and lyrics that tout the spiritual benefits of chanting, a favorite Hare Krishna activity.

“Instant Karma”

Lennon had this to say about this early 1970 single: “I wrote it for breakfast, recorded it for lunch, and released it for dinner.” Indeed, the song was written and recorded the same day, and it was in the shops and on the radio only ten days later. The track takes a sardonic look at celebrity, stardom and ego and how the public can turn on you in, well, an instant.

“Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey”

Some critics disliked this song when it came out, dismissing it as a too-cutesy piece of McCartney fluff. But listen closely and you’ll hear impeccable production, two very catchy tunes smooshed together, inventive special effects and an irresistible Paul melody line and vocal performance that took the song to #1 in the US.

“Ballad of Sir Frankie Crisp (Let It Roll)”

This track gets my vote as the sleeper from Harrison’s sprawling double album. The titular Mr. Crisp refers to the British noble gentleman who built the enormous Gothic mansion in the English countryside that George bought in 1970 and lived in until his death in 2001. A haunting and relentless piano part, combined with a marvelous vocal delivery, resulted in an engaging track that is a welcome addition to the Harrison canon.

“Jealous Guy”

John actually wrote this one in 1968 in India when it was known as “Child of Nature,” featuring an entirely different set of lyrics and an acoustic guitar-based melody. By the time he resurrected it during the 1971 “Imagine” sessions, he had turning it into a dreamy, piano-based number with words that confessed the jealousy and rage that had infected his attitude toward women in his earlier days. Bryan Ferry and Roxy Music had a minor hit with their cover version of the song a decade later.

“The Back Seat of My Car”

To my ears, I think this dramatic, gorgeous number is one of Paul’s finest moments as a solo artist. His ability at composing, arranging and singing a grand production like this one is just about unparalleled. Take a listen to the swirling vocals, lavish strings and horns, and a structure that dips in and out of hard rock and balladry. It served as the thrilling finale on “Ram” in 1971.

“What Is Life”

The follow-up single to “My Sweet Lord” was, in some ways, even more catchy and memorable, and provided ample proof to the public that George’s songwriting had truly come of age. The all-star cast who played on the session — Ringo, and a killer horn section — are heard in full bloom, thanks again to Spector’s all-encompassing production.

“Love”

One of Lennon’s loveliest ballads, recorded with just his close-mic’ed voice and acoustic guitar, with a delicate piano part handled by producer Phil Spector. It’s the most tender track on Lennon’s overwhelmingly raw “Plastic Ono Band” album. He had considered it as the first single but unwisely chose the startling “Mother” instead. “Love” was later recorded by such disparate artists as Barbra Streisand, The Dream Academy, Shirley Bassey, Beck, and The Lettermen.

“Too Many People”

The opening tune from “Ram” has some fine guitar work and vocals from Sir Paul, with Linda on harmonies. The lyrics have been interpreted as critical of John’s involvement in various social causes of that era, and Paul also scolds him for throwing away the great thing the Beatles had together (“That was your first mistake, you took your lucky break and broke it in two…”)

“Back Off Boogaloo”

Starr’s interest in glam rock and friendship with Marc Bolan are reflected in this repetitive rocker, recorded in late 1971 and released in early 1972. The track features Ringo’s martial drumming attack, great slide guitar by George, and able help from Gary Wright on piano and Klaus Voorman on bass and sax, and it was catchy enough to reach #9 in the US and #2 in the UK.

“Another Day”

Paul’s breezy song about the drudgery of another working day stands in stark contrast to the one John had written and released months earlier (see below). This single from early 1971 was the first McCartney tune to be credited to Paul & Linda McCartney, a seemingly innocent labeling that had legal ramifications later when the record company and the lawyers got involved. Sigh.

“Working Class Hero”

One of John’s most powerful songs, but not heard much at the time of release, mostly because of the two f-bombs he dropped in the lyrics. His blunt tribute to the plight of the blue-collar worker became the go-to favorite among the dozen stark, harrowing tracks on his 1970 “John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band” solo debut album (known to many as the “Primal Scream” album in reference to the radical therapy he underwent earlier that year).

“That Would Be Something”

When “McCartney” was released in April 1970, listeners were stunned by the home-recording production quality of most of the tracks, especially when compared to the glossy sheen heard on The Beatles’ “Abbey Road” only seven months earlier. All instruments were played by Paul, and the songs sounded more like demos than finished tracks. “That Would Be Something” is a fun, mostly inconsequential ditty that somehow stands up 55 years later.

“All Things Must Pass”

The warm, practical philosophy George preaches in the title track of his 1970 album still holds up very well today, and could be considered timeless (“Daylight is good at arriving at the right time, it’s not always gonna be this grey, all things must pass away…”). The Beatles made a few half-hearted attempts at recording this in early 1969 but gave up, so George kept it for himself. Probably a good move.

“Imagine”

Probably the most impactful song by a solo ex-Beatle. A very simple piano melody, a strong yet lovely vocal performance from John, and lyrics that offer an uncompromisingly utopian view of society without boundaries, rules, dogma or war. It became his signature song, and lives on after his death as an anthem for peace.

“Maybe I’m Amazed”

This is the one that surprises most people when they learn it’s not a Beatles song but in fact a McCartney solo track. It came out in April 1970 on the “McCartney” solo debut, right in between the release of the final Beatles singles, “Let It Be” and “The Long and Winding Road.” Paul’s piano melody, heartfelt vocal and fiery lead guitar that carry this ode to wife Linda would have sounded right at home on either the “Let It Be” or “Abbey Road” LPs.

“Isn’t It a Pity”

Some observers have interpreted the lyrics to this repetitive yet mesmerizing hymn as George’s farewell message to his fellow Beatles (“Isn’t it a pity, now isn’t it a shame, how we break each others’ hearts and cause each other pain…”). But George said it was meant to be more of a universal pang of regret about how the people of the Earth can’t seem to get along peacefully. Phil Spector’s huge production and long fade-out give the song perhaps more grandeur than was appropriate, so George also included a scaled down, almost unplugged version of the song elsewhere on the album.

“God”

This track would make an excellent coda to this imagined album, much in the same way “The End” served the same role on “Abbey Road”…although this one offers a far less satisfying emotional feel. In “God,” Lennon rattles off a list of people and institutions he no longer believes in, including Elvis, Dylan (“Zimmerman”) and, finally, Beatles. “The dream is over,” he sings with finality, making it abundantly clear that there will be nothing more forthcoming from The Fab Four.

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Music, sweet music, you’re the queen of my soul

Posted on March 27 by brucehhackett

Since 2018, each year I have taken a look back at the albums of fifty years ago.

In 1968, albums were starting to gain more credibility as complete statements of an artist’s work. By 1971, arguably the high-water mark of diversity and excellence in album releases, albums had overtaken singles as the dominant music delivery format. And now this year, we’re taking a closer look at the albums of 1976. Nearly 500 albums of all sorts of genres were released during that bicentennial calendar year.

My view of the music from the twelve months of 1976 is colored, as it often is, by what I was doing, where I was, how old I was and who I hung out with. I was in the last half of my junior year and first half of my senior year at Syracuse University, and the friends I made there were fairly music-savvy, introducing me to artists I might not have otherwise discovered.

I also turned 21 that year, which made me eligible to go to bars and clubs, and in 1976, that included discos. This was the year disco began its four-year dominance of the Top 40 hit single chart, but the LPs these songs came from didn’t yet have the same impact on album charts (that would come in 1977-79). A handful of disco-leaning albums did well, but the biggest sellers on mainstream album charts were still largely rock, pop, country and jazz, and singer-songwriter and prog rock.

In choosing what I found to be the Best 15 Albums of 1976, I’ve ignored some releases that sold a gazillion copies but just weren’t my cup of tea (“Wings at the Speed of Sound” by Paul McCartney comes to mind). I also didn’t take to certain albums that were considered groundbreaking (the debut LP by New York punk band The Ramones, for example). But that’s the thing about subjective lists like this — they’re subjective, and purport only to show my opinion on the music of that year. If you’re miffed that I omitted one of your favorites, I invite you to publish your own list.

I’ve listed another dozen “honorable mentions” that were considered but ultimately didn’t make the cut. As is customary, I’ve included two Spotify playlists. The first offers four tracks from each of the 15 albums that made my list. The second list offers four tunes from each of the 12 honorable mentions.

Enjoy this trip back to the music of 50 years ago.

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“Silk Degrees,” Boz Scaggs

Although Scaggs first made his name as an original member of the Steve Miller Band in the late ’60s, followed by a modestly successful five-album solo career, I confess I didn’t know much about him until I was I introduced to him (like most of America) when he released his “Silk Degrees” LP in the spring of 1976. Here was the right album at the right time: Vibrant, catchy songs you could dance to, gorgeous production, the instrumental talents of keyboardist David Paich, drummer Jeff Porcaro and bassist David Hungate (who all went on to form Toto) and a butter-smooth, charismatic singer out front. Radio, the public and the press all ate it up. Two iconic hits — the blue-eyed soul of “Lowdown” and the driving rocker “Lido Shuffle” — led the way, but this album doesn’t have a dud in the lot. “It’s Over,” “What Can I Say,” “Georgia” were all club favorites, and the ballads “Harbor Lights” and “We’re All Alone” (later made more famous by Rita Coolidge) brought sensuality to the proceedings. Scaggs went on release more great Top 20 hits and LPs intermittently over the next couple of decades, but “Silk Degrees” was his signature LP.

“Takin’ It to the Streets,” The Doobie Brothers

When group founder Tom Johnston took ill with ulcers and exhaustion in 1975, The Doobies were in a quandary. Should they call it quits, or find a replacement? Johnston had been their chief songwriter and lead vocalist, and although guitarist/songwriter Pat Simmons was still on board to contribute great material (“8th Avenue Shuffle,” “Rio,” “Wheels of Fortune”), they needed more. Guitarist Jeff “Skunk” Baxter, who’d left Steely Dan to join The Doobies in 1975, suggested they give a tryout to singer/songwriter/keyboardist Michael McDonald, another member of the Steely Dan camp. Things worked out so well on a few concert dates that the band invited him to sessions for their next LP. The result was “Takin’ It to the Streets,” not only a return to form after the lackluster “Stampede” album the year before, but a reinvention of sorts, with McDonald providing several quality songs (“It Keeps You Runnin’,” “Losin’ End,” “Carry Me Away” and the title song) and that husky, smooth voice that would take the band to new heights in the ensuing years.

“The Royal Scam,” Steely Dan

It was on this album, Steely Dan’s fifth, that the group ceased to exist and became a duo (Donald Fagen and Walter Becker) accompanied by a host of hired session musicians, which became their way of working thereafter. It’s also the LP on which jazz leanings — chord changes, arrangements, instrumental solos — became more prominent, most notably on tracks like “Green Earring” and “Everything You Did.” Still, most of the tunes were based in the LA rock/pop idiom of their previous records, with more of the wonderfully cryptic lyrics about societal outcasts, weirdos and ne’er-do-wells. “Kid Charlemagne,” about a psychedelic drug chemist character in the Bay Area, features the phenomenal Larry Carlton on guitar and is the album’s best moment, but don’t miss “Don’t Take Me Alive,” “The Fez,” “Haitian Divorce” and the dark title tune. I kept waiting for Steely Dan to have an average album, but it never came, certainly not in this case.

“Hotel California,” The Eagles

There’s really not much to say about this monumental record that hasn’t already been said. Truth be told, I’ve always been fairly ambivalent about The Eagles; I enjoy about a dozen individual tracks but I tire of much of their overplayed catalog. “Hotel California” was the group’s commercial zenith, selling more than 40 million copies worldwide, and there are certainly some creative peaks to be found here. Most people would mention the iconic title song, with its lyrics about the pitfalls of fame and its wondrous lead guitar interplay between Don Felder and Joe Walsh. I happen to prefer the deeper tracks — Walsh’s dreamy song “Pretty Maids All in a Row,” Randy Meisner’s country rocker “Try and Love Again” and the masterful album closer, “The Last Resort.” By this point, Don Henley and Glenn Frey had become egotistical control freaks who caused internal friction and ultimately brought about the band’s breakup in 1980, but from its release in December 1976 and for the next couple of years, “Hotel California” was the album that spawned a thousand imitators.

“Boston,” Boston

The recording of this seismic album has been described as “one of the most complex corporate capers in the history of the music business.” It’s the brainchild of Tom Scholz, the multi-instrumentalist/engineer/songwriter who wrote and recorded demos of all the material in 1973 under the band name Mother’s Milk. He shopped it around to several labels for two years before Columbia subsidiary Epic Records signed him to a contract. They wanted him to record at their Los Angeles studio, but Scholz was convinced he could do a better job in his Boston-based basement studio setup. He sent his newly hired musicians (known as Boston by that point) to LA to record one track “in a decoy move of how we were really working.” Scholz basically duplicated the demos at home, recruited his friend Brad Delp to sing the layered vocals, and then sent the sonically perfect master tapes to Epic. The result, with “crystal-clear vocals and bone-crunching guitars,” became the most successful debut album ever. Virtually the entire album has been in heavy rotation ever since, especially “More Than a Feeling,” “Peace of Mind” and “Foreplay/Long Time.”

“Songs in the Key of Life,” Stevie Wonder

After a successful run in the ’60s as a teenage star in Motown’s celebrated stable of soul artists, Stevie Wonder won his independence when he turned 21 in 1971, and the music he wrote, played, sang and recorded over the next five years was simply unparalleled, winning multiple “Album of the Year” Grammys and populating the Top 40 charts as well (“Superstition,” “You Are the Sunshine off My Life,” “Living For the City,” “Higher Ground,” “You Haven’t Done Nothin'”). By 1976, he called his own shots, assembling a double album (with four extra tracks on a 45 contained within) that showed remarkable diversity — soul, funk, jazz, ballads, the works. “Songs in the Key of Life” became his finest achievement in a career full of accomplished works. “I Wish” and the marching band favorite “Sir Duke” both went right to the top of the charts, but there’s so much more here that’s worthy of everyone’s attention: “Isn’t She Lovely,” his tribute to his infant daughter; “As,” the galloping anthem to romantic love; “Summer Soft,” “Love’s in Need of Love Today,” “Ordinary Pain,” “If It’s Magic” — just an overflowing cornucopia of great music.

“Night Moves,” Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band

Even though it wasn’t until the release of this album in October 1976 that Bob Seger became a national rock star, he’d been making great rock and roll out of Detroit since the late ’60s. As The Bob Seger System, he had a minor hit in 1968 with “Ramblin’ Gamblin’ Man,” then settled into a journeyman role, touring relentlessly with regional Midwest success. A few of his original tunes found their way onto FM playlists (“Turn the Page,” “Beautiful Loser,” “Katmandu”) but his albums were largely ignored…until “Night Moves.” Seger and his backing group, The Silver Bullet Band, suddenly became a sensation, and rightly so. Critics gushed over the classic rock and roll riffs reminiscent of Chuck Berry, saying “the album was about rock and roll for those who were no longer in their teens.” Seger’s gruff vocals sounded like a more authentic Rod Stewart, and his working-class lyrics rivaled those of Bruce Springsteen. The title tune and “Mainstreet” are top-drawer stuff, but almost as impressive are such album tracks as “Rock and Roll Never Forgets,” “The Fire Down Below,” “Ship of Fools” and “Come to Poppa.”

“Year of the Cat,” Al Stewart

Since his debut in 1967, Al Stewart has shown a rare talent for writing autobiographical and fictional story-songs, using detailed imagery, historical references and colorful anecdotes to accompany his accessible melodies. He has sometimes written three or four different lyrics for the same song before settling on one. Indeed, his signature song “Year of the Cat” was first known as “Foot of the Stage” in an earlier draft. Stewart had managed only a modest cult following until 1975 when his “Modern Times” LP reached #30 on US album charts, paving the way for his delightful “Year of the Cat” album in October 1976. It’s remarkably consistent and thoroughly engaging, from the majestic “Lord Grenville” and “Broadway Hotel” to the forboding “One Stage Before” and “Flying Sorcery.” The minor hit “On the Border” features incredible Spanish guitar by Peter White, while “Year of the Cat” includes the multi-talented Phil Kenzie on alto sax. Stewart’s nasal vocal tone is a turnoff to some, but I love the way producer Alan Parsons soft-pedals the voice to accentuate the fascinating words he’s singing.

“Frampton Comes Alive,” Peter Frampton

In 1976, it seemed as if you could hear this album booming out of every college dorm room and every teenager’s bedroom in the nation. Frampton had been something of a boy wonder, helping to form Humble Pie at 18 as a virtuoso guitarist before deciding to go the solo route in 1972. He found only limited success with four studio LPs of mostly original material over the next few years, and decided he’d like to try a live album to capture the excitement he got from performing. His label actually urged him to make it a double album, and when it was released in January 1976, it began a meteoric rise to the #1 position by April. I don’t much care for live albums because of excessive crowd noise, and “Frampton Comes Alive!” was a notorious example of that. But the songs were great, Frampton and band performed them well and the whole thing felt like a party on vinyl. It spawned three hit singles, including “Show Me the Way” and “Baby I Love Your Way,” and incredibly, a 14-minute version of “Do You Feel Like We Do” (edited down to about six minutes by many stations). “Something’s Happening” and “Lines on My Face” are the standout tracks.

“The Pretender,” Jackson Browne

It is said that from pain and suffering often comes great art, and this emotional album is a prime example of that. In the early 1970s, Browne emerged from Southern California as an uncommonly insightful songwriting talent on his first three albums (“Saturate Before Using,” “For Everyman” and “Late For the Sky”), offering warm, honest music and intelligent, worldweary lyrics. Then, in 1976, his wife Phyllis took her own life, leaving him a single dad for his 3-year-old son Ethan. From that trauma came Browne’s best work yet, with brilliant tracks like “The Fuse,” “The Only Child” the hit single “Here Come Those Tears Again” and the anthemic title song, in which he wryly laid out his purpose in life (“I’m gonna be a happy idiot and struggle for the legal tender”). Released in November 1976, it reached #5 in early 1977 and began a four-album span of Top Ten albums (“Running on Empty,” “Hold Out,” “Lawyers in Love”).

“Hejira,” Joni Mitchell

From simple folk beginnings in 1968 to startling confessional songwriting in 1971-72 to her most accessible songs on “Court and Spark” in 1974, Joni Mitchell surprised us and pleased us with each step in her musical evolution. Always intrigued by jazz and its more complicated free-form structures, she recruited some of LA’s best jazz session players in 1975 for “The Hissing Summer Lawns,” a diverse, transitional LP. She followed that in 1976 with “Hejira,” one of her most fully realized works that gets better with each listening. The word “hejira” means exodus or departure, and Mitchell wrote the songs for the album while driving across the country on a sort of spiritual journey. Songs like “Amelia” (a tribute to the legendary solo pilot), “Black Crow” and “Refuge of the Road” deftly used the travel motif, and the popular opening track “Coyote” celebrated the artist’s passion for wanderlust. With extraordinary fretless bassist Jaco Pastorius and guitarist Larry Carlton on board, the music simultaneously challenged and soothed listeners. This is a truly astonishing record I wholeheartedly recommend.

“Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers,” Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

When I learned that it took Petty and his band more than two years to find their audience in America, I didn’t feel as bad for not being hip to the group from the beginning. Emerging from Florida by way of Los Angeles, Petty wrote all the songs for their debut album, which was released in November of 1976. The Brits embraced him right away following a tour there, pushing the debut album to #24 on UK charts, with “Anything That’s Rock ‘n’ Roll” charting as a single. Word spread slowly, and by early 1978, “Breakdown” and “American Girl” were getting substantial FM airplay, and the LP peaked at #55. Petty and The Heartbreakers finally broke through with their “Damn the Torpedoes” album in 1979 and became one of the most popular rock bands of its time over the next 35 years. It’s pretty amazing to go back now and listen to how mature their first songs were, and how fresh and exciting they sounded. I wish I’d been more attuned to them at the time. This is a solid album well deserving of Top 15 status.

“Amigos,” Santana

In 1969 at Woodstock, Santana introduced American audiences to latin rock, with percussion-heavy albums and a handful of Top Ten singles (“Evil Ways,” “Black Magic Woman,” “Oye Como Va”). Leader Carlos Santana, one of the most expressive lead guitarists in rock history, took the group into jazz fusion territory for a couple of side projects, but by 1976, the group was back on the latin rock track with a liberal dose of funk vibes as well. The resulting album, “Amigos,” returned the group to the Top Ten on US album charts, boasting seven long tracks that show off Santana’s instrumental dexterity as well as new singer Greg Walker’s vocals. The 8-minute “Dance Sister Dance” is a real tour de force, and “Take Me With You” offers a relentless percussion extravaganza, but the pinnacle here, by far, is the slow, bluesy “Europa (Earth’s Cry Heaven’s Smile),” which reached Top Ten in the UK and has been a mainstay of the group’s setlist every tour since.

“In the Pocket,” James Taylor

The shy, introspective guy who wrote such downbeat songs as “Fire and Rain,” “Carolina In My Mind,” “Long Ago and Far Away” and “Don’t Let Me Be Lonely Tonight” seemed to turn a corner in 1975 with the decidedly upbeat LP “Gorilla” and the optimism of “Mexico,” “Lighthouse” and his cover of Marvin Gaye’s “How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You).” A year later, his “In the Pocket” album proved a worthy successor, full of warm, wonderful melodies like the hit “Shower the People,” “Money Machine” and a cover of Bobby Womack’s soul workout “Woman’s Gotta Have It.” But Taylor still knew how to wear his heart on his sleeve when the chips were down — the supportive “Don’t Be Sad ‘Cause Your Sun is Down” features Stevie Wonder’s expressive harmonica, and the album closer, “Golden Moments,” positively shimmers. The LP reached #16 in the summer of 1976 and set the stage for the joyous “JT” album that followed.

“A Trick of the Tail,” Genesis

In the late ’60s, Great Britain was a hotbed of talent for young musicians with classical music training and rock music aspirations, and led by bands like Genesis, Procol Harum and Moody Blues, the progressive rock genre was born. With the theatrical Peter Gabriel as the mesmerizing front man, Genesis led the way, building a fanatical cult base over a six-album run through 1974. Then Gabriel left the lineup, and many observers felt the band couldn’t continue without him. But lo and behold, drummer Phil Collins emerged as a fine singer whose voice actually resembled Gabriel’s, and with a solid batch of FM-radio-friendly songs, they released “A Trick of the Tail,” which cracked the Top 30 on US album charts for the first time. The foursome of Collins, guitarist Steve Hackett, keyboardist Tony Banks and bassist Mike Rutherford wrote and recorded such sophisticated classics as “Dance on a Volcano,” “Squonk,” “Mad Man Moon,” “Los Endos” and the title tune, plus two mellow tracks (“Ripples” and “Entangled”). The band would become a much more commercial entity by the 1980s, but in 1976, they remained firmly in the prog rock camp.

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Honorable mentions: