I have no clue how I got my hands on Columbia’s “The Sound of the Suburbs” compilation in my senior year of High School. I certainly didn’t get it from the local mall’s record shop – they didn’t get much more daring than U2. I most likely picked it up in the college town a little ways down the road. I’m not sure why I would have bought it either. I didn’t know any of the bands at that time. I’m pretty sure it was the title that attracted me. My family were pioneers in Florida’s blue sky suburbs and at 16 I was already coming to realize that all wasn’t well on our cul-de-sac.

However and for whatever reason I came across it, “The Sound of the Suburbs” is a brilliant compilation. It perfectly straddles the transition between the end of punk in the late 70’s and the spawning of New Wave early in the next decade. It features big names – Blondie, Elvis Costello, The Jam – and one hit wonders – Martha and the Muffins, Eddie and the Hot Rods. It is the sound of the suburbs – middle class angst and rebellion. That feeling of discomfort that you just can’t place as you wander past manicured lawns and houses that all look the same. This compilation turned me on to music that I had never heard on the radio and showed me there was a whole lot more to discover.

Here’s the track listing with MP3s of some of my favorites. The Boy and I were having a blast dancing to the Ian Dury track at breakfast this morning.

  1. Eton Rifles – The Jam
  2. Ant Music – Adam & The Ants
  3. Ever Fallen In Love (With Someone You Shouldn’t've) – Buzzcocks
  4. Another Girl Another Planet – Only Ones
  5. Teenage Kicks – Undertones (MP3)
  6. Echo Beach – Martha & The Muffins
  7. Happy Birthday – Altered Images
  8. Oliver’s Army – Elvis Costello (MP3)
  9. 2468 Motorway – Tom Robinson Band
  10. Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick – Ian Dury & The Blockheads (MP3)
  11. Call Me – Blondie
  12. Reward – Teardrop Explodes
  13. I Don’t Like Mondays – Boomtown Rats
  14. Pretty In Pink – Psychedelic Furs
  15. No More Heroes – Stranglers
  16. Turning Japanese – Vapors
  17. Do Anything You Wanna Do – Eddie & The Hot Rods
  18. Sound Of The Suburbs – Members

If you’re lucky enough to be in the UK, “Sound of the Suburbs” is available from Amazon. But it’s sadly out of print in the U.S.

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