It is 35 years since punk exploded onto the nation's consciousness. The fuse was lit in 1976 and by 1978 punk was imploding with internecine strife. But 1977? What a year: the Pistols (mostly) firing on all cylinders as they and the rest of the vanguard shook up a moribund music industry in the year of theEnglish Queen's Silver Jubilee, whilst in Memphis the King had left the building. To celebrate the anniversary Soundcheck Books is publishing this labour of love encyclopedia '77: The Year Of Punk And New Wave by Henrik Bech Poulsen - a Dane living in Texas who used to own a record label. This book was originally published as a limited run hardback. Henrik has written a potted biography about every punk or new wave band that released a record (or appeared on a compilation) in 1977 and what they released that year. Yes, it contains the Pistols, Clash Damned et al but of more interest to those of us that survived the muck and bullets of that turbulent year were the 'gosh I'd forgotten all about them' acts such as Eater, the Lurkers, Chelsea and so on. In fact, there are some downright obscure ones that'll have you scratching your head: anyone remember The Sick Things? Me neither. The author also sets the scene and describes what life was like back then looking back with mixed feelings on spitting, pogoing, politics, drugs, unemployment, dress codes and more. The crowning glory of the era though was the artworks that accompanied the records. This book is illustrated with hundreds of pictures not just of the bands themselves but also the albums, singles, flyers and posters that'll bring a tear to many an aging punk's eye. 16 of these pages are in colour. For lads who wished they had been there and dads who were there but maybe don 't want to admit it And punkettes too, of course