My job has been absolutely kicking my ass this past week or so. Between it and me desperately trying to find a new job, I haven’t had as much time to work on the site. But I can bang out these five songs from 1975 real quick.

Nothing much to note here, I was still two years away from being born so I have no great memories of ’75. Let’s check out the music.

Heart – Crazy On You

I’m altering the timeline again with this one. This song was released on album in 1975 – in Canada. It wasn’t released as a single or in the US until ’76, but here it is on my list for this year anyway because guess what – 1976 is when things get super crowded on these lists.

Anyway – great blast of a song here. Heart were at times part folk, part psychedelic and part heavy metal – this tune fits the first two more. Very groovy guitar and keyboard passages here and Ann Wilson gives a super smooth performance throughout. Plus a great mix of acoustic and electric guitars here, not something you get all the time, at least to this great of effect.

As we go through these, you’re going to find out that Heart is one of my favorite bands, in all their phases. We’re just getting started here.

Led Zeppelin – Kashmir

So Robert Plant drove through the desert in Morocco and was inspired to write this song about a disputed region between India and Pakistan. Regardless of the geographic blasphemy, it helped Zep record one of their most epic movements. This song is totally majestic and awe-inspiring. Not much else for me to say about it.

Pink Floyd – Wish You Were Here

While this song is full of subtle twists, especially the full album version (which should be posted below), this one is actually pretty straightforward for a Pink Floyd track. It is a somber affair looking back on lost dreams, set against minimal acoustic passages. The song is popularly regarded as being about troubled former bandmate Syd Barrett, though Roger Waters has discounted that idea before. Regardless, it’s a masterpiece of a song.

Aerosmith – Sweet Emotion

We’ll just ignore all of the things this song could possibly be about and focus instead on how kick ass of a tune it is. Aerosmith added a few psychedelic elements to their hard rock groove and came out big winners for it. An electric jam all the way through.

What I posted is the 1991 remix video, which brought Aerosmith up straight up against grunge, and Aerosmith won that unlikely battle.

Waylon Jennings – Are You Sure Hank Done It This Way?

Every genre of music has its formulas for success and acts that were herded into the spotlight, used for a hit, then discarded for the next. But no music scene had its formula down quite like Nashville and country. While that machine keeps plugging away today, it was a group of artists in the ’70’s, spearheaded by Waylon and the creative freedom afforded to him contractually, that sparked a whole new movement in country. The outlaws were riding, and they would reshape country through the decade.

Here Waylon pokes fun at the establishment and highlights how far they’ve drifted from the spiritual father of their genre, Hank Williams. It’s not a comedy tune but some of the lyrics are low key pretty funny, like the one about the five piece band looking at his backside. But the song does carry its weight and then some, directly targeting the tired old formula of Nashville and offering a refreshing change.

That’s all for 1975. Next week will be ’76 so I’ll have to pick some really patriotic stuff to celebrate the bicentennial of my great nation. I’ll get right on that.