1979 in music

List of years in music (table)
... 1969 ^. 1970 ^. 1971 ^. 1972 ^. 1973 ^. 1974 ^. 1975 ... 1976 1977 1978 -1979- 1980 1981 1982 ... 1983 ^. 1984 ^. 1985 ^. 1986 ^. 1987 ^. 1988 ^. 1989 ...
Art ^. Archaeology ^. Architecture ^. Literature ^. Music ^. Philosophy ^. Science +...

Years in music:	1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982
Centuries:	19th century · 20th century · 21st century
Decades:	1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s
Years:	1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982

This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1979.

Events

January–February

January 1
- Simon "Mac" Nette releases Disco Fling/Bop 'N Boogie not to be confused with Up Yer Kilt the name Disco Fling was released under in some countries.
- Bill Graham closes San Francisco's Winterland Ballroom following a New Year's Eve performance by the Blues Brothers and the Grateful Dead.
- During a New Year's Eve concert in Cleveland, Ohio, Bruce Springsteen is injured when a fire-cracker is thrown onstage from the audience.
January 4 – The Star-Club in Hamburg, Germany, best known for its connections to the early days of the Beatles, reopens.
January 6 - ABC's American Bandstand featured the debut of the "Y.M.C.A. dance" using the hand gestures forming the letters YMCA during a broadcast with the Village People.
January 9 – The Music for UNICEF Concert in held in New York City at the United Nations, starring the Bee Gees. Highlights are aired the following evening on NBC.
January 13 – Singer Donny Hathaway dies after falling 15 stories from his hotel room in New York City. According to Hathaway's record company, Atlantic, the singer had been having some psychological problems.
January 15 – MCA Records purchases ABC Records for a reported $20 million.
February 2 – Sex Pistols bassist Sid Vicious is found dead from an overdose, a day after being released on bail from Rikers Island prison.
February 7
- The Clash kick off their first concert on their first American tour at the Berkeley Community Theatre outside San Francisco, California. Bo Diddley opens the show and the Clash open their set with the song "I'm So Bored with the U.S.A.".
- Stephen Stills becomes the first major rock artist to record digitally, laying down four songs at The Record Plant in Los Angeles.
February 10 – Rod Stewart's "Do Ya Think I'm Sexy" hits #1 on the Billboard magazine charts, and stays there for 4 weeks.
February 11 – 43 million viewers watch "Elvis!" on ABC, a made for TV movie starring Kurt Russell as Elvis.
February 15 – Minnie Riperton appears on the Grammys as a presenter with Stephen Bishop. The Bee Gees collect 4 Grammys for Saturday Night Fever.
February 23 – Dire Straits begin their first U.S. tour in Boston.
February 24
- Friedrich Cerha's completion of Alban Berg's opera Lulu is premiered at the Opera Garnier in Paris.
- Singer Johnnie Wilder, Jr. of Heatwave is paralyzed from the neck down in a car accident in his hometown of Dayton, Ohio.
February 26 – B.B. King becomes the first blues artist to tour the Soviet Union, kicking off a one-month tour there.

March–April

March 2–4 – Weather Report, The CBS Jazz All-Stars, the Trio of Doom, Fania All-Stars, Stephen Stills, Billy Swan, Bonnie Bramlett, Mike Finnegan, Kris Kristofferson, Rita Coolidge and Billy Joel, plus Cuban acts Irakere, Pacho Alonso, Elena Burke, Los Papines, Tata Güines and Orquesta Aragón play at the historic three-day Havana Jam festival at the Karl Marx Theater, in Havana, Cuba.
March 5 – MCA Records dissolves ABC Records.
March 10 – James Brown performs at the Grand Ole Opry.
March 15 – Elvis Costello gets into a heated argument with members of Stephen Stills' touring entourage at a Holiday Inn in Columbus, Ohio. After Costello makes disparaging remarks about America, he is punched by Bonnie Bramlett. Costello suffers a wave of negative press coverage after the incident is made public.
March 21 – The Pretenders sign a contract with Sire Records.
March 23 – Van Halen releases their second album, Van Halen II.
March 27 – Eric Clapton marries Patti Boyd, ex-wife of Clapton's friend George Harrison.
March 31 – The Eurovision Song Contest, the biggest music festival in the world, takes place for the first time in a country outside Europe – Israel. The show is broadcast live from Jerusalem to Europe and a few countries in Asia. The big winner of this night is Israel for the second time in a row. The winning song is "Hallelujah" sung by Gali Atari and the backing group Milk and Honey. A few months after winning the song had been translated into more than 82 languages, and broke a new record by entering the Guinness Book of Records as the most translated song in the world.
April 2 – Kate Bush begins her first, and to date, only tour. She becomes the first artist to use a wireless microphone, enabling her to sing and dance at the same time.
April 6 – Rod Stewart marries Alana Hamilton.
April 7 – 110,000 people attend the California Music Festival at the L.A. Memorial Coliseum. Performers include Aerosmith, The Boomtown Rats, Cheap Trick, Ted Nugent and Van Halen.
April 12 – Mickey Thomas replaces Marty Balin as the lead singer of Jefferson Starship.
April 13 – During a concert by Van Halen in Spokane, Washington, David Lee Roth collapses from exhaustion. A local doctor treats him for a stomach virus and advises him to "calm down".
April 22 – The New Barbarians and The Rolling Stones perform two concerts in Oshawa, Ontario to benefit the CNIB, as part of Keith Richards' 1978 sentence for heroin possession.
April 24 – The New Barbarians open their US tour at Ann Arbor, Michigan.
April 27 – Ozzy Osbourne is fired as lead singer of Black Sabbath. He is replaced in May by Ronnie James Dio.

May–August

May 2 – The Who play their first concert following the death of drummer Keith Moon. The band performs with new drummer Kenney Jones at London's Rainbow Theatre.
May 8 – Iron Maiden, Samson, and Angel Witch share a bill at the Music Machine in Camden, London. Critic Geoff Barton coins the term "New Wave of British Heavy Metal" in a review of the show for Sounds magazine.
May 19 – Three of the four ex-Beatles perform on the same stage, as Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr jam with Eric Clapton, Ginger Baker, Mick Jagger and others at a wedding reception for Clapton at his Surrey home.
May 21 – Elton John plays the first of eight concerts in the Soviet Union.
June 1 – Alternative Tentacles record label established by Dead Kennedys frontman Jello Biafra, and Joy Division release their album Unknown Pleasures.
June 8 – Marianne Faithfull marries Ben Brierly of The Vibrators.
June 9 - The Bee Gees tie The Beatles with a record six consecutive number one singles in the U.S. with "Love You Inside Out".
June 28 – Bill Haley makes his final studio recordings at Muscle Shoals, Alabama. (He dies in 1981.)
July 1 – The Sony Walkman goes on sale in Japan.
July 7 – The Bee Gees play to a sold-out crowd at Los Angeles' Dodger Stadium as part of their Spirits Having Flown tour.
July 10 – Chuck Berry is sentenced to four months in prison for tax evasion by a Los Angeles judge.
July 12 – "Disco Demolition Night", an anti-disco promotional event for a Chicago rock station involving exploding disco records with a bomb, causes a near-riot between games during a baseball major league doubleheader, forcing the cancellation of the second game.
July 28 – Aerosmith and Ted Nugent headline the World Series of Rock at Municipal Stadium in Cleveland, Ohio. Also on the bill are Journey, Thin Lizzy, AC/DC and the Scorpions. Following the concert, Aerosmith guitarist Joe Perry quits the group after an argument with bandmates.
July 31 – 250,000 turn out in Central Park for a free concert by James Taylor in a campaign to restore Sheep Meadow.
August 4–11 - British rock band Led Zeppelin play what are to be their last British concerts (until 2007) at Knebworth in Hertfordshire. Total attendances for the two concerts approached 400,000.
August 18 – Nick Lowe and Carlene Carter are married at Carter's Los Angeles home.
August 25 – "My Sharona" by The Knack hits #1 on the Billboard charts. This is the first time in over a year that a song hits #1 that is not either a disco song or a ballad, signalling the potential resurgence of rock.

September–December

September 1 – INXS perform in public for the first time, at the Oceanview Hotel in Umina, New South Wales.
September 2 – U2 enters the studio for the first time to record a locally released single.
September 13 – ABBA begins ABBA: The Tour in Edmonton, Alberta, leading off a month of dates in North America.
September 16 - The single "Rapper's Delight" by The Sugarhill Gang is released. Its success marks the commercial emergence of hip hop music.
September 17 – Ontario Court of Appeals rejects a government appeal against the previous year's sentencing of Keith Richards, which allowed him to avoid jail time for his 1977 arrest in Toronto for heroin possession.
September 19-23 – Musicians United for Safe Energy (MUSE) stages a series of five No Nukes concerts at Madison Square Garden. Jackson Browne, Crosby, Stills & Nash, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Bonnie Raitt, Tom Petty, James Taylor and Carly Simon are among the participants.
September 22 – The NewMusic, a Canadian weekly music and culture program, makes its début on Citytv.
September 27 – Elton John collapses on stage at the Universal Amphitheatre in Los Angeles County, California while performing "Better Off Dead". He refuses to stop the show and resumes playing fifteen minutes later.
October 10 – Joe Perry officially leaves Aerosmith.
November 16 – Infinity Records is shut down and absorbed into parent company MCA.
November 26 – Bill Haley & His Comets perform at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, London, in a command performance for Queen Elizabeth II. This was Haley's final recorded performance of "Rock Around the Clock".
November 30 - Pink Floyd released The Wall rising to top spot on the US charts for fifteen weeks.
December 3 – In Cincinnati, Ohio, a stampede for seats at Riverfront Coliseum during a Who concert kills 11 fans and injures 26 others. Band members were not informed of the deaths until after the show.
December 26 – Iron Maiden drummer Doug Sampson is replaced by ex-Samson drummer Clive Burr.
December 26-29 – The Concerts for the People of Kampuchea are held over four nights at the Hammersmith Odeon in London to raise funds for victims of war in Cambodia. Queen, The Who, The Clash, Wings, Elvis Costello and members of Led Zeppelin all take part.
December 31 – The eighth annual New Year's Rockin' Eve special airs on ABC, with appearances by The Oak Ridge Boys, Village People, Chic, Blondie and Barry Manilow.

Also in 1979

The Welsh Philharmonia becomes the Orchestra of Welsh National Opera.
Michael Schenker leaves Scorpions during their tour in France and was replaced by Matthias Jabs.
Stevie Wonder uses digital audio recording technology in recording his album Journey through the Secret Life of Plants.
Ry Cooder releases the first pop/rock record made entirely using digital recording technology, "Bop Til You Drop".
EMI's first digital recording – at Abbey Road Studios – of a non-classical music track is released – UK jazz-funk duo Morrissey–Mullen covered the Rose Royce hit Love Don't Live Here Anymore. Released as a limited edition vinyl EP.
Disco reigns supreme in 1979, with several #1 hits from The Bee Gees and Donna Summer that year. Several artists who were not regarded as dance/disco acts, scored major successes by releasing disco singles, including new wave band Blondie with their first US number one single "Heart of Glass", Rod Stewart with "Do Ya Think I'm Sexy" and rock band Electric Light Orchestra go disco this year with their UK #1 LP Discovery. Country star Kenny Rogers also issues a disco influenced album, entitled Kenny. Hard rock band Kiss also has a disco hit this year with "I Was Made For Lovin You".
Elton John reunites with lyricist Bernie Taupin after a three-year break. The duos recent songs are recorded in August 1979, to be released a year later on "21 at 33".
December, Iron Maiden is signed by EMI. They hire Dennis Stratton as a second guitarist.

Bands formed

See Musical groups established in 1979

Bands disbanded

See Musical groups disestablished in 1979

Albums released

January

Day	Album	Artist	Notes
1	Feets, Don't Fail Me Now	Herbie Hancock	-
5	Armed Forces	Elvis Costello & The Attractions	-
5	Look Sharp!	Joe Jackson	-
16	Accept	Accept	-
19	Sleep Dirt	Frank Zappa	-
25	Take Me Home	Cher	-
26	Bustin' Out of L Seven	Rick James	-
26	Valley of the Dolls	Generation X	-
-	The Def Leppard E.P.	Def Leppard	EP
	Head First	The Babys	-
	John Denver	John Denver	-
	Life for the Taking	Eddie Money	-
	Living Without Your Love	Dusty Springfield	-
	Madam Butterfly	Tavares	-
	New Kind of Feeling	Anne Murray	-
	No Mean City	Nazareth	-
	Strangers in the Night	UFO	Live
	We Are Family	Sister Sledge	-

February

Day	Album	Artist	Notes
2	Inflammable Material	Stiff Little Fingers	-
5	Spirits Having Flown	Bee Gees	-
19	Frenzy	Split Enz	-
20	George Harrison	George Harrison	-
21	Live (X Cert)	The Stranglers	Live
23	Scared to Dance	The Skids	-
25	Lovedrive	Scorpions	-
26	The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle	Sex Pistols	Soundtrack
28	Rickie Lee Jones	Rickie Lee Jones	-
-	Cheap Trick at Budokan	Cheap Trick	Live
	Enlightened Rogues	The Allman Brothers Band	-
	The Feeding of the 5000	Crass	-
	Force Majeure	Tangerine Dream	-
	Hard Times for Lovers	Judy Collins	-
	Under Heaven Over Hell	Streetheart	-

March

Day	Album	Artist	Notes
1	Manifesto	Roxy Music	-
3	Sheik Yerbouti	Frank Zappa	-
9	Angel Station	Manfred Mann's Earth Band	-
9	Even Serpents Shine	The Only Ones	-
15	Fate for Breakfast	Art Garfunkel	-
15	Half Machine Lip Moves	Chrome	-
16	Bitanga i princeza	Bijelo dugme	-
16	Live at the Witch Trials	The Fall	-
17	Desolation Angels	Bad Company	-
19	L.A.	The Beach Boys	-
23	Van Halen II	Van Halen	-
24	Overkill	Motörhead	-
26	Go West	Village People	-
27	You're Never Alone with a Schizophrenic	Ian Hunter	-
29	Breakfast in America	Supertramp	-
30	Just a Game	Triumph	-
30	Secondhand Daylight	Magazine	-
-	Airwaves	Badfinger	-
	Danger Money	U.K.	-
	Feel No Fret	Average White Band	-
	I Love You So	Natalie Cole	-
	Remote Control	The Tubes	-
	Rock n' Roll Nights	Bachman–Turner Overdrive	-
	Squeezing Out Sparks	Graham Parker and The Rumour	-

April

Day	Album	Artist	Notes
1	Life in a Day	Simple Minds	-
5	Evolution	Journey	-
6	Euroman Cometh	Jean-Jacques Burnel	-
9	Cool for Cats	Squeeze	-
10	I Love to Sing the Songs I Sing	Barry White	-
13	Black Rose: A Rock Legend	Thin Lizzy	-
20	Gimme Some Neck	Ron Wood	-
	Million Mile Reflections	The Charlie Daniels Band	-
	My Father's Eyes	Amy Grant	-
	Y	The Pop Group	-
23	Bob Dylan at Budokan	Bob Dylan	Live
23	Voulez-Vous	ABBA	-
25	Bad Girls	Donna Summer	-
-	The Bells	Lou Reed	-
	Blue Kentucky Girl	Emmylou Harris	-
	It's Alive	Ramones	Live
	Mission Accomplished But the Beat Goes On	The Rezillos	Live
	New Chautauqua	Pat Metheny	-
	New England	New England	-
	New Values	Iggy Pop	-
	Replicas	Gary Numan and Tubeway Army	-
	Strikes	Blackfoot	-

May

Day	Album	Artist	Notes
4	Orchestral Favorites	Frank Zappa	-
8	Three Imaginary Boys	The Cure	-
17	Wave	Patti Smith Group	-
18	Do It Yourself	Ian Dury & The Blockheads	-
18	Lodger	David Bowie	-
21	Saxon	Saxon	-
22	Where There's Smoke...	Smokey Robinson	-
23	The Boss	Diana Ross	-
23	Dynasty	Kiss	-
30	Where I Should Be	Peter Frampton	-
31	Discovery	Electric Light Orchestra	-
-	Flag	James Taylor	-
	In the Skies	Peter Green	-
	Let Me Be Good to You	Lou Rawls	-
	Monolith	Kansas	-
	Narita	Riot	Japan
	Rhapsodies	Rick Wakeman	-
	Rock 'n' Roll High School	Various Artists	Soundtrack
	Shot Through the Heart	Jennifer Warnes	-
	Spectral Mornings	Steve Hackett	-
	State of Shock	Ted Nugent	-
	The Undertones	The Undertones	-

June

Day	Album	Artist	Notes
1	This Boot Is Made for Fonk-N	Bootsy's Rubber Band	-
5	Best of The J. Geils Band	The J. Geils Band	-
8	Back to the Egg	Wings	-
	The Kids Are Alright	The Who	Soundtrack
	Shades in Bed	The Records	-
9	I Am	Earth, Wind & Fire	-
	Labour of Lust	Nick Lowe	-
	Repeat When Necessary	Dave Edmunds	-
11	Get the Knack	The Knack	-
13	Candy-O	The Cars	-
13	Mingus	Joni Mitchell	-
15	Communiqué	Dire Straits	-
	PXR5	Hawkwind	-
	Silent Letter	America	-
	Unknown Pleasures	Joy Division	-
19	Mirrors	Blue Öyster Cult	-
22	Live Killers	Queen	Live
22	Mick Taylor	Mick Taylor	-
23	No Exit	The Angels	-
-	Another Taste	A Taste of Honey	-
	Exposure	Robert Fripp	-
	Life and Love	Leon Russell	-
	Night Owl	Gerry Rafferty	-
	One for the Road	Willie Nelson and Leon Russell	-
	Secrets	Robert Palmer	-
	Spy	Carly Simon	-
	Survivors	Samson	-
	Touch the Sky	Carole King	-

July

Day	Album	Artist	Notes
2	Rust Never Sleeps	Neil Young and Crazy Horse	-
6	The B-52's	The B-52's	-
10	Low Budget	The Kinks	-
17	Exposed	Mike Oldfield	Live
20	Nine Lives	REO Speedwagon	-
27	Highway to Hell	AC/DC	-
27	John Cougar	John Cougar	-
28	Down to Earth	Rainbow	-
30	Risqué	Chic	-
-	Bop till You Drop	Ry Cooder	-
	Can	Can	-
	Circles & Seasons	Pete Seeger	-
	Duty Now for the Future	Devo	-
	First Under the Wire	Little River Band	-
	Gamma 1	Gamma	-
	Honest Lullaby	Joan Baez	-
	Midnight Magic	Commodores	-
	No Promises...No Debts	Golden Earring	-
	The Original Disco Man	James Brown	-
	Shake Hands with the Devil	Kris Kristofferson	-

August

Day	Album	Artist	Notes
1	String of Hits	The Shadows	-
3	Fear of Music	Talking Heads	-
3	Some Product: Carri on Sex Pistols	Sex Pistols	Interview collage
10	Ghostown	The Radiators	-
10	Off the Wall	Michael Jackson	-
13	Chicago 13	Chicago	-
15	In Through the Out Door	Led Zeppelin	-
17	Drums and Wires	XTC	-
20	Slow Train Coming	Bob Dylan	-
22	The Rose	Bette Midler	Soundtrack to 1979 film
27	Eve	The Alan Parsons Project	-
27	In the Heat of the Night	Pat Benatar	-
30	Big Fun	Shalamar	-
-	5	J.J. Cale	-
	Born Again	Randy Newman	-
	Into the Music	Van Morrison	-
	Volcano	Jimmy Buffett	-

September

Day	Album	Artist	Notes
4	Flying Colors	Trooper	-
6	Ladies' Night	Kool & the Gang	-
6	La Diva	Aretha Franklin	-
7	Join Hands	Siouxsie and the Banshees	-
	The Pleasure Principle	Gary Numan	-
	Rock 'n' Roll Juvenile	Cliff Richard	-
11	Head Games	Foreigner	-
11	Kost u grlu	Riblja Čorba	-
14	Stormwatch	Jethro Tull	-
16	Top Priority	Rory Gallagher	-
17	Joe's Garage	Frank Zappa	-
17	Unleashed in the East	Judas Priest	Live
21	Boogie Motel	Foghat	-
	Dream Police	Cheap Trick	-
	The Raven	The Stranglers	-
	Uncle Jam Wants You	Funkadelic	-
22	Three	U2	EP
24	The Long Run	Eagles	-
25	Entertainment!	Gang of Four	-
	One Voice	Barry Manilow	-
	Singles Going Steady	Buzzcocks	Compilation
	Solid State Survivor	Yellow Magic Orchestra	-
27	Recent Songs	Leonard Cohen	-
-	154	Wire	-
	Cut	The Slits	-
	A Different Kind of Tension	Buzzcocks	-
	The Glow	Bonnie Raitt	-
	Kenny	Kenny Rogers	-
	Live and Sleazy	Village People	Double LP; one disc live, one disc studio
	Marathon	Santana	-
	Night After Night	U.K.	Live
	No. 1 in Heaven	Sparks	-
	Oceans of Fantasy	Boney M.	-
	Out of a Dream	Reba McEntire	-
	Satisfied	Rita Coolidge	-
	Street Machine	Sammy Hagar	-

October

Day	Album	Artist	Notes
1	Return to Base	Slade	-
2	Reggatta de Blanc	The Police	-
2	Survival	Bob Marley & The Wailers	-
5	I'm the Man	Joe Jackson	-
	Partners in Crime	Rupert Holmes	-
	Quadrophenia	The Who	Soundtrack
8	A Curious Feeling	Tony Banks	-
9	The Fine Art of Surfacing	The Boomtown Rats	-
12	Days in Europa	The Skids	-
	Greatest Hits, Vol. 1	Rod Stewart	Compilation
	Tusk	Fleetwood Mac	-
13	Victim of Love	Elton John	-
15	On the Radio: Greatest Hits Volumes I & II	Donna Summer	Compilation
16	Fire It Up	Rick James	-
16	The Message Is Love	Barry White	-
19	Cornerstone	Styx	-
	Damn the Torpedoes	Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers	-
	One Step Beyond...	Madness	-
	Prince	Prince	-
22	Prisoner	Cher	-
23	Mix-Up	Cabaret Voltaire	-
26	Dragnet	The Fall	-
27	Bomber	Motörhead	-
29	Greatest Hits Volume 2	ABBA	Compilation
30	Stevie Wonder's Journey Through "The Secret Life of Plants"	Stevie Wonder	-
-	Bee Gees Greatest	Bee Gees	Compilation
	Broken English	Marianne Faithfull	-
	Cut Above the Rest	Sweet	-
	Eat to the Beat	Blondie	-
	Flirtin' with Disaster	Molly Hatchet	-
	Harder ... Faster	April Wine	-
	Head Injuries	Midnight Oil	-
	Here	Leo Sayer	-
	Hydra	Toto	-
	I'll Always Love You	Anne Murray	-
	Images at Twilight	Saga	-
	Keep the Fire	Kenny Loggins	-
	Lovehunter	Whitesnake	-
	Magnum II	Magnum	-
	Mr. Universe	Gillan	-
	Reality Effect	The Tourists	-
	Reproduction	The Human League	-
	Thighs and Whispers	Bette Midler	-
	Wet	Barbra Streisand	-
	Whatever You Want	Status Quo	-

November

Day	Album	Artist	Notes
1	Freedom at Point Zero	Jefferson Starship	-
1	Night in the Ruts	Aerosmith	-
3	The Raincoats	The Raincoats	-
3	The Specials	The Specials	-
6	Pretty Paper	Willie Nelson	Christmas
9	The Soundhouse Tapes	Iron Maiden	EP
17	Setting Sons	The Jam	-
18	Emerson, Lake and Palmer in Concert	Emerson, Lake & Palmer	Live
19	Joe's Garage	Frank Zappa	-
19	Live Rust	Neil Young & Crazy Horse	Live
23	Live! Coast to Coast	Teddy Pendergrass	Live
	Metal Box	Public Image Ltd.	-
	Platinum	Mike Oldfield	-
28	Gloryhallastoopid	Parliament	-
30	The Wall	Pink Floyd	-
-	Brass Construction 5	Brass Construction	-
	Degüello	ZZ Top	-
	Down on the Farm	Little Feat	-
	ELO's Greatest Hits	Electric Light Orchestra	Compilation
	Machine Gun Etiquette	The Damned	-
	Masterjam	Rufus	-
	New York - London - Paris - Munich	M	-
	No Nukes: The Muse Concerts for a Non-Nuclear Future	Various Artists	Triple Live LP
	Phoenix	Dan Fogelberg	-
	Real to Real Cacophony	Simple Minds	-
	Sometimes You Win	Dr. Hook	-
	We're the Best of Friends	Natalie Cole & Peabo Bryson	-

December

Day	Album	Artist	Notes
8	On Parole	Motörhead	Debut
14	London Calling	The Clash	-
15	Sid Sings	Sid Vicious	-
27	Adventures in Utopia	Utopia	-
-	20 Jazz Funk Greats	Throbbing Gristle	-
	The Best of Top of the Pops '79	Top of the Poppers	-
	Christopher Cross	Christopher Cross	-
	Les Plus Grands Succès De Chic: Chic's Greatest Hits	Chic	-
	Quiet Life	Japan	-
	Sabotage/Live	John Cale	Live

Release Date Unknown

20 Hottest Hits – Hot Chocolate
3D – The Three Degrees
The Adventures of the Hersham Boys – Sham 69
Another Kind of Blues – UK Subs
Are You Ready – Atlanta Rhythm Section
The Audience with Betty Carter – Betty Carter
The Beat – The Beat
The Beatles Concerto – John Rutter
The Best Days of My Life – Johnny Mathis
The Best of the Dooleys – The Dooleys
The Billie Jo Spears Singles Album – Billie Jo Spears
Birth Comes to Us All – Good Rats
Born to Be Alive – Patrick Hernandez
Breaking Loose – Helix
Bridges – John Williams
Buona domenica – Antonello Venditti
Buy – James Chance & the Contortions
California – Gianna Nannini
The Candidate – Steve Harley
Carolyne Mas – Carolyne Mas
Chance Meeting on a Dissecting Table of a Sewing Machine and an Umbrella – Nurse With Wound
Classic Rock – The Second Movement – London Symphony Orchestra
A Classy Pair - Ella Fitzgerald and Count Basie
Coming Up for Air – Penetration
The Crack – The Ruts
Crepes and Drapes – Showaddywaddy
Dart Attack – Darts
David Essex Album – David Essex
The Day the Earth Caught Fire – City Boy
Deltics – Chris Rea
Demo EP - Oingo Boingo
Disco Nights – GQ
Digital III at Montreux – Ella Fitzgerald, Count Basie and Joe Pass
Don't Fight It - Red Rider
Earthquake - Electric Sun
The Eddie Cochran Singles Album – Eddie Cochran
Everyone Can Rock & Roll – Bill Haley & His Comets
Facades – Sad Café
Fighting Alone – Dixon House Band
Fine and Mellow – Ella Fitzgerald
French Skyline – Earthstar
Ghost Riders in the Sky – Slim Whitman
Grosses Wasser – Cluster
Hair – Various Artists – Soundtrack
Identify Yourself – The O'Jays
If My Friends Could See Me Now – Linda Clifford
Imperial Wizard – David Essex
In Danceland – Carrie Lucas
Invasion of the Booty Snatchers – Parlet
Jardin Au Fou – Hans-Joachim Roedelius
The Kenny Rogers Singles Album – Kenny Rogers
Last the Whole Night Long – James Last
Lena's Music Album – Lena Martell
Lenox Avenue Breakdown – Arthur Blythe
Live! Go for What You Know – Pat Travers Band
Live and Learn – Elkie Brooks
Looking for St. Tropez – Telex

Lo Pasado, Pasado – José José
Lots of Luv' - Luv'
Love Lives Forever – Minnie Riperton
Lubbock (On Everything) – Terry Allen
Made It Through the Rain – Gerard Kenny
The Magic Is You – Shirley Bassey
The Mark II Purple Singles – Deep Purple
Marty Robbins Collection – Marty Robbins
A Million Vacations - Max Webster
Moonlight Madness – Teri DeSario
Morning Dance – Spyro Gyra
Muddy "Mississippi" Waters – Live – Muddy Waters – Live
Music Box – Evelyn King
New Dimensions – The Three Degrees
New Horizons – Don Williams
A Night at Studio 54 – Various artists
Not That I'm Biased – Max Boyce
On the Road Again – Roy Wood
A Perfect Match - Ella Fitzgerald and Count Basie
Pizzazz – Patrice Rushen
Present Tense – Shoes
Reality...What a Concept – Robin Williams
Reflections – George Hamilton IV
Rise – Herb Alpert
Rock It – Chuck Berry
Rock On – Raydio
Runners in the Night – Desmond Child and Rouge
The Roches – The Roches
Semi-Detached Suburban – Manfred Mann
Shooting Stars – Dollar
Silent Cries and Mighty Echoes – Eloy
Sinful - Angel
Sky - Sky
Slim Whitman's 20 Greatest Love Songs – Slim Whitman
Sometimes You Win – Dr. Hook
Songs of the Seashore – James Galway
Songs of Love – Anita Ward
Sound on Sound – Bill Nelson's Red Noise
Star Trek: The Motion Picture – Jerry Goldsmith – Soundtrack
Stations of the Crass – Crass
Street Life – The Crusaders
Take Heart – Juice Newton
Take It Home – B.B. King
Tales of the Unexpected – Mahogany Rush
Teenage Head – Teenage Head
Teenage Warning – Angelic Upstarts
Thanks, I'll Eat It Here – Lowell George
Tiger in the Rain – Michael Franks
Thank You Very Much – Reunion Concert at the London Palladium – Cliff Richard and The Shadows
The Innes Book of Records – Neil Innes
Together Again – The Dubliners
True Luv' - Luv'
TRB TWO – Tom Robinson Band
Underdog – Atlanta Rhythm Section
The Unrecorded Jasper Carrott – Jasper Carrott
The Very Best of Leo Sayer – Leo Sayer
Walking on Sunshine – Eddy Grant

Biggest hit singles

The following songs achieved the highest chart positions in the charts of 1979.

#	Artist	Title	Year	Chart entries
1	Blondie	Heart of Glass	1979	UK 1 – Jan 1979, US BB 1 – Mar 1979, Canada 1 – Mar 1979, Austria 1 – Mar 1979, Switzerland 1 – Feb 1979, Germany 1 – Feb 1979, Australia 1 for 5 weeks Jan 1980, Sweden (alt) 3 – Mar 1979, France 3 – Feb 1979, Australia 3 of 1979, Netherlands 5 – Feb 1979, Norway 5 – Mar 1979, RYM 8 of 1979, US CashBox 11 of 1979, US BB 1 of 1979, POP 13 of 1979, South Africa 15 of 1979, Italy 29 of 1979, Virgin 29, OzNet 30, Scrobulate 46 of 80s, Germany 54 of the 1970s, RIAA 217, Acclaimed 241, Rolling Stone 255
2	Gloria Gaynor	I Will Survive	1979	UK 1 – Feb 1979, US BB 1 – Jan 1979, US BB 1 of 1979, Canada 1 – Mar 1979, Éire 1 – Mar 1979, POP 2 of 1979, Sweden (alt) 3 – Apr 1979, Netherlands 4 – Mar 1979, Norway 4 – May 1979, Switzerland 7 – Apr 1979, Scrobulate 8 of disco, Germany 9 – Mar 1979, US CashBox 10 of 1979, France 10 – Mar 1979, South Africa 16 of 1979, Austria 17 – May 1979, Party 24 of 1999, Australia 25 of 1979, Italy 38 of 1979, Europe 66 of the 1970s, RYM 67 of 1978, RIAA 89, OzNet 155, Acclaimed 416, Rolling Stone 489
3	M	Pop Muzik	1979	US BB 1 – Aug 1979, Sweden (alt) 1 – Jun 1979, Switzerland 1 – Jun 1979, Germany 1 – May 1979, Australia 1 for 3 weeks May 1980, UK 2 – Apr 1979, Austria 2 – Jul 1979, Netherlands 3 – May 1979, France 3 – Nov 1979, Norway 5 – Jun 1979, South Africa 5 of 1979, Canada 8 – Sep 1979, Australia 10 of 1979, US CashBox 15 of 1979, Italy 18 of 1979, US BB 40 of 1979, POP 40 of 1979, RYM 50 of 1979, Germany 59 of the 1970s, OzNet 888, Acclaimed 1691
4	Donna Summer	Hot Stuff	1979	US BB 1 – Apr 1979, Switzerland 1 – May 1979, Australia 1 for 1 weeks May 1980, Canada 2 – Apr 1979, Sweden (alt) 2 – May 1979, Norway 2 – Jun 1979, France 3 – May 1979, Austria 3 – Jun 1979, US BB 4 of 1979, Scrobulate 5 of disco, Germany 6 – May 1979, POP 6 of 1979, UK 11 – May 1979, US CashBox 14 of 1979, Netherlands 14 – May 1979, Australia 17 of 1979, Italy 24 of 1979, RYM 88 of 1979, Rolling Stone 103, OzNet 124, Party 210 of 1999, Germany 246 of the 1970s, Acclaimed 717
5	Patrick Hernandez	Born to Be Alive	1979	Sweden (alt) 1 – Jul 1979 (20 weeks), France (SNEP) 1 – Feb 1979 (5 months), France 1 – Mar 1979 (5 weeks), Austria 1 – Apr 1979 (6 weeks), Norway 1 – Jul 1979 (17 weeks), Belgium 1 – Jan 1979 (18 weeks), Germany 1 – Mar 1979 (6 months), Canada RPM 1 for 2 weeks – Aug 1979, New Zealand 1 for 2 weeks – Oct 1979, RIANZ 1 – Sep 1979 (14 weeks), Australia 1 for 5 weeks – Oct 1979, France 1 for 15 weeks – Mar 1979, Germany 1 for 5 weeks – May 1979, France (InfoDisc) 4 of the 1970s (peak 1, 30 weeks, 1,412k sales estimated, 1979), US Gold (certified by RIAA in Nov 1979), Germany Gold (certified by BMieV in 1979), Netherlands 5 – Feb 1979 (18 weeks), Switzerland 5 – Feb 1979 (13 weeks), Australia 5 of 1979, Springbok 6 – Aug 1979 (11 weeks), Italy 7 of 1979, UK 10 – Jun 1979 (14 weeks), POP 11 of 1979, Canada 12 – Jul 1979 (6 weeks), US BB 15 of 1979, US Billboard 16 – Jun 1979 (19 weeks), Record World 19 – 1979, Germany 20 of the 1970s (peak 1 25 weeks), Brazil 32 of 1979, Scrobulate 68 of disco, US Radio 108 of 1979 (peak 16 5 weeks), RYM 200 of 1979, UK Silver (certified by BPI in Sep 1979), Global 7 (10 M sold) – 1979

Chronological table of US and UK number one hit singles

US number one singles and artist (weeks at number one) "Da Ya Think I'm Sexy?" – Rod Stewart (2 weeks in 1978 + 4 weeks in 1979) "Too Much Heaven" – Bee Gees (2) "Le Freak" – Chic (4) "I Will Survive" – Gloria Gaynor (3) "Tragedy" – Bee Gees (2) "What a Fool Believes" – The Doobie Brothers (1) "Knock on Wood" – Amii Stewart (1) "Heart of Glass" – Blondie (1) "Reunited" – Peaches & Herb (4) "Hot Stuff" – Donna Summer (3) "Love You Inside Out" – Bee Gees (1) "Ring My Bell" – Anita Ward (2) "Bad Girls" – Donna Summer (5) "Good Times" – Chic (1) "My Sharona" – The Knack (6) "Sad Eyes" – Robert John (1) "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough" – Michael Jackson (1) "Rise" – Herb Alpert (2) "Pop Muzik" – M (1) "Heartache Tonight" – The Eagles (1) "Still" – Commodores (1) "No More Tears (Enough is Enough)" – Barbra Streisand & Donna Summer (2) "Babe" – Styx (2) "Escape (The Piña Colada Song)" – Rupert Holmes (2 weeks in 1979 + 1 week in 1980) Also see: Hot 100 No. 1 Hits of 1979	UK number one singles and artist (weeks at number one) "Y.M.C.A." – Village People (3) best selling single of the year "Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick" – Ian Dury and The Blockheads (1) "Heart of Glass" – Blondie (4) "Tragedy" – Bee Gees (2) "I Will Survive" – Gloria Gaynor (4) "Bright Eyes" – Art Garfunkel (6) "Sunday Girl" – Blondie (3) "Ring My Bell" – Anita Ward (2) "Are 'Friends' Electric?" – Tubeway Army (4) "I Don't Like Mondays" – The Boomtown Rats (4) "We Don't Talk Anymore" – Cliff Richard (4) "Cars" – Gary Numan (1) "Message in a Bottle" – The Police (3) "Video Killed the Radio Star" – The Buggles (1) "One Day at a Time" – Lena Martell (3) "When You're in Love with a Beautiful Woman" – Dr. Hook (3) "Walking on the Moon" – The Police (1) "Another Brick in the Wall, Part II" – Pink Floyd (3 weeks in 1979 + 2 weeks in 1980)

Other significant singles

"Accidents Will Happen" – Elvis Costello and the Attractions
"After the Love Has Gone" – Earth, Wind & Fire
"Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now" – McFadden & Whitehead
"Aline" - Christophe
"Angel Eyes" – Roxy Music
"Angeleyes" – ABBA
"Baby, I Love You" – Ramones
"Bad Case of Loving You (Doctor, Doctor)" – Robert Palmer
"The Ballad of Lucy Jordan" – Marianne Faithfull
"Bat Out of Hell" – Meat Loaf
"Bela Lugosi's Dead" – Bauhaus
"Big Shot" – Billy Joel
"Boogie Wonderland" – Earth, Wind & Fire with the Emotions
"(Boogie Woogie) Dancin' Shoes" – Claudja Barry
"Born to Be Alive" – Patrick Hernandez
"Boys Don't Cry" – The Cure
"Boys Keep Swinging" – David Bowie
"Breakfast in America" – Supertramp
"Bright Side of the Road" – Van Morrison
"Broken Hearted Me" – Anne Murray
"California Über Alles" – The Dead Kennedys
"Can't Stand Losing You" – The Police
"Casanova" – Luv'
"Chiquitita" – ABBA
"Chuck E.'s In Love" - Rickie Lee Jones
"Come to Me" – France Joli
"Computer Games" - Mi-Sex^[1]
"Contact" – Edwin Starr
"Cool For Cats" – Squeeze
"Crazy Little Thing Called Love" – Queen
"Cruel to Be Kind" – Nick Lowe
"Dance Away" – Roxy Music
"Dancing Barefoot" – Patti Smith Group
"Dance the Night Away" – Van Halen
"Death Disco" – Public Image Ltd.
"Deeper Than the Night" – Olivia Newton-John
"The Devil Went Down to Georgia" – Charlie Daniels Band
"Dim All the Lights" – Donna Summer
"Do Anything You Want To" – Thin Lizzy
"Do That to Me One More Time" – Captain & Tennille
"Do You Think I'm Disco?" – Steve Dahl & Teenage Radiation
"Does Your Mother Know" – ABBA
"Don't Bring Me Down" – Electric Light Orchestra
"Don't Cry Out Loud" – Melissa Manchester
"Don't Do Me Like That" – Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
"Don't Stop Til You Get Enough - Michael Jackson
"Dreaming" – Blondie
"Driver's Seat" – Sniff 'n' the Tears
"Dschinghis Khan" - Dschinghis Khan
"The Eton Rifles" – The Jam
"Even the Losers" – Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
"Every Day Hurts" – Sad Café
"Fire" – The Pointer Sisters
"Freedom's Prisoner" – Steve Harley
"The Gambler" – Kenny Rogers
"Gangsters" – The Special AKA
"Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)" – ABBA
"Girls Talk" – Dave Edmunds
"Go West" – Village People
"Good Times" – Chic
"Good Times Roll" – The Cars
"Gonna Get Along Without You Now" – Viola Wills
"Goodbye Stranger" – Supertramp
"Green Light" – Cliff Richard
"Half The Way" – Crystal Gayle
"Hallelujah" – Milk and Honey featuring Gali Atari
"He Must Have Been Eighteen" – Dalida
"He's the Greatest Dancer" – Sister Sledge
"Heaven Knows" – Donna Summer w/Brooklyn Dreams
"Helwa Ya Baladi" – Dalida
"Here Comes the Summer" – The Undertones
"Highway Song" – Blackfoot
"Highway to Hell" – AC/DC
"99" – Toto
"Honesty" – Billy Joel
"Hot Stuff" – Donna Summer
"Hot Summer Night" – Night
"(If Loving You Is Wrong) I Don't Want to Be Right" – Barbara Mandrell
"I Have a Dream" – ABBA
"I Just Fall in Love Again" – Anne Murray (the #1 US Country hit of the year)
"I Wanna Be Sedated" – Ramones
"I Want You To Want Me (live)" – Cheap Trick
"I Want Your Love" – Chic
"I Was Made For Lovin' You" – Kiss
"I Will Survive" - Gloria Gaynor
"If I Said You Had a Beautiful Body Would You Hold It Against Me" – The Bellamy Brothers
"Il faut danser reggae" – Dalida
"In the Navy" – Village People
"In A Rut" – The Ruts
"Into the Valley" – The Skids
"Is It Love You're After?" – Rose Royce
"Is She Really Going Out with Him?" – Joe Jackson
"Japanese Girls" – Riff Regan
"Jezebel - Jon Stevens
"Jimmy Jimmy" – The Undertones
"Jumping Someone Else's Train" – The Cure
"Just the Way You Are" – Barry White
"Just What I Needed" – The Cars
"Just When I Needed You Most" – Randy VanWarmer
"Kid" – The Pretenders
"Lady" – Little River Band
"Lay Your Love on Me" – Racey
"Lead Me On" – Maxine Nightingale
"Let Me Dance Tonight" – Dalida
"Let's Go" – The Cars
"A Little Lovin' (Keeps the Doctor Away)" – The Raes
"Living On The Front Line" – Eddy Grant
"The Logical Song" – Supertramp
"London Calling" – The Clash
"Lonesome Loser" – Little River Band
"The Long Run" – Eagles
"Lotta Love" – Nicolette Larson
"Love Don't Live Here Anymore" – Morrissey–Mullen
"Love Drive" – Scorpions
"Love's Gotta Hold on Me" – Dollar
"Love Song" – The Damned
"Lucky Number" – Lene Lovich
"The Main Event/Fight" – Barbra Streisand
"Mama Can't Buy You Love" - Elton John
"Making Plans for Nigel" – XTC
"Memory Lane" – Minnie Riperton
"A Message to You, Rudy/Nite Klub" – The Specials
"Milk and Alcohol" – Dr. Feelgood
"Monday, Tuesday... Laissez-moi danser" – Dalida
"Morning Dance" – Spyro Gyra
"Moskau" – Dschinghis Khan
"Music Box Dancer" – Frank Mills
"My Forbidden Lover" – Chic
"My Girl" – Madness
"My Life" – Billy Joel
"Nervous System" – Killing Joke
"No time to Lose" – Tarney Spencer Band
"Old Time Rock and Roll" - Bob Seger
"Oliver's Army" – Elvis Costello and the Attractions
"On My Radio" – The Selecter
"One Step Beyond" – Madness
"One Way or Another" – Blondie
"One Way Ticket" – Eruption
"Ooh Baby Baby" – Linda Ronstadt
"Ooh, Yes I Do" – Luv'
"Parisienne Walkways" – Gary Moore
"Nami Nori Pirates" - Pink Lady (band)
"Playground Twist" – Siouxsie and the Banshees
"Please Don't Go" – KC & The Sunshine Band
"The Prince" – Madness
"Promises" – Eric Clapton
"Queen of Hearts" – Dave Edmunds
"Rapper's Delight" – The Sugarhill Gang
"Reasons to Be Cheerful (Part 3)" – Ian Dury & the Blockheads
"Refugee" – Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers
"Rock With You" – Michael Jackson
"Rodrigo's Guitar Concerto" – The Shadows
"Roll Over Beethoven (EP)" – Chuck Berry
"Roxanne" – The Police (released in 1978)
"Run Like Hell – Pink Floyd
"Sad Eyes" – Robert John
"Sail On" – Commodores
"Shadows in the Moonlight" – Anne Murray
"Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground)" – The Jacksons
"She Believes In Me" – Kenny Rogers
"Shine a Little Love – Electric Light Orchestra
"Since You Been Gone" – Rainbow
"Slap and Tickle" – Squeeze
"Smash It Up" – The Damned
"So Bist Du" - Peter Maffay
"Some Girls" – Racey
"Somethin' Else"/"Friggin' in the Riggin'" – Sex Pistols
"Somewhere in the Night" – Barry Manilow
"Song on the Radio" – Al Stewart
"Spiral Scratch (EP)" – Buzzcocks
"Strange Town" – The Jam
"Street Life" – The Crusaders w/Randy Crawford
"Stumblin' In" – Suzi Quatro & Chris Norman
"Sultans of Swing" – Dire Straits (released in 1978)
"Life During Wartime (song)" – Talking Heads
"Take On The World" – Judas Priest
"Take The Long Way Home – Supertramp
"Talking In Your Sleep" – Crystal Gayle
"Tears of a Clown"/"Ranking Full Stop" – The Beat
"The Cost of Living (EP)" – The Clash
"The Diary of Horace Wimp" – Electric Light Orchestra
"The Staircase (Mystery)" – Siouxsie and the Banshees
"Theme from the Deerhunter (Cavatina)" – The Shadows
"Train, Train" – Blackfoot
"Transmission" – Joy Division
"Turn to Red" – Killing Joke
"Union City Blue" – Blondie
"Up the Junction" – Squeeze
"Voulez-Vous" – ABBA
"Waiting for an Alibi" – Thin Lizzy
"Wanted" – The Dooleys
"We Are Family" – Sister Sledge
"We Don't Talk Anymore" – Cliff Richard
"Whatever You Want" – Status Quo
"What You Won't Do for Love " – Bobby Caldwell
"When You're in Love With A Beautiful Woman" – Dr.Hook
"When You're Young" – The Jam
"Wonderful Christmastime" – Paul McCartney
"Y.M.C.A" – Village People
"You Decorated My Life" – Kenny Rogers
"You Needed Me" – Anne Murray (in the UK; hit #1 in the US in 1978)
"You Take My Breath Away" – Rex Smith
"You've Got My Number (Why Don't You Use It?)" – The Undertones

Published popular music

"Don't Cry Out Loud" w. Carole Bayer Sager m. Peter Allen
"The Facts of Life" w.m. Alan Thicke, Gloria Loring, and Al Burton, from the TV series of the same name
"I'd Rather Leave While I'm In Love" w.m. Carole Bayer Sager & Peter Allen
"Knots Landing theme" m. Jerrold Immel
"The Rainbow Connection" w.m. Kenny Ascher & Paul Williams, from the film The Muppet Movie
Sultans of Swing w.m. Mark Knopfler

Classical music

Arno Babadjanian – Third String Quartet
Osvaldas Balakauskas – Symphony no 2
George Crumb
- Apparition for soprano and amplified piano
- Celestial Mechanics (Makrokosmos IV) for amplified piano (four hands)
- Star-Child (1977, revised 1979) for soprano, antiphonal children's voices, male speaking choir, bell ringers, and large orchestra
Mario Davidovsky – Pennplay for sixteen players
Hugh Flynn – Birds
Jacques Hétu – Bassoon Concerto
Miloslav Kabelac – Metamorphoses II, for piano and orchestra, op. 58
Witold Lutosławski – Novelette for Orchestra
William Lloyd Webber – Missa Sanctae Mariae Magdalenae
Allan Pettersson – Viola Concerto

Opera

Dominick Argento – Miss Havisham's Wedding Night
Libby Larsen – The Silver Fox

Musical theater

Ain't Misbehavin' (Music: Fats Waller, Lyrics: Various Book: Murray Horwitz & Richard Maltby, Jr.). London production opened at Her Majesty's Theatre on March 22.
Carmelina (Book: Alan Jay Lerner & Joseph Stein Lyrics: Alan Jay Lerner Music: Burton Lane) Broadway production opened at the St. James Theatre on April 8 and ran for 17 performances. Starring Georgia Brown and Cesare Siepi
Evita (Music: Andrew Lloyd Webber, Lyrics and Book: Tim Rice). Broadway production opened at the Broadway Theatre on September 25 and ran for 1567 performances
The King and I London revival opened at the Palladium on June 12 and ran for 538 performances
My Old Friends (Music, Lyrics and Book: Mel Mandel and Norman Sachs). Off-Broadway production opened at the Orpheum Theatre on January 12 and transferred to the 22 Steps Theatre on Broadway on April 12 for a total run of 154 performances.
Oklahoma! (Music: Richard Rodgers, Lyrics and Book: Oscar Hammerstein II) – Broadway revival opened at the Palace Theatre on December 13 and ran for 310 performances
Peter Pan (Music: Mark Charlap, Lyrics and Book: Carolyn Leigh with additional songs, Music: Jule Styne and Lyrics: Betty Comden & Adolph Green). Broadway revival opened at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre on September 6 and ran for 551 performances.
Saravà (Music: Mitch Leigh, Lyrics and Book: N. Richard Nash). Broadway production opened at the Mark Hellinger Theatre on February 23 and ran for 140 performances
Sugar Babies Broadway revue opened at the Mark Hellinger Theatre on October 8 and ran for 1208 performances.
Sweeney Todd (Music and Lyrics: Stephen Sondheim, Book: Hugh Wheeler) – Broadway production opened at the Uris Theatre on March 1 and ran for 557 performances
They're Playing Our Song (Music: Marvin Hamlisch, Lyrics: Carole Bayer Sager, Book: Neil Simon). Broadway production opened at the Imperial Theatre on February 11 and ran for 1082 performances
Tommy London production opened at Queen's Theatre on February 6 and ran for 118 performances
The Venetian Twins (Music: Terence Clarke, Lyrics and Book: Nick Enright). Opened at the Sydney Opera House Drama Theatre on October 26.
Whoopee (Music: Walter Donaldson, Lyrics: Gus Kahn, Book: William Anthony McGuire). Broadway revival opened at the ANTA Theatre on February 14 and ran for 212 performances.

Musical films

Births

January 5 – Kathleen Edwards, singer
January 10 – Kris Kross, singer-songwriter
January 16 – Aaliyah Haughton, singer and actress (d. 2001)
January 20
- Rob Bourdon (Linkin Park)
- Will Young, British singer
February 1 – Jason Isbell, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (Drive-By Truckers)
February 11 – Brandy Norwood, singer
February 14 - Tsakane Valentine Maswanganyi, operatic and concert soprano
February 21 – Jennifer Love Hewitt, singer-songwriter and actress
March 8 – Tom Chaplin, British singer (Keane)
March 11
- Benji Madden
- Joel Madden
March 14 – Jacques Brautbar (Phantom Planet)
March 30 - Norah Jones, American singer-songwriter
April 1 - Mikko Franck, violinist and conductor
April 10 – Sophie Ellis-Bextor, British singer, daughter of Janet Ellis
April 11
- Danielle de Niese, operatic soprano
- Chris Gaylor (The All-American Rejects)
- Sebastien Grainger (Death from Above 1979)
April 13 - Tony Lundon (Liberty X)
April 20 - Quinn Weng, rock vocalist
April 22 – Daniel Johns (Silverchair)
April 29
- Jo O'Meara (S Club 7)
- Matt Tong (Bloc Party)
May 4 – Lance Bass ('N Sync)
June 5 – Pete Wentz, musician and songwriter
June 8 – Derek Trucks, guitarist, songwriter
June 17 - Young Maylay, American rapper, producer, and voice actor
June 26 – Ryan Tedder (OneRepublic)
June 29 – Abz Love (5ive)
July 4 – Dumas, Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist
July 5 – Shane Filan (Westlife)
July 16 – Ivan Tásler
July 25 – Amy Adams, singer
July 26 – Tamyra Gray, singer
August 20 – Jamie Cullum, jazz pianist and singer
August 23 - Ritchie Neville (5ive)
August 27 – Jon Siebels (Eve 6)
August 31 – Yuvan Shankar Raja, film composer and singer
September 3 – Jason McCaslin (Sum 41)
September 6 – Foxy Brown, rapper
September 8 – Pink, singer
September 21 - Maija Kovaļevska, operatic soprano
September 22 – Emilie Autumn, violinist, singer and songwriter
October 9 – Alex Greenwald (Phantom Planet)
October 12 – Jordan Pundik (New Found Glory)
October 15 – Jaci Velasquez, Latin pop singer
October 24 – Ben Gillies (Silverchair)
November 5 – Nick Giggler (Mest)
November 9 - Nicolas Koeckert, violinist
November 10 – Chris Joannou (Silverchair)
November 22 - Scott Robinson (5ive)
December 3 - Daniel Bedingfield, English pop singer and songwriter
December 26 – Chris Daughtry, rock guitarist, singer and songwriter
December 31 – Bob Bryar (My Chemical Romance)

Deaths

January 5 – Charles Mingus, jazz musician, 56 (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis)
January 13
- Donny Hathaway, singer, 33 (suicide)
- Marjorie Lawrence, operatic soprano, 71
February 2 – Sid Vicious, punk rocker, 21 (heroin overdose)
March 4 – Mike Patto, rock singer, 36 (cancer)
March 5 – Alan Crofoot, operatic tenor and host of Mr Piper, 49 (suicide)^[2]
March 13 - Harrison Keller, US violinist and music teacher, 90^[3]
March 22 – Walter Legge, record producer, 72
March 23 - Antonio Brosa, violinist, 84
April 10 – Nino Rota, composer, 67
April 16 - Maria Caniglia, operatic soprano, 73
April 29 – Julia Perry, composer and conductor, 55
May 1 - Bronislav Gimpel, violinist, 68
May 9 - Zoltán Kelemen, operatic bass-baritone, 53
May 11 – Lester Flatt, bluegrass musician, 64
May 21 – Blue Mitchell, trumpeter, 49
June 5 – Jack Haley, Wizard of Oz star, 80
June 21 - Angus MacLise, American drummer and songwriter (Velvet Underground and Theatre of Eternal Music), 41 (hypoglycemia and pulmonary tuberculosis)^[4]
June 29 – Lowell George, singer, songwriter and guitarist, founder of Little Feat, 34 (heart attack)
July 3 – Louis Durey, composer, 91
July 6 – Van McCoy, singer, 35 (heart attack)
July 12 – Minnie Riperton, singer, 31 (breast cancer)
July 14 – Pedro Flores, composer, 85
July 16 – Alfred Deller, countertenor, 67
August 19 – Dorsey Burnette, Rockabilly singer, 46 (heart attack)
August 25 – Stan Kenton, bandleader, 67
September 2 - Jacques Février, pianist, 79
September 6 – Guy Bolton, English librettist, 94
September 22 - Richard Nibley, violinist, 66
September 27
- Gracie Fields, actress and singer, 81
- Jimmy McCulloch, guitarist (Wings), 28
October 1 – Roy Harris, composer, 81
October 13 – Rebecca Helferich Clarke, viola player and composer, 93
October 22 – Nadia Boulanger, French composer, conductor, and music teacher, 92
October 27 - Germaine Lubin, operatic soprano, 89
November 11 - Dimitri Tiomkin, film composer and conductor, 85
November 13 – Freda Betti, French mezzo-soprano opera singer, 55
November 17 – John Glascock, rock bassist, 28
November 30 – Joyce Grenfell, actress and singer-songwriter, 69
December 21 – Nansi Richards, harpist, 91
December 30 – Richard Rodgers, composer and songwriter, 77

Awards

Grammy Awards

Grammy Awards of 1979

References

↑ Mi-Sex
↑ "Alcohol, medication may have led to tenor's suicide". The Calgary Herald. March 7, 1979. p. B18. Retrieved February 6, 2013.
↑ Baker's Biographical Dictionary of Musicians, Seventh Edition, Revised by Nicolas Slonimsky, Schirmer Books, New York, 1984, page 1178
↑ allmusic "Angus MacLise"