History in Five Songs Episode 330: The NWOBHM in 1979

In Episode 335 of History in Five Songs with Martin Popoff, Martin traces the parallel rise, stumbles, and enduring legacies of Motörhead and Saxon, showing how the two bands evolved like true heavy-metal doppelgängers across debuts, classics, live albums, missteps, and comeback eras. Motörhead – “Keep Us on the Road” Saxon – “Out of Control” Motörhead – “Marching Off to War” Saxon – “Hole in the Sky” Motörhead – “When the Eagle Screams” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In Episode 334 of History in Five Songs with Martin Popoff, Martin digs into why so many rock, metal, and even punk bands slip old-school 1950s-style rock-and-roll rave-ups into their albums, exploring the roots, motives, and surprising examples behind this enduring musical quirk. Whitesnake – “Bloody Luxury” Kiss – “Let Me Go, Rock ‘n’ Roll” Accept – “Burning” The Clash – “Brand New Cadillac” Rush – “In the Mood” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In Episode 333 of History in Five Songs with Martin Popoff, Martin dives into those puzzling album openers that deflate excitement right out of the gate—exploring songs that worry, confuse, or misrepresent their bands, from The Who and Rush to Queen, Rainbow, and Yes. The Who – “New Song” Rush – “The Big Money” Queen – “Party” Rainbow – “I Surrender” Yes – “Going for the One” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In Episode 333 of History in Five Songs with Martin Popoff, Martin dives into those puzzling album openers that deflate excitement right out of the gate—exploring songs that worry, confuse, or misrepresent their bands, from The Who and Rush to Queen, Rainbow, and Yes. The Who – “New Song” Rush – “The Big Money” Queen – “Party” Rainbow – “I Surrender” Yes – “Going for the One” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In Episode 332 of History in Five Songs with Martin Popoff, Martin digs into the most surprising omissions from classic live rock albums by legends like Led Zeppelin, Queen, and Rush—spotlighting the iconic tracks that somehow never made the cut. Led Zeppelin – “Immigrant Song” Queen – “Somebody to Love” Rush – “Limelight” AC/DC – “Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap” Blue Öyster Cult – “Astronomy” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In Episode 331 of History in Five Songs with Martin Popoff, Martin ponders the bands and albums that helped invent multiple rock and metal genres at once—from Hendrix, Cream, and Pink Floyd shaping psychedelia, prog, and metal, to King Crimson, Uriah Heep, Sabbath, and Venom forging the foundations of progressive metal, power metal, goth, thrash, and black metal. Jimi Hendrix Experience – “Love or Confusion" King Crimson – “The Court of the Crimson King” Uriah Heep – “Poet’s Justice” Venom – “Witching Hour” Metallica – “No Remorse” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In Episode 330 of History in Five Songs with Martin Popoff, Martin explores the birth of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal in 1979, tracing the pivotal singles, band formations, and cultural shifts that set the stage for Iron Maiden, Def Leppard, Saxon, and countless others to ignite a new era of heavy music. Girlschool – “Take It All Away” Motörhead – “Tear Ya Down” Samson – “It’s Not as Easy as It Seems” Vardis – “If I Were King” Witchfynde – “Give ‘Em Hell” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In Episode 329 of History in Five Songs with Martin Popoff, Martin digs through the decade’s heavy underground to find traces of early U.S. doom metal—spotlighting bands like Sir Lord Baltimore, Blue Öyster Cult, and Kiss—while concluding that true doom wouldn’t fully take shape in America until years after Black Sabbath set the template. Sir Lord Baltimore – “Kingdom Come” Blue Oyster Cult – “This Ain’t the Summer of Love” Kiss – “Strange Ways” Aerosmith – “Nobody’s Fault” Ted Nugent – “Venom Soup” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In Episode 328 of History in Five Songs with Martin Popoff, Martin explores “the last hair metal album”—digging into the moment before grunge overtook the charts to pinpoint which glossy, glam-fueled record marked the true end of hair metal’s unironically flashy golden era. Guns N’ Roses – “Think About You” Trixter – “Heart of Steel” Slaughter – “Spend My Life” Extreme – “Get the Funk Out” Jackyl – “Brain Drain” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In Episode 327 of History in Five Songs with Martin Popoff, Martin ponders the question of which record truly marked the end of prog’s golden era, tracing the genre’s rise from King Crimson and Genesis through Pink Floyd and Yes, and debating where the vitality of prog finally gave way to punk, new wave, and beyond. King Crimson – “Fallen Angel” Genesis – “Deep in the Motherlode” Pink Floyd – “Waiting for the Worms” Yes – “Does It Really Happen?” Rush – “The Camera Eye” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices