Jimmy Carter was president from 1977- 1980. A lot of classic albums released during that time. Some of these are universally beloved. Some of these could be set aside as bizarre crap.
From the Jimmy Carter era, there are about 100 albums that land on my lists of favorite 70s and 80s albums. Making a top 50 list was really easy, because 1980 is easily the inferior year, in my opinion. I narrowed the honorable mentions down to 5. Here they are.
+ Bee Gees and Various Artists Saturday Night Fever: The Original Movie Soundtrack
+ Buzzcocks Singles Going Steady
+ Neil Young Rust Never Sleeps
+ Wire 154
+ Bauhaus In the Flat Field
For those 3 at the top, I'm not certain if they fit the criteria for an "album." Compiled previously released material and concert recordings. As for Wire and Bauhaus, those albums are dope, and they're actually ranked a smidge higher on my decade rankings than the bottom 2 albums on this top 50 list. I just thought I'd be cute and make room for Bruce Springsteen and Fleetwood Mac.
Here's the list.
#50 - 41
50 Bruce Springsteen The River
Among Bruce's corniest early works, this is a perfect summertime epic.
49 Fleetwood Mac Tusk
Within the general radio pop world of Fleetwood, I find this delightfully experimental.
48 Siouxshee and the Banshees The Scream
I feel bad for not putting Bauhaus on this list, but I think seeing Siouxshee made the list should satisfy the goth purists out there.
47 David Bowie Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps)
Released between his artistically prestigious Berlin occupancy and his commercially accessible Let's Dance, Bowie gives us a great set of tracks that fuses the best of both worlds.
46 The B-52's The B-52's
Hailing from Athens GA, God blessed us with this new wave band with a love for 50s fashion, giving us hit songs about fake planets and lobsters.
45 Devo Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo!
The whole concept of Devo is just as crazy in theory as it was in practice.
44 The Raincoats The Raincoats
The ultimate predecessor to the female-led twee and indie rock that would breakout in the 90s.
43 Marianne Faithful Broken English
I think the songwriting is excellent here, and kinda cool to see a low-profile 60s artist suddenly indulge in the new wave movement.
42 Iggy Pop The Idiot
Iggy Pop's resurgence in the music world was a brilliant take on art rock, co-piloted by David Bowie.
41 Public Image Ltd Public Image: First Issue
Seeing this album cover among more common classics looks out of place to me, but John Lydon's vocals on here are pretty darn "out of place" among anybody.
#40 - 31
40 Talking Heads Talking Heads: 77
Talking Heads hit straight out the gate looking like one of New York's most interesting new bands with an impressive collection of consistently interesting songs.
39 The Clash The Clash
The Clash's beginnings are kinda hard to document, considering their different UK and US releases, along with some superior non-album singles.
38 Dead Kennedys Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables
Some of y'all will call bullcrap on this making my top 40, but were any other punk bands delivering a personality like this before 1980?
37 Giorgio Moroder From Here to Eternity
Eurodisco isn't my most studied genre, but even then, I think it'd be hard to find an album that tops Giorgio.
36 The Specials The Specials
Often credited as the first "ska" album... Actually, I feel no need to expound on that.
35 Big Star Third/Sister Lovers
Recorded in 1974, these are songs Alex Chilton wrote during his unfortunately extreme decline in mental health
34 Talking Heads More Songs About Buildings and Food
Talking Heads followed up their debut by dipping their toes into a few different genres, with production from Brian Eno.
33 The Pop Group Y
This is one of those albums where I'm allured by its sense of mystery, in both the songwriting and recording process (and the album cover).
32 Prince Dirty Mind
As the title suggests, Prince's music would only get dirtier and more cerebral from here.
31 XTC Drums and Wires
"Making Plans for Nigel" appropriately kicks off on album full of highlights from one of the most clever bands of all time.
#30 - 21
30 Kraftwerk The Man-Machine
I haven't heard their entire discography, but I consider this Kraftwerk at their catchiest.
29 Elvis Costello and the Attractions Get Happy!!
Elvis Costello's love letter to the soul and R&B sounds of 1960 also delivers a track-after-track display of his second-nature for creative wordplay.
28 The Cars The Cars
"Shut up and play the hits!"
27 Van Halen Van Halen
I just love the production on this album, where each band member's input is presented with its own individually delicate treatment.
26 Public Image Ltd Second Edition
A bold move for an oddball post-punk band to go for a double album on release #2, but it's worth getting into this new dark world they created.
25 Throbbing Gristle 20 Jazz Funk Greats
Despite it being the ultimate industrial album, I don't think I can call it "influential" because nothing else sounds like it.
24 Blondie Parallel Lines
I feel like Blondie and The Cars should be placed next to each other, as the perfect duo of new wave's hit factories.
23 David Bowie "Heroes"
I guess David Bowie's Berlin era is an "acquired taste," but if you've spent enough time digging through the world of weirdo 70s music, this stuff is great to an obvious extent.
22 Wire Chairs Missing
Maybe it's just me, but sometimes I prefer this album's ethereal sound to Pink Flag.
21 Brian Eno Ambient 1: Music for Airports
You don't have to dig too deep to fall into the Brian Eno rabbit hole, but I think we all come out of it with different perspectives and preferences.
#20 - 11
20 Suicide Suicide
Suicide's aesthetic is made by simple means, yet so hard to replicate.
19 Gang of Four Entertainment!
I just gotta admit that Gang of Four's approach to dance-punk turned out to be highly influential and at times--dare I say it-- "fun."
18 Elvis Costello and the Attractions This Year's Model
Every song on this album sounds like hit, and I can't reiterate enough just how freaking talented Costello is as a lyricist.
17 Wire Pink Flag
Wire kicked off their career with an album that explored punk in every direction imaginable.
16 Michael Jackson Off the Wall
Disco was built for a short lifespan, but pop music's upcoming icon took advantage of a chance to master the genre with a few classic singles to boot.
15 Bruce Springsteen Darkness on the Edge of Town
Each song on this is a songwriting masterclass, in my opinion.
14 Sex Pistols Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols
Sex Pistols were loud and extreme and obnoxious, giving us an act that could never really successfully be followed.
13 Talking Heads Fear of Music
Talking Heads unintentionally became the sound of New York in 1979, releasing their best set of songs yet, walking a tightrope between exuberance and death.
12 Television Marquee Moon
A guitar eccentric's masterpiece, of course held together by its legendary epic title track.
11 Elvis Costello My Aim Is True
Costello still had a menial day job as a computer processor when he made this, and I feel that.
#10 - 1
10 Steely Dan Aja
The unsung hero of Steely Dan is producer Gary Katz, who leaped into the next dimension of studio engineering with one the most elegant pop albums of the 70s as proof.
9 Joy Division Closer
This is on a short list of albums that gradually sucks me into its uniquely bleak universe, and always leaves me in awe.
8 Joy Division Unknown Pleasures
You wanna talk about music that was creatively ahead of the curve and undeniably influential, this album's got it all.
7 David Bowie Low
It's crazy to think that Bowie made this while quitting his cocaine addiction cold turkey, because this probably sounds mind-blowing if you're on coke.
6 Kraftwerk Trans-Europe Express
I always understood the appeal to this album from a futurist perspective, but it took me a few years to get around to the genius behind the album experience, built like a symphony.
5 Steve Reich Music for 18 Musicians
Wikipedia describes this as "a work of musical minimalism" and not an actual "album," but screw it, I've never heard anything else like this in my entire life.
4 Pink Floyd The Wall
Somehow fitting some radio rock hits in the mix, this is one of the most emotionally-taxing listening experiences you'll ever have.
3 Fleetwood Mac Rumours
The pop songs that stand the test of time are the ones that sound like they were written by actual adults, so here we are in 2022 still agreeing on Fleetwood Mac.
2 The Clash London Calling
If you've ever had a phase in life where you fall in love with this album, you know why it's up here.
1 Talking Heads Remain in Light
This killed Jimmy Carter's presidency in 1980, and it's loaded with explosive musical hints at the sound of the future, as well as an apocalyptic outlook on the world to come, both anxiety-inducing and danceable enough to leave me sweating every time.
