Chit Chat official best 1979/80 single shootout:

Actually looking at the lists of singles from then, I think it is fair to say they produced far more stuff that will stand the test of time than the stuff we get now?
I missed out a lot of abba, blondie, and so on.
The Jam "Start" should be in there for sure.
And "Going Underground"
David Bowie "Fashion" as well.

I suppose I'm making my own point, stuff that hit like #15 then are still known, stuff that hits #2 now nobody even knows!!

OMD - Enola Gay

The Jam "Eton Rifles"

london calling ...the clash

if you dont want to count good singles then so be it

Blondie Atomic

far too many but wouldn't pick any from that list

yes rather a poor selection bb

Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough - Michael Jackson
Gangsters - The Specials
Boogie Wonderland - Earth Wing And Fire
Girls Talk - Dave Edmunds
Heart Of Glass - Blondie
Brass in Pocket – The Pretenders
Oliver’s Army – Elvis Costello
Another Brick In The Wall – Pink Floyd

All 1979

mmm , where to begin in the golden era of music , perhaps with these :

AC/DC    Highway To Hell
AC/DC    Touch Too Much
Blondie    Dreaming
Blondie    Picture This
Blondie    Union City Blues
Fleetwood Mac    Tusk
Generation X    Friday's Angel
Generation X    King Rocker
Generation X    Valley Of The Dolls
Gerry Rafferty    Night Owl
Pink Floyd    Another Brick In The Wall (Part 2)
Rainbow    Since You've Been Gone
Sad Café    Everyday Hurts
Secret Affair    Time For Action
Skids    Charade
Skids    Into The Valley
Spizz Energi    Where's Captain Kirk
Squeeze    Cool For Cats
Squeeze    Slap And Tickle
Squeeze    Up The Junction
Supertramp    The Logical Song
The Angelic Upstarts    I'm An Upstart
The Bee Gees    Spirits Having Flown
The Bee Gees    Tragedy
The Boomtown Rats    I Don't Like Mondays
The Dickies    Banana Splits(The Tra La La Song)
The Jam    Strange Town
The Members    Sound Of The Suburbs
The Motors    Airport
The Police    Message In A Bottle
The Police    Walking On The Moon
The Ruts    Babylon's Burning
The Sex Pistols    C'mon Everyboby
The Sex Pistols    Silly Thing
The Sex Pistols    Something Else
The Skids    Masquerade
The Skids    Working For The Yankee Dollar
The Stranglers    Duchess
The Stranglers    Nuclear Device
The Tourists    The Loneliest Man In The World
The Tubes    Prime Time
The Undertones    Get Over You
The Undertones    Jimmy Jimmy
Thin Lizzy    Do Anything You Want To
Thin Lizzy    Sarah
Tubeway Army    Are Friends Electric ?
UFO    Shoot Shoot
UK Subs    She's Not There
Adam And The Ants    Cartrouble
Athletico Spizz 80    No Room
Bauhaus    Terror Couple Kill Colonel
Black Sabbath    Neon Knights
Blondie    Call Me
Dave Stewart / Colin Blunstone    What Becomes Of The Broken Hearted
David Bowie    Alabama Song
Department S    Is Vic There  ?
Elvis Costello & Attractions    I Cant' Stand Up For Falling Down
Genesis    Duchess
Gillan    Trouble
John Foxx    Burning Car
Joy Division    Love Will Tear Us Apart
Motorhead    Ace Of Spades
Peter Gabriel    Games Without Frontiers
Philip Lynott    Dear Miss Lonely Hearts
Philip Lynott    Yellow Pearl
Rainbow    All Night Long
Saxon    Wheels Of Steel
Siouxie And The Banshees    Happy House
The Boomtown Rats    Rat Trap
The Ruts    Staring At The Rude Boys
The Specials    Too  Much Too Young
The Stranglers    Bear Cage
The Stranglers    Who Wants The World
The Young And Moody Band    Don't Do That
Thin Lizzy    Killer On The Loose
Triumph    I Live For The Weekend
Whitesnake    Ain't No Love In The Heart Of The City
XTC    Sgt. Rock Is Going To Help Me

The Golden Era? The Bee Gees Tragedy kinda sums this period up.
As Sinead would say nothing compares to the mid to late 60s and very early 70s. After that it was only downhill apart from the occasional hiccup.

I agree with Makybe.  Enola Gay is one of history's many great toons.

IMO

^ plenty of other ones mentioned above, btw.  Especially the punk / rockers.

As I say I just picked a few from the offical top 100 from the lists from the year, there are quite a few corkers listed above as well.
I didn't want it to get too big! It was a golden era imho. I think the most important thing to notice is we don't have many band called "The" any more.

I'm off to listen to my The One Direction back catalogue.

The Just Checking.

Oh, to be 18 and revisit all the gigs I went to that winter ...

The Teardrop Explodes released Treason, in that royal blue sleeve, in Feb. 1980. That'll do for me.

Out of that list "Eton Rifles" is a standout winner.

I actually prefered '81 myself, a year of pure debauchery

I was 16 in 1981 B-B, I was playing rugby, chasing skirt, walking my Dad's greyhounds, going to the Galway and Tralee festivals. That was a grand year.

I was 18 slips and spent most of that year in different beds at the nurses home in Burton.

and I got through my exams by the skin of my teeth, it could actually have been a bit of a disaster. you failed any year where I was and you were out no 2nd chances.