Blame friend-of-the-station Jim Bricker. He got in touch the other day, asked “how awesome was 1971?”, and wouldn’t let it go — and the more we dug, the more the question answered itself. So we’ve built a special around it: two hours (all right, a little more) making the case that 1971 might just be the greatest year popular music ever had. Jim chose the tracks – and I added a few bonus tracks at the end. The idea isn’t ours alone. Music writer David Hepworth wrote a whole book on it, 1971 — Never a Dull Moment, arguing this was the year the album grew up and everyone seemed to make the record of their lives all at once. Then there was the excellent Apple TV series. We’ll put his argument to you — and, because we’re fair-minded, we’ll also hand you the case against, from the folks who reckon he’s simply picked the year he happened to turn twenty-one. Mostly, though, we’ll just play you the evidence, because it’s overwhelming. One year gave us Tapestry and Blue and What’s Going On; the Beatles scattering into brilliant, bickering solo careers; Marvin Gaye and Sly Stone holding a mirror up to the times; prog stretching its legs, glam pulling on its feathers, and Led Zeppelin recording drums in a stairwell. There’s Bowie reinventing himself, Joni Mitchell breaking your heart in a folk song, and a closing run that lands, inevitably, on Imagine. Pour something, settle in, and decide for yourself. Was it really the best of them all? Tune in — and tell us we’re wrong. Broadcast 29 July 2026

Songs in this episode:

0:00 NZ Net Radio – In the Mix How Awesome Was 1971
1:04 The Who – Baba O'Riley
2:22 NZ Net Radio – In the Mix How Awesome Was 1971
3:26 David Bowie – Changes
4:43 NZ Net Radio – In the Mix How Awesome Was 1971
5:47 Marvin Gaye – Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)
7:08 NZ Net Radio – In the Mix How Awesome Was 1971
8:12 Sly & The Family Stone – Family Affair
9:32 NZ Net Radio – In the Mix How Awesome Was 1971
10:34 Carole King – It's Too Late
11:58 NZ Net Radio – In the Mix How Awesome Was 1971
12:54 Joni Mitchell – Little Green
14:18 NZ Net Radio – In the Mix How Awesome Was 1971
15:07 Rod Stewart – (Find A) Reason To Believe
16:25 NZ Net Radio – In the Mix How Awesome Was 1971
17:26 Yes – Roundabout
18:45 NZ Net Radio – In the Mix How Awesome Was 1971
19:41 Led Zeppelin – When the Levee Breaks
20:59 NZ Net Radio – In the Mix How Awesome Was 1971
21:54 Paul McCartney, Linda McCartney – Too Many People
23:16 NZ Net Radio – In the Mix How Awesome Was 1971
24:05 John Lennon – Jealous Guy
25:25 NZ Net Radio – In the Mix How Awesome Was 1971
26:14 Badfinger – Day After Day
27:35 NZ Net Radio – In the Mix How Awesome Was 1971
28:06 Harry Nilsson – Without You
29:31 NZ Net Radio – In the Mix How Awesome Was 1971
30:35 Genesis – The Musical Box (2007 Stereo Mix)
31:59 NZ Net Radio – In the Mix How Awesome Was 1971
33:03 America – A Horse with No Name
34:28 NZ Net Radio – In the Mix How Awesome Was 1971
35:11 The Rolling Stones – Wild Horses
36:36 NZ Net Radio – In the Mix How Awesome Was 1971
37:40 The Beach Boys – Surf's Up
39:01 NZ Net Radio – In the Mix How Awesome Was 1971
39:44 T. Rex – Get It On
41:10 NZ Net Radio – In the Mix How Awesome Was 1971
41:53 Janis Joplin – Me & Bobby McGee