Best Music Movies of 1978

Dorothy Gale, a shy kindergarten teacher, is swept away to the magic land of Oz where she embarks on a quest to return home.

A film about the life and career of the early rock and roll star.

The story of the rise and fall of the Pre-Fab Four.

BBC production of the 1963 Broadway musical which was based on Ernst Lubitsch's 1940 film "The Shop Around The Corner."

TANNHÄUSER UND DER SÄNGERKRIEG AUF WARTBURG is a grand opera by Richard Wagner in three acts. After experiencing boundless sensuality and freedom with the fun-loving Venus (soprano), the singer Tannhäuser (Tenor) finds it impossible to conform to the cultured setting of his betrothed Elizabeth (soprano), who loves him. During a singing contest, Tannhäuser describes the affair with Venus as the ultimate love experience and because of that, he is cast out from the established society. Thanks to Elizabeth's intervention, he is allowed to undertake a pilgrimage to the Pope to ask for the Holy Father's pardon. If the Pope accepts to forgive him, he would be allowed to take back his place in society. Tannhäuser accepts. But fate will not allow him to meet with his beloved Elizabeth again in this life. This is a recording of the legendary staging by Götz Friedrich for the 1978 Bayreuth Festival conducted by Sir Colin Davis.

This is the story loosely based on Cleveland disc jockey Alan Freed, who introduced rock'n'roll to teenage American radio audiences in the 1950s. Freed was a source of great controversy: criticized by conservatives for corrupting youth with the "devil's music"; hated by racists for promoting African American music for white consumption; persecuted by law enforcement officials and finally brought down by the "payola" scandals.

Q-SKY is the #1 radio station in Los Angeles mainly because of the music they play; running the station the way they want to, it has made them a ratings success.

Big Bird worries when Oscar tells him that if Santa Claus can't fit down the chimney on Christmas Eve, nobody would get presents.

Thin Lizzy in concert during their "Live and Dangerous" tour of 1976 in London.

Filmed in the autumn of 1975 prior to and during Bob Dylan's Rolling Thunder Revue tour – featuring appearances and performances by Ronee Blakley, T-Bone Burnett, Jack Elliott, Allen Ginsberg, Arlo Guthrie, Ronnie Hawkins, Roger McGuinn, Joni Mitchell, Mick Ronson, Arlen Roth, Sam Shepard, and Harry Dean Stanton – the film incorporates three distinct film genres: concert footage, documentary interviews, and dramatic fictional vignettes reflective of Dylan's song lyrics and life.

"Stony Island gives you a priceless look back at Chicago’s South Side neighborhood, at a time when very few films were made in within the city at all — and features a legion of legendary Chicago players (Gene Barge, Phil Upchurch, Larry Ball, Richie Davis, Tennyson Stephens, Ronnie Barron, and a young Susanna Hoffs) alongside Dennis Franz (“NYPD Blue”) and Rae Dawn Chong. Telling the story of a group of multiracial R&B performers, and how they’re affected by the death of a veteran musician from their circle, Stony Island is an incredible time capsule, and provides a sweetly funky soundtrack to boot!" -- The Cinefamily

Short documentary film on the great and powerful Tom Waits, including clips from live performances and interviews.

Ringo, stressed out by fame, trades places with a schmuck who looks exactly like him. Then the problems start!

This children's fantasy tells the story of a 12-year-old boy who discovers a complex underwater world where young children are held prisoner by an evil shark and an eel.

Queen Elizabeth I visits late 1970s England to find a depressing landscape where life has changed since her time.

When a young female mouse makes a deal with the devil to become a rock star and learns the price, her boyfriend has to help her avoid damnation.

It's Friday and everyone is going to the hot new disco. The Commodores are scheduled to play if Floyd shows up with the instruments and Nicole dreams of becoming a disco star. Other characters are there to win the dance contest, or to put a little excitement into a fifth anniversary.

Former stripper turned aspiring country singer Bette Barnette gets a gig performing at a seedy tavern run by the no-nonsense Georgia. However, poor Bette can't get the rowdy male patrons to take her seriously as a singer. Meanwhile, evil local businessman Sam Diamond plots to get his greedy hands on Georgia's place, feisty and ambitious younger singer Dolly Pop doesn't take it lightly that Bette has taken her job, and Bette's sister Doris Ann has problems of her own with her wannabe daredevil boyfriend Danny.

1. Symptom Of The Universe 2. War Pigs 3. Snow Blind 4. Never Say Die 5. Black Sabbath 6. Dirty Women 7. Rock And Roll Doctor 8. Electric Funeral 9. Children Of The Grave 10. Paranoid Recorded live in 1978, Never Say Die is a defining moment in Black Sabbath's history. This unique concert is one of Sabbath's final performances with the original line-up of Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward.

A short promotional film on the making of “The Wiz” (1978). Includes a brief history of Oz portrayals in film and behind the scenes interviews.

An uncool high-schooler forms his own group to beat the local hotshots in a battle of the bands.

Australian stuntman Grant Page goes to Los Angeles to work on a television series. He uses his spare time to lend his expertise to rock band Sorcery. Page helps the band develop pyrotechnic magic tricks for their shows, and also recounts to his own exploits as a stuntman and daredevil as well as various stunts by other greats.

A small town band makes it big, but loses track of their roots, as they get caught up into the big-time machinations of the music biz. Now, they must thwart a plot to destroy their home town. Built around the music of The Beatles, this musical uses some big name groups like Peter Frampton and Aerosmith.

Jaded night club owner stages the comeback of an ex-teen idol for revenge.

Richard and Karen Carpenter host a musical celebration of the holiday with celebrity guests Gene Kelly, Georgia Engel, and Jimmy & Kristy McNichol.

Mitzi Gaynor and her guests Gavin MacLeod (The Love Boat), John McCook (The Young and the Restless), and musician Benny Goodman explore trends of the 1970's ranging from Jazz and Disco to Soap Operas and King Tut-mania. Songs include "Satin Doll," "I'm Hip" (with Goodman), "Nice Work if You Can Get it," and "Can't Smile Without You."

Fall preview special highlighted by original comedy skits and musical performances by the Bay City Rollers and others.

Heidi leaves the mountains of Switzerland for a trip to New York City.

The Closing Of Winterland documents the Grateful Dead's landmark New Year's Eve 1978 concert that marked the end of the famed San Francisco Bay Area venue Winterland Aena. The Dead celebrated the closing as an approximately five-hour-long party (complete with breakfast with the audience at dawn) and invited some guests including guitarist John Cipollina of Quicksilver Messenger Service and Ken Kesey as well as actor Dan Aykroyd who provided the midnight countdown.

One night in Judea, a disabled shepherd boy-turned-beggar and his mother are visited by three strangers. They are the Three Kings, and they are on their way to Bethlehem to visit the Christ Child, who has just been born.

For his 1978 Christmas special, the third in as many years, Johnny Cash moved the taping of the Christmas Special to Los Angeles, and, predictably, the program takes on a Hollywood feel. Guests include Kris Kristofferson and singer Rita Coolidge, both friends of the Cash family who perform a heartfelt "Please Don't Tell Me How The Story Ends," and Steve Martin, one of America's hottest new comics at the time. June Carter Cash, as always, performs with her husband, and other family members make appearances in this special as well.

On the day of her wedding to her sixth husband, a glamorous silver screen sex symbol is asked to intervene in a political dispute between nations, which leads to chaos.

A TV concert special showcasing performances by Alice Cooper and support acts Sha Na Na, The Tubes and Nazareth. Filmed June 19, 1977 at Anaheim Stadium, Anaheim, CA, this special was broadcast in September 1977 on US television.

Goldie Hawn’s second TV special was in 1978, “The Goldie Hawn Special” and it was a sort of comeback for her, after she had been out of the spotlight for over two years. On the TV special she performed show tunes and comedy bits alongside comic legend George Burns, teen idol Shaun Cassidy, television star John Ritter and even the Harlem Globetrotters joined her on the show. The special later went on to be nominated for a primetime Emmy Award.

Rockpalast series featuring Meat Loaf

A revisionist twist on Cinderella with an all-black cast and set in Harlem during WWII. Cindy is a country bumpkin who moves from South Carolina to live with her father and his new family. When her stepmother and two stepsisters refuse to take her to the Sugar Hill Ball, her draft-dodging, chauffeur neighbor whips up a little "magic" and at the ball she catches the eye of the richest man in Harlem.

A made-for-TV retelling of the story "The Twelve Dancing Princesses," directed by Ben Rea, featuring Jim Dale as the Soldier, Freddie Jones as the destitute King, and Gloria Grahame as the Witch. Significant changes were made to the story, including reducing the number of princesses to six, and the soldier ultimately declining to marry any of the princesses due to their deceitful nature.

The infamous short film that accompanies the Linda McCartney song of the same name.

The Eurovision Song Contest 1978 was the 23rd edition of the annual Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Paris, France. Organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and host broadcaster Télévision Française 1 (TF1), the contest was held at the Palais des Congrès on Saturday 22 April 1978 and was hosted by French television presenters Denise Fabre and Léon Zitrone. This was the first time that more than one presenter had hosted the contest and the first to have a male presenter since 1956. In addition to hosting, the two presenters also served as commentators for France.

Every day is boring and the same to Amy, even her birthday. All the evidence her family puts forth that each day is different she rebuts with well-thought out responses of sameness. She is supposed to visit her Aunt Lucy to pick up her present from her, and instead meets weird characters who insist that her aunt has a beagle named Charlie and that she has turned into a butterfly. Eventually she encounters fairytale folk who thought their lives were normal before the events in their stories occurred. (IMDb)

Alex is annoyed when he loses out on being picked as class president. When visiting a local antique shop he finds a magic lamp, with three singing Genies, who grant him three magical wishes.

This episodic comedy features the original cast of Saturday Night Live as they present individual skits that describe their summer vacations. Among the highlights is a concert segment featuring John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd as the Blues Brothers.

A short film, accompanied by Devo's title track. Insightful editing techniques reveal the dreams, ideals and problems that face a large segment of the American male population.

A documentary film exploring the manner in which a determined young man overcame a basic mental defect and became a useful member of society. Insightful editing techniques reveal the dreams, ideals and problems that face a large segment of the American male population. Educational. Background music written and performed by the DEVO orchestra.

A man who sells coffee for a living gets his boss's daughter pregnant. This changes his life and eventually leads to his becoming a powerful business tycoon with no moral center. (TCM)

A bizarre sci-fi rock opera like little else being produced under the banner of Canadian film at the time, Metal Messiah is about an enigmatic metallic-skinned stranger trying to stop society's self-destructive obsession with rock and roll. Anchored in Toronto's live music scene if the late 1970s, this dystopian parable was the feature film debut of local music impresario and director Tibor Takács. Working with screenwriter Stephen Zoller, Takács' film is a crudely crafted, episodic work that plays out like a glam version of Amos Poe's avant-punk NYC flick The Foreigner (1978), but with even more ambition, attempting to scale to the bombastic rock opera heights of films like Phantom of the Paradise (1974) and Tommy (1975). (from: http://www.canuxploitation.com/review/metalmessiah.html)

A struggling rock band is discovered by a gutsy young woman determined to make it as their manager. Certain that the band can be a winner, she convinces the group to give her a shot at making them stars. Surviving a slew of pitfalls -- among them a motorcycle gang and a helicopter pilot named "Crash" -- the band soon discovers that while making it isn't all that easy, getting there is all the fun.

Elvis Costello and The Attractions perform live in Koln, Germany.