Social Disctortion - s/t

A bunch of the best punk bands tend bring a little something of their non-punk influences to the table. The Ramones had a touch of bubblegum pop, The Clash dabbled in reggae, The Jam were practically mods, Rancid has remnants of ska, and Social D has a certain rockabilly lilt.

Social Distortion is my all-time favorite Social Distortion album. Every song is musically and lyrically exactly what it should be. It's punk enough to please the punks, but rock enough to be enjoyed by the un-mohawked masses. There aren't many bands that could carry a cover of Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire" and not sounds like the fakest of poseurs, but Social D lays down that particular track with gusto. I think that's really all you need to know. They're good enough on this album to take a Johnny Cash song and legitimately make it their own. Case closed.