The catch-all nature of New Wave music has been a source of much confusion and controversy over the decades. New wave first circulated as a music genre in the early ’70s, used by critics like Nick Kent and Dave Marsh to classify such New York-based groups as the Velvet Underground and New York Dolls. But it gained a much wider usage beginning in ’76 when it appeared in UK punk fanzines like Sniffin’ Glue & music weeklies like Melody Maker and NME (New Musical Express). In a November ’76 article in Melody Maker, Caroline Coon used Malcolm McLaren‘s term “new wave” to designate music by bands not exactly punk, but related to, and part of the same musical scene. For a while, the terms New Wave and Punk were sort of interchangeable, but among devotees, not really. There’s a LOT more history here and you can look it up if you’re truly interested. What I was interested in was dragging out some vintage video of some of my faves from back in the day. I think these all still hold up. For those who know what they are talking about, what are some of your faves I left out? Tell us on Facebook.

BONUS VIDEO: Nina Hagen’s New York New York.