Paul McLoone on The Undertones (No. 5/100)

"I was just that wee bit too young when it first came out, though I do remember seeing them play, I think, ‘Jimmy Jimmy’ on Top Of The Pops. Everyone was watching it. There wasn’t anything like that since Dana I suppose, you know. It was a big deal. I mean Derry was a very isolated place at that time and not a lot of good things happened there to put it mildly. So I can see why they inspired a lot of people. I only really got my head around the album in 1980 and I was amazed by it.

"It’s a very spontaneous record, although it was probably worked on a lot at the time. It’s very cohesive and purposeful. It’s almost like a mission statement from this band you know. It’s very in your face and songs like ‘Get Over You’ and ‘Here Comes The Summer’ are sort of overshadowed by ‘Teenage Kicks’, and they’re every bit as good, and I think in the case of ‘You’ve Got My Number’ they’re actually better. ‘You’ve Got My Number’ is an astonishing record. For me it’s the one."