Tupac Hologram [Photo: Kevin Winter/Getty Images for Coachella]The recent success of the Tupac Shakur Hologram performance has all the music world buzzing with opportunities. Why celebrate obscure living musicians when we can pay tribute to dead ones? If I were a struggling living musician, I'd fake my own death in order to get some respect. Because the music biz sure isn't going to spend the time and money necessary to make anyone a star who isn't on American Idolatry!

Now, sure, sure, the obvious candidates have had their estates notified, I'm sure. I can only imagine the battle royal over at Cobain, Inc. Roll over Bon Scott and tell Janis Joplin's family the news!

If I'm Pete Townshend, I'm learning all I can about bringing Keith Moon and John Entwhistle back for one more "farewell tour" -- and then the subsequent tours that follow, of course.

Brian Jones, 1968 [Photo: Chris Walter/WireImage]While I've previously alerted the public to the musicians who are turning 70 this year and still going strong, it's time now to reflect on those who didn't make it to 70. It's an unlucky 13, though one could argue it's not the quantity of life lived but the quality and surely spending years taking in the adulation of fans across the globe counts for something, especially compared to working for the big boss man here at Y! Music, who doesn't allow his employees to wear pants.

Let's not get too down about this. Instead, let's break out their fine records, grab our dearest loved one and a case of Schlitz! If I'm not making much sense by the end of this, you'll know I forgot my safe word!

1977. While the punk rock was increasing in power and frequency, mainstream rock acts weren't going away either. It wasn't as if the presence of angry young youth was going to scare away the established stars from their drugs and their money.

Here in our beautified, revisionist world that dovetails nicely into the Internet age where everything is permitted and available 24/7, 1977 takes on a less annoying presence, since with eyes moist from joy and sorrow at just how freakin' long ago everything good actually is at this point and how good it actually was, even if we didn't know it then, we no longer feel 1977's pain. All that remains are our golden memories.

With so much punk rock around, it's time to compile a list of 25 albums that should be in any sincere punk rocker's collection. One album per band, in order to spread the wealth around and to throw in a few "influences", though I passed over early touchstones like The Stooges' Fun House and Raw Power, the MC5's Kick Out The Jams and the Shaggs' Philosophy of the World to make more room for albums that happened during the late 1970s-early 1980s when the music was in its "golden age."

There are still plenty of bands missing and more albums to collect, for sure. Some punk bands weren't good for more than a single or two, or never released a definitive album during their brief -- or not too brief -- careers. Most great punk rock was done by single, however, the truly great bands did manage at least one album.