various artists - International P.E.A.C.E. Benefit Compilation

No, I did not get this when it came out in 1984. I was 6/7 years old. I barely knew what music was, outside of hymns at church and the rare pop 45 that my cousins would play when we were over at their house. So I wasn't running out to the nearest place to buy anti-nukes benefit comps.

Instead, my initial exposure to R Radical's "International P.E.A.C.E. Benefit Compilation", also known as "P.E.A.C.E./WAR", was via the 1997 double CD reissue on New Red Archives. And what an exposure it was! I bought it for Dead Kennedys, Crass, Dicks, and Butthole Surfers. It ended up being my first listen to:

• Articles Of Faith
• Cause For Alarm
• GISM
• B.G.K.
• Septic Death
• Cheetah Chrome Motherfuckers
• Peggio Punx
• Subhumans

...and so many more. Those above are just the ones I sweated finding original pressings for, that I researched ad nauseum, and connected with other fans over. Even though it was a 13-year-old snapshot at that point, this was my introduction to so much international punk & hardcore, which led to even MORE international punk & hardcore, which led to what you have now: a shell of a human being, surrounded by so many goddamned CDs and records and tapes and little else.

But I digress from the self-flagellation. It may not have led to the end of nuclear proliferation, but this is a damned good comp. Just ignore the last five songs appended to the second disc. Curse you, Nicky Garrett, for turning a historical document into a sampler for your label.

Discogs

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