Me, that is. Because I’m about to encourage my readers to watch VH1. I apologize in advance, but lemme ’splain.

On Wednesday night at 8 PM Eastern time, VH1 Classic is airing a documentary called NY77: The Coolest Year in Hell. If you’re even slightly interested in early east-coast punk, this looks absolutely irresistible.

Something strange and magical happened in New York in 1977; almost every week brought the release of a revolutionary album. Richard Hell and the Voidoids put out Blank Generation. The Ramones did Leave Home and Rocket to Russia. Television released Marquee Moon. Johnny Thunders and the Heartbreakers somehow managed to finish L.A.M.F. The Dead Boys came out of nowhere with Young, Loud and Snotty. Suicide unleashed Suicide. And though they were British bands, the Clash’s first album, the Damned’s Damned Damned Damned and the Sex Pistols’ Never Mind the Bollocks never would’ve happened without the New York punks leading the way. And that’s only the stuff I can think of off the top of my head; it seems like fully half the music I love came out in that year.

So this documentary has real promise, and it looks like the filmmakers did their homework. They lined up a good cross-section of survivors of the early punk scene: Danny Fields, who worked with the Doors and the Stooges before managing the Ramones; rock photographer Bob Gruen; Richard Hell, who was at various times in the Voidoids, the Heartbreakers, and Television; Hilly Kristal, owner of CBGB; Legs McNeil from Punk magazine; original Ramones drummer Tommy Ramone; Chris Stein of Blondie; Seymour Stein from Sire Records; and the “fifth Ramone,” Arturo Vega. Considering the attrition rate among punk rockers, you can’t ask for more than that; everybody else is dead.

The timing is great, too. I’ve been picking away at a post about L.A.M.F., off and on, for about three months. Maybe this will give me a little inspiration to finish the damn thing.