song of the day – “Under Pressure” – QUEEN & DAVID BOWIE | 1981 / 1982.

Today, January 8, 2020, would have been David Bowie’s 73rd birthday.  But, on David Bowie’s birthday, for the past few years, I tend to think about January 10th, the day we lost him at age 69.  I know it’s weird to think of it like that.  It also reminds me that one of my first blog posts ever was about David Bowie. 

With this blog being three parts autobiographical, singles chart nerdiness and my love for the 80s, one thing I didn’t count on was how much more about myself I would learn through these songs and these artists when writing about them.  When I first wrote about David Bowie, I mentioned that, growing up, although I enjoyed his music very much, he wasn’t one of my immediate favorites.  But, and this surprised me the most, when I thought about it after he died, I realized that David Bowie was always a part of my life, in some form, at least since the 1977 Xmas special he did with Bing Crosby.  More than 42 years later, “Peace On Earth/Little Drummer Boy” is still my favorite Xmas song.

David Bowie and Bing Crosby, 1977.

David Bowie was also on the first record I ever bought with my own money, QUEEN’S GREATEST HITS, at the former LaVerdiere’s Drug Store across the river from where I’m writing this (in Wooterville, Maine, or Waterville, Maine for the uninitiated).  You throw in LET’S DANCE, LIVE AID, LABYRINTH and more, over the years, my love for David and his music grew more and more.  For years, I resisted getting a tattoo, and three months and a week after he died, I got my first tattoo with Mr. Bowie on my right shoulder, saying “We can be Heroes, just for one day.”  Just felt right and still does.  Sometimes, when Maryhope and I are on the air together, and we play David Bowie, I tend to refer to him as “the ever-present David Bowie.”  And he is, and not just because he’s on my shoulder.

Some of the early Elektra pressings of QUEEN’S GREATEST HITS had a new song on the album, with David Bowie — “Under Pressure.”  And I’m so grateful I got one of the early pressings.  My 39-year-old copy of the album is beat to shit, after the millions of times I played it, but as the first album I ever owned, I’ll never part with it.

Not my copy, this is mint compared to my beat-up copy!

Being a lanky 14-year-old singles chart nerd (and nerd in general) in 1981, one of the things I enjoyed most about QUEEN’S GREATEST HITS were the liner notes.  It had mini bios of each song, and revealed what positions the songs charted in both the U.K. and the U.S., which was a thrill for me, because at that time, I had little knowledge of how songs did across the pond, or other parts of the globe.

Here’s what the liner notes looked like on the first U.S. pressings of QUEEN’S GREATEST HITS, right down to the crease in the upper right corner.

What I didn’t know is that, on the U.K. and Ireland versions of QUEEN’S GREATEST HITS (or actually just titled GREATEST HITS, though I never called it that), “Under Pressure” was nowhere to be found.  But, on (at least) the American, Canadian and Japanese versions of the compilation, it was thankfully there.  And I instantly fell in love with it. 

“Under Pressure” was the brilliant pairing of two of the greatest voices in the history of music — Queen’s Freddie Mercury and David Bowie.  Absolute total fucking genius.  I’ve heard stories of stressful moments between them during the recording of “Under Pressure,” which, depending on your interpretation of the song, could be about stress and pressure because of work, politics, life, love, family, war, war within yourself, or anything.  When I hear “Under Pressure,” I don’t feel pressure at all, I don’t think about the battles Freddie and David had whilst making the song.  I just feel the love that was put into the song and I hear the passion and conviction in each of their voices:

“Love, love, love, love, love / Insanity laughs under pressure we’re breaking / Can’t we give ourselves one more chance? / Why can’t we give love that one more chance? / Why can’t we give love, give love, give love, give love / Give love, give love, give love, give love, give love?…”

The unassuming, pressure-free cover art for the “Under Pressure” single.

“Under Pressure” was released the last week in October 1981, on the same day as QUEEN’S GREATEST HITS.  Within two weeks, it debuted on the BILLBOARD Hot 100 at No. 80.  In early December 1981, it debuted in the Top 40 at No. 40.  A month later, in early January 1982, it spent a couple of weeks at its peak position of No. 29, 15 total weeks on the Hot 100, and was gone by late February.  I can’t express enough how pissed I was (or as pissed as a then-15-year-old nerd living in Central Maine could get) that “Under Pressure” didn’t get the recognition it deserved. 

Unbeknownst to me, though, in many other parts of the globe, “Under Pressure” DID indeed get the recognition it deserved.  In the U.K., it spent two weeks at No. 1, a week at No. 1 in the Netherlands, and reached the Top 10 in (at least) Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, Norway, South Africa, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.  Why Americans couldn’t get behind this masterpiece is a question that eluded me for a very long time.

10 years to the week after “Under Pressure” hit No. 1 in the U.K., Freddie Mercury sadly passed away at the age of 45.  His loss was felt everywhere, and less than six months after he died, a benefit concert was put together in honor of him.  Many artists performed with the surviving members of Queen, including Robert Plant, Paul Young, Seal, Lisa Stansfield, George Michael, Elton John, and when it came time for “Under Pressure,” Queen’s Brian May, Roger Taylor and John Deacon performed with David Bowie, and singing Freddie’s part of the song, the extraordinary Annie Lennox of Eurythmics.  The performance was magnificent, and an amazing tribute indeed, that I’m sure Freddie would have loved.

Annie Lennox and David Bowie, from the Freddie Mercury Tribute, April 20, 1992.

Over the years, you couldn’t escape “Under Pressure” being featured in numerous TV shows and movies, including a touching scene in the brilliant 1997 John Cusack film, GROSSE POINTE BLANK.

John Cusack and a baby, quietly jamming out to “Under Pressure” in 1997’s GROSSE POINTE BLANK.

When David Bowie died in 2016, many of his songs returned to the charts everywhere in the world, even here in America.  On the BILLBOARD Hot 100, “Under Pressure” was the highest Bowie song to re-enter the chart, at No. 45 — over “Let’s Dance,” over “Fame,” over “Space Oddity.”  And now (maybe also due in part due to the excellent 2018 Freddie Mercury biopic, BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY), “Under Pressure” is in heavy rotation at Retro Rock and Classic Rock stations all over.  It took awhile, but here in the U.S., “Under Pressure” has finally gotten the recognition it has deserved all along.

I want to travel back in time and go to there!

It’s hard to believe that, at one time in my life, David Bowie was not one of my favorite artists.  But, today, January 8, 2020, and well before today, and with many eternally grateful thanks to Maryhope, I can honestly say David Bowie is one of my all-time favorite artists.  I can’t imagine my life without him or his music. 

If I had access to a working DeLorean time machine, you can bet your 88 miles an hour ass that I would go back in time and see David perform live and buy everything of his that I could, at those moments.  But, since that’s not yet physically possible, I take comfort in the fact he left us an incredibly brilliant catalog of music that stretches far across the universe and then some. 

I also take comfort with something Maryhope often reminds me of, how we existed on this planet at the same time as David Bowie.  That’s so fucking cool.  Also so fucking cool is a thought I’ve had of David hanging out with Maryhope’s dad, Dennis, and my two baby brothers, Mark and Jonn — because they can.

Happy Birthday, Starman, wherever you are.  My love to you all…

“Cause love’s such an old fashioned word / And love dares you to care for / The people on the edge of the night / And love (people on streets) dares you to change our way of / Caring about ourselves / This is our last dance / This is our last dance / This is ourselves / Under pressure / Under pressure / Pressure…”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a01QQZyl-_I

(real) one-hit wonder of the week – “I Don’t Want A Lover” | TEXAS | 1989.

Between late 1979 and the end of 1989, there were nearly 500 (real) one-hit wonders of the 80s that reached the BILLBOARD Hot 100 just one time, a list that includes Soft Cell, Gary Numan, Timbuk 3, The Church, Bronski Beat, Nik Kershaw, The Buggles, The Waitresses, Ultravox and two different bands named The Silencers.  Once a week, I’ll highlight a (real) one-hit wonder for you.  

One quirky thing about the 80s (and maybe for other decades, too) is that certain (real) one-hit wonders of the 80s actually had more than one hit.  How do you do the math on that, you ask?  Well, it’s when you’re NOT a (real) one-hit wonder somewhere else.  In the 80s, the amazing Boomtown Rats just had one hit on the BILLBOARD Hot 100, as did frontman (and Band Aid co-founder and Live Aid co-organizer), Bob Geldof (with 1979/1980’s “I Don’t Like Mondays” and 1986/1987’s “This Is The World Calling,” respectively).

Soft Cell’s 1981 12″ single of “Tainted Love / Where Did Our Love Go” (also the first 12″ single I ever owned).

Soft Cell was one of the biggest (real) one-hit wonders of the 80s here in America with “Tainted Love,” and singer Marc Almond was also a (real) one-hit wonder with his 1989 college hit, “Tears Run Rings.”  But over in the U.K., Soft Cell had 13 Top 40 hits between 1981 and 2018, and Marc Almond had 9 solo Top 40 hits.

Altered Images, 1981.

The name Johnny McElhone might not ring an immediate bell for most music fans here in the U.S., but along with Bob Geldof and Marc Almond, he’s a (real) one-hit wonder of the 80s twice here as well.  The Scotsman was a bassist for the three albums by Altered Images in the early 80s (that’s his bass you hear on “Happy Birthday”).  In the U.K., Altered Images scored three Top 10 hits, though no American hits (but a noteworthy appearance in the 1984 John Hughes classic, SIXTEEN CANDLES).

Hipsway, 1987.

From the ashes of the 1983 breakup of Altered Images was another Scottish band featuring Johnny McElhone: Hipsway.  In 1987, they scored a Top 20 U.S. hit with “The Honeythief,” Hipsway’s only American hit single.  But, a year before the success of “The Honeythief,” a busy Johnny, along with Scottish vocalist and guitarist Sharleen Spiteri, formed another Scottish band — Texas, a four-member Alt-Rock / Pop-Rock band who got their name from the 1984 Wim Wenders film, PARIS, TEXAS, which starred the late, great Harry Dean Stanton.  Texas even modeled their original band logo from the poster.

30 years ago this month (March 1989), the debut album by Glasgow’s Texas, SOUTHSIDE, was released to much acclaim across the globe.  Within three weeks of its release, SOUTHSIDE had reached No. 3 on the U.K. singles chart and was already certified Gold in the U.K. for selling more than 100,000 copies.

The album’s first single, “I Don’t Want A Lover,” was released in late January 1989, in advance of the album.  The five-minute gem starts off with this gorgeous bluesy slide guitar, and after a half minute, a sweet drum beat kicks in, followed by the strong and infectious vocals of Sharleen Spiteri.

It didn’t take long for “I Don’t Want A Lover” to catch on in the U.K. and other parts of the globe, reaching No. 3 in Switzerland, No. 4 in Australia (a Gold single there), No. 8 in the U.K. and Ireland, and the Top 20 in France, Germany, New Zealand and Spain.

It, did, however, take awhile for Americans to embrace the song from a band with the namesake of one of its own 50 United States.  But, perseverance won out, and “I Don’t Want A Lover” finally debuted on the BILLBOARD Hot 100 in early September 1989 at No. 96.  It was unlike anything on the chart that week, whose Top 5 included Richard Marx, Warrant, Gloria Estefan, Paula Abdul and New Kids On The Block.  Yikes.

Naturally, with a song so good and so original and unlike the sound of the songs in the upper realm of the chart, “I Don’t Want A Lover,” debuting at the bottom realm of the chart, didn’t match the chart feats here like the other countries around the globe.  Three weeks later, it spent a week at No. 77 and six weeks total on the Hot 100.  Texas wouldn’t grace the BILLBOARD Hot 100 again.  They did,  however, have a following on college stations here in America, and “I Don’t Want A Lover” reached No. 11 on BILLBOARD’s Modern Rock chart.

The band’s disappointing chart performance in America didn’t deter the band; very much quite the opposite.  The band released two more albums in the early 90s, MOTHERS HEAVEN in 1991 and RICKS ROAD in 1993, but it wasn’t until 1997’s WHITE ON BLONDE that propelled the band into superstardom.  The album was the first of three consecutive No. 1 U.K. albums for Texas, and went six-times Platinum there.  It also gave them their biggest hit to date, the big Pop hit, “Say What You Want,” which reached No. 3 in 1997, while a Hip-Hop reworking in 1998 featuring Method Man and RZA of Wu-Tang Clan, “Say What You Want (All Day, Every Day),” reached No. 4.

Wu-Tang Clan’s Method Man and Texas’s Sharleen Spiteri gracing the December 1997 cover of THE FACE magazine.

NERDY FUN FACT: Texas co-founder, vocalist and frontwoman Sharleen Spiteri was a hairdresser who was still cutting hair when Texas released SOUTHSIDE in 1989.

I have long-adored “I Want A Lover” and SOUTHSIDE.  I think it’s one of the best, solid debut albums ever for any genre.  Oddly enough, somehow after MOTHERS HEAVEN, I kinda lost touch with Texas and their music.  But writing this blog post makes me want to rediscover them again.  They truly are worth a listen.  You should definitely start with SOUTHSIDE though; it’s absolutely brilliant.

Since 1989, Texas has released nine studio albums, 38 singles, an EP, a live album and three compilations.  Their most recent studio album is 2017’s JUMP ON BOARD, a Top 10 album in the U.K. and France.

As of 2017, the band has sold over 40 million albums.  Not bad for a band that was a (real) one-hit wonder here in America.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qaMT5Fbc8UA

Texas in 1989, from L to R: bassist Johnny McElhone, vocalist and guitarist Sharleen Spiteri, guitarist Ally McErlaine, drummer and vocalist Stuart Kerr.

 

song of the day – “One Vision” | QUEEN | 1985 / 1986.

Today, 1.21.2019, is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day here in the United States, an annual holiday to remember the life and legacy of the nonviolent activist, civil rights leader and American Baptist minister.  Cities and states across America started celebrating holidays to Dr. King (born on January 15, 1929) as early as 1971, three years after he was assassinated in Memphis.  He was just 39.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., during his “We Shall Overcome” speech, 3.17.1966.

In 1983, Ronald Reagan signed the holiday into law, and was first observed three years later, on January 20, 1986.  Not all states were on board at first, and it took 14 years for all 50 states to observe and recognize MLK Day as a federal holiday, with South Carolina being the last.

A couple of months before the first officially-recognized MLK holiday here in America, over in the U.K., Queen released the first single from their forthcoming twelfth studio album, A KIND OF MAGIC: “One Vision,” a song either inspired by their triumphant performance at Live Aid four months earlier, or inspired by Dr. King, and the extraordinary things he did in his far-too-short lifetime.  I’d say “One Vision” was truly inspired by both.

Thanks to the film BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY and the phenomenal award-winning performance by Rami Malek as Freddie Mercury, Queen had an incredible year in 2018.  Queen was everywhere from commercials to sporting events to the BILLBOARD Album chart, where the soundtrack to BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY reached No. 3, and to the BILLBOARD Rock Songs chart, where 10 songs from the soundtrack made appearances for (at least) the first time.  Several songs even reached the Top 5 on that chart: “Bohemian Rhapsody,” “Another One Bites The Dust,” “Somebody To Love,” and outside the soundtrack, seven other songs charted as well, including “We Will Rock You” and “Don’t Stop Me Now” reaching the Top 10.

BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY gave more insight on how they came to play at Live Aid.  The band wasn’t interested in performing at first, as they had just come off an extensive Spring 1985 tour for their 1984 album, THE WORKS.  But, at almost the last minute (the band wasn’t even listed on the Live Aid poster), Queen was finally convinced by Live Aid co-organizer and Boomtown Rats singer / songwriter, Bob Geldof to perform. 

Queen’s Freddie Mercury, embracing the Live Aid crowd at Wembley Stadium, 7.13.1985.

Their 21-minute, six-song set not only breathed new life and inspiration into the band, it was hailed by many as the greatest performance in the history of Rock and Roll.  I also believe Queen’s late entry into Live Aid was the reason Howard Jones performed only song at Live Aid — “Hide And Seek” — on Freddie Mercury’s Steinway grand piano.  I’m sure HoJo was more than happy to oblige and so very happy to be involved with the event.

Howard Jones, performing at Live Aid, 7.13.1985, on Freddie Mercury’s Steinway grand piano.

Howard Jones, performing “Hide And Seek” at Live Aid.

There are many Queen classics solely written by one or two members of the band, but “One Vision” was credited to all of them; the band as a whole.  That’s the way they wanted it.  And it paid off.

The album, A KIND OF MAGIC, wasn’t even finished when “One Vision” was released in November 1985 (and wouldn’t be released until June 1986).  “One Vision” was well-received in the U.K. and Ireland, reaching Nos. 7 and 5, respectively, and reached the Top 40 in at least six other countries around the globe, as well as the BILLBOARD Rock chart.  On the BILLBOARD Hot 100, it debuted in early December 1985, but stalled for a couple of weeks at No. 61 in mid-January 1986 and was on the chart for just 10 weeks.  The song was also featured in the film, IRON EAGLE, starring Louis Gossett, Jr.

“One Vision” may not be one of Queen’s most-remembered hits, but thanks to Live Aid, it gave the band the renewed energy to head back into the studio for the first time in about two years, record and release “One Vision” before the end of the year (guitarist Brian May is even sporting his Live Aid T-shirt in the song’s video).  And, in the process, Queen’s vision was back on track, and at the same time, they were able to pay tribute to the great Martin Luther King, Jr.’s vision, in their own way…

The MLK Memorial, Washington, D.C.

“I had a dream / When I was young / A dream of sweet illusion / A glimpse of hope and unity / And visions of one sweet union / But a cold wind blows / And a dark rain falls / And in my heart it shows / Look what they’ve done to my dream, yeah…”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-OGd4gplxQM

Queen, L to R: Roger Taylor, Brian May, Freddie Mercury, John Deacon, for Live Aid, 7.13.1985.

song of the day – “Lies” | THOMPSON TWINS | 1983.

On June 15, 2014, Casey Kasem, host of the longtime countdown program, AMERICAN TOP 40, passed away at the age of 82.  From my first blog post (and prolly some more inbetween then and now), I explained how, in 1979, I was a geeky, lanky and somewhat lost 12-year-old living in Central Maine, had a few friends and not a lot of interest in much of anything, but at some point early that year, I discovered AMERICAN TOP 40, and was glued to it every weekend.  Not only could I hear the 40 biggest songs in the country every week, but also Casey’s cool trivia and facts about the songs and the artists, a trait I treasure to this day.  For me, the show was No. 1 with a bullet.  And still is (thanks to the re-airing of broadcasts of AT40 on iHeart Radio).

In honor of my radio hero, Casey Kasem, for the entire month of June, I will be highlighting a song each day (some days will have two songs!) that peaked in the Top 40 of the BILLBOARD Hot 100 (including five (real) one-hit wonders of the 80s), and with every blog post, just like on AMERICAN TOP 40, the hits will get bigger with each post.  On June 1, 2017, I featured a song that peaked at No. 40.  On June 30, I’ll feature a “song of the day” that went all the way to No. 1. 

As Casey used to say on AT40, “And on we go!”

I have to say, as a self-proclaimed singles chart nerd, researching for each blog post in this tribute to Casey Kasem has been pretty awesome.  Casey would often say, “As the numbers get smaller, the hits get bigger!”  That may also true with how many songs peak at each position.  For the songs that reached No. 30 between 1979 and 1989, there were over 40. 

What I found interesting (to me, anyway) is that, out of these 40+ songs that peaked at No. 30 on the BILLBOARD Hot 100, there were only two (real) one-hit wonders.  Also, I’ve already highlighted five No. 30 hits – (real) one-hit wonder Frankie Smith and “Double Dutch Bus,” “The One Thing” by INXS, “The Prisoner” by Howard Jones, Kate Bush’s “Running Up That Hill” and “Space Age Love Song” by A Flock Of Seagulls (one of my favorite blog pieces so far; from September 2016).

Taken at the Seawall Picnic Area (part of Acadia National Park) on 9.12.2016, a photo I took of a lone seagull (no flocks), and included with my blog post that day for “Space Age Love Song,” a No. 30 hit on the BILLBOARD Hot 100 for A Flock Of Seagulls.

Another interesting quirk is that there are a lot of big-name artists who had No. 30 hits, but the hits themselves have been largely forgotten, including songs by The Bangles (“Be With You,” 1989), Tina Turner (“Two People,” 1987), Kool & The Gang (“Let’s Go Dancin’,” 1983), and two each by Daryl Hall & John Oates (“How Does It Feel To Be Back,” 1980, and “Possession Obsession,” 1985) and Toto (“Make Believe,” 1982, and “Stranger In Town,” 1984).

Yet another interesting fact is how there were so many memorable hits from other decades that stopped at No. 30 (like Iron Butterfly’s classic “In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida,” Ted Nugent’s “Cat Scratch Fever,” the brilliant “Walk On By” by Isaac Hayes, “Come Monday” by Jimmy Buffet, “Lovely Day” by Bill Withers, “Our House” by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, “She Talks To Angels” by The Black Crowes, “Firestarter” by Prodigy, R.E.M.’s wonderful “Man On The Moon,” the amazing “Love Is The Drug” by Roxy Music, and one of THE BEST pieces of music for all time, “Give It To Me” by The J. Geils Band), and yet, with the songs that peaked at No. 30 in the 80s, for whatever reason, most of those songs have been forgotten.

Thankfully, though, there were a handful of cool ones, too.  There’s the aforementioned ones I’ve already posted on the blog, but then there’s “Dance Little Sister” by Terence Trent D’Arby, “Love Will Find A Way” by Yes, The Human League’s “Mirror Man,” and “Lies,” the first big American hit by a New Wave / Synthpop trio who weren’t at all related – Sheffield, England’s Thompson Twins.

The trio of Tom Bailey, Alannah Currie and Joe Leeway made up the Thompson Twins in 1982, a time when MTV was so popular, it was affecting what was bought in stores and what was played on the radio, and a time when New Wave was becoming more prominent in mainstream music.  1982 was also the start of the Second British Invasion on the U.S. singles chart, which lasted through 1986.  Thompson Twins were a big part of that. 

By 1982, Tom, Alannah and Joe already had one No. 1 song to their credit here in America – “In The Name Of Love,” which spent five weeks at No. 1 on BILLBOARD’s Dance chart in May and June 1982.

In October 1982, they released “Lies,” the first single from their upcoming third album, QUICK STEP AND SIDE KICK.  The band was still looking for their audience in their U.K. homeland, and it stopped at No. 67 on the U.K. singles chart there. 

“Lies” would find an audience here in America a few months later, and it debuted at No. 80 on the BILLBOARD Hot 100 in late January 1983, a couple of weeks after it spent two weeks at No. 1 on BILLBOARD’s Dance chart (with its B-side, “Beach Culture”).

As “Lies” made its climb up the Hot 100, the song’s parent album was released in February 1983, and with the Twins being signed to Arista Records, that meant, well, much like fellow Brits (The) Icicle Works in 1984, a name change for the album in the U.S. and Canada.  So, the name of the album was shortened to just SIDE KICKS.

A month after the album’s release, “Lies” found its way to the Top 40.  By the end of March 1983, it reached No. 30, but got stuck there for three weeks, and was gone from the Top 40 after that.  It stayed on the Hot 100 for a respectable total of about four months.  “Lies” also reached No. 6 in New Zealand and the Top 30 in Australia and Canada.

Though the “Lies” follow-up single, “Love On Your Side” would fail to reach the Top 40 here in the U.S. (it stopped at No. 45 in early June 1983), Thompson Twins would finally find their U.K. audience, and that song was their first of five Top 10 hits, reaching No. 9.  QUICK STEP AND SIDE KICK was also certified Platinum there and reached No. 2 on the U.K. album chart.

I loved Thompson Twins from the start.  I reserved any quick-stepping and side-kicking for at-home dancing, but I was a fan as soon as I heard “Lies.”  Not only was I hooked by the music, but I really enjoyed Tom Bailey’s style of singing.  Don’t know if there’s a particular name for it, I just enjoyed it.  All these years later, I would put his vocal style in the same high class as Howard Jones and Cy Curnin of The Fixx.  They also had one of the coolest band logos.

It was pretty cool seeing them on the TV performing with Madonna at Live Aid.  What I didn’t know was that it was the beginning of the end for the trio I knew and loved as Thompson Twins. 

Madonna and Thompson Twins’ Tom Bailey, Live Aid, Philadelphia, July 13, 1985.

After Joe Leeway left the Twins in 1986, Tom Bailey and Alannah Currie kept the band and the name going until 1993, when they changed it to Babble, reflecting a change in musical direction from New Wave to “dub-influenced chill-out” (mixing Electronica, World Beat, Alt-Dance and Club styles).

Babble’s second and final album, 1996’s ETHER.

As Babble, Tom Bailey and Alannah Currie (who were married at the time and living in New Zealand) released a couple of albums before calling it quits in 1996.  Alannah Currie retired from music, and they were divorced in 2003 (though they remain friends). 

Tom Bailey now lives in London with his second wife, he took part in the 2014 version of the Retro Futura Tour as “Thompson Twins’ Tom Bailey” and earlier this year on “The ‘80s Cruise,” an annual event of which I hope to attend at some point.  Under the moniker of “Thompson Twins’ Tom Bailey,” he released a single last year called “Come So Far,” and has another one scheduled for release this year.

Tom Bailey today.

When I think of Thompson Twins, the first songs that come to mind are “Lay Your Hands On Me,” “Hold Me Now,” “If You Were Here” (from SIXTEEN CANDLES), “Sugar Daddy,” “In The Name Of Love” (both the 1982 and 1988 versions), their kick-ass cover of The Beatles’ “Revolution,” “Doctor! Doctor!” and “Love On Your Side,” but it was all “Lies” that made me fall in love with those three non-related kids back in 1982, who were, at one time, Twins…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UVHwD58Ne3Y

song of the day – “Raspberry Beret” | PRINCE AND THE REVOLUTION | 1985.

Hard 2 believe it’s been an entire year since we lost Prince at the far-too-young age of 57.  I’ll never forget that day, April 21, 2016.  I was at work in Central Maine, and one of my co-workers said that Prince had died.  I told him that wasn’t funny.  We had already lost so many great musical talents by April 2016.  It was truly a year of losses like no other, right until the end of the year. 

On April 21, 2016, after work, I was heading down 2 the Portland area (the Westbrook Performing Arts Center, 2 be exact), 2 see Men At Work alum Colin Hay perform a solo acoustic show.  That day, I actually didn’t have many Prince songs on my iPod, so between Men At Work and Colin Hay tunes on my iPod, I channel-surfed the radio on the way 2 the show 2 see if they were paying tribute 2 Prince.  They were.  And Colin Hay himself played a little bit of “Little Red Corvette,” and called it a “weird day.”  It certainly was that.

The wonderful Colin Hay, performing live at the Westbrook (Maine) Performing Arts Center, 4.21.16.

1985’s “Raspberry Beret” is far and away not my favorite Prince song (and maybe not even in my Top 20, though I do love it), but one year ago when I learned Prince had died, I heard this song on the radio more than any other Prince song.  And I’ll never forget that. 

Released on April 22, 1985, hot on the heels of the still incredibly popular PURPLE RAIN, AROUND THE WORLD IN A DAY took Prince and his band, The Revolution, on a more psychedelic than commercial musical journey than with PURPLE RAIN or previous efforts, garnering comparisons 2 The Beatles’ SGT. PEPPER’S LONELY HEARTS CLUB BAND, in both sound and the album’s cover artwork.

The full album artwork for 1985’s AROUND THE WORLD IN A DAY.  For the singles released from this album, images were used from this album art as the art for the singles.

In the September 12, 1985 edition of ROLLING STONE, Prince disagreed with the Beatles comparison: “The influence wasn’t the Beatles.  They were great 4 what they did, but I don’t know how that would hang 2day.  The cover art came about because I thought people were tired of looking at me.  Who wants another picture of him?  I would only want so many pictures of my woman, then I would want the real thing.  What would be a little more happening than just another picture would be if there was some way I could materialize in people’s cribs when they play the record.  I don’t mind [the album being called psychedelic], because that was the only period in recent history that delivered songs and colors.  Led Zeppelin, for example, would make U feel differently on each song.”

“Raspberry Beret,” the first American single from the No. 1 album, AROUND THE WORLD IN A DAY (“Paisley Park” was released as the first single in Europe and other parts of the globe) incorporated strings and Middle Eastern finger cymbals (and a harmonica on the 12-inch remix), and was released in mid-May 1985, three weeks after the album’s release, and it only took three days 2 debut inside the Top 40 on the BILLBOARD Hot 100, rocketing in at No. 37.

By early July 1985, “Raspberry Beret” seemed like it would B Prince’s third No. 1 song in America, but Duran Duran’s “A View To A Kill” had other plans.  “Raspberry Beret” spent a week at No. 2 one week after LIVE AID, and was one of the biggest U.S. singles of 1985.  It would also reach No. 3 on BILLBOARD’s R&B chart and No. 4 on BILLBOARD’s Dance chart.

Around the world in more than a day, “Raspberry Beret” was not one of Prince’s biggest international singles, but it did reach No. 2 in New Zealand, No. 8 in Canada, No. 13 in Australia, and the Top 30 in the U.K., Belgium, Holland and Ireland.

An edited version of the remix can be found in the video 4 the song, which won an MTV Video Music Award (his first) 4 Best Choreography In A Video.  If U R a fan of the TV show, CHEERS (like yours truly), U will notice the young girl who hands Prince his guitar in the first part of the video (which I couldn’t obtain) is Jackie Swanson, who played Woody Harrelson’s love interest in CHEERS, Kelly Gaines.  Jackie Swanson and Prince were friends, and the “Raspberry Beret” video was her professional debut.

From the video of “Raspberry Beret,” this is Jackie Swanson, of CHEERS fame, handing a guitar to her friend, Prince.

In October 1990, the late, great Warren Zevon recruited Bill Berry, Peter Buck and Mike Mills of R.E.M. 2 record an album of covers, and “Raspberry Beret” was one of them.  The only single released from the album, it reached No. 23 on BILLBOARD’s Modern Rock chart.

Though there wasn’t a lot of press or promotion 4 the album, AROUND THE WORLD IN A DAY still managed 2 reach Double-Platinum status here in the U.S., and two singles from the album reached the BILLBOARD Hot 100’s Top 10 – “Raspberry Beret,” and the wonderful “Pop Life,” which reached No. 7 in September 1985.

Of the album’s mixed reception, Prince also said in that 1985 ROLLING STONE interview, “I talked 2 George Clinton, a man who knows and has done so much 4 funk.  George told me how much he liked AROUND THE WORLD IN A DAY.  U know how much more his words mean than those from some mamma-jamma wearing glasses and an alligator shirt behind a typewriter?

“I’ve heard some people say I’m not talking about anything on this record.  And what a lot of other people get wrong about the record is that I’m not trying 2 B this great visionary wizard.  Paisley Park is in everybody’s heart.  It’s not just something that I have the keys 2.  I was trying 2 say something about looking inside oneself 2 find perfection.  Perfection is in everyone.  Nobody’s perfect, but they can B.  We may never reach that, but it’s better 2 strive than not.”

A year after Prince left this world 4 another, those words still ring so true 2day.  “Raspberry Beret” isn’t my favorite Prince song, but it’s the one I’ll listen 2 first on every April 21, because it’s the one Prince song I heard more on that day than any other. 

I miss U Prince, wherever U R.  Peace and Love 2 U and then some…

don’t you (forget about me).

As I start this blog post, it’s in the 7:00pm hour on Sunday, February 26th, 2017, and during this time for the better part of the past 21 years, for the folks of Portland, Maine and beyond, I’d be playing a lexicon of the great 80s music you remember and much more on my little 80s radio program, STUCK IN THE 80s (on WMPG community radio).  More on the amazing last STUCK IN THE 80s show in a bit.

Once the show ended, I wanted to take a couple of weeks off from the blog, though truth be told, I’ve been thinking about this post since before the last show even aired.

The original STUCK IN THE 80s logo…

After nearly 21 years, over a thousand shows, thousands of requests, tens of thousands of songs played, these two weeks later, it’s still hard to believe that the last STUCK IN THE 80s has aired on WMPG, a radio station that has been like a second home for me for nearly half my life.  Though I’m still considered a volunteer there, I’ll miss being a regular part of it.

Back in August 2015, I first announced that I would be ending the show at the end of August 2016 after 20 years on WMPG, but in April 2016, I decided I wasn’t ready to end the show yet.  The show started part-time in the Spring of 1996 (I was 29 years old), and full-time on Sundays in the Fall of 1996.  When I realized that my 50th birthday in 2017 fell on a Sunday, it just felt right; it felt cathartic to end the show then.  I’m still happy with that decision.  But the last weekend for the show wasn’t without its moments.

This didn’t exactly happen here in Maine the weekend of the last STUCK IN THE 80s on WMPG, but it wasn’t too far off…

Many months ago, I half-joked about the last show, saying, “Wouldn’t it be funny if there was a blizzard and I couldn’t do my last show?”  Well…I’m not sure if it was an official blizzard in Portland, Maine, but the weather was more blizzard-like than blizzard-lite.  I always planned on co-hosting my last show with my dear, dear friends and regular STUCK co-hosts, Hope and Shawn.  Shawn lives in Portland, and Hope (who did a touching radio tribute for me in November 2016 and put together a wonderful tribute video for me recently) traveled all the way from Springfield, MA to be there.   I’m so grateful to both of them.

Hope, me and Shawn, having a fun time at Bayside Bowl, Portland, Maine 2.11.2017.

That Saturday night (2.11.2017) before the last show, I had planned on a “cheers and thanks” get-together at a Portland venue, but with the inclement weather, most folks weren’t able to attend.  The last show’s attendance was another story.

Before the last show could happen, though, I needed to contact WMPG’s fantastic Program Director, Jessica, to see if the station was going to be shut down due to the storm, which was in full force before Sunday night.  Jessica was indeed planning on shutting down the station but knew it was my last show that night, and was kind enough to let Hope, Shawn and I go on with the last STUCK IN THE 80s and then shut the station down, which was actually kinda cool in a way.

The show’s STUCK IN THE 80s “Parting Shot” playlist featured songs Hope and Shawn wanted to hear, and songs that meant a lot to me over the years (and many of those songs have appeared on this blog so far): 

• ALPHAVILLE – FOREVER YOUNG (SPECIAL EXTENDED MIX) (1984) – This Cold War Classic was part of the inspiration for my blog.
• BOOK OF LOVE – MODIGLIANI (LOST IN YOUR EYES) (1986 / 1987) – One of my “Desert Island” songs, or rather, one of the songs I would want to have with me if I was stranded on a desert island.
• BLONDIE – DREAMING (1979) – Another of my “Desert Island” songs, this is my all-time favorite Blondie song, from the Fall of 1979.  I remember it well.
• THE ENGLISH BEAT – I CONFESS (DAVE ALLEN REMIX) (1982) – One of my best memories during the show was interviewing and meeting Dave Wakeling in 2009.  I’ve seen him and the band perform in Portland almost every year since.  Hearing this song live gives me such joy!
• THE CLASH – THIS IS RADIO CLASH (1981) – Released as a stand-alone single between 1980’s SANDINISTA! and 1982’s COMBAT ROCK, this was requested for DJ HopeyT!
• BAUHAUS – SPIRIT (ALTERNATIVE VERSION) (1982) – The original version from THE SKY’S GONE OUT and requested for DJ Shawn!
• PRINCE & THE REVOLUTION – TAKE ME WITH U (1984 / 1985) – This gem from PURPLE RAIN is one of my all-time favorite Prince songs that doesn’t get nearly enough love as it should, so I wanted to play it.
• THE THE – THIS IS THE DAY (EXTENDED 12” MIX) (1983) – A true statement that night…  The end of an era and the beginning of a new one…
• TALKING HEADS FEAT. JOHN GOODMAN – PEOPLE LIKE US (1986) – My favorite version of this spirited T-Heads gem from TRUE STORIES…
• JOE JACKSON – CANCER – Recorded live during the NIGHT AND DAY tour on 5/8/83 at the Hordern Pavilion, Sydney, Australia.  One of my all-time favorites (of many) by Joe Jackson.
• DAVID BOWIE feat. THOMAS DOLBY – HEROES – Like many others, David Bowie’s sad passing in 2016 did a number on me.  But, ever since, I’ve been inspired too.  On July 13th, 1985 (at LIVE AID), he dedicated this song to his son, “to all our children, and the children of the world.”
• ROBYN HITCHCOCK – CHINESE WATER PYTHON (1990) – One of the most beautiful pieces of music I’ve ever heard, from one of the most brilliant singer / songwriter / storytellers in the world.
• THE DREAM ACADEMY – PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE LET ME GET WHAT I WANT (instrumental version) (1985 / 1986) – I couldn’t leave STUCK IN THE 80s on WMPG without playing this gorgeous Smiths cover by one of my favorite 80s bands, and from a pivotal scene in one of my favorite John Hughes films (FERRIS BUELLER’S DAY OFF).
• INXS – DON’T CHANGE (1982 / 1983) – A favorite gem from my favorite album by my favorite band…
• PET SHOP BOYS – WEST END GIRLS (1986) – I remember hearing this for the first time like it was yesterday, and it was around this time 31 years ago…
• YELLO – DOMINGO (1985) – When DJ Hope and her sister, DJ Weez, teamed up for a 4-hour edition of her awesome show, POWERHAUS, in early 2016, they played this song.  I don’t know how it was off my radar for so long, but I’m glad it’s there now!
• THE KLF feat. TAMMY WYNETTE – JUSTIFIED & ANCIENT (12” MIX) (1991) – The origins of this song date back to 1987, when The KLF were still The Timelords.  One of THE best one-time collaborations of all-time.
• PETER GABRIEL – IN YOUR EYES (2011 NEW BLOOD ORCHESTRAL VERSION) – Hope and I were so glad to see Peter Gabriel perform in 2016, but I wish I had also seen him on this tour, featuring orchestral versions of his amazing songs.  This is my favorite, originally from 1986’s brilliant SO album.
• CYNDI LAUPER – TIME AFTER TIME (1983 / 1984) – Meeting and interviewing Cyndi Lauper in 2002 was a moment, much like Cyndi herself, that I’ll treasure forever.
• SIMPLE MINDS – A BRASS BAND IN AFRICA (1985) – This amazing instrumental was the B-side of “Don’t You (Forget About Me).”
• SIMPLE MINDS – DON’T YOU (FORGET ABOUT ME) – Recorded live from The Ahoy in Rotterdam, 12.3.1985.  My favorite song for all-time.

The response to the last STUCK IN THE 80s on WMPG was incredibly overwhelming and heartfelt.  It was prolly the most-listened-to show I’ve ever had.  Wanted to share just some of the truly amazing and kind comments shared by my WMPG family, friends and fans:

• “Better safe than sorry, I suppose…  Better to Be Stuck in the 80’s than in the low teens and a blizzard…  Big shout out to Ron for all his years on the air, and his show to end all shows, tonight… at least for a day or two…  cheers!”
• “Thank you Ron.  Our Sunday nights won’t be the same without you.”
• “Ron …….Rock it….tear the roof off……and then shut it down buddy!”
• “What an end to a great run.  SHUT IT DOWN, Ron!”
• “What a way to go – a birthday, a blizzard, and then shutting down the station.  Tonight will be epic – thank you for the tunes and enjoy the next great adventures in Life!”
• “Thanks Ron for one last – and hopefully not final – Sunday night kitchen dance party.”
• “Ron, Sunday nights will not be the same.  Thank you so much.  It has been a pleasure listening to your programs.  It was a thrill to program and co-host a show.  You will be missed.  All the best in what lies ahead.”
• “Wow your birthday, last show and an epic nor’easter on its way.  You certainly know how to party!!!!”
• “Congrats on such a great show.  I’ll miss tuning in to you.”
• “Happy birthday Ron!  Forever grateful for your show!  You truly are the King of the 80’s!”
• “What the hell am I supposed to do on Sunday evenings; be sociable?”
• “REALITY sets in as Sunday evening approaches without STUCK IN THE 80s.  It’s kinda going to be like a zombie achieving consciousness and understanding that everyone’s a zombie and there are no fresh brains.”
• “You’re gonna get me crying again…forget you?  You, Hope and Shawn were our Sunday nights….we’ll never forget.”
• “This will be a last show you can never forget!”
• “Happy Birthday, Ron! Congratulations on an incredible radio run!”
• “This is the end of an era!!  No 80s show on the radio even came close to yours.  The research, the knowledge and the vast music catalog are unparalleled.  Sad to see it go, but glad you gave Portland a proper 80s experience for so many years.  I hope the next phase in your life is great as well.”
• “What do you do when the radio show you love and have been listening to for the last 15-plus years goes silent (Wow, Ron, you really went out in dramatic fashion, this blizzard and all!)?!  Will and I miss you already!  Thank you so much, Ron – all the best to your next chapter!”
• “Happy Birthday to you, my brother!  Today is bittersweet for sure.  Can’t wait for your next musical adventure.  Peace & Love (and birthday spankings) to you!”
• “Mike drop!!! Thanks for 20 years Ron & crew!!!”
• “Ron does final show.  Shuts down transmitter.  /mic drop/”  (more on that in a bit…)

DJ Shaxx, Whitney and me, 1.29.2017…

And from my radio neighbor for the past 11 months, host of the wonderful LEFT OF THE DIAL, the incredibly talented DJ Shaxx:

“First, Happy birthday, friend!

“Can’t believe I won’t be there tonight for you to pass the broadcasting baton to me as I begin LEFT OF THE DIAL.  One of the reasons I love doing my show is that it has always followed STUCK IN THE 80s.  I come into the studio on a wave of positivity and grooving to your music; your legendary presence in the big chair as I walk into the on air studio.  Your personality and music has always helped me start my show with a bang.  In fact, my intro, my first song… you’re the audience.  I have so much enjoyed our conversations transitioning between shows.  And then, as you hit the road, I continue to spin music and speak on the mic and imagine you driving up interstate 295.

“With your departure, Ron Raymond Jr., a big part of what I do will change.

“Changes…  The only constant in life, right?  But change is good.  I’m excited for you and the changes coming up in your life.  The opportunities for great things to happen.  Your future is bright, Ronnie.  You gotta wear shades.

“Man, I’m gonna miss you.  I will miss your DJ mentorship, extensive knowledge and impeccable taste in music.  I will miss your humor and your kindness.

“Thank you for all that you’ve given to WMPG.  Thank you for sharing your great, great knowledge of the 80s every week.  You can feel it tonight.  Everyone tuning in.  Theirs are invisible airwaves crackling with life.  Ripe and tender, whistling with energy (as Geddy Lee would sing).  Thanks for carrying on that great Spirit of Radio.  Because of what you’ve done.  It will live on.  For a long, long time.  Someday inhabitants of a distant universe will be hearing these broadcasts and they will say, ‘Geez!  These people are stuck in the 80s.  We must rescue them.’  And then our planet will never be the same.

“Excelsior!”

When you host a radio show for as long as I did with STUCK IN THE 80s, I had 20 years of thank-you’s and shout-outs to announce.  Of course, I wasn’t able to get to everyone.  That alone would have taken a whole entire show.  The last of my deserved thank-you’s were dedicated to two of my dearest and closest friends in the whole world – DJs extraordinaire Hope and Shawn, who I’d like to truly love to thank again, for their love and knowledge of music and the 80s, their mad DJ skillz, and their passion, dedication and innumerable contributions to STUCK IN THE 80s!  I couldn’t have done it all these years without them!  (BTW, at the end of the show, since we were shutting down the station, Hope came back on the air and said, “STUCK IN THE 80s OUT!”  And then, in sorta dramatic fashion, Shawn and I did drop out mics…  It was great.)

Shawn, me and Hope, WMPG-FM and WMPG.org, 2.12.2017, hiding from the blizzard outside and truly STUCK IN THE 80s!

For over a year now, people have been asking me why I’m ending the show.  Well, there’s a number of reasons, but mainly, for now, I want to take a break and take some time for me, do some screenwriting, maybe some voiceover work, continue with the little bloggy thing here, and with me turning 50 a couple of weeks ago, to figure out the next step of my path in this next chapter of my life. 

Thank you, for 20 years and then some…

I don’t know where, and I don’t know when, but STUCK IN THE 80s will be back, I guaRONtee.  I’ll be back too.  And don’t worry ‘bout a thing, ‘cause every little thing is gonna be alright.  And please know that STUCK IN THE 80s has been the proudest moment of the first half of my life.  Thank you.  I love you and I’ll miss you all.

So, until the next time you hear me on your radio, take care, be good, talk hard, and don’t you forget about me.  I’ll catch you on the flip side.  And as Mr. David Bowie once said, “I don’t know where I’m going from here, but I promise it won’t be boring.”  So stay tuned…

Hope and Shawn, I couldn’t have done it without you.  Thank you!

xmas song of the day – “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” | BAND AID | 1984 / 1985.

Happy Holidays!  Since it’s the first year of my blog, and since it’s the last year for my Annual Holiday Show on my little 20-year-old 80s radio program, STUCK IN THE 80s (on WMPG community radio in Portland, Maine), I wanted to present to you THE 31 DAYS OF 80s XMAS SONGS, or, 31 of my favorite 80s holiday musical treats.

The song for Day 30 of THE 31 DAYS OF 80s XMAS SONGS is prolly the biggest holiday song of my generation, written and spearheaded by Bob Geldof of The Boomtown Rats and Midge Ure of Ultravox, in response to the TV reports of famine in Ethiopia – “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” by Band Aid.

Bob and Midge first got together about this project in early November 1984, and knew they had a limited time frame to work with, if they wanted to get the song ready for the holiday.  They put the song together, and then started recruiting many of the biggest recording stars in the U.K. and Ireland at the time (save for Chicago’s Jody Watley and Jersey City’s Kool & The Gang, who happened to be on the same record label as The Boomtown Rats and who happened to be in there when Bob Geldof pitched the idea to the label). 

Bob Geldof (in his “Feed The World” T-shirt) and Midge Ure.

They then asked famed producer Trevor Horn (Frankie Goes To Hollywood, The Art Of Noise) if he would produce, but he told Bob and Midge that he would need at least six weeks to do it, which wouldn’t get the record ready in time for Xmas.  Though Trevor Horn wasn’t able to produce the original single, he did offer a studio for them to use free of charge for 24 hours on Sunday, November 25, 1984, and he later produced and remixed the 12” single for a 1985 re-release.

Nearly 40 recording artists, including members of Duran Duran, U2, Culture Club, The Boomtown Rats, Bananarama, Spandau Ballet, Ultravox and Status Quo, as well as folks like Sting, Paul Young, George Michael, Phil Collins (who played drums on the song) and Paul Weller of The Style Council, participated on the benefit record.  Artists who weren’t able to be there but who sent in recorded messages were David Bowie, Paul McCartney, Holly Johnson of Frankie Goes To Hollywood and Big Country.  These messages were included on the single’s B-side and as part of the 12” extended mix.

It took only a week after recording ended to release “Do They Know It’s Christmas?”  The single had 250,000 advance orders and that number swelled to a million less than a week after its release.  Phonogram (who put out the single in the U.K.) had all five of its European factories working on pressing that one single to help meet demand.

On December 15, 1984, just 12 days after its release, “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” spent the first of its five weeks at No. 1 on the U.K. singles chart.  It was the fastest-selling single in U.K. chart history and sold three million copies in the U.K. alone by the end of 1984.  Until Elton John’s “Candle In The Wind 1997” 13 years later, it was the biggest-selling single of all-time in the U.K.

Around the globe, the response to “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” was phenomenal.  It also reached No. 1 in Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Holland, Ireland, Italy, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland.

Over here in the U.S., the video for “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” was played often throughout the holiday season on MTV, and the single was released on December 10, 1984 on Columbia Records.  A few days before Xmas, it debuted on the BILLBOARD Hot 100 at No. 65.  For the first chart in 1985, it shot up to No. 20.  But, despite the fact it was outselling Madonna’s “Like A Virgin” (the No. 1 single then) by a four-to-one margin (selling nearly two million copies in its first eleven days of release), the lack of airplay prevented it from charting any higher than No. 13.  It was gone from the Hot 100 after just nine weeks, departing in mid-February.

Bob Geldof had hoped “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” would raise £70,000 for Ethiopia, but instead, it raised £8 million within a year of its release.  And the support of the Ethiopian famine relief didn’t stop there. 

In early March 1985, (mostly) American recording artists teamed up as USA For Africa for the “We Are The World” single and album.  Canadian artists banded together as Northern Lights for “Tears Are Not Enough.”  The LIVE AID concert on July 13, 1985 brought musicians and fans together in London, Philadelphia and around the globe to raise money for famine relief.

“Do They Know It’s Christmas?” was re-recorded three times – in 1989, 2004 and 2014 – all three re-recordings reached No. 1 in the U.K. and all were charity records for Africa (the 1989 and 2004 versions went to famine relief, while the 2014 version raised money for the Ebola crisis in West Africa).

For this Xmas (and always), of course, the best gift I’d love to get is peace, love and understanding, especially for my wealth of family and friends.  I’d also love to see more support for those less fortunate than you or I.  On the 12” single for “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” David Bowie puts out a plea for support: “It’s Christmas 1984, and there are more starving folk on the planet than ever before.  Please give a thought for them this season and do whatever you can, however small, to help them live.  Have a peaceful New Year.” 

“Do They Know It’s Christmas?” (especially the 12” extended mix) will always have a special place in my heart.  And from that 12” single, David Bowie’s plea, 32 years later, still resonates to this day. 

In Maine, there are so many folks in need – of food, heat, medicine, shelter, and affordable health care, for starters.  I’m sure it’s like that all over the US of A, and all over the world.  2016 has been a particularly rough year for a lot of reasons, and I do hope and pray that 2017 will be a peaceful New Year.  But first, Happy Xmas, Happy Hanukkah, or whatever you choose to celebrate, if anything – be safe, have fun and do what you can to help those who won’t have much of either this holiday season…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zc8TYsYb5i0

xmas song of the day – “Winter Wonderland” | EURYTHMICS | 1987.

Happy Holidays!  Since it’s the first year of my blog, and since it’s the last year for my Annual Holiday Show on my little 20-year-old 80s radio program, STUCK IN THE 80s (on WMPG community radio in Portland, Maine), I wanted to present to you THE 31 DAYS OF 80s XMAS SONGS, or, 31 of my favorite 80s holiday musical treats.

The song for Day 5 of the 31 DAYS OF 80s XMAS SONGS is “Winter Wonderland” by Eurythmics, from one of my all-time favorite Xmas albums, 1987’s A VERY SPECIAL CHRISTMAS, which came about from an idea of super-producer Jimmy Iovine. 

Long before Jimmy Iovine was the co-founder of Interscope Records and Beats Electronic (with Dr. Dre), Jimmy was an engineer on such classic albums like Bruce Springsteen’s BORN TO RUN, DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN and THE RIVER, Meat Loaf’s BAT OUT OF HELL and John Lennon’ WALLS AND BRIDGES. 

Before 1987, Jimmy Iovine produced or co-produced such memorable albums  Patti Smith’s EASTER, Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers’ DAMN THE TORPEDOES, Dire Straits’ MAKING MOVIES, BELLA DONNA by Stevie Nicks, ONCE UPON A TIME by Simple Minds and The Pretenders’ GET CLOSE.  He also supervised the music for the 1984 John Hughes classic, SIXTEEN CANDLES, and in 1988, he produced U2’s excellent double-album soundtrack to their rockumentary, RATTLE AND HUM, and supervised the music for the Bill Murray holiday film, SCROOGED.

For the first A VERY SPECIAL CHRISTMAS album in 1987, Jimmy Iovine recruited many of the recording artists he worked with, like Bruce Springsteen, U2, The Pretenders and Stevie Nicks, along with Eurythmics, John Mellencamp, Sting, Run-D.M.C., Madonna, Bryan Adams, Alison Moyet and more – 15 songs in all.

In the wake of Band Aid, Live Aid, Farm Aid and “We Are The World,” Jimmy Iovine wanted to put together a Christmas album as a memorial to his dad, who passed away in 1985. 

The idea for A VERY SPECIAL CHRISTMAS to benefit Special Olympics was idea of Jimmy Iovine’s wife, Vicki (herself a volunteer for Special Olympics), and that’s where the “special” in A VERY SPECIAL CHRISTMAS is inspired from.  Mr. and Mrs. Iovine got some help organizing the album from extended Kennedy family member Bobby Shriver, and the founders of A&M Records, Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss.

Since the original 1987 A VERY SPECIAL CHRISTMAS album, there have been nine other albums released in the series, through 2013.  And since 1987, the series has raised over $100 million dollars for Special Olympics.  Since 1991, A VERY SPECIAL CHRISTMAS ranks as the 19th best-selling holiday album here in America, and has sold over four million copies since its release.

A VERY SPECIAL CHRISTMAS Producer Jimmy Iovine (front center), surrounded (in no particular order) by U2, Annie Lennox, Sting, Bob Seger, Bruce Springsteen, John Mellencamp and Run-D.M.C.

The cover art for the albums was designed by pop and graffiti artist, Keith Haring, and the untitled image of a mother and child was chosen by Eunice Kennedy Shriver in 1987 as the cover of the first A VERY SPECIAL CHRISTMAS album.  Keith Haring sadly passed away in early 1990, but that image has become synonymous with the album series, and also with the mission of the Special Olympics.

This wonderful version of “Winter Wonderland” by Eurythmics has been a longtime holiday favorite of mine, and it has made it onto most (if not all) of the playlists for my Annual Holiday Show.  Many versions of “Winter Wonderland” have been recorded since it was written in 1934, from Bing Crosby to Elvis Presley to Ozzy Osbourne, but this version truly stands out among the best.

To learn more about Special Olympics and the mission of A VERY SPECIAL CHRISTMAS, go to averyspecialchristmas.org.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4xVLeW9UmjE

song of the day – “Everybody Wants To Rule The World” | TEARS FOR FEARS | 1985.

The other night, I was at a get-together in South Portland, Maine, at the home of my friend Melissa, and there was a conversation going about The British (music) Invasion.  I chimed in and said, “Which one?”  They were talking about the one in the mid-1960s, while I was referring to the one in the mid-1980s.  When questioned about the 80s British Invasion, I then tried to remember all the big British hits in the U.S. during 1985, and had a huge gaping brain cramp.  So, I’ll properly answer that question here.

I’ve prolly said on the bloggy thing here that the New Wave era here in America started and ended with The Human League.  Their big 1982 hit, “Don’t You Want Me” spent three weeks at No. 1 on the BILLBOARD Hot 100 in July 1982, and for the next four years, New Wave artists were prominent on the Hot 100 singles chart.  In November 1986, their hit, “Human,” reached No. 1 on the Hot 100, and was replaced the following week by “You Give Love A Bad Name” by Bon Jovi.  I’ve also prolly said here (half-jokingly) that Bon Jovi killed New Wave.

Another interesting thing about The Human League’s two bookend reigns at No. 1 on the Hot 100 – not only did New Wave come into play (pun intended) during this time – with the tremendous help of MTV – it was also the time of the Second British (music) Invasion. 

On the BILLBOARD Hot 100 dated July 16th, 1983, British music acts shattered the record established in 1965, where 14 songs by British recording artists were in the American Top 40 at the same time.  On this July 1983 chart, HALF of the Top 40 were songs by British artists, and of those 20, seven of the Top 10 singles that week were by Brits: “Time (Clock Of The Heart)” – Culture Club (No. 10), “Is There Something I Should Know” – Duran Duran (once called The Fab Five; No. 9), “Our House” – Madness (No. 8), “Too Shy” – Kajagoogoo (No. 7), “Come Dancing” (The Kinks, who were part of the original British Invasion; No. 6), “Electric Avenue” – Eddy Grant (a Londoner from Guyana, which was known as British Guiana at the time of his birth in 1948; No. 2), and “Every Breath You Take” – The Police (for the second of eight weeks at No. 1).

In April 1984, 40 of the singles on the Hot 100 were by British acts, and on the Hot 100 chart dated May 25, 1985 (the year of the height of the Second British Invasion), a record EIGHT of the Top 10 singles that week were by Brits: “Things Can Only Get Better” – Howard Jones (No. 10), “Some Like It Hot” – The Power Station (No. 9), “Suddenly” – Billy Ocean (of British origin; No. 8), “One Night In Bangkok” – Murray Head (No. 7), “Smooth Operator” – Sade (No. 5), “Everybody Wants To Rule The World” – Tears For Fears (No. 3), “Don’t You (Forget About Me)” – Simple Minds (No. 2), and “Everything She Wants” – Wham! (No. 1).

For three months between May 18, 1985 and August 17, 1985, and starting with “Don’t You (Forget About Me),” songs by acts from Britain would rule the U.S. music world for all but two weeks – the aforementioned “Everything She Wants” and “Everybody Wants To Rule The World,” plus “Sussudio” by Phil Collins, “A View To A Kill” by Duran Duran, Paul Young’s cover of the Daryl Hall song, “Everytime You Go Away,” and “Shout” by Tears For Fears.

When Bon Jovi claimed their first No. 1 song on the Hot 100 in late November 1986, and in the process signaling the end of the reign of New Wave and the Second British Invasion, the No. 1 songs for the better part of the rest of the 80s were dominated by Glam Metal and Dance acts, though in 1988, many songs by Brits did manage to reach No. 1 on the Hot 100.

One of the British acts who had a banner year in 1985 – in the U.S. and all over the globe – was Bath, England’s Tears For Fears.  Led by Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith, Tears For Fears had been around since 1981, but despite a brilliant debut album (THE HURTING), they hadn’t been able to break through to the U.S. market until the success of “Everybody Wants To Rule The World,” their third single from their second album, SONGS FROM THE BIG CHAIR.

“Everybody Wants To Rule The World” (with vocals by Curt Smith) was the first single released here in the U.S., and for awhile in the Spring and Summer of 1985, Tears For Fears did rule the world with their incredible hit.  It spent a couple of weeks at No. 1 on the Hot 100 in June 1985, as well as reaching No. 1 on BILLBOARD’s Dance chart for two weeks.  The love for this song was felt through many different genres, and it reached No. 2 on BILLBOARD’s Rock and Adult Contemporary charts – no easy feat.  Here in America, it rightfully ranked at No. 7 for all of 1985.

Around the globe, it reached No. 1 in Canada and New Zealand, and the Top 10 in the U.K., Australia, Belgium, Holland and Ireland.  A year later, Roland and Curt returned to the Top 10 of the U.K. and Ireland charts with a rework of their big hit, titled “Everybody Wants To RUN The World,” in support of Sport Aid, which was a sports-themed offshoot campaign of Live Aid, to aid in the effort to help the famine problem in Africa.  The highlight of this campaign was the Race Against Time, a 10K fun run simultaneously held in 89 countries.  $37 million was raised for Live Aid and UNICEF.

For many years, Roland Orzabal kept performing under the Tears For Fears name while Curt Smith had left the band, but they have been together again since 2000, released an album in 2004 (EVERYBODY LOVES A HAPPY ENDING) and are currently on the last dates of their rescheduled U.S. and Canada tour. 

Though overall Tears For Fears may not be the household name they were in 1985, it’s great to see them still together and so wonderful to hear their songs like “Everybody Wants To Rule The World” on the radio.  It’s one of those songs I have always loved from the start and a song I always love driving to.  One of the lyrics of the song goes, “Nothing ever lasts forever.”  Clearly, Roland and Curt aren’t referring to their own song, as this song will live on in radio eternity, and as I’ll love this song forever…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ST86JM1RPl0

song of the day – “Cannonball” | SUPERTRAMP | 1985.

In my last blog post from earlier today (9.17.2016), I talked about the English Progressive Rock band, Supertramp, and the departure of one of the band’s founders and co-frontmen, Roger Hodgson, in 1983.  In 1984, Roger joined the club of nearly 500 artists who reached the BILLBOARD Hot 100 just one time.  He did it with his moderate hit, “Had A Dream (Sleeping With The Enemy).”

Well, that inspired today’s “song of the day.”  After Roger’s departure from the band (who, at that point, had been situated out of Los Angeles for several years), Supertramp concentrated on their next album, BROTHER WHERE YOU BOUND, an album the band’s frontman, keyboardist and vocalist (and now sole writer) Rick Davies wanted to make since their last album, 1982’s …FAMOUS LAST WORDS…

Rick Davies wanted to get the band back to a more Progressive Rock sound than in previous efforts.  A demo for the album’s title track was recorded for the last album, but differences between Roger Hodgson and Rick Davies prevented it from being on the album.  For the new album, Supertramp recruited Thin Lizzy’s rhythm guitarist Scott Gorham and Pink Floyd’s legendary David Gilmour on the guitar solos.  The song “Brother Where You Bound” wound up being 16-and-a-half minutes long. 

In a 2012 piece about the album on the web ‘zine PROG SPHERE, it states that the title track “is a prime example of ‘crossover’ prog at its very best, and as such highly recommended to anyone but those prog fans who think that ‘pop’ is inevitably a bad word.

Speaking of “pop,” one song out of the six songs on BROTHER WHERE YOU BOUND, “Cannonball” (the album’s opening track), did manage to reach the BILLBOARD Hot 100.  “Cannonball” debuted on the Hot 100 four months after the departure of Roger Hodgson’s lone solo hit, “Had A Dream.”

“Cannonball” was well-received at first, reaching the Top 40 in just three weeks.  But, unlike a cannonball, it slowed down after reaching the Top 40, and spent its second of two weeks at No. 28 on July 13th, 1985, the day of Live Aid.  It dropped off after 12 short weeks, and to date, is the last song Supertramp has charted on the Hot 100.  “Cannonball” did, however, return the band to BILLBOARD’s Mainstream Rock chart (No. 4), and even placed them on BILLBOARD’s Dance chart (No. 9), no easy trick.

I love many songs by Supertramp, but prolly strangely enough to some, “Cannonball” remains my favorite song by them (or the seven-minute, 42-second album version anyway).  I just love it.  There are so many elements and layers to the song, and such great instrumentation.  Rick Davies wrote and sang the song entirely in the chord of G minor.  Now, I’m no musician, but it sounds like something that’s not normally done, at least not in 1985.  He said in an interview, “I did it simply to see if it could be done.” 

The 12″ single for “Cannonball.”  Not much difference between the 12″ mix and the album version, but this cover art reflects more dancing than the single version!

After “Cannonball” and BROTHER WHERE YOU BOUND, the biggest noise Supertramp would make was on BILLBOARD’s Dance chart, where their song “I’m Begging You” (from their 1987 album, FREE AS A BIRD) would spend a week at No. 1 in January 1988, wedged inbetween Whitney Houston’s “So Emotional” and Rick Astley’s “Never Gonna Give You Up.”  It sounded more like should have come out 1978 as opposed to 1988, but maybe that’s just me.

Supertramp released two studio albums and four live albums after FREE AS A BIRD, but apart from a popular 2005 compilation, Supertramp never achieved international success again.  They are still together, and were to have a 25-date European tour in 2015, but Rick Davies was sadly diagnosed with multiple myleoma (a cancer of plasma cells).  I’m sure the band and fans around the world (including yours truly) are holding out hope for the recovery of Rick Davies. 

Rick Davies, now 72, has sang lead on not only my favorite Supertramp song, but also great songs like their first hit, “Bloody Well Right” (No. 35, 1974), “My Kind Of Lady” (No. 31, 1983) and “Goodbye Stranger” (No. 15, 1979).

When “Cannonball” was released, the song’s lyrics (like “I’m washing my hands on you / How could you be so untrue”) were, contrary to belief, not about Roger Hodgson, but instead (according to a French radio interview) a “less than perfect” concert promoter Rick Davies wouldn’t name.

“Cannonball” may not have been Supertramp’s biggest or best hit, but it was released during the best year of my youth (a year of a lot of great music), and I still dig it (and still dig driving to it) to this day…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cvfoyXfcwVU