Ahh...The Memories

Take It On The Run by REO Speedwagon

Released in January of 1981, this song made it to #5 on the US charts and was everywhere during that whole year. It was supposed to be the ninth video ever shown on MTV but the video went black after only a few seconds and didn't continue playing. So, early cable fail.

But this song has special meaning to me. Music has the ability to recall memories and take us back to moments and places that are key to our lives. This particular song always reminds me of a place called Seaside Lagoon in Redondo Beach, California where I grew up. It was basically a concrete-lined, three foot deep community pool surrounded by beach sand a few feet from the sport fishing pier in a parking lot.

It was where we spent most of our summer days in 1981 before we realized the actual beach was not very far away.....like two blocks. But one thing I liked was that they played music over loud speakers that carried across the whole area. They played this song about once an hour, everyday, all summer in 1981. This song always takes me back to this place and this time in my life. Skateboarding to the beach. The smell of the nearby pier. The sounds of the breakwater, mixed with jr. high school girls I was just starting to notice and this song.

Please enjoy.

Cha!

Der Kommissar by After The Fire

Released in 1982, it would be the second version of this song...only this time in English (well, most of it, at least). The original version of the song (recorded in German) was released in 1981 by Austrian rocker, Falco and became a huge hit for him all across Europe. British rock band, After The Fire, re-recorded the song with new English lyrics and released it to.....well, not much of a reception in their home country.

Then MTV got involved. The video (which was about as average a music video as you could get back in 1982) at least gave the band an image and a boat-load of airplay. Before long (in 1983), the After The Fire version began to climb the US charts, eventually reaching #5, and along the way, began pulling the Falco version up the US charts as well. Falco's version made it to #10 but on the disco charts...who knew that was still a thing in 1983?

After The Fire didn't even get to celebrate their accomplishment in style as the band broke up on stage one night while opening up for Van Halen (imagine David Lee Roth trying to top that) before the song started its climb up the charts.

Here's the video, please enjoy the woman putting her lipstick on....but they reversed the film so it looks like she's taking it off. Kinda cool? Maybe.

They Could Have Spent More Time On The Lyrics

Making Love Out Of Nothing At All by Air Supply

First of all, This is not really the type of song I would have listened to back in 1983 when this was released. It reached #2 on the US charts so someone was listening to it.....a lot. But its crossed my radar in the years since and it always makes me laugh and I'll explain why.

The song starts off with a bit of easy piano and then the singer comes in and he's going to tell you about everything he knows. Ok. Then the chorus kicks in and he doesn't know a few things. And then a choir comes in and they're singing half the title of the song. And now he's getting all over dramatic about her eyes and the stars. There's a guitar solo that's completely out of place for this song and this band. And now he's telling us about all the things he can make and all of them are sports analogies. Here comes the choir again. I'm starting to suspect that he can't say Making Love.

I'm not even going to go into the terrible video......its bad on many levels. And I'm not sure why this song was such a big hit but here it is.

Enjoy.....or laugh along with me.

Don't Judge Me

Don't Stand So Close To Me by The Police

Released in January of 1981, this was the first single from their third album. It reached #10 on the US charts and was a big hit for the band. The song deals with an infatuation between a teacher and a female student (which we all know is wrong and inappropriate) and its possible outcome. Prior to being a world famous musician, Sting, the lead singer, main songwriter and bassist for the band, was a school teacher (he says the song is not autobiographical, just mental role playing).

The song is my favorite Police song but not because of the lyrics. It just so happens to be the song I lost my virginity to. The girl I was dating at the time was a huge Police fan and she had a mix tape of all Police songs. This was the song that was playing when IT happened. Yes, the song is only 4 minutes long. Give me a break, I was 15. I'm lucky to have made it that long. I'm also lucky that it wasn't the very next song on her mix tape: When The World Is Running Down, You Make The Best Of What's Still Around. A bit tougher subject matter. At least this song was sorta about what we were doing (we were both 15 at the time).

The video has always been a classic. Sting reprises his role as a teacher. Drummer, Stewart Copeland, is smoking in the classroom. Sting is wearing a t-shirt from the band The Beat! (known in the US as The English Beat!) and that was cool. Stewart is throwing paper at the teacher (he's naughty) and later in the song, Sting takes off his shirt and coat while grading papers......not sure what that's about but it gets a nice reaction from guitarist, Andy Summers.

Please enjoy and don't picture me having awkward, first time sex.