Slammin'

U Got The Look by Prince

Released in July of 1987, this song reached #2 on the US charts. Recorded during what became the double album Sign Of The Times, this was originally part of a much more ambitious 3 album project. Just before disbanding his backing band, The Revolution, Prince began work on an album that featured all members of the band while he was also began a solo album using a female alter-ego named Camille. This song was originally part of the Camille album. To produce Camille's vocals, Prince had his own voice sped up. With The Revolution disbanded, Prince took all the material he had, along with some new songs and presented a triple album to his record company. They immediately asked that he cut the album down to a double album. This song survived the original recordings and the requested cuts. Its long been considered the best part of the original concept.

The video is presented as a dream Prince has while waiting back stage before a show. Scottish singer Sheena Easton provided uncredited co-lead vocals and makes an appearance in the video as the object of Prince's attention. Sheena is unfazed by the entire band surrounding her throughout the video and even changes her outfit three times during the song (still not sure why). The video shows you what you could expect to see during a live Prince performance during those years, with lots of dancers and plenty of visuals to keep you entertained throughout. Of note among the band members is percussionist, Shelia E, who plays percussion on a track that features no live drums but a programmed drum track (notice that there is no drummer behind the drums on stage).

Please enjoy....because its Crucial!

Half The Cast Was Fired.....

...but it still became the highest grossing film of 1985.

Back To The Future

Released in July of 1985, this time travel adventure was the start of a film franchise but when principle photography began, few would have imagined the film would even be completed. The producers had been unable to find a studio to make the film until a trade between Columbia Pictures and Universal Pictures was negotiated. The original lead actor couldn't take the part because he was busy filming a tv show so Eric Stoltz was hired.

It didn't take long for producers to see that Eric, a highly regarded dramatic actor, was not suited to the light comedy of the film so they fired him and went back to the original actor they wanted for the film...

..Michael J. Fox.

Below is a comparison of the two actors working on the same scene.

Now, the problem with switching actors, one of which is nearly 6' tall and one that is 5' 5" tall, means that Marty's girlfriend is now much taller than him and the bully is now much, much taller than him. As a result, nearly the entire cast had to be let go so that the difference between Eric and Michael's height wouldn't be noticed. Christopher Lloyd, who played Doc Brown, had to hunch over in all his scenes with Michael.

The film introduced us to the coolest time-travel machine ever.

Most time-travel machines had been a box, a buggy, a chair!.....but here was a stainless steel car. And it was nuclear powered. Finally an 80's movie that had a nuclear element that wasn't the destruction of all humanity. Plus you needed to get the car up to 88 miles per hour to make it work. Any time I get close to 88 MPH in a car, I'm always tempted to say "Flux capacitor....fluxing". Still cool all these years later.

The film was so popular that it sparked two sequels which continued the story of Marty trying to get his world put back to normal. But do we really think any of this is normal? Its been reported that when President Reagan screened the film at the White House, he had the projectionist roll the film back and replay the part where a joke was made about Reagan, an actor, being President in the future, he apparently laughed loudly at the scene.

Please go and watch this film but don't call me chicken.

Another Song About Nuclear War

I Melt With You by Modern English

Released in May of 1982, this song reached #78 on the US charts......but if you lived in Los Angeles and listened to KROQ, it was on the radio every fifteen minutes from the day it was released until the end of the 80's. It still gets played anytime they do an 80's weekend.

Lead singer and songwriter, Robbie Grey, says the song is about a couple having sex while nuclear bombs fall....ok. I guess if you're going to go, you may as well have fun. Hopefully this song is playing and you can experience deja vu, kismet and irony at the same time.

The song was featured in the movie Valley Girl and was the song playing during the montage when Julie and Randy are starting to fall in love. It also played over the end credits of the film so when ever I hear the song, I think of the movie. (BTW, if you haven't seen Valley Girl, what's wrong with you? Go now....watch it.)

The video is a simple, straight forward performance piece with a couple dancing around while the band plays. It was the early days of MTV. Showing the band was about as much as you could ask for at the time.

Please enjoy....

¿Debo permanecer o debo ir?

*Translation (I hope):

Should I Stay Or Should I Go? by The Clash


Released in June of 1982, the first single from their album, Combat Rock, was a barn burner. I always maintain that this could have easily been a song written by fellow Londoners, The Rolling Stones. When you listen to it, imagine Mick, Keith and the lads singing this in 1966. It sounds like pure, classic London rock. It reached #45 in the US and reached #17 in the UK (but during a 1991 re-release in the UK, it reached #1....the Levi's commercial it was in at the time helped....a bit).

The song was rumored to be about the imminent departure of guitarist (and singer for this song) Mick Jones. He left The Clash to form another classic 80's band. To this day he claims it was just a good song that came about naturally. The rumors still persist.

During recording, guitarist Joe Strummer decided to sing the back ground vocals in spanish (as you do). Not being fluent in spanish, he had the sound engineer (whose parents were of Ecuadorian decent) call his mother in New York and translate the lyrics for the band. During the actual recording of the background vocals, several people hid inside the studio and jumped out from behind equipment and scared Joe Strummer and he yelled out "SPLIT" which is heard on the song. Apparently horsing around is how classic punk rock music is made.

The video is of the bands performance in Shea stadium in New York and includes images of the band driving around the city and generally goofing off. The punk rock life is fun.

Please Enjoy....

A Protest Song You Can Dance To

Electric Avenue by Eddy Grant

Released in 1982 (1983 in the US), this song, about a street in South London that was the first street to have electric lights, made it to #2 on the US charts with the help of heavy rotation on MTV. The street is in an area known as Brixton and in 1981 had a very large Caribbean immigrant population.

The song references riots between locals and police after policy was changed to allow police to stop and frisk anyone on the streets without a reason. The heavily African-Caribbean population viewed this policy as racial discrimination and on the evening of April 10th, 1981, tensions boiled over and violence erupted. It took two days for order to be restored to the streets. Over 300 were injured, but thankfully, no deaths. Lots of cars got destroyed but what else would you expect protestors to find and take their anger out on? (BTW, I always condemn violence in any manner. We're evolved creatures, we can discuss issues without EVER resorting to destruction or violence).

Eddy Grant immediately wrote and recorded this song to voice his anger about how awful this situation had become. It also reached #2 on the UK charts, verifying that people in that country also agreed with its message.

The video has several classic images. The motorcycle riders. Eddy collapsing on the beach. Eddy stepping away from the chair he's watching television from and falling into a carpet of water.

Please enjoy and lets all listen to the concerns of our fellow humans.....they might listen to your concerns, in return.

How To Become Famous...In Seven Short Years

Photograph by Def Leppard

For a band that formed in 1977 and was getting ready to release its third album, Pyromania (the follow up to the moderately successful High And Dry), in early 1983 MTV seemed like a good way to sell a few albums and build an already strong fan base. Recorded over the previous year, the new album was a step toward a more radio-friendly sound but that's not to say that the new sound lost any kind of hard rock edge. Long cited by many bands as the fore-runners and leaders of the modern British metal movement, they almost immediately struck gold with this release.

This first single off the album reached #12 on the US charts and was widely played on MTV. The first image we see of the band is lead singer Joe Elliott in a Union Jack flag t-shirt, so there's no mistake where this band is from. The band bangs away on the song, showing anyone watching what to expect if they go to a live Def Leppard show and isn't that half of what the band is trying to accomplish?

I'm still amazed listening back to this song nearly 35 years after it was recorded at how layered and full it sounds. The band and their producer, "Mutt" Lange, don't waste any part of the stereo mix with the guitars and the drums sound like you're sitting right on the drum riser. They almost make you feel like you're on stage with them during a performance.

The other images from the video follow a Marilyn Monroe look-a-like as she is stalked by a photographer who ends up dead by the end of the video but only after he is shown killing her (?).....not sure how that fits with the song but the images look cool and isn't that the other half of what the band is trying to accomplish?

Please enjoy....

When Prince Prophesized Doom...And Dancing

1999 by Prince

Originally released in September of 1982, this career-changing track didn't do much on the charts at first....until it was re-released in July of 1983 when it became one of his most recognizable songs. It reached #12 on the US charts and was one of the first videos by an African-American artist to receive heavy airplay on MTV.

The song talks about impending doom in the form of a nuclear attack but Prince and his friends aren't concerned. Instead their gonna party like its the end of the world and they don't care. Nothing could be better in the face of a cataclysm of fire than partying like doom isn't coming at all.

The video features one of the first looks at his band, The Revolution, and it was interesting to see how each member had their own unique stage identity, a feature that would continue in every live band Prince took out on tour from this moment forward.

The best part of being able to put up this post is that Price was always protective of how his music was available on the internet and for many years none of his videos were on youtube. Its only been since his passing in 2016 that his family has put these songs up for everyone to enjoy. I encourage you spend an hour or so and watch this great artist performing some of his great songs.

For now, please enjoy one of the first images we saw of this legend. And R.I.P.