The place for great and not-so-great nearly forgotten videos from the decade of Miami Vice, mullets, and acid wash jeans. All praise to the bands, YouTube, and the original posters of these videos.
An early and somewhat forgotten rap success story belongs to Anthony Smith, aka Tone Lōc. Born and raised in Los Angeles, Lōc left Compton (and the infamous Crips gang) to seek fame and fortune as a rapper. He then had the good fortune to work with Young MC and The Dust Brothers; the result was 1989's Lōc-ed After Dark, which became the second rap album to hit #1 on the charts, following The Beastie Boys' Licensed to Ill.
"Funky Cold Medina" was the second Young MC penned song to become a huge hit, reaching #3 on the charts ("Wild Thing" had previously hit #2). The song used Foreigner's "Hot Blooded" as the main sample, but also sampled "Honky Tonk Women" and "Satisfaction" by the Rolling Stones and "Christine Sixteen" by Kiss. (Ahh, the pre-litigation days of sampling ...)
Sadly, "Funky Cold Medina" was it as far as Tone Lōc's successful rapping career went -- he would never have another charting LP or top 40 single. He then transitioned to acting, and seems to be making a decent living.
The video is Lōc-tastic and shows off his larger than life personality and sense of humor. Definitely one of our favorites from back in the day.
Best known for his work in the influential alternative band Hüsker Dü, guitarist Bob Mould continued recording and performing after Hüsker Dü's demise in 1988. His work as a solo artist and in the band Sugar showed that his artistic growth, which began in Hüsker Dü, continued long after that group broke up.
For readers who are unfamiliar with Hüsker Dü, they are simply one of the most important alternative artists of the 1980s. Specifically, their migration from hardcore punk to a more melodic punk/rock sound laid the groundwork for the 1990s and influenced bands as varied as Nirvana, The Replacements and The Pixies.
"See A Little Light" is off Mould's first solo album, 1989's Workbook, which is a well-crafted and surprising record. While Hüsker Dü's punk/rock songs had a definite pop sensibility, many listeners were probably still unprepared for the indie approach taken here. The pop sound is front and center, with some strong folk influences added in. Sadly, the song and album deserved better results than they achieved -- the song did not break the top 100, and the album peaked at #127.
After two softer solo records, Mould founded Sugar in 1992 and returned to a more alternative rock sound. Sugar broke up in 1995, but Mould has remained active in the industry (with some extended breaks) to the present day.
Written for the Stephen King movie of the same (intentionally misspelled) name, "Pet Sematary" would go on to become one of the Ramones bigger radio hits. The song would reach #4 on the Modern Rock charts, while the Brain Drain album peaked at #122. In spite of this success, neither the song nor the album were well-regarded by critics, who viewed the song as more hard rock than punk. [Readers who are so inclined should contrast "Pet Sematary" with "Sheena Is A Punk Rocker," which was also used in the Pet Sematary movie.]
While this criticism is valid, "Pet Sematary" still manages to combine a Stephen King horror flick with the Ramones, making it a fantastic Halloween video. In fact, it was a match made in horror heaven, as King is a big fan of the Ramones.
The video combines scenes from the movie with the band playing in a ... well, cemetery. While there a bunch of actors, fog machines, and graves also present, there really isn't much more to the video (although we did appreciate the fact that the band is buried in the end).
This is XTC's second appearance on the blog, as "Senses Working Overtime" showed up way back in September 2011. As we mentioned in that post, XTC produced some outstanding 1960s influenced pop, but somehow managed to avoid becoming big stars. Their lack of major success seems to have been the result of two factors: (1) Their inability to tour (guitarist/singer Andy Partridge's stage fright is the stuff of legends), and (2) The lack of trendiness in their music. Ironically, while they often seemed out of step back in the day, their music has aged remarkably well, in ERV's opinion.
"Mayor of Simpleton" was from the band's 1989 Oranges and Lemons album, and at #72, it was their highest charting U.S. single. In fact, XTC's only other charting song in the U.S. was "Generals and Majors," which reached #104 in 1980. "Mayor of Simpleton" was undoubtedly helped by the catchy video(s) below, which led to some airplay on MTV, particularly during the 120 Minutes segment.
Due to the wonders of the internet, we also know that there were two version of the video -- a U.S. version:
And a U.K. version:
XTC continued making music through 1992, when a dispute with their label led the band to stop recording for six years. Once they were released from their contract, XTC resumed releasing music on a smaller scale until they disbanded in 2005.
When De La Soul's debut album came out in 1989, it created quite a stir in the music industry. At a time when old school rap had started to feel stale, De La Soul's funky, jazzy and quirky take on hip hop was a breath of fresh air. That album, 3 Feet High and Rising, was both critically and commercially successful and was hailed by many critics as a sign of things to come.
The lead single from the LP was "Me Myself and I" which would go on to become De La Soul's only top 40 hit (at #34), while the album would reach #24 and go platinum. At the time, the group's positive message and broad use of samples seemed to be pushing hip hop in an upbeat, artistic direction; it was easy to believe that this was the beginning of a new era. This sense of a movement was reinforced by the Native Tongues collective, which was a grouping of artists (led by De La Soul, A Tribe Called Quest and Jungle Brothers) who shared a musical vision that was positive, laid-back and somewhat Afrocentric.
Unfortunately, things did not go according to plan for De La Soul. First, The Turtles sued the band for not obtaining permission to use their song "You Showed Me" as a sample (in "Transmitting Live from Mars"). The Turtles eventually won the case, which had a huge impact on the rap industry, as samples now had to be cleared (and paid for) prior to work being released. This delayed the group's second album, and made it more difficult to produce the layered songs that they favored.
In addition, the group had a difficult time artistically as their recordings varied in style but did not resonate as well with critics and listeners. To my ear, it almost sounds as if they were trying to find their sound, something that became more difficult after the industry's shift to gangster rap in the early 1990s. While the band continued to record, their audience seemed to shrink with every record. To their credit, De La Soul has stayed together and continues to record to the present day.
Cool trivia fact: Rolling Stone rated 3 Feet High and Rising as the 103rd album on their list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.
Long time reader Sam requested Vain (multiple times) and he is right -- "Beat the Bullet" is a solid late 1980s choice for the blog. So this one goes out to Sam, with my compliments.
Vain came out of the San Francisco hard rock scene of the mid 1980s and was led by singer Davy Vain. The band formed in 1986 and played regularly in San Francisco and Los Angeles before signing a contract with Island Records in 1988. Vain's debut album, 1989's No Respect was a solid initial effort and reached #154 on the album charts. Although the single, "Beat the Bullet" did generate some airplay on MTV, it did not chart.
The group returned to the studio to work on their second LP, titled All These Strangers, but were dropped by their label when Island Records was acquired by PolyGram. Vain then joined forces with ex-Guns N' Roses drummer Steven Adler to form Road Crew and recorded an album that generated some recording label interest. Unfortunately, Adler's drug problems soon put an end to the project. The band then returned to the Vain moniker and has continued to record and perform to the present day.
More a community of artists than a static band, Soul II Soul were nevertheless one of the more interesting and creative R&B acts of the late 1980s and early 1990s. Jazzie B (real name: Trevor Romeo) formed the group in London in 1988 with a lineup that included Nellee Hooper and Caron Wheeler among its ranks. [Carol Wheeler appeared on ERV last December as a backup singer in the Elvis Costello and The Attractions song, "Everyday I Write the Book."]
Soul II Soul's sound was a modern take on traditional R&B and soul. In particular, by combining samples with modern R&B, they made songs that were more interesting and creative than most R&B on the radio at the time. The group's first album, Club Classics Vol. One (called Keep On Movin' in the U.S.) was a hit, reaching #14 in the U.S. and #1 in the U.K. The singles "Keep On Movin'" (#11 in the U.S.) and "Back to Life (However Do You Want Me)" (#4) became big hits, and the group appeared to be headed for continued success.
Sadly, Wheeler left the band before the second LP was recorded, and further personnel turnover also had an impact on the group. While they remained stars in the U.K., they did not have another top 40 hit in the U.S. Jazzie B eventually disbanded Soul II Soul in 1997, although they have reunited and performed in recent years.
For the blog, we skipped right over their two big hits listed above and settled on "Jazzie's Groove," a funky, mostly instrumental song that features samples from Gary Byrd's "Soul Travelin' Pt. I," Beau Dollar's "Who Knows," The Honey Drippers' "Impeach the President" and Pleasure's "Celebrate the Good Things."
Every now and then, we come across a song that fits perfectly into the blog, almost as if The Universe itself has made a request. [As an aside, it would be pretty damn cool if The Universe did care about 1980s music in general and ERV specifically ... our idea of heaven surely has a lot of 1980s music, along with some really good pizza.] At any rate, we heard this one today and were surprised to find out that it is a 1980s song, although just barely.
The Lightning Seeds were formed by noted producer Ian Broudie (of Echo & the Bunnymen, The Fall, and The Icicle Works fame). He started using the name for his solo work beginning in 1989, and the project eventually evolved into a full fledged band. By the by, Broudie's first band was Big in Japan (with Holly Johnson), who would be the inspiration for the Alphaville song of the same name (featured on ERV in January 2012). Small world, huh?
"Pure" was released in June of 1989, making it officially an eighties song, although the Cloudcuckooland album wasn't released until early 1990. [As we said, before we looked it up, we thought of "Pure" as an early 90s song.] And yes, Cloudcuckooland should go on the growing list of coolest album titles ever. "Pure" ended up charting, reaching #31 on the main charts, the only top 40 hit for the band. To be fair, they did have several Modern Rock charting hits in the early to mid 1990s and a slew of hits in the UK.
Broudie and The Lightning Seeds continue to record and perform to the present day, although they did take an extended hiatus in the early 2000s.
Saraya were a New Jersey based hard rock band, named after their female lead singer (Sandi Saraya). [As an aside, ERV previously featured a song from a different female-led hard rock band -- Femme Fatale's "Falling In and Out of Love" last May.] The band formed in 1987, and originally was called Alsace Lorraine. After some lineup changes, Saraya scored a recording contract, and their self-titled debut came out in 1989.
Unlike many other bands of this era, Saraya had a strong voice, and the music was influenced more by old school rock (Heart, Pat Benatar, etc.) than hair metal. The album hit #79 on the charts, with both "Love Has Taken Its Toll" (#64) and "Back to the Bullet" (#63) charting, but not breaking the top 40. While Saraya never quite found its audience, we were fans, and think that the first album, in particular, is very solid.
The band released a second album, 1991's When the Blackbird Sings (which did not do as well) before breaking up in the early 1990s.
Cool trivia fact: Sandi Saraya was married (at one time) to Brian Wheat, the bass player for Tesla.
Let's face it: not all of the stories on ERV are happy. The blog is littered with talented artists who did not break though; in fact that is something of the point of ERV -- to highlight these musicians and their videos. Still, there are some cool success stories here as well, including a lot of the covers posted on ERV (which is kind of the point of the covers category).
Bonnie Raitt actually fits into both categories. For the first fifteen years of her career, she was an under-appreciated artist who then had a late career renaissance. Raitt released 9 albums between 1971 and 1986 with some commercial success, but she did not have a top 40 single or a top 20 album. However, her bluesy sound and slide guitar made her a trailblazer and a critical darling.
Everything changed when Raitt released Nick of Time in 1989. Her 10th album was produced by Don Was (previously featured on the blog in Was Not Was) and contained the song that really broke her career wide open -- her cover of John Hiatt's "Thing Called Love." (Hiatt's "Slow Turning" was posted on ERV in March 2012.) The stars aligned and Raitt had a #1 album, one that would go on to sell some 5 million units in the U.S. Incredibly, "Thing Called Love" did not break the top 100 on the U.S. charts, but Raitt had multiple charting singles after it, including 5 top 40 songs.
The video of "Thing Called Love" features Dennis Quaid, (a friend of Raitts') who is basically there to flirt with her. In subsequent interviews, Raitt recounts that she was somewhat uncomfortable shooting videos, and thought that having an actor friend there would help the process.
And of course, the rougher but still excellent John Hiatt original:
Cool trivia fact: Rolling Stone ranked John Hiatt's Bring the Family album (with his version of "Thing Called Love") as the 53rd greatest album of the 1980s ... and they ranked Bonnie Raitt's Nick of Time as the 492nd greatest album ever.
The Smithereens are another in a growing list of underrated 1980s rock bands, and stood out as an unusual band that combined rock with 1960s British Invasion pop. The result was inventive and catchy, in a Beatles meets AC/DC sort of way. This led to some success in the mid to late 1980s, as they had three successive albums that broke the top 60. However, they never truly found the success or recognition that they deserved.
The band was formed in New Jersey in the early 1980s, and named after a Yosemite Sam expression ("Varmint, I'm a-gonna blow you to smithereens!") Amazingly, the original lineup of Pat DiNizio (songwriter, guitars and vocals), Jim Babjak (guitar), Dennis Diken (drums) and Mike Mesaros (bass) stayed together for 25 years, until Mesaros quit the industry to raise his kids.
"A Girl Like You" was the band's biggest hit, from 1989's 11 (named after the famous Spinal Tap amplifier). The song peaked at #38, while the LP hit #41. The Smithereens had a second top 40 hit, as well -- but it probably isn't the one that you are thinking of. "Too Much Passion," from the Blow Up CD hit #37 in 1992.
While the band's period of major success was relatively brief they have remained a working band, and continue to perform and record to this day.
Cool trivia fact: "A Girl Like You" was originally written for the Cameron Crowe movie Say Anything... Apparently, Crowe felt that the song gave away too much of the plot, so he did not include it, but he remained on good terms with Pat DiNizio (who did a cameo in the Crowe film Singles in 1992).
1989 was Young MC's year. He co-wrote the two major hits for Tone Lōc's smash LP Lōc-ed After Dark, which went to #1. The two hits both broke the top 5, with "Wild Thing" reaching #2 and "Funky Cold Medina" hitting #3. Young MC then released his first album, Stone Cold Rhymin'. That album peaked at #9, and produced two additional top 40 hits -- "Bust a Move" (#7) and "Principal's Office" (#33). Incredibly, Young MC never had another top 40 hit.
Young MC (Marvin Young) was born in England, but his family moved to Queens, NYC when he was eight. While he was at college at USC, he joined Delicious Vinyl, which led to the success with Lōc-ed After Dark and Stone Cold Rhymin'. However, he left the label after his first LP, due to a series of creative and legal disputes and eventually signed with Capital Records. His subsequent releases did not catch on, with 1991's Brainstorm being the only subsequent album to chart (it hit #66). While his later material was solid, it remained a bit stylized and changes in the hip hop scene pushed him out of the limelight. In recent years, Young MC has acted and appeared on a few celebrity-themed reality shows. He continues to write and record, as well.
For the blog, we decided to go with "Principal's Office," as it is the rarer hit, and that's what the blog is all about. The song relies on a cool old Lee Michaels riff from "Who Could Want More." By the by, Lee Michaels is best known for his 1971 hit "Do You Know What I Mean?" The video itself is full of superb 1989 fashion goodness, right down to the acid wash jeans.
The brother of actors Sean and Chris Penn, Michael Penn has had a long career as something of an anti-rock star. While his first LP, 1989's March did peak at #31 on the album charts, most of his successive work has not had anything close to that level of success. Nevertheless, Penn is regarded as a strong singer-songwriter and has recorded a bunch of critically acclaimed albums over the years.
"No Myth," the superb first single from March remains as Penn's only top 40 hit; it hit #13 on the charts. The incredibly catchy song received a bunch of airplay back in the day and the video was in heavy rotation on your favorite video music channel, as well. Penn was actively involved in the production of the video, mostly because he didn't want it to look too commercial, and we think that he succeeded for the most part.
Penn remains active in the music industry as of this writing, with his wife, Aimee Mann (formerly of 'Til Tuesday).
Cool trivia fact: Penn may have been cursed by the infamous "best new artist" problem -- he won the 1990 MTV VMA for Best New Artist. (Ironically, his wife also has the same award -- "Til Tuesday won the 1985 Award). See the comments section for a list of the VMAs for Best New Artist (current as of this post).
Regular readers of ERV may remember a post about Love and Rockets from July 2012, which mentioned that the band formed after a failed Bauhaus reunion (lead singer Peter Murphy did not show up). Although Murphy did not attend the rehearsal, he remained active in the music industry, and carved out a solo career as an independent artist.
Curiously, in the aftermath of Love and Rockets big hit ("So Alive"), Peter Murphy has his biggest commercial success. Perhaps it was karma, or possibly his record label made an extra effort to promote the single, knowing that his former bandmates had just scored a hit. In any event, "Cuts You Up," from the 1989 album Deep became an unlikely hit -- reaching #1 on the U.S. Modern Rock charts and peaking at #55 on the Billboard Hot 100. [As a fun aside, Deep was released on December 19, 1989, making it one of the last albums of the eighties.]
Deep would go on to peak at #44 on the album charts. While Murphy had other small successes, and released some critically acclaimed material, "Cuts You Up" was his only charting U.S. single.
In spite of the first failed reunion, Bauhaus would reform several times, starting in 1998, and they actually released a new album in 2008. However, they do not appear to be together as of this writing.
Total non sequitur, but we have always thought of Peter Murphy as a modern, new wave version of David Bowie.
Although Lou Reed had only modest commercial success, he was an important and influential musician who reshaped the language of rock. In particular, he approached songs in much the same way that a novelist would, leading to lyrics that touched on adult and even previously taboo topics in a mature way.
For readers who are unaware, Reed got his start in the Velvet Underground. Much has been written about them; suffice to say that they were an enormously influential band who laid the foundation for punk and new wave. The famous quote about the VU was that "the first Velvet Underground album only sold 10,000 copies, but everyone who bought it formed a band." [This quote has been attributed to both Brian Eno and Peter Buck.]
In 1989, Reed released his 15th solo album, a concept album titled New York. Although it was well-regarded by critics (who appreciated the back to basics approach), it was not a huge commercial success. The album peaked at #40, and "Dirty Blvd." did not chart on the main charts (it did hit #1 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks). We don't think that the video was played much on MTV, though it was played on 120 Minutes (the alternative video show running at the time).
At any rate, "Dirty Blvd." is vintage Lou Reed -- he does his talk/sing thing over a catchy guitar hook, telling a story with provocative lyrics. We have to say, this is a guy who was creating solid rock songs 25 years after his first band started. Impressive.
Sadly, Lou Reed died on October 27, 2013.
Cool trivia fact: Rolling Stone rated the New York LP as the 19th best album of the 1980s.
The Call are another in a long list of bands who were critically acclaimed, but never quite found their audience. Other artists that would we would place in this category include Marshall Crenshaw and XTC. Note that the Underrated label to the right captures a bunch of additional bands (or songs) that by all rights should have been bigger than they were.
The Call was led by singer-guitarist Michael Been, and formed in California in the early 1980s. Critics liked their roots rock sound and sophisticated lyrics, with some referring to The Call as a kind of updated version of The Band. These comparisons were likely helped by Robbie Robertson appearing on their 1985 album, Reconciled. Peter Gabriel was also a fan, and guested on the same album.
"Let the Day Begin" from the 1989 LP of the same name was The Call's biggest hit -- it reached #51 on the charts, while the album peaked at #64. Unfortunately, the band broke up in 1990, when Been left to pursue a solo career. The Call then re-formed in 1997 but broke up for good in 2000.
Sadly, Michael Been died of a heart attack in 2010, while working as a sound tech for his son's band (Black Rebel Motorcycle Club).
Concrete Blonde came out of the post-punk LA scene and became an influential alternative rock band, one of several who drove indy rock's explosion in the early 1990s. In this regard, they loosely fit in with The Pixies. However, Concrete Blonde also had a distinct sound with thoughtful lyrics that made that somewhat unusual. And as you'd expect, this led to more popularity among music critics and college students than the general public.
The band was led by singer/bassist Johnette Napolitano and guitarist James Mankey, who had worked together as Dream 6 in the early 1980s. By 1986 they had generated enough buzz to be signed by I.R.S. records, where label-mate Michael Stipe (of R.E.M.) suggested their name. The term Concrete Blond was a derogatory term referring to the bleached blonds of the LA hair metal scene, but in interviews the band claimed that they just liked the term, as it had both hard and soft connotations which seemed to suit their style.
In typical ERV fashion, we are going to skip over the band's big hit, "Joey" (which is from 1990, anyhow) and present "God is a Bullet" from 1989's Free LP. The song did not chart on the main charts (it did hit the Modern Rock Tracks) and we don't recall seeing the video at the time. However, it is a really solid, driving rock song -- perfect for the blog.
Concrete Blonde would have major success with their 1990 album, Bloodletting (which contained "Joey") and released a few additional albums in the early 1990s before breaking up. They re-formed in the early 2000s before breaking up again in 2006.
By the late 1980s, hard rock was enjoying huge commercial success, a backdrop that should have made Badlands big, big stars. Surprisingly, though, the band's blues-rock sound did not resonate with the record- buying public, making Badlands a rare case of an underrated late 1980s hard rock band.
The driving force behind Bandlands was guitarist Jake E. Lee, who left Ozzy Osbourne with the stated intention of forming a band. The addition of lead singer Ray Gillen from Black Sabbath helped to cement that sound, which was roughed up blues-rock (think updated Led Zepplin). Although the band was well-regarded in the music industry, their debut album (Badlands) was a commercial disappointment, peaking at #57 on the album charts.
"Dreams in the Dark" was their lead single, and it did not chart. The video shows the band's approach -- we would describe them as a "let the music do the talking" sort of band. Unfortunately, this image just didn't click with their audience at the time.
Their follow up LP, Voodoo Highway performed worse, and the band broke up in 1993. Jake E. Lee has kept a pretty low profile since then, although he has put out a few solo albums and continues to play. Ray Gillen died of an AIDS-related disease in 1993.
Love and Rockets emerged from the ashes of Bauhaus, an early and influential goth rock band that formed in 1978. Bauhaus broke up in 1983, but the members stayed in touch and in 1985 agreed to a joint rehearsal. Lead singer Peter Murphy didn't show up, but the other musicians -- Daniel Ash, David J and Kevin Haskins did and jammed together. The jam session went so well that they decided to form a band, which became Love and Rockets, named after a comic book series by Los Bros Hernandez.
The band had somewhat of a cult following prior to their breakout 1989 hit "So Alive." While their music was more driving and upbeat than Bauhaus (which is not saying much), it was still definitely indie rock, with a strong psychedelic vibe. "So Alive," with its T-Rex and Lou Reed influences, is a bit of an aberration and caused some controversy among the bands' supporters, with some predictably calling it a sell-out.
In any event, the song became a big hit in 1989, ending up at #3 on the charts. While Love and Rockets continued to make music until their eventual break up in 1999, they did not have another hit, leaving them as a one-hit wonder. In the years since, there have been periodic reunions of both Love and Rockets and Bauhaus, although both bands appear to be on hiatus at the moment.
"Don't Wanna Fall in Love" was the hit single off Jane Child's 1989 eponymous solo album and the catchy song came damn close to being a #1 hit -- it peaked at #2 for three weeks in 1990, held out of the top spot by Sinéad O'Connor's "'Nothing Compares 2 U," which many readers will know was written by Prince.
Child has an interesting backstory, as her parents were both classical musicians. She grew up in Toronto, but wrote "Don't Wanna Fall in Love" in New York, which is why the video was shot there. While she is an official one hit wonder, her single "Welcome to the Real World" peaked at #49.
After her follow up album, 1993's Here Not There was a commercial disappointment, Child dropped out of the limelight, and became a session musician. Child eventually released her third album Surge, in 2002.
Cool trivia fact: Child wrote all of the songs on here debut album, and played all instruments except guitar.
