Hyts - Backstabber

Here at ERV, we realize that there is a wide range of videos that could be considered rare, and we try to run the gamut.  In fact we even put some not-so-rare stuff up occasionally (the cover songs, for instance).  However, there can be little doubt that "Backstabber" is rare by any definition, and we suspect that most of our readers have never heard of the band or the song.

Hyts were a foursome out of California who signed to Gold Mountain Records in the early 1980s.  The band was made up of Pat Little (lead vocals, guitars), Stan Miller (bass), Tommy Thompson (keyboard, guitar) and Roy Garcia (drums).  Their self-titled debut album was released in 1983, and had a minor hit, "Backstabber" that reached #48 on the rock charts (it did not chart in the Hot 100).

The video is something else.  A "Psycho" inspired schlockfest, complete with a lead singer singing in the shower, dancing skeletons, and dancers who transform into mother (complete with knives) ... it really has to be seen to be believed.  Oh, and did we mention that the guitarist and bass player have matching outfits?  [We also love the video clip that it comes from, as it starts with a promo for a Duran Duran concert ... cool, old MTV].

At any rate, Hyts went on tour to support the record, but had to stop when drummer Roy Garcia was injured (he fell off the stage).  The follow up record (Looking From The Outside) was delayed by the label, and when it was finally released in 1986, it did not sell well.  The band was subsequently dropped by the label and faded from view ... until now.

Rocky Burnette - Tired of Toein' the Line

Rocky Burnette (given name: Jonathan), was the son of early rocker Johnny Burnette.  Johnny wrote "You're Sixteen," later made famous by Ringo Starr, and ran in the same circles as Elvis Presley and Carl Perkins.  He was tragically killed in a boating accident in 1964.

Years later, Rocky joined the family business, and wrote updated rockabilly songs, in the same genre as his dad had in the 1950s and early 1960s.  Rocky is best known for "Tired of Toein' the Line," the 1980 single from the 1979 album Son of Rock'n'Roll.  The song was a huge hit, peaking at #8, while the album hit #53.  Although Rocky never had another big hit, he has remained a working musician, to this day, in fact.

"Tired of Toein' the Line (nice apostrophe) is a catchy song, but it appears that Rocky and his friends completely lost their minds when it came time for the video shoot.  To be fair, early 80s videos were something of an afterthought, as MTV didn't even launch until 1981 (and didn't really gain traction until 1982).  Even so, the chicks in shiny pantsuits energetically pretending to play instruments ... including trombone (yes, really), while Rocky sings with his shirt open, wearing his best Ted Nugent sunglasses ... well, the video scores high on the cheesy / WTF scale.  It might even be so bad that it's good, but you'll have to be the judge of that.

Cool trivia fact:  Rocky would go on to work with Dwight Twilley in the 1990s ... who is also on the blog for a different cheesy video.  Go figure.

The Flirts - Jukebox (Don't Put Another Dime)

While there was some great music played on MTV in the early days, the station also played some ... well, not-so-great (or WTF??) music too.  High on any list of "what were they thinking" would be The Flirts.

To be fair, The Flirts weren't even really a band -- they were a creation of Bobby Orlando, a New York City based record producer.  As a result, the members changed regularly (like every album).  Think Menudo, but with pretty young women (for our younger readers, please replace "Menudo" with "Backstreet Boys" above.) Amazingly, they had a minor hit with "Jukebox," off the 1982 album 10 Cents a Dance.  The video was played around every ten minutes on MTV for a while, for no apparent reason and no, we are not bitter about that at all.

At any rate, Bobby Orlando then put out a new Flirts album ever 2 weeks or so for most of the eighties, but sadly (yes, that is sarcasm) did not hit it big again.