The 80’s were all about hooks and this one ruled. Recorded for the musical Chess with the music written by members of ABBA and lyrics by Tim Rice.
The lyrics, while often thought to be about sex, contain no carnal content, are delivered deadpan, and seem to express disillusionment with various aspects of modern life.
The song first recorded by Falco in German in 1981 and covered a year later by After The Fire. The title translates to “the commissioner” or police captain and is basically about being chased by the police.
Major Tom is a song by singer Peter Schilling from his album Error in the System. With a character unofficially related to “Major Tom”, the theme of David Bowie’s 1969 album Space Oddity, the song is about the character being caught in an accident in space. Makes PERFECT sense!
The band was founded in 1980 in Los Angeles by guitarist Warren Cuccurullo, vocalist Dale Bozzio, and drummer Terry Bozzio. Dale’s quirky voice and heavy makeup made the band a favorite on MTV in the early 1980s. Her revealing outfits played a pivotal role in moving the culture of music videos.
With “Rock Me Amadeus”, Falco became the first German-speaking artist to be credited with a #1 single in all mainstream U.S. pop singles charts. I think we may have him to thank for the next German-speaking chart topper; Nena, or not.
Not sure what the exact title of this song is but I remember playing the sh*t out of this when I was seven, literally on a 45. I guess they are the pioneers of the modern day Mash-up?
They would later become Level 42 and who could have predicted that genius in the making. Catchy and annoying at the same time.
Why this song wasn’t as big as “You Spin Me” I have no idea, was Pete Burns in fact dead or alive in the video, I have no idea, should the Scissor Sister cover this track, absolutely.
Written by fellow New Zealander Neil Finn and the video clip features Finn standing in a room with the other band members performing in a framed picture on the wall behind him.
A cover of Norman Greenbaum’s “Spirit in the Sky”. The original song’s arrangement came together in the studio in San Francisco. Nice fun fact.
Recorded by ABC in 1982, included on their debut album, The Lexicon of Love. The official video (which I cannot embed here because whoever has the rights may be a bit behind the times) vaguely pays homage to Gene Kelly’s Ballet sequence from An American in Paris. Instead enjoy a fantastic live performance.
A gothic rock band covering Motown. Awesome!
Originally released in 1989 this was like a drunk pre-cursor to 311. Great song, and way ahead of it’s time.
