21 November 1987 Lyrics inspired by Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, apparently. The song itself feels stitched together too. You can hear something of Kate Bush in Carol Decker's gothic, stage-whispered verses: "Eyes wide / like a child in the form of man!" The chorus, though, is pure '80s power balladry: vague, blustery melodrama belted out as … Continue reading T’Pau – ‘China In Your Hand’
Tag: 80s
George Harrison – ‘Got My Mind Set On You’
14 November 1987 Jeff Lynne must have had some seriously scandalous kompromat on The Beatles and Tom Petty. Why else would they have continually entrusted production of their '80s and '90s records to him, when he consistently made them sound so awful? His dreary multi-tracked voice, his drearier country-rock soundscapes: never mind "Paul is dead", … Continue reading George Harrison – ‘Got My Mind Set On You’
Bee Gees – ‘You Win Again’
17 October 1987 The industrial-sounding percussion at the start of 'You Win Again' is intriguing; it has depth and texture. This doesn't last, of course. In comes the synthiest of synths, then that familiar deadening falsetto that flattens everything, so we know it's another typically terrible Bee Gees record. Cruelly, we get another tantalising glimpse … Continue reading Bee Gees – ‘You Win Again’
Abigail Mead and Nigel Goulding – ‘I Wanna Be Your Drill Instructor’
10 October 1987 Abigail Mead is a pseudonym of Vivian Kubrick, daughter of Stanley and composer of the original music in Full Metal Jacket. As the name of R. Lee Ermey, the real-life drill instructor who played the same role in the movie, isn't featured on the credits I'll take an educated guess that Nigel … Continue reading Abigail Mead and Nigel Goulding – ‘I Wanna Be Your Drill Instructor’
U2 – ‘Where The Streets Have No Name’
5 September 1987 A bicycle needs two pedals, but The Edge only needs one. His intro to 'Where The Streets Have No Name' may sound like some complex muso yoke at first, but it's just six notes played over and over; listen for yourself and you can pick them out. That shimmering effect is thanks … Continue reading U2 – ‘Where The Streets Have No Name’
Pet Shop Boys with Dusty Springfield – ‘What Have I Done To Deserve This?’
22 August 1987 I was too young in 1987 to know much about Dusty Springfield. Only years later I learned her mother was from my home town of Tralee, Co. Kerry, so Dusty was basically one of our own. No, we're not related. It was much later too, during my college years, that I became … Continue reading Pet Shop Boys with Dusty Springfield – ‘What Have I Done To Deserve This?’
Los Lobos – ‘La Bamba’
1 August 1987 Fake news and misinformation existed in 1987 too, you know. I remember everyone at the time saying that 'la bamba' in Spanish meant 'the goat' and that this song was about a goat. In provincial Ireland in 1987 the only Spanish speakers we ever saw were the impossibly exotic Spanish students who … Continue reading Los Lobos – ‘La Bamba’
Madonna – ‘Who’s That Girl’
18 July 1987 The animated Madonna that appears halfway through the video (below) for 'Who's That Girl' is by Elinor Blake, who under her later nom de pop of April March sang 'Chick Habit' which appeared on the soundtrack to the '00s Quentin Tarantino movie Death Proof and on a car ad. I saw Blake … Continue reading Madonna – ‘Who’s That Girl’
Pet Shop Boys – ‘It’s A Sin’
4 July 1987 'West End Girls', one of the best singles of the 1980s, didn't get to number one in Ireland, so this is our first Pet Shop Boys chart-topper. By this stage they were well established as an essential pop act; I remember radio DJs and music writers of the time speaking of Tennant … Continue reading Pet Shop Boys – ‘It’s A Sin’
The Firm – ‘Star Trekkin”
27 June 1987 I was in primary school when 'Star Trekkin'' was in the charts, so I can confirm it was a big hit in my then-demographic. We were a bit young to be Star Trek fans or even watchers, but we knew the main gist of it, so we took the song's characters and … Continue reading The Firm – ‘Star Trekkin”
