I was about to go to bed, but I thought I'd check one of my usual haunts, and they had a list of the 20 most "unsung" videos of the 80's. Unsung for them maybe. But it did get me to thinking (and keeping me from going to sleep apparently) about what my 10 most defining (not unsung, because, where I come from, all my music was unsung at the time) videos from the 80's were. Now, of course you'd have to exclude all Duran Duran, or they'd take up the whole list...so for the sake of Duranie fairness...I am going to leave them off my list (although they were on their list, although not the obvious choice of "Hungry Like The Wolf", but "Is There Something I Should Know?"). I think if I could choose just one, and although it is not my favorite now, I would probably choose "Careless Memories", or maybe "Lonely In Your Nightmare", but then again maybe...well, you get my point...Duran has to be left out for sanity's sake. But for the record, my all-time favorite Duran Duran song is Serious, which was off their least popular album and the most unsung of all the Duran hits IMO.
I did agree with some of the artists (if not the songs) they chose, however, and in two of the cases, not only did I agree, but they made my list as well. Let me start by giving you their list and I don't think they were in any kind of order:
1) The Jam - "Going Underground": I never was a Jam fan. At the time of my youth I was a new waver, and although new wave sprung from the punk scene, I didn't care for punk.
2) The Cure - "Primary": The Cure made my list, but I don't think this was the best of their unsungs. And although my choice isn't technically an "unsung", considering my upbringing in Northeast Arkansas, let's face it, any Cure song is an "unsung".
3) Joy Division - "Love Will Tear Us Apart": I do love this song...now. At the time, I couldn't understand a bloody word Ian Curtis was saying! Only years later when I heard New Order (the remnant band of Joy) redo it, did I finally understand it.
4) Fine Young Cannibals - "Johnny Come Home": I love English Beat (the origins of the Cannibals) and General Public (the other off-shoot), But Roland Gift's voice did and still does give me the creeps!
5) Fun Boy Three Featuring Bananarama - "It Ain't What You Do": Catchy song, but not life altering.
6) Fantayzee - "Shiny Shiny": I turned the channel everytime this came on MTV, enough said.
7) Altered Images - "I Could Be Happy": Again, catchy song, but no lasting impressions.
8) Lene Lovich - "It's You Mein Schmertz": Video wise, great vid, song wise, not in my library (although was probably on a cassette tape play list back in the day).
9) Adam And The Ants - "Stand And Deliver": Oh my beloved Stuart Goddard! I didn't become an Ant fan until he went solo, but god that man was gorgeous! What flair!
10) Duran Duran - "Is There Something I Should Know?": Interesting choice, and probably wisely chosen. Duran were known for their flashy, expensive island videos, and this one was anything but, even though it was also directed by Russell Mulcahy (best known as the director of the Highlander movie).
11) Depeche Mode - "But Not Tonight": This is the first one that is on my list. I LOVE this song! Plus, it's from a great 80's movie that probably no one ever saw but me with Daphne Zuniga, Virginia Madsen, and Clayton Rohner called Modern Girls.
12) A-ha - "The Sun Always Shines on TV" - The second that is also on my list (although I'm not a huge A-ha fan). I never understood why they are considered a one-hit wonder in the States when they had tons of hits! This was by far the best song from the "Hunting High and Low" album and I still play that video today.
13) The Clash - "This Is Radio Clash": Punk...me no like-y. Need I say more?
14) U2 - "Desire": Anybody that knows me knows I can't STAND U2...I may be the only human on the plant who can't stand them, but there you go.
15) Echo And The Bunnymen - "The Cutter": I LOVE LOVE LOVE Ian McCullough! They didn't make my list, but only because I only did 10 instead of 20.
16) Time Zone - "World Destruction": I didn't like rap back in that time period, that came much later, and MTV rarely played them anyway.
17) Grandmaster Caz/Chris Stein - "South Bronx Subway Rap": See above, same deal.
18) Front 242 - "Quite Unusual": I remember loving the music (reminds me a lot of a German band I love called Camouflage), but the singer creeped me out.
19) Pat Benatar - "We Belong": I had to grow to appreciate Pat. I didn't care for her in the 80's.
20) David Bowie - "Absolute Beginners": Now, I know that without Bowie I wouldn't have Duran, but I ain't a Bowie fan. Of his entire body of work, only Labyrinth is the piece that I liked the best (and it has nothing to do with him). I remember that the Blue Jean video gave me nightmares!
Here is the link to their list and their comments BTW:
20 Unsung Videos From the 1980's
I did agree with some of the artists (if not the songs) they chose, however, and in two of the cases, not only did I agree, but they made my list as well. Let me start by giving you their list and I don't think they were in any kind of order:
1) The Jam - "Going Underground": I never was a Jam fan. At the time of my youth I was a new waver, and although new wave sprung from the punk scene, I didn't care for punk.
2) The Cure - "Primary": The Cure made my list, but I don't think this was the best of their unsungs. And although my choice isn't technically an "unsung", considering my upbringing in Northeast Arkansas, let's face it, any Cure song is an "unsung".
3) Joy Division - "Love Will Tear Us Apart": I do love this song...now. At the time, I couldn't understand a bloody word Ian Curtis was saying! Only years later when I heard New Order (the remnant band of Joy) redo it, did I finally understand it.
4) Fine Young Cannibals - "Johnny Come Home": I love English Beat (the origins of the Cannibals) and General Public (the other off-shoot), But Roland Gift's voice did and still does give me the creeps!
5) Fun Boy Three Featuring Bananarama - "It Ain't What You Do": Catchy song, but not life altering.
6) Fantayzee - "Shiny Shiny": I turned the channel everytime this came on MTV, enough said.
7) Altered Images - "I Could Be Happy": Again, catchy song, but no lasting impressions.
8) Lene Lovich - "It's You Mein Schmertz": Video wise, great vid, song wise, not in my library (although was probably on a cassette tape play list back in the day).
9) Adam And The Ants - "Stand And Deliver": Oh my beloved Stuart Goddard! I didn't become an Ant fan until he went solo, but god that man was gorgeous! What flair!
10) Duran Duran - "Is There Something I Should Know?": Interesting choice, and probably wisely chosen. Duran were known for their flashy, expensive island videos, and this one was anything but, even though it was also directed by Russell Mulcahy (best known as the director of the Highlander movie).
11) Depeche Mode - "But Not Tonight": This is the first one that is on my list. I LOVE this song! Plus, it's from a great 80's movie that probably no one ever saw but me with Daphne Zuniga, Virginia Madsen, and Clayton Rohner called Modern Girls.
12) A-ha - "The Sun Always Shines on TV" - The second that is also on my list (although I'm not a huge A-ha fan). I never understood why they are considered a one-hit wonder in the States when they had tons of hits! This was by far the best song from the "Hunting High and Low" album and I still play that video today.
13) The Clash - "This Is Radio Clash": Punk...me no like-y. Need I say more?
14) U2 - "Desire": Anybody that knows me knows I can't STAND U2...I may be the only human on the plant who can't stand them, but there you go.
15) Echo And The Bunnymen - "The Cutter": I LOVE LOVE LOVE Ian McCullough! They didn't make my list, but only because I only did 10 instead of 20.
16) Time Zone - "World Destruction": I didn't like rap back in that time period, that came much later, and MTV rarely played them anyway.
17) Grandmaster Caz/Chris Stein - "South Bronx Subway Rap": See above, same deal.
18) Front 242 - "Quite Unusual": I remember loving the music (reminds me a lot of a German band I love called Camouflage), but the singer creeped me out.
19) Pat Benatar - "We Belong": I had to grow to appreciate Pat. I didn't care for her in the 80's.
20) David Bowie - "Absolute Beginners": Now, I know that without Bowie I wouldn't have Duran, but I ain't a Bowie fan. Of his entire body of work, only Labyrinth is the piece that I liked the best (and it has nothing to do with him). I remember that the Blue Jean video gave me nightmares!
Here is the link to their list and their comments BTW:
20 Unsung Videos From the 1980's
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