The Music Of The 80s - Favorites, Classics And Rarities

[hitman531ph]

SILVER POZZOLI

 

His real name is Silvio Pozzoli. He had a string of Italian dance hits which found its way to dance floors in the US, Europe and Asia.

 

He recorded also with pseudonyms like "Club House." Under this name he made some dance and Italo-house records and "I'm a man medley Yeke Yeke" was one of those records, in 1987.

 

With this classic name "Silver Pozzoli," he was one of the popular artists of Italo Dance.

 

Releases:

 

Around my dream (1984)

Step by step (1985)

Mad Desire (He put the voice on this hit of Den Harrow,in 1985)

Around my dream-remix (1986)

Silver (LP) (1986)

From you to me (1986)

Pretty baby (1987)

Chica boom (1987)

Cross my heart (Many Records, 1987)

Let me be your love (1988) - co written with David Lyme and released under name SILVER

Love is the best (TIME Records, 1988)

With or without you (1992)

Don't forget me (ZYX, 1994)

[hitman531ph]

B-Movie

 

The new wave band B-Movie's most recognizable record became more popular long after the combo had split up. Named after an Andy Warhol painting, B-Movie formed in 1979 with Steve Hovington (vocals), Paul Statham (guitars), Graham Boffey (drums), and Rick Holliday (keyboards). Inspired by synth-pop pioneers like Ultravox and New Order, B-Movie wrote catchy songs enveloped in keyboards. The group was signed to the Some Bizarre record label in the early '80s; in 1981, the band appeared on a Some Bizarre compilation album with future '80s synth-pop superstars such as Depeche Mode, Blancmange, and Soft Cell. In 1982, the single "Nowhere Girl" was a hit in Europe. Although "Nowhere Girl" was not a Top Ten smash in America, the song continued to be a favorite on radio stations' '80s flashback shows. With Hovington's icy vocals and Holliday's somber synths, "Nowhere Girl" became an enduring tale of teen alienation; "Nowhere Girl" was revived on the Just Say Yesterday compilation in 1992 and it's generally considered to be an '80s classic. Ironically, the track lasted longer than B-Movie's career. B-Movie released the LP Forever Running in 1985 and then broke up. The album chalked up underground new wave hits "Switch On Switch Off" and a minor underground hit "Forever Running." Boffey joined Slaughterhouse 5 and Statham collaborated with Peter Murphy. Hovington formed the techno outfit Amethyst

Edited April 2, 2006 by hitman531ph

[hitman531ph]

BOW WOW WOW

 

Bow Wow Wow was a quartet organized by U.K. manager Malcolm McLaren (best known as the mastermind behind the Sex Pistols) at the start of the '80s. McLaren matched the trio of musicians who had constituted Adam Ant's Ants -- Matthew Ashman (b. 1962) on guitar, Leigh Gorman (b. 1961) on bass, and David Barbarossa (b. 1961) on drums -- with teenage singer Annabella Lwin (b. Oct. 31, 1965), retaining the earlier group's African-derived drum sound. Bow Wow Wow was best known for their hit single "I Want Candy."

 

In 1983, Lwin quit the group for a solo career, and the remaining three changed their name to the Chiefs of Relief. Both Lwin and the Chiefs issued their own albums. In 1995, Ashman passed away due to diabetes. Headed by Lwin and Gorman, a reformed Bow Wow Wow resurfaced in 1998 with Wild in the U.S.A., which featured both remixes and concert performances from the reunion tour; guitarist Dave Calhoun and drummer Eshan Khadaroo filled the other slots. Annabella Lwin appears in the 2005 movie Hey DJ.

[hitman531ph]

BRUCE WILLIS (Yes, he had a hit back in the 80s)

 

Best known as the action hero behind cinema's Die Hard series, Bruce Willis (b. March 19, 1955; Penns Grove, NJ) became a twice-over recording artist during the late '80s. His debut album, The Return of Bruno, became a surprise seller after the single "Respect Yourself" hit the Top Five in early 1987. It was recorded at a time when his popularity was anchored on a successful TV series "Moonlighting." Willis had two other modest hits, and recorded another LP two years later, but has remained outside music for the most part -- performing only occasionally to inaugurate several Planet Hollywood restaurants.

[hitman531ph]

GEORGE KRANZ

 

A German dance artist and producer, George Kranz scored the European hit single "Din Daa Daa." Kranz issued a pair of full-length albums during his career, but the easiest one to locate remains his 18-track compilation from 2000, Best of George Kranz: Din Daa Daa. Kranz has appeared on several dance compilations over the years as well, including Diggin' the Crates, Vol. 3.

[hitman531ph]

TRIO

 

A minimalist German outfit responsible for a number one hit across Europe in 1982, Trio used little more than guitar and drums to frame their monotoned vocals and industrial-based songs. The band's self-titled 1981 debut originally appeared only in their native country, but when the following year's single "Da Da Da" became successful -- it hit number two in England and sold a million copies -- the U.K.'s Mobile Suit Corporation re-released the album with a version of the track. Trio released a cassette-only live album in 1982, and signed to Mercury in the U.S., where their first release was another self-titled work, though only of EP length. Of course, it also included "Da Da Da," and set the stage for 1983's Trio & Error, which had a version of "Da Da Da" as well. Finally, in 1983, Trio released an album without a version of their most famous track, and Bye Bye proved quite prophetic.

[hitman531ph]

YELLO

 

The ambitious Swiss electronic duo Yello comprised vocalist/conceptualist Dieter Meier -- a millionaire industrialist, professional gambler, and member of Switzerland's national golf team -- and composer/arranger Boris Blank. Meier, a former solo artist who also spent time with the group Fresh Colour, began collaborating with Blank in 1979, and the duo bowed with the single "I.T. Splash." After signing with the Residents' label, Ralph Records, Yello issued their 1980 debut LP, Solid Pleasure, which spawned the dance hit "Bostitch."

 

With 1981's Claro Que Si, Yello made its first forays into music video; their clip for the single "Pinball Cha Cha," directed by Meier, garnered considerable acclaim and in 1985 was selected as one of 32 works included in the Museum of Modern Art's Music Video Exhibition. Visual accompaniment remained a pivotal component of the duo's work after they signed to Elektra in 1983 for the LP You Gotta Say Yes to Another Excess, as the videos for "I Love You" and "Lost and Found" received heavy airplay on MTV.

 

1985's Stella proved to be Yello's commercial breakthrough: while the singles and videos "Desire" and "Vicious Games" found success upon their initial release, the duo enjoyed a delayed hit with the album track "Oh Yeah," which reached the U.S. singles chart after being prominently featured in the films Ferris Bueller's Day Off and The Secret of My Success. After the remix project 1980-1985: The New Mix in Go, Yello recruited diva Shirley Bassey and ex-Associate Billy McKenzie for 1987's One Second.

 

Despite the success of 1988's Flag, which contained the international hit "The Race," over the course of the next several years Yello grew increasingly involved with film projects: after scoring the comedy Nuns on the Run, Meier directed his own feature, 1990's Snowball. In 1991, the duo resurfaced with Baby, followed three years later by Zebra. 1995's Hands on Yello compiled reinterpretations of the group's songs by the likes of Moby, the Orb, and the Grid, while Pocket Universe, a collection of new material, appeared in 1997

[hitman531ph]

PROPAGANDA

 

Synth-pop band Propaganda was formed in Germany by vocalist Claudia Brücken and drummer Michael Mertens plus keyboard players Susanne Freytag and Ralf Dorper. The quartet moved to England in 1983 and signed to ZTT Records, also the home of Frankie Goes to Hollywood and Art of Noise. Propaganda's first single, "Dr. Mabuse," reached the British Top 30 in early 1984, but the band's second release was more than a year in coming. Finally, in May 1985, "Duel" trumped the debut single by hitting number 21.

 

Propaganda's first album A Secret Wish appeared one month later, and the resulting tour necessitated the addition of bassist Derek Forbes and drummer Brian McGee -- both formerly with Simple Minds. After the release of the remix album Wishful Thinking later that year, Dorper became the first original member to leave the band, and Propaganda splintered soon after, due to a prolonged legal battle to leave ZTT. The group finally re-emerged in 1988 with Mertens, Forbes, McGee and American vocalist Betsi Miller. The quartet signed with Virgin, and released 1234 in 1990. The single "Heaven Give Me Words" broke the British Top 40 in 1990, and "Only One Word" placed modestly later that year.

 

Meanwhile, Claudia Brücken -- who had stayed with ZTT in large part because of her marriage to label-owner Paul Morley -- formed Act with Thomas Leer. The duo charted "Snobbery and Decay" in mid-1987 and released their only album, Laughter, Tears, and Rage in 1988. Brücken became a solo act by the turn of the decade, and charted only one single, "Absolut (E)," from her 1991 album Love, And a Million Other Things. Though neither the band nor Brücken had recorded recently, rumours flew during the mid-'90s that a Propaganda reunion was in the works.

Edited April 5, 2006 by hitman531ph

[bigboner]

I have a lot of 80's faves. Right now what comes in my mind is the Norwegian 3io A-HA.

 

Their hit single," THE SUN ALWAYS SHINES ON TV", is I guess one of earliest form of TRANCE MUSIC.

[hitman531ph]

ROGER DALTREY

 

The Who lead singer Roger Daltrey forged a parallel solo career beginning in 1973, when the group had begun to fall apart in the aftermath of Quadrophenia. Born March 1, 1944 in London, Daltrey grew up in the same Shepherd's Bush neighborhood as future Who bandmates Pete Townshend and John Entwistle, performing with them as the Detours as early as his late teen years. Over time, Daltrey developed into one of rock's most powerful lead vocalists, a position to which he staked his claim on the Who's 1971 masterpiece Who's Next; his onstage persona was one of macho swagger, accompanied by such antics as twirling his microphone like a lasso.

 

Daltrey first traveled the solo route in 1973 with an album titled simply Daltrey, featuring mostly material penned by a then-unknown Leo Sayer that served as a departure from the Who's signature hard rock sound. The Who reconvened for The Who by Numbers in 1975, a year that saw Daltrey release his second solo album, Ride a Rock Horse, and appear in Ken Russell's films Lisztomania (as composer Franz Liszt) and an adaptation of Tommy (in the title role). While the Who went on hiatus for several years, Daltrey released One of the Boys in 1977 and appeared in the 1978 film The Legacy. During the Who's post-Keith Moon era, Daltrey co-produced and starred in the film McVicar, a biography of train robber John McVicar; members of the Who appeared on its soundtrack, which essentially served as a full-fledged Daltrey album and found him bridging the gap between hard rock and the pop songs of his earlier solo work. After the Who officially disbanded in 1983, Daltrey's solo albums became uniformly hard-rocking affairs, most notable among them 1985's Under a Raging Moon. In addition to the Who's 1989 reunion tour, Daltrey has since continued to act in occasional television and film roles, as well as releasing the solo album Rocks in the Head in 1992

[hitman531ph]

PETE TOWNSHEND

 

Pete Townshend was the guitarist and primary songwriter for the Who from 1964 to 1982, also participating in the group's occasional reunions after its formal breakup. Best-known for his conceptual works, he wrote Tommy and Quadrophenia for the band, as well as the bulk of its other material. He made his first, tentative solo album, Who Came First, in 1972. Dedicated to his guru, Meher Baba, it continued themes pursued in Who's Next and like that album, contained material originally intended for an abortive conceptual work, Lifehouse, and it sold modestly. In 1976, he made a duo album, Rough Mix, with Ronnie Lane, formerly the bassist in the Small Faces. Townshend's first full-fledged solo effort was Empty Glass (1980), which sold a million copies, reached the Top Five, and featured the Top Ten hit "Let My Love Open the Door," as well as the minor hits "A Little Is Enough" and "Rough Boys." He followed it in 1982 with All the Best Cowboys Have Chinese Eyes, which was less successful. Nevertheless, he felt he could no longer write for the Who, and at the end of the year, the group disbanded following a North American tour.

 

Townshend released Scoop, a two-disc compilation of demos, in 1983 (a second volume appeared in 1987). In 1985, he returned to thematic efforts with the album White City - A Novel, which included the Top 30 single "Face the Face." The same year, he published a book of short stories, Horse's Neck. As part of the White City project, he appeared in an accompanying film, for which he organized a band called Pete Townshend's Deep End. The unit played only a few gigs, but one was videotaped and recorded, resulting in the 1986 album Pete Townshend's Deep End Live! In 1989, he released an album based on poet Ted Hughes' children's story, The Iron Man. The record featured guest vocals by John Lee Hooker and Nina Simone, as well as two tracks featuring the three surviving members of the Who. Simultaneous with the album's release, Townshend embarked on a reunion tour with the Who, an event that overshadowed The Iron Man, which enjoyed only modest sales.

 

In 1993, Townshend delivered Psychoderelict, another conceptual work, to mixed reviews and poor sales. By that time, however, he had successfully reinvented himself as a Broadway tunesmith -- the theatrical production entitled The Who's Tommy had become a runaway hit, earning him a Tony Award and prompting him to pursue more stage musicals. None of these came to fruition during the rest of the 1990s, though, and by the end of the decade, he was releasing live and archival recordings (notably the long-delayed Lifehouse) through his website, www.eelpie.com, and planning another reunion with the Who.

[hitman531ph]

JON ANDERSON

 

Born as John Roy Anderson on October 25, 1944, in Lancashire, England, Jon Anderson would grow up to become one of the most recognizable voices in progressive rock. He began his musical career by joining his brother Tony's group the Warriors. Eventually, that band relocated from England to Germany, however Tony had left the group by then. So, the only Anderson still in the band by 1965 when they cut their first single was Jon (technically still John at that time). The single received a less than enthusiastic welcome and Anderson left the group in 1967, having put in five years with them. His next move was to the group the Party, but that one was quite short-lived. By 1968, Anderson had returned to England and recorded two singles under the moniker Hans Christian Anderson. Those received responses similar to what the Warriors' single had. Anderson found his way into the group Gun, but only stayed there for a couple of months.

 

The year was 1968 and musical history was about to be made with an introduction in a London club. Jon Anderson was introduced to Chris Squire and finding a kindred spirit in music, he began showing up at gigs of Squire's band Mabel Greer's Toy Shop, whose guitarist at the time was Peter Banks. Anderson started getting up and singing with the group from time to time, eventually becoming their vocalist. However, Banks had left by the time Anderson was inducted. More pieces gradually began to fall into the mix as various musicians were brought into the Toy Shop fold. First Bill Bruford, then Tony Kaye. By the time Peter Banks returned, the band had decided to change their name to Yes. They released their first two albums in 1969 and 1970 and they received good critical response, but not a large commercial or radio presence. By the time that they recorded 1970's The Yes Album, the band had replaced Peter Banks with Steve Howe and the combination, along with a stroke of luck at a U.S. radio station, proved the charm to begin their commercial career. Interestingly, Anderson found the time for side projects even amidst recording and touring with Yes. In fact, he would show up on two albums in the first two years of the decade. The first was King Crimson's Lizard and the other was Johnny Harris' All to Bring You Morning. The next Yes album, 1972's Fragile, would feature both the debut of new keyboardist Rick Wakeman and the single "Roundabout." The combination propelled the group and Anderson well into the spotlight. For the next couple of years, Yes occupied the majority of Anderson's time. With the recording of three more studio albums before 1974 and steady touring, he would have little time for much else. However, after the tour for Relayer, things began to settle down a bit. Anderson managed to work with Vangelis Papathanassiou, who had been Yes' first choice for Rick Wakeman's replacement. Although immigration issues forced the band to go with Patrick Moraz instead, Anderson added vocals to the keyboardist's Heaven and Hell album released in 1975. It would definitely not be the last time they would work together.

 

1976 saw the entire band taking time to record solo albums. Anderson's outing, Olias of Sunhillow, was an ambitious creation. It was an album-long concept piece with nearly all the writing and performances being undertaken by the singer himself. He also added vocals to Yes drummer Alan White's Ramshackled album. The break seemed to revitalize the band and their next release, Going for the One, featuring the return of Rick Wakeman, was a very strong album and ushered the band into 1977 with style. Anderson's role in the group was close to coming to an end for a time, though. He stuck with them through the next album and couple of tours, but when they began recording for the follow up to Tormato, the dreaded "musical differences" cropped up and Anderson left. He definitely did not become idle, though. Indeed, the next couple of years proved very fertile for him. He released his second solo album, Song of Seven, in 1980. That same year, he collaborated again with Papathanassiou. This time they recorded an entire album together and released it under the moniker Jon & Vangelis. The album was called Short Stories, and they enjoyed that work so much that before the end of 1981, they released two more albums together. 1981 also saw Anderson appearing on Rick Wakeman's 1984 album. His next solo release was 1982's Animation, a show he took on the road.

 

1983 would be another turning point for Anderson. He worked on Mike Oldfield's Crises album, but that would not be the decisive factor in his career. By that time, Yes had been broken up for almost three years. Chris Squire and Alan White were working with a young guitarist named Trevor Rabin on a project called Cinema. Tony Kaye had also been enlisted for the project. Producer and one-time Anderson Yes replacement Trevor Horn suggested that Anderson should add some vocals to the project. Upon agreeing. Anderson remarked that with his voice on the songs it would be Yes. The group agreed and the name Cinema was dropped in favor of Yes. The resulting album, 90125, propelled by the hit single "Owner of a Lonely Heart," saw the band receive more success than they had ever previously attained. A tour ensued, but then the band had some quiet time. Anderson took the opportunity to record another solo album, this time a collection of holiday songs, entitled Three Ships. He also managed to work on a few other projects including movie soundtracks with John Paul Jones and Tangerine Dream. The next Yes album and tour in 1987 saw those musical differences once again appearing and Anderson again left Yes.

 

In the time following his second departure from the group, he released another solo album, this one a rather poppy collection entitled In the City of Angels. He also guested on Toto's release The Seventh One. By that time, he had begun talking with several Yes alumni about working together again. The group of them, Anderson, Steve Howe, Rick Wakeman, and Bill Bruford were joined by Tony Levin and completed an album. The only problem was deciding what to call the group. They had wanted to name it Yes, but Chris Squire proved ownership of that name and was not going to let them use it. So, they chose to forego cleverness and work with their last names. Thus their album was a self-titled one called Anderson- Bruford-Wakeman-Howe. The group toured fairly extensively for the release, but Anderson still wound up finding the time to contribute vocals to Jonathan Elias' Requiem for the Americas album. Another odd turn of events was looming on the horizon, though. As Anderson-Bruford-Wakeman-Howe were working on their second release, Yes was in the process of recording their next album. Lines of communication were once again opened and both projects were combined into one Yes album, dubbed Union. The group toured for the album to both filled stadiums and rave reviews. Anderson still found time to get together with Papathanassiou again and release the next Jon & Vangelis album, Page of Life, in 1991. The following year, he worked on Kitaro's album Dream. Among other projects, Anderson would do another album with Papathanassiou (Chronicles) and two solo albums (Deseo and Change We Must) before the 1994 release of the next Yes album, Talk. The lineup on that disc was back to a five-piece, Steve Howe, Rick Wakeman, and Bill Bruford having gone their separate ways.

 

The next couple of years were quiet ones for Yes, but not for Anderson. He made guest appearances on a few projects and released two new solo albums. And big things were once again on the horizon for Yes. It was announced in late 1995 that Trevor Rabin and Tony Kaye were no longer part of the group. They were replaced by alums Steve Howe and Rick Wakeman. A classic Yes lineup and incredible fan enthusiasm surrounded both the band and Anderson. The group did three shows in San Luis Obispo in March of 1996. The shows were recorded and released along with new studio material as the two Keys to Ascension albums. 1997 saw quite a bit more activity from Anderson. He released two solo albums, the Celtic The Promise Ring and EarthMotherEarth. Yes also released an album featuring his vocals. The disc was called Open Your Eyes and in true Yes tradition of revolving door membership, it did not feature Rick Wakeman, who had already left. Anderson went along with the group on a tour of small intimate theaters that fall. In 1998, he released his next solo album, The More You Know. That same year saw several releases featuring his vocal talents. Among them was 4Him's album Streams, Yes' The Ladder, and Steve Howe's Portraits of Bob Dylan. Touring and working on the Yes album Magnification have kept Anderson pretty busy, but he found time to appear on Béla Fleck & the Flecktones' 2000 release Outbound.

[hitman531ph]

FASTWAY

 

One of the most promising '80s supergroups that never was, England's Fastway was never quite able to come to grips with their sonic identity, and despite a promising start, in the end their career was an almost absolute flameout.

 

Following his acrimonious departure from metal legend Motörhead, guitarist "Fast" Eddie Clarke wasted no time planning his next move with then-recently ousted UFO bassist Pete Way. With veteran drummer Jerry Shirley (ex-Humble Pie) and promising Irish newcomer vocalist Dave King rounding out their lineup, the resulting Fastway was awarded instant supergroup status, even though the mercurial Way decided to quit mere weeks after the release of their eponymous 1983 debut (going on to form the ill-fated Waysted). As for Fastway, perhaps knowing he would never be able to match the intensity (and distortion) of his previous group, Clarke chose instead to seek a more mainstream hard rock direction with his new band, and indeed the album was very well-received in the U.S., climbing into the Top 40. Encouraged, they quickly returned to the studio with new bassist Charlie McKracken to record 1984's All Fired Up. The album still made it into the American Top 60 despite waning interest from the CBS label and continued nonplussed indifference back in the U.K. and Europe. Looking for a change after losing their rhythm section (replaced by bassist Paul Reid and drummer Alan Connor), Fastway tried to hop the pop-metal bandwagon with 1986's overly slick Waiting for the Roar. Coming off like a second-rate Quiet Riot, the synth-laden album also introduced keyboardist and sometimes-second guitarist Shane Carroll, but rightly fell upon deaf ears. An offer to provide the soundtrack for the heavy metal horror flick Trick or Treat seemed like a perfect shot at redemption, but despite a welcome return to harder-edged fare, the movie was a flop; the album followed suit, and the band soon broke up in dismay.

 

Clarke would have one final go at it, however. Signing to independent GWR Records (ironically, also Motörhead's label at the time), he drafted an entirely new lineup, featuring vocalist Lea Hart, bassist Paul Gray, and drummer Steve Clarke, for 1988's On Target (which was anything but). Further personnel changes preceded 1990's swan song Bad Bad Girls, which saw Clarke and Hart allegedly backed by old pals Girlschool, working under aliases for contractual reasons. Another resounding flop, the album finally convinced Clarke that it was time to hang up his spurs.

[hitman531ph]

JASON & THE SCORCHERS

 

A country/hard rock band formed by Illinois native Jason Ringenberg in 1981, Jason and the Scorchers came careening onto the indie rock scene seemingly out of nowhere (truth was, it was Nashville) with a debut EP whose most killer track (among a slew of killer tracks) was a fire-breathing cover of Bob Dylan's "Absolutely Sweet Marie." This amalgam of speedy hard rock fused with Ringenberg's decidedly country twang, along with the band's ability to deftly negotiate between Rolling Stones-style stomps and quieter, more melodic acoustic country music, led to Jason and the Scorchers becoming a critically lauded and fairly popular '80s band. Capitalizing quickly on the notoriety brought by their debut EP, the Scorchers kicked out two fine LPs (Lost & Found and Still Standing) that sounded perfect for radio, but not so slick as to sound manufactured. With Ringenberg's yowling voice pushed way up front, the band's sonic power came from the synchronous playing of Nashville rock veterans Warner Hodges (guitar), Jeff Johnson (bass), and Perry Baggs (drums). Sharing similar musical backgrounds that valued the music of Hank Williams and Johnny Cash as much as the Stones or Beatles, these guys could crank out mega-amped hard rock one minute and sound like the Flying Burrito Brothers the next, all of it done with great skill and excitement. Despite their obvious talent, by the release of 1986's Still Standing, it seemed as though the band wasn't going anywhere. They had achieved a modicum of success but weren't able to break through to mass acclaim, partly because they came along just before the explosion of country radio in the late '80s/early '90s. Hence, rock radio was reluctant to play them because they sounded too country, and country radio thought they were too rock; it's an old story that usually spells doom for the band in question. After a three-year break that saw Johnson's departure, the Scorchers released a desultory third album (Thunder and Fire) that sounded like a desperate attempt at hard rock credibility. They broke up soon after. Ringenberg went on to record country-oriented solo work, re-formed the original Scorchers in 1994, and released a modest reunion record (A Blazing Grace) that sounded like the Scorchers of old. Two years later, the reunited Scorchers released Clear Impetuous Morning; Midnight Roads followed in 1998. Rock on Germany appeared three years later.

[hitman531ph]

BERLIN

 

This Los Angeles-based synth pop group, founded by bassist John Crawford, singer Terri Nunn, and keyboard player David Diamond, made its first national impression with the provocative single "Sex (I'm A...)" from the gold-selling debut EP Pleasure Victim in 1982. The group was filled out by guitarist Rick Olsen, keyboard player Matt Reid, and drummer Rob Brill. The EP also included the song "The Metro" which gained much airplay over MTV. "The Metro" made it to the US Hot 100. Berlin's first full-length LP was the gold Love Life in 1984. The album chalked up the band's first US Top 40 hit, "No More Words." In 1985, the group was pared down to a trio of Crawford, Nunn, and Brill. Berlin topped the charts in 1986 with the single "Take My Breath Away," the love theme from the Tom Cruise movie Top Gun.

 

Nunn left for a solo career in 1987, and Crawford and Brill teamed up in the Big F. In 1999, the band reunited to record some new studio material and also performed a concert, which, along with the new songs, was released as 2000's Berlin Live: Sacred and Profane. This was followed a year later by a flurry of recording sessions that included co-writing tracks with Billy Corgan, among others. The end result, Voyeur, was their first full-length studio release in over 15 years

Edited April 9, 2006 by hitman531ph

[Headroom]

How's about comic Eddie Murphy - in 1985 before he was really famous he had a hit with - My Girl Likes to Party all the Time - classic

[Headroom]

Oh yeah - Rick James with Super Freak - love it

[_eRon_]

80s addict here..fave ko the cure, tears for fears, etc...sarap makining ng 80s sounds, pati love songs nila ok..

[hitman531ph]

RICK JAMES

 

In the late '70s, when the fortunes of Motown Records seemed to be flagging, Rick James came along and rescued the company, providing funky hits that updated the label's style and saw it through into the mid-'80s. Actually, James had been with Motown earlier, though nothing had come of it. After growing up in Buffalo and running away to join the Naval Reserves, he ran away from the Navy to Toronto, where he was in a band with future Buffalo Springfield members Neil Young and Bruce Palmer, and with Goldy McJohn, later of Steppenwolf. As the Mynah Birds, they signed to Motown and recorded, though no record was ever released.

 

James had a journeyman's career playing bass in various groups before signing again to Motown as an artist, songwriter, and producer. His first single, "You and I" (May 1978), topped the R&B charts and reached the pop Top 40. "Mary Jane" (September 1978) was another hit. Both were on James' debut album, Come Get It! (June 1978), which went gold. Subsequent efforts were not as successful, though Bustin' Out of L Seven (January 1979) featured the R&B hit "Bustin' Out" (April 1979). James returned to form with the number one R&B hit "Give It to Me Baby" (March 1981), featured on the million-selling Street Songs (April 1981), which also featured the hit "Super Freak."

 

James turned his production attention to resuscitating the career of the Temptations, recently returned to Motown, and "Standing on the Top" (April 1982), credited to the Temptations featuring Rick James, was an R&B Top Ten. (He also produced recordings by Teena Marie and the Mary Jane Girls.) James' follow-up to Street Songs was the gold-selling Throwin' Down (May 1982), which featured the hit "Dance Wit' Me." The title song of Cold Blooded (August 1983) became James' third R&B number one, and the album also featured his hit duet with Smokey Robinson, "Ebony Eyes." James' greatest-hits album Reflections (August 1984) featured the new track "17" (June 1984), which also became a hit. Glow (April 1985) contained Top Ten R&B singles in the title track and "Can't Stop," which was featured in the summer movie blockbuster Beverly Hills Cop. The Flag (June 1986) featured the hit "Sweet and Sexy Thing" (May 1986).

 

James left Motown for the Reprise division of Warner Bros. Records as of the album Wonderful (July 1988), which featured his number one R&B hit "Loosey's Rap," on which he was accompanied by rapper Roxanne Shante. Nevertheless, his "punk funk" didn't seem to rest comfortably with the trend toward rap/hip-hop. In 1989, James charted briefly with a medley of the Drifters hits "This Magic Moment" and "Dance With Me." In 1990, MC Hammer scored a massive hit with "U Can't Touch This," which consisted of his rap over the instrumental track of "Super Freak." That should have made for a career rebirth, but James was plagued by drug and legal problems that found him more frequently in court and in jail rather than in the recording studio. The majority of his legal woes behind him, James returned in 1997 with Urban Rapsody, which didn't yield any hits but was well accepted by critics. Rick James died of a heart attack on August 6, 2004, at his Los Angeles home

[hitman531ph]

NICK KAMEN

 

Nick Kamen (born April 15, 1962) is a model and singer from Harlow, Essex, England, most famous for his 1980s Levi's commercials where he strips to wash in a public laundromat (showing him in boxer shorts, dramatically increasing their popularity. He has also recorded four albums.

 

Notable was his minor 1986 hit "Each Time You Break My Heart" from his self titled debut album. Written and produced by Madonna and Stephen Bray, it cracked both the US dance chart (remix by Shep Pettibone) and the UK pop singles chart. Madonna also sang on the backing vocals. Her original demo remains one of many Unreleased Madonna Songs.

 

His second album "Us", 1989 was produced by Patrick Leonard. Madonna again made an appearance as a guest backing vocalist on the song "Tell Me", this time without contributing to the songwriting or production.

 

A new updated mix of his 1990 song "I Promised Myself" is currently featured on a 2004 various artists collection in Europe.

[hitman531ph]

THE BLUE NILE

 

The Scottish folk-ambient band the Blue Nile has enjoyed a mystique contrived by its inaccessibility and the infrequency of its recordings, but it has also made a series of critically acclaimed discs. The group was formed by three Glasgow natives who had graduated from university there: singer/songwriter/guitarist Paul Buchanan, bassist Robert Bell, and keyboardist Paul Joseph Moore. (Engineer Callum Malcolm and drummer Nigel Thomas have worked with the trio consistently, to the point of being considered secondary bandmembers.) (The Blue Nile is the title of Alan Moorehead's 1962 sequel to The White Nile, the two books making up a history of the Nile River.) They recorded their own single, "I Love This Life," which was distributed by Robert Stigwood's RSO Records just before the company closed its doors. They were then signed by Linn Products, which released their debut album, A Walk Across the Rooftops, in 1984. (A&M handled it in the U.S.) Since the company was small and the band did not tour, the album took some time to find its audience, though it briefly reached the U.K. charts and led to high expectations for a second album. This came in 1989 with Hats, which reached the British Top 20, throwing off three chart singles, "The Downtown Lights," "Headlights on the Parade," and "Saturday Night." The album also made the lower reaches of the American charts as the Blue Nile embarked on its first tour, a 30-date journey taking place in the British Isles and the U.S. In the ensuing years, the band members switched record labels, signing to Warner Bros., and contributed to recordings by Robbie Robertson and Julian Lennon. They finally emerged with their third album, Peace at Last, in June 1996. Another critically acclaimed release, it placed in the U.K. Top 20, but failed to chart in the U.S.

 

Their song "Stay" from the Walk Across the Rooftops album was a hit in the Philippines. That same song was remade in 1988 by a New York folk-alternative band called Grace Pool.

[hitman531ph]

GRACE POOL

 

Although critics generally had nice things to say about upstate New York alterna-folkies Grace Pool, the quartet was done a disservice by the immediate and myopic comparison to 10,000 Maniacs that invariably showed up somewhere in every feature and review. With their shared home, the largely acoustic instrumentation, and the fact that both bands had female lead singers, Grace Pool and 10,000 Maniacs had almost nothing at all in common. In many ways, Grace Pool was the superior act, as Elly Brown's lyrics avoided the preciousness of Natalie Merchant's, and Bob Riley's keyboard-heavy songs were more atmospheric and abstract than the genial guitar pop melodicism of 10,000 Maniacs.

 

An early version of Grace Pool (obscurely named after a minor character in Charlotte Brontë's Jane Eyre) formed in 1983, but Riley temporarily put the project on hold when he joined Hoboken's Rage to Live. When Riley left that band after their first album, he and Brown hooked back up and re-formed Grace Pool in New York City. Drummer Frank Vilardi, guitarist Terry Radigan, and keyboardist Cliff Carter joined the duo, who signed to the newly re-activated Reprise label and released a self-titled debut in 1988. Although it garnered respectful reviews, the album did not sell particularly well. Radigan and Carter were replaced by guitarist Beki Brindle and keyboardist Andy Burton; Brindle's vaguely Chicago-style playing and Burton's fondness for the vintage organ sound of a Hammond B-3 made 1990's Where We Live a somewhat earthier listen that better supported Brown's increasingly bluesy vocal style. Sadly, this record followed on the debut's path to obscurity, and Reprise dropped the group in 1991. Grace Pool broke up the following year.

[Notebook]

May Hall & Oates na ba dito? How about George Duke, Stanley Clarke, Michael Mcdonald and George Benson?

[hitman531ph]

May Hall & Oates na ba dito? How about George Duke, Stanley Clarke, Michael Mcdonald and George Benson?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

YUP!! They're all here in this thread. Try to backread

[hitman531ph]

EDDIE MURPHY

 

Like Bill Cosby and Richard Pryor before him, Eddie Murphy was the preeminent African-American comic of his era; in fact, Murphy was arguably the preeminent comic of the 1980s, period -- at his peak, no other performer, regardless of race, was a bigger star or a more audacious talent. Combining Pryor's viciously acute observational gifts and love of obscenities with Cosby's undeniable mainstream appeal, Murphy quickly leaped from clubs to television to film -- even finding success as a serious pop singer -- on the way to establishing himself as the most wildly popular comedian since the heyday of Steve Martin.

 

Edward Regan Murphy was born April 3, 1961, in Hempstead, NY. By his mid-teens he was already working as a professional stand-up in Long Island clubs; by the age of 17, he was performing at Manhattan's famed Comic Strip and soon mounted a club tour of the East Coast. In 1980 his precocious talent won him a recurring gig as a featured performer on Saturday Night Live; at the moment, the comedy institution was suffering one of its frequent dry spells, and Murphy quickly established himself as its breakout star, graduating to full-time cast member status on the strength of memorable riffs on the Claymation hero Gumby and Our Gang character Buckwheat as well as creations like street pimp Velvet Jones and Mr. Robinson, a ghetto counterpart to Mr. Rogers.

 

In 1982, Murphy issued his debut comedy album, a self-titled live effort which drew fire for its controversial portrayal of the Asian community and misogynistic overtones as well as "Faggots," the first of many homophobic routines which ultimately resulted in a boycott call from the gay community. That same year he made his feature debut co-starring with Nick Nolte in the buddy comedy 48 Hrs.; the film was a major success, and at the age of just 21 Murphy was a Hollywood superstar, with a 15-million-dollar deal with Paramount Pictures as his reward.

 

The Delirious concert tour followed in 1983; recorded at a sold-out August performance, the LP Eddie Murphy: Comedian reached the Top 40 while his second feature, Trading Places, emerged as the year's highest-grossing film. A small role in 1984's disastrous Best Defense was Murphy's first misstep, but a year later he returned with Beverly Hills Cop, one of the most successful pictures in box-office history. Also in 1985 he teamed with producer Rick James to record How Could It Be, a straightforward R&B album which spawned the mammoth hit single "Party All the Time."

 

Murphy was the hottest actor in Hollywood when he signed on for the 1986 quasi-mystical action comedy The Golden Child; the film was a commercial and critical bomb, and for the first time his star power was in question. While 1987's Beverly Hills Cop II stood as the year's biggest blockbuster and restored much of his career's luster, the aptly titled concert film Raw drew considerable heat for its abrasive, politically incorrect ranting. After 1988's Coming to America raked in the revenue, Murphy wrote, directed, and starred in 1989's Harlem Nights, a black gangster tale which performed miserably and took a massive critical drubbing.

 

Following the Harlem Nights debacle, he agreed to reunite in 1990 with Nick Nolte in Another 48 Hrs. When it too bombed, Murphy's career bottomed out; neither of his 1992 efforts, Boomerang and The Distinguished Gentleman, performed as well as his earlier hits, the 1993 LP Love's Alright failed to chart, and even 1994's seeming sure thing Beverly Hills Cop III tanked. After 1995's Vampire in Brooklyn, an ill-advised horror comedy, he starred in a hit remake of Jerry Lewis' The Nutty Professor in 1996, but in the early weeks of the following year the action-adventure fiasco Metro took a nosedive.