D is for Duran Duran

Okay so I can’t really do an A-Z challenge on an 80s blog without mentioning probably the most internationally successful New Romantic band – Duran Duran, but if you lived in the UK you believed that there were two huge New Romantic bands and you had to pick sides.   

The big two were Spandau Ballet and Duran Duran and I’m in the Spandau camp which was why when I emigrated ‘down under’ I had a huge shock as some of Spandau Ballet’s songs weren’t even heard of by many (gasp doesn’t really cover it).

I tried to explain to an Australian friend how Spandau and Duran Duran were just as big as each other in the UK during the 80s but he didn't get it until he watched an interview with Bob Geldof on the Live Aid DVD set.   The next day he saw me and was like - you know you were right with what you said about Spandau Ballet and Duran Duran.    I looked at him and thought 'I know I lived it, but why have you changed your tune'.   It turned out that Bob, being the sly dog that he is, asked Simon Le Bon (remember Duran Duran's lead singer) if Duran Duran would participate in Band Aid and when he hesitated to think about it he mentioned that Spandau Ballet had already said yes - Simon immediately said that Duran Duran would as well.   I don't know how true the story is, but my best friend when I was younger was a huge Duranie while I was a Spandau fan an d we tossed the pros and cons between 'our' groups constantly.

Back to Duran Duran they were huge and I can admit now that I’m in my 40s (haven’t the years flown by) that I liked their songs as well.   The line up was Simon Le Bon, Nick Rhodes, John Taylor, Roger Taylor and Andy Taylor and they were from Birmingham.   What I still find amazing is that they had three Taylors in the band and yet none of them were related - it must be a more common name in Birmingham than anywhere else!

In October 1980 as Spandau's first single was released they played in Birmingham and according to Gary Kemp's autobiography Duran Duran asked to play support - Spandau Ballet didn't have anyone playing support for them then so the answer was no.   A few months later in early 1981 Duran Duran's first single would be released and the rest is history.

Duran Duran's first single was Planet Earth and this cracked the UK's top twenty topping out at number 12, it was their 3rd single however that made every sit up and take notice - Girls on Film.   The single made number 5 in the charts, but then Duran Duran released the video.   The 80s saw the introduction of music video's being seen as just as important as the song and Duran Duran's Girls on Film video was scandalous and the sort of video that would have been played on the Playboy Channel back then.   The BBC quickly banned it which meant every young person saw it as censorship and wanted to know more about this band from Birmingham.

Duran Duran not only conquered the British youth, but ended up becoming the most internationally successful New Romantic band of the 80s.

I can’t think of a favourite Duran Duran song because as soon as I say Hungry Like  A Wolf then I’ll suddenly get Rio playing in my head  or Girls on Film, so I change my mind and what do you know I suddenly think of A View to a Kill or Is There Something I Should Know.

If you have a favourite Duran Duran song then leave it below.

C is for Culture Club

This is the third post in the A-Z Blogging Challenge and when I thought of something beginning with C the only thing that sprang to mind was Culture Club.   Now I've committed to writing about Culture Club, I can of course think of other things (isn't that always the way?)

Culture Club was formed in 1981 and was known mainly for it's far from shy lead singer - Boy George.   With hits that are hard to get out of your head like Karma Chameleon and Do You Really Want To Hurt Me, Culture Club released four albums during the 80s.

Culture Club's most successful album was their second one - Colour By Numbers.   This had one of my favorite Culture Club singles on it - Church of the Poison Mind.

Culture Club - A Short Bio

Boy George and Bassist Mickey Craig set out to form a group, next they joined forces with former Ant (from Adam and the Ants) Jon Moss. The final member of the group to join was their guitarist Roy Hay.

The name of the band was originally to be Sex Gang Children, however at Jon Moss' suggestion they changed it to Culture Club. The name would give them some flak as people thought it was extremely pretentious, but it was actually an inside joke on the different cultures inside the club.

• Boy George - transvestite Irish
• Mickey Craig - Jamaican-Briton
• Jon Moss - Jewish
• Roy Hay - Anglo-Saxon

The band signed with Virgin records in the UK and released their first album in 1982 - Kissing to be Clever. Their second album was Colour By Numbers and was released in 1983. The Band released a third album in 1984 titled Waking Up With the House on Fire which was not as successful. Their final album was 1986's From Luxury to Heartache.

During 1985 George started a battle with drug dependance, he was arrested in 1986 for possession of heroin and Culture Club's break up was officially confirmed in 1987.

Culture Club's Music

Culture Club were part of the New Romantic era of music where groups were kicking back against the punk movement and presenting themselves as the whole package. Musically and visually they wanted to ooze glamour and for people to notice them and even emulate them.

Culture Club's music seems to be a fusion of pop, reggae and even a little disco. Their songs contain a hook that gets the audience singing along and wanting more.

Kissing to be Clever - Culture Club

Editorial Reviews from Amazon.com

Against the cynical, post-punk backdrop of the early Thatcher and Reagan era, Culture Club's debut release Kissing to Be Clever was as refreshing as a scoop of gelato in a heatwave. These were the innocent days when Boy George could still declare he'd rather "have a cup of tea than sex," well before he hurtled to the brink of near self-destruction. Several of the cuts are still amazingly fresh and easily convey the winning charisma that transformed Boy George and his band into a pop icon. Songs like "I'll tumble 4 ya" and "Boy-Boy-I'm the Boy" seem tailor-made for the frontman's smooth-sliding tenor, while Mikey Craig's bass grooves pump with dance-til-you-drop Hi NRG. Although relatively brief (the original LP had one more cut than the CD release), the album stylistically hops like a Mexican jumping bean from disco funk to rhumba to reggae and contains obvious filler material. But the gender-bender flair perfected by Boy George announced a unique style that helped define the decade. --Thomas May

Kissing to Be Clever
Track Listings

1. White Boy [Dance Mix]

2. You Know I'm Not Crazy

3. I'll Tumble 4 Ya

4. Take Control

5. Love Twist - Captain Crucial, Culture Club

6. Boy Boy (I'm the Boy)

7. I'm Afraid of Me [Remix]

8. White Boys Can't Control It

9. Do You Really Want to Hurt Me

10. Love Is Cold [*]

11. Murder Rap Trap [*] - Captain Crucial, Culture Club

12. Time (Clock of the Heart) [*]

13. Romance Beyond the Alphabet [*]

[*] Bonus tracks not included on the original album

The first two singles off of Culture Club’s Kissing to be Clever album didn’t even dent the UK’s top 100. They were White Boy and I’m Afraid of Me. Their next three singles, however were a different story.

Do You Really Want to Hurt Me? (top ten hit around the world, reaching number 1 in 7 countries including the UK, Australia and Canada.

Time (Clock of the Heart) their second top ten single.

I’ll Tumble 4 Ya – this single was only released in the US and Canada and reached number 9 in both countries.

Colour by Numbers

Culture Club

Colour By Numbers
Culture Club continued their onslaught on the charts with their best album Colour by Numbers. The first single off of this album was Church of the Poison Mind which made the top ten on both sides of the Atlantic.

It was the second single off of Colour by Numbers which was to become the band's biggest hit - Karma Chameleon became a number 1 single on both sides of the Atlantic and around the world.

Victims was released in the UK and made it to number 3.

Miss me Blind was released in the US and made it to number 5.

The single It's a Miracle didn't quite break into the US top 10 settling for number 13, it was however, able to reach number 4 in the UK.

Track Listing

1. "Karma Chameleon" – 4:12
2. "It's a Miracle" – 3:25
3. "Black Money" – 5:19
4. "Changing Every Day" – 3:17
5. "That's the Way (I'm Only Trying to Help You)" – 2:45
6. "Church of the Poison Mind" – 3:30
7. "Miss Me Blind" – 4:30
8. "Mister Man" – 3:36
9. "Stormkeeper" – 2:46
10. "Victims" – 4:55
11. "Man-Shake" – 2:34 (2003 remastered CD bonus track)
12. "Mystery Boy" (Suntori Hot Whiskey Song) – 3:33 (2003 remastered CD bonus track)
13. "Melting Pot" – 4:31 (2003 remastered CD bonus track)
14. "Colour by Numbers" – 3:57 (2003 remastered CD bonus track)
15. "Romance Revisited" – 5:00 (2003 remastered CD bonus track)

Waking Up With the House on Fire - Culture Club

Culture Club’s third album was unable to reach the commercial success of Kissing to be Clever and Colour by Numbers.

The first single War Song made it to number 2 in the UK, but Culture Club were not able to break into the US top 10 again. War Song was only able to reach number 17 on Billboard.

The Medal Song was released in the UK and managed to scrape into the top 40.

Mistake No 3 was released in the US and only just managed to scrape into the Billboard’s Top 40.

Waking Up with the House on Fire
Track Listings

1. Dangerous Man

2. War Song

3. Unfortunate Thing

4. Crime Time

5. Mistake No. 3

6. Dive

7. Medal Song

8. Don't Talk About It

9. Mannequin

10. Hello, Goodbye

From Luxury to Heartache - Culture Club

Culture Clubs last album in the 80s was not a commercial success. Because of Boy George’s fight against drug addiction and his failing relationship with Jon Moss the album took a lot longer to produce than it was planned. Even Boy George’s notorious drug arrest in 1986 couldn’t help to sell the album and only two singles were ever released from it (only one in the US).

Move Away managed to get into the UK top ten and even peaked at number 12 in the Billboard Chart. God Thank You Woman only made it to number 31 in the UK.

From Luxury to Heartache heralded the end of Culture Club and this was officially confirmed the following year.

From Luxury To Heartache
Track Listings

1. "Move Away" – 4:21

2. "I Pray" – 4:00

3. "Work On Me Baby" – 4:06

4. "Gusto Blusto" – 4:40

5. "Heaven's Children" – 4:44

6. "God Thank You Woman" – 4:14

7. "Reasons" – 4:35

8. "Too Bad" – 4:36

9. "Come Clean" – 3:20

10. "Sexuality" – 5:28

What did you think of Culture Club?   I had a friend who actually wore a Boy George duster coat everywhere and even had her hair styled like his (I'd love to know what she looks like these days!).   Share your Culture Club memories and/or favorite song below.

B is for Bow Wow Wow

We’re still participating in the A-Z Blogging Challenge which means that today’s post is about the letter B.

After remembering Adam and the Ants yesterday it seemed only appropriate to talk about Bow Wow Wow today and not just because I love the song I Want Candy, but also because it was made up of Ants!

Right at the beginning of the 80s after Adam and the Ant’s first album – Dirk Wears White Sox – didn’t manage to crack the top ten on the charts Adam Ant turned to Malcolm McLaren who he knew from his punk days when McLaren was manager to the Sex Pistols.   Adam Ant got given styling advise that he used, but it came at a price – Malcolm McLaren ‘stole’ his Ants and formed Bow Wow Wow.

All that was needed now was a lead singer and that lead singer came in the form of an underage Annabella Lwin, in 1981 Bow Wow Wow released their first album and the controversy started straight away with Scotland Yard being called in when a 15 year old Annabella was posed naked on the album cover.

Three albums later and the band just fizzled out with no one really knowing why.   They have left us with some great material though and are credited by the likes of the Red Hot Chilli Peppers and No Doubt as being big influences.   I love their two most commercially successful singles – I Want Candy and Go Wild in the Country – what do you think?

A is for Adam Ant

This post is part of the A-Z Blogging Challenge that we’re participating for the month of April where each post has to start with a letter of the alphabet……in order!   I hope you’ll enjoy our alphabetical trip down memory lane to the decade that we just can’t forget – the 80s.

A is for Adam Ant as in Adam and the Ants, Ant Music and Ant Rap.   Yes, we’re heading back to the early 80s today for ex-punk rocker Stuart Goddard who we welcomed into the charts as Adam and the Ants.

Now I can’t actually remember the first Adam and the Ants record I heard on the radio, but I do remember the first time I saw the band on the television.   It was on Top of the Pops and if you grew up in the UK during the 80s this was compulsory viewing on Thursday nights.   The song they performed was Stand and Deliver – I loved it, although I’m not sure if Dick Turpin would’ve liked the camp version of a highwayman that Adam Ant seemed to have portrayed!

I coveted (and finally got) a flouncy shirt similar to the ones that Adam Ant wore along with other New Romantic bands, but I can honestly say with my hand on my heart that I never wore a white stripe across my nose……….my brother on the other hand (sorry little bro I’ve just sold you out).

What was your favourite Adam and the Ants song – let me know below in the comments, I’m not sure which one was my favourite.    Stand and Deliver and Prince Charming are always the first ones that spring to mind, but I think that Ant Rap was one of the first ‘raps’ that I learnt off by heart (apologies to all the rappers out there who are now gasping at my comparing Ant Rap to ‘real’ rap, but I liked it and it’s my blog!)   

Ant Rap was how I remembered the band’s names (at that time anyway) “Marco, Merrick, Terry Lee, Garry Tibbs and Yours Truly, in the naughty north and in the sexy south, we’re all singing I have the mouth……”

Adam and the Ant’s first album was released in 1979, but their biggest album had to be their third one Prince Charming which was released at the end of 1981, then after being nominated for a Grammy in 1982 it seemed that Adam and the Ant’s star had just been extinguished with the band breaking up.

We were all still happy that we weren't losing the music though because Adam Ant released a solo song – Goody Two Shoes.   I think everyone knew the words to that song –

“Goody two, goody two, goody goody two shoes,

Don’t drink, don’t smoke what do you do?

Don’t drink, don’t smoke what do you do?

Subtle innuendos follow

There must be something inside…..”

Adam Ant was going to be around forever, but no!   Almost as soon as his solo career started it stopped and the 80s rolled on without Adam Ant and his merry band of Ants!

Don’t forget to let me know your favourite Adam and the Ants song.

A-Z of 80s - A Blogging Challenge

I recently came across this blog post -

Tossing It Out: A Very Special and Exciting Announcement!

It's all about a blog challenge called the A to Z Blogging Challenge and I though that it was just what this blog needed! Basically it means that I will have to blog (not once a week sporadically) every day - yes, every day. Not only will I have that challenge to look forward to it gets better.....each blog post has to start with a different letter of the alphabet starting with A and working through to Z. If you think that this sounds like fun and you want to walk through the 80s alphabet style with me then we will be starting in earnest on 1st April - and that's no April Fools Day prank.

Will I kick start the challenge with ABC? You'll have to pop back and find out won't you. If you're interested in finding out more than click on the blog post above and join in - we have over 600 bloggers participating in this challenge at the time of writing so if you're a blogger who wants a bit of fun then join in as well - the more the merrier.

Fishnet Fingerless Gloves

Do you remember the fishnet fingerless gloves that were all the rage during the 80s? - I think it was Madonna that caused that fashion trend, although I could be wrong be sure to let me know if you think/know it was someone else.

I know I had a black pair - how I got this black pair is a hilarious story (well I think so anyway). For some reason I hadn't brought myself any, but my aunt and godmother gave me some as a birthday gift. This aunt was my dad's favorite sister, but very nearly gave him a heart attact.....let me tell you the story.

My aunt gave me a birthday gift and when I opened it up it was a holdall bag, on opening this I saw more gifts wrapped up inside (yes I was getting spoilt!) I opened up one gift and it was a black tube, when I pulled the white plastic stopper out of one end all you could see was black lace - my dad nearly had a fit, you see you could buy some very sexy black lace undies that came in the same containers - I pulled the black lace out to reveal elbow length black fishnet fingerless gloves! My dad's breathing returned to normal and my aunt remained his favorite sister!!

It's funny that my dd is now wanting fishnet fingerless gloves herself, in fact Santa got her a pair at Christmas, but she wants a collection of them in different colors. I decided not to tell her they were very 80s, I keep that conversation for more expensive things!

We went shopping yesterday as we need to buy some new suitcases for our holiday (our old ones got water damaged during the floods), dd came across this scarf she really wanted to buy, but it was way out of the price I was willing to pay for a scarf she'd hardly ever wear. Not wanting to be a 'mean mum' yet again and not lying to her either I quickly said - wow that's awesome, you know I used to have one just like it in the 80s. The scarf was dropped quicker than a scolding piece of coal and we could move on!

Space Invaders

This morning we stopped at a car boot sale to have a look and I spotted some PS2 games for my daughter to look at and what should be right next to them - a Space Invaders game for the PC!

My hubby wanted to buy it straight away, until I told him that actually I did still play Space Invaders on the computer. You can do at this free site - Play Space Invaders for Free

I've found that playing it with the sound turned off allows me to get some amazing scores that I couldn't even dream of getting during the 80s - I'm sure the sound makes you panic as the aliens get lower, especially when there's just one of them zipping along the screen evading your bullets!

I think that having Space Invaders available for people to play would be awesome at an 80s party, in fact you could have a few of the old style games available like Pac Man and Donkey Kong. May I also mention that you could carry on the theme with the food, yes I'm talking about Space Invaders Baking - delicious and so retro!

If you do decide to have a Space Invaders themed party....or even just an 80s video game themed party drop us a line and tell us how it went.