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  • Guilty pleasures part 2… The 70s and 80s edition

    Guilty pleasures part 2… The 70s and 80s edition

    Sometimes you just have to write about guilty pleasures…

    Back in June of 2013, I wrote a blog post here on Pop Rock Nation about songs that are guilty pleasures. As I sit here on this April day, contemplating the week and the fact that here it is April again and people are going batshit crazy, I decided I needed to post something lighthearted. And so I’ve decided that today’s post will be about guilty pleasures and the artists who create them. And hell, you can’t get any more lighthearted than Air Supply…


    Okay, so many this isn’t a lighthearted song… It is, though, kind of a guilty pleasure for me.

    I was looking at SingSnap.com this morning for my daily dose of karaoke and “All Out Of Love” was one of the “featured” songs. I don’t like all of Air Supply’s music, but I will admit that a few of their songs were gems. I loved “Lost In Love” when it first came out. Of course, I was six or seven years old at the time… Anyway, having grown up in the 70s and 80s, I became well-versed in the magic of Air Supply. Some of their songs really were okay… sort of. They definitely count as “guilty pleasure” songs for me, though. I think it’s funny that Air Supply songs are featured on SingSnap, since they are basically male duets. I imagine most men worth their salt wouldn’t want to sing these “sensitive” numbers from the 80s!


    I have to admit it… I do enjoy a lot of Barry Manilow’s music. Here’s a nice medley.

    I was reminded of Barry Manilow last week as I was exploring Styx and Tommy Shaw made a comment about how he didn’t want Styx to start sounding like Barry Manilow. Granted, too much of his music may soon traipse into super annoying territory, but there’s a reason why the man was so popular in the 70s and 80s. He can sing and play piano and writes his own songs… though curiously enough, he didn’t write “I Write The Songs”. That song was written by Bruce Johnston in 1975, but Barry made it very popular indeed. Listening to the medley I posted here, I can’t help but notice that Barry has a flair for the melodramatic.


    Randy Newman is a definitely guilty pleasure…

    Randy Newman is not the greatest singer in the world and a lot of his songs have a very recognizable sound that immediately scream early 80s commercial to me. I like him, though, because he’s very witty and I get a kick out of his voice. He makes me laugh. Randy’s song “Short People” was such a hit that the Harlem Globetrotters sang it with Goldie Hawn. Talk about a guilty pleasure!


    Snicker… if this isn’t a guilty pleasure, I don’t know what is…


    Just about everything by Culture Club qualifies as a guilty pleasure as far as I’m concerned.

    I remember how much this song used to irritate me when it was popular. Boy George is a very talented singer, but in the 80s Culture Club’s music was so ridiculously catchy that it would get stuck in my head and torment me for hours. I haven’t heard “Karma Chameleon” in years, though, so I figure it’s safe to include it in this post about guilty pleasures. It’s nice and peppy anyway, right?


    Not really a hit, but definitely a guilty pleasure…

    Jermaine Jackson had a couple of hits in the 80s and for some inexplicable reason, he recorded a ridiculous song called “Escape From The Planet of the Ant Men”. I kind of wonder if he was trying to emulate his brother Michael’s song, “Thriller”. It fails, but in a delightfully guilty pleasure way. I have to admit that when I’m in a certain mood, I really enjoy this song.


    Oh my God…

    Wham! was another one of those bands long on talent and guilty pleasure chops. This song is so 1984 it’s not even funny. I remember how the video spawned the fad that had everyone wearing painter’s caps and t-shirts with big letters on them. Or was that Frankie Goes To Hollywood that did that? Don’t know… but this song is so infectious I need an antibiotic and a painkiller… preferably in the form of an alcoholic beverage. “Wake Me Up Before You Go Go…” That’s a hell of a title for a guilty pleasure song.


    Anything involving Menudo qualifies as guilty pleasure territory…

    Here’s a classic clip from the 80s era sitcom Silver Spoons. Although this episode was about Menudo, everyone my age had the hots for Ricky Schroeder. I know he goes by Rick now, but he’ll always be “The Ricker” to me. Is it me, or are these guys way off key? Egad!


    And finally, there’s “We Are The World” by USA for Africa

    This song is pure melodrama, but I can’t help but love it for the video alone. Look at all those celebrities! LaToya Jackson is in the choir, for Chrissakes! Yes, I loved it in 1985 and I love it now. It is a guilty pleasure, though. I get a huge kick out of Stevie Wonder’s jaunty solo interspersed with Bruce Springsteen’s constipated screaming at the end. It’s pure 80s magic! And sorry, the remake just doesn’t cut it.


    Justin Bieber is no Lionel Richie.

    This version sounds suspiciously auto-tuned. Okay, I admit it… it’s making me verklempt. I still like the original better, though.

    Have a great weekend everyone!

  • Music buying sprees…

    Music buying sprees…

    Beware the music buying sprees that can happen when you’re bored… and a little drunk!

    Over the weekend, I was watching TV and got bored. I don’t remember what I was watching that bored me, just that I got disgusted and turned off the TV. That’s not a bad thing, really, since there’s a reason people call TV “the boob tube”. When my husband is not home, I usually record music when I’m bored. I’ll either do karaoke on SingSnap.com or I’ll make videos for YouTube. When my husband is home, I’ll usually turn on iTunes.

    I currently have well over 12,000 songs on my iPod. Many songs were purchased on iTunes as part of whole albums or buy themselves. The rest come from my huge CD collection. I usually buy new music when I hear something I like. I’ll use Shazam if I’m in a public place and have WiFi or 4G to find out what the song is, if I don’t already know. Sometimes I’ll use it if I hear something on TV that I like. But the truth is, I am just as likely to buy stuff just randomly.

    The other day, as I sat at my desk with a large glass of expensive, imported beer, I started listening to music on iTunes. I was just skipping through songs on my vast playlist, playing whatever struck my fancy. All was well until I ran into an album I partially purchased in 2007. At the time, my husband Bill was in Iraq and I was alone, drinking too much wine and listening to a lot of music to pass the hours. I ran across an album by Larry Sparks, a man I had never heard of. But he’d done a bunch of duets with a long list of bluegrass and country stars, one of whom was Alison Krauss. I am a BIG Alison Krauss fan. I downloaded the song Larry Sparks did with her and Dan Tyminski, which turned out to be a cover of The Judds’ “John Deere Tractor”.


    Larry Sparks sings with Alison Krauss and Dan Tyminski.

    I was never a big fan of The Judds’ version of “John Deere Tractor”, but I like what Larry did with it. I ended up buying a couple more songs from the album from which it came, 40 (2005). Then I kind of forgot about it.

    Fast forward seven years and I’m listening to “John Deere Tractor” and I got curious about the rest of the album. I started listening to clips on iTunes and recognizing other singers that I have since taken to liking after I first discovered 40 by Larry Sparks. One by one, I started paying for downloads and then just said, “Screw it!” and bought the rest of the album.

    From there, I moved on a Michael Johnson album that featured a duet with Alison Krauss. I discovered it at about the same time I discovered Larry Sparks. I knew Michael Johnson from his 1978 hit, “Bluer Than Blue”. The song was played a lot when I was a little kid, but it wasn’t until my husband was deployed that I really connected with it.


    This song has more meaning to me than it did in 1978.

    Michael Johnson updated “Bluer Than Blue” on a 1997 album called Then and Now, which features updated acoustic versions of his better known songs. On that collection, there’s a really nice duet Johnson did with Alison Krauss that was made very famous by Kenny Loggins and Stevie Nicks. The song I write of is, of course, “Whenever I Call You Friend”.


    Michael Johnson and Alison Krauss breathe updated life into “Whenever I Call You Friend”.

    Well, fresh from my Larry Sparks download, I decided to complete Then and Now. And from there, I went on to download more partial albums… all while I sat there sipping expensive imported beer at my desk. By the time I was done, I had spent about $25! Who knew listening to music while drinking would end up being so expensive? While I love the convenience of buying music from my computer, I have to admit, iTunes and Amazon are making a small fortune off my habits. I need to curb this tendency, since my husband is about to be looking for work!

  • I’ve got the blues…

    I’ve got the blues…

    This week has been tough. A bunch of things have been piling up. And now I’ve got the blues…

    A whole bunch of *stuff* piled up on me this week. Most of the stuff is minor, though when it all piles up at once, it can feel like a big load. Often, when I’m feeling depressed, I like to listen to music. Historically, I would choose music from James Taylor, whose voice somehow manages to console me. As my tastes have evolved, so have my musical choices. Though I’m not quite as blue this morning as I’ve been at other times, I thought I’d take a look at some of the songs that soothe me when I’ve got the blues. Note that these songs are not “blues” songs per se, though I may sneak one or two in.


    Eric Clapton sings “Lonely Stranger” from his 1992 Unplugged album.

    I don’t know why, but this song “Lonely Stranger” has been on my mind for the past couple of days. There’s something elegantly beautiful about this sad song, all about being a lonely stranger without a love in the world. That doesn’t describe me today, but it has in the past… or at least it seemed like it did. It’s nice to listen to this, even as I realize it’s been 22 years since Clapton’s Unplugged was released. Man, I feel old.


    James Taylor’s classic song, “Bartender’s Blues”, certainly was a comfort when I worked in the restaurant industry. Anyone who has been a bartender or server can relate. Check out Linda Ronstadt’s searing backup.

    Lots of artists have covered “Bartender’s Blues”. I found a very cool clip of Elvis Costello and Laura Cantrell teaming up on it. Vince Gill, Bonnie Raitt, and George Jones did it. Hell, even Amy Grant sang it!


    This is weird. I never thought I’d hear Amy Grant singing about being a bartender.

    I’ve found Jackson Browne is great when I’m in a low mood. There’s something about his dark piano chords and bitter vocals that just touches me at the core. Some of his melodies are just beautiful. And when he goes for those diminished chords, I just sigh.


    Supposedly, this song is about Jackson Browne’s brief relationship with Joni Mitchell…

    If “Fountain of Sorrow” was really about Joni Mitchell, she’s got to be one of the most inspirational people on the planet.


    Joni Mitchell sings “Blue” in concert.

    Speaking of Joni Mitchell, she’s pretty good for a melancholy song or two herself. I discovered her 1970 album Blue in 1999, when I was recovering from clinical depression. This song seems to be about the druggy culture of the early 70s, but there’s something about the melody that speaks to me when I’ve got the blues.


    Keb’ Mo plays his gorgeous song, “Henry”.

    Just listening to Keb’ Mo’ play “Henry” is enough to bring a lump to my throat. It’s not so much the words that do it as it is the hauntingly gorgeous melody and the sound of Keb’ Mo’s rich vocals.


    Bonnie Raitt sings “Louise”, a song by Paul Siebel.

    “Louise” is the sad ballad of a low class woman of who didn’t have a lot of friends, but was a friend to a lot of lonely men. Bonnie Raitt sings this with so much heart and appreciation as she recalls how Louise died alone and went home alone.


    The Corrs have done an amazing version of REM’s “Everybody Hurts”.

    While I like REM as much as anyone my age does, it’s The Corrs’ heartbreakingly beautiful cover of “Everybody Hurts” that makes me want to pour out the blues with a good cry. There’s something so moving about this rendition, especially given that suicide is a big problem in Ireland. The first time I heard it, I had to have the album it came from, even though it’s out of print.


    Linda Ronstadt sings “Blue Bayou”…

    And finally, here’s Linda Ronstadt in her prime, singing a soaring version of “Blue Bayou”, a song written by the late Roy Orbison. I love to sing this one myself, but no one does it quite how Linda does. And this melancholy song with its hopeful lyrics are helpful when I need to get over the blues.