Once upon a time, long before dollar and pound signs replaced their precious little pupils, UB40 used to write their own songs. I swear to gawd they did! And they…
John C. Hughes
402 Articles
John C. Hughes began his Lost in the ’80s blog in 2005 and is now proud to be a member of the Popdose family, where he’s introduced LIT80s’s companions, the obviously named Lost in the ’70s and Lost in the ’90s, alongside the slightly more originally named Why You Should Like…
John C. Hughes
1 Min Read
So, I notice Technorati, the popular blog search engine, has started listing what they call “Popular Music – The music people are talking about right now.” Now, how do you…
John C. Hughes
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This week’s hottest reissue has to be Nina Hagen’s 1983 classic “Fearless”, coming to CD for the very first time. “Classic” in the sense that very few other batshit crazy,…
John C. Hughes
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This one’s for my Baby Chutney on this Valentine’s Day. I love you, Chut Chut! Okay, now that the rest of you have finished vomiting in your mouth a little…
John C. Hughes
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So close, yet so far. The story of the Family is one of missed opportunites boiled down to its most basic – Good Decisions vs. Bad Decisions. Let’s start at…
John C. Hughes
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Nasty Skank Alert! I think the people at the late, much lamented BlairMag (linked above) summed up best what was so damn appealing about a trio of barely-talented girls in…
John C. Hughes
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The post title says it all, doesn’t it? Will your favorite purple protege be featured? Stick around all week and see. Kicking things off is Miss Escovedo, who Prince discovered…
John C. Hughes
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Via… After you assemble your brain fragments, join us here tomorrow for a new post!
John C. Hughes
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If you’ve been hanging around here for any amount of time, you’ve probably picked up that I can be a bit of a cynical bastard. But this video of 17-year…
John C. Hughes
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Is Billy Squier gay? I ask not because it matters in any way, (I mean, really, it is 2007), but because I swear I read/saw an interview with him about…
John C. Hughes
2 Min Read
Ah, Stacey Swain aka Stacey Q aka sweet, innocent “Cinnamon” from “The Facts of Life”. Not so innocent, are we? Oh, I know alllll your dirty little secrets, missy. But…
John C. Hughes
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Let’s start this off by Snopesing what I believe to be apocryphal – just about every overview about Alphaville I read says something to the effect that “Forever Young” was…
John C. Hughes
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Work commitments had me tied up all week, but never fear…Lost in the 80s returns in full force next week, with music from Alphaville, Stacey Q/SSQ and…um…Billy Squier. Seeya then!
John C. Hughes
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Hi, kids! Little lesson in prevention today. This is your brain: Alain Jourgensen, 1983 And this is your drain on brugs: Alain Jourgensen, 2006 Any questions? Okay, okay, put all…
John C. Hughes
2 Min Read
Does anyone else change their facial expression as they write? Let me explain. Y’see, I can’t hide my feelings when I’m writing. If I’m typing away some angry screed, my…
John C. Hughes
1 Min Read
Pop’s road is littered with the remains of artists who unsuccessfully attempted the transition from “quirky” and “fun” to “mature” – Toni Basil, Altered Images, and sadly, one of the…
John C. Hughes
1 Min Read
One of the more out of left field musical directions pop took in the early ’80s was, of all things, a rockabilly revival, most notably led by the Stray Cats….
John C. Hughes
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Check out result #2: Can someone please explain the reason for this strange behavior?
John C. Hughes
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The Cars were in a peculiar position in 1987. After the huge success of Heartbeat City and some lesser success with various solo outlets, the band regrouped to work on…
John C. Hughes
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So of all the Cars solo projects (I haven’t forgotten Greg Hawkes’ 1983 effort – but it’s mostly instrumental), whose do you think was the most successful? You’d think the…
John C. Hughes
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So, we’ve established that between writing every single Cars song (with rare exceptions of collaborations with keyboardist Greg Hawkes) and releasing a solo album that Ric Ocasek was very much…
John C. Hughes
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After relative public indifference towards Panorama’s experimentation (while the album peaked at a respectable #5, it failed to chart a single any higher than #37), The Cars regrouped and retreated…
John C. Hughes
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While this shambles its way across the country, embarrassing itself in half-empty sheds nationwide (as Molly Shannon’s Marcy Darcy would say, “Don’t even get me started!”), what better time to…
John C. Hughes
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Did someone mention Paul Young? Oh yeah, I did. Paul Young was one of the new crop of British blue-eyed soul acts that sprouted up like crabgrass in the early-to-mid…
John C. Hughes
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Was marrying Heather Mills the most embarassing thing Paul McCartney ever did? Unfortunately, no. And this didn’t help matters any: So, is that the most cringe-inducing “Wacky Celebrity Cameo” video…
John C. Hughes
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Fiction Factory is one of those bands whom I’ve always read about since they came and went in the early ’80s, but never actually heard until a few years ago….
John C. Hughes
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Can’t do one without doing the other, I suppose. After seeing massive success with her debut solo album, “Belladonna”, Stevie Nicks settled into more regular pattern of releasing solo works…
John C. Hughes
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Some shit you can’t make up. TRACK LISTING:Frosty The Snowman Silver Bells Happy Holiday Merry Christmas Baby White Christmas Here Comes Santa Claus God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen Santa Claus…
John C. Hughes
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An alarm clock rings starting from the right speaker, crossing over to the left, then back and forth. A chorus of Lindseys intones “I want you” in a robotic monotone…
John C. Hughes
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Rubber Rodeo Á¢€” Á¢€Å“Anywhere With YouÁ¢€ Robin Gibb Á¢€” Á¢€Å“Boys Do Fall In LoveÁ¢€ Nolan Thomas Á¢€” Á¢€Å“YoÁ¢€â„¢ Little BrotherÁ¢€ (a definite must-see) Hunters & Collectors Á¢€” Á¢€Å“Throw Your Arms…