Watch the video for The Jacksons’ “Torture”. “Torture” peaked at #17 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1984.
Lost in the ’80s
264 Articles
John C. Hughes
3 Min Read
You got your Chaka Khan in my Scritti Politti! Well, you got your Scritti Politti in my Chaka Khan! MmmmÁ¢€¦hey! This is pretty good! Chaka Khan was cooling off in…
John C. Hughes
3 Min Read
While MTV has launched many a career, it could be argued that Julie Brown (the white one, as she called herself) was the networkÁ¢€â„¢s first home-grown superstar. By the time…
John C. Hughes
1 Min Read
Cut from the Loverboy mold of rocking gently and non-offensively (which sounds like an insult, I realize, but isnÁ¢€â„¢t really), Niagra Falls, CanadaÁ¢€â„¢s Honeymoon Suite (get it? GET IT?!?) got…
John C. Hughes
2 Min Read
Goofy lyrics? Overwrought production? Histrionic vocals? Undeniable hooks? Yes, weÁ¢€â„¢re talkinÁ¢€â„¢ Jim Steinman today, kids. Would you really be surprised if I told you the writer/producer of such irresistibly schlocky…
John C. Hughes
1 Min Read
Another band Melbourne from punkÁ¢€â„¢s ashes, Hunters & Collectors began life in 1981 as a raucous, horn-fueled live act, feeding off audience participation and feel more than songwriting. Over the…
John C. Hughes
1 Min Read
You know what the world needed more than anything in 1987? A group of white Australians trying to recreate the funk rock that was The Time! Missing Morris Day? DonÁ¢€â„¢t…
John C. Hughes
2 Min Read
All this week, Lost in the Á¢€Ëœ80s takes a look at bands who were part of the early-to-mid Á¢€Ëœ80s Australian invasion led by groups such as INXS, Midnight Oil, and…
John C. Hughes
1 Min Read
Happy birthday to me. I’m this many today! UPDATE:It’s amazing what you find when you look…just days after posting a request for Q Lazzarus and thinking it was back in…
John C. Hughes
3 Min Read
Ah, Charlie DoreÁ¢€â„¢s ode to calling the DJ request line. Every Á¢€Ëœ80s child has been there, hanging on the phone, waiting for that busy signal to stop, finally getting it…
John C. Hughes
3 Min Read
Turn on any local Á¢€Å“Hits of the Á¢€Ëœ80s, Á¢€Ëœ90s and Today!Á¢€ radio station, and within an hour, I guarantee you will hear either of Naked EyesÁ¢€â„¢ big hits, Á¢€Å“Promises, PromisesÁ¢€…
John C. Hughes
1 Min Read
The final part of my Rock & Roll Jeopardy experience has been posted over at my other blog, Johnny Is a Man. If you haven’t been reading it, you can…
John C. Hughes
1 Min Read
Another Lost in the Á¢€Ëœ80s oddityÁ¢€¦thereÁ¢€â„¢s not much biographical info or background floating around about The Other Ones, a Scandinavian-ish group who put out a single, self-titled album in 1987,…
John C. Hughes
2 Min Read
Mirage Records, a tiny little label with major distribution, was on fire in 1984. The label scored a few high-profile dance chart hits, but ended up getting their most notable…
John C. Hughes
1 Min Read
I love remembering songs that are perfect for “Lost in the ’80s”, and Nolan Thomas’ “Yo Little Brother” is so lost and forgotten, it’s nearly sublime. This is another of…
John C. Hughes
2 Min Read
Hiccupy. Chipry. Helium-powered. Chipmunk. All those descriptors have been applied to the singing voice of Altered Images’ Clare Grogan, and for the most part, they’re pretty accurate. While Altered Images…
John C. Hughes
1 Min Read
Visit my other blog today for Part One of my Rock & Roll Jeopardy experience. It’s 80s-riffic. More Lost in the ’80s coming up this week.
John C. Hughes
3 Min Read
When it comes to spectacular pop flame-outs, itÁ¢€â„¢s still tough to match the Knack, even 25 years after the phenomenal success of Á¢€Å“My SharonaÁ¢€ and their debut album, Á¢€Å“Get the…
John C. Hughes
2 Min Read
That was my mantra in 1988, when industrial music was in its golden age, and I was a sucker for anything released on the Chicago Wax Trax label. Most if…
John C. Hughes
7 Min Read
Question: YouÁ¢€â„¢re the lead singer and lyricist of an up and coming underground synth-based band. YouÁ¢€â„¢ve just lost your songwriter and main keyboardist to an ego clash. YouÁ¢€â„¢re left with…
John C. Hughes
5 Min Read
It was tough being one of two Frankie Goes to Hollywood fans in my suburban/rural Ohio hometown in 1985. The popular musical force at Elyria West High School was hair…
John C. Hughes
2 Min Read
Sometimes you go through your old albums and run across one that leaves you scratching your head, wondering Á¢€Å“why did I buy this?Á¢€ This happened to me the other day…
John C. Hughes
4 Min Read
Once upon a time, Bob Geldof was an asshole, and infinitely more interesting. IÁ¢€â„¢m using the term Á¢€Å“assholeÁ¢€ in the most complimentary, and admittedly, inflammatory fashion here. Geldof, alongside the…
John C. Hughes
5 Min Read
Welcome to Lost in the Á¢€Ëœ80s. HereÁ¢€â„¢s where youÁ¢€â„¢ll find the other side of all the big hits you rememberÁ¢€¦the failed follow-ups to the one-hit wonders, the album tracks that…
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