Music Meme (1989)

PJ The Urban Recluse tagged me with a meme:

1. Go to www.popculturemadness.com
2. Pick the year you turned 18
3. Get yourself nostalgic over the song’s of the year
4. Write something about how the song affected you
5. Pass it on to 5 more friends

I actually already did something similar a couple of years ago, but what the heck, I'll play (and try not to repeat myself too much). Let's see.

In 1989 I was working in the video section of a Tower Records store, was still a couple of years away from discovering Kirsty MacColl, and further from being any kind of a jazz head. The electronic pop artists that I considered great (and still do) like Pet Shop Boys, weren't on the US charts much anymore. PSB had put out their second album, which is still one of my favorites, Actually. I think I was still resisting rap; to a lesser degree The Smiths, and I'd already gone through my blues phase by that time. Repeated exposure to Def Leppard in the cars of my friends made me a fan.

Okay, here's what I got.

Straight Up (Paula Abdul) - Oh-oh-oh. A brilliant record of a stupid song.


The Look (Roxette) -At the time I either didn't like or wouldn't admit to liking "The Look," today I think it's great dumb fun. It's like an '80s pop version of a Monkees record, and I mean both as a compliment.



This is 1985, not 1989, but damnit I just feel like posting it: I Can Dream About You (Dan Hartman) - I still thought it was an awesome song in 1989. I still think it's an awesome song now.

BTW, Hartman's co-star in the video is Joyce Hyser, who around the same time played the lead in Just One Of The Guys.

If she looked in this video the way she looked in most of that movie, I'd have believed Hartman was really interested in her.



If You Don't Know Me By Now (Simply Red) -But really, what can be said about this that isn't better said by the David Brent version?

And finally, Batdance (Prince) -I'm sure Prince wrote the Batman album in his sleep, but it's still the last one of his I've liked.

I'll tag:

1. Jeopardygirl
2. James "the" Mann
3. Johnny B.
4. Gaije
5. Dave Lifton
6. and Sherman, if he feels like it.