The Way it Is - Bruce Hornsby and the Range
As a single, its greatest power is the piano riff on that crispy upright, obviously. But if you listen to what's actually being sung, it actually transcends that beautiful bright intro. Bruce is from the Mark Knopfler singing school, and the song is given the right level of gravitas because of it. TV shows like The Voice and X-Factor miss the point of pop music spectacularly. Most of the songs in my countdown aren't vehicles for wonderful voices (well, maybe the Whitney Houston and Luther Vandross ones are) but in the main, they're well crafted pieces of music, modern symphonies that replace the Cor Anglais and Bassoon with the Moog and the Stratocaster. The voice of the artist complementing that - and usually because their voice was unique, with expression and soul. I love Gene Pitney for that, and Neil Sedaka... voices that blend with the track, without overpowering it or being the only thing you're listening to. Remember when Marc Almond destroyed 'Something's gotten hold of my heart'?
Diggin' Your Scene - Blow Monkeys
Who can resist Dr. Robert's massive suit jackets, slicked hair, clown make-up and smooth soul vocals that really shouldn't be coming out of someone who looks like he did. He made about 40 solo albums after they split up and then reformed, making 3 albums in 5 years. He's got a lot of music in him, I'll give him that - none as good as this lounge-jazz number.
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| Up next on QVC... |
Running up that Hill - Kate Bush
I've always been fascinated by Kate Bush; a lot of her stuff is just too odd for me though. The album 'Hounds of Love' is an absolute masterpiece however. There are still some very odd moments on it but they're sensibly odd. 'Running up that hill' has a life about it, one no other song has ever had. I love the desperation in the lyrics and the determination to prove something. It also has one of the greatest lyrics of all time in the second verse. 'You don't want to hurt me, but see how deep the bullet lies'.
Lay your hands on me - Thompson Twins
One of the best choruses of the 80s this. The song is let down quite a bit by the introduction which doesn't give you any indication of the behemoth to follow. It's nice to see Tom Bailey out and about again after the 'twins' said they'd never ever ever re-unite for one of those 'rewind' festivals or 'then and now' tours. Fair play that they never did but Tom looked and sounded like the 80s and deserves a place at the top table of the decade's leading influences.
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| Alannah, standing in front of a Candy Floss machine |
Pride - U2
For me, this was the song that broke U2 into the collective conscience. They had some great songs before this but 'The Unforgettable Fire' was an album which set them apart from say, Simple Minds, who were making songs about love, lost love and other such generic song contents. U2 were singing about politics and war. Pride is of course driven by the ideology of Martin Luther King (as is some of the album) and it was a stepping stone to world stardom through the Joshua Tree. This song, as a single, relies a lot on the Guitar riff at the start and the anthemic chorus which we've all tried to sing out loud in a club or at a party and failed miserably. This record defined U2's chart sound - a lot of their future releases had a hint of the production on this record about them - and why not?
There's no stopping us - Ollie and Jerry
If you grew up in the 80s then there's a good chance you tried doing a spot of electric boogaloo in your bedroom and succeeded in knocking several things off shelves in the process. Breakdancing was MASSIVE and there were various films about it, loads of breakdancing songs in the charts and people in city centres with squares of carpet and boomboxes (tape recorders with big speakers) flipping out to electric breakbeats. I loved it even though I could only do half a spin on my back unaided. This song epitomises that whole genre and snapshot of the 80s - makes me feel 8 years old again. Not even Spangles can do that!
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| The coolest people on the planet for 34 seconds in 1984 |
The Reflex - Duran Duran
The album version of this nonsense song was good but then Nile Rogers got his sweaty little paws on it and gave it an edge that transformed it into a funky number that jumped straight to number 1 from absolutely nowhere. The lyrics mean absolutely nothing but that doesn't matter - when I saw the video, if I'd been visited by a Genie at that precise moment and granted one wish, I'd be Simon le Bon right now. The concert footage of the band in that video is what all concerts should look like. Proper pop stars on stage looking cool, John Taylor pouting and looking mysterious, Andy Taylor looking like he's just won the pools, Roger Taylor hammering away at his electric tom-toms like they're a game of 'whack-a-mole' and Nick Rhodes, shaking his shoulders in a jumper his Nanna bought him from Hagley Road Market. Every little thing the reflex does leaves me thinking this is an absolutely joyous pop single. The Reflex - Video
Whistle Down the Wind - Nick Heyward
I had the absolute priveledge to see Nick perform live when he did a show with 5*Star and Curiosity Killed the Cat. This song silenced the 'refreshed' crowd. Such a sad song and it never gets old. Nick's solo album sounded exactly like what Haircut 100's second album would have sounded like. Then he started doing Beatles covers and slowly slid out of the musical landscape. He left this gem behind though so he will forever be a star in the sky of the 80s.
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| I'll be right up, I'm just doing a photoshoot for Smash Hits |
This one smashes you right in the face from the first guitar 'zoom' to the bass slide and the brass section which brings in Suggs' deadpan vocal perfectly. It was so different to the previous Madness offerings that I'll bet their fans were a bit 'what's going on here?' but probably gained them a lot more fans who didn't realise they were actually a hugely talented bunch of musicians who had quite a bit to say. It's a shame that their popularity seemed to wane when their song writing improved. 'Yesterday's Men' and 'Ghost Train' are great songs but they just didn't connect with the public. They had a B-side called 'Maybe in another life' which I still listen to now.
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| 3 of Madness try to sneak up on another 3 of Madness |
Sweet Little Mystery - Wet Wet Wet
I love that guitar pick at the start. Perfectly produced. Marti Pellow's vocal is jazzy and unique too; it's a shame he went down the road he did. He had real star quality - that's not to knock songs like 'Goodnight Girl' and 'Love is all around' because they performed extremely well in the charts, it's just that the group lost that cheeky fun element that I liked so much. I went off them when they went all serious and weird. Still, this is a near perfect pop single and will always get them up dancing in the over 40s bars in Ibiza (other holiday resorts are available)
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| Marti, singing into a liquorice allsort |
Well, that's me for another ten songs in the countdown. Please let me know if you agree, disagree, have any comments or want to give me your own top 10's (100's or 200's). The next instalments should be up soon.
