[James63]

80s music is some of the best music of all time. I can not even begin to name all of the great metal and rock bands that came out of the 80s. I think today’s current music is at an all time low by comparison. Radio and MTV make me ill. You know, rap and crap due rhyme for a reason.

 

[Mr.PD]

I love the 80's!
One hit wonders abound in the 80's.
Some of the most happy and snappy tunes were very popular then.
I actually enjoyed listening to the radio back then.
Human League
Men Without Hats
Little River Band
ZZ Top's best work
Pretenders
ABC
The Tubes
The Cars
Poison
Motley Crue
Ozzy's best album was 1984's Diary of a Madman Or was that 1981?
Ratt
Quiet Riot
Robert Palmer's Addicted To Love
Devo
INXS
Culture Club
The Go Go's
Cindi Lauper
A lot of fun music was going on then. Songs like The Safety Dance, Whip It, Stray Cat Strut, Everybody Have Fun Tonight, Come on Eileen, Turning Japanese, She Blinded Me With Science, Micky, Get It On (Bang a Gong) , Walking On Sunshine,.........

I guess I just have too many fond memories of the 80's. The mid 80's were a very tumultuous time in my life, and I rather enjoyed it. I listened to a lot of top 40 radio, drank a lot beer, and didn't have a home for a while. It was a great time in my life.

 

[SRM]

Funny enough I don't recall anyone mentioning Eurythmics or Beach Boys

Actualy I have just lately started to enjoy Eurythmics 1984 album, funny how that didn't hit me back then..

Also Kate Bush and absolutely AMAZING artist Yello are worth to mention when talking about music in the 80s, actualy I think that Yello was one of the most advanced group of the 80s, as their sounds (not songs) became familiar to most during nineties and made by other groups.

 

[pframe]

That 1984 disc did not get enough respect. If I remember correctly, many Eurythmics fans were up in arms because the music was quite a bit different from what they'd released before. Love that haunting "Julia" track -- it used to stick in my head for days.

Kate Bush is truly one-of-a-kind. I'm still holding on to hope that she'll get back in the studio some day and make music again.

 

[Jahn]

Quote:

Originally Posted by pframe That 1984 disc did not get enough respect. If I remember correctly, many Eurythmics fans were up in arms because the music was quite a bit different from what they'd released before. Love that haunting "Julia" track -- it used to stick in my head for days. Kate Bush is truly one-of-a-kind. I'm still holding on to hope that she'll get back in the studio some day and make music again.

"Don't Give Up" - the duo with Peter Gabriel and Kate Bush - haunting and lovely!

 

[pframe]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jahn "Don't Give Up" - the duo with Peter Gabriel and Kate Bush - haunting and lovely!

Right you are, Jahn. I've always been impressed that PG and KB were able to pull that one off. With anything other than the absolute sincerity they apply to the lyrics, I think the song was in danger of being trite.

 

[oldblueviffer]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mr.PD Ozzy's best album was 1984's Diary of a Madman Or was that 1981?

you were right with '81

 

[Mr.PD]

Quote:

Originally Posted by oldblueviffer you were right with '81

Ahhh, thank you!
What band did that song about they came from the land down under?

 

[oldblueviffer]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mr.PD Ahhh, thank you! What band did that song about they came from the land down under?

would that be 'Men At Work' by any chance

 

[Mr.PD]

Ah yes, Men At Work. I really liked some of their songs.

 

[zoboomofo]

I like lots of 80s music, but hardly any of it was popular at the time. I think that so much effort was put into tackling the technology that there was nothing left for any soul in the music. Until 1988, pop music sounded like a bunch of novelty songs that showcased synthesizers. and clap machines. But this is all IMHO. It felt like the anti-funk movement was in full force.

So if all the styles from the 60s and 70s were junked, pop music was in a rebuilding phase. There were many new styles of music, but they weren't developed enough to be packaged for the masses. In the indie corner, REM had to wait most of the decade for pop music to figure them out, Heavy metal was limited to the big hair crowd until Enter Sandman, and Rap music was shut out of the mainstream until the 90s.

If you're into the charts, you'll always find some gems on the list but most of the top spots will be filled with tawdry fluff. I think this is true for any decade in American music.

 

[bong]

Quote:

Originally Posted by zoboomofo I like lots of 80s music, but hardly any of it was popular at the time. I think that so much effort was put into tackling the technology that there was nothing left for any soul in the music. Until 1988, pop music sounded like a bunch of novelty songs that showcased synthesizers. and clap machines. But this is all IMHO. It felt like the anti-funk movement was in full force. So if all the styles from the 60s and 70s were junked, pop music was in a rebuilding phase. There were many new styles of music, but they weren't developed enough to be packaged for the masses. In the indie corner, REM had to wait most of the decade for pop music to figure them out, Heavy metal was limited to the big hair crowd until Enter Sandman, and Rap music was shut out of the mainstream until the 90s. If you're into the charts, you'll always find some gems on the list but most of the top spots will be filled with tawdry fluff. I think this is true for any decade in American music.

oh gosh... not again.

the synthesizer and technology was not a replacement for talent and soul. New Order used technology, they used synths, they used the emulator, and used sequencers... they do not lack talent and soul. they have so much talent in each of the bandmember's pinkie finger to surpass anything someone like A Flock of Seagulls can muster. and they do not lack soul... they were never in it for the money. they do it for themselves because they enjoy making and playing music. the fans and the money were just an added bonus.

and the 80's didn't just consist of hair bands. listen to some Iron Maiden, old school Metallica, Judas Priest, Motorhead, Anthrax, etc.
bands like Poison, Motley Crue, and Warrant have got nothing on these bands.

 

[zoboomofo]

Hello, bong. I would be happy to clarify my post.

The point I'm trying to make is that the music I loved didn't dominate the airwaves in the 80s like later music did and does now. This is sad because I think that music should have developed more quickly than it did in the 80s.

As for the synthesizer, I like the synthesizer, but not the way it was used. This is a generalization, so there are exceptions of course, but I could not get into the sound of old skool synthesizers as the heart of the melody. For example, Vince Clarke did dazzling things with the synthesizer, but that kind of music left me feeling depressed, and I don't think it was intentional. I was a Eurythmics fan for much of the 80s and you could say Dave Stewart was talented too, but really it was songs like Would I Lie To You that did it for me. It just took me a long time to figure it out, because it was all you'd ever see on Top Of The Pops.

It's like trying to listen to a song on a monophonic ringtone. There's a lot more music to be mined underneath the melody (like ambience, bassline and rhythm), and if the synthesizer melody sounds so crude, I don't think it should be the centrepiece of the music.

Now a good example of synthesizer in an 80s song is OMDs Messages. There's real drums, a very meaty bassline, an organ for ambience, and frugal use of synthesizer. You can hear several notes at once, and it all works well together.

At the time, one of my favorite dance songs was Touched By The Hand of God. The growling bass line, and soaring highs gave it a romantic feel... but only in patches. I felt that synth pop really fit me right when Violator came out (check out my post there

)

For your other concern, the soul I'm talking about isn't the soul you put into the song, but the soul that comes out of the speakers and grooves in a nonhigh-tech, and funky way.

In '88, all the indie kids brought the guitar back into focus. Melodies were more playful, and sounds were more organic, and human sounding. There was more soul, man. (insert hippie icon here)

 

[zoboomofo]

Oh yeah, and what's this about Motley Crue hasn't got anything on Iron Maiden?

Just kidding. I like the Crue, but Maiden was better.

 

[donunus]

the 80's was awesome. music producers experimented with more types of music than they do today. By that I mean, They seemed to be less concerned with what will become popular right away. Today... Boy bands, boy bands boy bands

. Even though some of the mainstream 80s were corny, The 80s spawned most of my favorite bands to date.