The Top 30 is here and things are starting to get really interesting. As mentioned in the previous post, I'm not going to give you much to read here, because what I'm typing for each song is getting longer. What can I say, I have many thoughts I want to share about some of these top songs.
Here we go again! Get that drum kit ready. Drum roll please ... Here's 30 through 21.
Without further adieu ... Here's my definitive list of 80's songs that shaped my decade. Enjoy.
30 - Beat So Lonely by Charlie Sexton
OK this is going to be really long and off topic, but I can't talk about Charlie without telling the rest of the story. So either sit back and relax or feel free to skip this part if you'd like. To start the top 30 I give you one of the greatest voices in music. This video of Charlie Sexton singing Beats So Lonely was done so the world could see what Charlie looks like. But what it doesn't show is what a great guitarist and showman Charlie Sexton really is. Charlie is a Texas boy, born in San Antonio and raised in Austin, Texas. I'm sure he'd tell you if he were writing this, his first love is Texas Blues. What is Texas Blues ... Just think of Stevie Ray Vaughn and you'll understand.
Beat So Lonely with its great guitar work, and Charlie's incredible voice, set the stage for what would become one of the best "One Album and Out" bands of all time. That band is the 1990's Arc Angels (Click the link to go to a YouTube Playlist). The Arc Angels were formed in Austin, Texas out of the ashes of Stevie Ray Vaughn's untimely passing in 1990. Charlie, an amazing guitarist in his own right, joined up with another Texan by the name of Doyle Bramhall II. Doyle II is the son of famed Texas Blues drummer Big Doyle (Doyle Bramhall Sr.) who sadly passed away a few years ago. I'm happy to say that I was lucky enough to see him play, thanks to a dear friend of mine, before he passed away. Just so you'll know ... Bramhall Sr. was a major influence, musical collaborator, and dear friend of Stevie Ray Vaughn's.
Charlie was tutored in Austin as he matured by the likes of Joe Ely, Stevie Ray Vaughn, and Jimmie Vaughn just to name a few. He was also connected with the man officially known as the Godfather of Austin Blues ... W.C. Clark. While at the same time Doyle II grew up surrounded by those same great musicians, especially the Vaughn brothers ... Thanks to his father's connections. To take things up a notch even further, the Arc Angels drummer was Chris Layton and their bassist was Tommy Shannon. You might be asking "WHO?" at this moment. Well ... Those two were members of Double Trouble, Stevie Ray Vaughn's backing band. Think Stevie Ray Vaughn and Double Trouble.
The Arc Angels band name is not meant to be religious, the "ARC" part of their name stands for "Austin Rehearsal Complex." The "ANGELS" part is without a doubt meant to be a tongue and cheek reference to something that none of these four would ever be called. Arc Angel Doyle Bramhall II in my opinion is one of the greatest living guitarists alive right now. Charlie is no slouch either though, considering who he's been asked to play with in his career. As for Bramhall II ... He's a lefty and strings his guitars for a right handed guitarist, and essentially plays it upside down. So basically he makes other guitarists look silly while playing his backwards. I had the pleasure of seeing what was billed as the Arc Angels final concert EVER in Houston, TX. Which turned out NOT to be their final concert once they started playing again around the state of Texas, especially in Austin (LIARS!!! LOL).
Their one and only album, the self titled Arc Angels, sits firmly in my top 5 best albums of all time. Their concert I attended is still to this very day the best concert I have ever seen in my entire life. Search out the Arc Angels album and listen to it. It will knock your socks off because it's a masterpiece of Texas Blues. I won't apologize for getting off topic when talking about Sexton's Beat So Lonely entry on my list. I wanted to add the rest of the story so those who've heard the song would know just how important this first hit of Sexton's career really was. It's all about history, right? To me, as a fellow statesman, Sexton is Texas music royalty. He's earned that status by working hard and paying his dues. He is experiencing and achieving the greatest success any musician is in search of, and that is acceptance amongst his peers. Now do me a favor ... Click that play button below and witness where it all truly began.
Most people probably think Golden Earring started and ended their careers with the 70's rock song Radar Love. But I know that this Dutch mainstay had been tearing up the Dutch charts since the early 60's while releasing 25 studio albums along the way. Can you say prolific? They had one of the 80's coolest hits with the song Twilight Zone that I'm sure every person who came out of the 80's remembers. But to me it's still not their best song. That song, their best, would come off another of my top albums of all time. That album was called N.E.W.S. Which was a title referring to the junk that pollutes the reporting of all mediums of NEWS until this very day. The letters were an acronym meaning that the sad news came from the North, East, West, and South ... Basically the four corners of the Earth. The video for When the Lady Smiles is actually pretty disturbing when you really think about. Front man Barry Hay hallucinates that certain women are this one lady who really does it for him. By the end of the video he has been given a lobotomy and can't even walk by himself. WHAT A JOY!!! But video aside, When the Lady Smiles is an awesome song. In fact it's like 4 songs in 1 with the way it changes tempo as it builds to the chorus each time. Here's my favorite Dutch band for your listening pleasure ... Let's hear it for Golden
Earring.
28 - Brand New Lover by Dead Or Alive
I'm actually not
going to say a lot about Pete Burns and the other guys from Dead Or Alive. With
countless plastic surgeries and run-ins with the law, it would take a novel to
cover it all. I will say that if you could have different types of dance club
music that Dead Or Alive's music would be the Hard Rock of the dance mix. Pete
has a rock and roll voice and the band has the musical chops to make this song
worthy of the number 28 spot. I always loved the distortion in this video I've
included and although it makes no sense, I still love it today. Turn it up loud
people.
27 - The Whole of the Moon by The Waterboys
What does my number
27 entry have in common with my number 26 song? Karl Wallinger. He played
keyboards for the Waterboys and left them to form the band World Party. You'll
see him in the video, with glasses, as he plays the piano and sings. The Whole
of the Moon is one of the most beautifully written songs on this entire list.
It tells the story of 2 different paths. Of 2 different people. One was worldly
while the other was local. I have always identified with this song and I knew
from the second I started this list that it would have a high ranking slot. I
urge you to listen to this song, listen closely. Hear the words. Then I dare
you to tell me it's not filled with such optimism and a dream of someone
wanting so hard to expand their horizons so they can think and feel on a global
level. I've always felt the video, that I've included below, is one of the best
live performances of a single song ever captured on film. Sure I'm probably
making more out of this song than needs to be ... But it's just one of those
songs I want to share. So maybe just one other person in this world doesn't have
to feel so alone and is touched by its sheer beauty.
26 - Ship of Fools by World Party
Here we have lead
singer Karl Wallinger again. World Party was one of those extremely underrated
bands that came out of the 80's. They remind me a little of Tears For Fears.
Karl's singing and musical style has an awesome bluesy style. Listen to the
voice, to the guitar work, and especially the piano on Ship of Fools and I
think you will easily become a believer. Check out their other hits Way Down Now and Put the Message in the Box for further proof of their potential
greatness. Ship of Fools has a couple of meanings that you pick up on just from
watching the video. One is pretty clear in regards to mankind doing everything
they can to destroy the world. The other is what it's like to be part of a
large family. Family is always a funny thing, because we can't choose our
family. But family is the thing we will defend until the very end, regardless
of any internal strife. As for World Party ... This was a band that should have
been much much bigger, but like many I've mentioned on this list ... It just
wasn't meant to be.
25 - Just Another Day by Oingo Boingo
If you liked 80's new
wave, then you had to love the huge band Oingo Boingo. By huge I mean there
were always 10 or more members in this band. It's leader, Danny Elfman, has had
a fantastic career scoring countless movies and TV shows. His sound is unique,
but his voice is simply amazing. He is one of those singers who can hit both
the highest and lowest of notes. I'm always in awe of singers who are that
gifted. Just Another Day, out of all of their 80's songs, stands out to me as
their best work. It fits the criteria I put in place for this list because it's
without a doubt one of those rare songs I could listen to every day. Click play
below if you want undeniable proof. There's life underground.
24 - Ziggy Stardust by Bauhaus
Of all of the members
to come out of Bauhaus, Peter Murphy is my favorite by far. I would have
included his solo work on this list, but in my opinion he really didn't start
to produce his own great music until the 90's had gotten underway. Listen to Murphy's
album Deep if you want to hear something truly amazing. Ziggy Stardust is of
course a remake of the Bowie classic. For me, and I may be alone in saying
this, it's even better than Bowie's version. Bauhaus can stand proud knowing
they single handedly created the genre of music known as Goth. I always thought
they could have easily been the offspring of Dracula and The Sex Pistols if
they had babies together. They defined a generation of music that would take
root in the 90's almost ten years earlier with their alternative take on music
in the early 1980's. While the song is a remake, this band was 100 percent
original. Turn the volume up and sing this classic with me.
23 - How Soon is Now by The Smiths
Johnny Marr's
haunting guitar. Morrissey's amazing lyrics. There is only one corny way to say
it ... This song is a work of art. The Smiths were like a comet streaking
through the night's sky. There is never a question of IF it will burn out. The
real question is ... WHEN? Thank goodness this band blessed us with an amazing
body of work during it's very short time together. This song is about looking
for or trying to find acceptance. Something we all want, but don't always
achieve. Listen to the music, the lyrics, and it will become clear on what Morrissey
was trying to ask of the world he occupied. Countless people are still
searching for that same acceptance (They so deeply deserve) even today, some 30
years after this song was recorded. This is a song that stays with you, long
after it has stopped playing.
22 - Blister in the Sun by Violent Femmes
Violent Femmes were
always a band that was cool to say you liked. Maybe it's because they have one
of the best band names ever. Blister in the Sun, off their self titled first
album, is one of those rare almost bare bones tunes that burns you up. It
starts from the very first moment you hear that opening guitar riff and snare
drum ... And builds throughout the rest of the song. When this song comes on my
satellite radio I'm still mesmerized by it today. It is not only a greatest hit
of the 80's, it is a greatest hit of all time. How could something so seemingly
simple, that may be about a little "alone time" (wink wink), have
such a lasting impact? That's the genius of Song 22.
21 - I'm Gonna Tear Your Playhouse Down by Paul Young
Paul Young has an
amazing voice. While he had a few 80's hits, I'm Gonna Tear Your Playhouse Down
stands out to me as his very best work. It's got everything you could want in a
song. Some really funky 80's music, a killer vocal, great bass playing, and smart lyrics. Every
Time You Go Away is a good song, but this song, could kick that song's rear-end
up and down any street. It's just that good. Closing this group of ten songs
out, and taking us into the top 20, is yet another cool 80's tune. Here's Paul
Young at number 21 and he's pissed off.
80 down and 20 left to go
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