All Grace All Class

A few months ago I undertook an exercise in apparent futility. I wondered if I could come up with a definitive list of my 100 alltime favourite songs. Well after much deliberation I eventually came up with a list. No doubt some of the content and most of the order would change depending on my mood and with the passage of time.

But one song stood out and was clearly my number one favourite song of alltime. Grace Jones' 'Slave To The Rhythm' from her 1985 album 'Island Life'. My main criteria for selecting my favourite songs was to consider firstly how much impact the song made when first I heard it, but more importantly its longevity, that is did I still love the song as much today as I did then.

Given that I purchased not only the album 'Island Life' on CD, but also a full album of various remixes of the song 'Slave To The Rhythm', as well as a CD maxi-single of eight more remixes, it was a logically choice that this Grace Jones classic would be top of the heap. In essence I am a slave to the rhythm of this song. When combined with the unique vocals of Ms Jones, its a tune I can listen to at any time, and its appeal is uniformly high to me.

Born in Jamaica, Grace Jones was a tertiary educated former fashion model who made a huge impact on the ultra hip New York nightclub scene in the late 70s. Initially she released three failed 'disco style' albums. Jones then branched out into a more experimental, almost avant garde music style that seemed to prove the hook to snag the mainstream popularity she so richly deserved. The peak of her creative endeavours (so far as her recording years goes) arrived with 1985's 'Island Life'. 'Slave To The Rhythm' was the stand out track, to the extent that at the same time and entire album of remixes was rereleased. Both were produced by the multi-talentd Trevor Horn. 'Slave To The Rhythm' peaked at #12 in the U.K. and #20 in Australia, and #1 on my personal chart.

Accompanying the song was an ingenious promotional clip, incorporating elements of Grace Jones' career(s) to date, meshed with surreal imagery and subtle (and not so subtle) political and social commentary. In short it was bloody brilliant!!

Grace Jones would continue to record well into the 90s, and also appeared in a number of films, most notably as the femme fatale in the 1986 James Bond adventure 'A View To A Kill'. (She features in cameo role in Duran Duran's title track video to the film).

Enjoy the sublimely cool video clip to this song via the following link:

New Shoes Or Nu Shooz?

Nu Shooz were the husband and wife recording team of John Smith and Valerie Day. Smith handled the songwriting whilst Day was the face and voice of Nu Shooz. Originating in Portland, Oregon, they had been performing since 1980, but it took until 1986 for them to breakthrough on a grand scale.

'I Can't Wait' was a catchy little tune accompanied by a very clever video clip (it reminded me a lot of the clip for Peter Gabriel's 'Sledgehammer' with ingenius use of stop motion video effects). The song found its feet at #3 on the mainstream U.S. Billboard chart, #2 in the U.K. and #11 in Australia. But Nu Shooz soon wore out their welcome on the charts and their follow up 'Point Of No Return' reached a turning back point at #28 on the U.S. charts. They would grace the singles charts once more in 1988 with 'Should I Say Yes?' peaking at #41.

It would be 20 years until Nu Shooz stepped out once more with an album release, with 2007's 'Then And Now' and combination of old and new material.

It's not often that a music video impresses me more than the song itself, but 'I Can't Wait' is an exception:

A Cautionary Tale

When 'The Rain' rose to #9 on the Billboard charts in 1986 it represented the high watermark in the career of Oran "Juice" Jones. Born in 1959, Jones was a respected soul singer but 'The Rain' was his first attempt at a crossover into a harder edged sound.

The song carries a lot of the hallmarks of a smooth R&B number with slick vocal harmonies, but where it differs is the lengthy spoken word segment in the second half. It wasn't rap perse because it lacked the rhythmic delivery, but it was nonetheless very effective in conveying the emotion of the storyline. 'The Rain' was a cautionary tale about the consequences of infidelity. In truth it was Jones' delivery of the spoken word segment that appealed most to me in the song.

The lyrics were edgy yet had a slightly comical undertone. Lines like "silly rabbit tricks are made for kids", and "whip out the jammy and flatblast you both" were highlights, but my personal favourite was "you without me like cornflakes without the milk". I've spent the next 22 years looking for an opportunity to use that line in general conversation, but alas the chance is yet to arise. Needless to say I'd surely fail to deliver it with the same level of cool as the "Juice".

Jones seemed to be washed between the cracks of music genres, unable to repeat his success in either R&B or rap. Sad, because 'The Rain' was a class performance.

The video clip is standard fare, consistent with the narrative of the songs lyrics:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8utL-XzOp6g

American English

One more post for today, and yes you guessed it, another 80s duo. This time the combined talents of ex-10CC member Graham Gouldman and hit 70s singer/songwriter Andrew Gold.

10CC were on extended sabatical when Englishman Gouldman and American Gold decided to extend their creative collaboration (Gold had contributed some tracks to 10CC's 'Ten Out Of Ten' album), under the pseudonum of Wax (not to be mistaken for the U.S. punk outfit of the '90s).
Gouldman's career extended back to the 60s with British group The Mindbenders ('A Groovy Kind Of Love'), then the Hotlegs ('Neanderthal Man') which morphed into 10CC. Along with Eric Stewart, Gouldman wrote some of the biggest hits of the 70s including 'I'm Not In Love'. Gold is the son of a Hollywood composer and forged a career during the 70s with the hits 'Thankyou For Being A Friend' (yes later used as a the theme on 80s sitcom 'The Golden Girls') and 'Lonely Boy'.
With that kind of songwriting pedigree Wax couldn't miss, and they didn't. Their first album 'Magnetic Heaven', released in 1985, realised the hit 'Right Between The Eyes' (U.S. #43 & Oz #68). It should have charted a lot higher in my humble view but a songs chart position doesn't always (or even often) reflect its quality.

They really struck paydirt though with the first single from their sophmore LP 'American English'. 'Bridge To Your Heart' was the purest form of pop music brilliance. Record buyers thought likewise and propelled the song to #12 in the U.K. and #17 in Australia in 1987. I associate the song strongly with the period during which I became a bank clerk. Not a great period in respect of my career choices but the music of the period helped to keep my spirits up.

Wax on, wax off......wax on!!!!

You can enjoy the groovy promo clip for the song here:

One Simple Song

Stabilizers were a pop-rock duo that hailed from Pennsylvania in the U.S. (another pop duo - is it just me or is there a theme forming on this blog). Though forming in 1984 they didn't release their debut album 'Tyranny' until 1986. 'Tyranny' not only marked the groups first album, it also marked their last. Vocalist Dave Christenson and guitarist Rich Nevens went their separate ways soon after.

The single lifted from 'Tyranny' was 'One Simple Thing'. I first heard it via the promo clip which was played as a new release on the ABC's late night music program Rage. I remember it was June 1987 because the clip followed a special Rage marathon featuring The Beatles - in celebration of the 20th anniversary of the Sgt. Pepper album. Had I not been a fanatic of all things Beatles and decided to stay awake all night watching the Rage special, I probably would never have come across 'One Simple Thing'. That would have been a loss, as the song is a classic 80s pop gem.

But alas like so many others it failed to yield a commercial return on the charts, spending just 3 weeks on the Billboard charts (#93) and only one week on the Australian charts (#100) - probably the week that I purchased it ;)

You'll find the promo clip for 'One Simple Thing' via the following YouTube link. Surprise surprise it's another arty black and white effort. And is it just me or where duster coats all the fashion in the late 80s.

A Song Worlds Apart

Cock Robin formed in 1984 and were largely the brainchild of singer/songwriter Peter Kingsbery. Kingsbery was joined on vocals byAnna Lacazio, with Clive Wright and Louis Molino III rounding out the quartet. The group initially enjoyed more success in Europe (especially France) and the U.K. with the single 'The Promise You Made' (lifted from their debut self titled LP) reaching #28 on the British charts. Another single from the same album 'When Your Heart Is Weak' reached #35 on the Billboard charts in mid '85.

In spite of having an appealing commercial image and sound, Cock Robin failed to live up to their initial promise. They carried on though essentially as the vocal duo of Kingsbery and Lacazio. In 1989 they released the album 'First Love/Last Rites' overseen by veteran producer Rhett Davies (who had worked with Roxy Music and Icehouse previously).

From that album the epic track 'Worlds Apart' was released as a single but aside from charting in some European markets the song sadly didn't capture the interest of the record buying public. I purchased the 45 on vinyl and later the album on CD.

Check out the promo clip for the song - a classic black and white effort (they were all the rage in the late 80s).

"And if I wash my feet in your..."

Dirty Water was released in 1987 by Canadian duo Bob Rock and Paul Hyde, under the inspiring moniker of Rock & Hyde (not to be confused with Jeckyll & Hyde). Both had previously been core members of the punp-pop outfit Payola$. Interestingly Payola$'s biggest hurdle to commercial success outside of their native Canada wasn't their music, but rather their name. The term Payola$ was still deemed to be overly politically sensitive to the U.S. music industry in particular, given its connotation of corruption within the music world. Political correctness, give me a break.

Anyway, Rock & Hyde decided to give it one last go under their own names and released the single 'Dirty Water' late in 1987, lifted from the album 'Under The Volcano'. The song reached #21 in their native Canada but again the lads couldn't crack it across the border in the U.S.

I discovered the song via a late night session of Rage watching on the ABC. I was so impressed by the song that I tracked it down initially on vinyl 45 (price tag $2 as you can see on the front cover). Thankfully those fine people who at EMI Music Canada decided to include the track on Volume 6 of the series 'Pure Canadian: Retro 80s'. I can highly recommend these if you can still find them. I picked up my copy in 2002.

Wet your feet in some 'Dirty Water':

And don't forget to wash your hands after you've watched the promo vid: