Friday 80s Flashback for May 29, 2026

[What a Wonder] -- Erasure released their studio debut album, Wonderland, in the UK on May 1, 1986, and in the US on June 2, 1986. So, it is, or soon will be, one of those 40 year old albums I've been featuring in 2026. 

Vincent Clark, the keyboardist who had been a founding member of Depeche Mode and Yazoo, found a new musical partner in vocalist and songwriter Andy Bell. Their new duo, Erasure, would go on to be hugely successful, but not right from the start. Their debut album, Wonderland, was not a commercial success and none of its three singles cracked the top 40 in the UK. Now, the album did do fairly well in Germany and Sweden, reaching the top 20 in both countries. And it even snagged some positive reviews, such as this one in our own The Morning Call.

Even more fun is the fact that the US and UK versions of the album had differing track listings, with the US release dropping "Push Me Shove Me" and "Pistol" while adding "March on Down the Line". Also, the two albums had different versions of "Oh l'amour" (oh, and the Brazilian release had a live version of the song). 

While this album was not an immediate success, several of the tracks here have become fan favorites. Definitely, the three singles are listed among those faves: "Who Needs Love Like That", "Heavenly Action", and "Oh l'amour". Also, while putting this Flashback together, I came to realize that I've confused "Oh l'amour" with "My Heart... So Blue", one of my fave Erasure songs, for the last forty years! In fact, I think I kind of mashed them together in my brain. That might be due to the intro for the live version of "Oh l'amour" having a similar feel to "My Heart... So Blue". 

Regardless of its initial track record, and my mixup of two of the band's tracks, Wonderland is a strong debut from a duo that would become a synthpop juggernaut for the remainder of the 1980s. 

Flashback: Wonderland (May/June 1986)

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And that's all till next week. Dedicated 80s-philes can find more flashbacks in the Prophet or Madman archives or via Bookended's 80s Flashback tag. As always, your comments are welcome on today's, or any other, flashback post. And if you like what I'm doing here, please share the link with your friends. If, however, you don't like the flashback, feel free to share it with your enemies.

See you in seven!

Absolute Shade?

 Oh, dang. Rac Shade appeared in Absolute Green Lantern as a Darkstar. Does this make him Shade the Absolute Changing Man, or Absolute Shade? 

(page from Absolute Green Lantern #13). 

Friday 80s Flashback for May 22, 2026

[So, It's Been Four Decades] -- This week in 1986, Peter Gabriel released his fifth solo studio album, So. It was his first studio LP to have an actual title (though Geffen did release his 1982 Peter Gabriel album, his fourth such non-titled release, as Security in the US even after that record had been released without a title elsewhere). Titling was something that Gabriel took to reluctantly; he preferred to consider each album based on its sleeve art, but that caused a bit of confusion for marketing [Rolling Stone, September 4, 2012]. 

No confusion for this release. So was a tremendous success, not to mention Peter Gabriel's most accessible release. Almost immediately, this record launch Gabriel out of his prior cult status and into a stratosphere of mainstream stardom. There were five singles released – "Sledgehammer", "In Your Eyes", "Don't Give Up", "Big Time", and "Red Rain" – each one charting well, with several becoming top hits not only in the US and UK, but globally as well. From beginning to end, there's really not a clunker on this album. 

On paper, this album probably should not have worked. Gabriel utilized elements of world music with his usual digital sampling, but fused them with pop, soul, and prog rock, one moment swinging with brassy horns and the next quietly musing over a shimmering bass line. And, lyrically, the songs made stinging political statements and shared pointed self-reflection. Thematically, it is all over the place. But Gabriel's voice and direction, and the strength of the collaborations, keep the potential tensions from flying apart while presenting a cohesive and entertaining package. No, I can't really call So a package. It's an experience. 

So reached #2 on the US Billboard 200, #1 in the UK (as well as Austria, Finland, Italy, New Zealand, Norway, and Spain), and well into the top 25 of other charts around the globe. And I have not even scratched the surface of how successful and influential this album truly was. 

"What I carry in my heart | Brings us so close or so far apart | Only love can make love" (from "That Voice Again"). 

Flashback: So (May 19, 1986)

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And that's all till next week. Dedicated 80s-philes can find more flashbacks in the Prophet or Madman archives or via Bookended's 80s Flashback tag. As always, your comments are welcome on today's, or any other, flashback post. And if you like what I'm doing here, please share the link with your friends. If, however, you don't like the flashback, feel free to share it with your enemies.

See you in seven!

Friday 80s Flashback for May 15, 2026

[40 Years of Raising Hell] -- 40 years ago this week, Run-D.M.C. released their third studio album, Raising Hell. Produced by Russell Simmons and Rick Rubin, Raising Hell was the first hip-hop record to achieve Platinum and multi-Platinum sales. And one of its singles is widely considered to be the first collaboration between rap and rock: a recording of Aerosmith's "Walk This Way" that includes performances from Steven Tyler and Joe Perry (Aerosmith's vocalist and guitarist), both on the record and in the music video. 

That Run-DMC and Aerosmith collab definitely had a hand in bringing hip-hop into the mainstream. "Walk This Way" roared up the Billboard Hot 100, becoming the first song by a hip-hop act to reach the top 5 of that chart. The album had three other hit singles, each one doing well on multiple charts: "My Adidas", "You Be Illin'", and "It's Tricky". And Raising Hell not only sold well (remember the multi-Platinum sales I previously mentioned?), it topped the Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums chart at #1, peaked at #3 on the Billboard 200, and even charted globally, going top 10 in New Zealand and top 50 in the UK. 

Music journalist and critic Bill Adler likened Raising Hell to The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. By that, Adler was saying the album represents "the pinnacle of their recorded achievements" [Adler, Library of Congress, 2017]. Among its many accolades, Raising Hell earned a Grammy nomination, won a Soul Train Music Award (Best Rap Album), and was inducted into the National Recording Registry for its "cultural, historic and aesthetic importance to the American soundscape."

Raising Hell made Run-D.M.C. into icons, and it still stands as one hell of a record from the golden age of hip hop.  

Flashback: Raising Hell (May 15, 1986)

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And that's all till next week. Dedicated 80s-philes can find more flashbacks in the Prophet or Madman archives or via Bookended's 80s Flashback tag. As always, your comments are welcome on today's, or any other, flashback post. And if you like what I'm doing here, please share the link with your friends. If, however, you don't like the flashback, feel free to share it with your enemies.

See you in seven!

Friday 80s Flashback for May 8, 2026

[Four Decades in the Zone] -- Forty years ago this week, Billy Ocean released his sixth studio album, Love Zone. Ocean had already topped the charts with previous releases, but this album cemented his global dominance as well as his pop and R&B crossover appeal. Love Zone reached into the top 25 of charts around the world, even peaking at #2 in the UK, #6 on the US Billboard 200, and #1 on Billboard's US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts. 

The album's three singles – "When the Going Gets Tough, the Tough Get Going", "There'll Be Sad Songs (To Make You Cry)", and "Love Zone" – were all top ten hits. "When the Going Gets Tough..." reached the #1 spot in the UK and #2 in the US in addition to being a single from the soundtrack to The Jewel of the Nile, the 1985 sequel to the popular Romancing the Stone. 

All told, Love Zone was a critical and commercial success, receiving largely favorable reviews, a Grammy Award nomination (Best Male R&B Vocal Performance), and two 1987 American Music Award wins, one for "There'll Be Sad Songs (To Make You Cry)", as Favorite Pop/Rock Song, and the other naming him Favorite Pop/Rock Male Video Artist.

Flashback: Love Zone (May 6, 1986)

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And that's all till next week. Dedicated 80s-philes can find more flashbacks in the Prophet or Madman archives or via Bookended's 80s Flashback tag. As always, your comments are welcome on today's, or any other, flashback post. And if you like what I'm doing here, please share the link with your friends. If, however, you don't like the flashback, feel free to share it with your enemies.

See you in seven!

Friday 80s Flashback for May 1, 2026

[Not That Final Frontier] -- In the spring of 1986, I was not yet in college and I had not yet finished high school. And, hitting the stores on April 30, 1986, Keel's third studio album, The Final Frontier, pretty much kickstarted my summer.

 

Back in the day, Keel's main claim to fame was two-fold: first, vocalist Ron Keel had previously performed with one-album-wonder Steeler (with guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen); second, Gene Simmons of KISS produced Keel's first two albums. Keel, both the band and the singer, were pretty standard in terms of hair metal. But, as cliched as some of these tracks might seem in retrospect, this album marked a band really coming into its own and crafting their own songs; at least half of the tunes on their debut album were written outside the band, with Simmons contributing three songs that probably weren't good enough for his own band. 

Keel released two singles from this album – a cover of Springsteen's "Because the Night" and the power ballad "Tears of Fire" – but neither charted despite their music videos receiving pretty regular rotation on MTV. It's a shame because, whatever you might think of a metal band covering a Springsteen tune, they did a pretty good job. And their power ballad had real substance, a rarity in this genre. 

The Final Frontier managed to reach #53 on the Billboard 200. And the band's Wikipedia page notes that Keel won the Best Band of the Year award in the second annual Metal Edge magazine readers poll in 1986. I cannot find an actual citation for that win, but I'd like to think Keel did win that award, and maybe some other magazine polls. At least it makes them not completely forgotten. 🤘

Flashback: The Final Frontier (April 30, 1986)

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And that's all till next week. Dedicated 80s-philes can find more flashbacks in the Prophet or Madman archives or via Bookended's 80s Flashback tag. As always, your comments are welcome on today's, or any other, flashback post. And if you like what I'm doing here, please share the link with your friends. If, however, you don't like the flashback, feel free to share it with your enemies.

See you in seven!

Friday 80s Flashback for April 24, 2026

[Memories Lie in Dust] -- For this week's Flashback, I'm revisiting an album released 40 years ago this week. I last featured this album five years ago, on its 35th anniversary, and I'm re-using much of that post here. Now, five years ago, I featured this album mainly because it was released in the month and year I turned 18. Five years ago, I could not honestly recall the last time I listened to this particular album in its entirety. Sure, I had some of its highlights in my musical rotation, but not a complete, track by track listening session. If the same is true for you – that is, if you have not listened to this album in its entirety in quite a while – you will, perhaps, ask yourself the same question after listening this week: "Why have I left this out of my personal rotation for so long??" 

I am talking about Tinderbox by Siouxsie and the Banshees. This album is an absolute time capsule for me, evoking memories and whole moods from my first year of college. Let's dive in.

On 4/21/1986, Siouxsie and the Banshees released their seventh studio album, Tinderbox. This album included two singles: The very excellent "Cities in Dust", which had been previously released in October 1985, and "Candyman", which hit the charts in February 1986. Ah, the days when singles were teasers for upcoming LPs or EPs; does that happen anymore in the age of streaming? Anyway, I didn't hear either single, let alone the rest of the album, until September of 1986, but better late than never, right? 

Tinderbox was a critical success, hitting #13 and #88 on the UK Albums Chart and the US Billboard 200 respectively. Also notable on this record is the non single track, 92° because it kicks off with a sample of dialog from the 1953 film It Came from Outer Space: "Did you know, Putnam, that more murders are committed at 92 Fahrenheit than any other temperature? I read an article once. Lower temperatures, people are easygoing. Over 92, it's too hot to move. But just 92, people get irritable!" Check out the clip here.

"Cities in Dust," the lead single, was the band's first significant success in the States, climbing to #17 on the US Hot Dance/Disco chart. There are several delicious remixes of this track, including the Extended Eruption Mix and the rather danceable Herb's Banshee Tribute Remix. No cool remixes for "Candyman", but how about this mesmerizing live performance from 1987?

For your full album enjoyment, we have two playlists. The first embedded YouTube playlist has the eight tracks of the original vinyl and cassette release. The second one includes the bonus tracks from the 1986 CD release. If you remember Tinderbox, it's time to blow the dust off your memories like I did. If you're new to Siouxsie, prepare yourself to experience a post-punk band at their absolute peak. 

Flashback 1: Tinderbox (original 8-song vinyl and cassette release)

Flashback 2: Tinderbox (1986 CD with bonus tracks)

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That's all till next week. Dedicated 80s-philes can find more flashbacks in the Prophet or Madman archives or via Bookended's 80s Flashback tag. As always, your comments are welcome on today's, or any other, flashback post. And if you like what I'm doing here, please share the link with your friends. If, however, you don't like the flashback, feel free to share it with your enemies.

I'll see you in seven!