Bookended by Cats: January 2025

Friday, January 31, 2025

Friday 80s Flashback for January 31, 2025

[Oh Yeah] -- Forty years ago this week, the Swiss-based electronic group, Yello, released their fourth studio album, Stella. Now a duo after the departure of one of the band's founding members, Yello moved away from experimental electronica and embraced a more synth-pop approach. Stella became the first album ever by a Swiss group to hit the #1 position of the Swiss album chart (Schweizer Hitparade). Not only that, this album helped Yello gain international success: Stella reached #92 on the UK Albums chart as well as peaking within the top 30 of three European charts. That chart success was made possible after Yello's single, "Oh Yeah," earned worldwide attention due to being featured two seminal 1980s films: Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986) and The Secret of My Success (1987).

"Oh Yeah" is the one song you know by this band, right? Hopefully, you remember it from those aforementioned movies and not that Miebo eye drops commercial.

Flashback: Stella (January 29, 1985)

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, January 24, 2025

Friday 80s Flashback for January 24, 2025

[Still Kings] -- Forty years ago this week, Run-D.M.C. released their second studio album, King of Rock (January 21, 1985). According to Wikipedia, this was the first rap album to be released on CD, and the third rap album to be certified Platinum by the RIAA (source: SPIN Magazine). The album peaked at #52 and #12 on the Billboard 200 and the Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums charts respectively. All four of this album's singles – "King of Rock", "You Talk Too Much", "Jam-Master Jammin'" and "Can You Rock It Like This" – appeared on the Billboard Hot 100. "King of Rock" was the biggest commercial success, reaching #8 on the Billboard Hot 100 and supported by a popular music video that featured Larry "Bud" Melman of Dave Letterman fame.

This album might still be the best fusion of hip-hop and rock there is, and it certainly showcases Run-D.M.C. as both trailblazers and no frills, rock out performers.

Flashback: King of Rock (January 21, 1985)

See you in seven!

Friday, January 17, 2025

Friday 80s Flashback for January 17, 2025

[Centerfield Rising] -- For the second full week of this month, we have two albums that are celebrating the 40th anniversary of their release date. Both records, as best I can determine, were released on January 14, 1985. One record is pop rock (or Americana rock) while the other is a classic of post-hardcore.

Centerfield – John Fogerty had found immense success with Creedence Clearwater Revival. But was kind of floundering after becoming a solo artist in 1973. But that all changed with the release of his third solo studio LP, Centerfield. Released 40 years ago this week, Centerfield went to #1 on the Billboard 200, Fogerty's only solo #1 record. And the album spawned three singles on the US Billboard Hot 100. One of those singles, "The Old Man Down the Road," peaked at #10 on the US Billboard Hot 100 (making it Fogerty's only top ten single as a solo artist) and #1 on the US Billboard Top Rock Tracks. Centerfield is unique for two more points. First, Fogerty played all the instruments on this album himself. Second, it was at the center of a rare case of self-plagiarism; yup, John Fogerty was sued for sounding like John Fogerty.

New Day Rising – Similar to John Fogerty, Hüsker Dü released their third studio album on January 14, 1985. And that's pretty much where any similarities between Fogerty and the Hüskers end. New Day Rising was raw and, compared with Centerfield, blisteringly powerful. Sure, New Day Rising wasn't exactly pop rock, but it was a bit of a shift away from the hardcore punk of Hüsker Dü's debut album. Some of the songs here are melodic and have catchy hooks, but they are also vicious and relentless. No surprise that you won't find any hit singles here, not that hits should be the final arbiter of quality. And New Day Rising did chart, albeit at #10 on the UK Indie Chart. It's an absolute rough gem of the underground rock movement. If you want to read more, Patrick Smith does a great job covering the history of and individual tracks on the album he calls the "very apex" of Hüsker Dü's career, a record that has songs "as melodically solid as any top-40 hits of the time, but all whipped up in a great Minnesota blizzard."

So, which of these albums made it to your own turntable or tape deck in 1985?

Flashback #1: Centerfield (January 14, 1985)

Flashback #2: New Day Rising (January 14, 1985)

See you in seven!

Friday, January 10, 2025

Friday 80s Flashback for January 10, 2025

[A Silver Tone] -- I don't know what your first memory of Chris Isaak was, but mine was his 1989 breakout hit, "Wicked Game," from his album of the same year, Heart Shaped World, and then featured in David Lynch's 1990 film, Wild at Heart. But here's the thing: That Isaak-Lynch collab got started here, with a 1985 album.

Released on January 10, 1985, Silvertone was Chris Isaak's debut studio album. The album was titled after Isaak's first band, which he had formed with guitarist James Calvin Wilsey right out of college in 1981. This rockabilly band took their moniker from a Sears-branded line of consumer electronics (radios, batteries, etc.) and musical instruments (some popular guitars in the 1950s). Silvertone – the band, not the brand – had performed together a few years prior to getting considered for a recording contract. But when the time came to record an album, the producer pretty much envisioned Chris Isaak as a solo performer, and he relegated Silvertone to backing band status.

Adding insult to injury, the record company wanted to downplay the Silvertone name so Sears wouldn't potentially get lawsuit happy over their copyright. And the aforementioned James Calvin Wilsey was the only original member of Silvertone to be credited on this debut album, and he continued to work with Isaak through 1993. The band is remembered in the album title, but most of tracks were recorded using session musicians, so the band isn't even preserved in recorded memory.

Anyway, Silvertone (the album, not the band or brand) was a critical success ... but not a commercial one. Well, it did reach #77 ... in Australia. Still, there's a bit of a silver(tone) lining: Two of Silvertone's tracks – "Gone Ridin'" and "Livin' for Your Lover" – did get new life when they were featured in David Lynch's 1986 film, Blue Velvet. And that's what launched an ongoing collaboration between Isaak and Lynch.

The rise of Chris Isaak as an artist begins here, in an oft-forgotten debut album. And it's actually quite good. I guess it just couldn't cut through to an audience when it was released.

Flashback: Silvertone (January 10, 1985)

I'll see you in seven!

Friday, January 3, 2025

Friday 80s Flashback for January 3, 2025

[believe in gas, food, lodging] -- New year, same motive for the 80s Flashbacks: Celebrate albums that have, or will, turn 40 years old in the current calendar year. And I'm starting off the year with a two-fer post. And while both of this week's albums were released in 1985, quite possibly early in January 1985 (as best I can determine), I'm not 100% positive on the specific release dates. Still, each one should be 40 years as of this week, or at least by the end of this month.

Gas Food Lodging – Possibly released on January 1, 1985, Gas Food Lodging was Green on Red's second studio album. They are said to have recorded the album in only five days. I think the wayward energy, rather than any lack of polish, definitely attests to the short timeframe. It's a loud and rough record, a soundtrack for the road, with more than a sideways glance at country rock and a slight aftertaste of psychedelia. Robert Palmer of The New York Times called it "the most distinctive and accomplished of all the recent 60's-rooted albums" ["Psychedelic Rock Stages a Comeback," The New York Times. p. A23, 2 June 1985] while The Ottawa Citizen pointed to its roughness as portraying "a bleak view of the American heartland" ["Rock," Ottawa Citizen. p. F5, Evelyn Erskine, 3 Apr 1987]. I could not find a complete YouTube playlist for this album, so I have embedded the band's 2021 re-release on Bandcamp.

Something to Believe In – The Scottish band APB released Something to Believe In at some point in January 1985. It was sort of considered a debut album, but it was actually a compilation of the band's previous independent singles, plus some new tracks. The initial release of this LP did not include the band's 1981 debut single, "Chain Reaction," but that song has since been added as a bonus track on subsequent releases. In fact, you can find re-releases that have upwards of 16 total tracks. My introduction to APB was their 1986 album, Cure for the Blues. Their funky bass enraptured me and I had to find more. Fortunately, one of my dormitory friends had a bunch of APB's earlier singles. And while APB performed sporadically in the 1980s and 1990s, they did not record much new material after 1986. So, the band's discography is pretty sparse, but their re-releases and anniversary editions are well worth checking out, especially if you like the chunky new wave aesthetic they display on Something to Believe In.

Tell me: Did you like either of these records back in 1985?

Flashback #1: Gas Food Lodging (January 1, 1985)

Flashback #2: Something to Believe In (January 1985)

I'll see you in seven!