Bookended by Cats: 2026

Friday, September 11, 2026

Friday 80s Flashback for September 11, 2026

[A Sporting Choice] -- The Summer of 1986 closed out with several big ticket albums, none of which I'm highlighting this week. No, instead I've selected The Sport of Kings, the eighth studio album from Canadian hard rock trio, Triumph. Most sources indicate The Sport of Kings was released on September 11, 1986, though Triumph's own FB page indicated a release date of September 9 just a few years ago. The bottom line is that, as of this week, The Sport of Kings is 40 years old, so it is fair game for an 80s Flashback.

This album differs from others I've featured in that it was a critical failure but a commercial success (several of this year's Flashbacks had the opposite condition). And because both critics and hardcore Triumph fans panned the album, there is a general sense, or a misremembering, that The Sport of Kings failed on all fronts. But it peaked at #51 on the Canada Top Albums/CDs and #33 on the US Billboard 200 charts, had Platinum sales in Canada, and boasted the band's biggest hit to date, with "Somebody's Out There" (a song I love) hitting #27 on the Billboard Hot 100. The second single, "Tears in the Rain", reached #23 on the US Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart.

The Sport of Kings is often ranked as one of Triumph's worst albums, but it is one that I come back to regularly. True, it does not have the crunch or progressive aspects of the band's earlier releases. And it is also true that The Sport of Kings very much reflects the trends of commercial radio and evolving AOR in the middle of the 1980s. But the singles are well crafted, the album is well produced, and some of the non-single tracks, like "In the Middle of the Night" and "If Only", are the complete package of instrumentation, vocals, emotion, and storytelling. At least in my opinion.

"If only I could change your heart

With just a simple song

If only I could stop the world

From turning out all wrong...

...There would be hope for me and you

If only wishes would come true."

Flashback: The Sport of Kings (September 11, 1986)

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, September 4, 2026

Friday 80s Flashback for September 4, 2026

[Labor Day Weekend Tunes (Redux)] -- I'm re-using my Flashback post from September 4, 2020, for September 4, 2026.

Now, I haven't had a full time job since I was laid off in February 2019*. And, thanks to a global pandemic, I know many others are likewise unemployed, at least for the foreseeable future. Still, many others are in the difficult position of having work but not necessarily a safe working environment. And we should be mindful of the issues that were already impacting Working America prior to the pandemic. So, as we enter our latest Labor Day holiday weekend, how about a few songs from our 1980s catalog that highlight work, labor, and unions? Read and hear more after the break!

Flashback #1: "We bring more than a paycheck to our loved ones and family."

Written by Y.M. Barnwell circa 1981, and beautifully recorded by Sweet Honey in the Rock in 1988, "More Than A Paycheck" resounds with meaning. On one hand, you can hear the message that a job is more than a paycheck. Much more importantly, the words vividly describe what else laborers often bring home to their families: "We bring asbestosis, silicosis, brown lung, black lung disease. And radiation hits the children before they've even been conceived." And, in still far too many cases, when workers speak up about the dangers and ill effects of their jobs, they are ignored or simply replaced.

Flashback #2: "Now the lessons of the past | Were all learned with workers' blood."

Billy Bragg is no stranger to political activism in music. And his 1986 album, Talking with the Taxman About Poetry, was no exception. Among the gems on this record is the non single track, "There Is Power in a Union," which shares, perhaps, a kindred spirit with Joe Hill's 1913 protest song of the same title.

Flashback #3: "Someday, mister, I'm gonna lead a better life than this."

Bruce Springsteen has made a career of crafting anthems for the working stiff. Some are much more popular than others. But "Working on the Highway" -- the fourth track on Side A of his seventh studio album, Born in the U.S.A. (1984) -- is an under-appreciated gem. It's a direct examination of how a dead-end job can adversely impact a person and their desperate choices.

Bonus Flashback: "It's a sacrifice working day to day | For little money, just tips for pay | But it's worth it all | To hear them say that they care."

Is there truly a better choice for a playlist about work and working than Donna Summer's chart-topping 1983 hit, "She Works Hard for the Money"? Peaking at #1 on the Billboard R&B singles chart, and #3 on both the Billboard Hot 100 and the Dance Club Play charts, "She Works Hard for the Money" was one of the most popular songs of 1983. But beyond the dance beats and Summer's excellent voice, this tune highlights the hard work and exhaustion that many a blue-collar woman still experiences to this day.

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!

Notes:

Image at the top of this post is Power house mechanic working on steam pump by Lewis Hine, 1920. (Wikipedia)
* I have completed graduate school since this material was posted in 2019, but I am still working only a collection of side jobs while I seek full-time employment in my new area, that of college chaplaincy.

Friday, August 28, 2026

Friday 80s Flashback for August 28, 2026

[40 Years on the Ceiling] -- The Bookended crew is back from our almost month long vacation, and I am cranking out one 80s Flashback before August fades into memory.

Many albums were released in August 1986. A few right even near the end of the month. But I've decided to feature Lionel Richie's third solo LP, Dancing on the Ceiling, released 40 years ago this month on August 5, 1986. Why this record? Well, my late mother's birthday is in August, and Lionel was one of her favorite artist of the 1980s. Please note that I have previously covered Richie's eponymous 1982 solo debut and his 1983 sophomore release. And both times I referred to Richie as one of Mom's faves, so I might as well keep that theme rolling.

Dancing on the Ceiling was another huge success for Richie. It ranked within the top 10 of charts around the globe; for example, it peaked at #2 in the UK, #1 on the US Billboard 200, and #3 on US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard). The album launched five singles – "Say You, Say Me", "Dancing on the Ceiling", "Love Will Conquer All", "Ballerina Girl" / "Deep River Woman", and "Se La".

Of those tracks, you probably only remember "Dancing on the Ceiling" (which reached #7 in the UK, #2 on US Billboard Hot 100, and #3 on US Adult Contemporary) and "Say You, Say Me" (an incredible success that reached #8 in the UK, #1 on the US Billboard Hot 100, #1 on US Adult Contemporary, #1 on US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, and #1 on US Cash Box Top 100). Or, maybe I should speak for myself, because those are the only songs I recall. They were everywhere on the radio that summer!

The embedded YouTube playlist here is the 2003 Expanded Edition of Dancing on the Ceiling. So, it has 13 tracks instead of the eight tracks of the original LP release or the nine tracks of the original CD/cassette.

Flashback: Dancing on the Ceiling (August 5, 1986)

See you in seven!

Tuesday, August 25, 2026

A Special 1970s Flashback for August 25, 2026

[Still More Than a Feeling] -- We interrupt our 80s Flashback posts with a very special Flashback to 1976. Specifically, we are flashing back fifty years to August 25, 1976. On that date, Boston released their eponymous debut album.

Boston conquered charts around the globe. It peaked at #11 in the UK and #3 on the US Billboard 200, selling 18 million copies in the U.S., and 27 million worldwide. The singles – "More Than a Feeling", "Peace of Mind", and "Foreplay/Long Time" – were all hits that are still featured on classic rock stations. And the entire album became a staple of AOR radio. Boston even has a spot at #2 on Louder Sound's 2024 list of The 50 best AOR albums of all time.

That's pretty impressive when you consider Boston is essentially Tom Scholz's demo tape that had been turned down by a bunch of big labels in the US.

The true legend of Tom Scholz, an MIT graduate and (at the time) product design engineer for Polaroid, painstakingly recording the album in his basement rather than in the record label's professional studio has has become common knowledge. And so have his feuds with bandmates, such as with Boston co-founder Barry Goudreau, or with vocalist Brad Delp's family.

But I suppose artistic and legal conflicts are the standard fare when big talent collides with big egos (or at least the potential for big egos to develop).

Now, this album does have something of a connection to the 1980s. You see, I was too young to buy records of my own when Boston was released in 1976. However, five or so years later, I purchased my own vinyl copy of this album at a local drugstore in my hometown. And I still have that record in my collection to this day. So, my personal copy might not be 50 years old, it could be close to 45!

Flashback: Boston (August 26, 1976)

And that's all till next week. If you were looking for 80s tunes, you 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!

Tuesday, August 4, 2026

Vacation, all I ever wanted. Vacation, had to get away.

We may not be in the Vacation Motor Hotel, but we most certainly are on vacation. And we are also taking a break from blogging. That means there will be no 80s Flashbacks – and probably no comic book, film, or TV posts – for the month of August.

I promise we will return energized ... or maybe exhausted. Either way, the celebration of albums that were released 40 years ago in 1986, and our thoughts on other nerdy goodness, will continue once we reach the month of September.

Until our anticipated (or, perhaps, dreaded) return, you have our entire history to peruse:

80s Flashback tag for all posts about 1980s music. (You can also visit the Prophet or Madman archives).
TV tag for anything we've posted about television shows.
Movies tag for any movie reviews that we posted.
Comic Book tag will give you, as expected, comic book content.
And any of the more specific tags to your left.

____________________________

“Vacation Motel sign” by Brent Moore, CC BY-NC 2.0; brainwise modified the image by adding a rectangle and text that reads "Bloggers on Vacation" over the original banner on the hotel's sign.

Friday, July 31, 2026

Friday 80s Flashback for July 31, 2026

[Loud Pageant] -- I'm sliding in very close to the wire for the final Flashback of July 2026. But I have two albums that were both released 40 years ago these past two weeks.

Lightning Strikes – Japan's premiere heavy metal band, Loudness, initially released their sixth album only in Japan on March 24, 1986. But just four months later, on July 25, 1986, Lightning Strikes was released to the US market (the earlier release was known as Shadows of War). The sole single from this album was "Let It Go", and as far as I can tell, it did not chart in the states, though the album did peak at #64 on the Billboard 200. I remember "Let It Go", and a few other tracks, from the various metal shows I could pick up on the radio, and from a friend who was a Loudness fanatic. I'm showcasing this album because there's just something about summer that puts me in the mood for 1980s heavy metal. Can any of you out there relate?

Life's Rich Pageant – R.E.M. released their fourth studio album, Life's Rich Pageant, on July 28, 1986. I'm pretty sure I did not know about the album until September of that year, which is basically when I learned about R.E.M. and their first four albums. But other people, many in the record buying public, definitely took notice of this release in late July and early August. It peaked at #21 on the US Billboard 200 and #43 in the UK. It was also R.E.M.'s first gold record in the US. This album had two singles – "Fall on Me" and "Superman" – both of which charted well on the Billboard Hot 100 and the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks charts. Several other tracks got radio play and are also quite well known to fans. This album was jangly college rock at its best ... until R.E.M.'s next release.

Now, on to the music. 🎶

Flashback #1: Lightning Strikes (July 25, 1986)

Flashback #2: Life's Rich Pageant (July 28, 2026)

See you in seven!

Friday, July 17, 2026

Friday 80s Flashback for July 17, 2026

[Pancreatic Release] -- This week's album has several release dates associated with it. The dates range from early in January 1986 through October 1986. AOTY was the first site to remind me of this record, so I am going with their release date of July 18, 1986. So, the bottom line is that this week's featured album has already turned 40 years old, or it will before this year is over. Oh, and there was also a re-release back in 2006, marking a 20th anniversary for the album as well.

Anyway...

I feel that my job with these Flashbacks is to not only stir up some nostalgia for well-remembered and loved records, but to also shed light on the records that have languished on the outskirts of fandom. And I take up that latter task by showcasing I Am John's Pancreas, the debut studio album from English post-punk band, A Witness. Released at some point in 1986, quite possibly on July 18, I Am John's Pancreas did not exactly rocket the band to international, or even local, renown. And this lack of commercial success came despite the interest, and studio prowess, of one John Peel (who I thought must be the "John" in this album title, but turns out to actually be a riff on Readers Digest).

Still, this debut album reached #18 on he NME charts. And it boasts the rather danceable and weird "Red Snake". I'm also rather fond of their tune, "Sharpened Sticks". I Am John's Pancreas is a discordant collection of aural oddities, and it still receives positive reviews in retrospect. Perhaps, if critics had gushed more back in 1986, we could legitimately call I Am John's Pancreas a classic. I mean, I'll still call it a classic, an obscure gem that deserved a wider audience, but you don't have to take my word for it. At least ... not until after you give it a spin.

Flashback: I Am John's Pancreas (July 18, 1986)

See you in seven!

Friday, July 10, 2026

Friday 80s Flashback for July 10, 2026

[Boom or Bust] -- In 1985, a pair of studio musicians named David Baerwald and David Ricketts recorded nine songs across four studios in California. They emerged as rock duo David & David with their debut, and only, studio album, Boomtown. released 40 years ago this week on July 7, 1986.

If you're going to release only one album, it should be as good as this one. Boomtown reached #39 on the Billboard 200 and received positive reviews, both in 1986 and retrospectively. AllMusic's Michael Ofjord calls it "a hard look at urban life in the 1980s". It's a collection of stories that are not always pleasant, but they are set to rhythms and hooks that make each one a compelling listen.

"Welcome to the Boomtown" is considered the lone hit, which broke into the top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100 and #8 of the US Album Rock Tracks chart. But the follow-up singles, "Swallowed by the Cracks" (#14 Billboard Mainstream Rock Hits) and "Ain't So Easy" (#51 Billboard Hot 100), were easily just as good. They just did not get the same kind of promotion, I guess.

Anyway, this 40-year-old record seems to be telling the same kinds of stories of financial hardship and bad choices that are still occurring to this day. Flashback and fast forward, eh?

Flashback: Boomtown (July 7, 1986)

See you in seven!

Friday, July 3, 2026

Friday 80s Flashback for July 3, 2026

[Falling Apart] -- Forty years ago this week, Peter Murphy released his solo debut album, Should the World Fail to Fall Apart.

Peter Murphy had been the lead vocalist of Bauhaus from 1978 through 1983. After Bauhaus disbanded, Murphy did a brief stint in 1984 with a band called Dalis Car. It was that stint that helped change his perspective on songwriting and making records. With Bauhaus, Murphy had typically written song lyrics after the other band members wrote the music. With Dalis Car, Murphy was more integral to the entire process, though that experience was not without issues and conflicts. Karn, Dalis Car's bassist and primary force, and Murphy had differing perspectives on music and its construction.

Fresh from that experience, Murphy entered the studio with studio musician L. Howard Hughes (Stephen Betts) and recorded Should the World Fall Apart, his debut as a solo artist. Murphy and Hughes co-wrote eight of the record's ten tracks. For the other two tracks, Murphy covered "The Light Pours Out of Me" (Magazine) and Pere Ubu's "Final Solution", that latter song being his first single from the album.

Initially, this album was greeted with mixed critical reviews (and that's putting it kindly). It wasn't much of a spark commercially either. Neither the album nor any of its three singles charted. However, it did spark a successful solo career for Murphy. And Should the World Fail to Fall Apart has fared better in retrospective reviews, with AllMusic giving it four out of five stars.

I like this album. And the high points on it for me are the title track and Murphy's two covers. Oh, and I think the album starts off well with "Canvas Beauty". Your mileage may vary and all that.

Flashback: "Should the World Fail to Fall Apart (July 1, 1986)

See you in seven!

Sunday, June 28, 2026

Super Friends

I grew up reading the SUPER FRIENDS treasury-sized comic (Limited Collectors' Edition C-41, pictured above). Although I re-read it several times in my youth, I didn't realize until much later that the book reprinted stories, and even activity pages, that had originally appeared in older issues. Those older stories were:

"Operation: Jail the Justice League!" (Justice League of America Vol. 1 #61, 1968), and
"The Case of the Disabled Justice League!" (Justice League of America Vol. 1 #36, 1965).

The rest of the issue had fill-in pieces that starred the Super Friends and served to provide a seamless narration across the book, making the older stories basically flashbacks told to the young Wendy and Marvin.

Limited Collectors' Edition C-41 - Table of Contents

Toth also provided an 11-page article about the animation business.

Toth's "TV Cartoons", starting on page 55 of Limited Collectors' Edition C-41

As of the end of 2024, I have acquired the original issues of Justice League of America for both of those stories.

Justice League of America Vol. 1 #61

Justice League of America Vol. 1 #36

I wonder ... Should I also collect the issues that originally featured stories that appeared in DC's two editions of Christmas With the Super-Heroes (those being Limited Collectors' Edition #34 and #43)?

Friday, June 26, 2026

Friday 80s Flashback for June 26, 2026

[Be Fast, Be Clean, Be Cheap – 15 Year Redux!] -- Fifteen years ago, back on Prophet or Madman, I spent three weeks in June sharing songs from a compilation I had recorded to cassette in the late 1980s. That compilation was titled "Be Fast, Be Clean, Be Cheap," so named for the sixth track on Side A. That name was also the title, or theme, for those three blog posts. Five years ago, on the ten year anniversary of the original posts, I wanted to compile all the tracks into one YouTube playlist, and bring back that title over here on Bookended. While saving the new YouTube playlist, I was surprised to find that, of the nine YouTube videos featured in those posts, only one was no longer available. No updates had to be made this time around.

Oh, and I also realized that I never got around to blogging Side B of that cassette. Five years on, and I still haven't. Maybe I'll get around to that in another five or so years.

Anyway, if you want to read what I had to say about the individual tracks, go check out Part 1 for tracks 1 - 3, Part 2 for tracks 4 - 6, and Part 3 for tracks 7 - 9. If you just want to check out what made it onto the first side of that old cassette, the embedded playlist awaits!

Flashback: Be Fast, Be Clean, Be Cheap (Compilation)

Here are the tracks for Side A of Be Fast, Be Clean, Be Cheap:

Flesh for Lulu – "I Go Crazy"
The Cure – "Why Can't I Be You" (Extended Mix)
Age of Chance – "Kiss"
Gary Moore – "Over the Hills and Far Away"
Midnight Oil – "Power and the Passion"
Age of Chance – "Be Fast, Be Clean Be Cheap"
Until December – "No Gift Refused"
Fine Young Cannibals – "Ever Fallen in Love (With Someone You Shouldn't've)"
Faith No More – "We Care A Lot"

By the way, I still have that cassette.

Once again, I remind you that the rule of three applies when doing Flashbacks. As I've made my three offerings, 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!

Friday, June 19, 2026

Friday 80s Flashback for June 19, 2026

[Queen Jamboree] -- Forty years ago, in June 1986, two bands released new albums into their respective catalogs. Although both are critically lauded, one has become an undisputed classic while the other tends to languish as an under appreciated gem. I'm talking about The Queen Is Dead by The Smiths and Jamboree by Guadalcanal Diary.

The Queen Is Dead – After their sophomore album, Meat Is Murder (1985), The Smiths went into retreat to write songs for their next release. And so, forty years ago this week, The Smiths released their third studio LP, The Queen Is Dead, with songs written mostly by guitarist Johnny Marr and vocalist Morrissey at Marr's home. Morrissey and Marr also co-produced the album under the auspices of Stephen Street's engineering. In a retrospective review, Gavin Edwards wrote, "Whereas previously Morrissey had sourly lectured his listeners that meat was murder, on The Queen Is Dead he made one of the funniest rock albums ever" [Rolling Stone 920, April 17, 2003]. The Queen Is Dead peaked at #2 on the UK Albums Chart, where it spent over five months, and it climbed to #70 on the US Billboard Top Pop Albums chart.

In case you're not sure, this album is the one I referenced as an undisputed classic in the opening paragraph. For more about the album, go track-by-track with the band in NME's 2016 post, "The Full Story Behind The Smith's The Queen Is Dead". Their quips about the singles – "The Boy with the Thorn in His Side", "Bigmouth Strikes Again", and "There Is a Light That Never Goes Out" (all of which were top 40 hits in the UK) – are brief but worth it.

Jamboree – Guadalcanal Diary released their sophomore album, Jamboree, 40 years ago this week. Or, maybe, at some point between May and the end of June. So, it has turned, or will turn, 40 years old as of June 2026. The album debuted to decent reviews, with the Chicago Tribune saying it was "low on flash and affectation" and "a thoughtfully crafted, guitar-based effort" [Wikipedia, Chicago Tribune]. Good reviews, however, did not translate to sales. Neither the album nor its two singles – "Lonely Street" and "Spirit Train / Cattle Prod" – charted.

I'm not sure if Guadalcanal Diary's oft-cited similarity to early R.E.M. hurt them, but they should have had at least as much success as their jangle pop contemporaries, even if just on college radio. And I agree with David Cleary of AllMusic who ended his review of Jamboree by writing, "This is an excellent, if sometimes bewildering album very much worth hearing".

My favorite song is the opening track, "Pray For Rain." Go check it out and I'll bet you'll be lured into the rest of this all but forgotten gem.

Now, on to the music. 🎶

Flashback #1: The Queen is Dead (June 16, 1986)

Flashback #2: Jamboree (June 15, 1986)

See you in seven!

Friday, June 12, 2026

Friday 80s Flashback for June 12, 2026

[Tiger Line] -- Canadian rockers, Glass Tiger, released their debut studio album, The Thin Red Line, forty years ago this week. Other sourced cite the release date as being anywhere between February 1986 and July 1986, but most seem to point to a mid-June 1986 date, so that's what I'm using for this post.

The Thin Red Line was Glass Tiger's only release that grabbed much attention stateside. It peaked at #3 in Canada and reached into the top 30 (#27) on the Billboard 200. It even achieved Gold record status in the states. That success was probably due to two very popular singles: "Don't Forget Me (When I'm Gone)", which peaked at #2 in the US, and "Someday", which was a mere top 20 hit in Canada but peaked at #7 here in the States.

"Don't Forget Me (When I'm Gone)" was their lead off single featuring backup vocals from fellow Canadian artist, Bryan Adams. There are two versions of the music video. The original Canadian video mixed performance with a storybook concept and was nominated for Best Video at the Juno Awards of 1986. The other video (which is linked above and included in the embedded playlist below) was made to target other markets because the Canadian version was deemed "too cutesy and directed solely toward the youth market" [Billboard (Nielsen Business Media, Inc.) 98 (49): 22. 1986-12-06].

The music video for "Someday" juxtaposes an upbeat performance, a rehearsal perhaps, with scenes of their somber-looking lead vocalist dealing with the fallout of his relationship. Many of the 80s video tropes are present: nighttime scenes, nappily perched hats, arguments, camera-rushing-through-foliage, forlorn expressions while making a phone call, and more.

A third single, "You're What I Look For", with a music video consisting of standard concert performance footage plus slow panning of the fans, is one of my favorite tracks on the album though it failed to chart in the US.

Flashback: "The Thin Red Line (June 11, 1986)

See you in seven!

Friday, June 5, 2026

Friday 80s Flashback for June 5, 2026

[Many Afternoons, Still No Utopia] -- In 1986, Alphaville released their sophomore album, Afternoons in Utopia. It was something of a concept album -- a sci-fi synth/disco opera -- but it still holds up pretty well, particularly considering it did not chart nearly as well as their first album, Forever Young [covered here on September 27, 2024]. Afternoons in Utopia was recorded over a period of nine months and involved nearly 30 different musicians [see Credits on Discogs]. The album barely squeaked into the US Billboard 200 (at #174) while four of the five singles charted internationally. None of them became a huge radio hit.

Regarding Afternoons in Utopia's first single, "Dance With Me," Alphaville's lead singer, Marian Gold, reportedly said that the lyrics refer to child prostitution. I have found several references to this interview on the web, but I have yet to find a copy of the actual interview. Still, having read the lyrics afresh, and re-watched the music video, I do see some legitimacy to the claim. And I'll never be able to hear this song quite the same way again.

Oh, and I'm not sure how they picked which tracks to release as singles, but I think they missed out by not selecting "The Voyager".

Flashback: Afternoons In Utopia (June 5, 1986)

See you in seven!

Friday, May 29, 2026

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)

See you in seven!

Sunday, May 24, 2026

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, May 22, 2026

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)

See you in seven!

Friday, May 15, 2026

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)

See you in seven!

Friday, May 8, 2026

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)

See you in seven!

Friday, May 1, 2026

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)

See you in seven!