The Soundtrack of My Youth – 1984

6 Apr

The year when people who had never heard of George Orwell suddenly knew all about him. The year I got my first car and could cruise the Main with my radio blaring. Yep, 1984 was an interesting year. It was also a good year for some new artists and for some artists who had been around for a while.1984

The year began the way 1983 ended. “Say Say Say” by Paul McCartney and Michael Jackson was at the top of the charts and would stay there for a couple of more weeks.

They were knocked out of that spot by Yes. This band had been around for years and hit the top with “Owner of a Lonely Heart”. The song stayed on top for two weeks but was overtaken by a new group that became one of the definitions of the 1980s.

Culture Club, led by Boy George, gained everyone’s attention with “Karma Chameleon”. They held the Number One position for three weeks. Then, they found themselves up against a band that liked to be called hard rock, but I am not sure about that.

“Jump” by Van Halen remained Number One for five weeks in February and March. I like a good Hard Rock hair band, but this bunch was too cheesy for my taste. This was never one of my favorite songs.

Thankfully, they were jumped by someone else. Less thankfully, it was another cheesy song. It was also from a cheesy movie. “Footloose” by Kenny Loggins proved that he had moved on from his days Jim Messina. It also proved that teenagers will watch any dumb movie with music and dancing.

Interestingly, “Footloose” was replaced by another song from another soundtrack. “Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now)” by Phil Collins came from a movie of the same name. It was another typical 198s movie but was geared towards adults rather than kids. It was also one of the last films of Richard Widmark, one of the all time great actors.

Phil Collins had been a member of Genesis before going on to a solo career. He lost the top spot to another singer who was doing the same thing. Lionel Richie had been a member of The Commodores. Now, he had another hit song with “Hello”.

“Let’s Here It for the Boy” by Deniece Williams was Number One for a couple of weeks and was followed by a string of performers who typified the music of the 1980s. In fact, the summer of 1984 was dominated by three artists.

It began with “Time After Time” by Cyndi Lauper and continued with one of my favorite groups, Duran Duran. How can you go wrong with a group named after a character in Barbarella? Anyway, they saw “The Reflex” go to Number One.

Duran Duran stayed there for a couple of weeks. Then, they were replaced by the biggest hit of 1984. “When Doves Cry” by Prince is an awesome song that stayed at the top of the charts for five weeks, including the entire month of July.

It gave way to another song from a movie. However, this was not just any movie. Ghostbusters was about a group of guys who rid New York City of apparitions. Then, they almost met their match went they went up against a gigantic Stay Puft Marshmallow Man. Oh yeah, “Ghostbusters” by Ray Parker, Jr. went Number One.

Then, the music world saw the triumphant return of a 1960s icon. After a life filled with struggle, Tina Turner, from Nutbush, Tennessee, returned to the charts with “What’s Love Got to Do with It”. She stayed at Number One for three weeks.

For one week, “Missing You” by John Waite reached the peak of the charts. However, it feel away under the power of Prince, who had his second Number One song with “Let’s Go Crazy”.

Another star of the 1960s and 1970s returned to the charts in October. “I Just Called to Say I Love You” by Stevie Wonder was Number One for three weeks.

“Caribbean Queen (No More Love on the Run)” by Billy Ocean was next in line. Here is something interesting. Depending on the region of the world, the title and lyrics changed.

Another quintessential 1980s act reached the top in November. “Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go” took Wham! to the top of the charts.

They were overtaken by another duo but one that had several hits. Hall and Oates returned to Number One with “Out of Touch” and remained there for two weeks.

Another newcomer replaced them, but this newcomer was taking her first step toward becoming a trendsetter and superstar. She would do that through music and lifestyle. The year 1984 ended with the introduction of Madonna. “Like A Virgin” spent the last two weeks of the year at Number One. I am sure it was played at a ton of New Years Eve parties.

Those are the Number One songs of 1984. Obviously, those were not all of the artists putting out music. What were some of your favorite 1984 songs?

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The Soundtrack of My Youth – 1983

5 Apr

When we get into the car, my stepdaughter hooks her iPod up to the system, and the sounds of the 2010s come blasting through the speakers. She sings and can tell us anything we want to know about the people who are singing. Without her, my pop culture knowledge would be zero.

Some of the music is good, and some of it is less desirable. However, it is always fun to see how much enjoyment she gets out of it.

The other day, we were riding and jamming when I started thinking about the effect of music on our formative years. These are the songs we grow up with, and they stick with us throughout our lives. I came to age in the 1980s and, like others my age, feel a connection to the music of that time. I am not saying it was the best of all time, but it belongs to us.

The songs of the 1980s are the soundtrack of our youth just as the songs of the 2010s are the soundtrack of my stepdaughter’s youth. Because of that, each generation holds its music in a little higher esteem than everyone else does.

With that in mind, I thought it would be interesting to look back at my high school years and see what was at the top of the charts. I entered high school in 1983, and that will be our starting point. I will also use the Billboard Top 100. Obviously, there are other charts for other genres, but we do not want to go down a rabbit hole and never get out.1983

“Maneater” by Hall and Oates held the spot for the first two weeks of the year. These days, John Oates does a lot of work in Nashville.

The next three weeks were dominated by “Down Under” by Men at Work. This is one of my favorite songs from that year.

For one week, Toto’s “Africa” hit the top spot. It is interesting that two songs about other parts of the world made their way to the top of the American charts. It is also interesting that Men at Work returned to the top place after this one week.

Patti Austin and James Ingram hit it big with “Baby, Come to Me”, but were soon overwhelmed by a 1980s superstar.

In March, “Billie Jean” by Michael Jackson became the Number One song and stayed there for seven weeks.

Here is a good trivia question. Who knocked “Billie Jean” out of the top spot? It was Dexys Midnight Runners with “Come On Eileen”. However, their success was short-lived.

After one week, Michael Jackson came back by putting “Beat It” in the top spot. It would stay there for three weeks.

The next week, “Let’s Dance” by David Bowie made its way to Number One, but it did not hold on for long.

Irene Cara’s “Flashdance…What a Feeling” was a hit on the radio and on the big screen. For six weeks, guys listened to this song and pictured a dancer pouring water on herself.

A song about stalking was next on the list. “Every Breath You Take” by The Police is a good song, but it gets weird as you listen closer to the lyrics. Actually, it was the biggest hit of 1983 and stayed Number One for eight weeks.

Eurythmics rode “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)” up the charts. In my mind, this is also one of the best songs of the year.

Then, we have “Maniac” by Michael Sembello. This is the second song from the Flashdance soundtrack to make it to the top of the charts.

Billy Joel was on top with “Tell Her About It” for one week and was overtaken by “Total Eclipse of the Heart” by Bonnie Tyler. This is also one of my favorites and held its position for four weeks.

The country went the Pop Country route with “Islands in the Stream” by Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton. They are both in the Country Music Hall of Fame.

They were at the top for two weeks before Lionel Richie came through with “All Night Long (All Night)” in November. He stayed there for four weeks.

The year ended with a four-week stay at the top by Paul McCartney and Michael Jackson. “Say Say Say” was a duet that proves McCartney is not new to collaboration. His recent work with Kanye West and Rihanna is just the most recent example.

That is it for 1983. In the next post, we will look at 1984 and find out which of these performers kept their momentum into the next year.

Obviously, these are not the only songs of the year. What were some of your favorites?

 

 

 

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Roasting Like the Pros

4 Apr

For the past 25 years, our local library has held an interesting fundraiser. Every year, they choose a prominent person in the community to roast. I have been a couple of times, and those events were pretty fun. The audiences laughed, and the guests of dishonor worried about what was going to be said next.

This year, a good friend of mine was put on the spit, and I was asked to be a roaster. Before it started, I was worried that no one would laugh. It would be terrible to bomb. These types of events are rough on the person getting skewered, but it is not easy on the jokesters, either.

As I worked on my routine, I thought about another series of roasts and the people who took part in them. It was not the past library roasts. It was also not those stupid roasts we see on television, like the one they did to Justin Bieber.

I thought about the granddaddy of a roasts, The Dean Martin Celebrity Roast. Through the 1970s and into the 1980s, Dino and other comedians roasted a bunch of his friends. I loved watching those shows. Heck, I will even watch that infomercial channel that tries to sell DVD’s of the show because the clips are hilarious.

As I put my words on paper, Dean and the gang came to my mind and, in my imagination, tried to figure out if I could be as funny as them.

There was Foster Brooks, who built a career out of acting drunk. That gave him a kinship with Dean Martin, who basically did the same thing. That act would probably not work in our politically correct world.Foster Brooks

There was Rich Little, who was the king of impersonators. A few people have built a career out of the same thing, but none can compare to him.Rich Little

There was Nipsey Russell, who rhymed his way to television fame. He was not only big on the roasting circuit. He was a game show mainstay.Nipsey Russell

There was Ruth Buzzi, who showed up as Gladys Ormphby and proceeded to hit everyone over the head with her purse.Ruth Buzzi

Heck, there were a ton of people on these shows, but those are the ones I remember the best. For our roast, I could have combined all of them. All I would have to do is show up dressed like a drunk old woman who could recite limericks in other people’s voices.

I did not do that. Instead, I told some old stories from high school and got plenty of laughs. I also had the satisfaction of knowing that all of my stories were true.

I also had the good fortune of going first. This meant that they had not yet started getting tired and looking at their phones. It also meant that they did not have a funnier person to compare me with.

Everyone had a great time, and a bunch of money was raised for the library. The best part? When my friend got the chance to fire back, he took it easy on all of us.

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The Boys of Summer

3 Apr

When people think of slow pitch softball, they probably envision a bunch of non-athletic people in a park drinking beer. However, there is a completely different type of slow pitch softball. It involves athletes who travel around the country playing in tournaments. They are sponsored by sporting goods companies that capitalize on their home run hitting abilities to sell bats.

It is not a game played in church leagues or on sandlots. It is played in baseball stadiums.

I write those words because my dad sponsored one of those teams, the Le-Al-Co Storms. In the 1970s and 1980s, it was one of the best teams in the country. The men on the team played for the love of competition and a bigger love of winning.

Like all kids, I knew that springtime brought the end of school, but it also brought a summer full of adventure. Every weekend, we drove or flew to a different city to bring together my second family – the softball team.

When I say second family, I really mean that. The players were my crazy uncles who taught me the ways of life. Of course, a lot of those things were probably not good for a kid to hear. They helped me grow up and become who I am.

They also made me part of the gang. At school, I was a nerdy kid who did not fit in with everyone. On summer weekends, I was cool because I hung around these guys. When they walked into a park, everyone knew who they were. As a result, they knew me, too.

The games were fun, but I mostly remember the other parts. The long drives. Hanging out in the hotels. Eating at a restaurant and cleaning out the buffet.

I cannot imagine growing up any other way.

Last week, Tommy Everette, one of those players, passed away. We went to the funeral and heard a lot of people say a lot of great things about him. It was interesting to listen to people who knew him from his life outside of softball. He was a principal and a valued member of the educational community. In my world, he was one of the greatest home run hitters who ever picked up a bat. He hit balls that no one ever saw come down.

There were several team members at the service, and we all gathered to take a picture.image-28

From left to right:

Allan – manager, general manager, recruiter, uniform designer. He did it all.

My dad – sponsor of the team and the softball version of George Steinbrenner.

Me – batboy, bookkeeper and a kid who learned more than he should have.

Sam – great hitter who was the only local guy to make the move to the big time.

Jimmy – suffered a gruesome injury at the state tournament in Cleveland, Tennessee.

Eddie – played with us in the summer and with the Los Angeles Rams in the fall.

Kenny – could hit a ball a country mile.

Brian – another kid who grew up in the world of softball. Tommy Everette was his dad.

Mac – the only player to be on all of our championship teams.

It was great to have some of them together again. Old stories were told, and there were handshakes and hugs all around. However, I realized something. I am older now than they were in those days. That is a strange feeling because I looked up to them, and it is hard for me to realize where I am in my life.

When we were together, I still felt like that kid in the dugout watching them beat some team. We are all getting older, but, in my heart, they will always be the boys of summer. And, I will always be part of that team.

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Kenny Chesney – Up Close and Connected

28 Mar

Kenny Chesney opened his latest tour in Nashville, and we were lucky enough to get tickets. When I say tickets, I am not talking about just any tickets. My wife could reach out and touch the stage. Of course, that is a great thing because she is a huge fan of Kenny.

Looking at the circumstances, I can understand why she thinks that way.

He was born in 1968, and I was born in 1968.

He is a native of Tennessee, and I am a native of Tennessee.

He is a huge fan of the University of Tennessee, and I am a huge fan of the University of Tennessee.

He suffers from a lack of hair, and I suffer from a lack of hair.

Heck, we are basically the same person. The only differences are his talent, money, fame and the feeling of having thousands of people scream when he walks in the room.

The concert opened with a cool video based on a Voodoo theme. Then, Kenny and his band came out and played for over three hours. Those hours were filled with constant music and little talk. There is nothing worse than going to a concert and have them talk through half of it.

Anyway, it was an awesome show that was made more awesome by where we sat. My wife was able to get some great pictures.

Here is one of Kenny singing from his knees. I supposed that is tougher than singing while standing up.image-25

There is also one with Kenny and one of his guitarists. It was cool to see this guy play up close.image-26

Those are great, but my favorite part of the show was when Kenny brought out a special guest.image-27

Joe Walsh is one of the all-time great guitarists and played some classics. In fact, the entire show ended with a miniature Joe Walsh concert. Once Joe was finished doing his thing, Kenny made a final walk around the stage, and it all came to an end.

I have seen Kenny Chesney in concert before and was not impressed. However, this was one of the better concerts I have seen.

My only complaint? For the band introductions, they covered “Whole Lotta Rosie” by AC/DC, and the crowd did not seem to know what it was. Who does not know an AC/DC song when they hear it?

I guess that is more of a complaint about the ignorance of the crowd. The concert was great. Of course, other factors could have been kicking in. It may have been the seats. It may have been the appearance of Joe Walsh. Heck, it may have been my karmic connection to Kenny. After all, we are practically the same person.

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Through the 1970s and Beyond

27 Mar

The other day, I saw something on Twitter that required further research. After a little Googling, I discovered that this information has made the Internet rounds and has been written about a bunch. However, that is not going to stop me from putting my spin on it.

Anyway, it goes like this.

In February 1970, Circus magazine pictured a bunch of people on its covered and asked if they would survive the following decade.Ty0ZdBT47

It was a morbid idea for a cover, but it has led to an interesting question. How many of them made it?

The following list is in the order of their appearance.

Johnny Cash survived the 1970s and lived until 2003. Luckily, I was able to meet him when we ran into each other in a bookstore.

Pete Townshend is still living and is about to go on another tour. I saw The Who on their last tour but left the arena disappointed.

Jim Morrison passed away in 1971 and is buried in a Parisian cemetery.

Paul McCartney is alive and recording. In fact, he just did a thing with Kanye West and Rihanna.

Grace Slick is very much alive but probably not as slick.

Bob Dylan is still around and will soon be performing in Nashville. I just read that the Country Music Hall of Fame is opening a new exhibit about him and Johnny Cash.

Janis Joplin passed away a few months after the issue hit the stands.

John Lennon made it through the 1970s but was gunned down in 1980.

Jimi Hendrix also died a few months after this issue first came out.

Johnny Winter survived the 1970s, 1980s, 1990s and 2000s. Unfortunately, he passed away in 2014.

Alvin Lee died one year earlier in 2013.

Ray Davies is still alive and doing his thing.

John Mayall is also still with us.

Mick Jagger just announced a stadium tour for The Rolling Stones. They will be returning to Nashville.

Elvis Presley died at Graceland in 1977. Luckily, my parents took me to one of his concerts a few years before that.

George Harrison was the second Beatle to leave us. He passed away in 2001.

Ringo Starr is still playing drums and getting help from his friends.

Charlie Watts is also still around. I wonder if he will be doing that stadium tour.

Jimmy Page is definitely alive. I read that his girlfriend is the same age he was when he appeared on that cover.

David Crosby is also in the news. A few days ago, he ran over a jogger.

What does all that mean?

It means that Circus put out a dumb cover and a dumb article.

It also means that most of these rockers, despite their crazy lifestyles, made it out of the 1970s. Of the 20 that were listed, 11 of them are still alive 45 years later. Out of the 9 who have passed away, 4 lived into the 21st Century.

Four of them passed away in the 1970s. Three of those due to drug use, and the fourth, Jim Morrison, remains a mystery.

However, I have a few questions. Who thought up this article? Did any of those featured read it? Did they get made or laugh at it?

I guess someone could ask those who are still on this earth.

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A Historical Reunion

26 Mar

On Sunday, the memorial service was held for Monty Pope. You have read about him a couple of times on this blog and, hopefully, got a glimpse of what he meant to the people he encountered. In fact, hundreds of those people attended.

Looking around the room, I noticed that many of them were graduates of our history program who had traveled from great distances. Then, it hit me. Not all of the history graduates knew each other. The crowd consisted of people who took the same classes from the same teachers but never crossed paths.

Obviously, I realized that there are different generations of students, but it had never hit me like it did that day. Heck, the other two history teachers did not even know who many of the former students because those students predated them.

I am not sure where I am going with this, but it brought a few things to mind. First, it was great that they thought enough of Monty to be there. Second, I have been teaching for a long time. Third, we should have a history graduate reunion to let these people meet each other.Reunion

I have no idea if anyone would show up, but it would be interesting to hear them exchange stories. It would also be cool to know where they are and what they are doing.

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Movie Wisdom – Kurt Russell Edition

24 Mar

I was just flipping through the channels and came upon Escape From New York, one of the all time great dystopian movies. New York is a maximum security prison. The president is being held hostage within it. Lee Van Cleef sends Kurt Russell in to get the president. On top of that, this dystopian world is set in 1997. By now, Snake Plissken is getting on up there.Snake

I have seen Escape From New York a ton of times, which means I am not going to watch it. Instead, I am going to explore the wisdom that can be found in the movies of Kurt Russell.

By the way, here is some kind of interesting trivia. Kurt was in a movie with Elvis Presley. Later, he portrayed Elvis in a couple of movies. He also pretended to be an Elvis impersonator in another movie.

From It Happened at the World’s Fair

Adults, they’re all nuts!

From The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes

Modernization isn’t everything!

Everyone’s just out for himself.

From Used Cars

Fifty bucks never killed anybody.

You know, it used to be when you bought a politician, that son of a bitch stayed bought.

From The Fox and the Hound

Forever is a long, long time, and time has a way of changing things.

From Tequila Sunrise

Friendship is the only choice in life you can make that’s yours!

Don’t get caught.

From Tango & Cash

Too much television can hurt your eyes.

From Tombstone

There’s no normal life.

Wearing that badge don’t make you right.

From Forrest Gump

Life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get.

You’ve got to put the past behind you before you can move on.

You have to do the best with what God gave you.

There’s only so much fortune a man really needs and the rest is just for showing off.

From Escape from L.A.

The future is right now.

From Miracle

Great moments are born from great opportunity.

 

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My iPod Has Issues – All About the Birthday Girl

23 Mar

On Saturday night, we celebrated my stepdaughter’s 13th birthday with a gathering of her friends. We filled them with soft drinks, spaghetti, pizza and one of the coolest birthday cakes I have ever seen.image-24

A few of the girls spent the night, and, according to rumor, they stayed up for most of it. I also hear that they ate more of that cake.

Big fun was had by all, and my wife and I are worn out. In celebration of the big One Three, I am going to dig into my iPod and play a bunch of songs that my stepdaughter has never heard. After all, nothing compares to Katy Perry and Taylor Swift.

“I’ve Got To Use My Imagination” by Gladys Knight and the Pips

“Dancing Barefoot” by Patti Smith

“Sweet And Slow” by Carol Sloane

“For All We Know” by Susannah McCorkle

“What’s Love Got To Do With It” by Tina Turner

“He Thinks I Still Care” by Dorothy Moore

“Both Sides Now” by Joni Mitchell

“He’s A Rebel” by The Crystals

“Moanin'” by Lambert, Hendricks and Ross

“What A Difference A Day Makes” by Dinah Washington

“Sinnerman” by Nina Simone

“What The World Needs Now Is Love” by Jackie DeShannon

“Black Enough” by Melba Moore

“Your Love Is Where It Ought To Be” by Big Mama Thornton

“Everything Must Change” by Oleta Adams

“Ready For Love” by India.Arie

“Get Ur Freak On” by Missy Elliott

“I’m A Woman” by Christine Kittrell

“She’s Got You” by Loretta Lynn

“Texas (When I Die)” by Tanya Tucker

Happy Birthday to a fantastic 13-year-old girl!

 

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The Final Hand

21 Mar

He had never been there before, but he had been to a thousand places just like it. Trash in the street. Dingy building. Some guy standing in the shadows by the door.

They nodded to each other as he walked through the door and made his way into a dimly lit room. However, it was the only light that the men in the room had probably seen in a while. They were creatures of the darkness. All they needed was a light shining down on the felt table covered with cards and chips.

He was a poker player, and these were his people.

He took the empty seat and looked around the table. A couple of them he had played against many times. The others were new. That did not matter. He would learn about them.

Through the night, he studied the players. He studied their playing style. He studied their mannerisms. He studied who they really were.

To his left sat someone who he knew well. A great athlete whose life peaked as a high school hero. His body was broken, and his competitive need could only be filled on the felt. The rest of the time he maintained the same field where he once dominated.

The next player was the typical guy who learned how to play by watching television. He had the hoodie. He had the cap low over his eyes. He should have been playing a fifty cent game at some backwoods casino.

Then, there was the man who looked like he had been sitting in the same chair for a hundred years. His eyes looked tired, and his face looked like it would crack if he smiled. At some point, he mentioned that he had won a tournament several years ago. It was said in passing but was meant as a declaration of the greatest moment of his life.

Across the table sat a man who was hard to read. He had dabbled in different jobs with varied levels of success. He liked to talk, which meant that his time as a car salesman and a real estate agent may have been the high points. Funny, his rate of conversation paralleled the size of his chip stack.

A hulking guy sat next to him. He was the type who lorded over the table and hoped to win with intimidation rather than skill. He did not talk much, the stereotypical strong silent type, but it did not take much time to discover that he was a short-haul truck driver who was thousands of dollars in debt.

The strangest one sat to the left of the Hulk. Not strange in the sense that he could be a serial killer. Strange in the sense that he did not belong in the room. He wore a sweater vest and glasses. He was educated. Why was he in the room? Did he worked in a skyscraper and get his thrills by playing in the gutters? It was difficult to figure out.

The last player was the one he knew best. The one who put this game together. He played wild and lived wilder. He played this game, but the game possessed him. He had won money at the game, but, in return, he had lost his family to the game.

As the hands flew by, he studied the other eight men at the table. He lost track of the cards and of his chip stack. The game became a blur.

As he studied his opponents, he began to realize that he did not want to play anymore. There was a time when he, like the others in the room, lived for poker. However, he did not care about winning or losing. He wanted to be out of that game. He wanted to be away from that table. He wanted to be out of that room.

He wanted to be where life meant more than a handful of cards. He wanted to care about more than the flop, the turn and the river.

A line from a long forgotten movie came to him.

This game had lost its allure.

On the next hand, he went all in without looking at his cards.All In

It was time to go home and leave this game behind.

His chips went into the stack to his right.

He got up from the table and walked out into the night. He had lost the hand, but he knew that, in the final hand, he had won.

 

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