Retro Spins: King - Bitter Sweet

 

Sure, why not. Let's jump from a Prince to a King.

King was a happy find for me back in 2021 while playing through the compilation, Now, Forgotten 80's. This led me to track down their two albums, the first which I've already Retro Spinned. During that post, I went pretty extensive into their history, so at this point, there's not much to tell. As such, I'll give a little more info, then dive in.

Bitter Sweet (1985) would be the bands second, and last album. It would reach number sixteen on the UK charts, and spawn three successful singles in that country, Alone Without You, The Taste Of Your Tears, and Torture. Despite this success, the band would ultimately break up the following year, with no specifics shared as to why, and Paul King would go on to release a single solo album in 1987, Joy.

Unlike a lot of releases of the time, the album would be simultaneously released on CD, and while this version retained the same ten tracks, their order was altered. Additionally, it featured remixes of the singles, Tortue, and The Taste Of Your Tears. It's this particular version which is in my collection, and which takes center stage for today's Retro Spin.

By track four, I wanted to know where this album had been my who life and was actively looking to add King's solo album to my collection. All the songs kept hitting harder and harder, one after another.

Unfortunately, this momentum didn't keep up. Things took a dip on the second half, with not only a shift in tempo, but overall, intriguing songs. There was really nothing to get excited about, which was unfortunate.

Revisiting the first four tracks, I decided that of them, I Cringed, I Died, I Felt, and Torture, were the superior of them. I also quickly lost interest in the solo album from Paul King. Which is fine. I don't need to spend the money.

Beyond that, I've pretty much covered the band as a whole, and where things went, so there's not much more to say. I'm still happy with my purchase of their two albums. I got a few good tracks to add to my rotation, so I'm happy with that.

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Comics Corner: Marvel Team-Up 149

   

Title: Marvel Team-Up
Issue Number: 149
Release Date: January 1985

Highlights

• First appearance of Incandescent Man, the NYPD officer, Casey, and Staten Island ferry passengers, Steve and Sue
• The crew of the Staten Island ferry finds a body in the water, but just as they pull it up, it bursts into powerful light, instantly frying the men
• First appearance of Saks Fifth Avenue
• Cannonball buys a hat from Saks for his mom, and proceeds to try to keep it safe during the battle
• Reference is made to Marvel Team-Up Annual 6, Marvel Super Hero Secret Wars
• Peter gives Robbie a handful of photos of Spider-Man, but he rejects them all telling the photographer to focus on something else, like other heroes
• Spider-Man notices a blackout in Chelsea
• Incandescent Man grows larger and larger as he absorbs all the electricity around the city
• Cannonball accidentally breaks a fire hydrant, but the water that comes from it starts to shrink the Incandescent Man
• Spider-Man snaps photos of the battle, showcasing Cannonball
• Cannonball dumps Incandescent Man into the Hudson River, extinguishing him
• Cannonball commits to trying harder to being a better student for Professor Xavier
• Spider-Man tells Cannonball that he did great, and bets a photographer took photos of him, but the mutant says he hopes not because it could reveal his identity, and ruin Xavier's school
• Despite needing the money, Spider-Man throws the roll of film into the river

Low Points

• Reading Cannonball's Southern accent riddled dialog is painful

Oddities

• None

Rating (based on a 1 through 5 Stans grading system)

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Retro Spins: Prince - 1999

Don't worry. I won't hurt you. I only want you to have some fun.

It's the intro I heard on a cassette tape recorded by my sister when she was living in Virginia, with us clear across the country in Oregon. She had called me one day, and asked, "Do you want Prince's 1999?" Having knowledge mainly of his Purple Rain and Batman albums, I was interested but confused when I got the tape. Admittedly, my young mind thought my sister would be sending an original, and not a recording. Regardless, I played that tape a lot. Tucked on the back of it was an added bonus of Ready For The World's Oh Sheila.

I remember when I first played the tape that I wasn't accustomed to varying differences between album versions and radio edits. As such, when 1999, the song, fired up, I was confused by the talking intro. Candidly, it didn't sit well with me either. It also continued on with a bunch of what I considered weirdness towards the tail end, and even worse, it segued into Little Red Corvette, another song I fancied as a standalone. Truthfully, I don't think I liked it at first, but they eventually grew on me to become the definitive renditions I would frequently go to.

Years later, I got my own copy on CD, only to stupidly sell it to my cousin while at my grandfather's house. To this day, I have no clue why I did that. I guess as a kid still, the money was intriguing to me. Fortunately, I'd rectify that in the late 90's, and much later with many different iterations which include (among others) an original pressing on vinyl, and the original "target" pressing CD. Fun fact, the first pressing on CD omits D.S.M.R. for time constraints.

Point being, I've spent a lot of time with Prince's 1999. I know it front, back, sideways, up, down, left, and right. If there was one thing that surprised me about the album, it's that I haven't yet done a Retro Spin on it. File that one under a giant oops. I suppose when I think about it, my reasoning for doing so was probably driven by it being a throw away. Something to fill in a gap when I needed a break. Let's face it, it's not exactly a record I need to listen to in order to write about it. Full disclaimer, I am actually listening to it as I type this.

1999 would become Prince's first major success, reaching 4X platinum to date. It's sold over 5 million copies, with 4 million alone in the USA. It would reach number five on the Billboard Hot 200. It was also ranked number five in the Billboard Year-End Albums of 1983. The title track would peak at number 12 on the Billboard Hot 100, followed by Little Red Corvette (peaking at number 6), Delirious (peaking at number 8), and Let's Pretend We're Married (peaking at number 52).

Little Red Corvette was also among the first black music videos played in steady rotation on MTV, along with Michael Jackson's Billie Jean. Sadly, this wasn't until CBS threatened to pull all their music from the channel, claiming it discriminated against black artists. However, all turned out for the best, as soon MTV had a vast diversity of artists who deserved to have their videos seen and heard.

The album has since gone on to be frequently ranked as the best from Prince, as well as among many curated lists of top albums. I suppose at the end of the day, it's all in the eye of the beholder. So, tell me. What do you think about Prince's 1999?

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Disclaimer: They Toy Box does not endorse or contribute to piracy. Retro Spins posts are intended for educational and entertainment purposes only. None of the music discussed here is available for sale, downloading or distribution.