The Toy Box: 1985

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Retro Spins: Mick Jagger - She's The Boss

Today I'm returning to the Mick Jagger camp, but this time it's to peruse his 80's solo albums.

When the Rolling Stones were penning their deal with Columbia Records in 1983, unbeknownst to the remaining members, Jagger was piggybacking a clause within it that would grant him a three-album solo deal. It would ultimately be the rub that drove a giant wedge between friend and collaborator, Keith Richards, who felt the singer's priorities should have been to their band.

Though his 1985 debut, She's The Boss, would be well received, peaking at number thirty-three on the Billboard 200, Richards would not personally see it as a good album. He'd later go on to compare it to Adolph Hitler's Mein Kampf, stating, "Everybody had a copy, but nobody listened to it.

Yeah, um...I don't know anyone who owned Mein Kampf. Just saying.

With its release came the Billboard Hot 100 hits, Just Another Night, peaking at number twelve, and Lucky In Love, which reached number thirty-eight. Just Another Night would also become a smash on the rock charts, where it ultimately took the number one spot. So, basically, for Keith's opinion, maybe take it with a grain of salt.

Right from the get-go, I have to admit that I prefer Jagger's solo efforts, as compared to his work with the Rolling Stones. Whereas the Stones deliver a flair of rhythm and blues, when working alone, Mick brings a solid pop rock sound. This is a more favorable sound for my ears, what with growing up in an era of new wave synth pop.

While I came across his solo work because of the track, Just Another Night, opening tracks, Lonely At The Top, and 1/2 A Loaf, immediately hooked me. Candidly, I may like them more than the hit, which is no slouch by any means.

One does need to point out that the instrumentation on this record is a notch above the average, and that's because of the massive pool of talent which was called in for the project. On keyboards and synthesizers, you have Guy Fletcher (Dire Straits), Herbie Hancock, Jan "Miami Vice" Hammer, John Bundrick (The Who), and Chuck Leavell (Allman Brothers). Meanwhile, on guitars you have Jeff Beck, Pete Townshend, Nile Rodgers, and G.E. Smith (Hall & Oates). Mind you, that's not all of the musicians for those instruments, and doesn't even touch on the bass and drum players.

Overall, it's not a bad album. It's not perfection by any means, but then again, Mick Jagger, in my opinion, never was. The definite standouts were the two above noted opening tracks, along with Just Another Night, and Secrets. As for the rest, they're relatively skippable.

As July 1985 rolled around, Mick and pal, David Bowie were scheduled to sing a duet performance at Live Aid. Bowie would perform from Wembley Stadium in London, while Jagger sang from the stage at JFK Stadium in Philadelphia. Unfortunately, as practice was underway, they found that the one-second delay caused by the satellite broadcast kept them out of sync with each other. With neither artist willing to lip sync, they devised an alternate plan. Record a "new" song and film a music video.

The 1964 Martha and the Vandellas Motown classic would ultimately be selected because of its opening line, "Calling out around the world", which matched the theme of Live Aid. For a true deep dive, look no further than recording engineer, Mark Saunders, who posted on his own website the story of being there in person for the recording session.

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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.

Retro Spins: Morris Day - Color Of Success

What time is it?!?!

Well, not time for The Time. I've already gone through all of their albums of the 80's. In fact, the title track of Morris Day's first solo outing, Color Of Success has a vocal narration that not only informs the listeners The Time has disbanded, but that he won't be saying "What time is it" anymore. It further goes on to state that he's now a solo artist who will produce his own albums and films. Basically, don't come around here looking for The Time. This is a new era, and it's all about Morris Day.

The album would hit both the Billboard 200 and R&B charts, peaking at number thirty-seven, and seven, respectively. As a whole, singles would fare better on the R&B singles charts, where The Oak Tree (peaking at number 15), The Character (34), and The Color Of Success (the song, landing at 15) would all chart. Only The Oak Tree would cross over to the Billboard Hot 100, but in doing so, would only reach number sixty-five.

Diving in, it somewhat picks up where The Time's Ice Cream Castle left off. It features the same musical style, and even caps out at six tracks, mirroring the now defunct band's previous song limit. To further push the similarities home, Color Of Success also takes a page from the hit, The Bird for Day's new hit dance, The Oak Tree. Unfortunately, it's not as catchy as The Bird.

While Prince isn't involved with this record, Day seems to have retained poor habits from his mentor. By this, I mean that while songs are limited in number, they have excessive runtimes. All but one are under the five-minute mark, with half of them pushing six plus minutes. One would expect this would be particularly painful when said song is a ballad, such as the case with the seven minute, thirteen second, Don't Wait For Me. However, it's actually one of the best on the album.

Fortunately, as a whole, the album is enjoyable, and while it does feel drawn out at times because of each song's length, it still manages to provide a solid listening session. Ultimately though, it's just more of Morris, and depending on how you feel about him or The Time, that could be a good or bad thing. For me, it was good.

Morris produced one final album for the decade, that being 1987's Daydreaming. From it would come his most successful solo single, Fishnet. However, from there, he'd return briefly to The Time before going back to his solo career. But more on all of that tomorrow.

Before I go though, check out my awesome Fallout collection!

Most of this is from my girl, who has masterfully selected every piece.

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Retro Spins: The Family - The Family

As my birthday approached this year, an item I set my sights on was the rare CD release of The Family. It was one I had on my radar for quite some time, but never really got around to pulling the trigger on. Being only released on disc format in the UK and Europe, it's not one you're going to come across every day, which contributed to my sporadic searching for it. The one I ended up with ultimately came from the UK, and at rocket speed, I might ad.

The Family was built from the remnants of The Time. While the departure of Morris Day in 1984 left Jesse Johnson the de facto leader, Prince would recommend restructuring with new lead singer Paul Pertson, which Johnson opposed. This would lead to him leaving as well, taking a few Time members with him.

As a result, when they released their one and only self-titled debut, the band consisted of St. Paul Peterson on lead vocals, Eric Leads on saxophone, Clare Fischer on string instrumentation, and Revolution alum Wendy and Susanah Melvoin providing rhythm guitars and backing vocals, respectfully. Prince would oversee all other instrumentation.

The album would be a relative success, and cross over three different charts, peaking at number sixty-two on the Billboard 200, seventeen on the US R&B charts, and twenty-three on the US gospel charts.

The overall package delivers a mixture of sung and instrumental tracks. While most of it focuses on R&B jazz infusion, there are also sprinklings of the pop sound Prince made popular in that particular period of time. This is most prevalent in songs that utilize the Fairlight CMI digital workstation, which creates that all too familiar drum sound from the Revolution's prime.

While it's a decent album from start to finish, I will say that I don't particularly care for the instrumental tunes. This is mainly because they tend to lean the heaviest into jazz, which isn't among my favorite genres.

I will also say that Peterson has been given the same hand that Morris Day had previously been dealt. By that, I mean that he really only serves as Prince's mouthpiece, most likely being picked because he could produce a sound similar to his own and hit all the required keys. Nothing on the album sounds like it was written for anyone other than Prince, and frankly, I would have rather he sung the songs himself anyway.

Though it does contain the original release of Nothing Compares 2 U, I'd be lying if I said this was among my favorites. In fact, only one song really made the cut for my shuffle list, that being River Run Dry. I enjoyed it so much that I actually went looking to see if there was a version that had Prince on vocals. Well, if there is, I couldn't find it.

Peterson left The Family following the album's release to pursue a solo career and released five albums between 1987 and 2022. He's also reunited with The Family for a few one-off events and even worked with four of the five Family members to release the studio albums Gaslight (2011), Relit (2012), and AM Static (2014). However, these would be under the name fDeluxe to avoid issues with Prince's estate. As such, The Family is still technically around, and active.

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Retro Spins: Rick Springfield - Tao

Though his album sales steadily declined since 1982's Success Hasn't Spoiled Me Yet, Rick Springfield was an artist that still delivered multiple hits from each of his albums, peaking multiple times on the Billboard Hot 100, and producing albums which consecutively charted in the top forty on the Billboard 200. Though this streak would be broken by Mercury Records and the album Beautiful Feelings, a record full of aborted 1978 tracks remixed and recorded by the label, and released without Springfield's knowledge or input, his 1985 released Tao would return him to form.

Granted, his overall popularity and sales continued to decline. However, this was more so driven by the artist aging out of his teeny bopper status, as well as the previously flopped 1984 film, Hard To Hold. Tao would peak at number twenty-one on the Billboard 200, and with it come the Billboard Hot 100 hit singles, State Of The Heart (22), and Celebrate Youth (26).

It's odd how the liner notes for the album:

"I was going through a major depression back then, and had been for a few years. I was spiritually lost, and finding it hard to cope with everything that was going on. Even my success was causing me pain. I couldn't come to terms with earning so much money while others were struggling to find small change even to eat. It seemed so wrong, but what could I do about it? On top of that, I had real problems dealing with my father's death. It all meant that I was in such a mess, which is why the lyrics on the "Tao" album are definitely the darkest of my career."

I say this because out of the starting gate, I found nothing edgy or dark about any of the music. It starts off with Dance This World Away, and then goes into Celebrate Youth, both of which just come off as catchy rock tracks.

As a whole, it's a pretty decent album, and another solid rock entry from Springfield. Naturally, there were standout tracks that shined brighter than others. For me, those were the two noted above, The Tao Of Heaven, Stranger In The House, and Walking On The Edge. The latter is probably my favorite from Tao.

Following the album's release, Rick appeared on the Philadelphia side of Live Aid, performing Love Somebody, State Of The Heart, and Human Touch. From there, he finished his own support tour in 1986 and opted to take a hiatus.

While he'd return in 1988 for his final album of the 80's, Rock Of Life, the Cathode Ray Tour, which was the tour name for Tao would be his final for the decade. He wouldn't return to the stage until 1991, but now we're just getting too far ahead. First, I need to listen to his '88 release, which I'll do tomorrow.

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Retro Spins: Talking Heads - Little Creatures

For as many waves as Talking Heads made in the 80's, it's interesting to see that they didn't have many hits peak on the Billboard Hot 100, only eight in total between 1978 and 1986. Further, none cracked the top twenty. Their biggest hit, Wild Wild Life, only peaked at number twenty-five, with their "worst", Psycho Killer, only landing at ninety-two. That was unexpected to learn.

As noted yesterday, I already listened to their 1983 released Speaking In Tongues, as such, today I'm jumping into 1985's Little Creatures. Additionally, I also covered that broad spectrum of their history in my listening session of 1988's Naked. However, there's a little to touch on before we dive in.

In 1984, Talking Heads recorded what critics would call the greatest concert video of all time, Stop Making Sense. As it opens, David Byrne steps onto an empty stage with a cassette tape player, and acoustic guitar. He announces he wants to play a tape for the audience, and pressing play, the mixing board begins a drumbeat. Byrne then begins to strum his guitar and sing Psycho Killer.

As he finishes, Tina Weymouth walks out on stage with him, and they perform Heaven. As they strum their last notes, an excited Chris Frantz jumps onto the stage, taking his seat at the drums. With three members playing, they perform Thank You For Sending Me An Angel.

Jerry Harrison then joins them, and together they perform Found A Job. Percussionist, Steve Scales, and backing vocalists Lynn Mabry, and Ednah Holt then step out from each side of the stage, and the song Slippery People is played. Last up are Alex Weir, and Bernie Worrell appear, and with everyone finally on stage together, the concert takes off with Burning Down The House.

Riding this success, Little Creatures would go on to become Talking Heads biggest selling album of all time. This was aided by the band fully embracing the MTV generation, and releasing several music videos, all of which featured their signature quirkiness.

Playing through it, it doesn't resonate with me as much as 1980's Remain In The Light, but it definitely gets immediate points for starting with the hit, And She Was. It's the tune I bought the album for, and if nothing else, I was happy to have gotten that from it.

Fortunately, that wasn't all. Though it was all new territory for me from there, I also enjoyed the songs, Lady Don't Mind, Perfect World, Stay Up Late, Walk It Down, and Television Man.

What I noticed right out of the starting gate was the immediately shift in style. While their 1980 album was more funky art rock, Little Creatures was embracing full a pop rock, and perhaps even radio friendly mainstream style. Mind you, I didn't hate it one bit, but it definitely caught me off guard on the heels of its predecessor.

Overall, I'm appreciating the band far more than I expected, especially in hindsight of my initial reviews of Naked and Speaking In Tongues. As I said in yesterday's post, I may need to give those two another shot.

For now though, I'm moving right along. My next stop is 1986's True Stories, which will be my last album from them. Until then, I hope you enjoyed not only this write up, but the plethora of music videos from both this album, and their prior. Like I said, they really embraced the MTV age, and there are a lot of them.

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Retro Spins: Loverboy - Lovin' Every Minute Of It

The landscape of 1985 was a unique time in music. Rap had become mainstream, new wave had taken over but was also on its way out at this point, rock and roll was shifting to hair metal, Prince was making movies, and Michael Jackson's Thriller was the biggest album of all time. Competition on the Billboard was coming from every direction.

Among all of this, Loverboy wasn't faring well. The band had taken a consider drop in sales with their 1983 released Keep It Up, and this was only going to continue with 1985's Lovin' Every Minute Of It. While it spawned multiple Billboard Hot 100 hits, which included the title track, which peaked at number nine, Dangerous (sixty-five), This Could Be The Night (ten), and Lead A Double Life (sixty-eight), the album itself would move less units then its predecessor.

Much like I said yesterday, selling four-times platinum is no small feat. For those of you who don't know, one platinum certification is a million albums. However, when your previous two records sold seven million each across Canada and the USA, your label starts to take notice. Especially when your latest album does even less, which is what Lovin' Every Minute Of It did. It would "only" go platinum in Canada and two-times platinum in the USA. Again, that's a lot, but not in comparison to previous success.

Perhaps at this point I'm listening to too much Loverboy back-to-back, and the fatigue is setting in at this point. I listened to their first two albums on day one, and their third and fourth on another. Or maybe the quality of their albums really is taking a nosedive.

Whatever it is, I'm definitely noticing that as I keep going through their discography that each subsequent record is less and less appealing. Even the title track, which I bought the CD for didn't really hold much of my attention. As a whole, I found my mind wandering quite a bit throughout this one.

Once again, I kept waiting in anticipation for that hidden gem to come, but it never did. The other hits were okay, but definitely not the best I've heard from Loverboy.

If there's one thing that stood out to me, it's that the band sure did embrace the MTV age. They churned out a ton of music videos between 1980 and 1985. Even better is that they released them all on a VHS titled, Any Way You Look At It, in 1986.

Moving forward, I may take a new approach to my Retro Spins. Wherein I've been going from start to finish through an 80's discography, I think I'm going to start rotating between a handful of musicians. This way I don't get bored of any one particular person, or if it truly is terrible, looking at you Martha And The Muffins, I'm not banging my head against a wall trying to get through it.

Loverboy released one final album in the decade, 1987's Wildside. Though, prior to this, they participated in the massively successful Top Gun soundtrack with their contribution, Heaven In Your Eyes. It would peak at number twelve on the Billboard Hot 100.

While you won't find the music video for Heaven In Your Eyes on the aforementioned VHS, this was included on the 2004 Collector's Edition of Top Gun. Along with that, it also includes the music videos for Kenny Loggin's Danger Zone, Berlin's Take My Breath Away, and Harold Faltermeyer and Steve Steven's Top Gun Anthem. Sadly, no video for Playing With The Boys.

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Retro Spins: Robert Plant - Shaken 'N' Stirred

By 1985, Robert Plant was looking towards a different musical direction. In his mind, he was bound and determined to become the opening act for Talking Heads, and as a result of this started crafting more oblique pieces of music. The stylistic pivot, particularly on tracks like the single Too Loud, was largely rejected and ridiculed by his mainstream audiences at the time, and he never actually secured the opening slot he sought.

Regardless, his third solo effort, Shaken 'N' Stirred garnered him another gold record, and the Mainstream Rock chart number one hit, Little By Little. It would further reach number thirty-six on the Billboard Hot 100. Sixes And Sevens would also make its way to the mainstream charts, peaking at number eighteen.

On thing is for sure. This album is different from his previous work. It starts off with the strangely intriguing Hip To Hoo and only goes deeper down the rabbit hole from there.

Too Loud reminds me of the experimental shifting sounds that Prince dove into between 1986 with his Camille persona. It almost has that quirky charm that you would get from something like Housequake.

I think its overall uniqueness is what makes it stand out, and mind you, that's in a good way. I actually kind of dug it. Mainly because it was so different. With that said, I honestly only grabbed one more track for the shuffle list, that being Easily Lead.

You definitely have to come into this one with a clear mindset. If you're expecting a traditional rock and roll album, you're not going to get that. Though you will get moments of it, such as on the track, Trouble Your Money. However, if you're interested in hearing an experimental Robert Plant trying on different hats, then you'll be in for a treat.

Personally, I'd like more from him like this. While I'd love that to be what happened on future albums, sadly, I'm already aware that by 1988's Now And Zen, he had retracted back to his rock roots.

Following its release, Led Zeppelin reunited for an appearance at Live Aid. Robert Plant, Jimmy Page, and John Paul Jones, joined by guest drummers Phil Collins and Tony Thompson, alongside bassist Paul Martinez performed Rock And Roll, Whole Lotta Love, and Stairway To Heaven.

The performance would be widely panned by critics, and Plant himself would later call it horrendous. Throughout it, the dual drumming of Collins and Thompson was out of sync, Page's guitar out of tune, and Plant's voice strained. It was considered so bad that the band have blocked its release from subsequent home video releases, including the 2004 four-disc DVD release.

In the band's defense, Plant's appearance at Live Aid was initially planned to be with his side project, The Honey Dippers. However, this quickly spiraled into a full-blown reunion, putting the members on stage, but having not played together since 1980. Essentially, little practice and rehearsal time garnered the end results.

With that said, this wouldn't be the last time Robert Plant would be part of a massive concert, only to perform so poorly that he's block future releases. Such was the case at the 1991 Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert, where he absolutely butchered his cover of Innuendo. So, you know, say what you want, but I think at the end of the day, this is a Robert Plant issue. Either from not being prepared or not having the talent his legacy professes. Regardless of which it is, it's unprofessional.

As noted above, Plant would go on to release 1988's Now And Zen, a return to form album for him. It would become his biggest selling solo album of all time, and his final release in the decade. It's where I pick up tomorrow and wrap things up.

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Retro Spins: 10,000 Maniacs - The Wishing Chair

After self-funding and releasing their 1982 debut EP and studio album, Human Conflict Number Five and Secrets Of The I Ching, respectively, 10,000 Maniacs not only found themselves with a manager, Peter Leak, but through his efforts, a recording contract with Elektra Records.

1985's The Wishing Chair would receive moderately favorable reviews, reaching a silver sales certification. Despite this, the Maniacs would yet to achieve any Billboard Hot 100 singles, instead staying primarily popular among college radio stations.

Right from the starting gate, this is definitely absent of the charm that made Secrets Of The I Ching unique. This is straight up folk rock, whereas its predecessor felt experimental, rooted in reggae. It somewhat kills the momentum high I was on with my previous Retro Spin and was a bit disappointing.

Truthfully, the album got lost for me in background noise, with only one track, Just As The Tide Was A Flowing, standing out as memorable. Mind you, I use the term "memorable" lightly, as at this point, after hearing the whole album, I don't honestly remember it.

It would turn out that I am not the only one who was disappointed with the change in musical stye. So too was co-founding member, Lombardo, who departed in 1986. He would join up with Mary Ramsey, forming the folk act, John And Mary.

Remaining members, Natalie Merchant, Robert Buck, Dennis Drew, Steve Gustafson, and Jerome Augustyniak would return to the studio to release 1987's In My Tribe, the Maniacs highest selling, and commercially successful album to date.

Overall, so far I'm getting about what I expected from 10,000 Maniacs, which is not much at all. They're not a bad group; they're just not hit singles good. For the most part, their tunes are forgettable, and that in and of itself is their biggest flaw.

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Retro Spins: Squeeze - Cosi Fan Tutti Frutti

After a successful one-off charity gig in 1985 with lineup from 1980's Angrybargy, Chris Difford, Glenn Tilbrook, Jools Holland, Gilson Lavis, and John Bentley decided to pick up where Squeeze had disbanded in 1982 and return to the studio. There was just one catch, Bentley was ousted in lieu of new bassist, Keith Wilkinson, as the other members wanted to go in a different musical direction.

It kind of reminds me of that scene from Aqua Teen Hunger Force's episode, Knapsack. Here, check this out, and picture Frylock as Bentley. Specifically starting at the 35 second mark and summing it up around the 55 second mark.

See what I'm saying?

To hammer this aspect home, Cosi Fan Tutti Frutti kicks off with an eighteen second drum and heavily bass driven intro to Big Beng, as if to ensure the listener firmly understands the band has a new bassist. I'm not going to lie, Wilkinson knows how to play, and he definitely brings a funky aspect to the band.

As a whole, the sounds coming through on this album feel more complex and layered, and this is most likely driven by the double-tracked keyboard parts. It's what would lead to Squeeze not being able to perform the songs live without adding Holland's brother, Christopher to the tour as an additional keyboardist.

Overall, it was a pretty good listening experience, and I found some stuff to add to my shuffle list. In addition to the aforementioned opening track, these included By Your Side, King George Street, and Last Time Forever. More importantly, it reinvigorates me to dive into the next album, which coincidentally also has the song that introduced me to the band back in the day.

For now, I think that pretty much wraps this one up.

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Retro Spins: W.A.S.P. - The Last Command

Depending on the day of the week, if you were to ask founder, and lead singer Blackie Lawless what W.A.S.P. was an acronym for, he'd give you any number of answers. These could include, White-Anglo Saxson Protestant, We Are Satan's People, or even, We Ain't Sure, Pal. However, the most commonly accepted one is We Are Sexual Perverts, and this is because the words are etched on the center labels of the band's self-titled debut album from 1984.

Regardless, the band has its roots in the now defunct Los Angeles band, Circus Circus, which both Lawless, and other co-founder of W.A.S.P., Randy Piper were in. Rik Fox and Tony Richards would round out the original 1982 lineup and make a name for itself around the surrounding local areas for their raunchy, and often shocking stage shows.

This lineup didn't last long, as Fox would be dismissed, and be replaced by Don Costa. However, he too wouldn't last long, and Brayden Parker would take on the role as bassist. After he departed, Lawless would opt to take over both lead vocals and bass. By 1983, Chris Holmes also joined the band, completing the roster of Holmes, Lawless, Piper, and Richards, who would sign with Capital Record and record their first album.

I already touched on the controversial nature of their initially intended track, Animal (F**k Like A Beast), as well as that the album as a whole performed well, leading to subsequential tours with many notable acts. For more on that, check out yesterday's post. Point being, the album was successful, and the band returned to the studio to record their sophomore follow-up, The Last Command (1985).

This, however, would be without drummer Tony Richards, who was fired in 1984 by Lawless at the demand of their record label for his substance abuse. Steve Riley would not only come in as the new drummer for the album, but the aforementioned tours.

Today, I actually get a song from W.A.S.P. that I was familiar with. No, not from my childhood, but instead from my past recent years of Google searching 80's music and coming across their music video for the tune. While it's definitely the best the album has to offer, the rest isn't bad by any means. Fistful Of Diamonds, Jack Action, Widowmaker, and Cries In The Night were additional standout tracks.

As I noted yesterday, my ears weren't necessarily ready to return to heavy metal after coming off the likes of Megadeth and Iron Maiden and moving on to the more hair band stylings of Hanoi Rocks. Now that the initial system shock had passed, I was back onboard. This also allowed me to appreciate more the slick guitar work of Chris Holmes and Randy Piper, while also getting more into the raspy voice of Blackie Lawless. I wish I could praise the drumming of Steve Riley, but candidly, it felt basic.

After completing The Last Command tour, Piper opted to leave the band and sign on with Alice Cooper. However, when he found out that he would not be the lead guitarist for Cooper, quit. Chris Holmes would step into the roll as lead guitarist, with Lawless putting down the bass for rhythm guitar. This left the roll of bassist open, which was filled by Johnny Rod.

W.A.S.P. released their third album, Inside The Electric Circus in 1986. While it would ultimately lead to mainstream success, it wouldn't be a smooth ride. I'll pick up there tomorrow.

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Retro Spins: Warlock - Hellbound

I'm fully stoked to dive into today's Retro Spin. Before yesterday, I'd never heard of Warlock and only got their albums after coming across them on a list of heavy metal bands from the 80's. Admittedly, it was the incredibly reasonable pricing that got me to take the plunge on their four studio albums. After playing through yesterday's Burning The Witches, their 1984 debut, I considered myself an immediate fan. Will it stay that way? I hope so, but let's find out as I continue with their sophomore released, Hellbound (1985).

A disastrous distribution and poor financing, which not only hindered the band's commercial momentum, but derailed their support tour, led to Warlock switching labels from Mausoleum Records to Phonogram. With distribution handled by Vertigo Records, the band entered the studio to record and release their second album.

With its release, the band garnered attention around the UK and Germany, granting them the opportunity for a full European tour. This would eventually bring them to Camden Palace Theater in London, where they recorded the concert film, Metal Racer, released that same year. The UK embraced Warlock, naming them Best New Band that year in Kerrang! magazine. Doro Pesch would also be voted Best Female Singer by readers of Metal Forces.

After performing at Metal Hammer Festival, alongside Metallica, Venom, Running Wild, Pretty Maids, Nazareth, and Wishbone Ash, things seemed to be on a trajectory of onward and upward. Warlock had carved their name in the wall in the annals of heavy metal.

Had the newness worn off already? Or was I just being picky at this point? Hellbound, while good, didn't deliver as well as Burning The Witches. It was a solid listening experience, in particular the guitar solos of Rudy Graf, and Peter Szigeti.

Disappointingly, as a whole, things weren't as catchy. What I noticed in reviewing the track listing was that whereas in their debut Graf and Pesch were the main songwriting, for this album, not only are all the band members credited, but so too are several outside sources. Could this simply be a problem of too many hands in the pot? Possibly. When you have five or more people each trying to put their own stamp on a tune, things can get muddy really quickly.

Again, it's a good album. It just doesn't have that oomph that the previous did. What it also doesn't have is many standout tracks, of the nine, I picked two, Shout It Out, and Catch My Heart. However, unlike Burning The Witches, which left me wanting to play it again, Hellbound is a relatively one and done for me.

The Hellbound tour would also serve as the last for Rudy Graf, who would leave after it ended. Though it's not been confirmed, it's speculated that tensions internally with other members, and the intense, demanding nature of the band's rapid rise led to his exit. Niko Arvanitis would replace him.

Unlike a lot of other bands, there's not much history being provided between Warlock albums, so tomorrow, I'll just jump right into 1986's True As Steel and keep the music flowing.

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Retro Spins: Grim Reaper - Fear No Evil

Not much appears to have been told about the origins of the English metal band, Grim Reaper. Though it's stated they started in 1979, by 1981, only Nick Bowcott remained. He would recruit Dave Wanklin on bass, Lee Harris on Drums, and Steve Grimmett on vocals, taking this lineup to a 1982 Battle Of The Bands, where they won first place against over a hundred other bands.

While the win came with studio time to record a demo, Grimmett, at the time, was also the unofficial lead singer for Chateaux, who were already signed to Darryl Johnston's Ebony Records. Grimmett handed them the demo, resulting in them getting signed to the label as well.

Their debut, See You In Hell would be released in 1983, firing up the Billboard 200 to peak at seventy-three. Despite this, the title track would go on to be ranked number thirty-eight on VH1's 40 Most Awesomely Bad Metal Songs Ever countdown.

Around this time, Lee Harris would be replaced by Adrian Jacques, who in turn would be replaced by Marc Simon in early 1985. Not much is stated in terms of why Harris left, but purportedly, Jacques departed to attend university.

Reaper's follow-up album, Fear No Evil, would be released in 1985, but fail to chart higher than their debut, stalling at one hundred eleven on the Billboard 200. Despite this, the band was starting to gain recognition for the guitar work of Bowcott, and distinct vocals of Grimmett. They'd embark on a successful world tour, which culminated in an appearance at Texxas Jam that year, performing before 20,000 attendees alongside Deep Purple, Scorpions, Night Ranger, Ted Nugent, Bon Jovi, and Victory.

Fear No Evil kicks off with the title track. Right away, I can hear a more polished production sound. The band had definitely learned a thing or two between their debut and sophomore albums.

While I want to say that in addition to the title track that Matter Of Time stood out. However, if I'm being honest, by this point in this post, which saw me reading more about their future history than actually paying attention, I don't honestly remember how that song went.

As a whole, Fear No Evil, the album, wasn't as engaging as their debut. Maybe this was simply because I literally jumped right into it, and the "something new" first impression had already worn off, but overall, I just wasn't hearing many catchy tunes. By the end of it, my thought was that it was just okay. Nothing bad nothing good, but also nothing memorable.

Though the band promptly returned to the studio to begin work on their third album, Rock You To Hell, it would not be a smooth release. Disputes over royalties would see them clashing with their label Ebony Records, and litigation would soon follow. All of that drama unfolds tomorrow.

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Retro Spins: Megadeth - Killing Is My Business... And Business Is Good!

Having amassed a pile of CD's over the past few months, thanks in part to a co-worker who started pointing me towards 80's metal bands, I'm now set to task on actually going through them. It's going to take me the better part of June, and knowing little to nothing about it, it's relatively all new territory.

I'm kicking things off with Megadeth, the band I'm most familiar with out of everything I picked up. In hindsight, it's kind of odd that it's taken me this long to get around to the band. Well, let me rephrase, the 80's discs of the band. I actually have a handful from the 90's, which is the period of the band I know, and like tunes from.

Two months after parting ways with Metallica, Dave Mustaine would meet bassist, David Ellefson. Fueled by hate and the desire for revenge against his ex-band mates, the two formed Megadeth. Though several vocalists tried, Mustaine would ultimately decide to do the singing himself.

With Richard Girod on drums, the band recorded a three-track demo, calling it Last Rites. This would garner the attention of Combat Records, who signed them in 1984, giving them an initial $8,000.00 to record an album, and $4,000.00 more when those funds ran out. Depending on who you asked, this session was either hindered by the money being spent on drugs and food, or things went well, and there were no issues. At this point, it's just more of that Dave Mustaine muddied lore.

The lineup at this time consisted of Dave Mustaine on vocals, piano, and guitar, Chris Poland on guitars, David Ellefson on bass, Gar Samuelson on Drums, and possible Lee Raunch, who also provided drums. Killing Is My Business... And Business Is Good! would be released in 1985 and be met with positive critical response. This is a bit of an abridged version of their history. I might go more in depth tomorrow.

Their debut is chaotic and intense. Speed and thrash are definitely the name of the game, and the band gives everything they've got to deliver this. There's definitely talent behind the instruments.

While as a whole, it's decent from start to finish, where it loses me is the vocals. Not that they're bad, but rather that I can't understand them half the time.

I do question Megadeth's decision to cover the Lee Hazelwood penned, and Nancy Sinatra sung These Boots Were Made For Walking. Sure, their version is definitely faster, but it comes off more so as a parody than something to be taken seriously.

I suppose if there was a track that stood out for me, that would be Looking Down The Cross. Granted, I have no clue what the lyrics are about, but I really dug the guitar riff throughout it. But again, overall, I liked the album, and I'm looking forward to jumping into 1986's Peace Sells... But Who's Buying?

Beyond that, I don't have much more to say at this point.

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Retro Spins: Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers - Southern Accents

Led by its lead single, and quirky Alice in Wonderland homage music video, Don't Come Around Here No More would catapult the band into the MTV era. However, the album would be far from what it was initially planned out to be.

When Petty conceived Southern Accents, it was intended to be a concept album. However, this would quickly turn murky when Eurythmics alum Dave Stewart stepped in to co-write tracks. With him also came a shift in musical style. While it would still ultimately be labeled a Southern rock album, the truth was that the boys were dabbling into a more synth pop sound.

Some critics would call it ambitious, while others would say it got lost in its own ambition. Then there would be those who would rank it among the best from the band. In the end, the opinions didn't hinder the albums momentum up the charts, where it peaked at number seven on the Billboard 200. Further, it would once again return them to platinum selling artist status.

For me, Southern Accents includes my favorite tune from them, and that of course is the aforementioned Don't Come Around Here No More. I remember when I first saw the video on MTV, though not the timeframe it was. I couldn't take my eyes off of it. Visually, it was amazing, and the song itself resonated in my mind. Ironically, as I got older, I actually thought it was a tune from the 90's. I was ecstatic to learn it could be added to my 80's collection.

As for the rest of the album, you can definitely hear the influence of Stewart, not only in his three contributions, but across others. However, with that said, it's definitely a departure from Petty's previous work, and candidly, it kind of threw me off. With his previous album, Long After Dark, I had finally embraced the band's sound, and it made me eager to hear more. So, going from that to this, was a bit of a shock.

It's a decent album, and there's standout tracks in It Ain't Nothing To Me, and Mary's New Car. However, as a whole, it was really unexpected. I suppose it was also not what I really wanted. Like I said, I'd come around to the sound of the band, and my ears were ready, and maybe even anticipating hearing more of that.

The next stop for Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers was Live Aid, where they took the stage in Philadelphia to perform American Girl, The Waiting, Rebels, and Refugee. From there, they embarked on a massive world tour, which led to the live album Pack Up the Plantation: Live!, released that same year. Rather than return to the studio, the band would instead take Bob Dylan up on his invitation, and head out with him for his True Confessions Tour. Finally, in 1987, the world would receive their next album, Let Me Up (I've Had Enough), and that's where we go tomorrow.

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Retro Spins: Sade - Promise

When Sade released their second studio album in 1985, they were still riding the waves of their multi-platinum debut, Diamond Life (1984), which was still staying strong on the Billboard 200, and would be through 1986. As such, Promise immediately joined it, surpassing it to reach number one. It too would go multi-platinum, and peak on multiple charts across the globe.

Despite its chart success, critics were not kind upon its release. Anthony DeCurtis of Rolling Stone would say, "The careful elegance of the production and instrumental settings seems little more than a strategy to conceal the limitations of Sade's vocal range and skills as a song stylist." Meanwhile, Robert Christgau of The Village Voice would state, "Even when it's this sumptuous, there's a problem with aural wallpaper—once you start paying attention to it, it's not wallpaper anymore, it's pictures on the wall. And while as a wallpaper these pictures may be something, they can't compete with the ones you've hung up special." Admittedly, the latter seems like a word salad that's difficult to decipher. Perhaps it's best summed up by Spin Magazine's quote, "Sade is a torch singer without the torch. Her voice has no blood, no guts, and no soul." Basically, critics were saying that Sade stunk, even though the charts were not reflecting this.

While I won't say it stunk, it's definitely not for me. Promise is more or less the same that was delivered with their debut. For me, the hit, Sweetest Taboo, is why I bought it, but on the same hand don't really necessarily have much love for the tune.

If I'm being honest, I found the whole listening experience to be boring, but at the same time, I expected this. I can respect what the band was doing and acknowledge that they had massive hits in the 80's. Frankly, that's the reason why I own them. Sade is me checking a box in my 80's collection, and I have no problem in being honest in that aspect.

I didn't expect to like this album, and I didn't. Everything sounds like a lounge act straight out of Leisure Suit Larry. It's great ambience if you're running around as Larry Laffer, but dull and drawn out if you're just sitting there taking it all in. To put it bluntly, it's quite boring. So much so that I wanted to give up on listening to it and ultimately had to force myself through it.

I will finish out their 80's discography, which consists of one more album, 1988's Stronger Than Pride, but I'm certainly not looking forward to it. Sade isn't bad music. It's just not my kind of music.

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Retro Spins: The Flirts - Blondes Brunettes & Redheads

At this point in time, I'm growing a bit bored with The Flirts. What started out as something "new", and a novelty has kind of run its course. Still, I have two more albums to get through, todays Blondes Brunettes & Redheads, and tomorrow's Questions Of The Heart. So, let's dig in, and get there.

Though there's not much to say about the group itself, the album is noteworthy for the track, You & Me. It went all the way to number one on the Billboard Dance Charts, making it their biggest hit of all time. This was followed by New Toy, which peaked at number five.

Great, so what you're telling me is that this album's going to be the greatest of the bunch, and well worth the journey to get to it!

Yeah, not so much. I don't profess to be a big fan of the Billboard Dance Charts, so I'm not sure what exactly was going on at the time that You & Me went to the number one spot, but I definitely feel like there should have been something better. Hold please...

Okay, I'm back. I checked the Billboard Dance Charts, and I'm admittedly confused. You & Me was up against the likes of Stevie Wonder's Part Time Lover, Diana Ross's Eatin' Alive, Aretha Franklin's Who's Zoomin' Who?, Sheila E's A Love Bizarre, and Scritti Politti's Perfect Way. Mind you, that's just five of the top ten for that week. Well, six if you include You & Me. The point being, no way that The Flirt's track is better than any of those. Sorry, it's just not. It must have been a fluke.

Much like yesterday's play session of Made In America, I'm seeing familiarity between their songs with each other. The chorus to Just Another Heartache could easily be replaced with their debut album's Jukebox (Don't Put Another Dime). At this point, it feels like a lot of self-plagiarism is occurring, or Bobby Orlando's signature style is so finely tuned, that everything sounds the same. Either way, it feels lazy, and detracts from the much better songs that are being copied.

Surprisingly, there was a standout track that seemingly came out of know where. As Island Boy came around, I found my head bobbing to the beat, and my ears really digging the rotating vocals of the girls. It was a nice hidden gem, and really unexpected.

The Flirts finished off the 80's with their aforementioned 1986 album, Questions Of The Heart. It would serve to be their final studio release until 1992's Take A Chance On Me. But leave us not get that far ahead. Let's first get through 1986 tomorrow.

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Retro Spins: Jane Wiedlin - Jane Wiedlin

The story of the Go-Go's wasn't the picture-perfect band showcasing a group of friends living the rock and roll dream. Instead, it's a story of bitter rivalry, jealousy, led by four punk rock rooted women dressed up to play MTV pop stars. While on screen they worked harmoniously to deliver massive hits of the 80's, behind the scenes, when not abusing substances, they were embroiled in battle over money.

As their hits, We Got The Beat, Our Lips Are Sealed, and Vacation shot up the charts, royalties started steadily rolling in for the respective members who penned the tracks, Charlotte Caffey, Kathy Valentine, and Jane Wiedlin. While they soon found themselves living the high life, buying homes and cars, remaining members, Belinda Carlisle, and Gina Schock were on the opposite spectrum, making a mere fraction of what the others were receiving.

For Belinda Carlisle, this was particularly a problem. The label had pushed her to the forefront of all publicity. As lead singer of the band, she was often the focal point of magazine photographs. Yet the guitarists all had more money than her.

Coupled with consistent drug and alcohol abuse from all five members, the train would derail in 1984 after just three albums. Though Belinda would go on to be the most successful post Go-Gos, it would be Jane who'd first kick off a solo career in 1985 with her self-titled debut.

The album wouldn't perform too well, though it would manage to hit the Billboard 200, peaking at one-hundred twenty-seven. From it came only a mildly successful single, Blue Kiss, which peaked at seventy-seven on the Billboard Hot 100.

In terms of someone I would consider a legacy artist, her debut is pretty weak. But I suppose a contributing factor to that would possibly be that I wasn't exactly the biggest Go-Go's fan either, which is what this album sounds like.

I guess one of my biggest hangups is that while Wiedlin is a strong songwriter, she doesn't have the voice to step to the frontline as a lead singer. She also doesn't really have the presence for it.

Admittedly, picking up this album was one of those checkbox moments for me. It wasn't one I necessarily wanted and already knew the lead single wasn't vibing with me. But, you know, collector's gonna collect. I find myself doing that more and more as of late. Just completing 80's era discographies for the sake of doing so. It's making for one heck of a collection, but at the same time, mediocrity is taking up a lot of space. Maybe I should stop...I won't.

Nor did Jane Wiedlin. Though she would take three years between her debut and follow-up, 1988's Fur would fare much better on the charts, delivering my favorite solo track from her. Until I get to that one (tomorrow), that's about all I have to say for today. Thanks for stopping by to let an old man ramble.

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Retro Spins: Twisted Sister - Come Out And Play

Coming off their massive success, Stay Hungry, Twisted Sister was ready to go on to bigger and better things. Sadly, their fanbase wouldn't be onboard with any of it. Upon completion of the 1985 album, Come Out And Play, the band opted to release the Shangri-Las cover of Leader Of The Pack as their lead single. Fans hated it.

This was followed by, Be Chrool To Your Scuel. The song prominently featured Alice Cooper on co-vocals, and the music video was even better, featuring Bobcat Goldthwait, Billy Joel, Brian Setzer, and Clarence Clemons. Unfortunately, the music video would be banned by MTV on the grounds of being offensive.

Things didn't get better for the band when they set out on their promotional tour. With sales significantly lower than their previous album, this translated to even worse ticket sales. Several shows so drastically undersold that they were ultimately cancelled. To try to push the album, Atlantic released a re-mixed cut of their 1982 Under The Blade, and in 1986 also released Come Out and Play: The Videos on VHS. None of this seemed to help.

It kicks off with the title track, and has a nod to the 1979 film, The Warriors, with its use of clanking bottles, and Dee Snyder saying, "Come out and play...with Twisted Sister." The song eventually segues into Leader Of The Pack, which, despite fan opinion, remains one of my favorites from the guys.

Be Chrool To Your Scuel, is actually a new one for me. I suppose with my limited exposure to Twisted Sister outside of MTV, this makes sense. I think as a song it's got cheesy lyrics, which would easily make it forgettable. However, coupled with the video, it gets that added charm from not only the theatrical over the top nature of the band, but the cameos and guest appearances. Personally, I'm not sure why MTV banned it. I don't see anything about it that's offensive.

It's followed by, I Believe In You, which is a bit on the ballad side, but somehow resonates with me. However, this was relatively all that stood out for me on the album. As a whole, it was okay. Nothing really specially, and definitely not as strong as the material from 1984's Stay Hungry.

Though it wouldn't happen instantaneously, Come Out And Play would be among the earlier CD's produced to be taken out of print. As a result of this, it commands the highest asking price of all their albums on secondary markets. Also of note is that the cassette and CD releases have a bonus track, King Of The Fools, which was not included on the vinyl for time constraints.

Upon the completion of the tour, A.J. Pero would quit to rejoin Cities. Meanwhile, Snyder would branch off into his own solo project, recording the tracks that would become Twisted Sisters final album, 1987's Love Is For Suckers. Things, however, would come to a head, and the band would ultimately disband after its release. All of that story unfolds tomorrow.

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Retro Spins: Marillion - Misplaced Childhood

With their underperforming sophomore album, Fugazi, Marillion needed something big to rebound back. This would come with their third album, 1985's Misplaced Childhood. Lead singer Fish would conceive the concept album while enduring a ten-hour acid trip.

Though considered more mainstream, the album is also their first full concept from start to finish, with each side containing two continuous pieces of music. The story has, "thematic elements of lost love, sudden success, acceptance, and lost childhood, along with an upbeat ending." - Some random guy on Wiki.

Misplaced Childhood would shoot up the UK charts, becoming their first and only number one album, staying there for forty-one weeks. It would also reach the top ten in multiple countries, such as Germany (3), Switzerland (6), and the Netherlands (6), to name a few. Even the US gave it more love than previous albums which hovered around the high one hundreds and low two hundreds, with Childhood peaking at forty-seven.

Lead single Kayleigh would be the bands only song to hit the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at seventy-four. It would fare much better in the UK, where it reached number two on the Singles Chart. It was followed by Lavender, which reached number five, and the less successful Heart Of Lothain, which peaked at twenty-nine.

The album would reach platinum certification in the UK and Germany, and be followed by gold certification in Switzerland, making it their most successful release to date, and their best of all time in their career. 1985 was a big year in pop rock music, so this was no small achievement.

Kayleigh is one serious banger of a track. This is the kind of Marillion I want in my life. Good instrumentation packed into a feasible four-minute run time, with catchy riffs and vocals.

This, however, is where the concept portion of the album becomes problematic. Because the tracks ebb and flow into each other without so much as a breath in between, there's no distinguishing the beginning or end of each song. As stand-alone tracks these either incoherently start or abruptly cut off. That's lame.

The trend with Marillion seems to be that I'm only coming away with one song after each listening session. That's not a good average, and far below what I expected. Personally, I also didn't see Misplaced Childhood as any better than their previous albums. It was just kind of more of the same.

At their peak, Marillion seemed poised to only get bigger and better. Unfortunately, this wouldn't be the case. Despite their 1987 released Clutching At Straws being their second highest album of all time, it would see a massive decline in sales. After extensive touring, it also brought the band to an ultimatum decision that would either make or break them. Which option did they choose? Well, you'll have to come back tomorrow to find out...Or Google it. I suppose Google is always an option.

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Retro Spins: Kix - Midnite Dynamite

By 1985, a cleaned-up Ronnie "10/10" Younkins was back in the band, seeing the departure of his previous replacement, Brad Divens. Perhaps unfortunately, the band looked to recapture their earlier hard rock days. To achieve this, Kix would work with Beau Hill, producer of bands such as Warrant and Ratt.

Upon its release, Midnite Dynamite spawned two singles on the Hot Mainstream Rock chart. These included the title track, which peaked at number eighteen, and Cold Shower, which reached twenty-three. The two would also receive music videos, though I don't personally recall ever seeing these on MTV. Though they wouldn't receive singles, tracks Sex, and Bang Bang (Balls Of Fire) would see steady rotation on the radio.

Things kick off with the title track, which is pretty okay. Immediately noticeable is the sound. It's definitely not mainstream pop, ala the previous album. However, it still has its charm, as it adopts an 80's hair metal edge. I'm okay with that.

Unfortunately, I kept getting interrupted while listening to Midnite Dynamite, so I wasn't able to pay as much attention to it as I wanted. While I did hear okay tracks, Bang Bang (Balls Of Fire), Layin' Rubber, Walkin' Away, and Sex, my consistently having to pause it, or simply not paying attention may have resulted in me missing other good stuff.

What I did hear was okay. Nothing really to jump up and down about, but decent. As such, I don't necessarily see myself going back to see what I missed. Not anytime soon anyway.

Kix would have a platinum record on the horizon, their only one in their career, and with it, their top forty hit, Don't Close Your Eyes. That's where I pick up tomorrow, when I listen to their last album of the era, 1988's Blow My Fuse.

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