Just Can't Get Enough: New Wave Hits Of The '80s, Vol. 13

The Alarm showing up on two consecutive volumes is unforgivable.

Some favorites on here, but Free Nelson Mandela is one of the most (ultimately) uplifting of all songs, so ...

Relax and Cruel Summer are also great. Dwight Twilley is a power pop wiz whose whole early career is something of a deep cut at this point, but Girls is more of a new wave outlier.

Dance Hall Days forever.

^ same

Was going to run this tomorrow, but all good.

1. Free Nelson Mandela
2. The Killing Moon
3. Hold Me Now

Sorry buddy, I noticed the gap and thought I'd fill it. You got next.

Thompson Twins wins this one. Wang chung gets an honorary mention for the lead singer siring a 90's Eastenders teen heartthrob

Dance Hall Days and it ain't close. That song has aged fantastically.

The hero is exposed when
His crimes are brought to the light of day
Won't be feelin' sorry, sorry, sorry
On the judgement day.

Dance Hall Days is great. One of my favorite second hits from a band many dismiss as a one-hit wonder. That and Greg Kihns The Break-up Song.

What was their hit before Dance Hall Days?

Can't tell if that's a joke...

Dance Hall Days was 1984. Everybody Have Fun Tonight, Hypnotize Me, and Let's Go happened in 1986/87.

Anyway, there's a 7" recording of Dance Hall Days from 1982 that's never been released in any other form since then and I haven't been able to find it digitized. I've been curious about it for a long time, but it's probably not as good as the version everyone knows, so I don't let it trouble me much.

Had no idea Dance Hall came first!

Here's the 12" version of the 1982 Dance Hall Days (produced by Tim Friese-Green!):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DymnMcCzU4I

I always liked Fire in the Twilight from the Breakfast Club soundtrack, it really belonged in a John Carpenter movie, not the Breakfast Club

Yeah, I was able to find several rips of the 12" version, but I still want to know what it sounds like as a concise "single."

I am possibly congenitally incapable of not voting for "Whisper to a Scream" for anything it is nominated for. I would probably vote for it for president.

That would also be true of "Dancing With Tears in My Eyes" if "Whisper to a Scream" weren't on here.

Killing Moon or Hero Takes a Fall

The drummer on "Whisper to a Scream" kinda swipes the "I Want Candy" drum beat

Some really strong tracks here! Overall this may be the best of the series, IMO.

But come on, "Cruel Summer" cannot not win this!

Toss-up between "Cruel Summer" vs. "Killing Moon" for me.

I'm really surprised a few of these songs were held back until Vol. 13 tbh.

bear in mind these were released five at a time over a period of like a year

Ultravox.

Well, that was easy!

Are these albums always so UK dominated? "Relax" for me.

"Cruel Summer" vs "Killing Moon" vs "(Feels Like) Heaven" - will vote for the latter as it seems to have less support so far.

dance hall days

everybody wang chung tonite

xpost Seriously, look at the track list for the next couple of volumes. There's some great stuff to come! I want to say the next is my favorite?

Oh I forgot about Feels Like Heaven, that's a good song.

Am I going to be the only vote for Icicle Works? "Killing Moon" will be my very close second choice, but man, that song is so good.

Both those songs are awesome. This volume is among the reasons why that earlier claim that the series runs out of steam was bunk.

Lots of favourite songs on this but an easy choice to pick Dance Hall Days

i love 'whisper to a scream' but it's not easy to forget what huge mcnob ian mcnabb is

gotta say that if they'd put 'tenderness' on this instead of 'general public', that would've been an easy winner for me

My initial reaction is "Cruel Summer," but I'm surprising myself by how fondly I remember "Hold Me Now." The production is so spacious and hypnotic. I worked a factory job where the radio was always tuned to lite adult contemporary when it was a huge hit, and I always looked forward to it coming up in the rotation, like 4 1/2 minutes of zen.

There is something wrong with my brain so that for literally years I thought that Dance Hall Days was a Bowie song. Yeah, I don't know either.

Ultravox - Dancing With Tears In My Eyes 4:10
The Icicle Works - Whisper To A Scream (Birds Fly) 3:48
Echo & The Bunnymen - The Killing Moon 5:46

This is too hard.

OK fine - Ultravox BUT can we just acknowledge that Whisper to a Scream is great because it is.

I adore Cruel Summer.

"Dancing with Tears in My Eyes" has some of the most painful singing I've ever heard. I can't believe it's their second biggest UK hit.

O_O

BUT IT IS SO POWERFUL

Ure sounds like the dude from Styx

now THIS on the other hand...I wish this had been the mega hit.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TYxh1ANUjM4

I love "Killing Moon" and "Hold Me Now" but in different ways. "Cruel Summer" grebt too. Can't quite embrace "Dance Hall Days."

Take your baby by the hair
And pull her close and there, there, there
And take your baby by the ears
And play upon her darkest fears

Those lyrics always brought to mind a hair-grabbing ear-grabbing fetishist squaredance caller, encouraging yanking people by their head, and fomenting general ho-down chaos. I'm sure I'm alone in this vision, but it killed the song for me.

looooool, thanks Bendy! (I can't get down with the Dance Hall Days love either.)

The singer looked like Dr. Smith from Lost in Space. That may have contributed to the vibe I got.

DANGER DANGER Dr. Smith is grabbing Will Robinson by the ears.

"Dancing with Tears in My Eyes" has some of the most painful singing I've ever heard. I can't believe it's their second biggest UK hit.

― morning wood truancy (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Friday, April 20, 2018 3:48 PM (one hour ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Great singing, you mean! I agree with you on 'One Small Day', though - one of my favourite tracks of the '80s full stop, that.

Bunnymen over Ultravox.

I didn't mind Wang Chung initially but then he just spread to every corner of pop culture and burned me out.

Actually Wamg Chung is the name of the band, the singer is called Wang Chung's Monster.

actual lols

gotta go with the core, the heart music. bananarama

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

the appearance of Cleanin' Up the Town from the Ghostbusters soundtrack continues to mystify

Minimum Wage Rock & Roll (Arista, 1980)
They climax with their own "Respect," which climaxes "If you don't like rock 'n' roll music you can kiss my ass." And they mean it, man, though their idea of rock 'n' roll--AOR guitar breaks, rhythms less funky than Jeff Porcaro's or Don Christensen's, harmonies that owe the Beach Boys and Steely Dan--is too uncool to break through the prejudices of the hipsters prone to cheer five blacks and a Chicano for putting it out. Sometimes they aim too straight for the charts, but when they play their existential joke--speaking up for dishwashers and shoeshine boys, for blacks who think immigrants are destroying the neighborhood and blacks who win one for the coach and blacks who join the Klan so they can join a band--I say cool. Inspirational Verse: "Bet you never heard music like this by spades." B+

American Worker (Arista, 1982)
At first I was no more impressed by this professional black arena-rock than I am by, say, professional lesbian folk-rock. Less, actually--bombast is annoying. But in the end I was disarmed by the audacity, esprit, and sheer versatility--not many arena-rockers are comfortable simulating funk, reggae, and surf music--and won over by the songs themselves, every one informed by the kind of middle-American compassion you might expect from a black band with enough soul to hope to touch the arena-rock masses. B+

but why not the Boys are Back in Town from 48 Hours? or even Magic by (googling...) Mick Smiley? Who is that?

https://medium.com/cuepoint/how-mick-smiley-made-the-best-ghostbusters-song-then-disappeared-efccd93cce8d

I've always remembered that song from when I first saw the film at the time but never got round to hearing it since.

Ha I was shopping the other day and heard cruel summer playing and thought "was this polled on the jcge thread because it should win one? but we're at like the teens, and surely by now... I've somehow missed it." Srsly.

this collection seems like the most listenable one to me now...not sure of my vote yet

"Hold Me Now."

^^ one of the best songs of all time

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

Christ, who mobilised the secret Bunnymen fan forums?

Holy shit!

lol

it is a pretty great song...

well makes sense, "The Killing Moon" is one of the most iconic songs of the 80s. a KROQ staple.

Wow. it's a blowout!

Anyway, I predict the next one will have just as many strong contenders.

The silent majority comes through for Echo.

it's a pretty good song

also an lir giant, yet among my group, the entire album was dragged sorta hard, like it was a new wave nj? not simple minds level bad, but... i liked it ok and still do. this result is absurd imo.

ended up forgetting to vote but at the time it woulda been Bananarama, China Crisis, Special AKA.

Passing the baton to Johnny Fever for the rest of the series (if he wants it).

Missed this one, but would've voted for "Cruel Summer".

xp Cool, thanks! I'll get 14 up after work.

Just Can't Get Enough: New Wave Hits Of The '80s, Vol. 14

Ok nm