late 70s new wave classic rock

1980, but Alice Cooper - "Clones (We're All)" is classic

‘Driver’s Seat’ by Sniff n’ the Tears, little too polished for punk, bit too edgy for classic rock. No surprise PTA used it on Boogie Nights when things started going south.

Dug out the Pretty Things 1980 reunion LP (and cheapie bin perennial) Cross Talk. Quite Costello-y, Post-Pub Rock. Phil May even affects a tongue in cheek Sting accent at one point.

1980: X-Teens

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

Now spinning Phil Lynott's Solo In Soho, a good bit of which fits in here.

Carolyne Mas? His first three albums were in an album haul given to me. Surprised that I still remembered "Stillsane," which only made it to #71 in the States, but turns out it was Top 10 in Toronto (the follow-up, "Quote Goodbye Quote" was a hit here too). I suspect she has completely vanished from playlists by now. She's 65 and keeps a homepage.

https://carolynemas.com/

"Her first three albums..."

Okay, Shaun Cassidy has zero rock cred...but I had no idea about his bit w Todd Rundgren.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GgT98lU7aws

...really caught on to the new wave "paranoid man" theme going around at the time.

Is he trying to sound like Iggy Pop?

(ctrl+f "the only ones" zero results)

hrmph.

yeah I like that Shaun album it’s cool!!

think utopia plays on it?

My friend does a '80s Rock video TwitchStream every Saturday night. Tonight my socks were knocked off by Heart's 1980 B-52's move "Break" (see what they did there?)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ygM6rQebOoM

Not sure if the promo vid is up. It's a cheapie performance clip on a white set with Nancy rocking some tight tartan trousers.

I think this thread is mainly looking for power pop bands that embraced synths. Only thing I can really suggest is the band 20/20 and their self titled debut album.

There was another thread strictly about Classic Rock bands and their New Wave moves, but this thread's been revived more often.

There were a couple of really good examples of what this thread was really about in that TwitchStream; I'll DM my friend to see what they were, as I didn't take good enough notes.

This is waaay too late, but HOLY FUCK at this Devo/B-52's move by...Styx

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nx2xB4CJj5U

More early Oingo Boingo than B-52s IMO. Terrible either way.

I forget that Oingo covered a lot of the same junk culture territory the B's did.

Of course the song is terrible, but of all the dinosaur bands to go out the New Wave window, was not expecting STYX to commit so fully (was one of their final singles before the first breakup, a studio bait track on a double live set).

of all the dinosaur bands to go out the New Wave window, was not expecting STYX to commit so fully

It's kind of amazing the other four guys didn't just back Dennis DeYoung into a corner and beat his ass whenever he brought one of these stupid faux-Broadway ideas in.

“Music Time” is my all-time favorite “sorry bout the last album!” single

There's a couple of songs on the Woman Love LP (1980) by Burton Cummings that fit this: "Feels All Wrong" and maybe "Mile a Second". The rest is the typical ballads and 50s style rockers.
In my defence, I found this record in a box on the street with no cover.

1983, but still, how many of Mitch’s contemporaries could cover Prince this well?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eJOy8oT20qs

xhuxk's essay pertains:

https://accidentalevolution.wordpress.com/2021/06/11/150-best-albums-of-1979/

I have an obsession with this genre / period...and had forgotten all about this! Not an obscurity - I remember this from the radio.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fK4zm7SLvbk

That's great, sounds as if La Düsseldorf is his backing band!

It's most probably Midge Ure?

Yep, Midge Ure. Wikipedia also says this was used as the TOTP theme song for 5 years:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellow_Pearl_(song)

1984, but...NEW WAVE RONNIE MILSAP

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aiim9sVWWXA

Herve is that you?

Belated thanks for that Ronnie Milsap video, unbelievably, wonderfully, over-the-top 80s.

Yes, everything about it is deeply of its moment. If it was indeed the first country video played on MTV, they checked every single box for a veteran act’s makeover.

Good faux-Cars

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RVrILDo5CZg

Clocks: "She Looks Alot Like You", 1982

Not quite 1970s (1980) and never played on classic rock stations afaik, but I've always had a soft spot for Gary Myrick's "She Talks in Stereo." I saw him back then for like a dollar for some low-admission record label promotion night.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKhmK_sD2uo