Music ads for 1980 releases

Rock Short Takes, November 1981

Click on the image below to open a pdf file of the "Rock Short Takes" album reviews from Musician magazine's November 1981 issue. Artists include ELO, Def Leppard, The Tubes, and Gary Numan.

Music ads for 1980 releases

MFD Random Five #40

In which I click the shuffle icon on the iTunes app and listen to the first five songs that pop up from the year 1979.

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1. "Dim All the Lights" by Donna Summer (1979, Casablanca)
   A familiar trope from Donna: start half time then get up to disco speed about 45-60 seconds in. But it don't bother me a bit. In fact, this was written by Donna herself, so you can't blame her for basing her form on previous hits. If it ain't broke and whatnot. Love the descending bass line in the B section. A #2 pop hit in November '79.


2. "Boogie Wonderland" by Earth, Wind & Fire with The Emotions (1979, ARC/Columbia)
   OOOOOH, YEAH! making me feel so good this morning. I just checked my list of top 5 EWF songs and somehow this didn't make the cut. That seems unreal as I listen now, but they produced that much good music.
   
   
   
   Ask yourself: "Should I listen to more Earth, Wind & Fire?"  Inevitably, the answer is yes.


3. "Too Much Too Young" by The Specials (1979, 2Tone)
   One of the stand-out tracks from a fantastic debut album. I like ska in small doses so when a great track such as this shuffles around, it's perfect. Was I listening to this in '79? Nope, but I caught up a few years later.
   


4. "Cars" by Gary Numan (1979, Beggars Banquet)
   A groundbreaking classic - when this hit the radio, it was like nothing I'd heard before. Does it sound dated?  Absolutely.  Does it matter?  Not in the least. I've read that Numan himself isn't overly fond of the tune, but I would imagine he's become fond of the royalties.


5. "A Warm Summer Night" by Chic  (1979, Atlantic)
   Not quite a slow jam, this laid-back, soothing, sexy tune provides a brief reprise between disco classics "Good Times" and "My Feet Keep Dancing" on side one of the Risqué album, exhibit A in the case against those who suggest that there was little substance to disco music (according to the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die, p. 434)

Smash Hits Album Ratings - 1981 [part 2 of 2]

Smash Hits was a British teen music magazine that was issued fortnightly. On a scale of 1-10, here's how the magazine's reviewers rated albums released in the second half of 1981. Hope you find something new that you missed back in '81.

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July 9 issue
The Models	Alphabravocharliedeltaechofoxtrotgolf	6
Pointer Sisters	Black & White	7
Joe Jackson	Jumpin' Jive	6
Wah!	Nah = Poo - The Art of Bluff	8
Kiki Dee	Perfect Timing	6
Polecats	Polecats Are Go	7½
Henry Badowski	Life is a Grand...	8

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July 23 issue
Jon and Vangelis	The Friends of Mr. Cairo	8
The Equators	Hot	6
Odyssey	I Got the Melody	5
Angelic Upstarts	2,000,000 Voices	5
The Brothers Johnson	Winners	7
Was (Not Was)	Was (Not Was)	7
The Ramones	Pleasant Dreams	5
Kim Wilde	Kim Wilde	6½

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August 6 issue
Icehouse	Icehouse	8
Pat Benatar	Precious Time	4
Evelyn King	I'm in Love	7
Delta 5	See the Whirl	8
Stevie Nicks	Bella Donna	6
Foreigner	4	8
Kirsty MacColl	Desperate Character	4
The Pretenders	II	7

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August 20 issue
ELO	Time	5
The Go-Go's	Beauty and the Beat	5
Philip Rambow	Jungle Law	5½
Dennis Bovell	Brain Damage	9
Rickie Lee Jones	Pirates	6½
Any Trouble	Wheels in Motion	8
Ian Hunter	Short Back N' Sides	5
David Johansen	Here Comes the Night	3

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September 3 issue
The Korgis	Sticky George	3
Blank Slate	Sirens in the City	5
Hazel O'Connor	Cover Plus	3
Simple Minds	Sons and Fascination/Sister Feelings Call	8
Desmond Dekker	Compass Point	8
Cabaret Voltaire	Red Mecca	7½
Funkadelic	The Electric Spanking of War Babies	7½
Devo	New Traditionalists	7

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September 17 issue
Heaven 17	Penthouse and Pavement	8
Ian Dury	Lord Upminster	8
Gary Numan	Dance	9
Shakin' Stevens	Shaky	8
Ultravox	Rage in Eden	5
Crusaders	Standing Tall	8
Altered Images	Happy Birthday	6
The Comsat Angels	Sleep No More	8
Meat Loaf	Dead Ringer	9

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October 1 issue
The Police	Ghost in the Machine	6
Cliff Richard	Wired for Sound	7
Bette Bright	Rhythm Breaks the Ice	6½
Tom Tom Club	Tom Tom Club	6½
Saxon	Denim & Leather	4
Pete Shelley	Homosapien	7
Genesis	Abacab	6½
Godley & Creme	Ismism	4
Sheena Easton	You Could Have Been With Me	5
Madness	7	8
The Passions	Thirty Thousand Feet Over China	8½
John Foxx	The Garden	5

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October 15 issue
The Human League	Dare	8
U2	October	9
The Slits	Return of the Giant Slits	6½
Bow Wow Wow	See Jungle! See Jungle! Go Join Your Gang Yeah, City All Over! Go Ape Crazy!	8½
Eurythmics	In the Garden	7½
Rose Royce	Jump Street	7
The Cuban Heels	Work Our Way to Heaven	6
Bob Marley	Chances Are	5
Fingerprintz	Beat Noir	7½
Blondie	The Best of Blondie	9½
Carlene Carter	Blue Nun	5
UB40	Present Arms in Dub	8

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October 29 issue
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark	Architecture and Morality	9
Linx	Go Ahead	6
Gillan	Double Trouble	7½
Elvis Costello	Almost Blue	9
Martha and The Muffins	This is the Ice Age	7½
Vice Squad	No Cause for Concern	0
Bauhaus	Mask	4
Rex Smith	Everlasting Love	2
Rachel Sweet	And Then He Kissed Me	5
Imagination	Body Talk	8
Joy Division	Still	9
The Meteors	In Heaven	7
Bad Manners	Gosh Its's...	8

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November 12 issue
Adam and The Ants	Prince Charming	5
The Bee Gees	Living Eyes	5
Japan	Tin Drum	8
Prince	Controversy	4
Depeche Mode	Speak and Spell	7
Rush	Exit...Stage Left	2
Diana Ross	Why Do Fools Fall in Love	8½
TV21	A Thin Red Line	5
Earth, Wind & Fire	Raise!	7
Fad Gadget	Incontinent	9
The Sound	From the Lion's Mouth	5
Stray Cats	Gonna Ball	7

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November 26 issue
Soft Cell	Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret	8½
Ian Dury & The Blockheads	Jukebox Dury	9
The Teardrop Explodes	Wilder	8½
The Four Seasons	Tonight!	8
Rainbow	The Best of Rainbow	5
Skids	Joy	5
David Bowie	Changestwobowie	10
The Stranglers	La Folie	8
Kool & The Gang	Something Special	6
New Order	Movement	8
Deutsch Amerikanische Freundschaft	Gold und Liebe	5½
Jacksons	Live	8

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December 10 issue
AC/DC	For Those About to Rock	3
Modern Romance	Adventures in Clubland	6
Durutti Column	LC	8
Boney M	Boonoonoonoos	4
10cc	10 Out Of 10	4
Chas Jankel	Chasanova	7
Various Artists	A Christmas Record	8
Jools Holland	Jools Holland And His Millionaires	3
David Byrne	Catherine Wheel	6½
Tenpole Tudor	Let the Four Winds Blow	6
Jerry Harrison	The Red and the Black	7½
Poison Girls	Total Exposure	4

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December 24 issue
No Album Reviews

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h/t to Brian McCloskey over at Like Punk Never Happened

Top Singles of June 28, 1980

Let's take a look at what was topping the various single charts on June 28, 1980.

	Billboard	CashBox	Record World
1	"Coming Up" Paul McCartney	"Funkytown" Lipps Inc.	"The Rose" Bette Midler
2	"Funkytown" Lipps Inc.	"Coming Up" Paul McCartney	"Funkytown" Lipps Inc.
3	"The Rose" Bette Midler	"The Rose" Bette Midler	"Coming Up" Paul McCartney
4	"It's Still Rock and Roll to Me" Billy Joel	"It's Still Rock and Roll to Me" Billy Joel	"Little Jeannie" Elton John
5	"Against the Wind" Bob Seger	"Little Jeannie" Elton John	"Steal Away" Robbie Dupree
6	"Little Jeannie" Elton John	"Steal Away" Robbie Dupree	"It's Still Rock and Roll to Me" Billy Joel
7	"Steal Away" Robbie Dupree	"Cars" Gary Numan	"She's Out of My Life" Michael Jackson
8	"Biggest Part of Me" Ambrosia	"Against the Wind" Bob Seger	"Cupid/I've Loved You for a Long Time" Spinners
9	"Cupid/I've Loved You for a Long Time" Spinners	"Biggest Part of Me" Ambrosia	"Against the Wind" Bob Seger
10	"She's Out of My Life" Michael Jackson	"Cupid/I've Loved You for a Long Time" Spinners	"Let Me Love You Tonight" Pure Prairie League

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Exclusive MFD meta-analysis of the above charts:

1. "Funkytown" (28 pts)
2. "Coming Up" (27 pts)
3. "The Rose" (26 pts)
4. "It's Still Rock and Roll to Me" (19 pts)
5. "Little Jeannie" (18 pts)
6. "Steal Away" (15 pts)
7. "Against the Wind" (11 pts)
8. "Cupid/I've Loved You for a Long Time" (6 pts)
9. "She's Out of My Life" (5 pts)
10. "Biggest Part of Me" (5 pts)
11. "Cars" (4 pts)
12. "Let Me Love You Tonight" (1 pt)