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)

MFD Not-So-Random Five #8

In which I select five songs from 1976-1985 based on an arbitrary theme. (Not to be confused with this blog's Random Five feature, a different exercise in arbitrariness). Today's theme, for the "dog days of summer:" songs that have the word "dog" in their title.

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1. "Do the Dog" by The Specials (1979, 2 Tone)
   A ska cover of Rufus Thomas' 1963 single "The Dog" which is more like a complete deconstruction of the song than a cover. But I still dig it.
   


2. "Dog Eat Dog" by Adam and the Ants (1980, Epic)
   The first Adam and the Ants tune I ever heard was "Killer in the Home." It appeared on a 1981 Epic sampler cassette titled Exposed. I was intrigued. Then "Dog Eat Dog" came up on the second side of the tape and I was hooked. Purchase of the Kings of the Wild Frontier album quickly followed, and I stayed with Adam Ant until he teamed up with Phil Collins, then I quickly lost interest. But Kings of the Wild Frontier is one of my favorite albums of 1980 (even though I didn't hear it until later) and "Dog Eat Dog" is side 1, track 1 of that album.
   
   
   


3. "Dog and Butterfly" by Heart  (1979, Portrait)
   When I was a kid, I thought this was an Olivia Newton-John tune (I never claimed I was a smart kid, just a smart ass). But Ann Wilson sure brings it with these vocals, don't she? The star of this show, however, is the laid back folkish songwriting and subtle arrangement. The song barely cracked the Top 40, peaking at #34, which is a damn shame. Of course, Top 40 at that time was mainly disco and country crossover, so there really wasn't room for a folk ballad, no matter how beautiful it was. (note: I just checked out the Hot 100 chart of March 31, 1979 and that's a helluva chart. Maybe that explains why "Dog and Butterfly" didn't get any higher: too much competition. Or maybe this song just lulled me into a nostalgic 7th grade daze.)


4. "Dogs" by The Judy's (1980, Wasted Talent)
   The Judy's were a local band out of Pearland, Texas, just south of Houston. The trio would end up as opening acts for groups like Talking Heads and The B-52's (oddly enough, a then-unknown R.E.M. opened for The Judy's in Austin in 1981). They became a regional favorite, then me and my high school friends fell in love with them in the summer of 1982 with their album Washarama. "Dogs" comes from the EP released prior to Washarama, The Wonderful World of Appliances. Sung from the perspective of David Berkowitz, this song is an odd exploration of The Son of Sam. Far from my favorite tune by the band, it's creepy and catchy at the same time.
   


5. "Atomic Dog" by George Clinton (1982, Capitol)
   When you read this set's theme, you probably guessed I'd include this song by Dr. Funkenstein. "Bow-wow-wow-yippee-yo-yippee-yay!" may be some of my favorite '80s lyrics. Amazingly, this 1982 single never charted on the Billboard Hot 100 (it "bubbled under" at 101, but it topped the R&B chart and peaked at #38 Disco). I didn't love this as much in the early '80s as I should have. Now a classic, being widely sampled in hip-hop music for the last 35+ years.

Random album ad #45

The Specials (1980)

The Selecter - Too Much Pressure (1980)