80s music
The 80s were chockful of New Wave power ballads, synthesizers, drum machines, and no shortage of Madonna and Michael Jackson.
A Musical History: 1982
So, here we are at 1982—a year that I always credit with helping me become me. I've tried something different this time and for the rest of these posts—I'm giving you some personal background to the year, and listing the tracks and will be posting a Youtube link to the tracks there too.
Chris JonesPublished 5 years ago in Beat
80s Songs You Might Have Loved but Make You Cringe Today
The 1980s get a bad rap when it comes to pop music, but the decade actually produced some great sing-along and dance-along tunes. Anyone who doesn't recognize the genius of "Come on Eileen" doesn't understand what makes some pop songs great and others forgettable.
Girl Groups to Listen To
From the Spice Girls in the 90s to Little Mix now, the world has seen a whole lot of girl groups. The Fader released an article in June of 2018 hosting the question, "Where are all the girl groups?" In the article, they mentioned that it seemed like the world had a plethora of boy bands, but the girl groups were nowhere to be found. Then, they spent half of the article talking about boybands. Here's a hint: maybe, if they hadn't done so much in-depth research on the boybands of today, they would've been able to find some girl groups like the ones I'm about to mention. Here, the Fader, I did the dirty work for you!
Mina JohnsonPublished 5 years ago in Beat
A Musical History: 1981
Following on from my trip down memory lane for 1980, now it's time to delve into 1981 and the gems this year produced. By this time, synth music had taken its hold and the charts were flooded with all kinds of versions, from the sleazy antics of Soft Cell to the pop antics of Adam & The Ants.
Chris JonesPublished 5 years ago in Beat
A Musical History: 1980
Following on from my recent piece about growing up in the 80s, I wanted to share my favourite music from each year in a series of posts. Going back like this, for me anyway, shows the progress of bands and artists in terms of sounds and success. It also shows how music adopts techniques and sounds and they become "mainstream" and a something else takes its place as the radical, new sound.
Chris JonesPublished 6 years ago in Beat
5 of Michael Jackson's Best Music Videos
I've always been a fan of MJ. Ever since I was a little kid, my dad used to play the songs on the radio, his old CD/casette player, or some other place. But what truly brings a person to love Michael Jackson is not just the quality of his songs but the quality of his music videos. Steve Huey of AllMusic said he was the one that brought music video into an art form and I'm inclined to agree. Here are five of a roundup of what I consider his best works. Enjoy:
Abdullah MasoodPublished 6 years ago in Beat
Classic Hits Are Turned into Epic Trailer Music
The standard for modern pop music usually involves some electronic beats and auto-tuned vocals. Then we have artists like J2 and Hidden Citizens who turn these pop hits into an epic score worthy of movie soundtracks. Classics such as "Lean on Me" or Michael Jackson's "Man in the Mirror"(which can be heard in the video above) are reproduced into what is called an epic trailer version. These epic versions have gained enough recognition to be used in promos for TV and films. Let us not forget the many views on YouTube!
Sarah LoydPublished 6 years ago in Beat
Readers' Review: Toro y Moi - Boo Boo
I've been an avid fan of Toro y Moi, Chaz Bundicks' multi-instrumental project band since 2011's Underneath The Pine , a thoughtful album that felt like the perfect intersection of Funk, R&B, and Electronica. I was interested, but it was really the
Chuck KnightPublished 6 years ago in Beat
8EEZ Playlist: Tom Petty (R.I.P.)
"And I'm Free. Free Fallin'." Hello, one and all. First, an announcement. The 8EEZ Playlist will be no more after this. After much consideration, my buddy Calvin "Oates" Cherry have decided to drop the stylized, "8EEZ" moniker (though fun it was) and we're going to just call it "The 'List" from now on. This is so we can add and encompass artists and music genres in our lists from all decades: 7EEZ, 9EEZ, etc. We figured that the 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s, 00s, and yes, even the 10s, all deserve a shout.
Carlos GonzalezPublished 6 years ago in Beat
8EEZ Playlist: The Cars
"I guess you're just what I needed". Hello and welcome. This latest spotlight is on a band that just has only one thing going for it. Fun! Do I sound like a broken record? Maybe. But, that's what I firmly believe about music - it should be fun. Growing up that way I did, not allowed initially to listen to rock music because it was considered sacrilege, it was years after rediscovering the joy of my lost youth through music.
Carlos GonzalezPublished 6 years ago in Beat
8EEZ Playlist: Phil Collins
"It's just another day for you and me, in paradise." Hello, and thanks for reading! This spotlight artist is a personal favorite of mine. I remember hearing his haunting smash ballad, "Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now)" back in 1984, and literally crying my eyes out. Mind you, I was only a mere 12 years old, but, the voice, the melody and the poignant urgency of the song touched me quite deeply. I made it a point to buy up all his records from that point on. I did just that and have been a lifelong fan ever since, even despite the worries that he's now "Old Hat." It was also to my incredible joy that he was also the lead singer of one of my favorite 80s rock group: Genesis. Yes...they are due for a future 'list very soon. Meantime. Me and my buddy Oates will share this latest 'list of one Philip David Charles Collins of West London, UK.
Carlos GonzalezPublished 6 years ago in Beat
8EEZ Playlist: Bryan Adams
"I got my first real six-string Bought it at the five-and-dime Played it 'til my fingers bled Was the summer of '69." Hello, one and all.
Carlos GonzalezPublished 6 years ago in Beat
