Houston Calling

VH1 Classic: We Are The ’80s collections

August 22nd, 2006 · No Comments

VH1 Classic: We Are The ’80s
Loverboy / Eddie Money / Scandal / Rick Springfield
Sony/BMG

The eighties is a funny decade. On one hand, some of the finest, most memorable music of the century was released. On another, some of the most forgettable music was also created. None of the former is really included on any of these four discs, each of which essentially serves as a glorified greatest hits package for the artists (other collections include Bow Wow Wow, Bangles, and A Flock Of Seagulls). Sure, it’s great to hear Scandal’s “The Warrior” and “Goodbye To You” from time-to-time, but it’s debatable whether or not most casual music fans need 14 or more songs from any of these artists. Each collection includes a few radio and MTV hits that anyone old enough to turn on a radio from 1981-1988 will recognize, but each of the bands’ late period efforts were mostly lame attempts at recapturing their earlier fame. The same can be said for these releases.

Interesting liner note fact #1: Loverboy’s 1985 album, Lovin’ Every Minute Of It, sold 5 million copies.

Interesting liner note fact #2: “Lovin’ Every Minute Of It” was written by Mutt Lange, later responsible for Def Leppard’s electro sound and Shania Twain.

Interesting liner note fact #3: Sammy Hagar wrote Rick Springfield’s “I’ve Done Everything For You.” Other than that, Springfield wrote his own songs.

Overall, these VH1 Classic: We Are The ’80s releases are excellent ways to catch up on the artists’ work. Each musician has talent and has written some decent songs for their time. There is much better music from this era, however, and I implore you to seek it out before forming the opinion that nothing good came from the eighties. –David A. Cobb

Tags: Music

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