Category: ’80s

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The Blasters – Over There

Picked this up just a couple of years after discovering The Blasters. It was a frustratingly short glimpse at what a Blasters live show must have been like. Just six songs, only one original...

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The Blasters – The Blasters

I’m afraid being an East Coaster, I had no concept of the LA roots scene. I didn’t know there was such a thing as cowpunk. And I sure had no concept of The Blasters....

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Chuck Berry – Hail! Hail! Rock ‘n’ Roll

There’s no denying that Chuck Berry was hugely important among the earliest rockers. (There’s no denying he was several other things as well.) But he’s really thought of as a singles artist, not an...

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Berlin – Pleasure Victim

As we stroll through the ‘B’ section of my record collection, we have hit on a little stretch that has chronology and MTV in common. The Belle Stars, Pat Benatar, and now Berlin –...

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Pat Benatar – Crimes of Passion

This follow-up established Pat Benatar as a big rock star, and it was huge. I’m not into “Hit Me With Your Best Shot,” which was the huge hit. “Hell Is For Children” was controversial,...

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Pat Benatar – In The Heat Of The Night

I don’t know what we think of Pat Benatar these days. I don’t know what I think of Pat Benatar. Do we think of Pat Benatar? She seemed to splash on the scene with...

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The Belle Stars – The Belle Stars

Oh boy, was I highly susceptible to some of those early MTV hits. We had cable (run through a fuzzy black and white console TV) in our final college apartment starting I think in...

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The Bangles – Different Light

Different Light was one of those albums that, if you were alive when it came out in 1986, you owned. At least that’s how it seemed to me. Everyone owned “Rumours,” everyone owned “Thriller,”...