Posts tagged ‘memories’

Jul 1

A Year in the 80’s – I Want My MTV

When I was about 14, my whole family got together to celebrate my grandparent’s 50th wedding anniversary. Music was playing while we decorated the hall, and somehow my cousin and I got to naming the songs as they came on the radio. I guess she’s about 10 years older than me, and she knew a lot of them. But it’s one of those silly memories that has stuck with me, that she was so impressed because I knew every. single. one. Title, artist, album…and most of the words too.

It was only because I stayed up half the nights most weekends watching music videos. First it was Friday Night Videos – remember that? – and then it was all MTV, when it finally came to my neck of the woods.

I was the MTV Generation.

MTV ain’t what it used to be, but then neither am I for that matter. Of course, I don’t guess either one of us would have benefited from staying the same all these years. But I can still keep a place in my heart for those late nights, sitting in the good chair, one leg kicked over the arm, watching 3-minute movies set to music.

Here are some of the videos I remember most, and you might remember too:

The Buggles, Video Killed the Radio Star, 1981
This is the first video played on MTV when it debuted at 12:01 am, August 1st 1981.

Duran Duran, Hungry Like the Wolf, 1983
Duran Duran probably owes their US success to MTV, which put this video on heavy rotation at a time when the band was not getting radio air play. They became known for their highly stylized music videos and exotic locals, and in 1984 this video won the first Grammy Award for Best Short Form Music Video.

Wham!, Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go, 1984
“You put the boom-boom into my heart.” If this song doesn’t take you back to the 80’s I don’t know what will. It’s still catchy – you know you remember most of the words. And neon everywhere!! Love those fingerless gloves there, Michael.

The Cars, You Might Think, 1984
This was one of the first music videos to use computer graphics, and maybe that’s why it made an impression on my brain. Even though it seems pretty simple and rudimentary now. It won Video of the Year at the first ever MTV Video Music Awards, and five awards at Billboard’s 1984 Video Music Awards.

Twisted Sister, We’re Not Gonna Take It, 1984
“WHAT is that? A Twisted Sister pin! On your uniform!”

A-ha, Take On Me, 1985
I always liked this awesome video, and I’ll probably never forget it exists. Well, maybe some day I’ll forget. Anyway, it was cutting edge at the time, and made this song A-ha’s most successful recording in the US.

Dire Straits, Money for Nothing, 1985
Considered ground-breaking at the time, this video was one of the first uses of computer-animated human characters. Ironically, Dire Straits founder/lead singer Mark Knopfler was anti-video and thought that videos “would destroy the purity of songwriters and performers”. But MTV loved the song and wanted a concept video or they wouldn’t play it. Knopfler eventually gave in, and the video went on to win Video of the Year at the third annual MTV Video Music Awards.

Robert Palmer, Addicted to Love, 1986
Remember these girls? This video was ranked number 3 on VH1’s Top 20 Videos of the 1980s; pretty memorable video for such a simple concept. Palmer went on to copy the idea in three subsequent music videos as well. I guess if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

Michael Jackson, Thriller, 1983
I’m out of order, but sometimes you’ve got to save the best for last. Directed by John Landis, this 13 minute video was MTV’s first “world premier video”. It’s hard to exagerate its influence on the music video industry, not to mention how many times the Thriller dance shows up in movies and television. In 2006, Guinness World Records listed Thriller as the “most successful music video”, with over nine million copies sold. And in 2009, it was the first music video to ever be inducted into the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress. Pretty impressive.

So that’s just a few of the videos that stick out in my memory.

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What about you?

Were you a part of the original MTV Generation?

What was your favorite music video of the 1980’s?

Jun 10

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A Year in the 80’s – Hair

When I think 80’s, I instantly think big hair. Big bangs, big perms, big sweeps of hair poking out at the sides of the face like mighty wings.

I could never get the bang thing down, but I did have my share of perms. And I just loved my beautifully feathered hair when I was sixteen.

I had a rat tail at one point too, more’s the pitty. But I never did a side pony! So I’ve got that going for me.

Here are some photos of 80’s hair. Take a walk down memory lane – or maybe have a laugh at the expense of me and my fellow 80’s alumni. Either way, enjoy!

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Did you have the typical big 80’s hair? That is, if you had hair in the 80’s.

May 13

A Year in the 80’s – Some 1981 History

January 20
Ronald Reagan is inaugurated as the 40^th president of the United States. At the moment he completes his inaugural address…

The Iranian hostage crisis ends with the release of 52 Americans in exchange for the return of $8 billion in frozen Iranian assets. 66 hostages had been taken captive after a group of Iranian students took over the US embassy in Tehran on November 4, 1979. 13 people were released in November of that year, with a 14th later released due to illness. These remaining 52 hostages were in captivity for 444 days.

March 30
John Hinkley attempts to assassinate U.S. President Ronald Reagan, who is shot in the chest as he’s walking to his limousine in Washington, D.C.. Also shot are press secretary James Brady, a police officer and a Secret Service agent. All recovered except Brady, who was confined to a wheelchair as a result of brain damage.

April 12
The space shuttle Columbia launches from Cape Canaveral, and manned American space flights resume after a 5-year hiatus. The Space Shuttle is the first reusable spacecraft flown in orbit. Columbia flew 28 flights (125,204,911 miles in total), spent 300.74 days in space, and completed 4,808 orbits. On February 1, 2003, Columbia disintegrated during re-entry after it’s 28^th mission, killing all crew members aboard.

May 13
An assassination is attempted on Pope John Paul II in Saint Peter’s Square. Thought the Pope is shot, he recovers from his wounds, and would-be assassin Mehmet Ali Agca is sentenced to life in prison. (He is pardoned in 2000.) It is widely believe at the time that Agca is an agent of the Soviet Union or Bulgaria, due to the Pope’s anti-communist stance.

June 5
U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention release a report “describing cases of a rare lung infection in five young, previously healthy, gay men in Los Angeles. All the men have other unusual infections as well, indicating that their immune systems are not working. This marks the first official reporting of what will become known as the AIDS epidemic. Within days, doctors from across the U.S. flood CDC with reports of similar cases.” (aids.gov)

July 29
Prince Charles and Lady Di are married at St. Paul’s Cathedral in London. 3,500 guests are in attendance, and an estimated 750 million additional people watch the wedding procession and ceremony, which are televised world-wide. In the United Kingdom, the day is considered a national holiday to mark the wedding. Which is why everyone’s home to watch it on the telly.

August 1
MTV launches at 12:01 EST with The Buggles’ “Video Killed the Radio Star”. The “Music Television” channel plays back-to-back music videos and features “video jockeys”. MTV’s effect is immediate in areas where it’s available, with record stores selling music that local stations are not playing. MTV also sparks the Second British Invasion, with British acts already accustomed to making music videos.

August 12
IBM introduces the IBM PC personal computer, IBM 5150. It sells for $1565.

September 21
Sandra Day O’Conner becomes the first Woman appointed to the U.S. Supreme Court, approved unanimously 99-0 by the U.S. Senate.

October 6
Egyptian president Anwar Sadat is assassinated at the annual victory parade in Cairo. Lieutenant Khalid Islambouli leads an assassination squad riding in a troop truck, and when the truck stops, Sadat believes it to be part of the parade. As he stands to receive his salute, Islambouli attacks. Additional assassins rise from the truck, indiscriminately firing AK-47 assault rifles into the stands. In an attack that lasts about two minutes, Sadat and eleven others are killed and 28 are wounded.

December 11
After 20 years as a professional boxer, Muhammad Ali fights his last bout, losing a ten-round decision against Trevor Berbick.

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So there’s a little history from 1981!
Do you remember any of that?

May 4

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the Infinite Monkey speaks: on what is

Random brilliance from across the blogosphere…

And I’m learning to let go of my expectations. I can’t make anyone be what I want them to be, shape them into someone, or something, else. I can only take what is, and work with that.