Debaser was on the album Doolittle (released in ‘89) but the single didn’t come out until 97.  We’re still including it on Pound Note because of it’s place in alternative rock history. It’s still a typical Pixies low overhead video, but a little better than Monkey Gone to Heaven.

WATN? After that reunion tour, hopefully not planning on touring again.

Trivia: This song popped up in an EA Sports video game.

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Our first Saturday night Live Cut for 2009. Yeah, we’ve been slacking here at Pound Note. Anyway, we came across this gem from 1987. The BoDeans performing Good Work on the David Letterman show.  Sound quality of the video is a little off (no fault of the band), but it’s a great trip back in time.

Aldo Nova peaked with his first single Fantasy. Given the leopard skin pimp outfit he’s wearing in the video, it’s not hard to see why.  But don’t call him a one hit wonder. He’s had plenty of hits over the last 30 years believe it or not. They were just recorded by other people. Clay Aiken’s # 1 hit in 2003 This Is The Night was written by Aldo Nova.

As for Fantasy, it hit #3 on the U.S. Mainstream Rock Charts and #23 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1982. The video is standard early 80’s cheese, but the song is one a rock classic.

WATN? He released several more albums in the 80’s (my favorite was Twitch) and then tried to stage a comeback in the 90’s working with Jon Bon Jovi.

Trivia: Over the course of her career, Celine Dion has recorded 11 songs written by Aldo Nova. Others to collaborate with him include Bon Jovi, Michael Bolton, Faith Hill, Clay Aiken, and Blue Oyster Cult. Now that would make for a wacky music festival!

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This video has everything: weird hats, good music, and no apparent point. All of which earn it 4 guitars in our book. I getting my haircut once and the stylist said that she was convinced Ian Astbury of the Cult was actually Jim Morrison of the Doors reincarnated.  I gave her an extra large tip so she could visit a therapist. Ironically, years later Astbury toured with the remaining members of the Doors.

One of the funniest things about the Cult in this video is if you turn off the sound and look at each member individually, you would think they were all playing a completely different genre of music. This might have been the first clue that the next three Cult albums would sound very different from each other.

WATN? The Cult are recording and plan a new release for Summer 2009.

Trivia: Ian Astbury’s “Gathering of Tribes” was the inspiration for Lollapalooza a year later. One former bass player went by the name Haggis.

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Is it me or was every 3rd Toto song the name of a girl? Toto had a revolving door of lead singers, so that might explain it. Pamela reached number 22 on the charts and the video was helped by a parade of models. I guess when you throw some jazz horns behind the guitars, the sexy models become art. When the models do the same thing in a heavy metal video, their called tramps. You say tomato, I say…

WATN? Toto officially called it quits on June 5, 2008.

Trivia? Paula Abdul (then unknown) made her video debut in the Toto video Till The End.

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Dokken released Back For The Attack on this day in 1987 and Burning Like a Flame was the highest charting single. The album reached #13 on the album charts and sold over 3 million copies. The video has some fun animation and a skeleton guitar that comes to life in a Tim Burton movie sort of way. Pay attention to the squid on Jeff Pilson’s base. It looks very similar to the corporate logo of Squidoo.

WATN? Dokken released Lightning Strikes Again in May of this year. The album was it’s highest charting CD since 1995.

Trivia: Current guitarist Jon Levin was the attorney for the band.

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Sure it took Axl 14 years to release Chinese Democracy, but it only took Pound Note 2 months to throw up a GNR video.  Slash once said he was trying to mimic a circus tune when he came up with the guitar intro to the song. Released in 1987, Sweet Child 0′ Mine was the band’s only #1 single.

WATN? After 14 years, they finally released their new album.

Trivia: The song was originally a poem written to Rose’s then girlfriend Erin Everly.

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On November 22, 1997, Michael Hutchence was found dead in a hotel room in a Sydney hotel room. Today we observe a moment of “reviewer silence” in honor of the former lead singer of INXS.  No ratings today. Just a good video.

For those of you that still think Nirvana was the original voice of the 90’s, I give you the Pixies. Curt Cobain once admitted that he was trying to copy the Pixies with Smells Like Teen Spirit.  You can judge for yourself, but I would argue much of the “Seattle Grunge” sound was aped from the Minneapolis scene bands like Pixies and Soul Asylum.  At any rate, this video isn’t much to look at and the lyrics sound like a bad acid trip, but this band influenced a lot of the punk and alternative music recorded in the last 20 years.

WATN? They did a reunion tour recently that sounded awful.

Trivia? Their lead singer changed his name to Black Francis. I guess you kind of have to go into rock music with a name like that.

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Foreigner released Inside Information in 1987. The first single was Say You Will and it reached #6 on the Billboard Hot 100. Shot in black in white, it’s a lot swankier than any of the videos from the Agent Provocateur album.  The guys appear to be in some NY club watching a couple of high class “pros” pick up some rich old guy. Other than that, I’m not sure what the heck is going on here.  Good song though.

WATN? Foreigner released a single earlier this year. It was their first new recording since the dismal Mr. Moonlight in 1994. Only Mick Jones remains of the original lineup.

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