With album sales sagging in 1983, KISS decided to take off the make-up.  Lick it Up was the first album and video in which the band appeared without their trademark look. They keep you guessing for the first 40 seconds of the video, only showing the band from the waist down. It looks like the guy who shot all those annoying Dockers commercials was trying to sell ripped jeans and leather pants.

About 43 seconds into the video, you want them to put the make-up back on.The only member who benefited from the loss of the makeup was Vinnie Vincent (far right in the opening sequence) because he never embraced is KISS “alter ego.” Gene was the Demon. Ace was Space Ace. Peter was the Cat. Paul was Star Child. However, Vinnie never got over the guys calling his Kiss character Transgender Crack Whore. Of course, after this video was released, that’s what the rest of the world called him!

Lick it Up is another post apocalyptic videos that were popular in the early to mid 80’s (mostly with metal bands). I remember liking it when I was in high school, but let’s face it: I was pretty much an idiot then!

WATN? Catch Gene on A&E’s Simmons Family Jewels. I love that show!

Trivia: Eddie Van Halen wanted to join KISS after Ace Frehley left. Gene Simmons talked him out of it.

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Which all female group has the most chart entries in history? It’s not Destiny’s Child or The Go-Go’s. And, it’s not the Supremes, Spice Girls, or Pussycat Dolls.  Believe it or not, it’s these three ladies from Bristol, England.

Bananarama hit # 1 in both the U.S. and U.K. with this video. I can’t say I know why, but it has enough creepy elements to helps us coundown to Halloween. There are devils, coffins, and of course the performers themselves, who are pretty easy on the eyes.

WATN? Bananarama is working on a new album of Disco cover tunes.

TRIVIA: Victoria Beckham recorded a version of the song for her demo tape when auditioning for the Spice Girls.

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Exactly 20 years ago today, The Traveling Wilburys Vol. 1 was released. This video isn’t all that remarkable until the shear talent assembled sinks into your brain. Usually, a collection of Rock & Roll Hall of Famers forming a group turns out to be something less than memorable. But the Wilbury’s managed to turn out two pretty good albums with an all star lineup.  Roy Orbison, Tom Petty, George Harrison, Bob Dylan, and Geoff Lynn made up the group.  The song Handle With Care was originally supposed to be a b-side to a Harrison single. The result was so good, they decided to record a whole album together. They wrote and recorded Traveling Wilburys Vol. 1 in only 10 days!

WATN? Petty continues to tour and Lynn has done more producing lately than actual recording. Orbison passed shortly after the release of Wilburys Vol. 1.  Harrison passed in 2001. Dylan is still performing on the “Never Ending Tour.”

Trivia: Petty was added to the group because Harrison left his guitar at Petty’s house.

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The Go-Go’s were the first all female group that wrote all their own songs and performed their own instruments to top the Billboard Album Charts. Head Over Heels, from the album Talk Show was their final top twenty single. Less than a year later, the Go-Go’s called it quits.

This was an odd entry into the their video library. Charlotte Caffey (keyboards) has a creepy sort of smile on her face at the beginning. Her eyes look like she’s trying to say, “help, I’m being held against my will and forced to play with these crazy chicks!”

Belinda Carlisle and Jane Weidlin appear to be wearing standard issue grey sweats stolen from some local high school gym class.  About 2:40 in to the video, they’re suddenly on the tarmac at LAX while a plane lands. Then they’re back in the studio. Not sure what the 5 seconds on the runway is about, but if you have a theory, do share.

WATN? The Go-Go’s are no longer touring or recording, but several members are doing solo projects.

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The lads released their landmark documentary, This is Spinal Tap, in 1984, and the American “mockumentary” was born! This video was in regular rotation on MTV and many people didn’t realize they weren’t really a band! This team went on to create the comedy classics Waiting for Guffman, Might Wind, Best in Show, and For Your Consideration.

WATN? David St. Hubbins achieved immortality by uttering the following,

“Well, I don’t really think that the end can be assessed as of itself as being the end because what does the end feel like? It’s like saying when you try to extrapolate the end of the universe, you say, if the universe is indeed infinite, then how – what does that mean? How far is all the way, and then if it stops, what’s stopping it, and what’s behind what’s stopping it? So, what’s the end, you know, is my question to you.”

Trivia: The butler in the video is the same butler from Ratt’s Round and Round video.

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The Cure is one of a number of annoying bands that have blocked embedding on their YouTube videos. But we managed to grab this live version of Just Like Heaven from the 1989 VMA’s for our Saturday Night Concert Cuts. Seriously people, if you’re a band who’s heyday was in the 80’s, you could do with the publicity. Tell your lawyers to lighten up and let bloggers embed your videos!

Anyway, this is a pretty good song that’s unusually upbeat for a goth rock band. I tried to go goth once, but I didn’t own enough black.

WATN? The Cure are releasing a new album later this month.

Trivia: Robert Smith of The Cure battled Barbara Streisand in a classic South Park episode.

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This is what happens when special needs kids are given a mic and a dream. On October 10, 1989, Biz Markie released what would be inspiration for William Hung about 15 years later. The video got significant airplay on MTV. I’m not sure if it was schadenfreude for how bad he was or sympathy because they thought this might be the rap version of the Special Olympics. At any rate, the video probably single handedly caused the explosion of Gangsta Rap as a generation of rappers struggled to overcome the ridiculous image this song brought to the genre.

WATN? Opening for Chris Rock on the No Apologies tour. Riding in the Short Tour Bus.

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In 1983, Quiet Riot released a cover of Slade’s Cum On Feel the Noize and changed rock history. Although the band never had the love of the critics, the song became the first heavy metal single to reach the top 5 of the pop charts. The strength of the video/single took the album to #1 on the album charts, making Quiet Riot the first heavy metal band to have a top 5 hit and the #1 album in the same week. Their success paved the way for artists like Def Leppard, Bon Jovi, Motley Crue, etc. to get regular rotation on MTV.  Thus, the hairband juggernaut can be traced to this quirky video with a guy in a Hannibal Lecter mask.

WATN? Lead singer Kevin Dubrow passed away this year, so don’t expect any new music from QR.

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Ground Breaking Video

This is probably my favorite INXS song, but it’s a lousy video. About 2 minutes into the video, I can’t tell who seems more intoxicated -the cameraman or Michael Hutchence. The band would go on to make a lot of great videos in the 80’s. This wasn’t one of them. Great song, though. So give it a look.

Trivia: The drummer is wearing hot pink socks. Why? The keyboard is suspended from a wire so it’s being played above the head of Andrew Farriss. Again, why?

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Some days, you just need to get your weird on. Nobody helps you do that better than the Johns.  TMBG released Purple Toupee as a single from 1988’s Lincoln album. It looks like it was partly filmed at a flea market I drove by last week.  You can tell their getting warmed up for Birdhouse In Your Soul a few years later (One of my all time favorite videos!).

WATN? Still making great music and touring, they’ve also released several children’s albums. Here Comes Science will be released in 2009.

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