80's bands...and how they sound now!

Got to thinking about how great the musicianship was in a lot of the 80's bands...and the proof is that quite a few of them are back together and still sound really good.

Kajagoogoo:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-a02vPHWVj0&feature=related

Spandau Ballet:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SeTix5pTEYY

Human League:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m5aIvgo0qy4&feature=related

actually kind of creepy

Dead or alive:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fFm8TsYG0-I&feature=related

Yeah, Corrine is still a babe...

Swing out sister:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kMygKgSGC9c

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rzZeU_SZ9NI

I always liked how swing out sister seemed to channel Burt Bacarach, and much like Basia, also had that bossa nova flavor:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tOxp9HiPWKk

[ Edited by: lucas vigor 2009-11-11 15:31 ]

ABC:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YgzFDJCMXXI&feature=related

This one, not so good....but at least not too hard on the eyes..(they are at least over 45 years old!)

Bananarama:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QOLwcHhy_Wk&feature=related

This one a little better: (not digging the shirtless dude, but am digging the two cougars!)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VNxhYXvEpkQ&feature=related

[ Edited by: lucas vigor 2009-11-11 14:57 ]

Level 42:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkUML3OQvfI

Patty Smyth

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IRKuBeaUMq8&feature=channel

Duran Duran

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K1Vq6mhryrQ

Smokin Menehunes
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6vZW6OTGqg

For guys in their 80's,they still play a mean tune!

Disclaimer: That was the smoking menehunes 6-7 years ago.....whole different band now, whole different style!

I was more a fan of The Clash = defunct, Oingo Boingo = defunct, The Police = defunct, The Stray Cats = defunct, Elvis Costello = I think that old dude is still playing.

So a lot of great 80 bands are gone, but U2 still rocks.

Madness sounds great.

recently saw re-formed versions of Radio Birdman and Savage Republic
both were very good

As far as 80's new wavey type bands, I would really like to see
Adam and the Ants reform doing a mix of songs from Dirk Wears White Socks all the way to Prince Charming, with full costumes and stage show. Maybe
even Bow Wow Wow could open for them(or Black Flag for a laugh).

It's interesting you say that. I always found Adam Ant to be one of the most innovative and unique English "new wave" artists of the 80's. The music he and Marco Pirroni created was a blend of punk, disco, spaghetti western, lounge, surf and pirate sea chanties!. Some people do question who really started putting that Burundi style drumming on pop records first, Bow Wow Wow or Adam and the ants.

This a youtube of him on the Howard Stern show. (It's a little long, and there are three parts). I was struck about how down to earth and totally normal he actually is, which belies his strange image of the 80's...towards the end of one of the clips, he performs a song live in the studio.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UwRiamAdjyk

I'm not sure I'd want to see the 80's revival bands....but I really like the
50s revival artists that started in the 80s. Recently caught the Blasters and
Robert Gordon...great shows. The Pogues would be great to see too....but...
that's just ole' Conga talking.

Here's a blast from the past, Conga!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GA4foTap-WQ

Now we're talking Lucas! Good rockin' tonight. Never heard of the
Polecats, don't know how I missed 'em. Thanks :)

I thought the "Ants" from Adam and the Ants left Adam, then got together with that kid and formed Bow Wow Wow. Then Adam changed it to "Adam Ant"?

I thought I head that somewhere once.

You heard right. But, the classic Adam and the Ant line up that recorded "kings of the wild frontier" was an entirely different group. The earlier incarnation did leave the band and become Bow Wow Wow.

The line up that recorded the early 45's and Dirk got convinced by prime swindler, Malcolm McClaren to form Bow Wow Wow. Kings was the first record for the Ants with Marco Pirroni and that is where things really took off. For some reason I thought the drummer from Culture Club used to play in an early incarnation of the Ants.

Here is a performance of "Ant Music" on Tom Snyder that I've never seen.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nEYjeD5cIy8

And back to the original point of this thread... I saw Missing Persons at Bottom of the Hill in SF about 5 years ago and it was sad. Dale Bozzio was stopping and complaining about the sound the whole time and even bitching at the sound guy who was doing all he could, given what he had to work with.
Dale just looked like she was living a miserable life.

On 2009-11-20 17:35, Tiki Kaimuki wrote:
The line up that recorded the early 45's and Dirk got convinced by prime swindler, Malcolm McClaren to form Bow Wow Wow. Kings was the first record for the Ants with Marco Pirroni and that is where things really took off. For some reason I thought the drummer from Culture Club used to play in an early incarnation of the Ants.

The two drummers resemble each other...David Barbarossa and John Moss.

After a little googling...
Jon Moss (born Jonathan Aubrey Moss, 11 September 1957, Wandsworth, London, England) is the former drummer for the bands Adam and the Ants,Culture Club, London, The Nipple Erectors and The Damned.
He recorded with them only for the b-side of the re-recorded Car Trouble 45 on the song "Kick".
Geekout

80's bands, and how they sounded before "then"...

Human League, before they were a pop band...here they are clearly an avante-garde synth band more like Kraftwerk or Tangerine Dream:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o6QLi2agHKU

I love the NASA looking computer programmers that are in the band!

Lisa Stansfield:

I was never a big fan of her, back in the day...but watching her sing live with no electronic trickery (like all the pop tarts these days use)....all I can say is WOW!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ig89B0hvBs4&feature=PlayList&p=740555EAE83202F7&index=1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jCiAt_8oLSo&feature=PlayList&p=740555EAE83202F7&index=7

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AyTDf-nqMaM&feature=PlayList&p=740555EAE83202F7&index=9

[ Edited by: lucas vigor 2009-12-04 16:37 ]

[ Edited by: surfalaia 2010-01-03 18:12 ]

I barely remembered that name! Good find!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Model_Army_(band)

Ministry used to sound like this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sET1lhBMNiU

but then they mutated into this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CBGMW86u1Qk&feature=related

Considering there are few days in Paris ... Still in good health...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1L2trzWmoaY