Vocal Voices

BBC4. The eighties. Four chord, scream or mumble down the mic. What a music desert that time that was!

Yes, we had Blondie, ZZ Top, The Pretenders, The Cure, The Clash, The Dammed etc..

But we also had so much crap.... It was nearly as bad as today. Little Mix!?

Sham 69 and Blondie were favourites of mine when I was 9 and I’m still pinching myself that Blondie played a gig on the Chase a couple of years ago. It was amazing and beyond my wildest dreams that I’d ever see them within walking distance of home.

I heard one of my absolute favourite 80s songs on the radio the other day, Propaganda’s Duel. So many 80s songs are overplayed on the radio and there are some real hidden gems which never make the airwaves. Tom’s got my 7” single of Duel in his room.
I’m a big Duran Duran fan but please don’t make me listen to the hits, their albums and b-sides show that they’re so much better than those. I used to see them every tour and had done since the early 80s but haven’t since 2008 because every tour is a greatest hits tour, it’s practically the same set list each time which is ridiculous for a band with such a vast and varied back catalogue.

I'm with you Jo, but so many people only turn up for the hits. Ocean Colour Scene are sick to death of playing The Day We Caught The Train and us true fans are sick of it too. But Simon says if they played it first to get rid of it, half the audience would leave, because so many people only turn up for the hits. They've already taken to playing Riverboat Song first. I prefer to go and see Simon and Oscar do their tour because they do play the lesser known stuff.

One of my favourite and rarely heard 80's songs is Broken Land by The Adventures and also Christian by China Crisis both of which are rarely heard

Loved punk too sorry Frank. Still love a bit of crash bang wallop angry stuff

The popular 80's music wave didn't really interest me a lot, although there were a few stand-out artists and tracks - like Talking Heads and the Beat. Punk left me cold. I was more into country and western and ska / reggae in those days ...

JoM wrote:
I heard one of my absolute favourite 80s songs on the radio the other day, Propaganda’s Duel.

I too love this song Jo - the frenetic piano bit toward the end is incredible! Ken Bruce plays this a lot....Radio 2 weekdays

Another of my all time faves Is Echo Beach, Martha and the Muffins. Even the great KB doesn't play this as much as he should.....MM The Adventures' is a great song too!

I loved the New Wave stuff, not so much hard punk when it first came out. I think I was a bit scared of it tbh Loved Ska!!

I love Ska! And Blondie I'm more for sixties and seventies otherwise

We have the best radio station here.

Mitch thought it was called Emily Tenta, but it's really called m80 moitenta - oitenta for 80.

Plays 70's, 80's and the odd 60's and also 90's tracks.
~
It's on all day here