Lost '80s Pop Classic Week: "Everybody Dance" Ta Mara & The Seen (1985)

I remember first hearing this song on "C-89" KNHC 89.5 FM Seattle back in 1985 and I could have sworn the lyrics went:

Everybody`s dancing

In the nude across the nation

I'll bet you didn`t know

Which left my teenage male mind in 1985 wondering "Where?!...WHERE??!! FILL ME IN!! WHAT DOES THIS CHICK KNOW THAT THE REST OF US DON'T??"

What a drag when I finally pull up the lyrics online almost 20 years later to find the actual lyrics were:

Everybody`s dancing

With a new determination

I bet you didn`t know

Ta Mara & The Seen came out at a lucky time in rock 'n roll history. When Minneapolis was the Seattle of it's day (just like Seattle in the early '90s, ANYTHING that was big in Minneapolis, preferably connected to Prince in some way, got signed to a record deal in 1984/85. Ta Mara & The Seen were produced by Jesse Johnson of The Time, who also was Prince's band in the movie Purple Rain.)

Nothing was heard from Ta Mara & The Seen again.....But they left behind an instant '80s party classic....

The 16 RPM Dance Party Album

Some of you old enough to remember vinyl's heyday are also old enough to remember that 16 RPM speed on that 4 speed automatic record changer in your mom's console stereo and ask "What's that for?"

Well, first 16 RPM was originally invented for special automobile record changers and AM radio fidelity monaural 7" discs that gave an album's worth of music on each side. A slow speed for where there's lots of vibration, but has the benefit of not skipping the tone arm around as badly. Plus you didn't have to change the music so often. Early talking books for the blind were 16 RPM (later cut down to 8 RPM)

.....and even Jimmy Swaggart recorded his sermon albums at 16 RPM.

It was the "misc." speed.

There were also some jazz albums released by Prestige Records at 16 RPM in the 1950s

But that didn't keep Pye Record's South Africa division from daring to be different. I have seen this album before and at 16 RPM, it gave you an entire album's worth of listening on each side (imagine two whole K-Tel albums on one record. There were 40 songs on the record and each side played nearly an hour.)  And anyone who dances like an AT-AT won't be making the needle skip all over the place.

Only problem was 16 RPM for the most part doesn't sound very good (This record however is the best sounding 16 RPM I've EVER heard.) And if was an adopted speed, record companies would have to put out more music than what came in, which was the bottom line. By the '70s, 16 RPM fell out of favour on new turntables as 78 RPM did by 1980.

And that's why there was 16 RPM......

Lost '80s Pop Classic Week: "Robert De Niro's Waiting" Bananarama (1983)

Robert De Niro is one of the COOLEST actors of all time. He's got it all, money, looks, the best of everything. But I never actually WISHED I was him until I saw this video with those Bananarama BABES singing about HIM.

Lucky dog!

A Lost '80s Classic Rock Smorgasbord......

"Red Blue Jeans" John Kilzer (1988)

"If Love Should Go" Streets (1983)

"Tell Me What You Want" Zebra (1983)

"Welcome To The Boomtown" David & David (1986)

"Paradise Skies" Max Webster (1979)

"Black Star" Yngwie Malmsteen (1984)

"Take Me Away" Blue Oyster Cult (1983) I actually thought the lyrics of this song's chorus said "I turn my hopes up to the sky/I'd like to know before I die/Memories will slowly fade/I lift my eyes and say 'CALGON take me away'".......

"Don't It Make You Feel" Headpins (1983)

"Call To The Heart" Giuffria (1984)

"Talk To Me" Fiona (1985)

The Hi-Lo's In Stereo

If you don't know who The Hi-Lo's were, you really....OK, I don't know who they were either. And since they recorded for Omega Disk Records, they are guaranteed to forever remain in obscurity. Omega Disk was a budget record label in the late '50s, back when anything with the word "Stereophonic" sold records, no matter how unknown or talented (or lack thereof) the performers were

Not sure what is going on here, we have four guys, three appear to be talking about something that's way out of the league of the little guy on their left. Not that he cares. He's just happily gaping his mouth wide open and that's maybe why the other three decided to keep what they were talking about to themselves. Smart move.

On the other hand, perhaps these three guys are just standing around, slacking off while the other guy was doing the actual singing on the record........