Random 80's Wednesday

Darkroom-C - What Do I believe? (7" Single, 19??)
One To One - Angel In My Pocket (from Forward Your Emotions, 1985)
Dekka Danse - I Can't Believe It (from Waltz In The Wilderness, 1984)
Isle of Man - Am I Forgiven? (from Selections From The Isle EP, 1986)
William Pitt - Such A Lonely Night (12" Single, 1990)

Commentary:
A couple of these tracks were posted at Obscure 80's Central, a forum at the New Wave Outpost. A good place to post requests and stuff you like. The Dekka Danse track has been stuck in my head all week. It's like glue. I'm still trying to find the album, if anyone has it. I don't remember where Isle of Man came from, except that someone mentioned it was very rare. Good stuff, too. William Pitt release three singles in Europe. The last one was "Such A Lonely Night" which was actually released in 1990 - but it's got the 80's written all over it, so I don't care.

In celebration of St Paddy's Day, all my posts next week will have an Irish flavor. Potatoes, perhaps.

Let Me Have Your Requests!

Blogging has been a bit sporadic lately, mainly due to my workload (and procrastination, if the truth is told). I could go ahead and post whole lists of albums with no narrative or concept, but that's just not my style. In fact, I'm thinking of ways to go in the other direction and provide more of a narrative cum autobiographical style (a bit like my mate Davy at The Ghost of Electricity). Based on my stats, it does look like the "Random 80's" thing is quite popular, so I'm proud of that. As I've mentioned before it's kind of a tribute to Torchomatic, Scott at Nerosoft and Mike at the New Wave Outpost who all used to post a weekly grab-bag a few years ago that I always enjoyed waiting for.

In the meantime, I'm flattered by a lot of positive comments from people who mention they have been looking for a certain song or album for a while. I've been collecting music both in digital and 'real' form for a few years now so if you have a particular request, please let me know.

Kiss This!

By request...

Furniture - Slow Motion Kisses
(from Food, Sex And Paranoia, 1989)

And since we're on the subject...

Bonk - The Smile & The Kiss
(7" Single, 1982)

The Brilliant Corners - With A Kiss
(from Somebody Up There Likes Me, 1988)

The Beloved - A Kiss Goodbye
(from Where It's At, 1987)

Even More Dubh Chapter

I noticed that a few people took a liking to the Irish band Dubh Chapter after I posted lead single "Touch & Go" and then the album "Silence, Cunning & Exile". (By the way I think the band should have been called The Ampersands).

I dug around and found the two singles they released back in 1990, which feature extra tracks and mixes not included on the album. I've collected them here for your listening pleasure, blogmates!



Dubh Chapter - &

1. Happy Is The Bride (Extended Mix)
2. Who Decides
3. Happy Is The Bride
4. Pain (Is A Warning)
5. Touch & Go (7" Edit)
6. Sleep & Be Thankful
7. Hibiscus Town
8. Touch & Go (Album Version)

Download

Sand Rubies - Sand Rubies (1993)

Watch out for hard-to-find, deleted, out of print or critically ignored compact discs released in the last 20 years...

I enjoyed the Sand Rubies track I discovered recently on the Free At Last 3 compilation ("Santa Maria Street") so I tracked down the album ($0.75 on Amazon!). And here it is, not a bad album at all.

Sand Rubies - Sand Rubies (1993)

1. Goodbye
2. Santa Maria Street
3. Your Life Story
4. Interstate
5. Drugged
6. Guns In The Churchyard
7. Hangman In The Noose
8. Bar Room Light
9. Hit The Brakes
10. Never
11. Black Eyes And Broken Noses

Download

And here is the video for "Santa Maria Street".

Random 80's Wednesday

Freeze Frame - Touch (7" Single, 1982)
Black - Everything's Coming Up Roses (from Wonderful Life, 1987)
John Cafferty - Voice of America's Sons (from the Cobra Soundtrack, 1985)
Thompson Twins - Passion Planet (B-Side from "You Take Me Up", 1984)
Rain Parade - You Are My Friend (from Explosions in the Glass Palace EP, 1985)

Banderas - Ripe (1991)

Watch out for hard-to-find, deleted, out of print or critically ignored compact discs released in the last 20 years...

The 1991 debut release by the British duo Banderas has a rather misleading cover image, that of two oddly-dressed women sporting Sinead O'Connor-style crew cuts with the band's Spanish-sounding name sprawled across the top of the picture. Perhaps Ripe's failure was due to consumer confusion; is Banderas a Spanish-language punk band, or a bizarre Sinead side project? One listen to the album, however, reveals neither is true. Banderas is actually an ace pop band, and its one and only album, Ripe, is addictive ear candy. The two members (vocalist Caroline Buckley and violinist/keyboardist Sally Herbert) receive ample assistance from producer extraordinaire Stephen Hague, but the album's real star is Buckley, who sings with confidence and clarity. Her voice soars on the funky, beautifully produced album opener "This Is Your Life" and the eerie "May This Be Your Last Sorrow." While Ripe's remanding eight tunes don't quite scale the same heights, Caroline Buckley's extraordinary pipes save the material from sinking into mediocrity. A few lackluster songs drag down the album, but this was a promising debut, and Banderas boasted an incredible vocalist in Caroline Buckley. But even with guest appearances from some of the biggest names in British pop (including Jimmy Somerville, guitarist Johnny Marr, and New Order's Bernard Sumner), the album didn't perform well in Europe and sank like a stone in the States, and they never released a second album. Ripe will almost certainly never be widely heard, and Banderas is forever shunned into pop obscurity. It's a shame this talented act never saw the success it deserved. (from Allmusic.com)

Banderas - Ripe (1991)

1. This Is Your Life
2. The Comfort of Faith
3. May This Be Your Last Sorrow
4. First Hand
5. Why Aren't You in Love With Me?
6. She Sells
7. Too Good
8. Don't Let That Man
9. It's Written All Over My Face
10. Never Too Late

Download

Videography
This Is Your Life (UK Version)
This Is Your Life (US Version)
She Sells
May This Be Your Last Sorrow (video unavailable?)

Remixes
This Is Your Life (Red Book Mix)
This Is Your Life (Easy Life Mix)
This Is Your Life (Dodi's Crossover Mix)
She Sells (Apollo 440 Mix)