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Sometimes I forget that Pat Benatar is a classically trained opera singer and that I can't hit the notes that she can hit. That doesn't stop me from trying. I am that person who will jam out to Pat Benatar in the shower. I grew up on Pat Benatar. It was christian music, Celine Dion, and Pat Benatar. It was really great. Faith Hill was there too.
My love for Pat Benatar definitely comes from my childhood. My father loves all that eighties rock. He's such an archetype for the middle aged white heterosexual male. I don't feel male singers. So many just disgust me at their core. It's so funny, because my father doesn't consider Pat Benatar a “rocker”. I just feel like that's drenched in misogyny. Because, Pat Benatar is a rocker. If you want to come for Sheryl Crow and not file her under rock. Okay. But, you can't come for Pat Benatar. |
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Right now Pat Benatar is on her 35th anniversary tour. My father bought tickets. For him and my mother. I am the hardcore Pat Benatar fan in this family and I'm just like what the actual fuck. I am trying to convince him to bring me along. He probably won't. It's fine. I didn't want to spend time with him anyway.
I could have been a child of the eighties as far as the music goes. I jam pretty hard to some of these people. Now, I don't know if I would have been a Pat Benatar fan. I do enjoy a strong female, but in all honesty, I would have been on that Madonna, Cyndi Lauper, Samantha Fox train. If you don't know who Samantha Fox is you need to get on that. She gave us good sexual realness in the eighties with “Touch Me (I Want Your Body)”. It's slinky and the exact opposite of quality recording.
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The eightes were a great time for women in rock. Debbie Harry was fronting Blondie, Joan Jett was killing it solo and with the Blackhearts, Stevie Nicks was not letting up, and Pat Benatar was releasing a string of hits from 1979-1985. Pat Benatar was an album a year girl. Much like Rihanna was dipping and doing it for us.
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Her break out hit was “Heartbreaker”. The classic, iconic, hard rock song. She followed it up with “We Live For Love”, which has those warm chugging guitars, and I love it. This is probably where my father is coming from when he says she isn't a rocker. She's had some very pop moments like “We Belong”, but balancing between pop and rock is part of being a successful musician.
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Buy "Heartbreaker"
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Her follow up album was Crimes of Passion and it's certainly the defining moment of her career as far as sales and hits go. It features “Hit Me With Your Best Shot”, “Treat Me Right”, and “You Better Run”. All hard rock staples. This is also the album that has “Hell is for Children” on it. It discusses child abuse and really does what music is supposed to do. Talk about social issues and comment on them. Love songs are great, but once in a while we really do need to make a statement. Crimes of Passion is definitely one of her most coherent albums. It also includes one of my favorite album only tracks “Wuthering Heights”.
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She followed this album with five more albums and subsequent hits “Fire and Ice”, “Little Too Late”, “We Belong”, “Love is a Battlefield” and “Invincible”. Pitch Perfect 2 covers “We Belong” and did they succeed the way Pat did. No of course not. But, it's a classic song. “Love is a Battlefield” was on her live album and Joyce loves this song. She knows every word. Joyce and I jam out to Pat Benatar. My place of business also places that song. It is not my favorite Benatar song, but I feel it.
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Pat Benatar kept her name out there during the eighties. It's why she's still as remembered as she is. She had a string of consecutive hits and she was hard to get away from. It was after Seven The Hard Way that she took a three year break between studio albums. Then, she released Wide Awake In Dreamland (which has a horrible album cover) and it had a hit. It sold well, but it was not the colossal success of her other lead singles and “All Fired Up” really doesn't rank among Pat Benatar's most recognizable hits.
Her singles had lukewarm response, then she took another three year break. Recorded a jazz album. It just was not a solid plan. She didn't transition into the nineties. People weren't feeling it. This was the time of TLC and the alternative sound of Nirvana. When she did go back to her rock sound radio was not receptive to it. Maybe if she'd gone a Courtney Love/Hole kind of sound she could have maintained her success. But, then I feel like the only reason we really bought into Courtney Love's band is because of Kurt Cobain and the massive success he had with Nirvana.
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Madonna was also charting new territory at the time. Female singers had a shelf life of a decade. Madonna was the one trail blazing. Pat Benatar was not able to reap the benefits that Britney Spears and Mariah Carey have been able to by maintaining their careers without people looking at them side eyed.
Personally, I would be here for a Pat Benatar comeback and I definitely think with the right kind of promotion Pat could release a new album of solo material and sell. Look at what Bruce Springsteen has been doing. I think she has a market if she wants it. I'm sure she doesn't need the money, though. She's killing it with these tours. The woman is also 62. Pat Benatar has earned the right to sit down if she wants to. We're still going to love her anyway.
We live for Pat Benatar.
Personally, I would be here for a Pat Benatar comeback and I definitely think with the right kind of promotion Pat could release a new album of solo material and sell. Look at what Bruce Springsteen has been doing. I think she has a market if she wants it. I'm sure she doesn't need the money, though. She's killing it with these tours. The woman is also 62. Pat Benatar has earned the right to sit down if she wants to. We're still going to love her anyway.
We live for Pat Benatar.
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