Madonna had the number one song in the entire world when she released “Vogue” in 1990. Lyrics from the song are air lifted into the description for this blog day and it remains one of her most iconic songs to date. It fell in between the critical success of Like A Prayer and the cultural ostracization of her sexual fantasies with Erotica and the Sex book. Originally concieved as a B-Side, “Vogue” was instead issued as a stand alone hit, correcting a mistake her record label had made with one of her previous smashes, “Into The Groove”. Included on the I'm Breathless soundtrack it was one of Madonna's most integrated projects in which she portrayed seductress Breathless Mahoney in Dick Tracy. | |
The song popularized vogueing into the mainstream, a style of dance popular in the New York club scene. It also name checked every relevant star of yesteryear, a tactic Lady Gaga made good on with “Dance In The Dark”. A staple of early 90's pop culture, “Vogue” would become one of the defining dance singles ever released. Buy "Vogue"
0 Comments
Through one show Madonna showed her prowess for a next stadium tour (The MDNA Tour would become one of the highest grossing in history), launched a top ten single with the cheerleader chant of “Give Me All Your Luvin'” and raked up just a little bit of controversy when M.I.A flashed America the middle finger. The show had it all. It catapulted MDNA into selling over 500,000 copies in the United States without a radio hit, and Gaga must also be hoping it will do the same for Joanne. However, her album has been selling at a steady (and surprisingly) solid place despite neither of it's singles becoming radio staples. Gaga has certainly convinced America to bring out their cowboy hat and buy a ticket for her new show. Tales of masturbation are always a particular favorite of mine. Hailee Steinfeld did a wonderful job of twisting the double meaning with “Love Myself”. If you can't get someone to love you, you got to do it your own damn self. Buy "Love Myself"
Buy "She Bop"
This is a list of her 5 Worst (Best?) music videos, one from each Avril Lavigne era, that visually guide us through her punk rock reveling image. Buy "Complicated"
Buy "Don't Tell Me"
Buy "Girlfriend" The Best Damn Thing (2007) “Girlfriend” Avril Lavigne finally caught onto the game she was playing. “Girlfriend” was her knockout cheerleader rant hit and the video is a sticky guilty pleasure. It was once the most viewed video on YouTube and for good reasons. It's easy to make fun of, but that's what we were supposed to do. There's a cute dark haired boy. There's two girls. One who has him and one who “deserves” him. Avril Lavigne is the protagonist and antagonist ala Taylor Swift, “You Belong With Me”. AND, it all takes place at a Golf N Stuff (Family Fun Center). Buy "What The Hell"
Buy "Rock N Roll" Avril Lavigne (2013)
“Rock N Roll” Say what you want about the visual for “Here's To Never Growing Up”, it was fun, candy coated, and predictable. And, arguably “Hello Kitty” was the worst, but nothing was more middle finger raising about expectations for an Avril Lavigne video then “Rock N Roll”. There's product placement (Can I make it any more obvious?). Cartoon graphics circa the campy Batman in the sixties and some Katy Perry kissing girls action. It has it all and exactly what you would want from Avril Lavigne a decade after her foray into the music industry. Mariah Carey was one of the commercial juggernauts of the 90's and continued her success well into the late 2000's. It's hard to compile all of her relevant chart history, so I decided to focus on her number ones. Mariah Carey is the solo artist with the most number ones (18), trailing only The Beatles with 20.
Emotions (1991) Her second album only featured one single to top the charts, the other two hitting the top 5, and ending her streak of number ones. “Emotions” was the most lyrically bland and vocally soaring song to ever top the charts and was a testimony to her success as a singer. MTV Unplugged (1992) The EP featured live performances of some of her major hits as well as her fifth number one single a cover of the Jackson 5 song “I'll Be There”. Just like the original it hit the top of the charts. Music Box (1993) Music Box one of her most critically acclaimed albums and diamond selling albums found itself bolstered by two number one hits. First and second single “Dreamlover” and “Hero” were massive hits that anyone alive in the nineties will try to hit a high note on. Daydream (1995) All three of the charting singles for the icon's fifth studio album hit number one in the United States. If Mariah Carey wasn't already cemented as an icon this album went on to further that reputation. “Fantasy”, “Always Be My Baby”, and the duet with supergroup Boyz II Men “One Sweet Day” are among it's identifiable this. “One Sweet Day” spent 16 weeks atop the Hot 100, the longest leading single ever in the United States, and it was the most successful song of the decade. Butterfly (1997) Two more number one hits founds themselves attached to Mariah Carey's name with this album. “Honey” and “My All” found themselves into the hearts of little Lambs everywhere. Rainbow (1999) Mariah Carey was still at the top of her game when Rainbow was released. Two singles found themselves at number one. “Heartbreaker” with Jay-Z and “Thank God I Found You” with Joe and 98 Degrees. She continued her transition into R&B and hip-hop with commercial viability. The Emancipation of Mimi (2005) This album found Mariah Carey back on the airwaves of American radio. She'd gone a studio album and a soundtrack without a number one hit (the horror). “We Belong Together” was the biggest song of the 2000's and every single one of us still tries to hit that high note at the end. The equally memorable if not as successful “Don't Forget About Us” also scaled the charts.
#NeverTrump
Woody Allen is known for his melodramatic, artsy movie productions. The story lines are cinematic and disposable. Long winded and overly romantic. They almost always portray a much older man falling in love with a much younger woman. The usual misogynistic idealism that you can expect from a white male.
Madonna was in one of his movies. Shadows and Fogs. Just one of her many poor choices in filmography. Music Madonna had down, but her eye for cinema was not as strong.
That should be everyone's opinion. Easy, uncontested. And, yet even in liberal Hollywood he's supported. They say, “it's a private matter”, that we “don't know what really goes on behind closed doors.” This man violently assaulted his daughter for most of her life and when she comes forward to speak about it, we shame her as we have shamed and discredited so many rape victims.
Now I learned something crazy about Pac-Man. So, Pac-Man is actually based off a Japanese story. The story is that this creature eats children in order to protect them from monsters. It really begs the question of who's the villain in this story. Now, I don't know about you, but I've never been good at Pac-Man. Or any video game.
The exhibit also discussed computer games. The only one it really focused on was Myst. I knew of this game. It was an adventure puzzle game. It pioneered computer video games. My aunt loves this game. It's supposed to be incredibly difficult. You don't know what's happening. Your just this unnamed character exploring this island The only kind of puzzle games I ever played were the Nancy Drew ones. I'm just a dork enough to love them.
Now the game I truly consider art was Flower. It was released on one of the Play Station systems and the entire point is to move flowers. You play the wind and you traverse this terrain. It's soothing and beautiful. Absolutely amazing. Now, I wouldn't have spent fifty dollars to play the wind, but I most certainly see the artistic merit of this game. It was visually stunning. The entire thing.
I don't know if I've done an accurate job of relaying the history of video games or convinced you that their art. But, no one can ever tell me that there isn't artistic merit to these games. Creating these worlds with computer models instead of a paint brush doesn't diminish their creativity.
Although, Halo is not art. It has the merit of a Kids Bop CD.
Legendary record producer. Italian. Giorgio Moroder is one of the most legendary people that you may or may not have heard of. I've brought him up a few times on the blog and mentioned him on the YouTube channel. He's worked with everyone from Blondie to Daft Punk and is an icon in his own right.
These range from “Bad Girls” and “Hot Stuff” from Donna's highest selling album Bad Girls to her breakout hit “Love To Love You Baby”. Her duet with Barbra Streisand “No More Tears (Enough Is Enough)” was also deftly handled by his hit making skills. Other accomplishments with Donna Summer include “Last Dance”, “MacArthur Park”, “On The Radio”, and “I Feel Love”. Giorgio Moroder is the man who pioneered the sound that disco heralded.
Surprisingly enough he was not one of the main producers behind the Top Gun soundtrack. The movie that launched Tom Cruise to super stardom and the soundtrack that sold over 9 million copies in the United States. He was however the one behind two of it's most prominent hits. The song that launched Berlin “Take My Breath Away”. Otherwise known as the love theme to Top Gun and the always up tempo Kenny Loggins “Danger Zone”.
Buy "Deja Vu"
His two dalliances with male artists just don't land. “Tempted” gives off a filler track vibe that Cobra Starship is famous for delivering. And, the Mikky Ekko led “Don't Let Go” is far too serious for such a light and enjoyable album.
The one thing Deja Vu proves is that 74 might not be the new 24, but it certainly has circled around to it. Giorgio Moroder sounds current without sacrificing his artistic merit and with over 40 years in the industry, there's a lot.
Buy Deja Vu
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.
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.
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”.
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.
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.
Singer Little Eva is claimed to be the inspiration for the Crystal's song “He Hit Me (It Felt Like a Kiss)”. She was regularly being beaten by her boyfriend and when asked why she put up with it, she said something to the effect of “He does it because he loves me.” Now, the only reason I know this song is because my great aunt enjoy the Crystals, and as a child she would pull out the record machine and slip it on.
This is something The Color Purple author Alice Walker, directly addresses with Celie's character who is not only verbally and sexually abused by her father, but follows her into adulthood where her husband takes a much more physical toll on her body.
"I have had, basically, my face bashed in, and I never did anything about it.” - Tina Turner
Her mother had just passed and many have said that she waited until after her mother died to publish a tell all so she could not only get part of her mother's estate, but cash in on her mother's passing. Who knows what's true. Their relationship was most certainly not perfect no matter what it was. You don't write a tell all ruining the reputation of the mother who love you unconditionally. There is truth built into Christian Crawford's retelling. Also, if you haven't seen the movie Mommie Dearest, you need to. It's a cult classic for a reason and it's terribly bad (Although, Faye Dunaway does a terrific job as Joan Crawford).
It tells the real life story of a woman who has been abused for so long by her husband that she ends up setting the bed they share on fire. Farrah Fawcett does a terrific job and its one of the most heartfelt performances I've ever seen her give. A must watch, It's not on netflix, but if you see it in the stores pick it up. It's well worth the price of admission.
Now, this is a guilty pleasure. If you've never seen Julia Roberts Sleeping With the Enemy, you need to. This movie is at it's core a psychological thriller with a candy coated plot. Not nearly as deep as The Burning Bed, the lengths to which Julia Robert's is willing to go to end her abusive relationship is astounding. This is one of my favorite movies and it's not hard to connect with her abject fear.
Many songwriters have dealt head on with abuse over the years, not just the Crystals. Many of them you may know: Martina McBride's “Concrete Angels”, Kelly Rowland's “Dirty Laundry” (You may not have actually heard this song, but you know of it. This is the one where everyone said she was jealous of Beyonce. But, who isn't?), and of course “Hit Me Baby One More Time”. I still can't believe Britney tackled a tough issue at such a young age.
Hard rocker Alice Cooper wrote the song “Only Women Bleed” (Which is not about menstruation as some people suggest), but instead that only women are affected in times of domestic abuse. The great Tina Turner even covered it in 1999 for a greatest hits of Ike and Tina Turner of all things. RuPaul, Madonna, and Pat Benatar all deal with child abuse with “Never Go Home Again”, “Oh Father”, and “Hell is for Children”. “Never Go Home Again” is certainly more directed towards a gay audience. Yes, Frankie shouldn't have to wear makeup in order to hide the scars, but a lot of it deals with the emotional side of abuse of not being able to be who you want to be. While, Madonna deals with her personal childhood in a stunning ballad that implies that her father was not only verbally abusive, but physically abusive, but that “He didn't want to hurt me. He didn't want to live this way.” Then, you have Pat Benatar with cold precision sets down the facts of child abusive in a sometimes graphic manner. Although, not a major hit, any Pat Benatar fan is likely to recognize it as one of the standouts from her album Crimes of Passion. One of the few hard 80's rock songs that songs just as hard twenty years later as it did when it was written.
Buy "Concrete Angel"
Buy "Dirty Laundry"
Buy "Oh Father"
Buy "Alive"
|
AboutGreta Garbo, and Monroe SOCIAL MEDIA
Archives
June 2017
Categories
All
|