Debbie Harry

In the 1980s there were no cooler woman than Debbie Harry. She headlined the band Blondie which she formed with Chris Stein and were quickly part of the punk and new wave scene in America in the 1970s and early 1980s.

The band achieved international success between 1978 and 1981 but it was the release of the third album 'Parallel Lines' that the world caught on with classic hits such as 'Hanging on the telephone' ,'heart of glass', 'sunday girl' and 'one way or another'. The album sold a staggering 20 million copies.

Although ostensibly a new wave band they did manage to fuse elements of punk rock, reggae, pop and disco into there sound and was a band that could quite easily cater for all ears. during the 70s and 80s the band released 6 studio albums with Parallel lines and Eat to the beat reaching number one in the UK album charts. They released 19 singles during this period and earned 5 number ones in the UK singles chart with Heart of glass, Sunday girl, Call me, Atomic and The tide is high. There last number one  was in 1980 but some 19 years later they returned to the top with 'Maria' and this year a cover by One Direction saw 'One way or another' also reach the summit.

The band split in the early 1980s as Debbie Harry cared for partner Chris Stein who had a skin disease which needed full time caring. She then along with those duties embarked on a solo career that would take in singing, song writing and acting.

Her debut album 'Koo koo' was produced by the legendary Nile Rodgers and peaked at number 6 in the UK album charts and the single 'backfired' was released and reached 32 in the singles chart. It was a move away from previous stuff and was a more funk dance orientated album.

It would be 1986 before the next album was released 'rockbird' the album peaked at number 32 and it did give a top 10 single entry 'French kissing in the USA' Although it charted low it was her best selling album in the UK as a solo artist.

1989 saw the release of 'Def, dumb and blonde' and this fared better in the charts peaking at number 12 in the UK charts. It featured the top 20 single ' I want that man' which was written by another 1980s band The Thompson Twins who also produced the song for her.

The solo career perhaps didn't reach the heights of Blondie but she still had a profound effect on getting women into the more edgier side of music and her iconic and sultry looks definitely gave her that cool factor.

Her acting career saw her star in 2 iconic films during the 1980s. She starred in the sci-fi horror Videodrome but perhaps the biggest was the Comedy drama Hairspray which went on to be a huge stage musical both in the USA and the UK.

A women of many talents and so much that at the age of 67 she is embarking on a tour to showcase her work of the last 40 years, a true icon.
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Kerrang!

Initially the magazine started of as a one off publication in the Sounds Newspaper but it's popularity grew from those early seeds in the summer of 1981.

In it's infancy the magazine concentrated on the new wave of British heavy metal and the hard rock acts. Infact the magazine can take credit for the term of NWOBHM and there gospel spreading along with those bands help influence the awakening of the American bay water scene and the thrash metal that followed along with many divisions within the heavy metal genre.

The magazine was founded by Geoff Barton who was the editor at Sounds Newspaper. The first edition featured Angus Young of AC/DC and was launched as a monthly periodical and by 1987 it was published on weekly basis. The magazine was originally owned by United Newspapers before they sold it to EMAP in 1991.

At the time there was no platform for the more edgier rock groups apart from fanzines and to get a magazine with national exposure certainly helped those groups and possibly a minor genre of music becoming one of the biggest genres.

There were plenty of music magazines which ostensibly concentrated on the teen pop industry, but Kerrang broke the trend and the magazine and the brand has grown from strength to strength.

Whereas most of the magazines from the 1980s have vanished, Kerrang identity has grown and with the advent of technology seen them expand. First of all was the website that attracted thousands of visitors along with there own awards show which became an industry leader of recognition for those who have been popular. They have also diversified into Radio and TV which gave a useful platform for the popular and up and coming bands to get the airplay they needed. They also introduced there own rock chart which was based on sales and airplay to give a more accurate reflection.

Often to judge success is longevity and whilst other mags peak and disappear, Kerrang has remained a constant success and the brand has gone on and that has helped the genre gain more mainstream attention.

80s Music Mags

The 1980s saw two magazines dominate the High street shops. The periodicals in question were Smash Hits and Number One.

Smash Hits was launched in 1978 by Nick Logan who previously has been the editor at NME. The test magazine had been launched and became a success and after 4 issues became a fortnightly edition.

The magazine became a huge success in the 1980s and featured some top writers such as Mark Ellen, Neil Tennant and Mark Frith. The ethos of the magazine was aimed at the teen market and featured heavily posters of the most relevant bands along with the usual Q&A , the lyrics of the top 20 songs and the up to date UK singles and album charts.

Notably it was the producing of the lyrics that got people attention so that everyone would know the words to the songs and this saw a surge in sales as artistes tended not to produce lyrics on record sleeves mainly due to excess costs.

Number One magazine came onto the scene after Smash Hits and was seen as direct competition in the ever demanding teen market. The magazine kick started in 1983 and unlike Smash Hits the magazine was published weekly.

The format was very similar to Smash Hits such as posters pin ups, lyrics of the up to date songs, the charts on weekly basis. In addition they had guest writers from the world of music. The magazine was also a bit more direct in terms of belittling Smash Hits safe approach and were more forthright in there views and interviews.

In the end Number one publisher was bought out by BBC and the magazine was ended when incorporated into BBC Fast Forward magazine. The magazine lasted 9 years in total. In total opposite Smash Hits lasted over 25 years before it was shut down due to the digital revolution, but it's brand remained strong with TV Channels, CD compilations and big awards show.

The teen market had two real choices and both had there loyal fans but ultimately Smash Hits won the battle.

Blue Monday 30 today

A musical milestone happened to day and that was the release of the iconic 80s hit Blue Monday by New Order.

Considering the bands background as in the previous domain they were known as Joy Division who arrived on the back of the punk scene and were the originators of dark gothic music with guitar, bass and synths sound. The band carried on after the death of singer Ian Curtis and New Order was born.

The song clocked in at over 7 minutes and holds the record as the longest track to chart in the UK. On the back of that it also holds the record as the best selling 12" vinyl of all time before the digital revolution. Sales of the song stand at over 1 million.

The song relies heavily on technology rather than the traditional instruments with the beginning of the song relying on a drum machine and a sequencer then touched up with a synth bass line backed by Peter Hook Bass. The delivery of the lyrics are very deadpan which leads to the appeal of the song and compliment each other well as Barney possibly sounds like a machine in some quarters!.

The song was also the link between the early and late eighties where synth pop was on the up and towards the end of the eighties we had the explosion of dance and club music.

The song was released on Factory Records and had the distinct reference of FAC73 as the catalogue number. The packaging of the song was pure Factory and stuff of legends but the artwork on the sleeve was to represent a floppy disk which was created by Peter Saville, due to the production and high manufacturing cost of the sleeve it was widely reported that 5p was lost on every single bought and the band unfortunately did not see any return as any possible money made was invested in the Factory nightclub the Hacienda.

The song has been a hit in the UK on several occasion. Initially when released it hit number 12, then was re-released later in the year and peaked at number 9. In 1988 it was remixed and released and this occasion  during the height of the club scene it reached number 3. It was again released in 1995 and this time it faired less and peaked at number 17 in the UK singles chart.

Happy Birthday Blue Monday. To download the tune

David Bowie in the 80s

In terms of music David Bowie is in the bracket of innovator and his work has spread well over four decades. He is best known for his Glam rock alter ego Ziggy Stardust and his career is certainly one of invention, innovation and his visual look.

Although his work started in the 1970s with great success, this spread into the eighties but it needed hard work and a personal look at himself to get the ball rolling. In 1976 he moved to Switzerland to reinvent and his interest in the underground Krautrock scene influenced by Kraftwerk and Neu!, he began to work with Brian Eno and Iggy Pop and started to influence a more ambient sound. During the 'Berlin years' he produced 3 classic albums and this led him nicely into the eighties with renewed vigour.

He released the album 'Scary Monsters' and this produced the huge hit 'ashes to ashes' which went to number one in the UK singles chart. Again there was an underground feel to this as this gave exposure to the New Romantic scene after he visited the famous Blitz club. Steve Strange from the Blitz club and member of Visage featured in the video which at the time was considered unique. The album was a bit more rockier than the Berlin period and featured contributions from Pete Townshend and Chuck Hammer amongst others.

In 1981 he duetted with Queen to produce another number one with 'under pressure' and the bass riff was then sampled by Vanilla Ice on his number one in 1990 with 'ice ice baby'. In 1983 saw his stock rise further with the release of 'Let's Dance' which had a more pop feel to it's production skills of Nile Rodgers. Three singles were released and proved huge hits with 'lets dance', 'china girl' and 'modern love' all had interesting video promo and earned massive play on MTV.

A tour followed and another dance pop album followed in 1984 called 'tonight' and this featured the hit 'blue jean'. In 1985 he featured on the Live Aid concert and he and Mick Jagger did there own fundraising by releasing 'dancing in the streets' which went to number one. His talent wasn't just limited to music he also threw in a bit of acting and he starred in the 1986 film 'absolute beginners' where he wrote the title song and released as a single. He also did the same in the film Labyrinth where he starred and wrote some of the score.

He released his last album of the decade in 1987 'never let me down' and a few hits featured such as 'day-in day-out' and 'time will crawl'. He put his solo career on hold and worked on a band project called Tin Machine and they released the self titled debut album to acclaim but the project never was long term and within 2 years Bowie left the band.

He released during the eighties 27 solo singles and 3 more with Tin Machine. He gained ten top 10 hits with three number ones. He also gained three number two's with 'china girl', 'modern love' and 'absolute beginners'. He also released four studio albums and one with Tin Machine. He earned three number one's in the UK with 'scary monsters', 'let's dance' and 'tonight'. He has also earned many accolades with Grammy awards and BRIT awards and an induction into the rock and roll hall of fame. A true legend.
  
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Bros

Sometimes a group or artist will come along blaze the charts for a year or two then disappear as quickly as they arrived. One group that fits that trend is Bros, a group of good looking boys with an image that girls loved and boys wanted to be.

The band formed in 1986 with Matt and Luke Goss backed by bass player Craig Logan and were mentored and managed by the Pet Shop Boys manager Tom Watkins. The band were best famous for there image and the short cropped hair with ripped jeans and beer bottle tags on there shoes. However, image aside that particular time saw the rise of teen pop and they came just at the right time along with the likes of New Kids on the Block, Brother Beyond and Curiosity killed the Cat.

The band were signed up to CBS records and there first release 'I owe you nothing' saw a limp entry just inside the top 100. The label and management ensued on a heavy promotion of the band and the next release 'When will I be famous' a song about young hopefuls trying to catch the eyes of agents was a huge hit and peaked at number 2 in the UK single charts.

Following that success, they released the debut album 'push' and this was a huge success and went to near the top of the UK album charts and also it had a number of singles that went on to top ten success. In early 1989 Craig Logan decided to leave the band and the twin brothers were now left to carry on the name. They carried on with the tour schedule and later on in 1989 they released there second album 'the time'. There confidence in there role saw them actually write some material for the album including the poignant song 'sister' about the tragic death of there sister Carolyn. Previously the song writing was left to Tom Watkins and Nicky Graham. The album was successful and produced a high number of hit singles in the UK.

By the very late eighties, the bros mania started to wain and although they continued to another album in the early nineties, musical tastes had changed and the fickle market saw them split the band.

The Goss brothers went on to future success with acting and Craig Logan went into writing and managing acts.

In terms of output the band released 9 singles in the 1980s with 8 hitting the top 10 with 'I owe you nothing' reaching number one in 1988 as re-release. They had four number two's with 'drop the boy', 'when will I be famous', 'Cat among the pigeons' and 'too much'. They also released two studio albums with 'push' reaching number two and 'the time' peaking at number four.

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Bananarama

The 1980s saw the birth of the all girl group Bananarama and they went on to have huge success both in the UK and America. The original band was made up of Siobhan Fahey, Karen Woodward and Sara Dallin and they formed in the late 1970s when the punkscene was fading and the girls were studying fashion journalism.

They often did backing vocals for The Jam, Iggy Pop amongst others. They recorded there first demo song with the help of Sex Pistols members Steve Jones and Paul Cook and the success 'Aie a Mwana' prompted Decca Records to sign them up. During this period ex-Sex Pistols manager Malcolm McLaren offered to sign and manage there career but he suggestions did not fit the girls ideology.

There stunning looks caught the attention of Face magazine and also ex- Specials frontman Terry Hall to work with them on there new project Fun Boy Three. The result was a top 5 hit with 'ain't what you do' which gave the girls the exposure they needed and they returned the compliment when they released 'really saying something' when the Fun Boy Three guested on the record.

A debut album followed titled 'Deep sea skiving' in 1983 which hit the top 10 in the UK and top 60 in America. It produced classic singles which all hit the top 5 with 'really saying something', 'shy boy' and 'na na hey hey kiss him goodbye'.

The next album was self titled and went in a different direction and became a more socially conscience aspect to it. It dealt with issues such as drugs and social apathy. It also contained 2 huge singles in 'robert de niro's waiting' and 'cruel summer'. In between they also guested on the Band Aid single 'do they know it's christmas' in 1984.

In 1986 saw the thrd album released 'True Confessions' which fared better in America than the UK but it did spawn the huge hit which became there mantra 'Venus'. Some of the production was carried out by the pop production moguls Stock,Aitken and Waterman.

There production skills gave the band a more dance orientated sound and the sales and popularity were testament to that. Following the success of Venus all production passed to Stock, Aitken and Waterman and the next album had a more europop feel. The album was titled 'WOW'. The album saw two hit singles with 'I heard a rumour' and 'love in the first degree' but by time the third single was released Siobhan left the group as she was not happy with the direction the band were taking.

Siobhan was quickly replaced by Jacquie O'Sullivan and three singles quickly followed suit with 'I want you back', 'Nathan Jones' and 'Love, truth and honesty', they then closed the decade doing the offical Comic Relief song with French and Saunders in the cover of the Beatles song 'Help'.

The band made great strides to empower women in the music industry and there good looks and talent also helped. They hold the record for the most chart entries for an all girl group which shows there longevity and popularity.

During the 1980s they released four studio albums with the debut 'Deep sea skiving' only denting the top 10. A greatest hits album was released in 1988 and his hit number three in the UK charts. They released 25 singles of which 10 hit the top 10. There best position was number 3 with 'Robert De Niro's waiting' in 1984, 'Love in the first degree' in 1987 and 'help' in 1989.

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