I have to admit to liking the art rock more than the smooth crooning. I love Virginia Plain (I know, not on an album), Do the Strand. I like the detours. I found Avalon a bit too smooth.
You named the two ABBA songs that I absolutely hate. And hate with a passion. I'm not a big fan of ABBA, but I do like a number of the songs, and they did create some amazing songs and amazing moments within songs, but none of those moments appear in these two songs. Abba did have an amazing run in 1976, between the April 5 and December 20 they dominated the singles charts like no one else, Fernando was #1 for 14 weeks and went 25 x Gold, followed by Dancing Queen (#1 for 8 weeks and 20 x Gold) and Money, Money Money (#1 for 6 weeks and 13 x Gold) yet my pick for their best song, Knowing Me, Knowing You could only reach #9.
Back around 94 or 95 I went on a pub crawl on Chapel St and The singer was playing a gig in a pub to about 12 people.
I'm in a minority on this forum as I think F+B and Avalon are peak Roxy Music. Street Life gives me all the earlier material I'm interested in. Bryan's solo work is always good. I actually saw him live on his Mamouna tour (long time ago!) and he was brilliant.
His 'Let's Stick Together' and 'In Your Mind' records are great - and can be gotten cheap at any 2nd-hand store.
One of my best friends did work experience at EON-FM during the 80s and one day Bryan Ferry was a guest in the studio. She almost passed out and/or wet her pants when he shook her hand and introduced himself. I'm still not sure if she's recovered. Glad to know another F+B and Avalon fan. It's not that I don't love everything that came before, but I agree they reached their peak at the start of the 80s.
Brilliant albums. He was really prolific in the 1970's, between 1972 and 1980 he released 7 Roxy Music albums and 5 solo albums, and the quality rarely waivered, perhaps his solo album The Bride Stripped Bare is the only poor album from that period, and perhaps his whole catalogue.
Nice to see Suzanne Vega's self-titled debut at #52, it's an underappreciated little gem, as are all her albums. The first single, Marlene On The Wall was a flop when it was originally released in 1985 but became a top 40 hit reaching #39 on re-release in 1986. Her follow up, Solitude Standing released in 1987 would be her most successful album, reaching #7 in Australia and it spawned her best known hit Luka which reached #21.
I have 27 of these - surprising as 1986 isn't my favourite year for music (much better than, say 1989) and the majority of my 700-odd vinyl collection didn't chart in Australia.
I have 26 albums from this album chart : Whitney Houston - "Whitney Houston" Dire Straits - "Brothers In Arms" Eurythmics - "Revenge" Sting - "The Dream Of The Blue Turtles" Genesis - "Invisible Touch" Madonna - "True Blue" Billy Joel - "The Bridge" Simply Red - "Picture Book" Sade - "Promise" Paul Simon - "Graceland" The Rolling Stones - "Dirty Work" Lionel Richie - "Dancing On The Ceiling" Phil Collins - "No Jacket Required" Peter Gabriel - "So" Bryan Adams - "Reckless" Bryan Ferry & Roxy Music - "Streetlife : The Best Of" Elton John - "Ice On Fire" Pet Shop Boys - "Please" Billy Joel - "Greatest Hits Volume 1 & 2" Queen - "A Kind Of Magic" Joe Jackson - "Big World" Bruce Springsteen - "Live 1975 - 1985" A-Ha - "Hunting High And Low" Sting - "Bring On The Night" (Live) Mike & The Mechanics - "Mike & The Mechanics" Sade - "Diamond Life"
Roxy Music "Avalon" is one of my favorite albums of 1982 and also of the 80's "Flesh & Blood" and "Avalon" are my favorite albums by Roxy Music. Bryan Ferry's "Boys And Girls" is also a great album and one of my favorite albums of 1985.
Today we're returning to the early 80s (yay!) and looking at the Australian Top 100 singles for 22 March 1982. Moving Pictures spend their first week at #1 with 'What About Me?'. We've already discussed this song at some length but it really is one of the defining songs of 1982: six weeks at #1 and the second biggest-selling single of the year (behind 'Eye of the Tiger'). In addition, the Days of Innocence LP tops the Australian albums chart this week, the start of a seven week reign at #1 (it will be the fourth highest-selling album of 1982). I won't rabbit on about it but Elektra in the US really missed a trick by not promoting the hell out of this single — its #29 peak on the Billboard Top 100 was far too low. Rod Stewart achieves his biggest hit of the 80s in Australia with 'Young Turks', which moves up to its #3 peak. It's Rod's second Top 10 hit in a row after 'Tonight I'm Yours (Don't Hurt Me)' reached #6 back in December 1981. At this time, Rod is more successful in Australia than in the UK, although that will reverse in 1983 when 'Baby Jane' tops the UK chart but only reaches #10 here and 'What Am I Gonna Do (I'm So In Love You' (a #3 UK smash) struggles to #68. Like many big 70s artists, Rod's fortunes during the 80s ebbed and flowed, although it must be said he adapted better to the new decade than some of his contemporaries. Olivia Newton-John rises eleven places to #11 with 'Make A Move On Me', her second hit single from the Physical album. It will jump to #8 next week, where it will remain for two weeks. For me, 'Make A Move On Me' is one of Livvy's most memorable singles and a real highlight of 1982 (no small feat). Olivia will enjoy one more Top 10 single in Australia (her 14th) with 'Twist of Fate' (#4 January '84). Bucks Fizz peak at #15 with 'The Land of Make Believe'. I thought this song was the bee's knees when I was 11 and I used to wait for hours to hear it on the radio. I can also remember thinking the video was completely magical but it's actually super cheesy! In my memory, 'The Land of Make Believe' was a much bigger hit here (it was a #1 single in the UK) so I'm surprised to be reminded that it didn't even reach the Top 10. Depeche Mode are one of this week's bullet performers with 'Just Can't Get Enough', which rises 13 spots to #23. 'Just Can't Get Enough' will peak at #4 in April (four positions higher than in the UK) and become the Mode's only big hit in Australia — in fact, they'll only have one further Top 30 single with 'People Are People' (#25 September '84). For such a hugely important and successful 80s band (they had 16 Top 20 hits in the UK during the decade) it's odd that Aussies embraced Depeche Mode immediately and then pretty much abandoned them. Not even 'Enjoy The Silence' — a Top 10 hit in the UK and US in 1990 — could crack our Top 50, peaking at a dismal #71. Duran Duran jump 30 places to #31 with the poptastic 'My Own Way', their third hit single in a row. Australia is the only country where 'My Own Way' reached the Top 10 — it will peak at #10 in May. Duran mania really starts to build around this time: even though 'My Own Way' doesn't feature on the group's debut album (it will be re-recorded for the Rio album), the success of the single sends the Duran Duran album back up the Australian albums chart, where it will peak at #9 in May '82. There are lots of other singles I could mention but I'll leave that up to others. One song I do want to highlight is Laurie Anderson's 'O Superman', which reached #28 in February '82 and is surely one of the most bizarre singles of the decade. I was actually terrified of it when I was a kid but I fully embrace its weirdness now!
Australian Top 20 Albums — 22 March 1982 01 03 Days Of Innocence - Moving Pictures 02 01 Love Songs - Cliff Richard 03 56 Circus Animals - Cold Chisel 04 02 Business As Usual - Men At Work 05 04 4 - Foreigner 06 05 Hooked On Swing - Kings Of Swing Orchestra 07 06 Dare - The Human League 08 12 The George Benson Collection - George Benson 09 08 Straight Ahead - Various Artists 10 -- Greatest Hits Volume II - Cat Stevens 11 07 Live - The Jacksons 12 11 The Blurred Crusade - The Church 13 24 Physical - Olivia Newton-John 14 16 Wired For Sound - Cliff Richard 15 9 The Best Of Blondie - Blondie 16 20 The Great Escape - Richard Clapton 17 10 Manilow Magic - Barry Manilow 18 14 Tonight I'm Yours - Rod Stewart 19 35 Concert In Central Park - Simon & Garfunkel 20 18 Greatest Hits - Queen
I hate What About Me with a passion. It's the first Australian song about whining and self-pity to make #1 and it actually played a big part in ruining Australian music. Just as it was almost forgotten Shannon Noll recorded an even more whining and self-pitying version that also made #1. Dreadful
