"Don't Run Wild" by The Del Fuegos - March 19th 80's Quest Song/Band of the Day

The Del Fuegos were a band of local New Englanders who came-up in Boston. They were a band who rocked, and a band who rocked it old school garage-style. I always felt that they wrote some very poetically beautiful lyrics for a straight ahead rock band, and of course I loved their biggest hits "Don’t Run Wild" and "I Still Want You". I remember in 1988 I was attending San Diego State University for a semester on exchange. Every Friday afternoon at the Union Building to celebrate the oncoming weekend, live bands would play and beer was served. I was feeling a little out of place on the West Coast, and remember that one of the Friday bands broke into a cover version of "Don’t Run Wild". I was overjoyed and felt like I had a piece of home.
　
The Del Fuegos were a garage-rock band formed in 1980 in Boston, Massachusetts (USA) consisting of members Dan Zanes (guitar/vocals), his brother Warren Zanes (guitar), Tom Lloyd (bass), and Steve Morell (drums)
　
The band started doing shows all over the Boston area and gained a large cult following all over the East Coast. Steve Morell left the band and Woody Giessmann came on board as drummer. Ace of Hearts Records signed The Del Fuegos, but in 1984 Los Angeles based record label, Slash Records took over their contract, signed them and released their first album, The Longest Day that Fall. Prior to its release Rolling Stone Magazine announced them as a band to watch. The album was received well by the critics as well as fans.
　
Everyone thought The Del Fuegos would be poised for big success with their next album, 1985’s Boston, Mass. that spawned their most popular hits "Don’t Run Wild" and "I Still Want You". Videos for these songs were played on MTV and broadened their fan base. The critics reacted favorably to the album; however, some fans were turned off when the Del Fuegos appeared in a television beer commercial (it was the 80’s…and unlike today, where bands try build brands and market products, back then it was looked down upon and considered to be a "sell out").
　
The band tried to branch out musically on their third album, 1987’s Stand Up. Magic Dick of the J. Geils Band appeared on the album. Tom Petty had become a fan and made a guest appearance on the album, and took The Del Fuegos with him on tour. Despite all this, the critics panned the album. It was not a commercial success, and Slash Records dropped the band. Warren Zanes and Giessmann left the band.
　
Dan Zanes and Tom Lloyd decided to soldier on and brought Adam Roth (guitars) and Joe Donnelly (drums) on board. The band was signed to RCA Records and released their fourth album 1989’s Smoking in the Fields. The critics liked this album better than the last one, but the album did not do well commercially. Within a year The Del Fuegos called it a day and broke up. Over their careers the band had played all over the world and performed with bands from the Kinks, ZZ Top, Tom Petty, INXS, and The Replacements.
　
The band disappeared and the members all reinvented themselves. After the break up of the Del Fuegos Dan Zanes (born 1961 in Exeter, New Hampshire) released a solo album in 1995. Next he started a band called Dan Zanes and Friends and began recording children’s music. The band’s videos were played often on the Disney Channel and the band became known. In 2007 the band's album Catch That Train! won a Grammy award for Best Musical Album for Children. He has recorded over a dozen albums of folk-based children’s music that the whole family can love. He has also released several DVD’s and written five books. He returns to Somerville, Massachusetts (just outside of Boston) each year to play a show at the Somerville Theater. He collaborates often with other musicians and has performed with Kronos Quartet, Lou Reed, Philip Glass, the Blind Boys of Alabama and the Pilobus dance company.
　
Warren Zanes earned two Masters degrees and a Ph.D in Visual and Cultural Arts from the University of Rochester and works as a professor and writer. In 2002 he was signed by The Dust Brothers and returned to music and released a solo album called Memory Girls which was produced by Kings of Leon’s music producer Angelo Petraglia (formerly a member of Boston band Face to Face – see 80’s Quest Post). He is the Vice President of Education at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and is a visiting professor at Case Western Reserve University. He released two more solo albums and has written several books. He is currently the Executive Director of a non-profit formed by Little Steven Van Zandt (of Bruce Springsteen’s E-Street Band), called The Rock and Roll Forever Foundation. He is also at work on an authorized biography of Tom Petty.
　
Tom Lloyd went back to college and eventually earned a Ph.D in Environmental Engineering Science from the California Institute of Technology in 1999. He did research on biologically mediated geochemistry of transition metals. He than worked as a consultant working on the intersection of media and technology for non-profits. He became the interim Executive Director at a Hollywood non-profit for homeless youth called My Friend’s Place. He now works as an investment analyst at Capital Research. He remains active as a musician, mostly playing the cello with string quartets.
　
Adam Roth worked on music with comedian Denis Leary and has also worked with Jim Carroll (see 80’s quest post for February 16^th), David JoHanson, and Evan Dando.
　
In 2003 Giessmann founded Right Turn Outpatient Services, an organization offering treatment to artists in recovery from drug addiction and mental health issues. Because he himself had a history of addiction and is a musician he brought a unique approach to the organization which brings creative people together in a safe environment where they can explore their gifts and the arts. Giessmann remains a fixture on the Boston music scene and has released a solo recording.
　
Joe Donnelly continues to work on various music projects including Wiki 3 and Chris Pahud.
　
The Del Fuegos reunited and played a gig together for the first time in 21 years at the Paradise Rock Club in Boston on June 23 and 24, 2011. The gig was a charity event to raise funds for Right Turn, a rehab program run by Giessmann. The show sold out almost overnight and extra shows were added. The positive response prompted the band to get back together again to tour.
　
In 2012 the band undertook a two-week, 12-city reunion tour, handpicking the cities they remembered best from their years of touring. The first show was on February 22^nd at the Paradise Rock Club in Boston, and from there the band played New York, New York/ Cleveland, Ohio/ Chicago, Illinois/ Evanston, Illinois/ Minneapolis, Minnesota/ Milwaukee, Wisconsin/ St. Louis, Missouri/ Kent, Ohio/ Brooklyn, New York and wrapped up on March 4^th. in Concord, New Hampshire.

Lyrics:

Oh baby whats gone wrong?
you don't laugh on the phone like you used to
Have I been gone too long
Where's the love that I've gotten used to

All the good times we had
seems my dream might take awhile
so baby don't you run
don't run wild

Trees fly by in a far away car
Wonderin' when I'll see you again
The TV's on the sound is turned down
All the letters that I tried to send

All the good times we had
seems my dream might take awhile
so baby don't you run
don't run wild

Don't run wild,
Don't run wild,
Don't run wild,
Don't leave me child

Don't run wild,
Don't run wild,
Don't run wild,
Don't leave me child

Repeat Repeat etc...

I decided to include their other hit song "I Still Want You" as they are both equally wonderful songs, and it wa so hard to choose just one!



"Bringin' on the Heartbreak" by Def Leppard - March 18th 80's Quest Song/Band of the Day

In 1983 during my sophomore year of high school a new hard rock band out of England came on the scene, Def Leppard. Their song "Photograph" was all over the radio, all over MTV. The band came in concert, and the next day all of the guys at my school were wearing black concert t-shirts with white baseball sleeves from the show. We were playing the game "hangman" on the chalkboard in class, for some reason. I thought I would come up with a current/new song that would stump everyone so I chose "Photograph" for my secret word, but the song was so popular that it was guessed immediately on the very first letter! Most people at my school came on board with Def Leppard upon the release of their Pyromania album, and then we learned that there had been a whole other earlier release High ‘n’ Dry that had previously only been released in England, and it was like being let in on a new secret and a whole new set of songs! For years one of my best friends went crazy whenever "Pour Some Sugar On Me" came on. It was "her" song. I preferred today’s song – "Bringin’ On the Heartache", "Photograph", their ballad "Love Bites" and really love their later hit "Animal". Although I’ve never been a huge Def Leppard fan, and have never seen them in concert, their music certainly has been on the soundtrack of my life since the early 1980’s.
　
In 1977 Pete Willis (guitar) and Rick Savage (bass) and their friend, Tony Kenning (drums), from the Tapton School in Sheffield, South Yorkshire (England) started the band called Atomic Mass. 18-year old Joe Elliot met Pete Willis after missing a bus and auditioned to play guitar with the band, but instead was brought on as their lead singer. Atomic Mass played their first show in a dining hall at Westfield School in Mosborough, Sheffield. Elliot suggested a new name he had made up for the band "Deaf Leopard", and Kenning modified the spelling to be Def Leppard. In 1978 Steve Clark (guitar) successfully auditioned for the band playing Lynrd Skynrd’s hit song "Free Bird".
　
The band began recording a 3-song EP. Kenning quit the band in November 1978. By the end of the month 15-year-old Rick Allen joined the band as the new drummer. The EP, Def Leppard EP, received a lot of airplay after famed BBC radio DJ John Peel, known for making and breaking bands, gave their song "Getcha Rocks Off" a lot of airplay on his radio show. Throughout 1979 the band played gigs and gained a loyal fanbase. Their popularity earned them a record deal with Phonogram (in the U.K.)/Mercury Records in the U.S.
　
Their first album, 1980’s On Through the Night was released in March. It was a hit in the U.K. and reached #51 in the United States. The members of Def Leppard were barely out of their teens when their debut album came out. Singer Joe Elliot was the oldest member of the band at 19 years old, and drummer Rick Allen was the youngest at age 15. They toured Britain with Sammy Hagar and AC/C, as played the 1980 Reading Festival in England. In the United States they toured as the opening band for Ted Nugent, Pat Travers, Judas Priest, and AC/DC. They did a second tour in the U.S. opening for Blackfoot, Ozzy Osbourne, and Rainbow. Between all the touring they were doing and all of the press they were getting in America Def Leppard's fan base grew there.
　
The band caught the attention of producer Robert John "Mutt" Lange who agreed to produce their second album. In 1981 the band’s second album, High ‘n’ Dry, was released in July 1981. Def Leppard’s video for "Bringin’ on the Heartbreak" was one of the first heavy metal videos played on MTV and brought the band even more visibility. A European tour followed the album’s release.
　
The band entered the studio in 1982 to record their third album. Halfway through the recording process the band fired guitarist Pete Willis due to his excessive alcoholism on the job. They hired Phil Collen as their new guitarist. Their other co-guitarist Steve Clark was also beginning his slide into alcoholism at this time, as well. He entered treatment in 1982 for the first of many times. Their album Pyromania came out in January 1983. It became a monster hit, selling over 10 million albums. Their videos were in heavy rotation on MTV, especially the lead single "Photograph" which knocked Michael Jackson’s "Beat It" off the rung of the most requested video. Other hits from the album included "Rock of Ages" and "Foolin". The band started touring in March as the opening band for Billy Squier (see 80’s Quest post), but as their album gained popularity, they ended up headlining their first world tour.
　
The band moved to Dublin, Ireland in 1984 to write the follow-up album to Pyromania. Mutt Lange was unavailable to produce their next album, so Def Leppard chose Jim Steinman to produce. He was most known for his work with Meatloaf. In the end, the
band felt he was incompatible, so they fired Steinman and hired Nigel Green. There were other problems. Guitarist Steve Clark’s drinking had become so bad that Phil Collen had to do most of the lead guitar work on the recording for their next album. One month later on New Years Eve 1984, drummer Rick Allen was attempting to pass another car at a high rate of speed in the hills outside of Sheffield, when he went off the road on a sharp curve and crashed his Corvette through a stone wall. Allen lost his left arm in the accident. Surgeons reattached his limb, but when infection set in, it had to be amputated. Def Leppard’s future was uncertain.
　
Allen was determined to continue his drumming with Def Leppard and the band supported him. They did not want to find a replacement drummer. Allen started performing with special electronic equipment and pre-recorded tapes of his drumming for some parts, but by 1985 Allen was learning to play the drums again using a specially adapted Simmons drum kit that allowed him to play the drums using both legs and his one remaining arm. (By 1995 he was back to he was back to playing a regular acoustic drum kit with customized foot pads). In August 1986 Allen performed for the first time since the accident at the European Monsters of Rock Tour.
　
By this time Mutt Lange was able to come onboard and produce the album which the band had been working on recording over the past 3 years. At the beginning of 1987 the band finally completed the recording of their long awaited fourth album, Hysteria. It was released in August 1987 and spawned six Top 20 hits: "Animal", "Hysteria", "Pour Some Sugar on Me", "Love Bites", "Armageddon It", and "Rocket". Some of the band’s early fans found the band’s style to be too pop-ish and were alienated. But the accessible sound also earned them a lot of new fans worldwide and the album sold over 16 million copies. The band embarked on a 15-month tour that they performed in the round. At the 1989 Brit Awards Def Leppard was a nominee for Best British Group, and at the 1989 American Music Awards they won Favorite Heavy Metal/Hard Rock Artist and Favorite Heavy Metal/Hard Rock Album.
　
Def Leppard immediately began working on their fifth album, in an attempt to avoid another long gap in time between albums. Clark’s drinking had become so bad that in 1989 he was found comatose in a gutter and admitted to a psychiatric hospital. He seemed beyond help. In mid-1990 the band encouraged him to take a six-month sabbatical from the band. Clark was in and out of rehab. Tragedy finally struck when died from a fatal mixture of drugs and alcohol on January 8, 1991. The band decided they would soldier on as a 4-piece with Collen mimicking Clark’s style on the parts he would have played.
　
Adrenalize
　
By this point in time, record companies were courting grunge bands, more than their heavy metal predecessors. Retro Active, an album of covers, B-sides, and rarities was released in October 1993. The band also contributed the song "Two Steps Behind" to the Arnold Schwarzenegger movie, "Last Action Hero". In 1995 the band released a greatest hits album, Vault – Greatest Hits 1985-1990The band wanted to explore new musical directions for their next album and included some industrial music, darker lyrics, and elements of soul on their next album, 1996’s Slang. The album did not do as well as previous albums.
　
In 1998 the band came to the forefront of people’s minds once again when American music television channel VH1 featured Def Leppard on an episode of the show "Behind the Music" to high ratings.
　
Def Leppard returned to their tried and true pop-metal style on their next album, 1999’s Euphoria. In 2000 Def Leppard was inducted into the Rock Walk of fame on Hollywood’s Sunset Boulevard, In 2001 VH1 produced and aired a biopic film called "Hysteria – The Def Leppard Story". Def Leppard’s tenth album, X, was considered more pop-ish than a traditional hard rock album, and became the band’s least successful release. In 2004 another greatest hits album was released called Best of (and Rock of Ages – The Definitive Collection in North America).
　
In 2006 the band released an album of all cover-songs called Yeah! Including songs originally recorded by Blondie, ELO, Sweet, Badfinger and The Kinks. In 2008 they released their Songs from the Sparkle Lounge album. The first single "Nine Lives" was co-written by country music singer Tim McGraw, and he appeared on it as a guest artist. The band went on a U.S. tour in support of the album with Styx and REO Speedwagon.(see 80’s Quest posts on both bands). Def Leppard also played numerous European rock festivals and did an arena tour of the U.K. with Whitesnake and Black Stone Cherry.
　
In October 2008 Def Leppard taped a show in Nashville, Tennessee called CMT Crossroads with teen country star Taylor Swift. She had been a fan of the band since childhood and chose them as the band she wanted to perform with for the show. They did a crossover version of Def Leppard’s song "Photograph". The song was nominated for Performance of the Year and Wide Open Country Video of the Year at the CMT Music Awards of 2009.
　
In 2011 Def Leppard went on a 2-month summer U.S. tour with Heart, and later toured Australia, Japan, and in the U.K. they co-headlined with Motley Crue. Unfortunately Joe Elliot's father passed away, and there were numerous cancellations to the tour due to the sad event. It has been announced that Def Leppard will tour with the band Poison during the summer of 2012.was released in March 1992. The album entered both the U.K. and U.S. charts at #1. It spawned numerous hits such as "Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad", "Let’s Get Rocked", "Make Love Like Man" and "Stand Up (Kick Your Love into Motion). The band performed "Let’s Get Rocked" on the 1992 MTV Video Music Awards and was nominated for Best Video of the Year. Def Leppard embarked on another world tour and Vivian Campbell, a guitarist famous for his work with Ronnie James Dio and Whitesnake, among others joined the band on tour as their new guitarist

Lyrics:

Gypsy, sittin' lookin' pretty

A broken rose with laughin' eyes
You're a mystery, always runnin' wild
Like a child without a home
You're always searching, searching for a feeling
But it's easy come and easy go


Oh I'm sorry but it's true
You're bringin' on the heartache
Takin' on the best of me
Oh can't you see?
You got the best of me
Whoah can't you see?


You're bringin' on the heartbreak
Bringin' on the heartache
You're bringin' on the heartbreak
Bringin' on the heartache
Can't you see?
Oh


You're such a secret, misty eyed and shady
Lady how you hold the key
Oh you're like a candle, your flame slowly fadin'
Burnin' out and burnin' me
Can't you see?
Just tryin' say to you

You're bringin' on the heartache
Takin' on the best of me
Oh can't you see?
You got the best of me
Whoah can't you see?

You're bringin' on the heartbreak
Bringin' on the heartache
You're bringin' on the heartbreak
Bringin' on the heartache
Can't you see?

Can't you see?
No! no! no!


You got the best of me
Oh can't you see?
You got the best of me
Whoah can't you see?
You're bringin' on the heartbreak
Bringin' on the heartache
You're bringin' on the heartbreak
Bringin' on the heartache
You're bringin' on the heartbreak
Bringin' on the heartache
You're bringin' on the heartbreak

Here is another video of the song "Photograph" which was so popular at my high school in 1983:





"My Heart Goes Bang" by Dead or Alive - March 17th 80's Quest Song/Band of the Day

Oh my God!! Dead or Alive is one of all-time favorite bands from the 1980’s. My Senior year of high school me and a group of high school friends saved our money from our after school jobs all year, and in April 1985 took a trip to London, England with The Foreign Language Club. (I know…England is an English speaking country, and so is the United States, so it doesn’t make much sense). That week in London lives in my memory and is still one of the best week’s of my life. I already had Dead or Alive’s Youthquake album and it played over and over on my turntable. While I was in London I went to HMV (their record store) and purchased a 12-inch-single of the song "Lover Come Back to Me" among numerous other albums I was excited to get my sweaty little mitts on in London! We also went out dancing at The Hippodrome. They had a big bouncy house type of thing on the dancefloor there. They also played Dead or Alive there. Dead or Alive’s next album, Mad Bad and Dangerous to Know also received tons of play on my stereo.
　
Any time I hear Dead or Alive I am put in a good mood. I have their Rip it Up CD and still play them in adulthood and sing and dance all over the apartment when I put them on – especially to today’s 80’s Quest song of the day, "My Heart Goes Bang" was not one of Dead or Alive’s most known singles, but it is one of my favorites, and so much fun to sing and rock out to. I also have Dead or Alive on my iPod and when I listen to them on the subway and when walking to work, I start the day with a little more pep in my step!
　
The lead singer of Dead or Alive, Pete Burns was a gender bender along the lines of other androgynous singers who were coming out of England like Boy George, Marilyn, and even to a lesser degree Annie Lennox. I think Pete Burns was the wildest of them all, and for that reason in staid American, he did not personally go over very well with the mainstream (it was a more homophobic time), but Dead or Alive’s song "You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)" was enormously popular with everyone.
　
Dead or Alive (sometimes known as DOA for short) was formed by Pete Burns in Wirral, England and came to initial notice in Liverpool. Burns had an outrageous appearance. Because of his look local music promoters advised him that he should start a band.
　
His formed his first band, The Mystery Girls, with friends Julian Cope, Pete Wylie and Phil Hurst. Their only gig was in November 1977 opening for Sham 69 at Eric’s in Liverpool. In 1979 he started a new goth/punk band called Nightmares in Wax. They recorded one 7-inch, 3 song EP called Birth of a Nation which was released in 1980 on Inevitable Records. The EP featured a cover of KC and The Sunshine Band’s hit song "That’s the Way (I Like It)".
　
The band went through numerous line-up changes. Just before they were due to appear on John Peel’s BBC Radio Sessions Burns changed the name to Dead or Alive, because he thought it sounded better. Over the next three years, more line-up changes occurred.
　
Dead or Alive’s singles began charting on the U.K. independent music charts. In 1982 "The Stranger" charted at #7. Epic Records noticed them and in 1983 signed the band to their label. At this point the band consisted of Pete Burns (vocals), Mike Percy (bass), Tim Lever (keyboards and saxophone), Wayne Hussey (guitar) and Steve Coy (drums). Their first release on Epic Records was a single called "Misty Circles". Two of their other singles, "What I Want" and "I’d Do Anything" were club hits, but failed to crack mainstream radio. The emerging New Romantic music movement, hampered the bands progress, and Burns also claimed that Boy George stole his look, and the spotlight.
　
In May 1984 Dead or Alive released their debut album, Sophisticated Boom Boom. The album contained their KC and the Sunshine Band cover of "That’s the Way (I Like It)" and it became a Top 40 single in the U.K. and the album charted at #29. Hussey left the band shortly thereafter.
　
Dead or Alive soldiered on as a four-piece band and released their second album, Youthquake, in 1985. Their biggest single, "You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)" went to #1 in the U.K. and Canada, #3 in Australia, rose to #11 in the United States, and cracked the Top Ten in numerous countries around the globe. Other singles included "Lover Come Back to Me", "In Too Deep" and "My Heart Goes Bang".
　
Dead or Alive released their third album, Mad, Bad, and Dangerous to Know in 1987. "Brand New Lover" became the lead single from this album. Surprisingly, this album did better in the United States (#15) than the band’s native U.K. (#31). The other singles released from this album stirred up some controversy. When "Something in My House" was released the sleeve for the single was very gothic and featured Pete Burns in front of a satanic looking altar that had an upside-down crucifix. The third single "Hooked on Love" did not create controversy, but was not promoted well. The fourth single, "I’ll Save You All My Kisses" was released in a sleeve that featured Burns with a metal belt buckle over his lips that read "Sex". Epic records had to cover up the belt buckle with a sticker that said "Kiss" when stores raised a stink. The video for this song was also banned from MTV because they felt the content (Burns in tights and a leather jacket singing the song in a baseball diamond while men clung to a fence ogling him) had too much suggestive homosexual content. In 1987, the band embarked on a world tour including shows in Europe, Japan, and the United States. They also released a compilation album called Rip it Up in Japan.
　
In 1988 Lever and Percy left the band to pursue careers as mixers and producers. They now own and operate Steelworks Studios in Sheffield, England. This left Dead or Alive down to a duo of Burns and Coy. They self-produced an album called Nude which was released in 1989 which featured singles "Turn Around and Count 2 Ten" which was the band’s biggest hit in Japan, and "Come Home With Me Baby" which was #1 in Brazil. Overall, however, the album failed to be played significantly on the radio.
　
1990 brought another Japan-only release, Fan the Flame (Part 1). This album had a very 70’s disco and lounge style, and contained the very first ballad that Dead or Alive ever performed, the holiday song "Blue Christmas". The band intended to release Fan the Flame (Part 2) in 1992, but it was never released. The band was exploring new musical directions with this album and many tracks featured only piano as instrumentation. Some tracks recorded for this album later appeared on future album (1995’s Nuketopia), and has since surfaced on the internet.
　
Dead or Alive was quiet for a number of years until Pete Burns did the vocals on a 1994 single for the Italian techno band, Glam. Burns and Coy released a cover of David Bowie’s single, "Rebel Rebel" under the name International Chrysis (named for the late transsexual nightclub performer).
　
Dead or Alive resurfaced in 1995 with a new bandmember, Jason Alburey on keyboards, and the album Nuketopia was released. The album included the pre-mentioned tracks, as well as a cover of Blondie’s hit "Picture This". The album was originally only released in Japan, but also saw release in Australia, Singapore, South Africa, France and the United States. Each country’s release featured different cover art.
In 2003 a greatest hits album was released called Evolution: the Hits. In 2004 The Pet Shop Boys (see 80’s Quest post) produced a single called "Jack and Jill Party" , a Pete Burns solo-effort which was only released on The Pet Shop Boy’s website. It reached #75 on the U.K. charts.
　
In 2006 Pete Burns appeared on the U.K. reality television program, Celebrity Big Brother and finished in fifth place. His altered appearance from plastic surgery was shocking, and his explosive personality made him a noticeable stand out on the show. At the conclusion of the show "You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)" was re-released as a single in the U.K. and charted in the Top 5 there. In an interview with Lorraine Kelly/GMTV Burns expressed his disgust about the re-release of the song saying "it’s like wearing a school uniform at the age of 46."

Lyrics:

My Heart Goes Bang
The other night a close friend told me
Never let my heart falll into careless hands
I said, "thanks, that's very nice
Appreciate your good advice
But things don't always go the way that I planned,"

(CHORUS):
Oh you, you, you
Take my heart and shake it up
You, you, you
Take my heart and break it up
Get me to the doctor
My heart goes bang, bang, bang, bang
My heart goes bang, bang, bang, bang
My heart goes bang, bang, bang, bang
My heart goes bang, bang, bang, bang

When I get in close to you
I do the things I never do
There's no depression
Doctor put me to the test
I've heard your lovin' is the best
Well he is right
You know I need affection

(CHORUS)

Doctor, doctor, give me the cure
Doctor, doctor, give me the cure
Doctor, doctor, give me the cure
Doctor, doctor, give me the cure

Doctor, I'm consulting you
I wanna put myself
Into your careless hands
All I need's a lovin' dose
I feel much better when you're close
I really hope things go
The way I planned

(CHORUS)

My heart goes bang bang bang bang
My heart goes bang bang bang bang

When I get close to you
When I get close to you
When I get close to you
When I get close to you

My heart goes bang bang bang bang (Repeat)

"Instant Club Hit (You'll Dance to Anything)" by The Dead Milkmen - March 16th 80's Quest Song/Band of the Day

Couldn't find a video anywhere for this song, so here is a clip you can listen to:

http://www.last.fm/music/The+Dead+Milkmen/_/Instant+Club+Hit+(You'll+Dance+To+Anything)

The Dead Milkmen were such a revelation to me in high school. When I first heard them I was wowed by the fact that they were a punk band that joked around and was funny. I was also surprised that the lead singer could have such a screechy voice that was not very melodious, but it worked! The first song I heard by them, was probably the one that most people were introduced to the band by, "Bitchin’ Camaro" – which made fun of people who drove Chevy Camaro’s.
　
That’s the thing with The Dead Milkmen - - they tool on various elements of the population with silly but clever satirical lyrics (Camaro drivers in Bitchin’ Camaro, punk rock people in "Punk Rock Girl", and in the song I’ve posted today "Instant Club Hit {You’ll Dance to Anything}" they take on artsy British alternative music lovers who dress in all black.) That was me at the time! But it didn’t make me hate them or take offense. I always took them with a slice of humor and thought it was funny that they could pick out these kinds of cues and traits from the population and make them funny.
　
Around 1989 or 1990 when I was around 22 or 23 years old I went on a really great date down to Boston to see The Dead Milkmen. I believe that they played at The Paradise Rock Club. It was a phenomenal time, and I still look back on that evening fondly, as it was so much fun. The Dead Milkmen had a way with words, and sometimes I would steal some of their lines and take them into real life. When I was in my early 20’s and bar-hopping was a big part of life, I was at times approached my annoying and/or weird individuals who I was not interested in continuing conversation with. I would sometimes borrow a line from this song, "Instant Club Hit (You’ll Dance to Anything)" and tell them "Hey listen, I came here to drink, not to get laid." I know, I know…not very ladylike, but it worked every time. The weird would-be suitor never knew what to reply to that and just walked away and left me alone.
　
The Dead Milkmen formed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (USA) in 1979 in the Chester County bedroom of Joe Genaro (guitars and co-lead vocalist). He and a high school buddy created an imaginary band called Dead Milkmen, along with a whole mythological backstory about the band, which they released in fanzines called the DM Newzletter. In these fanzine parodies the band played a type of music known as "neo punk folk", were hated by critics, had a large fan following, and released albums every few months, when they weren’t suing their record label in court. They also created recordings about the fictitious band on cassettes.
　
The name Dead Milkmen was revised from the character Milkman Dead in Toni Morrison’s book "Song of Solomon". Genaro’s buddy joined the United States Air Force and Genaro started college at Philadelphia’s Temple University. It was there that Rodney Linderman (keyboards and co-lead vocalist) began participating in the dorm room-recording sessions of the Dead Milkmen. Genaro met Dave Schulthise (bass) and Dean Sabatino (drums) and along with Linderman began rehearsing as a real band in 1981. The Dead Milkmen made their first public appearance in 1983. The band members took on fake band names Genaro was Joe Jack Talcum , Linderman was Rodney Anonymous , Sabatino was Dean Clean, and Schulthise was Dave Blood.
　
The band played gigs on the Philadelphia punk rock circuit and anywhere they could, driving around to gigs in a converted ambulance. The band came to the attention of two local WXPN college radio DJ’s Lee Paris and Mike Morrison who invited The Dead Milkmen to play live on their shows. In 1985 the band’s debut album, Big Lizard in My Backyard was recorded for $900 and later released by Restless Records (a subsidiary of Enigma Records). The single "Bitchin’ Camaro" received a lot of airplay on college radio stations.
　
The Dead Milkmen’s second album, Eat Your Paisley was released in 1986. The first single released was "The Thing That Only Eats Hippies", and it also became the band’s first video. The song became a hit in Australia and received some attention in America.
　
Their 1987 album, Bucky Fellini, featured a song spoofing European modern music and the art lovers who enjoyed it entitled, "Instant Club Hit (You’ll Dance to Anything)".
　
With each album, the band toured and began to increase their fanbase. By 1988 the band released their fourth album, Beelzebubba, which contained their most successful single, "Punk Rock Girl". The video for "Punk Rock Girl" received a lot of play on MTV. The next single was called "Smokin’ Banana Peels".
　
The band signed a lucrative contact with Enigma Records. The bands next album, 1990’s Metaphysical did not produce a hit single, and Enigma Records was having problems and went out of business.
　
In 1991 The Dead Milkmen signed with Hollywood Records which a new record label owned by the Walt Disney Company. Their first album on Hollywood Records was called Soul Rotation (1992). The album was more on the pop-tip and was not well-received with their alternative fan base, which had by now was dominated by grunge music. In 1993 they released another album, Not Richard, But Dick and thereafter left Hollywood Records due to a change in management. This album also did not fare well, and both albums went out of print shortly after they were released,
　
The difficult years with these record companies took their toll on the band. In 1994 The Dead Milkmen announced their decision to break up following a final tour and album. Bassist, Schulthise was suffering from excruciating tendonitus, which was making playing increasingly difficult for him, and the band felt frustrated with the commercial struggles their albums were having. They went back to Restless Records to release what was to be their finally album, 1995’s Stoney’s Extra Stout (Pig).
　
The band then went on a 13-year hiatus. Linderman began performing with a gothic Celtic punk band called Burn Witch Burn and became a blogger, and journalist who wrote for the Philadelphia Weekly. Sabatino played with a couple of bands including the Big Mess Orchestra and The Hunger Artists. Genaro started a band called Butterfly Joe and also recorded and performed with numerous other bands while also nurturing a solo career. Before becoming a musician Schulthise had studied at Temple University and Purdue University and was a Ph.D candidate in Economics. After the band went on hiatus he returned to college at Indiana University to study Serbo-Croatian language, literature, history and culture. He moved to Novi Sad, Serbia in 1998 to teach English. His writing was published in Svetigora a magazine for the Serbian Orthodox Church. He wanted to stay in Serbia to aid in the country’s regrowth, but fled the country in April 1999 during the NATO bombing of former Yugoslavia and returned to the United States to live with his parents in Ridley Park, Pennsylvania.
　
In 2003 a compilation retrospective of the bands songs was released called Now We . They compiled their videos and released them on DVD under the title Philadelphia in Love. The band was talking about perhaps reuniting, but on March 10, 2004, 47-year old Schulthise committed suicide at a friend’s home in North Salem, New York. He had been depressed since his mother, Margi, had died of cancer that January.
are 20
　
The surviving members of The Dead Milkmen reunited in November 2004 to perform two tribute shows for Schulthise at the Trocadero Theatre in Philadelphia. The proceeds from the shows were donated to various mental health organizations and to Studenica, a Serbian monastery that Schulthise had supported.
　
In late 2008 the surviving members along with bassist Dan Stevens played two warm-up shows in Philadelphia under the pseudonym Les Enfants Du Prague in preparation for a gig playing the Fun Fun Fun Fest in Austin, Texas. The shows in Philadelphia and Austin were so successful that they decided to become an active band again. Over the next two years they played occasional gigs and began writing new material. They went into the recording studio in 2010 and in March 2011 released a new self-released CD, The King in Yellow, which was later released digitally on the band’s website.


Lyrics:

You'll dance to anything [x4]

Oh, baby, look at you
Don't you look like Siouxsie Sioux
How long'd it take to get that way
What a terrible waste of energy
You wear black clothes say you're poetic
The sad truth is you're just pathetic
Get into the groove just get out of my way
I came here to drink not to get laid
So why don't you just go on home
'Cause if you want to moan you'll have to moan alone

You'll dance to anything [x2]

Don't try to tell me that you're an intellectual
Cause you're just another boring bisexual
"I met Andy Warhol at a really chic party"
Blow it out your hairdo 'cause you work at Hardees
80 pounds of make up on your art school skin
80 points of I.Q. located within

Know what you are? You're a bunch of ...
Artfags! Artfags! Artfags! Artfags!
Choke on this you dance-a-teria types!

You'll dance to anything by The Communards
You'll dance to anything by Book of Love
You'll dance to anything by The Smiths
You'll dance to anything by Depeche Commode
You'll dance to anything by Public Image Limited
You'll dance to anything by Naked Truth
You'll dance to anything by any bunch of stupid Europeans who come over here
with their big hairdos intent on taking our money instead of giving your
cash, where it belongs, to a decent American artist like myself!

You'll dance to anything!


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"Let it Whip" by The Dazz Band - March 15th 80's Quest Song/Band of the Day

I was trying to remember how I came to know this song, "Let it Whip" and The Dazz Band, and came to the conclusion that I’m not entirely sure…but it was either through my older sister who came home from the Army where she was stationed in Washington, DC with crates full of R&B, Urban Dance and Rap albums (the kind of stuff they weren’t playing on the radio very much farther North in New England where we were raised and where classic rock n’ roll was de rigueur. If not my sister then it was at Club 777, a teen dance club for the under 18-years-old set that would have played stuff like this. Wherever it was that this song came into my life, it has always been a song that gets me out on the dance floor every time I hear it (or dancing around the apartment more so these days!).  Ooo-woo-hooo!
　
The Dazz band formed in Cleveland, Ohio in 1976. It all started when Bobby Harris (lead guitarist/songwriter), Mike Calhoun (percussion), Kenny Pettus (drums), Isaac "Ike" Wiley Jr. and his brother Michael Wiley (bass) performed together in a jazz fusion band called Bell Telefunk. They began working as the house band at a lounge called Sonny Jones’ Kinsman Grill Lounge on a street called Dazz, and changed their name to Kinsman Dazz. In 1978 20^th Century Records signed Kinsman Dazz. Marvin Gaye was slated to produce their first album. The band flew out to Los Angeles, but Gaye had to back out due to illness. Harris requested that Philip Bailey the lead singer of Earth Wind and Fire produce the album in his place. Bailey produced their first album Kinsman Dazz, as well as their second album Dazz. The first single Kinsman Dazz released was called "I Might as Well Forget About Loving You" (1978) and "Cathin’ Up on You" (1979).
　
In 1980 the band changed their name again, this time to the Dazz Band. 20^th Century Records had gone out of business, and the Dazz Band was next signed to Motown Records and added 4 new members: Kevin Kendrick, Eric Fearman, Pierre DeMudd, and Sennie "Skip" Martin. The first album they released on Motown was called Invitation to Love (1980). They had their first hit single in 1980 with "Shake it Up".
　
In 1981 they released their second Motown album, Let the Music Play. It reached the Top 50 and spawned a minor hit with "Knock! Knock!". It was their next album 1982’s Keep it Live that spawned their big hit "Let it Whip" which reached #1 on the R&B charts and won the Dazz Band a Grammy Award for best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals. Over the years they scored other notable hits with "Party Right Here" (1983), "Joystick" (1984), and "Let It All Blow" (1984) which was their biggest hit in the U.K. In the 1990’s the band would get together to perform at festival in the U.S. and abroad.

Lyrics:

I want to see you with it
Sho' could treat you right
Give me just a minute of your time tonight

We both are here to have good fun
So let it whip
We'll get into grooving, love your body language
Baby let me know, you've got me sort of anxious

We both are here to have good fun
So let it whip

So let it whip
(Let's whip it, baby)
Child
(Let's whip it right)
Get a grip
(Let's whip it baby)
(Work it all night)
You'll get your trip, child
C'mon let it whip

Now that you can see
How you groove with me
What else can I do
To get closer to you?

We both are here to have the fun
So let it whip

We have the natural feeling
Obviously revealing
Let me be your paper man
I'd love to be at your command

We both are here to have the fun
So let it whip

So let it whip
(Let's whip it, baby)
Child
(Let's whip it right)
Get a grip
(Let's whip it baby)
(Work it all night)
You'll get your trip, child
C'mon let it whip

(There's no time to lose)
There is no time to lose
(You're the one I choose)
(You're so right)
You're the one I choose
I only wanna be with you
You're the one for me
Can't you see that I
(I won't waste your time)
I won't waste your time
(I sense something divine in you)
Something divine in you
(Yes I do)
Oo-woo-hoo



"Tell it To My Heart" by Taylor Dayne - March 14th 80's Quest Song of the Day

Oh, this video is a hoot! Talk about being stuck in the 80's...in this one she is sporting 3, count 'em THREE hair-do's all in one:  Big hair, spiral perm, AND crimped bangs -- and don't forget the breakdancers, Chuck Taylor Converse hi-tops, leather biker jacket and corset. Wee....that's getting it all in there!  Taylor Dayne's dance songs and ballads were the soundtrack to my college year's nights out dancing at fraterinity parties and dance clubs.

Taylor Dayne (real name Leslie Wunderman) was born in 1963 in Baldwin, New York. She began singing in high school and local bands such as Felony and Next. After college she went solo and recorded two unsuccessful singles (1985’s "I’m the One You Want" and 1986’s "Tell Me Can You Love Me" using the name Leslee. It was a fellow Baldwin resident, Dee Snider the lead singer of metal band Twisted Sister, who suggested that Leslee, a white Jewish girl from Long Island, change her name to something more exotic and glamorous.
　
Now singing as Taylor Dayne, she began performing in clubs in the Russian-American enclave to Brighton Beach, Brooklyn. It was there that she was discovered.
　
In 1988 she released her solo album, Tell it to My Heart, on Arista records. The title track rose to #7 and the album spawned other dance hits such as "Prove Your Love", "Don’t Rush Me" and ballad, "I’ll Always Love You" (which was her breakthrough song on the Adult Contemporary charts. This song moved her songs a new market from her prior dance-related songs). The album was a worldwide smash in numerous countries.
　
Her next album, 1989’s Can’t Fight Fate spawned more hits "With Every Beat of My Heart", "Love Will Lead You Back" (written by famed pop songwriter, Diane Warren), "I’ll Be Your Shelter" and "Heart of Stone".
　
Dayne wrote much of her own music for her 1993 album, Soul Dancing. The album included a cover of disco stalwart Barry Whites hit, "Can’t Get Enough of Your Love".
　
Arista released a Greatest Hits album in 1995. Overall Dayne had 18 hit songs reach Billboard’s Top Ten.
　
In the 1990’s through the 2000’s Dayne began acting and appeared in the movies Love Affair (a 1994 remake produced by Warren Beatty), Fools Paradise (1997), Stag (1997), and Jesus and the Driver (2004). She also acted in theater productions such as Archie and Mehitabel and Elton John’s Aida on Broadway in 2001. She also acted on television shows: Martial Law, Rude Awakening, and played Carla Day (the leading character’s love interest) on the 1997 science fiction series Nightman.
　
By 1998 Dayne was recording on a new label, Intersound (out of Atlanta, Georgia – USA), a label known for its black gospel music releases. Dayne released Naked Without You, which also included a bonus disc of remixes of some of her earlier hits.
　
Dayne took time off from music to raise a family. She has twins from a surrogate mother named Levi and Astaria. Dayne later appeared on a VH1 television program called Remaking. In it her friends Michelle Reid, and actress Leah Remini help her return to a life of music making after having taken the time off to have a family.
　
In 2007 Dayne released another studio album called Satisfied. The first single was called "Beautiful". She released her 5^th album in 2008. In 2009 she appeared in another reality television program called, Gone Country, during the season that fellow 80’s singer
Sheila E was the singer. She released a single in 2010, "Facing a Miracle" which became the theme song to the 2010 Gay Games. She released another single in 2011 called "Floor on Fire" which broke the Billboard Dance/Club Charts Top Ten. In 2012 she appeared in yet another reality television program on the Food Network channel called Rachael vs. Guy: Celebrity Cook Off making it all the way to the second to the last competition beating out other celebrities Aaron Carter, Summer Sanders, and Cheech Marin.

Lyrics:

I feel the night explode when we're together.
Emotion overload in the heat of pleasure.
Take me I'm yours into your arms.
Never let me go.
Tonight I really need to know.
Tell it to my heart
Tell me I'm the only one.
Is this really love or just a game?
Tell it to my heart.
I can feel my body rock every time you call my name.
The passion's so complete. It's neverending.
As long as I receive, the message you're sending.
Body to body, soul to soul
Always feel you near.
So say the words I long to hear.
Tell it to my heart.
Tell me I'm the only one.
Is this really love or just a game?
Tell it to my heart.
I can feel my body rock every time you call my name.
Love, love on the run, breaking us down,
Though we keep holding on.
I don't want to lose, no I can't let you go.
Tell it to my heart.
Tell me I'm the only one.
Is this really love or just a game?
Tell it to my heart.
I can feel my body rock every time you call my name.
Tell it to my heart. Tell me from the start. Tell it to my heart.
Tell it to my heart. Tell me from the start. Tell it to my heart.
Never make it stop. Oh, take it to the heart.
Tell it to my heart...
(til fade)