16 May 2013 - The Mighty Lemon Drops - Inside Out

Wow. It's almost like I'm trying to make 80s Thursdays here at Wicked Guilty Pleasures somewhat respectable. Last week we had an early single by the Red Hot Chili Peppers and this week I have probably the biggest hit by The Mighty Lemon Drops. Sure they are Echo and the Bunnymenesque, but is that necessarily a bad thing? I think not. A few years back I was able to "upgrade" my old Mighty Lemon Drops tapes to CDs through a long gone CD trading site. I was pretty lucky considering those cds were long out-of-print. I do see that they are now available again which is a good thing. If you miss that old late 80s, early 90s alternative sound, I strongly suggest checking those discs out.

15 May 2013 - The White Stripes - The Denial Twist & The Hardest Button To Button

I know my co-writer Scott would never, ever, ever write about the White Stripes.  He isn't a fan.  This is quite possibly our biggest musical disagreement, because I am a big fan.  Of course, I am a big fan of duos of all kinds - I've featured several of them on this blog.

This is my favorite song by them.  It's full of raw emotion and tells a great story.  And, with just a piano and drums, they make a lot of beautiful noise.



Here's an early great tune by the duo.  Jack went with guitar on this song, which is the right choice.  His multi-instrumental prowess are part of what made this band great.  The story of this song, though, is the bad-ass drumming by Meg White, who doesn't get enough credit for what she did with that group.  Truly, one of the greatest drummers I have ever heard.

Also, Jack has my hair from 1989.

14 May 2013 - Demi Lovato - Heart Attack

This site IS called Wicked Guilty Pleasures. X Factor judge Demi Lovato has a new record (Demi) out today. I think y'all can put 2 and 2 together. Here's her latest video. Not bad, but it's no Skyscraper.

13 May 2013 - Alan Parsons Project - Don't Answer Me

Let's forget about the song for a minute.  This video, which is clearly very Dick Tracy comic-inspired, is among the most beautiful ones I've ever seen. And Nick gets the girl in the end.  What more can you ask?!  So, before we talk about the music, let's enjoy the video.



The song itself, though, is not at all happy.  It's angry and depressed and sarcastic in the first verse.  The second verse keeps the anger and depression, but the sarcasm is replaced with hope.  I was always impressed with the way Alan Parsons and Eric Woolfson kept the story going so far forward in such a short song.  And, let's be honest - music hadn't seen this much orchestral-style layering since Phil Spector!

10 May 2013 - Tom Tom Club - Genius of Love

It's almost the weekend, so I thought we needed a fun song.  What better fun song than this classic, performed by a side project of the Talking Heads?  Enjoy one of the most sampled songs in history.

9 May 2013 - Red Hot Chili Peppers - True Men Don't Kill Coyotes

I'm going to move away from the typical 80s Thursdays cheese today and instead present you with a video from the self-titled Red Hot Chili Peppers debut from 1984 (I suppose some of you will say it's an entirely different kind of 80s cheese). Hard to believe they've been around for almost 30 years. I wasn't too sure about their first couple records when I first heard them (shortly after Mother's Milk came out). I eventually came around (many years later). I doubt I'll ever say the same about their last two albums.

8 May 2013 - Kate Bush - Cloudbusting (with a Neil Halstead bonus)

Here in the Rochester, NY, area, where I write this blog, we sit today, with a thickening cloud cover and corresponding barometric pressure that I am quite positive is causing pain for many with nerve or joint issues today.

Thankfully, I am not one of those sufferers.

But, for them, perhaps Wilhelm Reich's research on his farm, Orgonon, would help open the skies.  Kate Bush's song, loosely based on Peter Reich's book - he was Wilhelm's son - is a beautiful, heartfelt tribute to not only rainmaking, but a close relationship between father (played in this video by Donald Sutherland) and son (played by... well, Kate Bush).



As a bonus, here is Neil Halstead's fantastic cover of the song, re-imagined as a lullaby.