Daily Boom 80's Throwback: Billy Idol- 'Cradle Of Love'

Cause love cuts a million ways
Shakes the devil when he misbehaves
I ain't nobody's fool
Come on shake it up
Whatever I do
Rock the cradle of love

Can you believe that Billy Idol turns 61 today? Sixty-one?! How does that even seem possible when, in my mind, Idol will always be shirtless, in leather pants , bleached hair and of course, doing a lip curl? Then again, when I think of my own actual age... I guess the math does kind of work.

Idol is one of those artists that really helped to revolutionize the music industry during MTV's infantile stages. His videos were sharp, his songs were catchy and he was the kind of bad boy that wasn't trying to be one. Idol was just living his life and we were all happy to watch. Normally I'd be linking "Rebel Yell" or "White Wedding" for a throwback but "Cradle of Love" really seems like the best way to go.

Technically, the video didn't come out until May of 1990 but it the song was recorded in 1989 so I'm going to use that loophole. The video was unforgettable for several reasons. It was loaded with sexual innuendos when a teenage "Devin" from down the hall needed to use her uptight businessman neighbors stereo. Of course she stripped her way through the apartment while demolishing everything in her path, that was kind of predictable.

But "Cradle of Love" was filmed differently because Idol was recovering from a motorcycle accident that nearly cost him both legs. He is seen only from the waist up performing in pictures hanging on the walls. What's really ironic is that this video won so many awards and was considered a turning point in the evolution of MTV, yet it also was kind of the beginning of the end of Idol's hot streak. He was no longer needed dancing around, being the center of attention in his own videos, bringing his decade-long run on MTV to a pretty abrupt end.

He's SIXTY. Can you believe it?

Daily Boom's 90's Nostalgia: Garbage

Being an unapologetic vinyl junkie I was eventually going to get my hands on Garbage's 20th Anniversary remastered double album set. It took me awhile but my copy finally arrived this weekend and I have to say, it's most definitely worth every penny. The album art, lyrics sheets and detailing alone really does up the quality and really, who doesn't love colored vinyl?

(Photo: Twitter)

I'll admit, it has been a minute since I've listened to Shirley Manson and the guys and I really don't know why. Their tracks really do stand the test of time and are pretty ageless. I love music that you can't easily put a date on and that is Garbage to a tee. It might be a new song (new music, please???!!) or it could be a decade or two old, it's hard to tell.

This collection offers up all of Garbage's top songs like "Stupid Girl", "Only Happy When It Rains", "Queer" and more. The only thing missing is actually one of my very favorites- "Cup of Coffee".  I'm actually not sure why that didn't make the cut so rather than being predictable and going with one of Garbage's critically acclaimed videos, here's "Cup of Coffee" instead.

Currently Booming: 90's Grunge Rock Playlist

Daily Boom 80's Throwback: Samantha Fox 'Naughty Girls (Need Love Too)'

I've been told time and time again

That you can't treat love like a game

But I play rough with hearts that never mend

'cause some guys like you do the same

Love was just a four-letter word

Never heard, how absurd, how could it be

But now I can't believe this is real

How I feel, now you steal my heart away from me

"Naughty Girls (Need Love Too)" was one of the best guilty pleasure songs of the late-80's. Samantha Fox  first burst onto the music scene with "Touch Me" back in 1986, raising many eyebrows. Lyrically she was the first chick to sing entire songs about sex in the bluntest way possible and there was something really ballsy about her doing that.

"Naughty Girls" quickly became an anthem of sorts in the summer of 1988 with the message being that everyone needs love, even when they think that they don't. Fox's videos were really slick and this one cut between a sexy bedroom scene and then her and her crew dancing in front of a graffiti wall. The video walked the line without ever going to far and the result kept Fox's music in heave rotation both on the radio and MTV.

In between listening to a bunch of hair bands, I was definitely a big Samantha Fox fan. Even now, when one of her videos comes on I inevitably stop what I'm doing to watch in spite of already having seen it a million times. 

Friday Night 80's Style

Daily Boom 80's Throwback: 'Planes, Trains, & Automobiles'

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone celebrating today. Today is the official start to the 2016 holiday season and that means that a lot of you will be cracking out some classic holiday films. In our house Thanksgiving ends with a family viewing of Planes, Trains & Automobiles. Steve Martin and John Candy equal comedy magic onscreen and this is one of those 80's films that never, ever gets old.

What are some of your favorite holiday traditions that include classic snippets of pop culture?

Happy Thanksgiving!

Currently Booming: WKRP in Cincinnati- 'Turkeys Away'

Daily Boom 80's Throwback: Olivia Newton John - 'Twist Of Fate'

It's gotta be a strange twist of fate
Telling me that Heaven can wait
Telling me to get it right this time
Life doesn't mean a thing
Without the love you bring
Love is what we've found
The second time around

Do you remember when Olivia Newton John and John Travolta teamed up onscreen a second time and the result was nothing like the critical acclaim that Grease received?  The film, Two Of A Kind was released in late 1983 and while everyone loved Newton John and Travolta together years earlier, this movie bombed pretty badly. Critics and fans alike weren't buying the far-fetched plot line of 4 angels persuading God not to wipe out the planet earth in favor of a do-over. Even Newton John and Travolta couldn't save this one.

What was good from Two Of A Kind is the soundtrack. "Twist Of Fate" was the first single off of it and it helped Newton John's hot streak to continue. It was a top 5 hit on Billboard's Hot 100 and it quickly became the most memorable part of Two Of A Kind. Check out the video below. This was when Newton John was still working hard to escape her good-girl image. 

Make This: Apple Pie Margarita

Apple Pie Margarita

Though the exact origin and inventor of the Margarita is unknown, it has become the most popular Tequila based cocktail in the United States.  Most believe it originated somewhere in Mexico, but there are others who would beg to differ.  In any case, someone did come up with a tasty variation on the traditional Margarita by giving it an "American as Apple Pie" twist.  So simple and delicious, we hope that you enjoy our featured cocktail... Apple Pie Margarita.  Cheers!

Ingredients

1 oz. Tequila

1 oz. Apple Rum

.5 oz. Apple Pucker

3 oz. Apple Cider

2 oz. Sweet & Sour Mix

.5 oz Fresh Lime Juice

Coarse Salt & Granulated Sugar

Apple Slice to garnish

Directions

Wet the rim of your Margarita glass, and tap in a mix of the Salt & Sugar.  For the cocktail, combine all of the ingredients in an ice filled cocktail shaker, cover, shake well, and pour into your glass.  Garnish with a slice of Apple (or Lime wedge), and try not to gulp, as you enjoy our featured cocktail... Apple Pie Margarita.  Bottoms up!

90's Nostalgia: Tori Amos- 'Crucify'

I've been looking for a savior in these dirty streets

Looking for a savior beneath these dirty sheets

I've been raising up my hands, drive another nail in

Got enough guilt to start my own religion

Why do we crucify ourselves?

Every day I crucify myself

And nothing I do is good enough for you

Crucify myself

Tori Amos has always been the kind of woman that leaves a lasting impression. Her song "Crucify" was the break out song from Tori's Little Earthquakes album back in 1992 and it also served as a bit of a calling card. In a sea of grunge bands and flannel, this redhead armed with a unique voice and piano really stood out. She became the alternative to what we already had established as, alternative music. Over the years Amos has always remained true to the style that brought her to our attention in the first place. 

I remember "Crucify" being played like crazy on college radio and wondering if everyone would ever catch on to how great of an artist Tori was. Then one Saturday morning after an episode of Dance Party USA a teen interview show featured a whole segment on her. I don't remember details of the interview but it made me like her even more. Check out the video that kicked off Tori's career below!

Daily Boom 80's Throwback: Philip Bailey & Phil Collins 'Easy Lover'

I've always really liked Phil Collins duet with Phillip Bailey (of Earth, Wind & Fire), but I have to admit that I forgot how cute the video for "Easy Lover" actually is. I happened to catch it on VH1's Totally 80's while on the treadmill this morning and was genuinely amused. More than 30 years after its initial 1984 release, it's obvious to mean that Collins and Bailey had a lot of fun working together. The video is comprised of several clips of the guys trying to figure out how to perform this song together and in between the fun there are snippets of them both dressed as sharp dressed 80's men, actually getting the job done.

Aside from it being a fun way to kick off your Saturday morning, "Easy Lover" is a really great song, one that both Bailey and Collins still enjoy performing live on their own. Check out the video below!

Freestyle Friday: The Cover Girls - 'Because Of You'

Daily Boom 80's Throwback: Rod Stewart- 'Passion'

Tonight in the city
You won't find any pity
Hearts are being twisted
Another lover cheated, cheated
In the bars and the cafes, passion
In the streets and the alleys, passion
A lot of pretending, passion
Everybody searching, passion

I've already told you guys that music played a huge part in everyday life for me as a kid in the 80's. My dad had the most enviable record collection but of course there was conflict along the way. My mom didn't exactly love his hobby and she blatantly disapproved of a lot of the artists that he brought in the front door. He got away with a lot but it was fairly well known that dad was expected to keep a close eye on what 45's I wanted. The only problem there was that, because music is such a subjective thing he just wasn't inclined to tell me no. 

Dad suffered through several spinning's of "Disco Duck" before being happy to watch me move on to ABBA. Dad might have been a classic rock kind of guy but he had no problem encouraging my love of disco, at least until I discovered Pat Benetar and then my taste was all over the place.

I still can remember this one Saturday afternoon when he and I drove to a record store in a strip mall next to a Kmart (back when the blue light special was alive and well). There were several record stores that we would frequent and if you told me that they wouldn't exist a few decades later I would never have believed it. Anyway, the Saturday afternoon deal was always that I could get a 45 or 2 if it was a really good week. I looked and looked, knowing exactly what I wanted, Rod Stewart's "Passion". It was probably 1980 and not exactly appropriate for a 9-year-old. Dad actually said no, probably because he envisioned my mom's reaction if he bought it fr me.

The next weekend I had a plan. I had 179 pennies in a sandwich bag because if it was my money he probably wouldn't stop me. I walked up to the counter with "Passion" in one hand and the pennies in the other. The shop owner made me count them out and then he scooped them up and dumped them into his register drawer. I think my dad secretly liked how nervy I was, but warned me that my mom would be pissed & he would likely get blasted too.

I don't remember her words exactly but I do remember him defending me and saying I probably just loved the music (true story) and he wasn't going to stop me if I had the nerve to bust my piggy bank for it. Needless to say, "Passion" got thrown in the garbage but about a week later my dad bought it and magically gave it to me after he was done with it. For years afterwards my dad would buy 45's, put them on tape & I'd inherit the vinyl. 

It's 35 years later and yes, not only do I have that 45 but I also have the album that is was on. "Passion" is played fairly often in my house, to this day.

Daily Boom 80's Throwback: Metallica - 'One'

Darkness
Imprisoning me
All that I see
Absolute horror
I cannot live
I cannot die
Trapped in myself
Body my holding cell

Landmine
Has taken my sight
Taken my speech
Taken my hearing
Taken my arms
Taken my legs
Taken my soul
Left me with life in hell 

1988 brought with it an onslaught of hair bands that took turns dominating the charts. If you weren't an actual fan then being able to distinguish between Whitesnake, Europe and Skid Row was probably damn near impossible. Each power group a lineup of hot men with better hair than most of the girls that I knew. Metallica had been toiling in the hard rock ranks for years but it was the final single off of their fourth album that was a total breakthrough.

"One", an anti-war song skyrocketed into MTV's heavy video rotation almost immediately with a video that alternated between scenes of a supposed war vet sent home to die and actual footage from the 1971 anti-war film Johnny Got His Gun. The strong lyrics along with the black and white visuals helped Metallica to win the very first Grammy in 1989 for a Best Metal Performance. 

This is one of those songs that always gives me chills and it's beyond words live. 

Daily Boom 80's Throwback: Bardeux - 'When We Kiss'

"There`s a real fine line
Between love and hate
And I`m not the type
To just sit and wait
I`ve made up my mind
I can`t wait for you anymore"

Ya know that one song that you remember so well years (okay decades) later that no one else can recall? Bardeux's "When We Kiss' fits that bill for me. I have never mentioned it to another soul that has any idea what I'm talking about and if I play it for them, they still don't remember it. Bardeux was actually a dance duo from OC, Stacy "Acacia" Smith and Lisa "Jaz" Teaney (at least on this song), who released their first album, Bold As Love in 1988.

While Bardeux is often described as a one-hit-wonder, they actually had a few singles that charted on Billboard's Hot 100 and they did really well on the dance charts during their short time together. I've always loved "When We Kiss' because it's almost more of a spoken word song than anything else and that really made it stand out back in 1988. Check it out below. Do you guys remember Bardeux?

Currently Booming: Daily Boom's 2-for-Tuesday Playlist

As promised, I've added a few new additions to the 2 for Tuesday playlist!

Currently Booming: Manic Monday Playlist

90's Nostalgia: Lisa Fisher- 'How Can I Ease the Pain'

All alone, on my knees I pray

For the strength to stay away

In and out, out and in you go

I feel your fire

Then I lose my self control

How can I ease the pain

When I know your coming back again

And how can I ease the pain in my heart

I have to admit, I had completely forgotten about Lisa Fisher's "How Can I Ease The Pain" until MTV Classic played it's stunning video the other day. Whatever I was doing at the time, I stopped to watch every second of it. This, is easily one of the very best ballads of the 90's. When it was released back in 1991 Fisher kind of skyrocketed to success. She was the IT girl and was expected to follow "How Can I Ease The Pain" with years of equally gut-wrenching ballads. Her Grammy win for the track only reinforced that notion.

So where has Fisher been for the last 25 years? The answer is everywhere. She has toured, dueted and provided backing vocals for Tina Turner, The Rolling Stones, Patti Labelle, Chaka Khan... you get the idea. She also does tour on her own and sounds even better live. Few songs from the 90's connect with heartbreak quite like "How Can I Ease The Pain".

Currently Booming: Madonna- 'Like A Virgin'

Today is actually a huge date in music history for 80's fans. On Nov. 12th way back in 1984 Madonna released her second album. Like A Virgin cemented the material girl's place on the Billboard charts with five popular singles. "Like A Virgin" was actually Madonna's first song to hit number one on the charts and it, along with "Material Girl" are two of the tracks that helped to propel her to super stardom.

This was one of the albums that seemed to really resonate with teen girls and Madonna's concerts were jam-packed with young girls dressed up like their favorite performer. Like a Virgin has sold more than 21 million copies worldwide and it is considered to be by far one of the most successful albums of the 80's. There were so many great videos to come from this and I'm going to leave you with what is actually one of my very favorite Madonna songs, "Dress You Up".

Currently Booming: Aha- 'Take On Me' on American Bandstand

Daily Boom 80's Throwback: Club Nouveau - 'Why You Treat Me So Bad'

Oh, girl, I loved you but you

Turned and you walked away

I would love you more tomorrow

Than I know I do today

Do you remember Club Nouveau? Sure you do if you were raised in the '80s because back in 1987 their remake of "Lean On Me" shot to number one on Billboard's Hot 100 chart, making it one of those songs that stayed stuck in your head. Club Nouveau followed that hit with a song called "Why You Treat Me So Bad" which did really well on the dance charts. The beat resembles Timex Social Club's "Rumours" and for good reason, Jay King formed Nouveau' after leaving Timex Social Club and fully embracing a new jack swing sound.

Lyrically, this song kind of speaks to all of us. Who hasn't realized that they were dating the worst possible person and probably for way too long? "Why You Treat Me So Bad" is a breakup anthem, 1980's style. Check out the video below, do you remember this one?

Daily Boom 80's Throwback: Spandau Ballet- 'True'

With a thrill in my head and a pill on my tongue

Dissolve the nerves that have just begun

Listening to Marvin (All night long)

This is the sound of my soul

This is the sound

Always slipping from my hands

Sand's a time of its own

Take your seaside arms and write the next line

Oh, I want the truth to be known

I love those songs that serve as an instant vehicle to take me back in time. Spandau Ballet's "True" is most certainly one of those. Every time I hear it (which is actually pretty often) I'm instantly reliving 1983 all over again. To say that this song got a lot of air play would be a real understatement, especially since even now, more than 30 years later it's still in heavy rotation on some stations. "True" is the kind of song that you just kind of know all of the words to, even if you don't like it. I remember it always being on in the car and so nearly every time I hear those opening notes, then at least for a second I'm back in my dad's old Buick driving to god knows where.

"True" was Spandau Ballet's biggest hit in the U.S. and while they aren't often seen here they do often still perform in the UK. You guys remember this song, right? I'm betting that you start singing along (even if it's just in your head) almost immediately!

Currently Booming: TSO, Whitesnake Guitarist Joel Hoekstra Interview on Ocean 98

Just ICYMI, since TSO season is upon us!

Daily Boom 80's Throwback: Vinnie Vincent Invasion - 'Love Kills'

You've brought my world to an end
Love takes its victim and leaves its remains
My broken heart has died in vain
Tell me why have we forsaken the dreams we had
The pain makes it so hard to understand
You're a lifetime ago but a memory away
And I'll love you till my resurrection day
Love kills the fire's gone
Dying embers still remain
Love kills and now you're gone
Girl, I'll never be the same again

I'm going to be honest here, saying that I don't remember Vinnie Vincent Invasion's "Love Kills" is an understatement for me. It was released back in 1988 on the A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master soundtrack and pooped up in an episode of MTV Classic's Metal Mayhem this morning. Vincent started the group back in 1984, after finding fame as a member of KISS. In 1986 he hired Mark Slaughter to handle the lead vocals and the group then had a few successful tracks.

Anyway, I stumbled onto this video this morning and was struck by just how good 22-year-old Slaughter (looked) sounded here. He later went on to find success with his own band, Slaughter, into the 90's. In the years since "Love Kills" the group obviously disbanded but the guys have continued rocking out individually. Check out the video below, do you remember this one?

Daily Boom 80's Throwback: Bruce Springsteen - 'Dancing In the Dark'

I get up in the evening, and I ain't got nothing to say

I come home in the morning, I go to bed feeling the same way

I ain't nothing but tired, man I'm just tired and bored with myself

Hey there baby, I could use just a little help 

You can't start a fire, you can't start a fire without a spark

This gun's for hire even if we're just dancing in the dark

Bruce Springsteen's Born In The USA became pretty much an instant hit thanks to the advance buzz created by the first single, "Dancing In The Dark". The summer of 84' was a tough one on the charts with so many heavy hitters taking aim at the top spot. Both Duran Duran and Prince sat in the number one position for weeks making it impossible for "Dancing In The Dark" to hit any higher than second but that didn't stop Springsteen's fans from multiplying like Cheerios.

This video is also considered the thing that launched the career of Courteney Cox, as she is the girl pulled up onstage to dance with the Boss himself. I remember that summer well because so much of it was spent listening to a ghetto blaster and waiting for opportunities to call in with the hopes of winning a new album. Back then they were given out hourly. A few days after Born In The U.S.A. was released my friend and I were both determined to win. She got through and was caller eight to snag Steve Perry's Street Talk which made me even more determined to get through the busy phone lines. An hour after her win I became caller ten and scooped up my own copy of, you guessed it, Born In The U.S.A. The only thing more memorable than winning it was going together to pick up our albums at the radio station together.

If not for this video being played every three hours until it grew on me, I would never have owned Springsteen's most popular effort ever.

Daily Boom 80's Throwback: New Order- 'Blue Monday'

Those who came before me lived through their vocations

From the past until completion, they'll turn away no more
And still I find it so hard to say what I need to say
But I'm quite sure that you'll tell me just how I should feel today

Any idea what the most successful 12" single of all time is? That honor belongs to New Order's "Blue Monday", with its many reissues, remixes and dance club vibe. While it was first released in 1983 and became an underground dance hit, it was "Blue Monday's" reissue in 1988 that seemed to launch the song into orbit. Suddenly every DJ played it and we all loved it because it was different. The sound is totally unique and so rather than blending in with the house music that was taking over the late 80's, New Order's songs stood out in a good way. 

"Blue Monday" has lived on since its 80's introduction because numerous artists have either sampled or covered the tune. I know that you've heard it often, but have you ever actually seen the video? Check it out below!

Currently Booming: Sunday Playlist

Currently Booming: Def Leppard on 'American Bandstand'

Daily Boom 80's Throwback: Anita Ward - 'Ring My Bell'

The night is young and full of possibilities

Well come on and let yourself be free

My love for you, so long I've been savin'

Tonight was made for me and you

Technically, "Ring My Bell" actually was released in the summer of 1979 but I'm going to sneak it in here any way. It sold millions of copies and made sure that Anita Ward would be forever remembered as one of disco's biggest stars. It may be one of the most suggestive songs to come out of the decade but believe it or not it was actually written for a young teen to sing. Yep, "Ring My Bell" was originally supposed to be about a teen girl getting a phone call! Once it was given to Ward the lyrics were tweaked to really sex it up.

"Ring My Bell" stands out because I was totally a disco kid and it was a 45 that I HAD to have. Like, I was 8-years-old and I walked into the record store with my dad and plunked down my own money to buy it. I can still see dad telling my mom about my selection and her freaking out. Dad just laughed and reminded her that I had absolutely no idea what the song was really about and that I bought it for the music. True story but to this day every time that I hear "Ring My Bell" I still can see dad standing there justifying me buying it.

Currently Booming: Shalamar Reloaded- 'The Mood'

Have you checked out Shalamar Reloaded's latest song yet? Hit play and take a listen. I'm pretty sure that "The Mood" will be your ear worm of the day. Great stuff by Jody Watley, Nate Allen Smith and Rosero McCoy.

Currently Booming: Daylight Savings Time!

Currently Booming: Freestyle Friday Playlist

Boom Daily 80's Throwback- Exposé "Come Go With Me"

Yes, this is a repost. I'm currently moving my office and BOOM! won't be fully back to business until tomorrow. In the meantime, if you missed this one then check it out now!

By now you all know that nearly every pivotal moment of my life (and all of the in-between seemingly meaningless ones too) seems to have a musical soundtrack. I think I drive people nuts because so many songs remind me of.... whatever...and then I tend to share that whatever. Thankfully, in the moment people pretend to like my momentary throwbacks. While so many songs connect me to things there really aren't that many albums as a whole that have had the same effect. I tend to cherry pick but for whatever reason, Exposé's Exposure made a real impact on my 16-year-old self.

Way back in 1987,  I was a total hair band loving headbanger by day, complete with the Aqua Net in my purse, fringe jean jacket and cloroxed jeans but I was also about 30 seconds from morphing into a club kid (it actually happened in 1988, hello Dance Party USA anyone?). I would creep the mall on Saturday nights and then come home to listen to Open House Party (I used to have my dad start the cassette tape to record it & then flip it 45 minutes in for me because being a DJ, he was meticulous with that stuff.) mainly because of all of the club tracks that they played.

Before Exposé broke through on mainstream radio they were bumping on the dance charts and I thought that "Come Go With Me" was like, the coolest thing ever.  I loved the Latin influence and eventually ended up buying the extended dance mix, probably hiding it behind my Whitesnake album or something at first.

Exposé had a string of dance hits off of Exposure, songs like "Let Me Be The One" and "Point of No Return" were now getting tons of radio play and MTV had their videos pretty much on loop. I was also totally jealous of Jeanette Jurado's naturally huge hair and anyone that spent forever in front of a mirror with a blow dryer and a can of hair spray totally understands why.

 "Seasons Change" became the ladies first number one song on Billboards Hot 100 and it finally prompted me to break and buy Exposure once and for all. While I remember music I rarely can actually take myself that far back in time to remember crazy details, but I do remember flipping this cassette from one side to the other for hours at a time.

If you've never actually listened to the entire album then you've missed out on one of the best ballads of the 80's that was never marketed as a single, "December".  It's the very last song on Exposure and as luck would have it I was actually going through a weird breakup at the time and the lyrics totally fit, right down to the month. Perhaps that's why these ladies have stuck in my head for all of these years.

Here's the irony, if someone had told my 16-year-old self that a few decades later I'd interview and connect with these women for real I would never in a million years have believed it. Never. They still are out there touring you know. This was just a few nights ago and they might actually even be better now than they were way back then.

Aside from taking you back in time there is kind of a weird moral to this story folks and that is that we really have no idea what will happen down the road. So many things in life end up coming full circle, sometimes it just takes decades to get there. Exposé's New York family is a pretty amazing group of people and I feel pretty damn lucky to be a part of it.

I guess this is where I should give you a "Come Go With Me" throwback but instead I'm going to give you the ladies killing it last weekend. Enjoy.

                                   

Daily Boom 80's Throwback- Skid Row 'Youth Gone Wild'

They call us problem child
We spend our lives on trial
We walk an endless mile
We are the youth gone wild
We stand and we won't fall
We're the one and one for all
The writing's on the wall
We are the youth gone wild

The year was 1989 and you probably were walking around in acid washed jeans with a huge vat of Aqua Net in your purse, for both your hair AND your boyfriend's. Hair bands ruled the air waves of Skid Row burst on the scene and instantly felt like they belonged amongst heavy hitters such as Whitesnake and Guns & Roses. They announced their presence with a single called "Youth Gone Wild" which instantly became an anthem for teens everywhere. Ironically, it didn't make the same impression on Billboard's Hot 100 and only charted as high as #99. Not that it really mattered. "Youth" was re-released by Skid Row a few years later and did well. It also became an anthem at sporting events and has been covered by numerous other hard rock bands.

Sidenote, lead singer Sebastian Bach's poster hung in many teen girl's bedrooms way back then. Total hotness.

Daily Boom 80's Throwback: Luther Vandross - 'Stop To Love'

I just wanna be the one that you wanna see

I just wanna have you near me

But you fly away almost everyday

You work a lot but you never stop to love

(Stop) I love you stop (stop)

Come home from the road

(Gotta stop to love)

And let's celebrate (celebrate) the love we got (stop)

Say you're coming home

Luther Vandross might have one of the most soulful voices to listen to ever. He is quite obviously best remembered for his ballads ("Here and Now", "Superstar", etc.) so I wanted to share something a little different. "Stop To Love" was the first single off of Vandross' fifth album and it was also his first top 20 hit on Billboard's Hot 100 chart. The video shows a fun side to Vandross, one that those cloesest to him often talked about. Sadly, the singer's life was cut short after a massive stroke left him comatose for two months in 2003. While Vandross did recover somewhat he never performed in public again and eventually died in July of 2005.

Currently Booming: Top 30 Best Rock Songs of the 80's