Robert Plant Pictures at Eleven

6/28/1982:

Pictures at Eleven Robert Plant

Released: June 28, 1982 Peak: 5 US, 2 UK, 13 CN, 6 AU Sales (in millions): 1.0 US, 0.06 UK Genre: rock

Tracks: Song Title (date of single release, chart peaks) Click for codes to singles charts. Burning Down One Side (7/10/82, 64 US, 3 AR, 73 UK, 11 CN, 86 AU) Moonlight in Samosa Pledge Pin (7/17/82, 74 US, 11 AR) Slow Dancer (7/17/82, 19 AR) Worse Than Detroit (7/10/82, 10 AR) Fat Lip Like I’ve Never Been Gone Mystery Title Total Running Time: 42:12

Rating: 3.164 out of 5.00 (average of 19 ratings)

About the Album: Robert Plant’s first solo album would never match the expectations of Led Zeppelin fans, but it was a platinum seller that hit the top 5 in the U.S. and UK. Overall, though, “Plant is able to escape most of his past and still sound motivated…He courses a new direction without changing or disguising his distinct vocal style.” AMG Plant recorded the album with “old Midlands pal/guitarist Robbie Blunt and ‘name’ drummers Phil Collins and Cozy Powell.” Q Blunt “comes to life on Worse Than Detroit…and…Collins…and…Powell give Plant enough of a solid background to lean his sultry yet surging rock voice against.” AMG “Plant channels his energy quite effectively through songs like Pledge Pin and Moonlight in Samosa.” AMG The album would find “its mark with the twisty funk-rock of Burning Down One Side and Slow Dancer.” Q On the latter, “Powell was said to have implored ‘Planty’ to just let rip like he used to in the old days.” Q Critics were generally lukewarm, saying things like it “was a cautious sounding record.” Q Rolling Stone’s Kurt Loder said, “there’s nothing new going on in these grooves.” WK The Village Voice’s Robert Christgau “was impressed by Plant’s ability to recreate Led Zeppelin’s aural sensibilities with duller musicians and catchier undertones, but ultimately found the music somewhat insignificant.” WK It was the only Robert Plant solo album released on Swan Song, the label formed by Led Zeppelin, before they ceased to be. WK The title is a reference to a phrase following stories of interest which be shown later during the station’s news program at 11pm. WK Notes: A 2007 reissue added “Far Post” and a live version of “Like I’ve Never Been Gone” as bonus tracks.

Resources and Related Links: DMDB encyclopedia entry for Robert Plant AMG All Music Guide review by Mike DeGagne Q Mark Blake, Q magazine, Sept. 2010, p. 133. WK Wikipedia Other Related DMDB Pages: First posted 9/27/2010; last updated 8/20/2021.

ABC’s Lexicon of Love released

First posted 2/11/2010; updated 9/13/2020.

Lexicon of Love ABC

Released: June 21, 1982 Peak: 24 US, 14 UK, 3 CN, 9 AU Sales (in millions): 0.5 US, 0.3 UK, 0.8 world (includes US and UK) Genre: new wave

Tracks: (Click for codes to singles charts.) Show Me Poison Arrow (2/20/82, 25 US, 6 UK, 36 CN, 4 AU) Many Happy Returns Tears Are Not Enough (10/16/81, 19 UK) Valentine’s Day The Look of Love, Pt. 1 (5/15/82, 18 US, 32 AR, 4 UK, 1 CN, 7 AU) Date Stamp All of My Heart (9/4/82, 5 UK, 13 CN, 21 AU) 4 Ever 2 Gether The Look of Love, Pt. 4 Total Running Time: 37:25 The Players: Martin Fry (vocals) Mark White (guitar, keyboards) Mark Lickley (bass) Stephen Singleton (saxophone) David Palmer, David Robinson (drums, percussion)

Rating: 4.300 out of 5.00 (average of 16 ratings) Quotable: “A landmark album in British pop” – Rob Webb, BBC Awards:

About the Album: “ABC’s debut album combined the talents of the Sheffield, U.K.-based band, particularly lead singer Martin Fry, a fashion plate of a frontman with a Bryan Ferry fixation, and the inventive production style of former Buggles member Trevor Horn and his team of musicians, several of whom would go on to form the Art of Noise. Horn created dense tracks that merged synthesizer sounds, prominent beats, and swaths of strings and horns, their orchestrations courtesy of Anne Dudley, who would follow her work with the Art of Noise by becoming a prominent film composer, and who here underscored Fry’s stylized romantic lyrics and dramatic, if affected, singing.” AMG The album produced three top-ten hits in the UK with Poison Arrow, The Look of Love, and All of My Heart. While “Poison Arrow” preceded “The Look of Love” on the charts in the UK, it was the other way around in the U.S. where “The Look of Love” hit the top 20 and was followed by top-40 hit “Poison Arrow.” “The production style was dense and noisy, but frequently beautiful, and the group’s emotional songs gave it a depth and coherence later Horn works, such as those of Yes (‘Owner of a Lonely Heart’) and Frankie Goes to Hollywood, would lack. (You can hear Horn trying out the latter band's style in Date Stamp).” AMG “Fry and company used the sound to create moving dancefloor epics like Many Happy Returns, which, like most of the album’s tracks, deserved to be a hit single…ABC, which began fragmenting almost immediately, never equaled its gold-selling first LP commercially or artistically, despite some worthy later songs.” AMG The BBC’s Rob Webb hailed the album as “a landmark album in British pop” WK saying that “it underpins just what a sharp band ABC were: witty, lyrical, and very, very funky.” WK

Resources and Related Links: ABC’s DMDB Encyclopedia entry AMG All Music Guide review by William Ruhlmann WK Wikipedia

Alan Parsons Project Eye in the Sky charted in the U.S.

Eye in the Sky Alan Parsons Project

Charted: June 19, 1982 Peak: 7 US, 28 UK, 3 CN, 4 AU Sales (in millions): 1.0 US, 0.06 UK, 2.38 world (includes US and UK) Genre: progressive rock lite

Tracks: Song Title [time] (date of single release, chart peaks) Click for codes to singles charts. Sirius (instrumental) [1:48] Eye in the Sky [4:33] v: Eric Woolfson (7/3/82, 3 US, 2 RR, 3 AC, 11 AR, 1 CN, 22 AU) Children of the Moon [4:49] v: David Paton Gemini [2:09] v: Chris Rainbow Silence and I [7:17] v: Eric Woolfson You're Gonna Get Your Fingers Burned [4:19] v: Lenny Zakatek (6/26/82, 22 AR) Psychobabble [4:50] v: Elmer Gantry (7/10/82, 57 US, 54 AR) Mammagamma (instrumental) [3:34] Step by Step [3:52] v: Lenny Zakatek Old and Wise [4:52] v: Collin Blunstone (1/15/83, 21 AC, 74 UK) All tracks written by Alan Parsons and Eric Woolfson. The ‘v’ after the song listing indicates who does lead vocals. Total Running Time: 42:03 The Players: Alan Parsons (production, engineering, assorted instruments) Eric Woolfson (vocals, keyboards, piano) Ian Bairson (guitar) David Paton (bass) Stuart Elliott (drums, percussion) Colin Blunstone, Chris Rainbow, Elmer Gantry, Lenny Zakatek (vocals) Mel Collins (saxophone) The Philharmonia Orchestra, arranged and conducted by Andrew Powell

Rating: 3.973 out of 5.00 (average of 17 ratings) Quotable: “On no other album by this group is there such a tight amalgamation of music, lyrics, and ideas, all combining to create songs that are accessible to a vast audience” – Mike DeGagne, All Music Guide Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

About the Album: ”The fusion of Parsons' thematic intentions and exquisitely textured music comes to fruition on 1982's Eye in the Sky,” AMG an album which ”returned in some ways to [Parsons’] more progressive, art-rock past,” AZ but also serves as “the transition between the seventies’ Project art rock sound and the more clinical, Fairlight-laden eighties sound.” DV “Parsons’ approach was a synthesis of studio wizardry with a symphonic, spacey interplay between keyboards, synthesizers and basic rock instrumentation.” AZ ”With a powdery feel and pristine sound, Eye in the Sky is worthy of both amiable songs and conceptual substance, something not found on all of the Alan Parsons Project’s albums.” AMG “On no other album by this group is there such a tight amalgamation of music, lyrics, and ideas, all combining to create songs that are accessible to a vast audience.” AMG ”The album deals with the futuristic outlook of how our lives will be constantly monitored by ‘Big Brother’ and the manner in which man's right for freedom and choice may someday be thwarted by the government, or the powers that be. Aside from Parsons' intriguing concept, the individual songs serve a dual purpose by carrying out the album's message while at the same being perfect examples of well-crafted rock.” AMG ”The up-and-down flow of the instrumental Sirius is astonishing, and is used wisely as the opening track.” AMG The song is “perhaps best known as the Chicago Bulls theme and featured at countless NBA games. P.Diddy (Puff Daddy) also chose [it] as the backbone for the title track of his most platinum-selling CD, The Saga Continues. In 2000, ‘Sirius’ was featured in an IMAX documentary movie about Michael Jordan.” AP Of course, that opening instrumental then leads into the Project’s biggest hit of their career, Eye in the Sky. While the Project has a fair amount of album rock favorites, this was their only top ten hit on the pop charts. It ”is a prime example of a fabulous rock song, highlighted by the harmonic beauty of Eric Woolfson.” AMG Along with the instrumental “Sirius,” the next two songs, Children of the Moon and Gemini “all have Parsons's love of the esoteric.” AZ The latter “is an astonishing piece of vocal harmony.” DV Next up is Silence and I, “a rich, multi-layered vocal and orchestral piece” DV followed by You’re Gonna Get Your Fingers Burned, which “ is a surprisingly straight-ahead rock number.” DV ”Psychobabble is a cerebral rock song that best represents the album's concept” AMG and, “though never a hit…remains a favorite of fans.” AZ ”Mammagamma is another instrumental that brandishes the group's trademarked mysteriousness, wrapped in an ominous science fiction-type glow.” AMG It “allowed Parsons to fully indulge his fondness for orchestration with its instrumental structure.” AZ ”The softness of Old and Wise sums up the threatening result that may someday evolve, with a hint of promise for a favorable outcome.” AMG The song begs to be played at funerals with its simultaneously heart-wrenching and uplifting statement “to those I leave behind/ I want you all to know/ you’ve always shared my darkest hours/ I’ll miss you when I go.” ”What you have here is a seriously tasty piece of symphonic pop/rock, music for grownups.” DV ”Eye in the Sky is, quite simply, the Project’s finest hour.” DV Notes: The 2007 reissue added alternate versions of “Sirius,” “Old and Wise,” and “Silence and I.” There was also an additional song (“Any Other Day”), the instrumental medley “The Naked Eye” and “Eye Pieces.”

Resources and Related Links: DMDB encyclopedia entry for Alan Parsons AMG All Music Guide review by Mike DeGagne AZ Amazon.com review by Steve Gdula DV DailyVault.com review by Duke Egbert AP AlanParsonsMusic.com WK Wikipedia Other Related DMDB Pages: First posted 3/24/2008; last updated 9/23/2021.

Air Supply’s Now and Forever charted in the U.S.

First posted 1/18/2009; updated 9/10/2020.

Now and Forever Air Supply

Charted: June 19, 1982 Peak: 25 US, -- UK, -- CN, 27 AU Sales (in millions): 1.0 US, -- UK, 1.0 world (includes US and UK) Genre: adult contemporary

Tracks: Song Title (date of single release, chart peaks) Click for codes to singles charts. Now and Forever Even the Nights Are Better (6/12/82, 5 US, 44 UK, 1 AC, 35 AU, airplay: 1 million) Young Love (9/18/82, 38 US, 13 AC) Two Less Lonely People in the World (11/13/82, 38 US, 4 AC, 46 AU) Taking the Chance Come What May One Step Closer Don’t Be Afraid She Never Heard Me Call What Kind of Girl The Players: Russell Hitchcock (vocals) Graham Russell (vocals, rhythm guitar) Rex Goh, David Moyse (guitars) Dave Green (bass) Frank Esler-Smith (keyboards) Ralph Cooper (drums)

Rating: 2.626 out of 5.00 (average of 5 ratings)

About the Album: Now and Forever sort of marked the end of an era for Air Supply. After their fifth album, Lost in Love, finally broke them in America in 1980, the soft-rock group went on a streak of seven top-five hits, three each from Lost in Love and follow-up album The One That You Love and then one more (Even the Nights Are Better) from Now and Forever. The group followed up that single with two more top 40 hits – Two Less Lonely People in the World and Young Love – from Now and Forever. However, it was their last studio album to go platinum. The next year, the band would find success with their Greatest Hits collection, a multi-platinum, top 10 album which featured all seven of the aforementioned top-ten hits plus their eighth and final top-ten, “Making Love Out of Nothing at All.” After that, the band didn’t go platinum again, didn’t hit the top ten again, and only made one more trip into the top 40 (“Just As I Am,” #19 in 1985). A five-year run isn’t bad in the pop world, but Air Supply might have fared better with, well, better fare. “Like all…[Air Supply] albums, [Now and Forever] has an uneven selection of material; the best songs were the singles…Even when the group performs weak material, they sound fine, but the lack of first-rate songs became disheartening after a while.” AMG.

Resources and Related Links: Air Supply’s DMDB Encyclopedia entry Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide WK Wikipedia

Fleetwood Mac released Mirage

First posted 9/17/2020.

Mirage Fleetwood Mac

Released: June 18, 1982 Peak: 15 US, 5 UK, 2 CN, 4 AU Sales (in millions): 2.0 US, 0.3 UK, 6.5 world (includes US and UK) Genre: classic rock

Tracks: Song Title (Writers) [time] (date of single release, chart peaks) Click for codes to singles charts. Love in Store (C. McVie/Jim Recor) [3:14] (10/82, 22 US, 11 AC, 96 AU) Can’t Go Back (Buckingham) [2:42] (4/83, 22 US, 83 UK) That’s Alright (Nicks) [3:09] Book of Love (Buckingham/Richard Dashut) [3:21] Gypsy (Nicks) [4:24] (7/24/82, 12 US, 4 AR, 9 AC, 46 UK, 16 CN, 17 AU, airplay: 2 million) Only Over You (C. McVie) [4:08] Empre State (Buckingham/Dashut) [2:51] Straight Back (Nicks) [4:17] Hold Me (C. McVie/Robbie Patton) [3:44] (6/19/82, 4 US, 3 AR, 7 AC, 94 UK, 9 CN, 12 AU, airplay: 2 million) Oh Diane (Buckingham/Dashut) [2:36] (12/12/82, 35 AC, 9 UK) Eyes of the World (Buckingham) [3:44] Wish You Were Here (C. McVie/Colin Allen) [4:45] Total Running Time: 42:52 The Players: Lindsey Buckingham (vocals, guitar, et al) Stevie Nicks (vocals, tambourine) Christine McVie (vocals, keyboards) John McVie (bass) Mick Fleetwood (drums, percussion)

Rating: 3.471 out of 5.00 (average of 14 ratings)

About the Album: Fleetwood Mac formed in 1967 as a British blues band, but their fortunes changed when Americans Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks joined the group for their 1975 self-titled release. The album went to #1 in the U.S. on the strength of three top-20 hits and was followed up by the monstrously successful Rumours in 1977. That album set a bar no band could match with 40 million in sales worldwide, 31 weeks atop the Billboard album chart, and four top-10 singles. For their next outing, the Mac responded in the only way they could – a sprawling, double album with a weirder vibe that seemed to intentionally challenge the group’s large pop following. Even so, the album was still a multi-platinum, top-5 release which sent two songs into the top 10 in the U.S. Not sure what to do next, fans could be understandably forgiven for thinking the band might be done when Nicks and Buckingham both released solo efforts. Nicks especially looked ready to fully embrace a solo career with her chart-topping Bella Donna album which ws fueled by two top-10 hits. Nonetheless, the quartet reunited in 1982 for this chart-topping album. However, it sports neither the pop savviness of Fleetwood Mac or Rumours nor “the insular strangeness of Tusk.” AMG “Rumours had raw emotion to give it a core, and Tusk had Lindsey Buckingham’s runaway ambition…Mirage sounds as if its sole goal is to sustain Fleetwood Mac’s popularity.” AMG To be fair, it does accomplish commercial success, most notably with the catchy-as-hell Chrstine McVie/Lindsey Buckingham gem in the top-5 hit Hold Me. Then there’s Stevie Nicks’ Gypsy, which offered up an inevitable title for the singer who’d crafted an image of herself as a fairly-like figured who floated along in her flowing robes. Both songs were top-5 hits on the album rock chart. This is “straightforward pop songcraft” AMG with “a glossy, friendly production.” AMG While “ that makes even the lesser numbers pleasant and ingratiating, Mirage nonetheless suffers from a lack of substance.” AMG “There are “a handful of terrific songs – notably the hit singles…it simply isn’t as compelling as the group's previous three albums.” AMG Notes: In 2016, a deluxe edition was released with alternate versions of the songs on a second disc, and a third disc of 1982 live performances.

Resources and Related Links: Fleetwood Mac’s DMDB Encyclopedia entry AMG All Music Guide review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine

The Clash “Rock the Casbah” released

Rock the Casbah The Clash

Writer(s): Topper Headon, Mick Jones, Joe Strummer (see lyrics here) Released: June 11, 1982 First Charted: June 26, 1982 Peak: 8 US, 13 CB, 14 RR, 6 AR, 1 CO, 15 UK, 17 CN, 3 AU, 8 DF (Click for codes to singles charts.) Sales (in millions): 2.0 US, 0.6 UK Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 84.26 video, 214.63 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: The Clash formed in London in 1976. They were one of the pillars of British punk rock, “revered for breaking new ground as rock rebels.” SF Their self-titled debut album hit #12 in the UK. 1978’s Give ‘Em Enough Rope hit #2, 1979’s London Calling hit #9, and the 1980 triple album Sandinista! reached #19. Their peak came in 1982 with Combat Rock. It got to #2 in the UK, but became the group’s only top-10 album in the United States, also reaching double platinum status. Prior to Combat Rock, the Clash had racked up 13 chart hits in the UK, but their only success in the United States had been with 1980’s “Train in Vain,” a #23 hit on the Billboard Hot 100. “Know Your Rights,” the lead single from Combat Rock, was nother miss on the U.S. charts, but got to #43 in the UK. The second single, “Rock the Casbah,” proved to be the breakthrough for the Clash in the U.S., going all the way to #8. Vulture writer Bill Wyman called it “one of the greatest rock singles of all time.” WK While most Clash songs grew out of the songwriting partnership between Joe Strummer and Mick Jones, this song came from the drummer, Topper Headon. He composed the song based on a piano part. Without his bandmates around, he taped parts for the drum, piano, and bass. When Strummer saw Headon’s lyrics about missing his girlfriend, Strummer “screwed the piece of paper into a ball and chucked it backwards over his head.” WK Different reports suggest the original lyrics were either really sappy WK or downright pornographic. SF By the time the song was a hit, Headon had been fired from the band for drug problems. SF Strummer rewrote the words in the bathroom to tell a story of a ban on Western music by a Middle Eastern king. WK The king goes to extreme measure, even order jet fighters to bomb people violating the ban. The pilots ignore the orders, playing rock music on the radios in their cockpits. Strummer was inspired by Iran’s ban on Western music after the 1979 Islamic Revolution. WK Resources: SF Songfacts WK Wikipedia Related Links: First posted 10/2/2022.

The Clash “Should I Stay Or Should I Go” charted

Should I Stay Or Should I Go The Clash

Writer(s): Topper Headon, Mick Jones, Paul Simonon, Joe Strummer (see lyrics here) Released: May 1982 First Charted: June 5, 1982 Peak: 45 US, 63 CB, 13 AR, 1 CO, 12 UK, 40 CN, 37 AU, 5 DF (Click for codes to singles charts.) Sales (in millions): -- US, 0.6 UK Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 127.35 video, 633.64 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: The Clash formed in London in 1976. They were one of the pillars of British punk rock, touted early on as “the most important rock group in Britain.” KL Their self-titled debut album hit #12 in the UK. 1978’s Give ‘Em Enough Rope hit #2, 1979’s London Calling hit #9, and the 1980 triple album Sandinista! reached #19. Their peak came in 1982 with Combat Rock. It got to #2 in the UK, but became the group’s only top-10 album in the United States, also reaching double platinum status. Prior to Combat Rock, the Clash had racked up 13 chart hits in the UK, but their only success in the United States had been with 1980’s “Train in Vain,” a #23 hit on the Billboard Hot 100. “Know Your Rights,” the lead single from Combat Rock, was nother miss on the U.S. charts, but got to #43 in the UK. The second single, “Rock the Casbah,” proved to be the breakthrough for the Clash in the U.S., going all the way to #8. The follow-up, “Should I Stay Or Should I Go,” hit #45. “Should I Stay” wasn’t done, though. Originally it peaked at #17 in the UK, but in 1991 the song saw a resurgence because of its appearance in a Levi jeans commercial. It was re-released and hit #1 in the UK. Not only was it their only chart-topper, but their only song to hit the top 10 in the UK. When the song initially came out, some interpreted it as a sign that singer and guitarist Mick Jones was leaving the band. He was, in fact, fired in 1983. In 2009, Rolling Stone SF said it was about “the tempestuous personal relationship between Jones and American singer Ellen Foley,” WK who sang backing vocals on Meat Loaf’s Bat Out of Hell. Jones said, “it wasn’t about anything specific and it wasn’t pre-empting my leaving The Clash. It was just a good rockin’ song, our attempt at writing a classic.” KL Resources: AMG All Music Guide KL Jon Kutner and Spencer Leigh (2005). 1000 UK Number One Hits: The Stories Behind Every Number One Single Since 1952. London, Great Britain: Omnibus Press. Pages 366-7. SF Songfacts WK Wikipedia Related Links: First posted 10/2/2022.