Happy New Year! Just to let everyone know... I'm taking a bit of a break, so I won't be updating for now. It's been difficult to keep up with the blog & since I've been doing it I've had 2 computer crashes & lost a lot of music. I don't get very much feedback either & that makes it almost pointless.
Steve Harley is a English singer and songwriter, best known for his work with the 1970s rock group Cockney Rebel, with whom he still occasionally tours (albeit with many personnel changes through the years).
In the early 1990s, Harley released several solo albums. His songs "Sebastian", "Tumbling Down", and "Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me)" were included in the Todd Haynes 1998 rock musical Velvet Goldmine. "Make Me Smile" was also included in the 1997 film, The Full Monty.
In 1999, Harley began presenting a BBC Radio programme The Sounds of the Seventies, of which the last programme aired on 27 March 2008.
In 2005, The Quality of Mercy was released under the Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel name, and Harley began touring more frequently.
Enjoy!
* Heartbeat like Thunder (extended remix) - Steve Harley
The group is known for its 1982 hit single "I Eat Cannibals Part 1", which reached #8 in the UK and was also a hit in many other countries, including South Africa where it was named the 17th biggest selling single of 1983. They also issued a less successful follow-up, "Dracula's Tango (Sucker For Your Love)". An album was issued containing both singles, together with B-sides and a selection of unreleased tracks in 1983 titled Man o' War. It was not a commercial success. "Milk from the Coconut" charted in the South Africa top 20 as well.
The group's name is Latin and means "by the whole extent of the heavens" or "heaven-wide", but is commonly translated as "completely", "entirely" or "utterly". Of the name, Sheen Doran said, "It has a number of meanings, such as 'heart and soul', 'root and branch' and 'totally different'. It seemed to describe what we were. Plus, it's strange-sounding and hard to pronounce, so it sticks in your mind." The group was renamed Total Coelo in the United States to avoid confusion with the American group, Toto.
Dracula's Tango Mucho Macho
* Dracula's Tango (Sucker For Your Love) - ToTo Coelo
The act comprised Helen "Pepsi" DeMacque (born 10 December 1958, Paddington, London) and Shirlie Holliman (born 18 April 1962, Watford, Hertfordshire), who had been Wham! backing vocalists.Holliman's original singing partner, Dee C. Lee, had earlier left the group to marry Paul Weller. They had two UK Top Ten hits: "Heartache", which was produced by Phil Fearon and Tambi Fernando and reached #2 in the UK Singles Chart, and "Goodbye Stranger", produced by Fernando and Pete Hammond, which reached #9. Holliman has been married since 1988 to Martin Kemp, a former member of the group Spandau Ballet and now an actor, whilst DeMacque resided in Wellington, New Zealand for a number of years working at a gift shop on Lambton Quay. She now lives in Norwich, England with her husband. Pepsi & Shirlie returned in 2000 to record their backing vocals on Geri Halliwell's UK number one hit, "Bag It Up".
Vicious Pink was a synthpop duo formed in Leeds, UK in 1981 and active until 1986. With a catchy sound and a penchant for highly provocative and sexualized lyrics, the band aimed for success in clubs rather than commercial hits. Vicious Pink consisted of two members, English/French singer Josephine Warden and keyboardist Brian Moss. The duo began as backing vocalists for Soft Cell, known as Vicious Pink Phenomenon.
It was in 1983 that Howard Jones released his first single ‘New Song’ in the UK. The expectation was that it might sell a few thousand copies and introduce his fresh new music to an unsuspecting world. The reality was quite different. The single steadily climbed the UK chart to peak at No. 3.
Then came the second single ‘What Is Love?’ which reached No. 2 in the UK and the third single, the enigmatic ‘Hide and Seek’ which showed the spiritual side of Howard Jones’ writing. This was followed by the first album ‘Human’s Lib’ which came straight in at No. 1 in the UK in April 1984, eventually going platinum and which took the synthesiser and Howard to a new plateau. This success spread across the globe with ‘Human’s Lib’ going gold in USA, Japan, Germany, Italy and Australia.
Included here is the great B-side It Just Doesn't Matter
CDManiac Presents a Digital Explosion Blowout! Miss Taylor Dayne
Taylor Dayne burst onto the dance scene in 1987 with her No.1 single "Tell it to my Heart".
The New York-born artist's three albums for Arista Records, Tell It To My Heart, Can't Fight Fate, and Soul Dancing, produced twelve Top 20 singles, among them the chart-topping "Love Will Lead You Back."
Over the course of her career, she has sold more than 75 million albums and singles worldwide, garnering three Grammy nominations along the way.
I wanted to put together a dance collection as a tribute to Taylors 20 plus year career.
Tell It To My Heart (Club Mix) Prove Your Love (House Mix) Don't Rush Me (Extended Version) Prove Your Love (Extended Remix) Tell It To My Heart (House Of Hearts Mix) Don't Rush Me (Continental Clubhouse Mix) Prove Your Love (Edit Remix) With Every Beat Of My Heart (Palpitashun Remix) I'll Wait (New Anthem Mix) With Every Beat Of My Heart (Make It Rock Remix) Say A Prayer (Vission Lorimer Mixx) With Every Beat Of My Heart (Extended Radio Remix) Say A Prayer (Boss Club Mix) I'll Wait (Hot Mix) Beautiful (Scotty Ks Vocal Klub Mix) Whatever You Want (12''mix) Beautiful (Speakerbox Club Mix) Planet Love (Original Vocal Mix) Beautiful (Hex Hectors Vocal Mix) I'm Not Featuring You (Manny Lehman Funky Club Mix) Naked Without You (Thunderpuss 2000 Club Anthem) I'm Not Featuring You (DJ Tekin UK Remix)
"It's Alright (Baby's Coming Back)" was released as the fourth and final single from Eurythmics album Be Yourself Tonight. Written by Annie Lennox and David A. Stewart, the track's distinctive brass arrangement was devised by Michael Kamen. The recording was produced by Stewart.
"It's Alright" was a slight return by Eurythmics to the electronic-based sounds of their earlier albums. Driven by a subtle drum machine track, Lennox sings a straightforward ode to a lover returning to her after a long absence. The instrumental passages feature some elaborate multitracked harmony guitar parts from Stewart. The music video, directed by Willy Smax, was a mix of live shots with computer animation, an innovative look for a music video in the mid 1980s.
The single was a Top 20 hit in the UK, where it peaked at number twelve (Eurythmics' tenth Top 40 hit in the UK singles chart).
The original version of Tous les garçons et les filles is from the 1962 debut album of the French singer Françoise Hardy. Like many of Hardy's earlier albums, it was released with no title, except for her name on the cover, but has become known by the title of the most successful song on the album, "Tous les garçons et les filles".
Dan Hartman was born in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. In 1978 he released his "Instant Replay" album and achieved great success. "Instant Replay", the single from the album did well in the charts in October 1978 and was followed by the second single "This Is It" in January 1979.
Success returned in 1984 with Dan's collaboration with Charlie Midnight and the release of "I Can Dream About You". The single of the same name appeared in the film "Streets of Fire". "We are the Young" and "Second Nature" were subsequently released as singles also.
1983 saw the OMD lose commercial momentum somewhat, with the release of their more experimental Dazzle Ships album, which mixed melancholy synth ballads and uptempo synthpop with musique concrete and short wave radio tape collages. It was recorded by the 4-piece Humphreys/Holmes/Cooper/McCluskey line-up, and produced by Rhett Davies.
"Genetic Engineering" is the first single released from Dazzle Ships.
A friend sent me his review of last nights DD concert I thought you might like:
Duran Duran at Orange County Fair CA
Written by Brian G.
This is a review of the Duran Duran concert at The Pacific Amphitheatre, Orange County Fair Grounds, Costa Mesa, California on July 11, 2009.
Duran Duran is always entertaining. I have seen them at least ten times, including shows when their popularity was at its lowest (in the late 90's).
Most groups from the Eighties seem to draw a mix of two generations of fans these days, older adults who grew up listening to these songs on the radio or teens who were exposed to incessant CD airplay by their parents. For some unknown reason, this particular show was mostly the late 30's, 40's, and 50's crowd.
Simon is still a great front man, entertaining and wooing the crowd -- he is a veteran showman. The rest of the group really laid back on this show, leaving Simon out on his own. Even the charismatic crowd-favorite, John Taylor, really stayed in the shadows and played right through this show without much crowd connection. Roger was hidden behind his drums and the evasive Nick stayed to himself. The band has really put themselves out there in other concerts, but not this one. Fortunately, Simon was up to the task.
The show was listed at 7:30pm but did not begin until 8:30pm. No opening act. Perhaps that threw off the timing if Duran Duran was always scheduled to go on at 8:30pm. They played for 90 minutes. Then another 20-30 minute encore.
For hardcore fans, they seem to have lost their "sixth bandmate" saxophonist Andy Hamilton over recent years. However, the current sax player was excellent.
The setlist was very odd. It was not designed to please casual fans nor hardcore Duranies.
They could have played straight hits for hours, but instead chose to include recent songs Nite-Runner, Red Carpet Massacre, and (Reach Up For The) Sunrise. They also included the little-known Do You Believe In Shame and I Don't Want Your Love (from Big Thing CD), and a cover of White Lines (from Thank You CD). A bonus was Arcadia's Election Day.
Notably absent were Hungry Like The Wolf, tracks from Seven And The Ragged Tiger (The Reflex, New Moon On Monday, and Union Of The Snake), and Power Station hits.
Overall, still a fun show from a band that knows how to entertain a crowd. Still Fab!
Steve Harley is a English singer and songwriter, best known for his work with the 1970s rock group Cockney Rebel, with whom he still occasionally tours (albeit with many personnel changes through the years). 
