Action Jackson's 80s Music Blog

Asia "Heat of the Moment"

2009-12-20T18:59:00.000-08:00

Video director: "Okay, for the video we're going to need a guy that can personify the phrase 'wipe the smile right from my face.'"
Asia: "How about that creepy guy who doesn't wear shirts?"

Journey "Open Arms"

2009-12-08T22:50:00.000-08:00

"We sailed on together, we drifted apart..."

JOURNEY'S "OPEN ARMS"

LL Cool J "Going Back to Cali"

2009-12-07T06:45:00.000-08:00

Ladies Love Cool James...

LL COOL J'S "GOING BACK TO CALI"

Living Colour "Glamour Boys"

2009-12-06T06:31:00.000-08:00

LIVING COLOUR'S "GLAMOUR BOYS"

John Mellencamp "Crumbling Down"

2009-12-05T20:08:00.000-08:00

"And the walls..."

'Til Tuesday "Voices Carry"

2009-12-04T01:32:00.000-08:00

"I'm frightened of the things I might find..."

'Til Tuesday's "Voices Carry"

Grateful Dead "Touch of Grey"

2009-12-03T06:36:00.000-08:00

"Whistle through your teeth and spit, cause..."

Grateful Dead - Touch Of Grey
Uploaded by hushhush112. - Watch more music videos, in HD!

Billy Ocean "When the Going Gets Tough, the Tough Get Going"

2009-12-02T06:50:00.000-08:00

"And do the things that lovers do..."

Billy Ocean - When The Going Gets Tough
Uploaded by cladstrife. - Explore more music videos.

Talking Heads "And She Was"

2009-12-01T17:27:00.000-08:00

"And she was drifting through the backyard and she was taking off her dress..."

TALKING HEADS' "AND SHE WAS"

Bon Jovi "Bad Medicine"

2009-11-30T21:24:00.000-08:00

"There ain't no doctor that can cure my disease..."

BON JOVI'S "BAD MEDICINE"

Shalamar "Dancing in the Sheets"

2009-11-29T19:45:00.000-08:00

After watching this video “grab your coat and wave goodbye to your friends” took on a whole new meaning. If the guy in the black gloves, white kerchief and matching white wristband asks you to dance in the sheets, it's less likely that you're about to make sweet, sweet love and more likely that the end of your life is imminent.

One would think that a sexy song like “Dancing in the Sheets” would have a correspondingly sexy video. Instead, the video appears to be one the scenes from “Footloose” that ended up on the cutting room floor. The action picks up at the 2:20 mark when black Zorro ducks at just the last minute (or two), making Jonathan Taylor Thomas’ punch land right in Borat’s face. He then has the presence of mind to not only pause briefly to listen to not-Prince’s guitar solo, but also to give not-Prince the fist pump, which is the universal sign for “grab the nearest rope and swing straight through the front door, because we’ve got to meet Kevin Bacon and Chris Penn at the old barn to teach them how to dance (in the sheets).”

The Bangles "Walk Like an Egyptian"

2009-11-28T21:17:00.000-08:00

"Foreign types with the hookah pipes say..."

Billy Joel "We Didn't Start the Fire"

2009-11-27T21:13:00.000-08:00

"Edsel is a no go..." no va

BILLY JOEL'S "WE DIDN'T START THE FIRE"

R.E.M. "The One I Love"

2009-11-26T10:45:00.000-08:00

"Fire..."

R.E.M.'S "THE ONE I LOVE"

Mr. Mister "Broken Wings"

2009-11-25T10:46:00.000-08:00

"We can take what was wrong and make it right..."

Frida "I Know There's Something Going On"

2009-11-24T10:37:00.000-08:00

"It won't be long before you're gone..."

Simple Minds "Don't You Forget About Me"

2009-11-23T10:28:00.000-08:00

"Rain keeps falling rain keeps falling down down..."

Men Without Hats "Safety Dance"

2009-11-22T17:37:00.000-08:00

I (de) briefly fronted a "Men Without Hats" cover band called "Men Without Pants". Turns out full frontal isn't a good look for me.

Warrant "Cherry Pie"

2009-11-21T19:06:00.000-08:00

"You ain't gonna swing with my daughter no more..."

WARRANT'S "CHERRY PIE"

John Mellencamp "Pink Houses"

2009-11-20T18:54:00.000-08:00

"And there's winners and there's losers..."

JOHN MELLENCAMP'S "PINK HOUSES"

WHAM! "Careless Whisper"

2009-11-19T00:29:00.000-08:00

In my experience, guilty feet have very little, if any, rhythm...WHAM! agrees.

Elton John "I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues"

2009-11-18T06:25:00.000-08:00

"And never forget I'm your man..."

ELTON JOHN'S "I GUESS THAT'S WHY THEY CALL IT THE BLUES"

Suzanne Vega "Luka"

2009-11-17T14:20:00.000-08:00

"Just don't ask me what it was..."

Level 42 "Something About You"

2009-11-16T18:16:00.000-08:00

"Is it so wrong to be human after all..."

LEVEL 42'S "SOMETHING ABOUT YOU"

USA for Africa "We Are the World"

2009-11-15T17:32:00.000-08:00

This song featured arguably the greatest collection of musical talent ever until Jimmy Kimmel effed Ben Affleck.

Shannon "Let the Music Play"

2009-11-14T12:07:00.000-08:00

"He's dancing his way back to me..."

Shannon - Let The Music Play
Uploaded by hushhush112. - Music videos, artist interviews, concerts and more.

MARRS "Pump up the Volume"

2009-11-13T17:59:00.000-08:00

"Brothers and sisters..."

Jeff Healey "Angel Eyes"

2009-11-12T17:14:00.000-08:00

"What you're doing with a clown like me is surely one of life's little mysteries..."

JEFF HEALEY'S "ANGEL EYES"

Jermaine Stewart "We Don't Have To Take Our Clothes Off"

2009-11-11T02:04:00.000-08:00

The lovely and talented Brook Busey once tweeted, "Re: having a good time. Can't we take our clothes off AND have some cherry wine? Don't know why they have to be mutually exclusive." Can I get an Amen?

Dear Diablo,
I realized one of the things I don't do enough in life is ask you out. So, please go around with me and my mustache. I'll take you to Kansas City's best barbeque joint in a gas station or the prom (ladies choice/snowball). Either way there will be cherry wine and I'll probably end up topless with or without you (and you give yourself away...and you give...etc) Check yes, no or Bono.
Love,
AJ

Bow Wow Wow "I Want Candy"

2009-11-10T06:31:00.000-08:00

When do you like candy? Because, Bow Wow Wow likes it "when it's wrapped in sweater."

The Kinks "Come Dancing"

2009-11-09T16:58:00.000-08:00

"Don't be afraid to come dancing. It's only natural..."

Living in a Box "Living in a Box"

2009-11-08T14:48:00.000-08:00

Watching the Living in a Box video made me think of a couple of other guys who put things in boxes...

LIVING IN A BOX'S "LIVING IN A BOX"

The Church "Under the Milky Way"

2009-11-07T14:00:00.000-08:00

"Wish I knew what you were looking for..."

Poco "Call It Love"

2009-11-06T14:20:00.000-08:00

"Tell me your secrets I'll tell you mine..."

The Dream Academy "Life in a Northern Town"

2009-11-05T14:34:00.000-08:00

"And he took a cigarette out..."

THE DREAM ACADEMY "LIFE IN A NORTHERN TOWN"

Nu Shooz "I Can't Wait"

2009-11-04T14:39:00.000-08:00

"My love, tell me what it's all about..."

DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince "Parents Just Don't Understand"

2009-11-03T18:33:00.000-08:00

My memory of the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air was a boyish, innocent version of Big Willie. However, the video delivers a character more like a young R. Kelly...the hand that was "steadily moving up (his) thigh" belonged to "a 12 year old runaway." Not...that...innocent...

"Come on and take a ride with a helluva guy..."

DJ JAZZY JEFF & THE FRESH PRINCE'S "PARENTS JUST DON'T UNDERSTAND"

The Fixx "Saved By Zero"

2009-11-02T14:45:00.000-08:00

"Maybe I'll win..."

THE FIXX'S "SAVED BY ZERO"

Katrina and the Waves "Walking on Sunshine"

2009-11-01T14:43:00.000-08:00

This video is all kinds of brilliant. Nothing says "Walking on Sunshine" like a dreary, foggy day. It looks like the Walking on Sunshine video may have been inadvertantly switched with Katrina's tutorial on how to trick emo kids into feeding ducks.

KATRINA AND THE WAVES' "WALKING ON SUNSHINE"

Mr. Mister "Kyrie"

2009-10-31T03:40:00.000-07:00

"It reaches into where I cannot hide..."

Aretha Franklin "Freeway of Love"

2009-10-30T03:38:00.000-07:00

"How'd you get those pants so tight..."

Teena Marie "Lovergirl"

2009-10-29T03:36:00.000-07:00

"A little birdie told me you feel the same..."

Debarge "Rhythm of the Night"

2009-10-28T03:32:00.000-07:00

"The party's just beginning..."

DEBARGE "RHYTHM OF THE NIGHT"

Survivor "High On You"

2009-10-27T03:30:00.000-07:00

"Talking to myself running in the heat..."

New Edition "Mr. Telephone Man"

2009-10-26T03:26:00.000-07:00

"This situation's blowing my mind..."

NEW EDITION'S "MR. TELEPHONE MAN"

Madness "Our House"

2009-10-25T01:43:00.000-07:00

Madness. If I had written a song about the house I grew up in, it would have been horrible. This song is non-horrible. And that’s the genius of Madness. They took mom ironing shirts and kissing the kids off to school and made it a hit. The phrase that hooked me was "middle of the street". Location, location, location. I took that phrase quite literally. What an odd place for a house, I thought. I guess I never saw the video. For me, ignorance was bliss, I wouldn't have liked the song, if I understood that the house was equidistant from the two nearest crossroads. I prefer the image of trying to step on to the back porch only to be nearly run over by a city bus. In my mind, Madness' house will always be in the middle of the street...it was where they used to sleep...

Icehouse "Electric Blue"

2009-10-24T03:23:00.000-07:00

"And it's all over you..."

Al B. Sure "Nite and Day"

2009-10-23T03:21:00.000-07:00

"Love is blind..."

Elton John "Candle In The Wind"

2009-10-22T03:19:00.000-07:00

"Goodbye Norma Jean..."

ELTON JOHN'S "CANDLE IN THE WIND"

Cher "If I Could Turn Back Time"

2009-10-21T03:16:00.000-07:00

"Words are like weapons and they wound some times..."

Kylie Minogue "The Loco-Motion"

2009-10-20T03:13:00.000-07:00

"You gotta swing your hips now..."

Taylor Dane "Tell It To My Heart"

2009-10-19T03:08:00.000-07:00

"Body to body soul to soul..."

TAYLOR DANE'S "TELL IT TO MY HEART"

Escape Club Kool Moe Dee "Wild Wild West(s)"

2009-10-18T16:54:00.000-07:00

I had every intention of writing this post about Escape Club's "Wild Wild West", but youtube pointed me to Kool Moe Dee's song instead...it also came out in 1988 and is way better. And by better I mean easier to make fun of.

Quick word association game. I say "Wild Wild West". You say what? If your answer was "black cowboys dancing in a snow storm" then you probably directed this video. I didn't think it was possible to make George Michael's rap look bad ass, but this video does just that. "Guns...we don't like to use them," but we will challenge our enemy to a hoe down. Trust me...you don't want that...as this video shows in graphic detail, when Kool Moe Dee and his crew starts line dancing, nobody wins.

Kool Moe Dee version...

Escape Club version (song starts at the :55 mark)...

Richard Marx "Don't Mean Nothing"

2009-10-17T03:04:00.000-07:00

"No victim no crime..."

Eric Carmen "Make Me Lose Control"

2009-10-16T03:01:00.000-07:00

"Jennifer's singing 'Stand By Me'..."

Poison "Every Rose Has Its Thorn"

2009-10-15T02:57:00.000-07:00

"But what love does he know, has he ever felt like this..."

POISON'S "EVERY ROSE HAS ITS THORN"

Quiet Riot "Bang Your Head (Metal Health)"

2009-10-14T02:53:00.000-07:00

"Join the pack fill the crack..."

Twisted Sister "We're Not Gonna Take It"

2009-10-13T02:50:00.000-07:00

"I wanna rock..."

Matthew Wilder "Break My Stride"

2009-10-12T02:47:00.000-07:00

"Last night I had the strangest dream..."

The Tubes "She's A Beauty"

2009-10-11T15:54:00.000-07:00

The Tubes band meeting 1983: “She’s a beauty is a kick ass song. But the label thinks it’s too racy to have a video about a peep-show girl. What could we do to tone it down?” “I know, let’s have a pre-teen boy sit on the lap of a dominatrix in a carnival ride called ‘ride the beauty’.”

Much better.

The Tubes probably could have left the beauty's envelope right there, but instead they thrust the excited boy right through a picture of a breast. And on the other side? A four year-old ballerina. Can we please go back to the peep-show theme? This is creeping me out. Instead, they keep the ride going to reveal caged jungle girls with hay in their hair watching the dominatrix move the safety bar up to the young boy’s neck. This video is less about a one in a million girl and more the story of the boy coming of age. The dominatrix disposes of the bar in favor of a more intimate headlock and ultimately the boy becomes a man after riding the beauty. "She'll give you every penny's worth. But, it will cost you a dollar first" (and thousands in therapy).

What twisted freak directed this beauty/starter porn? Why, Kenny Ortega of course...the director of Disney's High School Musical films.

THE TUBE'S "SHE'S A BEAUTY"

Michael Jackson "Thriller"

2009-10-10T02:44:00.000-07:00

"You try to scream, but terror takes the sound before you make it..."

MICHAEL JACKSON'S "THRILLER"

The Romantics "Talking In Your Sleep"

2009-10-09T02:42:00.000-07:00

"You tell me that you want me..."

Stevie Wonder "I Just Called To Say I Love You"

2009-10-08T02:39:00.000-07:00

"Made up of these three words that I must say to you..."

Lionel Richie "Hello"

2009-10-07T02:36:00.000-07:00

Talented director of plays at the local community college and father of Paris Hilton's BFF. "Is it me you're looking for?" Yes, yes it is. Hello, Lionel. I've finally found you.

Tina Turner "What's Love Got To Do With It"

2009-10-06T02:28:00.000-07:00

"Who needs a heart when a heart can be broken..."

TINA TURNER'S "WHAT'S LOVE GOT TO DO WITH IT"

Huey Lewis & The News "Hip To Be Square"

2009-10-05T02:02:00.000-07:00

"There is no denying that..."

HUEY LEWIS & THE NEWS' "HIP TO BE SQUARE"

Miami Sound Machine "Bad Boy"

2009-10-04T19:12:00.000-07:00

Miami Sound Machine made two videos for "Bad Boy", either because the song is that good or because this video is that bad. Hey look, there's Gloria Estefan telling the pretty boy to get lost. And there's Gloria walking into a Brian Setzer video...wait, what just happened? I would imagine that this video is EXACTLY what most people picture when they first hear the song. It's your typical Hollywood story: boy meets girl, boy loses girl to beastality, boy gets girl.

It's like the songwriter and the cats had an "anything you can do, I can do badder" contest that ended with Estefan growing a tail. The song's writer gives us interesting insight into Estefan. For example, her heart goes "beat, beat, beat, beat, beat beat" and her phone goes "ring, ring, ring, ring, ring ring". Pretty bad writing, but the cats answer at the 1:41 mark, taking the time to show us what a beating heart looks like. And they tie things up at 3:01..."no Gloria, finger phones don't cut it in our world...let me pull out my car phone...this is how it's done."

80s music...you make me feel so good...

Jan Hammer "Miami Vice Theme"

2009-10-03T03:43:00.000-07:00

Shh...

Sly Fox "Let's Go All The Way"

2009-10-02T01:59:00.000-07:00

"The Hollywood Squares are living in Disneyland..."

SLY FOX'S "LET'S GO ALL THE WAY"

Guns N' Roses "Patience"

2009-10-01T20:04:00.000-07:00

"I been walking the streets at night just trying to get it right..."

Joan Jett & the Blackhearts "I Hate Myself For Loving You"

2009-09-30T21:27:00.000-07:00

"You said you'd meet me now it's quarter to two..."

JOAN JETT AND THE BLACKHEARTS' "I HATE MYSELF FOR LOVING YOU"

The Bangles "Hazy Shade of Winter"

2009-09-29T21:26:00.000-07:00

"Hear the salvation army band..."

Naked Eyes "Promises Promises"

2009-09-28T21:24:00.000-07:00

"Arm in arm we laughed like kids..."

NAKED EYES' "PROMISES PROMISES"

Soft Cell "Tainted Love"

2009-09-27T14:34:00.000-07:00

So, Tainted Love...you know, the kind of love that makes Marc Almond feel like he needs to "run away" he's got to "get away". It's the kind of love that hurts...that pains the heart.

Or...there's the tainted love that the video depicts...you know, the kind of love that awakens the underwear model in the middle of the night, making him sit up in his impossibly small bed. The kind of love that at first seems to have potential...an astrological starish figure gyrating over underwear boy's face. But, as is often the case, the starish figure takes things too far...knocking over the boy's soda can. That was the straw that broke the cameltoe's back. And Marc Almond's head appears as if to say, "Now THAT is Tainted Love!"

SOFT CELL'S "TAINTED LOVE"

Rick Astley "Together Forever"

2009-09-26T21:20:00.000-07:00

"Can't you hear me I'm saying I want you for the rest of my life..."

RICK ASTLEY'S "TOGETHER FOREVER"

Billy Idol "Rebel Yell"

2009-09-25T21:18:00.000-07:00

"What set you free and brought you to me babe..."

BILLY IDOL'S "REBEL YELL"

Whitesnake "Is This Love"

2009-09-24T21:14:00.000-07:00

"Wasted days and sleepless nights..."

WHITESNAKE'S "IS THIS LOVE"

The System "Don't Disturb This Groove"

2009-09-23T21:12:00.000-07:00

"Hang the sign upon the door..."

Sheena Easton "Morning Train (Nine to Five)"

2009-09-22T21:09:00.000-07:00

"Night time is the right time..."

Expose "Point of No Return"

2009-09-21T21:04:00.000-07:00

"The common road seems just like a dream..."

EXPOSE'S "POINT OF NO RETURN"

Cameo "Word Up"

2009-09-20T02:31:00.000-07:00

One of the funniest Twitter accounts is “Sh#t my dad says”. The guy who writes it has hundreds of thousands of followers, but I noticed yesterday that he’s only following one person…LeVar Burton. And as fate would have it I caught this Word Up video on VH1 classic today, starring none other than LeVar Burton as the frustrated cop.

LeVar’s acting skills are in full effect at the 3:55 mark when he looks “surprised”. He thought he had captured Cameo lead singer Larry Blackmon, but was shocked to find himself hand-cuffed to someone else. Blackmon escapes into the night, where judging from his outfit he is about to have a big evening. I have that exact same see-through mesh shirt and banana hammock/utility belt, but I never thought to wear black spandex underneath. What’s the word? Fashionsense. Word up.

Pat Benatar "We Belong"

2009-09-19T21:00:00.000-07:00

"Many times I've cried alone..."

PAT BENATAR'S "WE BELONG"

Frank Stallone "Far From Over"

2009-09-18T20:58:00.000-07:00

"I am down, but I am far from over..."

Thompson Twins "Hold Me Now"

2009-09-17T20:55:00.000-07:00

"You say I'm a dreamer, we're two of a kind..."

INXS "Need You Tonight" & "Mediate"

2009-09-16T20:48:00.000-07:00

"There's something about you girl that makes me sweat..."

Roy Orbison "You Got It"

2009-09-15T19:21:00.000-07:00

"I live my life to be with you..."

Was (Not Was) "Walk the Dinosaur"

2009-09-14T18:03:00.000-07:00

"I felt a little tired so I watched Miami Vice..."

WAS (NOT WAS) "WALK THE DINOSAUR"

The Cars "Magic"

2009-09-13T17:21:00.000-07:00

Thank you VH1 classic for reminding me of this video. The casting directors got so caught up finding “preppy guy with fruity cocktail”, “token cowboy” and “guy who looks nothing like Uncle Sam”, that they completely forgot to cast the female lead. The song says, “It’s magic when I’m with you,” but the video counters, “When you’re not here people think I’m the Christ.”

It’s ironic that a song about a beautiful girl turns into a video that gives tons of face time to Ric Ocasek. Dude is not much to look at (said the dude who wears polyester suits and bad moustaches), but has been married to supermodel Paulina Porizkova for 20 years. Ric’s the catch. Talent and fame trump outward beauty. That’s “twisted, under sideways down.”

Oh oh this video is Magic…

Van Halen "Hot For Teacher"

2009-09-12T17:59:00.000-07:00

"I brought my pencil..."

Rupert Holmes "Escape (the Pina Colada Song)"

2009-09-11T17:53:00.000-07:00

"And though I'm nobody's poet I thought it wasn't half-bad..."

Pink Floyd "Another Brick In The Wall"

2009-09-10T17:51:00.000-07:00

"How can you have any pudding if you don't eat your meat..."

Queen "Another One Bites The Dust"

2009-09-09T17:46:00.000-07:00

"How long can you stand the heat..."

QUEEN'S "ANOTHER ONE BITES THE DUST"

Michael Jackson "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'"

2009-09-08T17:42:00.000-07:00

"You're a vegtable..."

Eddy Grant "Electric Avenue"

2009-09-07T17:36:00.000-07:00

"Dealing in multiplication..."

Baltimora "Tarzan Boy"

2009-09-06T01:03:00.000-07:00

This video is a visual masterpiece. And the lyrics are equally beautiful. There’s something about Jimmy McShane that makes me want to leave everything behind…and join him...in the jungle…I won’t be sorry. I won't?

I am sorry that music isn't like this anymore. Or videos for that matter. It's like Murray Hewitt was the band manager and said, "Okay, guys...item 3...what about a song about...a...Tarzan...boy. You know Tarzan's yell? We put that to a beat, drop in Jimmy with some white trousers...a dinner jacket...lots of man make-up. International hit." And the crazy thing is, it actually was. The 80s don't make sense. There wasn't a formula for 80s success, but more often than not, weird won.

Tarzan boy is about to monkey all up in your business…

Donna Summer "She Works Hard For The Money"

2009-09-05T17:30:00.000-07:00

"So hard for it honey..."

The Police "Don't Stand So Close To Me"

2009-09-04T17:25:00.000-07:00

"He starts to shake and cough..."

THE POLICE'S "DON'T STAND SO CLOSE TO ME"

Culture Club "Do You Really Want To Hurt Me"

2009-09-03T17:22:00.000-07:00

"Come inside and catch my tears..."

2 Live Crew "Me So Horny"

2009-09-02T17:19:00.000-07:00

"Me love you long time..."

Michael Bolton "How Am I Supposed To Live Without You"

2009-09-01T17:12:00.000-07:00

"And I don't want to know the price I'm going to pay for dreaming..."