Listomania! - 1988

Having been a working stiff for about 12 years already, in 1988 I decided that I would try my hand at going back to school. Steve had just finished his degree at UWO and Martina was just starting there herself. I wanted to see if I could free myself from the factory life, so I enrolled part-time at UWO in the fall of '88. While I enjoyed parts of it, I was too used to a certain lifestyle and not disciplined enough for university. Money was too tight and I couldn't just be like a normal student and just concentrate on my studies with nothing else to worry about. I attended UWO for 2 years, but, ultimately, it wasn't really for me. But, in '88, it was an exciting new chapter in my life after 10 years in the factory. Things were pretty unsettled for me still, but Martina and I forged ahead with our lives. We were pretty much together all the time and it was very interesting to get to know her family and learn completely different customs and ways of looking at things. When I look back on those times, we were quite poor, but we had a lot of fun with the kids. I remember buying Gord a Nintendo and we would spend hours with him and Taylor playing Donkey Kong and laughing our heads off. Music maintained a role of great importance to me and one of the perks of compiling these lists is looking back on those times and realizing how these songs evoke exact memories of how I felt or what I was doing then. The list goes like this:

10. Suedehead - Morrissey

Leave it to Morrissey to call his first solo album something like Viva Hate. This song was the lead single from the record and it ended up higher in the U.K. charts than anything by The Smiths ever did, reaching #5 on the singles chart. The song is a lament about trying to end a relationship with someone who won't let go and in typical Morrissey fashion, the ex-lover is dismissed with the acerbic line "It was a good lay." It still sounds a lot like The Smiths, but there are subtle differences, such as producer Stephen Street's guitar playing, which has more oomph than the languid tones of Johnny Marr. This tune proved that Morrissey could still write a great melody though and I often walked around with this song in my head back then. "Why do you come here ? And why do you hang around ?" I come for the melody, I stay for the lyrics......

9. A Wish Away - The Wonder Stuff

These guys were the darlings of the NME in 1988. They were featured on the cover and lead singer/guitarist Miles Hunt played the press like a fiddle with his controversial quips about fellow musicians and life in general. Their debut album, The Eight-Legged Groove Machine, was a big seller in the U.K. and this song was the best on the album in my opinion. It's only 2:29 in length, but it packs a poppy, punky punch in that short amount of time. Hunt's voice is sassy, but the melody is brilliant and guaranteed to make you sing along. The bass line played by the late Rob Jones stands out as well, propelling the song along with its bubbly groove. "I remember the sound as I hit the ground and somebody called it fear."Not so much fear as....THUD!!

8. She's So Young - The Pursuit Of Happiness

Led by the bespectacled long-haired genius, Moe Berg, TPOH put out their debut album Love Junk in '88. The lead single, the novelty tune I'm An Adult Now, generated a lot of buzz and airplay for the band, but they were much more than a one-off novelty act. The album was produced by Todd Rundgren, whose fingerprints can be found throughout the record. This song is the most Todd-like on the album with it's melodic guitars and great female backing vocals provided by Leslie Stanwyck and Kris Abbott, who also doubled on guitar with Berg. It is jangly Power-Pop at its finest and a true Canadian classic. I took Taylor to see them at Victoria Park and that was her first concert. "She's so young, she's got the answers. She doesn't need to question herself like I do." Certainty is wasted on the young.....

7. Angel Of Harlem - U2

U2's infatuation with America that had begun on the Unforgettable Fire album reached its nadir on their 1988 record and movie release Rattle And Hum. During the tour for The Joshua Tree, they had visited several historical locations, including Graceland in Memphis. While in Memphis, they arranged some recording sessions at the legendary Sun Records. This song, an homage to Billie Holiday, was one of 3 they recorded while there. Bono gives a soulful performance on this song, clearly moved by the subject matter and the surroundings. He refers to several places in New York City here, including JFK airport and the radio station WBLS. Also name-checked are Jazz greats John Coltrane and Miles Davis and the renowned club named after Charlie Parker called Birdland. The Memphis horns give the song texture and punch and it has to be one of their best singles. "Blue light on the avenue, God knows they got to you. An empty glass, the lady sings, eyes swollen like a bee sting." I prefer Bud Light myself.....

6. Coldsweat - The Sugarcubes

This album, Life's Too Good, was the world's introduction to Bjork. This band was all the rage in hipster circles that year and I was lucky enough to score tickets to see them in Toronto. It was extremely hot that day and Martina and I went into the sweltering, packed club and witnessed an amazing show. The band was great and Bjork, despite her tiny size, could really belt out a tune. This was always my fave song by them, even though Martina would vote for the more iconic Birthday. I love the chunky guitar, the funky bass and the driving rhythm of this song. Bjork's vocals are haunting on the verses, but she amps up the power on the chorus, sounding as though her very life depends on it. Her phrasing is quite ESL, but that just adds to the charm here. "This is hot meat, this is metallic blood. This is hot meat, this is open sweat." Sweat - now there is a subject I am an expert on.....

5. Sulphur - The House Of Love

I think this song would best be described as Jesus And Mary Chain meets Big Star. From their self-titled debut, these Englishmen were led by singer/guitarist Guy Chadwick with his yearning, too-cool-for-school vocals. Their sound lacked any of the '80s touchstones really and they sounded like a '60s band. Chadwick's phrasing is fantastic and the band is very together and they just hit the groove on the sweet spot and ride it for all its worth. This album is still a big favourite with Marrtina and me and if you don't know it, go grab a copy because it is so good!
"That's the sound of my head, and the texture of gas, and the wolf in skin, And the touch in sheep." Don't you be touchin' no sheep!

4. Horizon - Let's Active

This great song is taken from Let's Active's final album, Every Dog Has His Day. The record company wanted them to have a hit sound, so they brought in hotshot producer John Leckie (XTC, Echo, PIL) to twiddle the knobs, even though Mitch Easter himself was one of the best around. Easter reluctantly agreed to this, and the album does sound bigger. I feel it is the weakest of their 3 albums, but that doesn't mean I think it's bad, just not as great as the first 2 were. This is co-written by Easter and keyboard player Angie Carlson, who provides the lead vocals on this song. It is quite keyboard-driven, but Easter plays a wicked Southern-sounding guitar solo in the middle, just to change things up a little. The lyrics a superb and it is a memorable and insidious tune. "Fortune take me, I'm getting lost. I feel the world turning even though I stand still." Stop the world, I wanna get off!

3. Dreamworld - Midnight Oil

From their breakthrough LP, Diesel And Dust, these Aussies had been around for quite a while, but were virtually unknown outside their homeland. Singer Peter Garrett, a bald-headed giant of 6'8", literally stood out above the rest of the band, with his political leanings carved on his sleeve. His emphatic, passionate delivery is so convincing that when he sings "Your dreamworld is just about to end", I feel like my dreamworld IS just about to end! The song is about the destruction of the environment for the purpose of commercial progress, just one of many left-wing causes near and dear to Garrett's heart. This is a powerful song that gets the message across and makes you tap a toe as well. "So farewell to the Norfolk Island pines, no amount of make believe can help this heart of mine." Just close your eyes and click your heels together 3 times.....

2. Throwing The Election - Game Theory

The big organ sound at the beginning of this song bring to mind The Band's great tune, Chest Fever. It soon morphs into a Scott Miller song though, with chiming guitars and a great melody, but the organ maintains a presence throughout. This is from their final album, 2 Steps From The Middle Ages, which Miller saw as a play on his turning 30 in 2 years time. 30? Middle-aged? Give me some of that anytime! This song is about the disillusionment most of us feel when we reach adulthood, upon the realization that things are even less in our control than ever and the lack of a voice we have in the grand scheme of things. Among Game Theory fanatics, (myself and 4 other homeless guys) this is considered to be their best song and I would find it hard to argue with that assessment. I love the last verse, which Miller sings as an almost-rant:
"I've got a feeling it's all rigged
I've got a feeling it ended a long time ago
Nobody tells me
I've got a feeling it's over now
I've got a feeling it's over now
I've got a feeling the votes are in and I got none
And all I want is one."

Can I count on your vote?

1. World Leader Pretend - R.E.M.

This album, Green, was their first for the major label Warner Bros. after the band left IRS. It was a good, not great album, but this song is probably my fave by them. It has great feeling in Stipe's vocals, great playing by the band, especially Mike Mills' work on the piano and the pedal-steel guitar played by Bucky Baxter, and maybe the best lyrics of any of their songs. These lyrics were the first the band allowed to be printed on the album's sleeve as Stipe felt they had an important message and was pleased with the job he did in writing them. The key is his clever use of military terms to describe the inward battle we fight with ourselves on a daily basis. Upon having listened to this song, I have been known to spend the rest of the day singing it, as I undoubtedly will tonight. Good thing Howie and Riguez like my singing! "I sit at my table and wage war on myself. It seems like it's all, it's all for nothing." War is usually all for nothing.....