Ok, we've had the rare 70s thread so I thought I'd start a rare 80s thread.

There's countless 80s songs that very rarely get heard on the radio nowadays. Here's 3 that I love.

Japan - Visions Of China
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WhC8LnFd2LE

Billy Griffin - Hold Me Tighter In The Rain
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=95dDQGiStt0

Sky - Toccata
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QgbgU...eature=related

Eddy & The Soul Band - The Theme From Shaft

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k_BPjO-PTR8

I don't think it was particularly successful, but it DID appear on the very first Now Dance! compilation album.

Kon Kan - Harry Houdini

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zvvz7jCpWmU

Known better for their "I Beg Your Pardon" hit of 1989, this was the Canadian SynthPop band's follow-up. Again, I don't think it was very successful.

edited to add.........

Fat And Frantic - Last Night My Wife Hoovered My Head

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-s3rug6x6cc

A bit of Christian rockabilly! But it was "record of the week" on Radio One!

I think it made the top 30-I remember buying it on seven inch vinyl.

'can you dig, can you dig it, can you dig it'

Apparently, it got to #13 in the charts in 1985 (just Googled it!). I can’t remember it being in the charts at all, but I do remember it being on the first “Now! Dance” album which (I think) was released later that year.

Ten fairly random picks from my iTunes selection... no YouTube at work, so no links, sorry!

YELLOW MAGIC ORCHESTRA - Behind The Mask (1980 - Eric Clapton had a hit with this song, and Michael Jackson's cover is on the recent posthumous collection, but the original is the best!)
BRIAN ENO & DAVID BYRNE - The Jezebel Spirit (1981, scary and funky, a weird combination)
THE THE - Uncertain Smile (1982, check out the album version on "Soul Mining" for a brilliant long fadeout featuring Jools Holland)
MARSHALL CRENSHAW - Whenever You're On My Mind (1983, just great powerpop)
THIS MORTAL COIL - Song to the Siren (1983, amazingly atmospheric cover of the Tim Buckley song, most recently re-done by Bryan Ferry on "Olympia")
STEPHEN TINTIN DUFFY - The World At Large Alone (1985, lovely closer to his debut album)
PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS - She's So Young (1986, more powerpop, hard to believe this wasn't a hit)
WAS (NOT WAS) - Anything Can Happen (1988, my favourite track of theirs)
STAN RIDGWAY - A Mission In Life (1989, after his novelty hit "Camouflage", he made some great records, including this little gem)
TODD RUNDGREN - Where Does The Time Go? (1989, uber-producer's ultra-pop end to the decade.)

Propaganda - Dr. Mabuse

Yello - Oh Yeah

Echo and The Bunnymen - Ocean Rain

the 12" of uncertain smile is great too. a completely different recording by the The

kiss me by stephen tin tin duffy was always a fave of mine, i think robbie williams covered it a few years back

and most of the was not was stuff is great, there are gazillions of different 12"s and remixes of stuff. spy in the house of love, walk the dinosaur, and out come the freaks were the hits and the albums had some great great tracks, such as where did our love go, which was covered by a little known pop group called wham on the double a sided single b/w a little heard george michael track called last christmas

I think it was technically Greg Phillinganes' cover that was the hit version (before he suggested it to Clapton).

Anyway, a few hidden 80s classics of my own:

Les Rita Mitsouko - Don't Forget the NIght

Quirky, French pop band (when that description was the kiss of death in the UK!)

Win - Super Popoid Groove

Quirky, Scottish pop band (Their album would have been a pop classic - if anybody had known about it / bought it )

Papas New Faith - Shine

Quirky, Cardiff indie pop band. If they'd stuck around for a few more years they would have probably have hit "cool Cymru" gold..

Virginia Astley - One Small Hope - featuring David Sylvian on vocals; would have made a nice Xmas song, perhaps?

I bought individually every track off that album except-some to my now shame I may add.

Not very rare but I don't think you can have an eighties thread without featuring this song (particularly as the thread title includes the word classic).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YhiQ-a8CkPY

Not sure how rare these would be considered but....

Jody Watley - Don't You Want Me:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w-p-BhaE0OM

Jellybean - Just A Mirage:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pUKh1tc3XUA

Skipworth and Turner-Thinking about Your Love
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X-FheJ_aSvE

The Limit-Say Yeah
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z5ylWj0R2fs

Total Contrast-Takes a little Time
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bv-MpTOS9Vg

B B and Q Band-Genie
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nY9AqqHW810

Rosie Vela-Magic Smile
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cwaiZL51H6I

Always loved these tracks

I loved Win, though my favourite track was the awesome "You've Got The Power"... in fact, I seem to remember buying "Super Popoid Groove" as a double 7" with YGTP included... mind you, when I saw them live it was one of the most disappointing gigs I've ever been to. Anyway, the "Uh! Tears Baby" album is apparently due for re-release this year, for some reason they decided to re-released inferior follow-up "Freaky Trigger" first, last year...

i recall a double pack 12" (there probably was the 7" too - as it was the era of double packs and US remixes) as you got the power was used in a mcewans ad around the same time as hipsways long white car was used in another ad. i used to work with davey hendersons girlfriend at the time

Yup -a *classic* track, alright - although let down by rather odd video, I've never seen before. Never even occurred to me that Blue NIle had ever made any videos, for some reason! Very soapy US-style visuals which don't really fit with the very European sound..Must have been the idea of the record company! Whole video should have been done in a grimy, outdoor monochrome, I think.



That's interesting MM - were they just not very good performers, or was it a case of the live sound not living up to the album sound, which was pretty innovative and ambitious in its production?

Good news about a re-release of "Uh! Tears Baby" - Would be cool if they could get some contemporary dance remixes added, and maybe get Win in the charts, where they belonged all along!

The Concept-Mr DJ
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8QW2ez4My3o

They should release this now-the DJ sounds like that guy who was a DJ and was found begging for money and was featured on You Tube.

Self-control - Laura Branigan

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5IyAGpooGko

Brilliant song-one of my all time favourites.

I just heard it for the first time recently, and I can't stop listening to it! There are a few live versions online - Laura was a very talented singer. Her voice was so expressive. It's such a shame she died so young.

My opinion of the eighties music is that it went from the ridiculous to the sublime, from being exceptionally good at the start of the decade to being downright bloody awful by the end of it.

Here's one of my favourite tracks from my favourite end of the decade. This got to 25 in the singles charts back in 1981.

The Passions - I'm In Love With A German Film Star
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lkismiXva3M

The Mobiles - Drowning in Berlin.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-w0WulIq4tw

Hopefully it's rare enough and weird enough for the thread.

From probably the most unique and interesting band from the 70s - 80s Sparks.

Just made into the top 100 in 1985

Change - Sparks

www.youtube.com/watch?v=uLGPMJRHeJ0

Westworld performing 'SILVER MAC' on BBC PEBBLE MILL
youtube.
don't know how yo do a link. much prefered this to sonic boom boy.

Yeah Laura was very talented.

This song was actually a huge hit all over the world and was one of the top 30 best selling songs in the UK of the year (1984).