finest pazz and jop winner of the 80s

1989!

artists united against apartheid - "sun city" (1985)

This has its defenders, but it totally embarrasses me.

I mean: that's the worst song of the eighties AND nineties lists.

Anyway: "Billie Jean" over "Fight the Power" and "When Doves Cry/17 Days."

o good intentions count for something al! plus actual politics! the record is admittedly "world destruction" to the nth power but there's some gawkability to it. besides it only beat "freeway of love" and "the old man down the road" so no HUGE injustice really (fine records both but they'd be weak links here also). "buffalo stance" nearly tied "fight the power" in which case i would still said '1989' but had no idea what i would actually vote for.

"world destruction" is awesome. "sun city" is not.

I've said this already, but "We Are The World" as performance (NOT SONG) >>>> "Sun City"

#4-11 on that '85 list range from good to awesome:

4. Hüsker Dü: "Makes No Sense at All"/"Love Is All Around" (SST) 44
5. Ramones: "Bonzo Goes to Bitburg" (Beggars Banquet import) 43 **
6. Don Henley: "The Boys of Summer"/"A Month of Sundays" (Geffen)
7. Eurythmics: "Would I Lie to You?" (RCA Victor) 35
8. Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam With Full Force: "I Wonder If I Take You Home" (Columbia) 35
9. Doug E. Fresh & the Get Fresh Crew: "The Show"/"La-Di-Da-Di" (Reality) 34
10.Kate Bush: "Running Up That Hill" (EMI America) 32
11.Madonna: "Into the Groove"

I like all these songs, even Sun City. But I'm going to step up and actually vote for Fast Car. So...yeah.

Aretha, Fogerty, Henley, ugly paunchy white guys in "Sun City" video = sixties feh.

and "Would I Lie To You?" got in there cuz it used "soul horns."

"Fight the Power" over "O Superman" and "The Message"

take out eurythmics and they range from awesome to awesome! eurythmics is fine but totally a 'finally these guys got some real instruments! tom petty was right about dave stewart after all!' move.

Oh, I agree with that reading, and don't mind the song; in context it looks like an eager kid brother to the sixties recidivism.

*however

if "Boys Of Summer" won I'd be voting for "Boys Of Summer," going with "Fight The Power"

"Billie Jean" slightly over "Fight the Power."

"Into the Groove" would've been my pick of the decade tonight.

"into the groove" "king of rock" should have won that year

ha xps

Definitely prefer the first five years' winners to the second five. (Okay, I might take "Fight The Power" over "O Superman" or "Start Me Up," but it'd be close.) Going with "Billie Jean," over "The Message" or "The Breaks." Would've seriously considered "Bring The Noise" if that was up there, though.

"sun city" was to remain the fat boys sole appearance atop the p&j.

"Bring the Noise" would've gotten my vote even quicker.

i think the reason "fight the power" was my immediate response was the relative mehness of the latter half to the first. i could listen 80-84 and i'm having a party. "sign o the times" should be happy "sun city" is up there.

"king of rock" "the fat boys are back"

^ truth

for some reason a bunch of music writers all getting together and voting for tracy chapman is super hilarious

otm

im imagining it happening in a cabin at the edge of a meadow

'we have all agreed to groove to this'

be someone, be someone, be someone

My rankings:
1.michael jackson - "billie jean" (1983)
2.prince & the revolution - "when doves cry"/"17 days" (1984)
3.prince - "sign o the times" (1987)
4.grandmaster flash & the furious five - "the message" (1982)
5.kurtis blow - "the breaks" (1980)
6.laurie anderson - "o superman"/"walk the dog" (1981)
7.the rolling stones - "start me up" (1981)
8.public enemy - "fight the power" (1989)
9.tracy chapman - "fast car" (1988)
10.run-dmc - "walk this way" (1986)
11.artists united against apartheid - "sun city" (1985)

Don't care for 9-11, like but don't love 6-8, crazy about 2-5, and think 1 is "Billie Jean" because it's "Billie Jean."

really was hoping for the 90s one to close so we don't overdose on pazz and jop polls

plus you got the title wrong

voted 'the message'

"When Doves Cry"/"17 Days"

voted 'the message'

― if you can put a ceiling fan in your van (deej), Wednesday, September 22, 2010 1:10 AM (3 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

80s stands for 1980s if that clarifies the 'title' for you. if you're oding on p&j polls maybe examine how much time you spend on ilx, take a break, work on yr resume, etc.

fight the power
o superman
when doves cry
billie jean
the message
fast car
sign o the times
the breaks
start me up
sun city
walk this way

from perfect to a piece of shit

"when doves cry"

im imagining it happening in a cabin at the edge of a meadow

lol

it is a p moving & thoughtful tribute to lost innocence & youth

had no idea rolling stones made music in 1980s

^^^ it's true, I look at the list and "Start Me Up" looks beamed in from another planet

"Billie Jean" over "Fight The Power" and "Fast Car"

public enemy - "fight the power" (1989)
grandmaster flash & the furious five - "the message" (1982)
"kurtis blow - "the breaks" (1980)
laurie anderson - o superman"/"walk the dog" (1981)
michael jackson - "billie jean" (1983)
prince & the revolution - "when doves cry"/"17 days" (1984)
the rolling stones - "start me up" (1981)
prince - "sign o the times" (1987)
tracy chapman - "fast car" (1988)
run-dmc - "walk this way" (1986)
artists united against apartheid - "sun city" (1985)

had no idea rolling stones made music in 1980s

Tattoo You was their Scary Monsters; and if you're literal about the album's genesis, almost none of its songs are truly eighties music.

public enemy - "fight the power" (1989)
prince - "sign o the times" (1987)
michael jackson - "billie jean" (1983)
tracy chapman - "fast car" (1988)
kurtis blow - "the breaks" (1980)
grandmaster flash & the furious five - "the message" (1982)
run-dmc - "walk this way" (1986)
prince & the revolution - "when doves cry"/"17 days" (1984)
laurie anderson - "o superman"/"walk the dog" (1981)
the rolling stones - "start me up" (1981)
artists united against apartheid - "sun city" (1985)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dkl_Vq1SWKg&ob=av2n >>>>>>>>>>> "fast car"

agreed w the lols about tracy chapman critic music

voted 'the message'

― if you can put a ceiling fan in your van (deej), Wednesday, September 22, 2010 1:10 AM (3 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

― my friend flocka (Whiney G. Weingarten), Wednesday, September 22, 2010 1:13 AM (7 hours ago) Bookmark

voted "o superman". i always thought "fast car" came out in the 90s

public enemy - "fight the power" (1989)
michael jackson - "billie jean" (1983)
grandmaster flash & the furious five - "the message" (1982)
laurie anderson - "o superman"/"walk the dog" (1981)
prince & the revolution - "when doves cry"/"17 days" (1984)
prince - "sign o the times" (1987)
kurtis blow - "the breaks" (1980)
the rolling stones - "start me up" (1981)
run-dmc - "walk this way" (1986)
tracy chapman - "fast car" (1988)
artists united against apartheid - "sun city" (1985)

Interesting how frequently critics were drawn to a music with a message - sometimes brilliant, sometimes rank. Seven of these songs have Something To Say About America. (Though Sign O the Times is pretty bogus in that respect)

Fun Sun City fact: the original lyrics named boycott-breakers like Linda Ronstadt and Elton John until Steve Van Zandt decided to play a bit safer. Wonderful intentions, terrible song.

Sign O the Times is pretty bogus in that respect

Yeah, I just said on the '90s thread (should've said it here instead I guess), I really don't see how "Sun City" or "Fast Car" are all that much dorkier than "Sign O The Times." (But right, "O Superman," "The Message," "The Breaks," and "Fight The Power" are all basically protest songs, too. Critics like meaningful music!)

Oh yeah, and I'm one of those critics. Sun City's the one I think was rewarded for the message not the music, though I don't like Freeway of Love and 80s John Fogerty, which were the next two places down, so hey. It just highlights the mighty perfection of Fight the Power, where the music more than rises to the challenge of the message.

Sign O' the Times is the most incoherent, apolitical protest song going - a laundry list of unrelated Bad Things and an anti-drug message that would seem risibly OTT in any other context, all salvaged by the astonishing music. It sounds like someone watching the news, getting pissed off and deciding to have sex instead.

Sounds about right in general, really.

The arrangement of SOTT is much more compelling than "Sun City"'s though. It's still a B+ song though.

Haha I'm on record as saying it's one of the three worst songs on the album.

Voted "When Doves Cry", which just barely beats "Fight The Power" and "Billie Jean" for me.

Loved your book on SOTT, Matos.

These days "17 Days" beats "When Doves Cry."

kind of says it all about me and my tastes that my favorite of the 4 SOTT singles wasn't in the top 10 of that year

Says more about Pazz/Jop tastes.

and about TLC's.

TLC's cover is kind of :(

It's decent! Their "shoo-be-dos" do make me a little sad though

are there any other "all-star activist dance party" jams out there? Even that totally ignored "We Are Family" remake served more as a vague inspirational than a call to arms even if it wasn't a ballad.

besides "Sun City" and "Feed the World", you mean?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wXGgWf2lacM

and everyone's favorite:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0WUG4256P8Q

Besides "Sun City", yeah. And I forgot about "Feed The World"!

xpost wouldn't call "Give Peace A Chance" a dance party.

You're not watching Geena Davis and Bonnie Raitt closely enough, croup: they're definitely grooving.

they snap their fingers and move their shoulders, like white people who got da funk.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mqmTZY-522g

Would I be wrong in saying "Sun City" is the least torpid of all-star charity jams?

I like that you get a shot of Peter Wolf doing his lil dance, cuz it could have morphed into "Lights Out" at any point.

I don't think Fred Durst's "What's Goin' On?" remake counts as a ballad

also, it is comedy on an extreme level

holy fucking shit I'd never heard the "Reality Check" version until searching it on YouTubbe just now, totally thought you guys were talking about his rap on the normal version.

This is so bad.

who was the audience for this

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VJN3u1wAWIk

Good old Canada.

We should have conquered the blasted country years ago and have done with it.

From France:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4tM6Nw3BDXk

Australia!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bHPM4A42h7w

Also Australia!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SRSn7gDc4gQ&feature=related

Africa! (Yes!)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HibUYoqZ8x0

Afraid I couldn't find West Germany (Band fur Ethiopia's "Nackt im Wind") or the Netherlands (Samen). Thanks, old copy of Reebee Garofalo's Rockin' the Boat: Mass Music & Mass Movements!

oh fuck Midge Ure and his mustache.

Metal!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZktrrqT1A0

LOL @ "Hear N' Aid"

big ups to that crew

I really like TLC's version "Girlfriend." It isn't so much steamy as it is sort of foreboding and morose.

o superman, but if bring the noise was in here that would have taken it for sure.

also all this sott talk makes me want to listen to housequake RIGHT NOW

Bullshit!

BULLSHIT

haha

What was that? After-xp!

The pinwheel on my iMac spun for, like, 45 seconds.

ha, I've had disc 2 on

first the message, then o superman. as a youngster at the time, the first two kinda changed how i understood music, in addition to being great.

really all of these songs are great... except "Sun City"

I voted "Billie Jean" b/c I'd vote for it over nearly anything, in any poll (except maybe ILTMI polls, maybe); then the Prince songs, chronologically, & then PE & the Stones.

i can;'t imagine how awesome it would be to hear "O Superman" in 1980

i did! i was very young, but it was 1000% O_O holy shit music can do this?!? reaction.

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

really all of these songs are great... except "Sun City"

Yes, it was difficult to choose one song from that list.

Re: Hearing "O Superman" at the time

For a couple of weeks at college I would lure friends into my dormroom just to play them the single and watch their faces.

It was an event.

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

lol @ 2 totally crazy people voting for "Start Me Up"

"Start Me Up" is excellent. Good results here.

The bottom four are exactly right (I'd argue "Start Me Up" is as good as SOOT, which is to say, good enough).

krut deserved better

true

So did Run DMC!