{"id":1844,"date":"2018-12-07T15:47:07","date_gmt":"2018-12-07T15:47:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/parsons\/?p=1844"},"modified":"2018-12-07T15:49:31","modified_gmt":"2018-12-07T15:49:31","slug":"arachnophonia-mus-235-edition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/parsons\/2018\/12\/arachnophonia-mus-235-edition\/","title":{"rendered":"Arachnophonia – MUS 235 Edition: Sounds of the Eighties – 1983"},"content":{"rendered":"

Editor\u2019s note:<\/strong> Arachnophonia<\/a> is a regular feature on our blog where members of the UR community can share their thoughts about resources from the Parsons Music Library<\/a>\u2018s collection.<\/p>\n

This special edition of Arachnophonia<\/a> features contributions from students in Dr. Joanna Love<\/a>\u2018s MUS 235 class: \u201cI Want My MTV: Music Video and the Transformation of the Music Industry.\u201d<\/p>\n

All links included in these posts will take you to either the library catalog record for the item in question<\/a> or to additional relevant<\/a> information from<\/a> around the web.
\nToday\u2019s installment of Arachnophonia is by MUS 235 student Bianca and features . Thanks, Bianca!<\/em> <\/p>\n

Sounds of the Eighties: 1983<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Although most of us students at the University of Richmond aren\u2019t as familiar with music from the 80s as we are with modern top tracks, special collections of older hits allow us to become familiar with timeless tunes, cranking up our headphone volume to the sounds of guitar riffs and boisterous snare drums, just as our parents must have done with their cassette tapes.<\/p>\n

Sounds of the Eighties: 1983<\/a><\/em> is a CD collection of just that: 18 different pop \u201chits\u201d from the year 1983. It was manufactured for Time-Life Music by Warner Special Products, a Time Warner Company in 1994. It features hit songs from Quiet Riot<\/a>, The Fixx<\/a>, Stray Cats<\/a>, Dexys Midnight Runners<\/a>, Daryl Hall and John Oates<\/a>, Thomas Dolby<\/a>, David Bowie<\/a>, Culture Club<\/a>, Marvin Gaye<\/a>, Michael Sembello<\/a>, Naked Eyes<\/a>, Madness<\/a>, Toto<\/a>, Stevie Nicks<\/a>, Greg Kihn Band<\/a>, The Kinks<\/a>, Kajagoogoo<\/a>, and Spandau Ballet<\/a>. Billy Altman, a Pop music writer for People<\/em> and The New York Times<\/em>, former editor of Creem<\/em>, and executive producer of the award-winning Heritage Series, detailed the inside cover with short, catchy blubs about each band and the music of 1983 in general. Although this blog post will not be focusing in detail on all of the songs, it is important to analyze how the songs work together as a collection, how Altman portrayed each band and the overall music culture of the 80s, and how this CD can help further future academic research.<\/p>\n

\"Sounds

The cover photo of \u201cSounds of the Eighties: 1983,\u201d courtesy of Michael Ochs Archives, Venice, CA and London Features International, Ltd.<\/p><\/div>\n

While the CD features 18 different songs and bands from the year 1983, they are strikingly similar music-wise. The choice of tracks can be divided into two categories, with each song fitting into either category. The first category features upbeat tunes with a fast tempo, strong guitar or synth riff, loud straining vocals and thick musical texture, such as \u201cCum On Feel The Noise<\/a>\u201d or \u201cManiac<\/a>.\u201d Most of these songs are about a relationship with a woman, sung by a male singer. Upbeat, catchy, and dance-worthy, these hits all focus on a similar backing beat that remains constant. The other category contains slower, more soulful tunes, with a crooning singer, such as \u201cSexual Healing<\/a>\u201d and \u201cTime (Clock of the Heart)<\/a>.\u201d All of them focus on the object of a romantic desire, as the lyrics demonstrate a sense of longing and passion. Despite having the opportunity to portray a wide variety of music, the tracks are very homogeneous, as most feature a white male singer with similar styles of singing. Many follow the same form with an opening riff, short verses, catchy chorus repetition, and some sort of bridge or guitar solo. In essence, each song seems to be a slightly different version of the others, demonstrating a clear Pop sound of 1983\u2019s music.<\/p>\n

This homogeny directly contrasts what Altman writes about for his description of the 80s music scene. He highlights each band as distinctly unique, from Culture Club<\/a>\u2019s gender-bending persona, to the \u201cnice guy\u2019s band\u201d of Greg Kihn<\/a>, to Marvin Gaye<\/a>\u2019s \u201cdeep-cutting social commentary.\u201d They joined the music industry in different ways and had diverse effects on the history of music in general. While Stevie Nicks<\/a> had a long career with many top-chart hits, one hit wonders like Thomas Dolby<\/a> are also featured. So why did artists from such diverse and different backgrounds end up creating hits so musically-similar, and what does this mean for academic study of 80s musical culture?<\/p>\n

The answer is pretty simple: artists knew what the listeners wanted. The 80s ushered in an era of New Wave<\/a> and synthetic instrumentation, forming a new Pop sound that teens could dance to. This homogeneity of sound and lyricism demonstrates that if one artist finds success with a musical concept, others will follow. Such is the case of the portrayal of a voyeuristic (or obsessive) gaze, for many hits over the decades feature an object of romantic obsession that the singer would like to \u201cobtain.\u201d This topic pertains to my specific research as a student studying the theme of voyeurism in popular music videos. I was drawn to Naked Eyes<\/a>\u2019 \u201cAlways Something There to Remind Me<\/a>,\u201d a track featured on this CD, as the epitome of a voyeuristic stalker: the main singer follows a famous woman, constantly vying for her attention and love, in a music video that was constantly featured on MTV. <\/p>\n