“The Lost Boys: Hard-To-Find ’80s Albums” gives you exactly what the title implies: a rare or out-of-print album or EP from the ’80s in its entirety. Some will be from CD, but most will have been lovingly transferred from pristine vinyl culled directly from the Analog Kid’s vast collection. Whatever album I choose, it will be one that you can’t easily find a physical copy for sale on Amazon or in your local record store (if you even have one anymore). Death…by stereo!
The Judy’s were a punk/new wave band from Pearland, a suburb of Houston. If you were a teenager in Texas during the early ’80s, you either owned The Judy’s “Washarama” album or knew someone who did. I have no idea if the Judy’s made any sort of real impact outside of their native state, but “Guyana Punch” was definitely one of the defining songs of my 9th and 10th grade years.
Peter Gabriel has been a solo artist for over 37 years now, and in that time he has managed to release a grand total of eight proper studio albums. For the mathematically challenged, that works out to about one record ever four and a half years or so. Thankfully, Gabriel’s multiple film soundtrack contributions over the years have helped to satisfy his fans’ cravings for anything new from the former Genesis frontman.
As a Gabriel fanatic myself, I know how hard it often is to collect soundtrack recordings. No one likes paying $14.99 for a CD for one song (hello, Phenomenon soundtrack!), but obsessive collectors like myself have little or no choice in the matter. The way I see it, the least I can do is share the (what used to be my) wealth with the wonderful readers of the Analog Kid blog.
Note: by no means is this a definitive collection of Peter Gabriel’s soundtrack work. I have excluded many songs that can easily be found on Peter’s own albums, and I even discovered a few songs that I do not own while doing research for this post. Did I interrupt the writing of this blog to go jump in my car and track down one of those songs at my local used CD shop? You’re damn right I did…
Peter Gabriel: “Strawberry Fields Forever” (Lennon/McCartney)
From the soundtrack All This And World War II
20th Century Records, 1976
Vinyl rip courtesy of the Analog Kid
Gabriel made his solo debut with this contribution to the bizarre All This And World War II film and soundtrack. Nothing says World War II footage like covers of Beatles songs, right? I remember seeing the movie on subscription ON TV while growing up in Southern California, but I had forgotten all about it until I stumbled upon the soundtrack about a year ago.
Peter Gabriel: “Walk Through The Fire” (Gabriel)
From the soundtrack Against All Odds
Atlantic Records, 1984
The current and former frontmen of Genesis duked it out on side one of the Against All Odds soundtrack. Stevie Nicks had to keep them apart. The winner? Collins with a TKO.
Peter Gabriel: “Out Out”(Gabriel)
From the soundtrack Gremlins
Geffen Records, 1984
Vinyl rip courtesy of the Analog Kid
Nile Rodgers co-produced “Out Out” along with Gabriel. I have never seen any actual copies of the Gremlins soundtrack on CD, although supposedly they do exist…
Peter Gabriel: “I Go Swimming” (Gabriel)
From the soundtrack Hard To Hold
RCA Records, 1984
Disclaimer: I do not actually own the Hard To Hold soundtrack– the CD is long out of print, and most vinyl copies seem to have been destroyed by dry-humping teenage girls. I created this mp3 by editing the version of “I Go Swimming” from Gabriel Plays Live, but that should suffice as the versions are supposed to be identical. The internet wouldn’t lie, would it?
Peter Gabriel: “Slow Marimbas” (Gabriel)
From From The Film Birdy
Geffen Records, 1985
The Birdy soundtrack was Gabriel’s first attempt at a full film score. He incorporated many elements from his existing work into the songs, and Birdy also marked Gabriel’s first collaboration with producer Daniel Lanois. “Slow Marimbas” was played live during 1993’s Secret World tour as an intro to “Shaking The Tree.”
Peter Gabriel: “A Different Drum” (Gabriel)
From the album Passion: Music From the Last Temptation Of Christ
Geffen Records, 1989
My love for Peter Gabriel really began with the release of So in 1986, and I immediately devoured his entire back catalog (my favorite album is Peter Gabriel 3, aka Melting Face). By 1989, I was dying for some new music– thankfully, Peter’s soundtrack for Martin Scorsese’s The Last Temptation Of Christ helped hold me over until the long-delayed release of Us in 1992.
Peter Gabriel: “In Your Eyes” (Gabriel)
From the album Say Anything…The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
WTG Records, 1989
You might have heard this one.
Peter Gabriel: “Blood Of Eden” [Special Mix For Wim Wenders’ Until The End Of The World] (Gabriel)
From the CD single Blood Of Eden
Real World Records, 1993
This remixed version of “Blood Of Eden” appeared in Until The End Of The World, but for some reason was not included on the fantastic soundtrack album. On the Secret World tour, Gabriel sang this beautiful song with his then-unknown backup singer Paula Cole.
Peter Gabriel: “Lovetown” (Gabriel)
From the album Philadelphia: Music From The Motion Picture Soundtrack
Epic Soundtrax, 1993
A new Peter Gabriel song only a year after the release of Us? Who does Peter think he is– Stephen King?
Peter Gabriel & Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan: “Taboo” (Gabriel)
From the album Natural Killers: A Soundtrack For An Oliver Stone Film
Nothing Records, 1994
“Taboo” is one of Gabriel’s many collaborations with the late Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, who also contributed to the epic Up track “Signal To Noise.”
Peter Gabriel & The Worldbeaters: “Party Man” (Gabriel/Acogny/Amos)
From the album Virtuosity: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Radioactive Records, 1995
I’ve never even heard of the movie Virtuosity, yet I own the soundtrack. Addiction is a real bitch. And yes, the “Amos” credited as a co-writer is Tori Amos.
Peter Gabriel: “I Have The Touch” (Gabriel)
From the album Phenomenon: Music From The Motion Picture
Reprise Records, 1996
Robbie Robertson helped create this mix of “I Have The Touch,” a song that was first released in 1982 on the Security album.
Peter Gabriel: “I Grieve” (Gabriel)
From the album City Of Angels: Music From The Motion Picture
Reprise Records, 1998
I hate this movie. I love this song.
Peter Gabriel: “That’ll Do” (Newman)
From the album Babe: Pig In The City [Music From And Inspired By The Motion Picture]
Geffen Records, 1998
Does anyone else remember seeing Gabriel perform “That’ll Do” on the Oscars in 1999? He looked just a bit, shall we say, larger. And bald. It was quite shocking, as was hearing Peter sing a song about a talking pig.
Peter Gabriel: “Cloudless” (Gabriel)
From the album Long Walk Home: Music From The Rabbit-Proof Fence
Real World Records, 2002
Gorgeous.
Peter Gabriel: “Down To Earth” (Gabriel/Newman)
From the promotional CD single Down To Earth
Walt Disney/Real World Records, 2008
Peter went back to the Oscars thanks to “Down To Earth,” the theme song from the amazing Wall-E. He looked much better this time, but he still lost. Phil Collins taunts him to this day.
“The Lost Boys: Hard-To-Find ’80s Albums” gives you exactly what the title implies: a rare or out-of-print album or EP from the ’80s in its entirety. Some will be from CD, but most will have been lovingly transferred from pristine vinyl culled directly from the Analog Kid’s vast collection. Whatever album I choose, it will be one that you can’t easily find a physical copy for sale on Amazon or in your local record store (if you even have one anymore). Death…by stereo!
Re-Flex is a classic ’80s one-hit-wonder story. They released one album. They had one (big!) hit. And then they went away. It’s a shame, too, because The Politics Of Dancing is a fantastic synth-pop record and I really would have liked to have heard more from Re-Flex. The band did actually record a follow-up album entitled Humanication, but it was shelved before its release by EMI and remained in the vaults until 2010. I haven’t been able to track down a copy of that release yet, but I’m still looking…
The Politics Of Dancing was briefly released on CD in the early ’90s, and copies now routinely sell for more than $100 on eBay and Amazon. You can’t even download the mp3s, so hopefully its presence here on the Analog Kid blog will allow at least a few more people to discover this lost ’80s classic!
Re-Flex: The Politics Of Dancing
Capitol Records, 1983
1. “Praying To The Beat” (Baxter/Craig/Fishman/Kerridge)
Every Tuesday, the Analog Kid blog goes back in time and features some groovy R&B/soul songs from a specific year. Sometimes you’ll hear songs from individual artists, and other times you’ll get an entire full-length classic LP ripped directly from the Analog Kid’s vast vinyl vault. Warning: by R&B/soul, I also mean disco. I could go all Disco Tex & His Sex-O-Lettes on your ass at any given moment, so just be ready!
Chairmen Of The Board: “Pay To The Piper” (Perry/Johnson/Dunbar/Bond)
From the album In Session
Invictus Records, 1971
“Pay To The Piper” was the second Top 20 hit for the Chairmen Of The Board, a four-man vocal group from Detroit. In 1970, “Give Me Just A Little More Time” (written under a pseudonym by Motown legends Holland/Dozier/Holland) had reached #3 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Chairmen Of The Board never had another Top 40 pop hit after “Pay To The Piper,” but they continued to have success on the R&B charts until their demise in 1976.
The 8th Day: “She’s Not Just Another Woman” (Wilson/Dunbar)
From the album 8th Day
Invictus Records, 1971
“She’s Not Just Another Woman” originally appeared on the 1970 album “Somebody’s Been Sleeping In My Bed” by 100 Proof Aged In Soul, but it became a #11 smash when released again under the name 8th Day in 1971. “Somebody’s Been Sleeping” was a big hit for 100 Proof at the time, so (supposed) songwriters Holland/Dozier/Holland simply slapped a new band name on “She’s Not Just Another Woman” and scored themselves another big single.
Note: I say “supposed” in relation to the songwriting credit for “She’s Not Just Another Woman” because different sources provide varying accounts on how the song came to be. Holland/Dozier/Holland were involved in a protracted lawsuit with Motown at the time, so all of their songs written between 1969 and 1972 were credited to pseudonyms. What is indisputable is that both the 100 Proof Aged In Soul and 8th Day versions of “She’s Not Just Another Woman” are identical, and both are awesome…
Cornelius Brothers & Sister Rose: “Treat Her Like A Lady” (Cornelius)
From the album Cornelius Brothers & Sister Rose
United Artists Records, 1971
“Treat Her Like A Lady” was the first single from Cornelius Brothers & Sister Rose, and was one of five Top 100 hits from their debut album. “Treat Her Like A Lady” peaked at #3 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the summer of 1971.
The Staple Singers: “Heavy Makes You Happy (Sha-Na-Boom-Boom)” (Barry/Bloom)
From the album Staple Swingers
Stax Records, 1971
“Heavy Makes You Happy (Sha-Na-Boom-Boom)” was the first Stax hit for the Staple Singers, who had been recording gospel-tinged songs for years without a true chart breakthrough. “Heavy” broke the Top 30 on the Hot 100 and reached #6 on the R&B charts, and helped pave the way for the massive soul hits to come.
The Persuaders: “Thin Line Between Love And Hate” (Poindexter/Poindexter/Members)
From the album Thin Line Between Love And Hate
Atco Records, 1971
I first became aware of “Thin Line Between Love And Hate” via The Pretenders’ 1984 cover version. The original was the biggest hit for The Persuaders, reaching #15 on the Hot 100 in late 1971 (and topping the R&B chart as well). Annie Lennox also covered the song on her 1995 album Medusa.
I was about two hours into today’s blog entry when my laptop decided to go a little crazy. After about three more hours of maintenance (and prayer), I am back up and running. Fortunately, everything appears fine although there was one minor casualty: today’s blog post has sadly disappeared into Never Never Land.
I just don’t have the heart to start over, so I will re-do today’s original entry another day. For now, please partake of a perfectly pertinent Prince performance in place of my planned post…
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