Another terrific column with your history--that car, your childhood, Carter and then Van Morrison and so much more. You are, indeed, one of my favorites here.
Great read, John! 'Burning Down the House' was also my gateway drug into Talking Heads, who wound up influencing me in countless ways. And I, too, drove my parents' Cutlass for a handful of years. I remember my buddy (who drove a VW Bug) making fun of the car and dubbing my ride 'The Gutless Cutlass'! :)
Ha! That’s funny: my parents also had a VW Bug but sold it right before I got old enough to drive because they thought that it was unsafe. They weren’t wrong.
Just the title of this post made 'Once in a Lifetime' start playing in my mind'. I didn't put in an appearance until the middle of the 80's and I was raised classical, so I only discovered the Talking Heads in the age of YouTube music videos, which was enough to get their music firmly lodged in my mind.
Yes, they were one of the most consistently interesting bands of the era for sure! Classical was my first love as well, though these days I just want to listen to everything--or at least everything good.
What a great piece! I was 14 at the beginning of 1980. So many things here remind me of that time and I love it! I read LOTR in 1978 or 79. Remain the Light is my favorite album of all time, I listen to it probably once a week. Looking forward to this playlist, lots of new music to me.
You're in good company with Thom Yorke! It's certainly high on my list of favorite albums as well--as is Speaking in Tongues. I'm not sure if I will get to everything on the list, and it may shift around as I go through it--so please comment on anything in particular that you would like to discuss.
That came out in 1984 rather than 1980, so I won't be covering it, but perhaps I'll write about 1984 in the future, since it was such a great year for music.
I was 13 at the start of 1980, 14 by the time Lennon was murdered in Dec 1980. Thank you for writing this excellent piece - I look forward to the next! And mention for The Durutti Column 🎉
Please note: the Apple Music link to the 1980 playlist was incorrect when this was first published. I have corrected this error, so both links should work now. https://open.substack.com/pub/johnhalbrooks/p/1980-part-one?r=kyg3a&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
Another terrific column with your history--that car, your childhood, Carter and then Van Morrison and so much more. You are, indeed, one of my favorites here.
Thanks, Mary! The feeling is mutual.
Great read, John! 'Burning Down the House' was also my gateway drug into Talking Heads, who wound up influencing me in countless ways. And I, too, drove my parents' Cutlass for a handful of years. I remember my buddy (who drove a VW Bug) making fun of the car and dubbing my ride 'The Gutless Cutlass'! :)
Ha! That’s funny: my parents also had a VW Bug but sold it right before I got old enough to drive because they thought that it was unsafe. They weren’t wrong.
Just the title of this post made 'Once in a Lifetime' start playing in my mind'. I didn't put in an appearance until the middle of the 80's and I was raised classical, so I only discovered the Talking Heads in the age of YouTube music videos, which was enough to get their music firmly lodged in my mind.
Yes, they were one of the most consistently interesting bands of the era for sure! Classical was my first love as well, though these days I just want to listen to everything--or at least everything good.
What a great piece! I was 14 at the beginning of 1980. So many things here remind me of that time and I love it! I read LOTR in 1978 or 79. Remain the Light is my favorite album of all time, I listen to it probably once a week. Looking forward to this playlist, lots of new music to me.
You're in good company with Thom Yorke! It's certainly high on my list of favorite albums as well--as is Speaking in Tongues. I'm not sure if I will get to everything on the list, and it may shift around as I go through it--so please comment on anything in particular that you would like to discuss.
"My teacher that year told me that my parents were a bad influence on me because they were liberal."
Some things just never change, do they...
I hope The Blue Nile’s ‘A Walk Across the Rooftops’ will get a mention, it’s stood the test of time as one of the great 80s albums.
That came out in 1984 rather than 1980, so I won't be covering it, but perhaps I'll write about 1984 in the future, since it was such a great year for music.
Thank you for podcast ref. Sounds interesting.
Many favorites here. Thanks.
I was 13 at the start of 1980, 14 by the time Lennon was murdered in Dec 1980. Thank you for writing this excellent piece - I look forward to the next! And mention for The Durutti Column 🎉
Excellent--a Durutti Column fan! Any other recommendations from their catalogue? It's all new to me.