Retro Video of the Week: "Brian Wilson" by Barenaked Ladies

Tomorrow marks the 30th anniversary of Canadian pop rockers Barenaked Ladies' debut studio album, Gordon.  The album did quite well in the band's native Canada, topping the Canadian album chart for eight weeks and eventually was certified diamond in Canada.

In the U.S., sales didn't really take off until after the band released their 1996 live album Rock Spectacle -- which was one of those albums that it seemed like everyone in my dorm had.  Gordon eventually went gold in the U.S.

The album contains some of the band's most beloved songs, like "If I Had $1,000,000," "Brian Wilson," "Enid," and "What a Good Boy," all of which were Top 40 hits in Canada, with the first three reaching the Top 20 and "Enid" going to #2.

I'm going with "Brian Wilson" because it's one of my favorite BNL songs and because I love Brian Wilson.  Steven Page, one of the band's two lead singers and the lead singer of this song, started writing the song in 1990, and it's an obvious ode to Wilson, but also kind of a commentary on the dark side of Wilson's life, like when he had some mental health issues and was basically being held captive by psychologist Eugene Landy (who is referenced in the song).  Musically, the song starts slow and acoustic and then busts into a perfect little early '90s alt-pop song.

Hair Band Friday - 7/22/22

1.  "In the Future to Come" by Europe

2.  "You Got Me Runnin'" by Def Leppard

3.  "Once Around the Ride" by Cinderella

4.  "She's So Fine" by Thunder

5.  "Believer" by Ozzy Osbourne

6.  "Finish What Ya Started" (live) by Van Halen

7.  "Move It" by Great White

8.  "Love at First Sight" by Kix

9.  "Baptized by Fire" by Winger

10.  "Tough Guys" by King Kobra

Retro Video of the Week: "Jump Around" by House of Pain

Tomorrow is the 30th anniversary of the release of House of Pain's eponymous debut album, mixing hip hop, rock, and pseudo-Irish-American themes.  The group's biggest hit from that album (or ever, for that matter) was the classic "Jump Around," which went to #3 on the Billboard Hot 100.  It's one of those songs that you know from the first note, and it brings back fond memories for me because it was our hype song in the freshmen football locker room.  I'd like to think it helped bring us our Freshmen B conference title back in '92, so yeah, pretty big deal.  In 1998, it became an unofficial theme song for Wisconsin football games, played in between the third and fourth quarters at Camp Randall, sending all those drunken cheeseheads into a frenzy ever since, and essentially ruining the song for everyone else in the Big Ten, much like Ohio State has done with "Hang On Sloopy."

Hair Band Friday - 7/15/22

1.  "You Really Got Me" by Van Halen

2.  "Come On" by Whitesnake

3.  "Rock Me to the Top" by Tesla

4.  "Burnin' Down the City" by Sammy Hagar

5.  "Blooze" by Junkyard

6.  "Crazy Train" by Ozzy Osbourne

7.  "Evil Walks" by AC/DC

8.  "Widowmaker" by W.A.S.P.

9.  "Too Late For Love" by Def Leppard

10.  "Bang Bang You" by KISS

Retro Video of the Week: "You Can Do Magic" by America

I am quite sorry for my lack of posts lately.  I've been horribly busy with work, concerts, and home construction, so I haven't been listening to vinyl during the day.  Hence, the lack of CoronaVinyl posts.  That will continue for the near future.

But alas, I will not forgo Retro Video of the Week, fair readers.  Friday is the 40th anniversary of the release of Canadian band America's tenth studio album, View from the Ground.  The album only went to #41 on the Billboard album chart, but it did produce the band's last Top 10 hit on the Billboard Hot 100, "You Can Do Magic," which went to #8.

The song, which is a catchy little soft rock ditty, written by English songwriter Russ Ballard, who also guitar, bass, and keyboards on the song (and sang backing vocals).  Ballard rose to fame as the lead singer and guitarist of Argent, and he wrote one that band's two most enduring songs, "God Gave Rock and Roll to You" (later covered by KISS).  Among other songs, also wrote (1) "New York Groove" for the band Hello, and which was later a Top 20 hit for Ace Frehley off of his 1978 solo KISS album, (2) Rainbow's hits "Since You Been Gone" (my favorite post-Dio Rainbow song) and "I Surrender," (3) Santana's 1981 hit "Winning," and (4) Frida's (aka Anni-Frid Lyngstad of ABBA) 1982 solo hit "I Know There's Something Going On."

The video for "You Can Do Magic" is a delightful complement to the song and a perfect example of a band from the '70s trying to keep up in the nascent MTV era.

Retro Video of the Week: "I Ain't No Joke" by Eric B. & Rakim

Tomorrow marks the 35th anniversary of the release of hip hop pioneers Eric B. & Rakim's debut album, Paid in Full.  Turntablist (assuming that's a word) Eric B. and rapper Rakim met in 1985 in New York, and soon they helped change the sound of hip hop as part of the burgeoning rap and hip hop scene (particularly in the New York area) that is now referred to as "golden age hip hop."  Rakim's rapping style was much more free flowing and loose than the rappers that had preceded him, helping to influence the genre going forward and break from the more structured rhyming in early rap and hip hop.

Paid in Full reached a respectable #58 on the Billboard album chart, as well as #8 on the Billboard R&B album chart.  It has since gone platinum in the U.S. and garnered many accolades, including being ranked #61 on Rolling Stone's most recent edition of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

"I Ain't No Joke" is considered a prime example of Rakim's rapping and rhyming style, and he apparently worked extremely hard on the song to avoid having any swearing, so that it could be played on the radio.  The low-budget video is shot in places where Eric B. & Rakim hung out in New York.  Rakim's gold chains are quite thick and his rings are quite large, and there's a cameo from Flavor Flav dancing on a playground.