Song #58 On My MP3 Player - Come On Eileen by Dexy's Midnight Runners

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I have decided to share with the Lost Soul faithful every song that is stored on my MP3 player which is a Philips GoGear Vibe 4G model. All posts are in alphabetical order. Song #58 on my MP3 player is 'Come On Eileen' by Dexy's Midnight Runners which is the tenth track on their 1982 album Too-Rye-Ay.

The songs of the 80's are well represented on my MP3 player. I've been a fan of this song since it was the hotness back in 1982. One time I sang this song at karaoke and it was a rather decent effort on my part. That's all I got for you today. Enjoy.



TonyDoug Wright is The Lost Soul of Rock and Roll

Song #57 On My MP3 Player - Come Dancing by The Kinks

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I have decided to share with the Lost Soul faithful every song that is stored on my MP3 player which is a Philips GoGear Vibe 4G model. All posts are in alphabetical order. Song #57 on my MP3 player is 'Come Dancing' by The Kinks which is the fourth track on their 1983 album State of Confusion.

You've got to love The Kinks. Some think their career ended during the mid 1960's when the British Invasion lost its steam. The Kinks were able to produce some great music during the 1970's and 80's, which includes today's selection of 'Come Dancing'. I'm a sucker at times for nostalgia songs, so I hope you enjoy this song about the good ol' days of dancing the night away at the club. Enjoy.



TonyDoug Wright is The Lost Soul of Rock and Roll

Guilty Pleasure Tuesday: Break My Stride by Matthew Wilder

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Tuesday's are dedicated to my guilty pleasures in music. My selection for this week is Matthew Wilder's 'Break My Stride' which was a hit back in 1983, and it charted in the top ten here in the US.

I found an 80's compilation CD a few weeks ago and this was one of the tracks. There is nothing wrong with a little New Wave Reggae, so I hope you enjoy this week's guilty pleasure selection. As an added bonus, I found Matthew Wilder performing this song on Solid Gold. Enjoy.



TonyDoug Wright is The Lost Soul of Rock and Roll

Song #46 On My MP3 Player - Burning Down The House by Talking Heads

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I have decided to share with the Lost Soul faithful every song that is stored on my MP3 player which is a Philips GoGear Vibe 4G model. All posts are in alphabetical order. Song #46 on my MP3 player is 'Burning Down The House' by Talking Heads which is the opening track on their 1983 album Speaking in Tongues.

I remember watching this video back in the day and being freaked out by the image of David Byrne's head being projected onto the street. The song was cool, but it took some time for me to like the video. Enjoy the video and crank up 'Burning Down The House'.



TonyDoug Wright is The Lost Soul of Rock and Roll

A Case of The Mondays: The Warrior by Scandal

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Monday's suck. You need to be a warrior and slay the beast that is this awful day. Today, I have selected Scandal's 1984 hit 'The Warrior'. Watch the 80's video where lead singer Patti Smyth takes on outcasts from Cirque Du Soleil by shooting at the walls of heartache. Bang! Bang!

Song #36 On My MP3 Player - Black Coffee In Bed by Squeeze

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The Lost Soul of Rock and Roll has returned! I couldn't walk away from this music blog, so one of my 2014 resolution's is to get this blog back up and running. 

This is the second song by Squeeze on my MP3 player and it is a longtime favorite. 'Black Coffee In Bed' is the seventh track on the band's 1982 album Sweets from a Stranger. It's a little known Cliff Clavin fact that Elvis Costello and Paul Young provide the "Out with a friend" backing vocals during the chorus of this song.

I first heard 'Black Coffee in Bed' while watching MTV during the early 80's and I instantly liked the song. As time went on, I forgot about 'Black Coffee In Bed' until '95 or '96 when I discovered that one of my college roommates owned Squeeze's Singles - 45's and Under. I borrowed the CD and was reconnected to some of their best songs like "Pulling Mussels (From The Shell)" and "Black Coffee In Bed".

It has been ages since I have watched the video and it's a pretty good effort for the low budget early 80's days of music videos. Glenn Tilbrook, the lead singer, serves as the narrator for a story of young love torn apart by infidelity. My MP3 player has plenty of 80's pop gems and this a good one so enjoy!





TonyDoug Wright is the Lost Soul of Rock and Roll. He has a very cool comic book website titled Champion City Comics.

Song #10 On My MP3 Player - 867-5309/Jenny by Tommy Tutone

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Tommy Tutone had a top ten hit in 1982 with '867-5309/Jenny', which was one of two Top 40 hits for the California band. Tommy Tutone is the name of the band and not the name of the lead singer. Tommy Heath is the lead singer and the original name of the band was Tommy and The Tu-Tones.

The band and the songwriters have provided some conflicting stories about the history of '867-5309/Jenny'. Tommy Heath said the number belonged to a girl he knew, but Heath did not write the song. Alex Call and Jim Keller were the writers, but both men offer different histories. Call said the song was a number they created, but Keller said it was a number of a girl he knew at the time. There were some legal issues with the band and writers using an actual phone number in the song, so perhaps the band and writers were trying to find ways of avoid legal troubles. Who knows. Heath, Call, and Keller all agree that Jenny is fictional.

Although Jenny was not real, the phone number was real. There are stories of people in various U.S. area codes with the number 867-5309 getting bombarded with calls asking for Jenny. One of those numbers apparently belonged to the daughter of the police chief for Buffalo, New York. My wife grew up in Pennsylvania and said 867 was a number option in State College.

'867-5309/Jenny' is on my MP3 player because I grew up in the 80's and this is one of my favorite Top 40 songs from the decade. I think this is a fun song and '867-5309/Jenny' doesn't get old despite the fact that it gets played to death during 80's lunch time radio programming. This is also a fun song to play on the acoustic guitar when you are with a bunch of friends enjoying some beers. Enjoy.



TonyDoug Wright is the Lost Soul of Rock and Roll and he's ready for the weekend.

Song #5 On My MP3 Player: Overkill by Colin Hay

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Listed as '03- Overkill' on my MP3 player, this acoustic version by Colin Hay was released in 2003 on his Man @ Work album. Colin Hay was the lead singer of Men at Work, an Australian 80's pop band that won the 1983 Grammy for Best New Artist. 'Overkill' was originally released in 1983 on their album Cargo.

I'm a big fan of Men at Work and I believe one should not write them off as a goofy 80's band. Their catalog is pretty damn good and Colin Hay can really craft a fine pop song. 'Overkill' is my favorite Men at Work song, and I really love the stripped down acoustic version. The true test of any song is to see if it sounds good acoustically. If you write a song and it doesn't sound good on an acoustic guitar then it sucks. 'Overkill' doesn't suck.

"Overkill' is on my MP3 player because it is a good song for me to hear when I feel stressed out or overwhelmed because I'm sweating the small stuff. Music is what I use to get through some tough times, and 'Overkill' definitely gets me back on track. I think this is a wonderful song and I hope you enjoy it as well.





TonyDoug Wright is the Lost Soul of Rock & Roll. He's excited to visit family in Ohio and to eat Schuler's donuts.

My 80's Jams: Push It by Salt-N-Pepa

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A week full of my 80's jams has come to a close, and my last selection is 'Push It' by Salt-N-Pepa. This was a top twenty Billboard hit in 1987 for the New York City hip-hop group. In case in hasn't sunk in, this was a hit twenty-six years ago.

Salt, Pepa, and DJ Spinderella have cranked out some jams like 'Shoop' and 'Whatta Man', but my favorite is 'Push It'. I remember when this song was popular and this kid I used to ride the bus with was not allowed to listen to the song because his grandma thought they were saying "ah, bullshit" instead of "ah, push it". Grandma must have thought Salt-N-Pepa was personally responsible for the decline of Western Civilization. Grandma was nuthin' but a hater and click the video below so you can enjoy some of the old school.




TonyDoug Wright is The Lost Soul of Rock and Roll and is also the head writer and owner of Champion City Comics. Follow him @TonyDougWright on Twitter.

My 80's Jams: Electric Avenue by Eddy Grant

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The 80's jams are still going strong at The Lost Soul of Rock and Roll. Today's selection is 'Electric Avenue' by Eddy Grant. This song peaked at #2 on the US Billboard charts in 1982, but Grant had been a hit maker in England since the late 60's as a reggae/pop artist.

I've taught two classes on the history of rock and roll at a community college and I used to assign my students ten songs to review every week. 'Electric Avenue' was assigned one week and 90% of the reviews mentioned the movie Pineapple Express. It's good to know that the kids know 'Electric Avenue'. Thank you, Seth Rogen.

'Electric Avenue' is an 80's jam for me because it's new wave mixed with reggae. However, you really should listen to the lyrics because Eddy's not singing about peace and love. 'Electric Avenue' is about the 1981 Brixton Riot when British Afro-Caribbean residents took their frustrations with the economy and local police to the streets. There is an Electric Avenue in Brixton because it was the first street in the area with electric lights. Now you know and knowing is half the battle. Enjoy.  



TonyDoug Wright is The Lost Soul of Rock and Roll and is also the head writer and owner of Champion City Comics. Follow him @TonyDougWright on Twitter.

My 80's Jams: I Feel For You by Chaka Khan

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The jams from the 80's are getting some major love this week at The Lost Soul of Rock and Roll. Today's selection is 'I Feel For You', a 1984 hit for Chaka Khan. Anytime we mention Khan at the Lost Soul then it is mandatory to include this clip.

'I Feel For You' is an absolute jam of funk and hip hop. Did you know this was a cover? This song was originally written and recorded by Prince, and is featured on his 1979 debut album. What happened to the days where you can be shirtless on an album cover? Khan's version was recorded in 1984 and features a sample of Stevie Wonder's 'Fingertips' and the rapping is courtesy of Melle Mel from Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five.

Chaka Khan is no one hit wonder. Born Yvette Stevens, she changed her name to Chaka in the late 60's while a member of the Black Panther Party. She married musician Hassan Khan in 1970 and entered the music industry. Khan's career took off and during the 70's and her hits include 1974's 'Tell Me Something Good' with Rufus and 1978's 'I'm Every Woman' as a solo artist. The video for 'I Feel For You' is below and enjoy the jam.


I learned today that Chaka Khan was not the first to cover this song. The Pointer Sisters covered it in 1982, and I've included a the song below.



TonyDoug Wright is The Lost Soul of Rock and Roll and is also the head writer and owner of Champion City Comics. Follow him @TonyDougWright on Twitter.

My 80's Jams: Party All The Time by Eddie Murphy

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Charlie Murphy! My 80's jams are still the hotness and the song I have selected for today is Eddie Murphy's 'Party All The Time'. This song was released in 1985 and was a top ten hit for Eddie. In case you didn't know, this song was written and produced by Rick James.

Some people believe that this song falls under the "awesomely bad" category, but I'll give Eddie some respect and say this song is a jam. Rick James does a good job of adding his funky magic to this song, which is the reason why 'Party All The Time' is great. When it comes to celebrities bringing the hotness to pop music, I'll give my respect to Eddit for this jam, but let me add Jamie Foxx to the list for what he did on Kanye's 'Gold Digger'. I've embedded the official music video for 'Party All The Time' below, so enjoy my 80's jam!



TonyDoug Wright is The Lost Soul of Rock and Roll and is also the head writer and owner of Champion City Comics. Follow him @TonyDougWright on Twitter.

My 80's Jams: Word Up by Cameo

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Last week was a trip to the 90's and this week I am featuring my 80's jams. I'm not afraid to share my guilty pleasure jams with my faithful followers. The first selection is Cameo's 1986 hit, 'Word Up!'.

Cameo is a NYC band that has been active for four decades. Remember, Cameo is the name of the band and the lead singer is Larry Blackmon, not Cameo. They were originally known as the New York City Players, but changed their name to Cameo. It is rumored they changed their name in the 70's due to a lawsuit from the Ohio Players. Cameo had some R&B hits in the 70's and 80's, but 'Word Up!' is definitely their most popular song.

'Word Up!' is a funky jam. I've been a fan of this song since it was the hotness on Top 40 radio. You don't need an explanation why this song is awesome, so watch the video below and enjoy. On a side note, the word of the day at The Lost Soul of Rock & Roll is CODPIECE. 




TonyDoug Wright is The Lost Soul of Rock and Roll and is also the head writer and owner of Champion City Comics. Follow him @TonyDougWright on Twitter.

My Heavy Rotation For January 2013: You Should Hear How She Talks About You by Melissa Manchester

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This week I am sharing my heavy rotation songs. Haters gonna hate, but my song selection for today is Melissa Manchester's 1982 hit, 'You Should Hear How She Talks About You'. That's my jam.

Everybody has a list of guilty pleasure songs, and I will not apologize for liking 'You Should Hear How She Talks About You' by Melissa Manchester. I don't know all that much about Manchester's career, but I know she's the one that gave us the 1970's adult contemporary dud 'Don't Cry Out Loud'. That was bad, and I give it a thumbs down like that dude did in Spinal Tap during 'Jazz Odyssey'.

'You Should Hear How She Talks About You' is a bouncy little faux new wave pop hit. When this song comes on, I'm going to turn up the volume. Take a listen to the song below, and as an added bonus, I've found Manchester performing the song on the 80's classic show, Solid Gold. Enjoy.


I've included the original 1981 version by Charlie Dore. Take a listen below, but I think Melissa Manchester wins this game.I couldn't listen to the song from start to finished because it bored the hell out of me. Sorry, Charlie. Tuna jokes!



TonyDoug Wright is The Lost Soul of Rock and Roll and is also the head writer and owner of Champion City Comics. Follow him @TonyDougWright on Twitter.