#21 of VJ Samsonite's Top 100 80's Dance Hits Countdown: '99 Red Balloons' by Nena (1983)

Now presenting #21 of VJ Samsonite's Top 100 80's Dance Hits Countdown, and the song is 99 Red Balloons, by German synth-pop/new-wave band Nena. Nena (aka lead vocalist/song-writer/actress Gabriele Susanne Kerner) originally comes from Hagen, Germany where she started her music career back in 1981 with the band of the same name. This song was originally released in 1983 in German titled 99 Luft Balloons, but it was also translated into an English version, which is the version I am featuring here, although personally I like it better in German. Either way, this is the song that per her on the map, and I must add that there are quite a few other very worth-while songs to check out by this band that aren't as well known. 99 Red Balloons would hit the #1 spot in Germany, Switzerland, Austria, and the UK, and #2 in the USA. The band Nena went splitsville in 1987 and Nena started her solo-career at that point. According to wikipedia the song tells the story of 99 Red Balloons floating over the Berlin Wall into the Soviet sector and causing an apocalyptic reaction which was inspired by Nena's guitarist Carlo Karges when he was at a 1982 Rolling Stones concert.  So there is #21, and here we go into the Top 20!

Feature 80's Song of the Week Part 3 = 'Thorn In My Side' by Eurythmics (1986)

Part 3 of this weeks feature 80's songs, straight out of 1986 is Thorn in My Side by the Eurythmics. Eurythmics are a British rock-pop-new-wave duo consisting of  Annie Lennox and David A. Stewart from London, who hit it big in the 80's (though currently they are disbanded). Thorn In My Side was released in 1986 on their Revenge album, and would become their 9th top 10 single. The song peaked at #5 on the UK Singles chart, #1 on the Swedish Chart, and #68 on the US Billboard Hot 100. There may even be a part 4 this week!

Mentionable 80s Mashup of the Week = 'Born To Express Yourself This Way' by ??? (2011)

This week's feature 80's mashup is Express This Way, by mashup artist ???. Yes, this is yet another mashup of Madonna and Lady Gaga, they seem to be quite prolific with these as of late. It consists of Madonna's 1989 #1 Hit Express Yourself, and Lady Gaga's most recent #1  from January 2011, Born This Way (from her upcoming May 2011 album). Now the version I was looking to feature here was done by DJ Tripp, but his version doesn't seem to be up on YouTube as of yet, so the following version is of the same mashup but isn't claimed by any particular DJ/mashup artist. The songs are no doubt similar to begin with, but this is not a mash to miss out on. Also be sure to note that the most recent issue of Bootie Mashups has released this mashup on their website HERE.

Feature 80s Song of the Week Part 2 = 'Oh Sheila' by Ready For The World (1985)

Well, seeing that I have been a bit slack as of the past few weeks (a bit distracted by world events etc.) I will likely post 3 feature 80's songs this week, or as John McClane would say yippie-ki-a...! So, the 2nd feature so goes to....Ready For the World and their 1985 #1 hit Oh Sheila. Ready For the World are an American R&B/funk/electro group from Flint, Michigan who formed back in 1982 with original members Melvin Riley( lead vocals, keyboards, and guitar), Gordon Strozier (lead guitar), Gregory Potts (keyboards), Willie Triplett (keyboards and percussion), John Eaton (bass guitar), and Gerald Valentine (drums). Now its a shame this one didn't make it onto my Top 100 80's Dance Hits Countdown (or did I just give that away, oops), but it most certainly would appear on the Top 200. Be on the watch for a Part 3!

Feature 80s Song of the Week Part 1 = 'Mighty Wings' by Cheap Trick (1985)

Part of 1 of this weeks feature 80's songs goes to the 1985 song Mighty Wings by American rock band Cheap Trick. Mighty Wings was actually written by Harold Faltermeyer and Mark Spiro, but was then picked up by Cheap Trick for inclusion on the soundtrack to the 1985 Summer-blockbuster Top Gun. Cheap Trick come out of Rockford, Illinois, they've been active since 1973, and band members inlclude Robin Zander (lead vocals and guitar), Rick Nielsen (guitar, vocals), Tom Petersson (bass guitar, vocals), and Bun E. Carlos (drums). If you're curious as to what they are up to now and where they are touring you can check out their website HERE. Stay tuned for part 2...Iceman...

Mentionable 80s Mashup of the Week = 'Careless Or Dead' by The Kleptones (2006)

This week's 80's mashup is Careless Or Dead, by British mashup artist/DJ The Kleptones (aka Eric Kleptone). This mashup involves Bon Jovi's 1987 hit song Wanted Dead Or Alive, and it is mashed up with the 1984 #1 hit song by Wham!, Careless Whisper. Wanted Dead Or Alive peaked at #7 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, while Careless Whisper was a #1 on the UK Singles Chart, the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, as well as the Canadian Singles Chart and the Australian Singles Chart.

#22 of VJ Samsonite's Top 100 80's Dance Hits Countdown: 'True Faith' by New Order (1987)

Welcome back! So here is #22 of the countdown, and the song is..True Faith, by none other than the legendary English new-wave/synth-pop group New Order. Now this is one of my personal favorite 80's songs of all time (not to mention one of my favorite bands of all time), so of course I had to fit it in to the countdown, and much deservedly-so! There are elements to this song that bring an unheard of energy into this world, and I and I don't know if New Order had that in mind when they wrote it but there is definitely something there that isn't present in most other music I've heard. New Order comes out of  Salford & Macclesfield, England, and the band formed out of the ashes of Joy Division following the suicide of lead singer Ian Curtis. They formed in 1980, and then consisted of Bernard Sumner (vocals, guitars, synthesizers), Peter Hook (bass, backing vocals, electronic drums) and Stephen Morris (drums, electronic drums, synthesizers), and later included Gillian Gilbert (keyboards).   True Faith was released in 1987 on their Substance album and it would peak at #1 on the UK Independent Singles Chart chart, #4 on the UK Singles Chart, and #32 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. There was a 12" remix of this song released in 1994 that is quite good, and may in fact be the one that most of you have heard on the radio or wherever you've heard the song before, and upon its release in 1994 the remix peaked at #9 on the UK Singles Chart. I may later regret putting this song so low in the chart (as it may belong in the top 10) but there it falls.

Feature 80's Song of the Week Part 1 = 'Colour My Love' by Fun Fun (1984)

Part of the feature 80's songs of the week is the 1984 hit Colour My Love by Italian synth-pop group Fun Fun. Fun Fun was around for 2 years (1983-84) and it involved Producers Dario Raimondi and Alvaro Ugolini who along with studio vocalists Antonella Pepe, Angela Parisi and Ivana Spagna collaborated as Fun Fun to create a bouncy, high-energy, dancefloor-friendly sound, Italian-style. Colour My Love charted at #17 in Germany, #6 in Sweden, and #10 in the Netherlands, and thus the song was quite a hit in Europe that year. Stay tuned for Part 2.

Feature 80's Song of the Week Part 2 = 'Running With The Night' by Lionel Richie (1983)

Part 2 of the featured 80's songs for this week is Running With The Night, by American singer-songwriter-musician-music producer Lionel Richie. This song was the second single release from his 1983  Grammy Award winning/multi-platinum album Can't Slow Down. Richie co-wrote this song with fellow song-writer Cynthia Weil and then co-produced it with James Anthony Carmichael. It would peak at #7 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and at #9 on the UK Singles chart. Since 1968 Lionel Richie has been a member of the musical group Commodores on the Motown Records label, and he made his solo-debut in 1982. I thought it also interesting to mention this song was featured on the Grand Theft Auto: Vice City video game in 2002.

Mentionable 80s Mashup of the Week = 'Billie's Running Jeans' by MadMixMustang (MMM)

This week's feature 80s mashup is called Billie's Running Jeans, by mashup artist MadMixMustang. Clearly this song includes the 1983 Mega #1 Billie Jean by Michael Jackson, and it is mashed together with the Doobie Brother's 1973 song Long Train Runnin'.   Billie s Running Jeans by beltedmanatee

#23 of VJ Samsonite's Top 100 80's Dance Hits Countdown: 'Anything, Anything (I'll Give You)' by Dramarama (1985)

After a longish pause I am back to furnish you with #23 of VJ Samsonite's Top 100 80's Dance Hits Countdown....and the song is the 1985 hit Anything, Anything (I'll Give You), by Los-Angeles-based American alternative-punk-power-pop band Dramarama. Dramarama originally formed in New Jersey back in 1982 until they temporarily disbanded in 1994 only to re-group in 2003. Singer/songwriter/ John Easdale has been the front-man for the band and its primary member whilst many other members not mentioned here have come and gone, so if you want band member info then check into their wikipedia page HERE for all of the tedious details. Anything, Anything (I'll Give You) appeared on their 1st studio album, which was released in November of 1985, and titled Cinéma Vérité, and incidentally it was also featured on the Nightmare on Elm Street 4 motion picture soundtrack in 1988 (which was a movie that freaked me out as a kid, and for some odd reason I still insisted on having the movie poster of in my room, I suppose I was a bit of a masochist or something). This song is a great dance-tune as it adds some high-energy upbeat 80's punk/pop flavor to the countdown and playlist, and it is for some reason definitely a unique song, but I can't quite put my finger on it. So there is #23...more to come. The following was the only video I could find with decent sound quality on YouTube...

Feature 80s Song of the Week Pt 1 = 'You Belong To The City' by Glenn Frey (1985)

Part 1 of this weeks featured 80's songs goes to American musician/actor/singer/songwriter Glenn Frey, and his 1985 Miami Vice soundtrack song You Belong To The City. This is uber-saxxy 80's hit was featured on the soundtrack to that legendary 80's-undercover cop show Miami Vice,  and it peaked at #2 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart in that year. Glenn Frey was a founding member of The Eagles back in 1971 (along with drummer Don Henley) who broke up in 1980 after having become one of the most successful rock-bands of all time. Frey then went on to start his solo-career at that point. Anyways, check it out...can't you just picture Don Johnson and Phillip Michael Thomas cruising around Miami-beach in a Ferrari at sunset and shooting at bad guys when you hear this song...well if you can't just check out the music video below...

Mentionable 80s Mashups: 'Monster Holiday' by DJ Shyboy (2010)

Today's featured Mentionable 80's Mashup is a little masterpiece called Monster Holiday, by Mashup artist DJ Shyboy. The 80's song is clearly the 1983 Madonna #1 Holiday, and it is of course mashed with the 2009 Lady Gaga song Monster. This is one of my favorite mashups thus far, as it combines the Queen of Pop with her probable successor (could she be dubbed the Princess of Pop, or maybe we could redub Madonna the Empress of Pop?). I reckon these two should tour together or make a collaboration record or something. Chickity check it!

Feature 80's Songs of the Week Part 2 = 'Let's Go' by Wang Chung (1987)

Part 2 of this Week's Featured 80's Songs is none other than Let's Go by British 80's new-wave group Wang Chung. According to wikipedia the name of the band came from the Chinese word Huang Chung which literally means "yellow bell" in Chinese but the band surmised their translation of it as meaning the sound that a guitar made. In fact it wasn't until 1983 that they changed their name from Huang Chung to Wang Chung because apparently english speaking people kept referring to them as Hung Chung.They originally formed in 1979 and consisted of core members Jack Hues (vocals/guitar) (real name is Jeremy Ryder), and bassist Nick Feldman, and like so many other 80's acts they split up in the 90's only to reconvene in the 00's and are still playing concerts to this day. Wang Chung had their greatest musical successes in the US markets, producing 5 top 40 hits there between the years of 1984-87. Let's Go was a single release off of their 1987 Mosaic album, and in April of 1987 it would peak at #9 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart. There may be a part 3 this week if I the DJ feels really inspired, so stay tuned.

#24 of VJ Samsonite's Top 100 80's Dance Hits Countdown: 'She Sells Sanctuary' by The Cult (1985)

Back with the Countdown! And At #24 of VJ Samsonite's Top 100 80's Dance Hits Countdown the song is She Sells Sanctuary by 80's British rock band The Cult. The Cult formed out of Bradford, Yorkshire, England in 1983, and consisted of members Ian Astbury (vocalist) and Billy Duffy (guitar) amongst many others who came and went over the years, but those two are the primary members and incidentally also the song-writers. Ian Astbury was earlier a member of a band called Southern Death Cult in 1981 (named after a Native American site as well as centralization of power in Southern England. Then in 1983 he Billy Duffy joined up and the band was just called Death Cult, and then by 1984 they had changed the name to just The Cult in order to appeal to a broader audience. She Sells Sanctuary is truly a legendary and truly solid 80's rock song that most of you have at least heard, but may not know exactly who it is that performs the song (until now!). It was released in 1985, on their second studio album titled Love where it would then peak at #15 on the UK Singles chart. The album Love itself would reach #4 that year on the UK Albums chart. And there is #24, and we only have 23 left to go, and then what??