Raised on Radio #33- Real Life
Oct. 15th, 2013 07:02 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
bedsitter23One of my favorite songs growing up was Real Life's "Send me an Angel". It went to #29 in 1983.
The song is a perfect 1980s hit- new wave but with enough guitar that it went down well with rock ears. The song is just poppy enough and goth-y enough, that it is a real wonder nobody ever made a contemporary cover hit out of it.
The band did re-release it in 1989 and it went to #26 then. Nostalgia for that early 80s music was already kicking in, and so it was little surprise to see Modern English re-record "I Melt With you" (having slightly better success with it in 1990) and New Order re-releasing "Blue Monday" (finally breaking into the Top 100 on the second go-round in 1988).
I bought the 45 in 1989. In those years, one of my favorite things was running to the local music instrument store which sold 45s for a dollar apiece. Yes, records were on the way out, but that didn't stop my enjoyment whatsoever. I still vividly remember buying some great songs (Cult's "Fire Woman", the Cure's "Fascination Street", Edie Brickell's "What I am", and Was(Not Was)'s "Spy in the House of Love" to name a few faves).
Anyway, I never really heard anyone talk about Real Life outside of the single. Reading on the internet, the corresponding album Heartland is supposed to be very good. Still, I don't know anyone who had the album and don't really remember talking about the band (and to put it in context, someone always had the album, no matter how one hit wonders anyone was - Falco, Peter Schilling,Frankie Goes to Hollywood-someone owned it, or it at least was prominently displayed on the shlf -like Murray head's Chess soundtrack),
Still, if you're going to have one hit, it is hard to top this.
The song is a perfect 1980s hit- new wave but with enough guitar that it went down well with rock ears. The song is just poppy enough and goth-y enough, that it is a real wonder nobody ever made a contemporary cover hit out of it.
The band did re-release it in 1989 and it went to #26 then. Nostalgia for that early 80s music was already kicking in, and so it was little surprise to see Modern English re-record "I Melt With you" (having slightly better success with it in 1990) and New Order re-releasing "Blue Monday" (finally breaking into the Top 100 on the second go-round in 1988).
I bought the 45 in 1989. In those years, one of my favorite things was running to the local music instrument store which sold 45s for a dollar apiece. Yes, records were on the way out, but that didn't stop my enjoyment whatsoever. I still vividly remember buying some great songs (Cult's "Fire Woman", the Cure's "Fascination Street", Edie Brickell's "What I am", and Was(Not Was)'s "Spy in the House of Love" to name a few faves).
Anyway, I never really heard anyone talk about Real Life outside of the single. Reading on the internet, the corresponding album Heartland is supposed to be very good. Still, I don't know anyone who had the album and don't really remember talking about the band (and to put it in context, someone always had the album, no matter how one hit wonders anyone was - Falco, Peter Schilling,Frankie Goes to Hollywood-someone owned it, or it at least was prominently displayed on the shlf -like Murray head's Chess soundtrack),
Still, if you're going to have one hit, it is hard to top this.
