Great AM pop tunes

Thought I might provide some more Oz rock and pop links that may appeal. Curious to know if you guys from the US, the UK etc have heard these.

Midnight Oil - Power and the Passion (a hit with a drum solo)

Cold Chisel - Breakfast at Sweethearts (sadly, their excellent drummer, Steve Prestwich, died recently)

Jo Jo Zep - Shape I'm In (lead by songer/songwriter/sax player/guitarist Jo Camilleri)

Richard Clapton - Girls On The Avenue

Hoodoo Gurus - Miss Freelove 69 (I love this band)

Split Enz - My Mistake (New Zealand band)

DD Smash - Whaling (also Kiwis)

The Models - Out of Mind Out of Sight (this was a No 1)

I saw most of these acts at bars and they were all sensational live - without anything more than good lighting and fancy threads.
 
Midnight Oil was huge in the States. In the 1980s, college radio came to popularity as a reaction to the commercialization of AOR. You had alt rock, of which some of the bands you mentioned were a part, Midnight Oil, esp. They had a social message the resonated with college students. Hoodoo Gurus as well. Split Enz had a big hit with I Got You here in the States.
 
Thanks Ken. It's interesting to know who was known abroad and who wasn't. The Oils and Split Enz were much more edgy (as per the clip and posted and the song you mentioned) before they found mainstream success. Hoodoo Gurus were always boppy and infectious.

A lot of Oz bands became increasingly mainstream in time.

Compare early Hunters and Collectors
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZsqeoXiZtk4

with their later smash hit
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4H2Dl4bfySM
 
Band...yes maybe. But this is arguably the greatest album cover in the history of recorded sound.

Haha, Herb Alpert used to apologize that they couldn't play the album cover when introducing that song!
 
DED, "Sonny and Cher was a bit darker" lol - you're skating close to an oxymoron there. I guess I Got You, Babe could be spun as a cautionary tale about ownership within relationships ...

I Got You Babe was a hit in 65.

Their TV career was 71 to 77, with a break for their divorce in 75.

I'm just saying, while being a 4 and 5 year old, I had no idea they were breaking up on screen, I just sensed something wasn't as entertaining as the bubble headed brother-sister duo in that other show.


I am negatively inclined towards the O-Negative version
.
Well, if it doesn't offend someone, it's not rock-n-roll, right?

Judging by the amount of underwear allegedly thrown on stage I'd say a lot of (older) women would like Barry Manilow to bite them :)

I was going to say, as far as I know, Manilow attracts a primarily female fan base. I'm not the demographic his music is aimed at. haha.
 
I Got You Babe was a hit in 65.

Their TV career was 71 to 77, with a break for their divorce in 75.

I'm just saying, while being a 4 and 5 year old, I had no idea they were breaking up on screen, I just sensed something wasn't as entertaining as the bubble headed brother-sister duo in that other show.

I remember she would continually put him down towards the end, with the caveat "well you're short" always available.


I was going to say, as far as I know, Manilow attracts a primarily female fan base. I'm not the demographic his music is aimed at. haha.

I had a HS music teacher who was a big Manilow fan and we had to listen to it during down time for hell week. You lose a lot of respect for your music teacher when he's a fanilow.
 
California Dreaming - The Mamas and Pappas (i think)

Yes, that is who it is by.

I wouldn't consider it a generic pop-tune though. It was dark song, and the Mamas and Pappas were attempting to be a rebellious cutting edge folk-rock band, rather than going for slick bubble gum pop sound.

Although the song has become so mainstream, especially with the 101 cover versions, it has become a pop staple.
 
Also remember in the year 2525(forgot who sings it ) and another song I used to love but I cannot recall much about, If anyone can get the name and artist I will send them a hardly used air drumming kit...
Zager and Evans

I've got my own air drumming kit though.
 
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